Bast (/bæst/)
Bast (a.k.a. The Lady of the East, the Female Devourer, the Tearer)
Description
Sharess was often depicted as a beautiful, voluptuous woman with the head of a cat, especially in Mulhorand. She was constantly grooming herself to ensure her appearance was always up to standards.Appearance, Manifestations
Bast appears as a dark-skinned Human woman with the head of a cat, though she can use her Shift Form ability to appear as any feline of any size. Bast typically carries an ancient percussion instrument, the sistrum, in her right hand; a so-called aegis, or breastplate (surmounted with the head of a lioness), in her left hand; and a small bag over her left arm. She also wears an elaborately ornamented dress.Personality
Sharess was an innate flirt and loved toying around with beautiful mortals; once she had her fill, she swiftly moved on to other sources of pleasure.Relationships
As Bast, she opposed the evil Set along with the other good-aligned gods of that nation. She had a close relationship with Nobanion, who shared her interest in felines, though Sharess did as much to annoy him as she did to entice him. She also had a romantic relationship with Anhur, though their opinion of each other varied wildly from absolute love to indifference depending on how many fights they had. As Sharess, she was an ally of Selûne, Sune, Milil, Hanali Celanil, and Lliira, and she opposed both Loviatar and Shar, the latter of which never forgot that Sharess escaped from her clutches.History
Sharess was originally known as Bast, a Mulhorandi power who was the patroness of cats, and Anhur's lieutenant. During the Second Mulhorandi Empire (beginning −1048 DR), she subsumed the portfolio of Felidae, a beast cult deity of felines, nomads, and sensual pleasure. Struck by wanderlust, Bast traveled across Faerûn leaving many cults in her wake. During these travels, she also subsumed the divinity of Zandilar the Dancer, a goddess of the Yuir elves, gaining that goddess' portfolio of intense passionate love. After Myth Drannor fell, she began to experiment with the darker side of pleasure and fell under the sway of Shar, and became known as Sharess. During the Time of Troubles, Sune freed Sharess from Shar's influence, when the latter tried to assassinate Sharess, as she had Ibrandul due to her reluctance to be completely dominated by the goddess of shadow. Sune doused Sharess with a chalice filled with waters from Arvandor's Evergold that restored Sharess' beauty and willpower, giving her the will and the edge to rebel against her mistress. After that, Sharess spent much of her time in Arvandor, frolicking and pursuing pleasure in all of its forms, despite the warnings of her deific allies and the offers made by Shar, and guarding herself from Loviatar. After the Spellplague of 1385 DR, Sharess became an exarch of her ally Sune. However, she lost many of her temples and public veneration during the Second Sundering. After the Mulhorandi rebellion of 1486 DR, she gained many mulhorandi followers, who began to worship her as Bast once more.Divine Domains
Her main domain was War, but she was also for the domains of Chaos, Destruction, Protection, and Strength. Her portfolios were Cats, vengeance, protection, and punishment
God of war, vengeance, and cats
Worshipers Alignment: CG (NG, CN)
Domain: War (Chaos, Destruction, Protection, Strength)
Portfolio: Cats, vengeance, protection, and punishment
Worshipers: Mothers, defenders, fighters, barbarians, rangers, rogues, elves, half-orcs
Artifacts
Bast's Brass Orb, an object she gave to Sas W.T. Rayce with a purpose.
