(The All-Seeing, the All-Seeing One, Lord of Divination Magics, He of the Third Eye, The Diviner)
Demipower (formerly Lesser) of Arcadia, LN
PORTFOLIO: Divinations, divination magic, diviners, fate, truth, truth-speakers
ALIASES: None
DOMAIN NAME: Buxenus/The Eye
SUPERIOR: Azuth, Mystra
ALLIES: Azuth, Mystra
FOES: Bhaal (dead), Bane (dead), Cyric, Leira (dead), Mask, Talos
SYMBOL: Crystal ball in which dance countless eyes of many different types
WOR. ALIGN.: LG, NG, LN, N, CN, LE
Foresight Forsaken
The Lady of Mysteries has long been an enigmatic figure worshiped throughout the Realms. To those who revere magic, there is none so beautiful as the Lady of Spells. In the wake of Mystral's death and rebirth as Mystra, two rival spell-hurlers sought the favor (and some say even the hand) of the Mother of All Magic.
The younger of the two wizards was the brash and powerful Azuth, who delighted in the power and unbounded beauty of magic, while the older of the pair was the deliberate and introspective Savras the All-Seeing, who wasted nary a single spell and saw beauty in magic's precise application. For years the duo fought with neither wizard gaining the upper hand, but both steadily gaining in power. While Savras's careful preparation was initially enough to put Azuth on the defensive, the Lord of Spells battled back over time, demonstrating his superior mastery of the Weave. Azuth finally shattered his rival's defenses in a climactic battle that split a mountain and created a deep lake. He imprisoned Savras's essence within a magical artifact of his construction that came to be known as the Scepter of Savras. With this act he became the High One and the first Magister of Mystra, later to be sponsored by her to become a god.
Ever since Savras's loss, sages have speculated that the All-Seeing One must have foreseen his own defeat. If this is true, perhaps Savras planned his own defeat as a feint in a long-term ploy for victory. Only he can say, and he refuses to speak on it.
Savras (SAHV-ras) is believed to know all that has happened and all that will occur. Some claim that he guides th forces of fate, while others believe he is cursed to know all of history but is unable to affect its flow.
Savras was a long-ago god of the South who was worshiped in Halruaa, Durpar, Estagund, Dambrath, and Var the Golden, with small pockets in Calimshan, Tethyr, and Amn. He was once as powerful as Azuth and shared much of the same portfolio: mages in the service of Mystra, goddess of magic. The two contended during or slightly after the Dawn Cataclysm, and Savras fell. Azuth became the god of wizards, and the All-Seeing One's essence was imprisoned in an artifact of Azuth's construction that came to be known as the Scepter of Savras. (See Volo's Guide to All Things Magical for details on this relic.)
The Lord of Spells, as Azuth was thereafter known, intended to keep the scepter in which Savras was imprisoned as his staff of office. Although reduced to demipower status, Savras was still powerful enough to block AzutH's divination abilities and teleport his prison into the Realms where it passed beyond Azuth's reach.
While the All-Seeing One was imprisoned in the relic, Savras's worshipers slowly dwindled, disheartened by the disappearance of their god and pilloried by the followers of Azuth. His final worshiper of note was Alaundo the Seer, to whom he revealed only visions that would come true, and thus Alaundo is the only true prophet of the Realms.
Eventually the Scepter of Savras passed into the hands of Sylune Silverhand, one of the Sven Sisters. She employed the artifact for quite some time, ignoring Savras's entreaties to be freed. Sylune finally returned the Scepter to Azuth after uncovering secret doings of the gods that Mystra deemed it better for mortals not to know.
After reacquiring the relic, Azuth found himself troubled by Savras's long imprisonment. Following the Time of Troubles, the Patron of Wizards agreed to Savras's request to be released in exchange for a pledge of fealty by Savras to the High One. Today Savras is a demipower who serves Azuth, albeit uneasily. The two powers seem to be cautiously working toward friendship and a formal division of portfolios.
Some sages and devout defenders of the All-Seeing One believe that Savras deliberately lost his battle with Azuth, having chosen the more favorable outcome in the long-run. The followers of Azuth hotly contest any such implication. Some lorebooks recount that Azuth was the victor because his personal drive and passionate nature at the time complemented the restraint of Mystra, and she favored him over Savras, who was more cautious and distant like herself. Many sages who have studied the relationships of the powers in the past find this to be not an unlikely premise, since previous to his ascending to godhood Mystra had favored Azuth by naming him the first Magister.
