Shar 5e

Shar is one of the most enigmatic and feared deities in the DnD world. She is a part of the Forgotten Realms setting but can be adapted to any DnD campaign. 

As the Rogue crept through the chamber, she could feel her heart pounding in her chest. This was supposed to be an easy heist — just sneak in, grab the artifact, and slip back out unnoticed. Only one caveat… the heist had to be done at midday in full light. 

But something wasn’t right. She could have sworn she was spotted several times. Since she entered the mansion she could feel eyes on her the entire time. Using every ounce of her stealth, she crept along passages, disarmed traps, and silently slipped through guarded rooms. 

Finally, she entered the room in the back. In the center was an altar with her prize, a black stone.

“What have I gotten myself into?” the Rogue mumbled to herself as she picked up the black stone. 

The shadows seemed to writhe and twist around her, and she could feel a palpable sense of unease settling over her. The Stone absorbed all light. Day became night and the robed figures stepped out of shadows that weren’t there moments before. 

“Welcome to the temple of Shar.”, the voices spoke in unison. “You are deemed worthy.”

Who is Shar 5e?

Known as the Lady of Loss, the Mistress of Night, and the Queen of Darkness, Shar is a goddess of secrets, darkness, and the endless void beyond the stars. She is often considered a manifestation of death and represents the inevitable end that all adventurers will eventually take.

According to myth, Shar was born from the union of the primordial deities of light and darkness and represents the shadow. In some tales, she is said to have murdered her own twin sister Selune, the goddess of the moon, plunging the world into darkness and ushering in an age of fear and despair.

Shar is typically depicted as a dark and mysterious figure, with a complex set of motivations and goals. Her worshippers include thieves, assassins, necromancers, and other figures who seek power through secrets and manipulation. 

Her domains include Darkness, Night, Trickery, and Death, and her holy symbol is a black disk with a deep purple border.

Despite her reputation, however, Shar is not universally evil. Some stories suggest that she embodies the natural balance between light and dark. Those that ascribe to this belief say that you cannot have good without evil and that Shar & Selune each are one half of the whole. These people think that you cannot have one without the other.

Shar’s Stats and Abilities

There are no official DnD stat blocks for Shar. Some of the other major deities like Tiamat will have official stat blocks, but they are usually part of a larger module. 

For your own games, you can use the established lore of Shar to create your own homebrew character. If you wish to have your players attempt to fight her as a god. 

In terms of stats, Shar is typically depicted as having very high levels of intelligence, wisdom, charisma, and dexterity. This falls in line with her status as a deity and a creature of the shadow planes. 

In addition, Shar is often granted darkvision and can function and see perfectly well in complete darkness and in light. 

Some interesting abilities to give her would be a Shadow Walk spell where she could simply teleport from shadow to shadow within a certain radius. In keeping with the theme, she could also be able to summon shadow minions or cultists to protect her when threatened in her own realm. 

Speaking of her Realm as a deity, she should have Legendary Actions as well as Lair Actions if she is confronted on her own plane of existence. 

In gameplay, Shar’s abilities make her a challenging opponent for players to face. For example, a dungeon master might use Shar’s teleportation powers to allow her to quickly move around the battlefield and launch surprise attacks. In addition, her affinity to darkness could allow her to manipulate the amount of light in the combat area and force her opponents to either be prepared to fight in full darkness or come up with creative solutions for them to see. 

Shar & Selune

As mentioned earlier, Shar is the opposite aspect of her sister Selune. Shar and Selune are two of the most well-known deities in the DnD pantheon, and their relationship is often characterized as one of conflict and opposition.

Selune is the goddess of the moon, while Shar is the goddess of darkness and secrets. As such, they represent two opposing forces — light and dark — in the DnD universe.

Despite their differences, there have been a few notable events in which Shar and Selune have worked together. For example, in the “Time of Troubles” storyline, in which the Forgotten Realms deities were forced to walk the mortal plane in mortal bodies,  Shar worked with Selune and other deities to stop the evil deity Bane from taking over the world.

However, despite these rare moments of cooperation, Shar and Selune are more often at odds with each other. Shar has been known to actively work against Selune and her followers, and there have been several notable conflicts between the two deities throughout DnD’s history.

Shar Worshippers

Shar’s worshippers typically embrace darkness, secrecy, and subterfuge. They are often secretive, preferring to operate in the shadows and seeking to gain power and knowledge at any cost. Typically Thieves, Rogues, Assassins, or those that work in the shadows secretly find themselves aligned with Shar or actively worshipping her. 

Shar’s alignment is usually described as neutral evil, meaning that she is primarily concerned with her own self-interest and will do whatever it takes to achieve her goals, even if it means causing harm to others or sacrificing her followers. 

Shar worshippers will have a similar philosophy where they will promote their own goals and gains above those of others. 

Not all of her followers are evil. Some followers like ascribe to the Druid philosophy that there must be balance in all things and see Shar as an integral part of the world’s balance between good and evil. 

Shar’s Realm

Shar’s realm is known as the “Plane of Shadow,” a dark and twisted reflection of the Material Plane. It is a realm of darkness where light is rare and often distorted or corrupted. The Plane of Shadow is a dangerous and foreboding place, full of hidden dangers and malevolent entities.

Within Shar’s realm are a number of notable locations, including the Tower of Night, a massive obsidian spire that serves as Shar’s primary stronghold. The Tower is guarded by a host of minions and is said to contain countless secrets and treasures hidden within its depths.

Other locations within the Plane of Shadow include the City of Shade, a sprawling metropolis ruled by Shar’s most powerful followers, and the Shadowfell, a twisted mirror of the natural world that is home to a host of dark and malevolent creatures.

Creatures associated with Shar’s realm include shadow demons, dark mantles, cultists, and assassins that thrive in the darkness

Using Shar as a DM

Shar is a great character to include in your campaign. Her affinity with shadows and schemes can easily have her integrated with any party as either a big bad evil guy, patron, or even hidden ally. 

Shar’s followers often operate in secret and may have their own agendas. This can add for some great backstabbing and intrigue amongst your NPCs and players. NPCs or quest givers who your players trust can easily turn out to be followers of Shar and turn on them after gaining their trust. 

As the main bad guy, a network of Shar Cultists makes excellent antagonists. They may operate in the shadows, manipulating events from behind the scenes to further their own goals. They could even be trusted allies. 

Shar Cult Adventure Ideas

• Players must infiltrate a cult of assassins.
• The party Rogue finds an artifact that helps with their stealth but secretly is a Shar relic.
• Players join a thieves guild that turns out to be a hidden temple of Shar. 

If you want to include the deity herself into your campaign there are also many ways to do it. Players could align themselves with either Selune or Shar in their eternal struggle, or pick a neutral option to ensure that neither are able to escape their endless conflict. 

When bringing a deity into your campaign, it’s usually not best to simply have your players come face-to-face with them and start swinging swords. Any time you have players come face to face with a deity especially one as powerful as Shar it should be a world-ending event. Players typically aren’t going to call upon a god for help with a mission to clear our rats in a basement. 

It should be more subtle and if they do eventually come face to face with Shar, it should be built up over the course of numerous sessions to convey the impact and power that she wields. 

Shar 5e FAQs