Rubicant Flame-Lord

The third segment of the trinity worshipped by the Dwarves of Crystal's Underground. Rubicant is the token foil to Ilmarinen Heaven-Hammer and Barda Life-Anvil, always plotting and scheming.

He is the god of Fire, and Dwarven scripture gives him his due, for without Rubicant the forge used to create the Dwarven race would not have been hot enough. But Rubicant is treacherous, and the Dwarven religion teaches that he should be looked after at all times.

Rubicant has attempted to betray or trick the other Dwarven gods too many times to count. Some highlights:

• Attempted to steal Ilmarinen's book of runes by tricking one of Ilmarinen's priests into retrieving it for him. The result was the priest's exile, and the eventual siring of the Gray Dwarves.
• Attempted to abduct Barda and "forge" his own offspring with her. He ended up impaled on her spear, and the explosive release of his fiery blood from the wound caused Mount Agari to erupt and kill a lot of people.
• Tried to steal Ilmarinen's Hammer. Got the crap kicked out of him by Ilmarinen and his two sons.
• Tried to take Glaudhe for his wife. Got beat up by Glaudhe.
• Almost killed Ilmarinen by trapping him at the bottom of the Sea of Magma. Glaudhe came to Ilmarinen's rescue -- and while she was there, she beat up Rubicant.

For as many times as Rubicant has tried and failed to have his way, he has had a limited number of successes. The creation of the Duergar -- an unintended result of Rubicant's desire to possess Ilmarinen's runic-knowledge -- turned out to be very much in Rubicant's favor, as the Gray Dwarves now worship Rubicant exclusively (even though he does very little for them). He also receives the worship of the Goblins.

Rubicant is not entirely reliant on deceit and betrayal to have his way. Ilmarinen and Barda have their tools and artifacts, Ilmarinen's Hammer and his book of runes, and Barda's anvil and her pair of 8-foot-long spears. And so Rubicant has his cloak of fire. The cloak is an extension of Rubicant's will, and through it he controls all flame and fire, as well as the very waves of the Sea of Magma. Whenever the Magma Seas are not smooth, it is said to be because Rubicant is restless. The sailors who pilot the Underground's Magmaships thus offer the Flame-Lord fearful respect, and sometimes immolated sacrifices before long voyages.