Ergo, the Soul Forger (Ur-go)

The merciless god of the Dwarves, the patron of the Underworld, god of the forge and rich earth, powerful deity of the great elements, patron of protection, the master of banishments, and the watcher of the souls of the world.   He is the patron of craftsmen, blacksmiths, forge-masters, artisans, and miners - granting inspiration where respect and prayer are given.   He shaped the mountains during the Founding, and stands as the patron of home and family.  

Church of Ergo

Worshippers

Dwarves, Blacksmiths, Forgemasters, artisans, and miners.  

Temples and Shrines

Many of the Soul Forger's temples are located in the centre of a dwarven stronghold. Shrines are also prominent within industrious civilised areas, mines, forges and quarries.  

Realm

Ergo makes his home in the Astral Plane, in the self-created domain known as Dweomerheim - with portals connected to the Elemental Planes.

Divine Domain

Forge - Life - Tempest - War

Divine Symbol

Hammer with ends carved in the likeness of dwarven heads. A black-coal shield coiling with four arms each representing an elemental energy and orb, with a central diamond.  

Tenets of Faith

 

Dogma

 

Divine Goals & Aspiration

 

Personal History

  Ergo was conceived during the Great Founding of the Gods. He came after Arvanos, but joined the other Prime Divinities in the Great War against the Primordial Titans - and aided in defeating the Giants and aid the True Dragons.   Alongside Arvanos, he helped formulate and structure the Outer Planes and divided the Elemental Planes into solid forms and elements - but the origin of the debates between elves and dwarves may reside in the debate of who helped structure the universe more. Ergo argued it was he, but Arvanos argued it was himself that structured the universe and formed the boundaries. The debate ended in a stalemate, and both were left brooding, more so Ergo. But dwarven and elven theologists and historians continue to bicker this debate in the present period.   Unlike the other races, in which were born from the power of the gods and shaped in their own image - Ergo created the dwarves from the stone, metal and clay of the world. The rites of how he made the dwarves from his great Forge are known only to Ergo - but, the dwarves were not given life until Ergo breathed life into them through an elemental conduit. This moulded the stone and metal bodies of the dwarves until their bodies began to turn into hardened flesh and stout bodies. At first he made four dwarves, each one more refined than the next - first, he made Belon out of iron, but found that he was too slow and heavy. Second, he made Dalon out of stone, but found that he could not express himself. Third, he made Calon out of clay, but found that his body was too easily broken as he fell from a great height and then deteriorated after falling into the sea. His fourth and final attempt, he gifted with the essence of Aether combining the three other points together - and the being grew flesh, hardy bones and even hair. He was not sure of what to make of this, as he had used the little remainder of his special resources to make Aelon, and seemed a little short, but counted it as a success. Aelons voice came out tough and hardy as stone. Though he began to question who he was, or what he was. Eventually, this great talk led to Aelon realising that he was alone. Ergo then made a smoother and hardy companion and equal, with jewels for eyes and hair woven from gold. Ergo called her, Aeloy (like Ally). The two were met, and paired, and from their bond they had many children blessed by Ergo - to which would become the ancestors of the dwarven nobility and royalty.   Furthering the dominance of the dwarves, Ergo took the semblances of energy and power he wielded and garnered to forge great tools and artefacts for the gods by intervening across the Elemental Planes to control the Elemental Chaos. With each Titan he felled, he took their bodies and powers for his own, and sought to create the most perfect tools of creation and wonder for himself and the other gods. Thus he is enamoured in the flames of the Fire Titan, the rich earth of the Earth Titan, the cooling waters of the Water Titan, and lastly the great winds of the Air Titan. Taking each in one new hand, and used them to found his greatest forge within the Perimidine mountains, when he won his lot alongside the other deities.   Ergo aided in hunting down the last of the Morgoron line, and defeating the Breakers of Vangolia. Felling the great behemoth, and created the mountains of the world with the wars that he waged. Though from these ventures he gained the ire of Lorkhan, and wished to challenge the forge god in a competition - they would forge a great power for the world. Lorkhan forged lightning, whereas Ergo created the wheel - which the mortals have been using since the beginning of the worlds history... much to Lorkhan's fury. From then, he took to the underworld and sought to lock the gates of Torog the Crawling King, a great foe that sought to imprison his children the Dwarves.   Before he created the Dwarves, Ergo is believed to have chained a great Primordial Titan - the last of its kind, out of pity for the lost foes, having killed so many - it felt wrong to eliminate their presence; and it is believed that he created great chains to seal away this creature, as it was tied to the world itself - the Tarrasque, building a great and intricate masterpiece of a labyrinth and mega-dungeon to hide away the creature, and to protect the world, and the strand of the Abyss that stood as a gateway to the world. A true last resort, if all else failed and the Gods could not hold back the Diabolical Ones, especially Tharizdun, he would unleash the world terror. Some believe that he did this in order to appease the Dragons, or to even counter them, should the giants ever return.   Ergo taught the dwarves how to work metal, smith and craft like himself. Ergo argued and debated against Arvanos - finding his everchanging form disgusting and intolerable, rather seeing beauty in the form of perfected and finished objects and items of worth and utility - things that would make things easier for dwarven children after the Great War.   Ergo was known to have created a number of great magical marvels, known as the first Crucibles, and maintained them with his servants and chosen champions, the Primes. The Crucibles were known to harness the energy of the elemental planes to create and forge marvellous materials and tools that could not be compared in the known world. And with that, in his secret forges, he conjured some of the universe's most powerful artefacts for the gods. This was further impeded by the arrival of Tharizdun and the invasion of the Abyss, starting the Divine War. The other Diabolical Ones united to try and take control of the world of Aetheus and the power of the Prime Divinities, as they had been weakened by the sacrifices of their power to give rise to the mortal races.   