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Shining Crusade

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The Shining Crusade is a military campaign ostensibly aimed at invading Avernus, but in reality a scheme orchestrated by the very devils it seeks to oppose. Its founder and figurehead, the aasimar Caelar Argent, acts under the guidance of Hephernaan, servant of Belhifet; the rise and collapse of their enterprise form the core of Baldur’s Gate: Siege of Dragonspear.

Goals and Feasibility[]

  1. Stated Purpose:
    • The Crusade declares its aim to seize Dragonspear Castle and use the portal in its depths to invade Avernus, the first layer of the Nine Hells. The stated goals are to avenge the prior devil incursions along the Sword Coast and to rescue the souls carried off during the Second Dragonspear War.
    • Feasibility: None
      1. The Crusade’s objectives have been publicly announced, ensuring that infernal authorities are forewarned. Any incursion would therefore face prepared opposition.
      2. The devils’ numbers, logistics, and intrinsic advantages make a mortal invasion of Avernus untenable. Even with divine assistance from the Shining Lady, she cannot lead both the vanguard and the rear. Collapse of the army upon serious engagement is inevitable.
      3. The souls lost in the prior Dragonspear conflicts are irretrievable. Whether consumed as fuel or transformed into devils, they are legally and metaphysically the property of Hell.
      4. The Crusade lacks the magical means to open the gate.
  2. Caelar’s Private Intention:
    • Caelar seeks to atone for her past mistake—her earlier descent into Avernus, which cost her uncle, Aun Argent, his freedom when he offered himself in her place. Her true goal is to return and free him. It remains unclear whether she anticipates the need to close the gate afterward and envisions herself as a martyr, or whether she has left the planning entirely to Hephernaan.
    • Feasibility: Possible, but not by means of the Crusade
      1. As above, an open invasion guarantees failure.
      2. A small, elite infiltration might succeed where an army cannot.
      3. By raising a host and waging war against the innocent, Caelar alienates those whose aid could make success possible.
      4. Even in the event of victory, the revelation that the expedition served only to rescue one soul would likely destroy morale and provoke revolt against her.
  3. Belhifet’s Original Plan:
    • Belhifet’s intent was to have Caelar assemble a mortal army of disciplined zealots—lawful souls whose fervor would make them ideal for infernal harvesting—and deliver it to him. The Crusaders’ souls would stabilize the gate for a renewed infernal invasion of the Prime, fulfilling his oath of vengeance sworn 87 years earlier.
    • Feasibility: None
      1. Caelar’s blood proves insufficient to open the portal.
  4. Belhifet’s Revised Plan:
    • Upon learning that Caelar’s blood cannot open the gate, Belhifet alters his design. He intends to use the Bhaalspawn’s blood as the key. The absence of his legions suggests that he has long abandoned the notion of a mass invasion and planned instead for the Crusade’s destruction at mortal hands. His adjusted goal is contained: lure both Caelar and the Bhaalspawn through the portal, divide them through manipulation, and destroy or capture them personally.
      Hephernaan’s betrayal is timed to isolate Caelar and accelerate her actions, while Thrix is meant to delay the Bhaalspawn to ensure both groups reach the Basalt Tower separately, where Belhifet can engage them with minimal interference.
    • Feasibility: Moderate
      1. The scheme fails primarily through Belhifet’s own hubris—his decision to confront Caelar and the Bhaalspawn personally and to dismiss the bulk of his forces. The handful of reinforcements he summons during the final battle is inadequate to offset his isolation.

Ironically, the Crusade’s only saving grace is that Caelar is not the divine champion she believes herself to be; her blood’s insufficiency forces Belhifet to scale down his design and leaves him exposed to defeat.

Activities[]

The Crusade begins as a private initiative. Caelar Argent holds no title or commission; she possesses neither a treasury nor an official charter. She must raise troops, articulate a cause, and secure funding simultaneously, and she must do so quickly enough that the authorities of the Sword Coast cannot intervene.