The All-Seeing One is a cautious, logical power given to long intervals of meditative silence. He despises anyone or any power who would obscure the truth, and thus he opposes Cyric and Mask (and opposed Leira) at every opportunity. He also dislikes brutal destruction and killing for no end, and so Bhaal found him no friend, and Talos still does not. Bane's insufferable arrogance set Savras's teeth on edge (along with his evil behavior), and those who display overweening pride and arrogance still irk him. He serves Azuth to honor their agreement and a distant respect for their ancient rivalry and Mystra out of duty and a sort of misplaced affection, as the personality of the first Mystra, whose very presence warmed his spirit, is no longer.
Savras's statements are clear, precise, and rarely what the listener wants to hear. He always speaks the absolute truth, and in cases where the truth is a matter of perspective, he reveals all sides of the truth. There is little passion or emotion in Savras's actions or demeanor, but sages speculate this seemingly emotionless facade is merely a front for a power who cares deeply about the fate of the Realms but finds himself relatively helpless to change its destiny. Savras almost never loses his temper, but when he does, his wrath is dreadful.
Savras's Avatar (Diviner 25, Cleric 25)
Savras appears as a human male of advancing years with a crystalline visage, clear to all who see him. A third crystalline eye winks with an inner light on his smooth brow. A sort of hush follows him about, and extraneous noise seems to fade into the background in his presence. The All-Seeing One favors spells from the spheres of divination, numbers, and thought and the school of divination, although he can cast spells from any sphere or school.
AC -2; MV 15; HP 166, THAC0 4; #AT 1
Dmg 1d10
MR 70%; SZ L (10 feet)
STR 13, DEX 19, CON 22, INT 24, WIS 24, CHA 15
Speels P: 13/12/12/12/12/10/4, W: 6/6/6/6/6/6/6/6/5*
Saves PPDM 2, RSW 3, PP 5, BW 7, Sp 4
*Numbers assume one extra divination spell per spell level.
Special Att/Def: Savras can maintain any spell from the school of divination or sphere of divination indefinitely after casting it. Savras's crystal ball, Truthseer, resides both in Mystra's library (even when Savras is not there) and in Savras's home domain, the Eye (on Buxenus), simultaneously. It can reveal anything to Mystra that Savras knows or can determine if asked by her or Azuth. The privelege of looking within Truthseer has sometimes been allowed by Savras to mortals especially devoted to him or on a mission for himself, Azuth, or Mystra. What is seen by mortals within its depths has never been spoken by those who have gazed within it, but it has always changed their lives.
Savras can see any event that occured in the past and all possible futures. There is a 75% chance that he can anticipate any opponent's actions far enough in the future to counter them. This enables him to automatically dodge missile attacks, the first melee attack in a round, or spell effects (effectively always making his saving throw vs. target effects and area-of-effect spells that there is any room to escape and taking only one-quarter damage in cases where a saving throw is for half damage). He is also easily able to exploit an opponent's weaknesses and gains a +1 bonus to his attack and initiative roll for each consecutive round he has engaged an opponent after the first.
At his will, the touch of the All-Seeing One paralyzes mortal opponents with indecision (in addition to inflicting damage, if Savras wishes) as they are overwhelmed with all alternate futures that may result from any decision they reach. This effect lasts 2d6+2 rounds and no saving throw is allowed. During this time, the victim of Savras's touch is helpless to attack or defend himself or perform any other mental or physical activity.
Savras is immune to all charm-type and illusion/phantasm spells or spell-like abilities, even of a divine nature.
Other Manifestations
Savras commonly manifests as a single unwinking eye that always seems to stare directly at anyone viewing it. Savras can cast any spell or create any spell-like effect available to his avatar from this manifestation. The All-Seeing One sometimes manifests as a vision of the future or the past. Such visions always contain some pearl of insight, but their meanings are typically uncertain and obscure.
Savras shows his favor through the discovery of water opals, white pearls, or blue quartz and his displeasure through the revealing of powdered psaedros (a substance worthless in most divinations). The Lord of Diviners is served by demaraxes, pers, spectators, spellhaunts, and wizshades, and by normal-seeming animals that mysteriously speak, especially calico and all-gray house cats, lap dogs, fish, and birds.
