Abbathor
Encyclopedia
In many campaign setting
s for the Dungeons & Dragons
role-playing game
, Abbathor (AB-ba-thor) is the dwarven
deity of greed. His holy symbol is a jeweled dagger.
's article "The Dwarven Point of View," in Dragon
#58 (TSR, 1982). In Dragon #92 (December 1984), Gary Gygax
indicated this as one of the deities legal for the Greyhawk
setting. He also appeared in the original Unearthed Arcana
(1985).
Abbathor was first detailed as part of the dwarven pantheon in the Forgotten Realms
in Dwarves Deep
(1990). He was detailed in the book Monster Mythology
(1992), including details about his priesthood. His role in the cosmology of the Planescape
campaign setting was described in On Hallowed Ground
(1996). He received a very detailed description for his role in the Forgotten Realms
in Demihuman Deities
(1998).
Abbathor's role in the Forgotten Realms is revisited in Faiths and Pantheons
(2002). His priesthood is detailed for 3rd edition in Complete Divine
(2004).
s, the Morndinsamman, the dwarven pantheon of gods, consists of the leader Moradin
, as well as Abbathor, Berronar Truesilver
, Clanggedin Silverbeard
, Dugmaren Brightmantle
, Dumathoin
, Muamman Duathal
, and Vergadain
. Of all the dwarven deities, Abbathor gets along best with Vergadain, with whom he sometimes travels. Other dwarven gods may be present in different campaign settings.
Although he is the only evil power among the Morndinsamman, he is tolerated by the other dwarven gods because he has sided with them whenever a threat appeared from outside. Abbathor may be untrustworthy and the embodiment of all dwarven qualities the other gods would rather avoid, but in the end he's still a dwarf, and both they and Abbathor believe in sticking together. "Greed is good, but do not seize wealth from the children of the Morndinsamman," Abbathor teaches, "for strife in the name of avarice weakens the clan."
is known as the Glitterhell. It's a place of great natural beauty, if you like gold and gems. The true location of the Glitterhell is unknown, and Abbathor maintains several false locations of his realm to throw off the greedy men and dwarves who are always attempting to steal his gold.
was looted by Arnon Orberend.
to trick Dunforth into gambling his beard away. Shamed as only a beardless dwarf can be, Dunforth tried to redeem himself by single-handedly exterminating an orc
village. Though he slew thirty of his foes, the overwhelming number of orcs eventually felled the armorless Dunforth, and the beard shirt remains as part of Abbathor's hoard.
Campaign setting
A campaign setting is usually a fictional world which serves as a setting for a role-playing game or wargame campaign. A campaign is a series of individual adventures, and a campaign setting is the world in which such adventures and campaigns take place...
s for the Dungeons & Dragons
Dungeons & Dragons
Dungeons & Dragons is a fantasy role-playing game originally designed by Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson, and first published in 1974 by Tactical Studies Rules, Inc. . The game has been published by Wizards of the Coast since 1997...
role-playing game
Role-playing game
A role-playing game is a game in which players assume the roles of characters in a fictional setting. Players take responsibility for acting out these roles within a narrative, either through literal acting, or through a process of structured decision-making or character development...
, Abbathor (AB-ba-thor) is the dwarven
Dwarf (Dungeons & Dragons)
In the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy roleplaying game, dwarves are a humanoid race, one of the primary races available for play as player characters...
deity of greed. His holy symbol is a jeweled dagger.
Publication history
Abbathor was first detailed in Roger E. MooreRoger E. Moore
Roger E. Moore is a designer of role-playing games. He is best known for his long-running tenure as editor of Dragon magazine, and was the founding editor of Dungeon magazine.-Early life:...
's article "The Dwarven Point of View," in Dragon
Dragon (magazine)
Dragon is one of the two official magazines for source material for the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game and associated products, the other being Dungeon. TSR, Inc. originally launched the monthly printed magazine in 1976 to succeed the company's earlier publication, The Strategic Review. The...
#58 (TSR, 1982). In Dragon #92 (December 1984), Gary Gygax
Gary Gygax
Ernest Gary Gygax was an American writer and game designer best known for co-creating the pioneering role-playing game Dungeons & Dragons with Dave Arneson. Gygax is generally acknowledged as the father of role-playing games....
indicated this as one of the deities legal for the Greyhawk
Greyhawk
Greyhawk, also known as the World of Greyhawk, is a fictional world designed as a campaign setting for the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy roleplaying game...
setting. He also appeared in the original Unearthed Arcana
Unearthed Arcana
Unearthed Arcana is the title shared by two hardback books published for different editions of the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game...
