Bhaal Bhaal ( pronounced " Beh - HAHL " ) , the Lord of Murder , was originally a mortal and one of the Dead Three . Along with Bane and Myrkul , Bhaal took the portfolios of the ancient deity Jergal . Despite his most common title , Bhaal was the god of death , but he especially favoured violent or ritual deaths . While originally he was the patron of assassin s and their victims , it wasn ' t long before common murderers used a claim of his worship to justify their sadistic actions , warping the manner of his worship . As a result , Bhaal was feared throughout Faerûn - especially in the island realm of the Moonshaes . The nature of what the Lord of Murder has power over is contested - in his best incarnation he may take strength in violently punishing murderers and warmongers , others that he judged whether a murder was righteous or not , while the Bhaalspawn simply believed he wanted " more " murder . Worshippers . Of all the dead deities of Abeir - Toril , Bhaal most likely has the most scattered cultists , the worst known as deathstalker s , attempting to bring him back to ' life ' . However , after the Bhaalspawn crisis , his essence might had been locked away on the Upper Planes , preventing his resurrection permanently . Gugari worshipers knew Bhaal as " Niynjushigampo . " Relationships . A wholly evil , debased and sadistic god , Bhaal was served by the goddesses Talona and Loviatar who in turn served Bane and to a lesser extent , Myrkul . History . During the Time of Troubles , when the gods were forced to walk Faerûn , Bhaal was slain , on Eleint 16 , by the upstart mortal Cyric using the avatar of Mask , a sword named " Godsbane " , who then stole Bhaal ' s divinity and portfolio elements . However , much like Myrkul - who invested his divine essence in the artifact known as the Crown of Horns - Bhaal was not utterly removed from Faerûn . Part of his divinity remained in the Winding Water , around Boareskyr Bridge where he was slain , his blood having flowed into the river . More importantly , Bhaal foresaw his death and impregnated many mortal women - creating his heirs , the Bhaalspawn . The Bhaalspawn were involved in a series of conflicts along the Sword Coast , with one standing above the others and ultimately foiling Bhaal ' s plan to return through his children . For a time it was believed that Bhaal ' s resurrection had been ended . The last known Bhaalspawn , Abdel Adrian , resisted the murderous impulses caused by his lineage and became a famed and beloved figure in the city of Baldur ' s Gate . Near the beginning of the era known as " The Sundering " another Bhaalspawn , Viekang , who was thought dead , attacked Adrian as he spoke to a crowd in the portion of town known as The Wide . The ultimate winner of the duel is unknown , although it matters not as the victor transformed into a massive , blood soaked creature and began a rampage which was only stopped when a group of adventurers new to Baldur ' s Gate defeated and killed the monstrosity . Dogma . Bhaalists believed that every murder committed strengthened holy Bhaal . As a result , they viewed murder as both a pastime and a duty . Bhaalists were required to deal death once in every tenday during the darkest period at the heart of the night . If imprisonment or other constraining circumstances made this impossible , they had to murder twice for each death missed . In accordance with the Lord of Murder ' s teachings , Bhaalists strove to ensure before they died , murder victims knew who was killing them and that their death was in the name of Bhaal . Novices of Bhaal were charged as follows : " Make all folk fear Bhaal . Let your killings be especially elegant , or grisly , or seem easy so that those observing them are awed or terrified . Tell folk that gold proffered can make the Lord of Murder overlook them for today " . Avatars . Bhaal had three avatar forms ; a shape - shifting one called Kazgoroth , a human - sized one called the Slayer , and a giant called the Ravager . The Slayer appeared as a corpse - like male humanoid , whereas the Ravager was large and bestial . In some extreme cases , Bhaal ' s mortal Bhaalspawn children could actually turn into creatures that were said to be these avatars after his death ; however , these creatures were even more monstrous and inhuman in shape , acting as little more than powerful killing machines . They were also weaker than a true god ' s avatar , though still very powerful . Publication history . Ed Greenwood created Bhaal for his home " Dungeons & Dragons " game , set in the Forgotten Realms . Advanced Dungeons & Dragons 1st edition ( 1977 - 1988 ) . Bhaal first appeared within " Dungeons & Dragons " as one of the deities featured in Ed Greenwood ' s article " Down - to - earth Divinity " in " Dragon " # 54 ( October 1981 ) . Bhaal was introduced as Lord of Murder , the god of death , a lawful evil lesser god from the plane of Gehenna . The article states that " Bhaal strikes unerringly , and his dagger causes the area wounded to wither , " and that he " rarely appears to worshippers or others , but is depicted by priests as a bloody , mutilated corpse with a feral face and silent movements . It is said that every murder done strengthens Bhaal . Myrkul is lord of the dead ; Bhaal is the lord of death itself , the act of killing . " Bhaal was described as one of “ The Dark Gods ” of evil alignment : " Loviatar , Talona , and Malar serve Bane through Bhaal ( although Loviatar and Talona are rivals ) . Bhaal and Myrkul have an unbreakable , symbiotic alliance . " Bhaal was commonly worshipped by assassins of any evil alignment , as well as lawful evil clerics . Bhaal later officially appeared as one of the major deities for the Forgotten Realms campaign setting , in the " < nowiki > Forgotten Realms Campaign Set ' < / nowiki > " s " Cyclopedia of the Realms " booklet ( 1987 ) . Advanced Dungeons & Dragons 2nd edition ( 1989 - 1999 ) . Bhaal was destroyed in the novel " Tantras " ( 1989 ) , and its accompanying adventure module of the same name . Despite his death , Bhaal was still described in the hardback " Forgotten Realms Adventures " ( 1990 ) , the " Forgotten Realms Campaign Setting " ( 1993 ) in the " Running the Realms " booklet , and " Faiths & Avatars " ( 1996 ) . His role in the cosmology of the Planescape campaign setting was described in " On Hallowed Ground " ( 1996 ) . Dungeons & Dragons 3rd edition ( 2000 - 2007 ) . Bhaal ' s worship was discussed in " Lost Empires of Faerûn " ( 2005 ) . Dungeons & Dragons 5th edition ( 2014 ) . Bhaal has returned as the God of Murder . His associated domain is Death . His brothers , Bane and Myrkul have been similarly restored to the Realms ' pantheon . His current rank is unknown .