Holy Books & Codes
Worshipers
Church of Sharess
The Church of Sharess was of casual nature, and her clergy were responsible for the running of many festhalls found throughout large cities in Faerûn. These festhalls sought to indulge every pleasure imaginable. Privately owned festhalls usually employed at least one or two Sharessan clerics. The Church of Sharess probably celebrated the most festivals out of all the faiths of Faerûn. These revels were known collectively as the Endless Revels of Life. Even daily events, such as the rising and setting of the sun, presented a chance for Sharessans to revel. Their most beloved festival was the Midsummer's Eve festival, where the pursuit of pleasure had no boundary. Sharessan clerics prayed for their spells at dusk.Affiliated Orders
Sharess didn't have any orders as such, but a group of werecats devoted to both her and Selûne, and calling themselves the Eyes of the Evening, hunted down Sharran cultists on nights of the full moon.Worshipers, Clergy & Temples
Bast's clerics wear white robes and, if they are male, shave their heads. Clerics of Bast are charged to remain constantly vigilant against the forces of evil, as a cat watches for vermin invading the home. They often serve as the voice of the common people among the Pharaonic clergy. Most of Bast's clerics are female. Due to her influence, cats hold a special revered place in Pharaonic culture, and mistreating a cat invites the wrath of Bast on the perpetrator.Vestments
Priests of Bast wear their hair long and style it to show off their faces and bodies to their best advantage. Priestess' wear diaphanous negligees, short vests, sheer pantaloons, gold dust, and endless gemstone beads and coins strung in ropes and made into decorative chains and fringes. Male clergy typically prefer tight-fitting breeches that are tailored to their charms and open shirts. They often wear decorative belts and vests.Temples
Bast's temples follow the general layout of most Pharaonic temples. Bast is also revered at countless small shrines and household altars.Tenets of Faith
Dogma
Bast is a chaotic, often whimsical deity who demands no rigid adherence to principles of faith. In general, she promotes life and liberty, asserting the value of mortal life, things of beauty, and freedom from oppressive regulation. Bast hates evil, particularly Apep and his followers.Deity
Bast is a dark-skinned human woman with the head of a black cat wearing an elaborately ornamented dress. She carries a sistrum, an ancient percussion instrument, in her right hand, and an aegis, or breastplate (surmounted with the head of a lioness), in her left hand.Temple
Bast's temple is a sandstone block structure, with a large central open chancel. The main chamber has rows of sandstone benches, all leading to a central altar. The walls all have torch sconces, with thin window slits. The floors are sandstone blocks, but are still covered with sands.Cleric
Bast's priestess is wearing a diaphanous negligees, a short black dress, and sheer pantaloons, all with endless gemstone beads and coins strung into the fringes.
also known as Bastet, Best or Beset, is a cat-headed deity whose portfolio includes protection (as a mother protects her children), punishment of wrongdoers, and cats
Character Location
Bast, also known as Bastet, Best or Beset, is a cat-headed deity whose portfolio includes protection (as a mother protects her children), punishment of wrongdoers, and cats. Bast is a wild deity. To those she favors she gives great blessings, but when she is angry her wrath knows no bounds. She is a fierce enemy of Apep and Set.
She is known in the Faerûn pantheon as Sharess.
Divine Classification
Demigod
Religions
Current Location
Species
Conditions
Ethnicity
Realm
Church/Cult
Family
Children
Belief/Deity
Bast
Aligned Organization
Other Affiliations
Related Reports
- Session 00: Backstories Report - SaS W.T. Rayce
- Session 03: Sahuagin Threat Report
- Session 16: A New Member, A New Quest Report
- Session 26: The Ziggurat of Tharizdun Report
- Session 30: The Siblings Affair Report
- Session 49: Back to the Beholder Report
- Session 52: Downtime in Skola Vale Surprises Report
- Session 53: Lord & Lady Ceremony Report
- Session 54: The Party Takes to the Sky Report
- Session 55: The Siren's Call Report
- Session 56: Encounters at Seeing Air Report
- Session 58: Kobolds and Conspiracies Report
- Session 60: Was It Ursa the Whole Time? Report
- Session 64: Fighting Pollution Report
- Session 66: A Wizard and His Spellweavers Report
- Session 67: The Wizard's Cellar Report
- Session 68: Unexpected Side Mission in Eberron Report
- Session 69: The Mark of the Adventurer Report
- Session 70: Exploding Fire Skeletons Report
- Session Notes Summary
5E Statistics
Bast (aka Sharess)
| Title(s) | The Dancing Lady Patroness of Festhalls The Festhall Madam The Lustful Mistress The Tawny Temptress Succubus of Sensation Mother of Cats Feline of Felicity Foe of Set The Lady of the East The Female Devourer The Tearer |
| Aspects/Aliases | Bast Bastet Felidae Sharess Zandilar the Dancer |
5th Edition Statistics
| Power Level | Demigod (Lesser Diety) |
| Alignment | Chaotic Good |
| Worshipers | Chaotic Good (Neutral Good, Chaotic Neutral) Mothers, defenders, fighters, barbarians, rangers, rogues, elves, half-orcs |
| Symbol | Cat |
| Portfolio | Cats, vengeance |
| Domain(s) | War (Chaos, Destruction, Protection, Strength) |
| Channel Divinity | Guided strike War god's blessing |
| Plane | The Solar Barge (Mount Bakhau) War god's blessing |
| Weapony | Tiger claws |