(1985).
Abbathor was first detailed as part of the dwarven pantheon in the Forgotten Realms
Forgotten Realms
The Forgotten Realms is a campaign setting for the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game. Commonly referred to by players and game designers alike as "The Realms", it was created by game designer Ed Greenwood around 1967 as a setting for his childhood stories...
in Dwarves Deep
Dwarves Deep
Dwarves Deep is an accessory for the fictional Forgotten Realms campaign setting for the second edition of the Advanced Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game...
(1990). He was detailed in the book Monster Mythology
Monster Mythology
Monster Mythology is a sourcebook for the second edition of the Dungeons & Dragons roleplaying game. Released by TSR in 1992 and written by Carl Sargent, with interior illustrations by Terry Dykstra, John and Laura Lakey, and Keith Parkinson, Monster Mythology was released as a companion volume for...
(1992), including details about his priesthood. His role in the cosmology of the Planescape
Planescape
Planescape is a campaign setting for the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game, originally designed by Zeb Cook. The Planescape setting was published in 1994...
campaign setting was described in On Hallowed Ground
On Hallowed Ground
On Hallowed Ground is an accessory book for the Advanced Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game, for the Planescape campaign setting.-Contents:This book contains information about deities' planar domains from 20 separate pantheons...
(1996). He received a very detailed description for his role in the Forgotten Realms
Forgotten Realms
The Forgotten Realms is a campaign setting for the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game. Commonly referred to by players and game designers alike as "The Realms", it was created by game designer Ed Greenwood around 1967 as a setting for his childhood stories...
in Demihuman Deities
Demihuman Deities
Demihuman Deities is a Dungeons & Dragons 2nd edition: Forgotten Realms campaign accessory, published by Wizards of the Coast. The book was designed by Eric L. Boyd...
(1998).
Abbathor's role in the Forgotten Realms is revisited in Faiths and Pantheons
Faiths and Pantheons
Faiths and Pantheons is a campaign accessory for the 3rd edition of the Dungeons & Dragons, for the Forgotten Realms campaign setting.-Contents:...
(2002). His priesthood is detailed for 3rd edition in Complete Divine
Complete Divine
Complete Divine is a supplemental rulebook for the 3.5 edition of the Dungeons and Dragons fantasy role-playing game published by Wizards of the Coast...
(2004).
Appearance
Abbathor manifests as a very large dwarf, fat and piggy-eyed. He wears leather and furs made from those non-dwarves who have opposed him in the past.Relationships
In many campaign settingCampaign setting
A campaign setting is usually a fictional world which serves as a setting for a role-playing game or wargame campaign. A campaign is a series of individual adventures, and a campaign setting is the world in which such adventures and campaigns take place...
s, the Morndinsamman, the dwarven pantheon of gods, consists of the leader Moradin
Moradin
Moradin is the chief deity in the dwarven pantheon in the Dungeons & Dragons game and is a member of the default D&D pantheon. Moradin's domains are Creation, Earth, Good, Law, and Protection. His titles include Soul Forger, Dwarffather, the All-Father, and the Creator...
, as well as Abbathor, Berronar Truesilver
Berronar Truesilver
In many campaign settings for the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game, Berronar Truesilver is the dwarf goddess of Safety, Truth, Home, and Healing.-Publication history:...
, Clanggedin Silverbeard
Clanggedin Silverbeard
In many campaign settings for the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game, Clanggedin Silverbeard is the dwarf deity of battle. He is a member of the dwarven pantheon. He is called the Father of Battle, and his area of influence is war, especially as a way of life...
, Dugmaren Brightmantle
Dugmaren Brightmantle
In many campaign settings for the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game, Dugmaren Brightmantle is the dwarf deity of scholarship, discovery, and invention...
, Dumathoin
Dumathoin
In many campaign settings for the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game, Dumathoin is the patron of mountain dwarves, and the dwarf deity of mining and underground exploration. He is also the protector of the dwarven dead. His holy symbol is a cut, faceted gem inside of a mountain.-Publication...
, Muamman Duathal
Muamman Duathal
In many campaign settings for the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game, Muamman Duathal is the dwarf deity of wanderers and expatriates. He is also the dwarven god of lightning, which he uses as an omen...
