Haela Brightaxe
Goddess of luck in battle (a.k.a. Lady of the Fray, the Luckmaiden)
Haela Brightaxe (pronounced: /ˈheɪlɑː/ HAY-la) was a dwarven demigoddess of battle and luck, one in spirit with goodly dwarves who loved to fight and who lived to cleanse Toril of evil monsters. As a goddess of chance, the Luckmaiden took great risks in the battles she fought without hesitation, and when the hearts of dwarves joyfully sung with the fight's thrumming thrill, the Lady of the Fray gave a triumphant huzzah of support.
Divine Domains
War, Luck, Zeal
Divine Symbols & Sigils
Tenets of Faith
It was the teachings of Haela that freedom and validation could be found in the exhilarating nature of battle, and to rejoice in the power of one's swing, the sound of smiting worthy foes, and the challenge of the fray. Haelan clerics fought monsters whenever they could find them, either to destroy the evil beast, or just for the thrill of battle, though a noble, honorable foe would be shown mercy if asked. Priests and priestesses aided dwarves by traveling Faerun looking for conflict, wandering since there was no way to know when or where they would be needed. They relied on the Luckmaiden to guide them where they needed to be, and trusted her to see that they made it through the battle regardless of the apparent strength or numbers of the enemies they were cutting down. Those that believed in her benevolence would be blessed, and the besieged and beleaguered dwarves would always be saved through her by her faithful.
Haela's followers aided hard-pressed dwarves, as well as their known allies and companions, not only by fighting alongside them, but also by healing them and casting certain spells. Senior priests made use of their monster hunting experience by sharing great amounts of information regarding the tactics, secrets, habits, lairs, and weaknesses of specific creatures with their juniors and others who asked. Their goal was to ensure dwarven victory with minimal losses, and they wished to make all dwarves comfortable with their own combat skills, believing as they did that the survival of the dwarves would be dependent on their battle prowess.
Worshipers
Dwarves of all moral and ethical alignments venerated Haela the Hard, but the active worship of the Luckmaiden was seen in particular types of dwarves. Battle-loving dwarves that wandered the surface and had to face monsters and unknown dangers, particularly in the North, turned to the Lady of the Fray. Her active followers often exhibited berserker tendencies.
Haelan clerics were called the kaxanar, which could be loosely translated as "bloodmaidens". The vast majority of her clergy (85%) were female, and before the Time of Troubles they were entirely so, though the male members didn't seem to have a problem with the feminine title, difficult as it was to try and emasculate a raging warpriest painted in a fresh coat of blood.
Haela was particularly well regarded by shield dwarves, who made up 70% of her clergy, particularly those that wandered. Her cult among the younger gold dwarves of South Faerûn (that made up about 28% of her clergy) had been growing steadily, as both males and females among them were favorably disposed towards her love of unrestrained fighting, they themselves enjoying nothing more than a good battle against their old Underdark foes. Ironically, the other two percent of her clergy was primarily made up of the brutal duergar.
Rituals
Kaxanar prayed for spells in the morning, a ritual accompanied by the tracing of elaborate scars on their forearms that had originally been ritually carved there upon initiation into the order. Most scars were accepted geometric patterns, but a few iconoclasts among the "free-thinking" order used their initiation to carve profanities or lewdness into their skin. On each of the faith's holy days, the devout were expected to offer several drops of their own blood, as well as the blood of dwarven enemies, proportional to the follower's capabilities. Only one drop of blood per defeated enemy was allowed as sacrifice.
Physical Description
General Physical Condition
Haela often appeared in a spectacular, albeit harmless, burst of sudden blue-white flames as a 6 ft (1.8 m) tall, heavily muscled female dwarf. Sometimes she was armored in fine dwarven scale mail or plate mail and at others she was clad only in her silver hair, a long, flowing mane and beard.
Specialized Equipment
Haela's typical weapon of choice was Flamebolt, a two-handed sword oversized for her height always encircled by tongues of spiraling, but harmless, flames when she fought. The sword couldn't hurt her, and she often hurled it into the air only to catch it by the blade, vaulted upwards to a high ledge or balcony with a hand upon its edge, or exuberantly slid down the sword itself. She could cause the sword to vanish or reappear in an instant, although it required a few dozen seconds to manifest after being sent away and vice versa.
Every ten minutes or so, Haela could also call upon her titular Brightaxe, a shining throwing axe of silver as tall as a man. Within a minute, the axe would suddenly appear in midair before spending the next flashing through the air according to Haela's will, although she couldn't use any other magical powers during either length of time. The axe flew up to 140 ft (43 m), assuredly injuring whatever it struck and, if mortal, leaving the targets stunned and thus incapable of performing any voluntary actions, including spellcasting or activating magic.
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