It was in this time that some of his dwarven children were imprisoned and tortured by the machinations of the Crawling King, and in turn, were left to be enslaved and bound to the eldritch empire of the Far Realm, the Illithid. Caught up in the war, Ergo's eyes had been blinded to this occurrence, and when Laduguer, the truest of the Gray Dwarves, sought his aid - Ergo put the thought of the rest of the world against Tharizdun than his lost children. He could not risk dividing his attentions, and sought to bring peace back to the world. A decision that would haunt him forever more. Though the Duergar returned, they had been changed by eons in the time-diverted realm, and sundered by the sun - Ergo did not recognise his children as he had made them and grew with them, and kept them in the Underdark. Laduguer, having gained portions of power, sought to usurp Ergo, having been aided by Asmodeus and given power in their successful rebellion against the Illithid, swearing to Sincainea that they would aid in the decimation of Lolth and her demons and Drow. Laduguer failed, but struck a blow against the great being - his greatest creation had been tarnished and broken, his beloved children. He could not forgive Laduguer for this transgression against him, and the two dwarven deities had been split apart forever. Ergo has then sworn vengeance against Sincainea for sealing his children's fate, but had to mete out swift justice against the raiders from below to ensure the safety of his children.   Ergo paid homage to the Gnomes in this time, being aided by Pygmea - though faced rivalry and vengeance from the new Kobold god, Kaijos - whom was thought to have been quickly stamped by Pygmea by dropping a mountain on top of him, with the aid of Ergo. Earning the eternal ire of the Kobolds. The three deities often compete among one another in outwitting or outdoing one another - though Ergo and Pygmea are competitive allies, both rival and despise the minor kobold god and his bastardisation of progress and technology - admiring cowardice and betrayal, and vengeance.   To aid the dwarves after the first Divine War, Ergo helped the dwarves to formulate the great Shaperate, the oldest kingdom to last in the world - a constitutional monarchy and hierarchical kingdom, that formulated on the Prime codes and aided by powers of the subservient elementals conjured by Ergo's crusades and battles in the Elemental Chaos. Forming the Alloyar Shaperate, and granting it their champions with the Four Primes.   At his Great Anvil and Crucibles, the place of the dwarves birth, the Four Primal Trammels were forged to seal away Tharizdun and lock him in unbreakable black iron chains of Ergo's forging - blessed by the combined essence and power of numerous individual gods and deities within the pantheon.   Ergo was not dismayed by the Fall and Dark Descent of the Elves, he was resolute, some may argue that he was overjoyed by the departure of his rival. It gave him the opportunity to take advantage of this, and sent visions to his dwarven kin to further expand and dominate over the Alflands that once housed the great Elven Empire of old.   He also built the trap that would imprison Torog for the first time, during the Calamity. Appearing to be a temple to Torog, but it was a fane that, once bound, was instrumental to banishing the Chained Oblivion in the deepest layer in the Abyss.   In preparation for the eventual return of the Diabolical Ones in the war that might truly end the gods - Ergo prepared and created a great golem army, that could only be wielded and utilised by his champion, the Tetrarch of the Alloyar Shaperate - with the aid and union of the Shaperate's great Prime Paragons. Believed to house a great army of 10000 great golems, kept hidden in a protected vault until the time came when they would be awoken and fight for the divinities. Many however, have searched for this army across the world in a bid to use them to dominate the world in their own image - but Ergo created contingencies so that that would never happen. Some believe that they are guarded at the Black Gate of Vangolia, the intricate maze he designed to protect and to ward against any demons that spilled forth from the Abyss in Vangolia. Guarded by errant and ignorant Minotaur at Ivaugorot, the Labyrinthine Citadel.   Ergo would be eternally grateful to Pelor and Maevericki for banishing Torog eternally from the plane of existence, and allow him to reclaim his lost under-plane home - where he can seek to recover or destroy his lost children the Duergar. Though foiled in the plots schemed by the Grey Taskmaster, Laduguer. Furthermore, he was rattled and toyed with by the Scaled Schemer, whose breath of greed, wrath and gluttony would curse the dwarves from time to time - in over seeking or lusting for any vestiges of gold and precious metals.   Ergo was dismayed during the Rift Schism, as the release of great psionic energies from the Rift had inadvertently empowered and strengthened Laduguer in his own realm, and the power of the Duergar. Separating and dividing the initial Prime Paragons that watched the Crucibles, unleashing the wrath of powerful elementals into the world in the chaos of the Rift Schism and devastating many of the dwarven kingdoms and colonies of the Alloyar Shaperate. The situation seemed to be made even more unusual as the Fantasy Lord, Morpheus, also gained prominence in the Dreamspace and the Nightmare - and lulled many of his kin into a deep and dark sleep. He also saw an aversion to his realms in the arrival of the Shardminds, that came from the Living Gate in the Astral Sea - seeing their powers, he feared that they might join Laduguer, and wished to send visions to his children through Morpheus. The bargain in which he made, was that Ergo must endure the Dream and the Nightmare until Morpheus became satisfied. It was with this case, that the Dwarves heard their progenitors warnings - and his prayers became silent and unanswered for the next few centuries. Though it brought them peace for a short time, by the end of the Rift Schism, it seemed that the dwarven kingdom would slowly be turning towards ruin and be weakened by their detachment to their god. In a time known as the Years of Dwindling Embers.

Physical Description

Depicted as a faceless, stout black-coal skinned dwarf-life being of immense strength, hunched over, with two pairs of arms, each one resonating with latent elemental energy, clasping within his massive hands a flaming diamond heart.