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Drummer Boy
Senior Scribe
USA
395 Posts |
 Posted - 07 Oct 2002 : 04:09:06
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How do you pronounce Bhaal? I've always thought it was pronounced "ball," but I am pretty sure I was wrong, and I can't think of any other way to pronounce it.
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Arion Elenim
Senior Scribe
933 Posts |
Posted - 07 Oct 2002 : 17:28:49
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As we have been discussing in other forums (see the one marked Pronunciations), the names of Faerun have most likely purposely been created with tthe possiblity of many pronunciations...this allows for a feel of variation amongst the various tongues and accents of the Realms...
I have heard it said BAHL, as well as BAY-UHL and BUH-HALL and BUH-HALE....I suppose it is all the same....
The elves in particularly have odd pronunciations....this idea I have even incorporated into my own campaigns and characters.....for instance, while the character my profile here is based on has introduced himself by the name Arion Elenim (pronounced AIR-EE-AWN EHL-EH-NEM) to all of his friends, nearly all of which human or half-elven, it seemed natural to say it as AY-RYE-ON AY-LEE-NEM when confronted with the challenge of saying it in elven......the end result is a richer sense of being that separates the races even further as concerns their language... |
My latest Realms-based short story, about a bard, a paladin of Lathander and the letter of the law, Debts Repaid. It takes place before the "shattering" and gives the bard Arion a last gasp before he plunges into the present.http://candlekeep.com/campaign/logs/log-debts.htm |
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Drummer Boy
Senior Scribe
USA
395 Posts |
Posted - 10 Oct 2002 : 23:50:22
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| Alright, thanks for clarifying that for me. |
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Ditalidas
Learned Scribe
Netherlands
127 Posts |
Posted - 11 Oct 2002 : 14:36:17
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Very well said Arion.
I never really thought about it. Though I did notice that some pronounce names of deities different than I do. But I won't ever make an issue out of it again 
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'All that is' is also 'All that is not' for the one cannot exist without the other.
Sweet Water and Light Laughter |
Edited by - Ditalidas on 11 Oct 2002 15:16:51 |
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eilinel
Learned Scribe
France
296 Posts |
Posted - 12 Oct 2002 : 23:57:58
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it's good to clarify a little bit the pronounciation. I remenber the last time i played with some americans, we were talking about some gods but my pronouciation was so sticking out beyond his that we believe that we were talking about different gods...
misunderstanding...
3 dead in the end, just because of that.
We replayed the scene but it's not the same thing
Shortly, good pronouciation can save your character's life and the party! |
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Neo2151
Learned Scribe
USA
113 Posts |
Posted - 01 Oct 2013 : 14:07:10
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Apparently, according to the Forgotten Realms Campaign Set (Cyclopedia of the Realms), p. 10 (according to http://forgottenrealms.wikia.com/wiki/Bhaal )
it is pronounced "Beh-HAHL."
Sorry for the thread necro, but I've never heard it pronounced this way until I watched the DDN PAX Prime 2013 live game, and Chris Perkins pronounced it. Kinda blew my mind.  |
"Come looking for me, and I will blast you to dust, and then lay waste to all your descendants, ancestors, and the realm you came from, every last tree and stone of it. Why? Well, it's what I usually do."
-Baerendra Riverhand on The Story of Spellfire |
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Thieran
Learned Scribe
Germany
293 Posts |
Posted - 01 Oct 2013 : 18:31:30
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| Strange: according to Faiths & Avatars p. 45, Bhaal's name is pronounced "Bahl". |
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BlackAce
Senior Scribe
United Kingdom
358 Posts |
Posted - 01 Oct 2013 : 20:26:31
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| To me it's always rhymed with Roald Dahl's surname. |
Edited by - BlackAce on 01 Oct 2013 20:27:04 |
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TBeholder
Great Reader
2427 Posts |
Posted - 02 Oct 2013 : 03:17:36
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| Take "Bwahaa-ha" as spelled out "evil laughter", remove even vowels, cap with "l"? |
People never wonder How the world goes round -Helloween
And even I make no pretense Of having more than common sense -R.W.Wood
It's not good, Eric. It's a gazebo. -Ed Whitchurch |
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Artemas Entreri
Great Reader
USA
3131 Posts |
Posted - 02 Oct 2013 : 03:30:46
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| Any pronunciation other than "ball" sounds absolutely horrid to me, but each realms reader can pronounce it anyway they choose. |
Some people have a way with words, and other people...oh, uh, not have way. -Steve Martin
Amazon "KindleUnlimited" Free Trial: http://amzn.to/2AJ4yD2
Try Audible and Get 2 Free Audio Books! https://amzn.to/2IgBede |
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Wooly Rupert
Master of Mischief
USA
36803 Posts |
Posted - 02 Oct 2013 : 04:16:22
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quote:
Originally posted by Entreri3478
Any pronunciation other than "ball" sounds absolutely horrid to me, but each realms reader can pronounce it anyway they choose.