The Church
CLERGY: Clerics, specialty priests, diviners, monks
CLERGY'S ALIGN.: LG, LN, LE, NG, N
TURN UNDEAD: C: Yes, if good or neutral, SP: Yes, Div: No, Mon: No
CMND. UNDEAD: C: Yes, if evil, SP: No, Div: No, Mon: No
All clerics, specialty priests, and monks of Savras receive religion (Faerûnian) as a bonus nonweapon proficiency.
Savras is little known in the Realms outside of the coterie of diviners and fortunetellers. Those outside the ranks of his faithful who know of the All-Seeing One typically hold him in poor regard. Savras's penchant for speaking the truth, even when it is unlooked for, have earned him more foes than allies. In addition, the clergy of Azuth have long contributed to sullying Savras's name. Only in recent years has the church of Azuth moderated its invectives against Savras. With the resurgence of Savras's faith in the aftermath of the Time of Troubles, priests of the All-Seeing One have begun a campaign to improve their deity's standing in the Realms.
Shrines and temples of the All-Seeing One are typically dominated by a giant, sacred statue of Savras carved from white marble seated atop an onyx dais in meditative repose. The Lord of Diviners is always portrayed with his palms upward in a gesture of supplication and with blank eyes gazing from a placid face. In the center of the idol's brow is a crystalline third eye that is often reputed to have magical powers. Savras's statues are often placed in large halls dominated by titanic columns and accessed by circular portals and windows which close and open like an iris. The walls of the All-Seeing One's temples are inscribed with countless hieroglyphics depicting alien landscapes and events in the distant past or future scryed by the temple's diviners.
During the long imprisonment of Savras, his faithful dwindled to a few specialist wizard diviners, as his clerics received no answer to their prayers for centuries and gradually died out. Upon his release from the Scepter of Savras, Savras has added mainly specialty priests, known as sibylites, and monks to his clergy. Currently about 65% of the clergy of Savras, known collectively as divinators, are specialty priests, 5% are clerics, 15% are monks, and the remainder are specialist wizard diviners. Novices are known as Truth Seekers. In ascending order, priests within the clergy of Savras are known as Truth Speakers, Savants, Scholars, Sages, Clairvoyants, Soothsayers, Prophesiers, Prophets, and Oracles. Higher-ranking priests have their own unique titles, a tradition begun during the centuries of Savras's imprisonment.
Dogma: The blindness of mortals is the origin of all folly. Search for the truth in all things great and small and conceal nothing. Speak only the truth, for all lies and misdirection, even for benign motives, are the root of all sorrow. Be not paralyzed by indecision, but take no action without analyzing the implications. Hasty actions and decisions are rarely more beneficial than well thought out strategies which are revised as necessary. Mortals who employ only their two common eyes are essentially blind. Savras provides the third blessed eye, allowing both foresight and hindsight, so that mortals can access the omniscience of the gods. It is not wrong to use the knowledge that Savras gives to help yourself and your church, but caution should be employed in furthering the goals of others as part of their agenda may be hidden. Seek for the hidden motive before you act, and damage not the whole of the realm in which you live out your mortal life.
Day-to-Day Activities: Divinators begin and end their days with extended sessions of peaceful meditation. Much of their daily activities are involved with foretelling the future or studying the past and dealing with the consequences of what they learn. Of necessity, Savras's clergy engages in extended strategy sessions to analyze the implications of future events and plan accordingly. Some followers of the All-Seeing One wander the Realms uttering prophecies, while others seek out remote locations to reside and become oracles. A few are employed as truth speakers and serve the legal system of various cities and kingdoms as expert witnesses, magistrates, or judges.
Holy Days/Important Ceremonies: The Feast of the Moon is celebrated by the followers of Savras as the Vision. This holy day is observed by every devout follower of Savras with 24 hours of continuous meditation. In some temples the medication occurs in a sauna or steam bath, while in others it occurs amidst a haze of incense. Each worshiper who participates in th day-long ceremony is rewarded with a vision from the All-Seeing One. Beneficiaries of such visions are expected to act in accordance with this prescient knowledge or risk Savras's wrath.
