Selûne Character in Faerûn | World Anvil

Selûne

Selûne is the Faerûnian goddess of the moon, stars, navigation, lycanthropes, and motherhood. She shares her name with the moon of Toril, though it is unclear which name came first. Her main worshippers are human women, but also has followers among females of other races, navigators, sailors, wanderers, night workers, good lycanthropes, and anyone seeking protection in the dark. Her greatest enemy is her sister Shar, and the two have been fighting since creation.

Mental characteristics

Personal history

Selûne is believed by many to be one of the two oldest deities of Realmspace, along with her sister Shar. They were the first deities to exist after Ao the Overgod created Realmspace itself, and they existed in a space of raw essence. They both created the astral bodies, fighting between each other, before creating the world of Abeir-Toril and the goddess Chauntea. During their battles, other deities were created as well. Mystryl, goddess of magic, was created when Selûne tore out some of her own divine essence to attack Shar with, and the essences merged. Mystryl was able to negotiate an uneasy truce between the two, and their conflict ended for now. Selûne had been severely wounded in the battle, and her power would wax and wane with time, according to the moon.

Eventually, the primordials invaded Realmspace to seize its worlds. Selûne and Shar temporarily put aside their differences to defend the crystal sphere from the invaders. This became known as the Dawn War, and many other deities were either created during this time or arrived from other crystal spheres or planes. The Dawn War eventually entered the Blue Age, when Abeir-Toril was covered in a vast ocean. This age ended when the primordial Dendar the Night Serpent devoured the sun, plunging realmspace into darkness and causing most life to go extinct. The war ended when a primordial, Ubtao, defected to the side of the gods, allowing them to kill or imprison the rest. With the war over, the gods recreated the sun and life returned to Abeir-Toril, beginning the Days of Thunder.

Selûne was a member of the Netherese panthon, and has been worshipped by humans for thousands of years. During Karsus' Folly, it is believed that Selûne was able to save one of the cities of Netheril by transporting it to her realm, the Gates of the Moon. Selûne was involved in Lathander's ill-fated attempt to reshape the pantheon that became the Dawn Cataclysm. After Tyche, the goddess of luck, was corrupted by Moander, the god of decay, Selûne, Lathander, and Azuth met with her. Upon seeing the rot in Tyche, Selûne attempted to purify her with a bolt of light. Instead, Tyche was struck down, and two new goddesses emerged: Tymora, goddess of good fortunte, and Beshaba, goddess of ill fortune. In a reflection of Selûne and Shar, Tymora and Beshaba immediately began fighting, but were kept apart by Selûne.

The goddess of the moon has been known, before the Time of Troubles, to wander Toril as a mortal in the form of an avatar. In one story, Selûne traveled with a mysterious warrior, who she helped reach Toril. Upon arriving, the warrior and his men revealed themselves to be disguised monsters. Selûne was captured, but a young wizard freed her, and the two of them imprisoned the monsters in a moonstone. The story has various endings, including Selûne learning her lesson and returning to the Gates of the Moon with the wizard; dying due to the sacrifice of imprisoning the monsters; or falling in love with the wizard, but being rejected as she had aged thousands of years during the imprisonment. Regardless of the version of the story, it, and others like it, paint a picture of Selûne often travelling about Toril before the 14th century DR.

In 1358 DR, Ao the Overgod cast all of the Faerûnian pantheon down, forcing them to walk Toril as mortals. As Selûne was already doing that, it was of little consequence to her. However, an avatar of Selûne appeared in the city of Waterdeep, managing to capture the true Selûne and convince the Selûnite faithful that the false avatar was the real one. This was, in fact, Shar in disguise as her sister. The true Selûne's allies were able to rescue her from captivity, and the two mortal goddesses fought in a famous battle over the streets of Waterdeep. Shar was defeated but not slain, vanishing without a trace. Following the Godswar, Selûne formed an alliance with the new Mystra to defend each other against the machinations of Shar.

During the Spellplague, the followers of Selûne announced that the goddess wished to aid the newly-arrived dragonborn settle on Toril. Selûne herself was mostly unaffected by the disaster, maintaining her position in the pantheon. She was similarly unaffected by the Second Sundering, and is now one of the most worshipped gods in Faerûn.
Divine Classification
Greater Deity
Alignment
Chaotic Good
Honorary & Occupational Titles
Our Lady of Silver
The Moonmaiden
The Night White Lady
Children
Presentation
Feminine
Domains
Knowledge, Life, Twilight

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