, and Vergadain
Vergadain
In many campaign settings for the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game, Vergadain is the dwarf deity of Wealth and Luck. Vergadain's titles "the Trickster" and "the Laughing Dwarf" are not used by his worshippers. His holy symbol is a circular gold coin. These coins must be acquired in payment for...
. Of all the dwarven deities, Abbathor gets along best with Vergadain, with whom he sometimes travels. Other dwarven gods may be present in different campaign settings.
Although he is the only evil power among the Morndinsamman, he is tolerated by the other dwarven gods because he has sided with them whenever a threat appeared from outside. Abbathor may be untrustworthy and the embodiment of all dwarven qualities the other gods would rather avoid, but in the end he's still a dwarf, and both they and Abbathor believe in sticking together. "Greed is good, but do not seize wealth from the children of the Morndinsamman," Abbathor teaches, "for strife in the name of avarice weakens the clan."
Realm
Abbathor's realm in the Gray WasteGray Waste
In the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game, the Gray Waste is a strongly evil aligned plane of existence...
is known as the Glitterhell. It's a place of great natural beauty, if you like gold and gems. The true location of the Glitterhell is unknown, and Abbathor maintains several false locations of his realm to throw off the greedy men and dwarves who are always attempting to steal his gold.
Holy days and rituals
Abbathor's holy days are on the solar eclipse, and he demands the sacrifice of both blood and gems annually.Temples
A long-abandoned temple to Abbathor in the YatilsYatil Mountains
In the World of Greyhawk campaign setting for the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game, the Yatil Mountains are a mountain chain located in the western part of the Flanaess.-Ecology:...
was looted by Arnon Orberend.
Envy and avarice
Originally, Abbathor was god of the beauty of gems and minerals, but he fell into a rivalry with his brother Dumathoin over who would be the patron of the mountain dwarves. When Moradin named Dumathoin, Abbathor became twisted with disappointment, vowing that from that point on, whenever he desired something he would take it.The beard shirt of Dunforth
The legendary dwarf hero Dunforth wove his beard into a shirt, forsaking all other forms of armor. The dwarven god of battle, Clangeddin Silverbeard, was so impressed by this gesture that he invested Dunforth's beard with power, making it strong as chain mail. Abbathor conspired with VergadainVergadain
In many campaign settings for the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game, Vergadain is the dwarf deity of Wealth and Luck. Vergadain's titles "the Trickster" and "the Laughing Dwarf" are not used by his worshippers. His holy symbol is a circular gold coin. These coins must be acquired in payment for...
to trick Dunforth into gambling his beard away. Shamed as only a beardless dwarf can be, Dunforth tried to redeem himself by single-handedly exterminating an orc
Orc
An orc is one of a race of mythical human-like creatures, generally described as fierce and combative, with grotesque features and often black, grey or greenish skin. This mythology has its origins in the writings of J. R. R. Tolkien....
village. Though he slew thirty of his foes, the overwhelming number of orcs eventually felled the armorless Dunforth, and the beard shirt remains as part of Abbathor's hoard.
Additional reading
- Conforti, Steven, ed. Living Greyhawk Official Listing of Deities for Use in the Campaign, version 2.0. Renton, WA: Wizards of the Coast, 2005. Available online: http://www.wizards.com/rpga/downloads/LG_Deities.zip
- Olsen, John. "Worth its weight in gold." DragonDragon (magazine)Dragon is one of the two official magazines for source material for the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game and associated products, the other being Dungeon. TSR, Inc. originally launched the monthly printed magazine in 1976 to succeed the company's earlier publication, The Strategic Review. The...
#109. Lake Geneva, WI: TSR, 1986. - Oppen, Eric. "The Folk of the Underworld." DragonDragon (magazine)Dragon is one of the two official magazines for source material for the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game and associated products, the other being Dungeon. TSR, Inc. originally launched the monthly printed magazine in 1976 to succeed the company's earlier publication, The Strategic Review. The...
#131. Lake Geneva, WI: TSR, 1988. - "Servants of the Jeweled Dagger." DragonDragon (magazine)Dragon is one of the two official magazines for source material for the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game and associated products, the other being Dungeon. TSR, Inc. originally launched the monthly printed magazine in 1976 to succeed the company's earlier publication, The Strategic Review. The...
#152. Lake Geneva, WI: TSR, 1989.