Major Centers of Worship: The House of the All-Seeing Orb in Tashluta has risen in prominence since Savras's release to become the preeminent temple of the All-Seeing One, though the shrine of Savras at Candlekeep is still a place of pilgrimage to the faithful. The House of the All-Seeing Orb is a sprawling complex administered by the Farseer, arguably the most powerful divinator in the Realms after Zalathorm, the Wizard-King of Halruaa. Home to over a thousand scholars, the temple houses the College of Divination, the Celestial Observatory, and the Library of Ultimate Truth. Many of the magical scrying devices and quite a few of the newer wizard spells classified in the school of divination employed in the Realms were constructed or researched at this temple. The clergy of the House of the All-Seeing Orb have a long-standing rivalry with Talona's clergy in the House of Night's Embrace and often work to expose that evil sect's schemes. In recent years, the temple's diviners have found hints of a large danger brewing in the neighboring jungles and have begun to hire adventurers to investigate. (See the entry on Sseth for more details.)
Savras's only known active shrine in the North is located in Candlekeep, the former home of Savras's most famous servant, Alaundo the Prophet. Hidden amidst the Inner Rooms, where Candlekeep's most powerful magical tomes are stored, is the Hall of Pools and Mirrors. This ancient shrine is administered by the Sibylline Farsight, a high-level sibylite, in addition to her duties as one of the eight Great Readers. As befits its name, the Hall is lined with countless magical and nonmagical scrying devices, including telescopes, magical mirrors, pools, and crystal balls. At least three of the crystal balls are believed to be a strange variant of liches, known as crystaliches, created when a powerful diviner or sibylite actually merges his essence into a scrying device and becomes a sentient crystal ball. These powerful crystaliches can scry nearly any where in the Realms or across the planes at will and can cast spells at any place they observe.
A long-lost temple of Savras was discovered by the Company of the Red Wolf in the depths of Undermountain beneath Waterdeep nearly 20 years after Durnan the Wanderer established the Yawning Portal over the ruins of Halaster's Hold. The last member of the band to die, the warrior Jardis, was interrogated via a speak with dead spell by a long-forgotten priest after the fighter fell to his death at the bottom of the Well of Entry. Jardis's shade revealed that the band had found a 500-year-old temple of the All-Seeing One and stolen the Third Eye of Savras, a priceless crystal with unknown magical powers. According to the bitter shade, much of the lost temple had collapsed upon the theft of the crystal, and the Third Eye had been lost as the company battled its way back to the surface. The clergy of Savras are said to be hiring adventurers to explore Undermountain in search of the long-lost temple and the holy relic, and Halaster's enchantments have so far blocked their scrying efforts.
Affiliated Orders: The Sibylline Sisterhood is an affiliation of female oracles who wander western Faerûn dispensing prophecies and revealing visions for a modest fee to rich and poor alike. (The fee seems to vary depending upon the relative wealth of the recipient.) Visions revealed by the Sisters are usually accurate but often so clouded as to be helpful only in hindsight. Most of the Sibyls are low-level sibylites, but a few are powerful adventurers. All are capable of defending themselves, and they always seem to anticipate attacks upon their person and plan accordingly. The Sisters still tell the tale of one comely young acolyte who predicted a potentially fatal encounter that night and recruited half of the Red Cloaks of Asbravn to defend her-against a down-on-his-luck cutpurse.
Priestly Vestments: Divinators of Savras garb themselves in pale yellow robes with a depiction of their power's holy symbol sewn to their chest. They wear simple sandals on their feet and a colored sash of muted hue tied around their waist. All of Savras's clergy tattoo a depiction of the third eye of Savras on their brow. High-ranking and wealthy priests have clear or white crystals or gemstones of some value bonded to their brows in the centers of their tattoos.
Adventuring Garb: When adventuring, divinators tend to cloak themselves with the protection of powerful warriors, eschewing armor and edged weapons. Savras's clergy are the quintessential planners, typically using their divination skills to anticipate every need. As a result, they often bring along an unusual assortment of gear when adventuring-to the general amusement of their companions. However, the oddments they haul along invariably fill a crucial niche.
Specialty Priests (Sibylites)
REQUIREMENTS: Intelligence 11, Wisdom 14
PRIME REQ.: Intelligence, Wisdom
ALIGNMENT: LN
WEAPONS: Any bludgeoning (wholly Type B) weapons
ARMOR: None
MAJOR SPHERES: All, astral, charm, divination, healing, law, numbers, sun, thought, time
MINOR SPHERES: Creation, guardian, necromantic, protection, weather
MAGICAL ITEMS: Same as clerics plus the use of any magical items allowing scrying or divination of any
type (such as crystal balls)
REQ. PROFS: Ancient history or local history
BONUS PROFS: Astrology, blind-fighting
1st Level
Foresight (Pr 1; Divination)
Sphere: Combat, Divination
Range: 200 yards
Components: V, S, M
Duration: 1 round/level
Casting Time: 4
Area of Effect: One being
Saving Throw: Special
This spell enables the priest to forsee the actions of a single creature two rounds into the future. For every three levels of experience, the caster can predict the actions of the target an additional round into the future to a limit of four rounds. For example, a 1st- or 2nd-level priest could foresee the actions of the spell target in the following two rounds, while a 3rd-, 4th-, or 5th-level priest could foresee the actions of the spell target in the following three rounds. The casting priest must be able to see the target or read its mind (through the use of mind read, a potion of ESP, etc.) for the spell to work.
