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Boccob
Boccob
Holy Symbol of Boccob
Vital statistics
Titles The Uncaring, the Lord of All Magic, the Archmage of the Deities
Symbol Eye in Pentagram
Home Plane Concordant Domain of the Outlands
Power Level Greater
Alignment True Neutral
Portfolio Magic, arcane knowledge, balance, foresight
Domains Magic, Knowledge, Mind, Oracle, Trickery

Boccob is usually portrayed as a middle aged man with white hair who wears purple robes decorated with golden runes. He is described as carrying the very first staff of the magi with him at all times. In addition, he knows every spell ever created and can travel to any time and dimension. He is the possessor of the only magical library that contains a copy of every potion, spell, and magic item in existence.

Background[]

Boccob the Uncaring seems not to care whether any worship or serve him, and sages have postulated that his power is linked directly to the strength of magic. Nevertheless, the Archimage has a small number of worshippers spread throughout the worlds, with a handful of adherents in most major cities and some towns and villages. Boccob is primarily revered by sages, but he is also entreated for omens by seers and diviners and those who seek new magics often ask his aid. The Archimage of the Gods is venerated by most of the human races of the worlds, outside of enclaves of pure Suel stock where the faith of Wee Jas is typically pre-eminent. Some believe he was the first human wizard of Oerik countless millennia ago.

Boccob rarely has any desire to interfere with events occurring upon the Prime Material. He is the least interested of the core deities, having no agenda to push, unlike others such as Wee Jas, Heironeous or Vecna.

Strategy[]

Boccob's dogma emphasises neutrality above good, evil, law or chaos, and holds magic to be the most important thing that there is. Boccob teaches that magic is the most important force in the cosmos, and that balance between Law and Chaos, and between Good and Evil, should be preserved. Magic, according to Boccobite dogma, is an energy source of finite extant, and may eventually wane. Boccob promotes the research and creation of new spells and magical items, under the theory that this increases the amount of magic available to everyone.

Roleplaying[]

Briefly state the main roleplaying method for this God. This should include more indepth information specific to roleplaying within the NWN persistent world. Are there any items in the standard toolset (or the CEP/etc) that would be suitable for roleplaying this character (e.g. flags, banners, etc). Are there any important things to consider when entering combat? Are there any forbidden weapons that the character must never use? Are there any special rituals or procedures to follow before/during/after combat?

Interactions with the Deity's Avatar[]

What is the form of the Deity's avatar? Give suggestions for a character's reactions to seeing this avatar (whether they are worshippers of this Deity or not). When conversing with the avatar, is there any points to remember? Does the avatar try to fool the character? Could the character use any tactics to further their cause?

Roleplaying as the Deity's Avatar[]

Boccob rarely appears in avatar form, preferring to employ his servant Zagyg the Mad. When the Lord of All Magics does manifest, he commonly appears as a nimbus of flickering, purple light which envelops a magical item or a spellcaster in an effect similar to faerie fire. Magical items enveloped in Boccob's aura undergo the effects of a purification spell. Boccob is served by crystalmists, golems, dragons, pseudodragons, will o'wisps, and wizshades. The discovery of unique flowers or roses of unusual hue is considered a sign of his favor, as is the discovery of dweornite gems and other magical jewels. The arrival of a disenchanter, hakeashar, laraken, or nishruu is considered a manifestation of his wrath.

Using the Deity in your Character Background[]

There are several ways to incorporate Boccob into your character. Wizards and Priests would be good classes to choose if you wished to include Boccob into their makeup. Any character following Boccob (either as a cleric or worshipper) would have some thirst for knowledge and a strong desire to acquire new items of arcane power. Some suggestions and ideas follow:

  • The misadventure: As a child, you often helped your father catalogue tomes in the temple's library. You father was a devout follower of Boccob and taught you a great deal about him. The town where you lived had only a few followers of your God but the local inhabitants didn't object to those that did for they enjoyed the magical displays the priests from the temple made twice a year. During these displays, other clerics of Boccob would travel to share new found spells and formulae. They often spent good coin in the local markets which only added to the happiness of the area. When you were approaching adulthood, you set out with a small group of priests who wished to found a new temple. The journey lasted for days but one night you fell asleep while on watch and a band of unknown people stole into the camp, took everything of value (including a large collection of archane items) and slit the throats of all that were there. You were spared because they were not allowed to kill children according to their own beliefs. You walked for days until you came across a merchant wagon who brought you to the town where you are now.
  • More to come (or add your own ideas)

Tips for Clerics and Paladins[]

Priests of Boccob wear purple robes with a gold trim. Ritualistic sacrifices are not a part of this God's requirement placed upon clerics of his faith. The church of Boccob is filled with many learned individuals. Standing within the church is determined based upon one’s contributions to knowledge and magic. Thus, many sages and wizards hold sway within this organization. There is no overall hierarchy within Boccob’s church. Individual temples determine who is in charge, though they all use the same format for determining temple leadership. A council of five selects the church leader based upon the quality and quantity of an individual’s research and scholarly writings during the previous five years, and the individual’s knowledge of arcane lore, as determined through five days of testing. Any priest may take these tests, regardless of level. Once chosen, the temple’s administrator holds that office for five years. Boccob's Priests are typically extremely serious folk that have devoted their existence to the pursuit of knowledge, particularly arcane knowledge. Any pleasure or enjoyment should only come in the uncovering of new information or long lost arcane lore. It is the duty of all priests to adventure and attempt to recover lost magical treasures, tomes of lore, and the like.

Tips for worshippers[]

Worshippers tend to be either mages, scholars, seers or sages. Boccob is not a widely worshipped God and worship for him involves recitation of formulae and complex rituals. The more complex the formulae the better so those with high intelligence will benefit greatly. Those that follow Boccob are restricted in their choice of armour. They are allowed padded leather, elven chain mail but can not use shields. The only weapons allowed are the quarterstaff (being the favoured weapon), small throwing weapons, short blades and slings. This is important to remember to effectively roleplay your character.

Dealing with followers of this Deity[]

How are these followers seen by others? Go into detail of how your character will look upon a worshipper of this God. You may need to include several examples to cover a range of alignments and such. How would a character recognise the worshipper as following this God?

Festivals and other holy events[]

All services to Boccob include complex rituals, incense, recitals of alchemical formulas, and readings from special works honouring knowledge. The Arcannum and the pentennial inauguration are not only complex, but also filled with much pomp and circumstance. There are very few formal services conducted by the church. The only two of any significance are the pentennial selection of a temple’s administrator and the annual Arcannum. This Arcannum is a yearly ritual in which all worshippers gather to share new knowledge that they have gained during the past year. Any other services are performed very infrequently, and often on an impromptu basis. Usually such services are held when a church member wishes to have an important discovery or magical creation recognized by the church before the Arcannum. This happens most often when several different researchers are working on something similar and each wants to be recognized as the discoverer.

Interactions between this and other Deities and their followers[]

The Demigod Zagyg is a servant of Boccob and is revered by Boccob's priests as well. There are no important hatred for Boccob by other Gods. Those that prefer to follow a chaotic God would possibly look down on Boccob's followers because of the order and structure they must bring to create complex formulae for rituals and to maintain such things as libraries of learning.

In-game books relating to Boccob[]

  • Soon.
  • Soon.

See also[]

  • Some links to related wiki articles.

External links[]

Interesting Facts[]

  • Boccob has very few active followers, and fewer priests.
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