Circumstances initially favor her. Baldur’s Gate is preoccupied with internal disorder, while in Waterdeep, Cedric de Lancie’s assumption of command of the city guard leaves the latter in paralysis and indecision. During this window the Crusade gathers strength, seizes the abandoned Dragonspear Castle, and scours the surrounding countryside for recruits and supplies. Villages are plundered for provisions and unwilling “volunteers.” Those who remain under Caelar’s influence—excluding the enslaved trolls and other creatures—appear genuinely committed to her cause. Both their devotion and the army’s predation on innocents serve Belhifet’s design: to produce fervent, law-bent souls suitable for infernal use.

Torsin de Lancie establishes a containment camp roughly four hours’ march from the castle but avoids direct engagement. Crusader supply lines are maintained through a network of caves beneath the fortress, though resistance is minimal and secrecy scarcely necessary.

A decisive shift follows. Caelar’s blood proves insufficient to reactivate the portal beneath the castle, forcing Belhifet and Hephernaan to revise their strategy. On Hephernaan’s counsel, Caelar dispatches agents to infiltrate the Ducal Palace of Baldur’s Gate and capture Gorion’s Ward, believing this an acceptable way to seek assistance. Unbeknownst to her, Hephernaan intends the act to set the Bhaalspawn against her.

At Coast Way Crossing, the Crusaders learn that the abduction has failed. In panic, the mage Jayvis destroys the bridge, delaying their advance. Caelar’s personal appeal to the Bhaalspawn—heedless of risk or consequence—only confirms the enmity Hephernaan sought to create.

At Boareskyr Bridge, the Crusade attempts to seize the stores held within Bridgefort and lays siege to it. Hephernaan, in a rare lapse, overlooks the Barghest’s plan to detonate the bridge.

The Crusade’s movements slow. Its commanders are awaiting confrontation with Gorion’s Ward, who is key to their progress. When the Bhaalspawn reaches the Coalition Camp, Caelar complains that her offers of alliance are “still” refused—likely a misunderstanding fostered by Hephernaan’s false reports.

Formal negotiations between the Crusade and the Coalition are arranged. Caelar approaches them sincerely, but Hephernaan requires their failure, as Belhifet has already shifted his main forces elsewhere. Crusaders are quietly positioned nearby for an attack, perhaps by Hephernaan intending to strike should the talks approach success. The negotiations collapse without his intervention. At Caelar’s order the Crusaders assault the unprepared Coalition Camp.

The attack ends in disaster. The defeated Crusaders retreat to Dragonspear Castle, pursued by the Coalition army. Within hours the host disintegrates; only Caelar and a handful of loyal followers remain. At Hephernaan’s urging they prepare an ambush for the Bhaalspawn within the castle’s lower vaults. The trap functions, but his sudden revelation drives Caelar into desperation. She leads her remaining companions through the reawakened portal into Avernus, pressing onward toward the Basalt Tower while leaving others behind to fight devils along the way.

Her diminished company confronts Belhifet and is annihilated, ending the Crusade upon the same plane it sought to conquer.

Membership[]

The Shining Crusade accepts beings of all races and alignments in its ranks. It thusly contains a blend of not only humans and demihumans in its ranks, but also many monstrous humanoids, such as orcs, ogres, gnolls and trolls. Whilst at least some of these are mercenaries or even conscripts, even these traditionally malevolent races do contain some genuine true believers in the Crusade's cause.

Part of the reason the Crusade is viewed with such fear by the established powers of the Sword Coast is because of its willingness to use forcible conscription to swell its ranks, conquering assorted towns and villages and enslaving their populations to assist in the war effort.

Named Members[]

Unnamed Members[]

  • Bridge Guard
  • Crusader Archer
  • Crusader Assassin (type 1, 2, 3)
  • Crusader Elite
  • Crusader Guard
  • Crusader Recruit
  • Crusader Sergeant
  • Ogre Crusader
  • Various hobgoblin mercenaries

External links[]

Shining Crusade on the Forgotten Realms Wiki, a wiki for the Dungeons & Dragons campaign setting Forgotten Realms.

Community content is available under CC-BY-SA unless otherwise noted.
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