Priests benefiting from a foresight spell cannot be surprised by any action of their target creatures. For example, if a priest foresees that the target will cast a fireball spell, he could quaff a potion of fire resistance. Spellcasters who perceive the target will make any sort of physical attack receive a +4 bonus to their AC for that attack only as they anticipate their opponent's maneuver. Casters also receive a +4 saving throw bonus vs. attacks such as area-of-effect spells and breath weapons but do not gain a saving throw where there is normally none granted.
If casters reveal their visions in any fashion that the targets of their spells can understand, the targets may adjust their actions accordingly. For example, if a spellcaster shouts "Everyone take cover, the wizard is casting a lightning bolt!", the wizard can change her spell selection. however, if the priest shouts in elvish and the enemy wizard does not speak elvish but the priest's comrades do, the effects of the foresight spell are unaffected.
The target of this spell is entitled to a secret saving throw vs. spell when this spell is cast. If the saving throw is failed, the priest receives a true vision. If the saving throw is successful, the spellcaster receives no benefit and the spell is wasted. If the target rolls a 1, the spellcasting priest receives a false vision. This gives affected spellcasters a -4 penalty to their AC and saving throws for any predicted attacks they try to deliberately avoid.
The material components for this spell are the priest's holy symbol, a miniature silver hourglass filled with fine white sand worth at least 50 gp, and a small piece of amber. Only the last is consumed in the casting.
3rd Level
Haunted Visions (Pr 3; Divination, Enchantment/Charm)
Sphere: Divination
Range: 30 yards
Components: V, S, M
Duration: 2d4+2 rounds
Casting Time: 6
Area of Effect: One being
Saving Throw: Special
This spell afflicts the target with the ability to see every possible consequence of every decision it may make. The multitude of overlapping visions perceived by the target are nearly incapacitating, since every possible action might result in disaster somewhere down the line.
When this spell is first cast, the target must succeed at a saving throw vs. spell to completely avoid its effects. If the saving throw is failed, then the haunted visions lasts for the complete duration and cannot be ended except with the use of a dispel magic incantation or similar magics.
While experiencing overlapping haunted visions, the target of the spell cannot move faster than one-quarter his or her normal walking movement rate, always loses initiative, and is always surprised in situations where a surprise roll is warranted. Spellcasting is impossible, and the target can only make a successful physical attack if she or he succeeds at a saving throw vs. spell. All such attacks are made with a -2 penalty to hit. In addition, the target of this spell receives a -2 penalty to his or her Armor Class and saving throws for the duration of the haunted visions.
The material components for this spell are the priest's holy symbol and a puff of smoke. The latter is usually generated by a match or torch and must be blown in the general direction of the spell target during the spellcasting.
6th Level
All-Seeing Crystal Ball (Pr 6; Divination, Alteration)
Sphere: Divination
Range: 0
Components: V, S, M
Duration: 1 day/level
Casting Time: 1 turn
Area of Effect: Special
Saving Throw: Special
This spell enables the spellcaster to create a crystal sphere about 6 inches in diameter with all of the powers of a crystal ball, as described in the DUNGEON MASTER Guide. In addition, the priest can cast any spell solely from the schools of lesser or greater divination or the sphere of divination through the all-seeing crystal ball. All other strictures associated with normal crystal balls apply to the spellcaster when employing an all-seeing crystal ball.
Spellcasters who are 15th level or above can create an all-seeing crystal ball with clairaudience. Spellcasters who are 17th level or above can create an all-seeing crystal ball with ESP. Spellcasters who are 19th level or above can create an all-seeing crystal ball with telepathy (communication only). These creations have the same abilities as the magical items of the same name, as well as the improved capability for casting divination spells through them mentioned above.
The material components of this spell are the priest's holy symbol and a ball of snow and ice or a pile of fine sand of the volume of a 6-inch sphere.