That's pretty much how I say it. |
Candlekeep Forums Moderator
Candlekeep - The Library of Forgotten Realms Lore
http://www.candlekeep.com -- Candlekeep Forum Code of Conduct
I am the Giant Space Hamster of Ill Omen!  |
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Lord Bane
Senior Scribe
Germany
479 Posts |
Posted - 02 Oct 2013 : 10:00:27
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| I go with Thieran, "Bahl" pronounciation for me. |
The driving force in the multiverse is evil, for it forces good to act. |
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Markustay
Realms Explorer extraordinaire
USA
15724 Posts |
Posted - 02 Oct 2013 : 13:01:40
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^ Same for me. ^
I've always said it 'Bahl'. |
"I have never in my life learned anything from any man who agreed with me" --- Dudley Field Malone
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Thieran
Learned Scribe
Germany
293 Posts |
Posted - 02 Oct 2013 : 14:45:56
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quote:
Originally posted by Neo2151
Apparently, according to the Forgotten Realms Campaign Set (Cyclopedia of the Realms), p. 10 (according to http://forgottenrealms.wikia.com/wiki/Bhaal )
it is pronounced "Beh-HAHL."
[...]
I checked the reference, and it is actually correct. Since Faiths & Avatars, published much later, contradicts it, I go with the latter, though. |
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Therise
Master of Realmslore
1272 Posts |
Posted - 02 Oct 2013 : 15:19:34
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| Yep, original gray box for the Realms has it as "Beh-HAHL". |
Female, 40-year DM of a homebrew-evolved 1E Realms, including a few added tidbits of 2E and 3E lore; played originally in AD&D, then in Rolemaster. Be a DM for your kids and grandkids, gaming is excellent for families! |
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Bhaal
Acolyte
22 Posts |
Posted - 02 Oct 2013 : 15:23:09
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This reminds me of that time I mispronounced "Bocce." Super embarrassing.
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Eilserus
Master of Realmslore
USA
1446 Posts |
Posted - 02 Oct 2013 : 18:18:31
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Didn't Balder's Gate 2, Shadows of Amn have it pronounced as "ball"? I think that's where I learned to pronounce it from myself.
This is a somewhat interesting conversation, because I bet, depending on locations and dialects, the pronunciation of the gods may sound different from region to region.
For instance, when I briefly lived in Phoenix, AZ, I was told I had an accent. I found that really strange, but I am from North Dakota. So maybe the gods or some of them have several different ways to pronounce their games.
Another example would be the old Lloth, Lolth spelling we used to see in the old days. Lloth was the "Northern" dialect version. Little bit different example, but along the same lines in a way. |
Edited by - Eilserus on 02 Oct 2013 18:31:05 |
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Bhaal
Acolyte
22 Posts |
Posted - 02 Oct 2013 : 18:42:50
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quote:
Originally posted by Eilserus
Didn't Balder's Gate 2, Shadows of Amn have it pronounced as "ball"?
Indeed, you are correct. Truthfully, whether people call me "beh-hall", "ball" or "ba-ahl" is less important than the fact that I'M BACK BABY!
The original is "beh-hall" of course, but northerners tend to twist pronunciations. Barbarians call Tempus "temp-os" and as you noted "Lloth" transformed over time to "Lolth".
It's all good as long as we're worshiped and feared. 
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KacyCrawford
Acolyte
USA
41 Posts |
Posted - 03 Oct 2013 : 11:48:53
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| I'd go with Neo2151,"Beh-HAHL." |
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Thauranil
Master of Realmslore
India
1591 Posts |
Posted - 03 Oct 2013 : 14:29:48
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| I have always pronounced it " Bahll". |
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Neo2151
Learned Scribe
USA
113 Posts |
Posted - 03 Oct 2013 : 15:06:40
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Am I the only one who's been pronouncing it, "bayl" then?  |
"Come looking for me, and I will blast you to dust, and then lay waste to all your descendants, ancestors, and the realm you came from, every last tree and stone of it. Why? Well, it's what I usually do."
-Baerendra Riverhand on The Story of Spellfire |
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Erik Scott de Bie
Forgotten Realms Author
USA
4598 Posts |
Posted - 03 Oct 2013 : 15:25:32
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Bhaal in my Realms campaign is played by Christian Bale, and everything he says is in capital letters: "I AM THE NIGHT," or "SWEAR TO ME!" or "I'M THE GODS-DAMNED BHAAL-MAN!"
CHeers |
Erik Scott de Bie
'Tis easier to destroy than to create.
Author of a number of Realms novels (GHOSTWALKER, DEPTHS OF MADNESS, and the SHADOWBANE series), contributor to the NEVERWINTER CAMPAIGN GUIDE and SHADOWFELL: GLOOMWROUGHT AND BEYOND, Twitch DM of the Dungeon Scrawlers, currently playing "The Westgate Irregulars" |
Edited by - Erik Scott de Bie on 03 Oct 2013 15:26:01 |
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The Sage
Procrastinator Most High
Australia
31772 Posts |
Posted - 03 Oct 2013 : 16:07:59
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quote:
Originally posted by Erik Scott de Bie
Bhaal in my Realms campaign is played by Christian Bale, and everything he says is in capital letters: "I AM THE NIGHT," or "SWEAR TO ME!" or "I'M THE GODS-DAMNED BHAAL-MAN!"
CHeers
"When Waterdeep is ashes... you have my permission to die."
*Snippet of discussion heard between the Tyrant Lord, Bane, and Bhaal-Man.*
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Candlekeep Forums Moderator
Candlekeep - The Library of Forgotten Realms Lore
http://www.candlekeep.com -- Candlekeep Forum Code of Conduct
Scribe for the Candlekeep Compendium -- Volume IX now available (Oct 2007)
"So Saith Ed" -- the collected Candlekeep replies of Ed Greenwood
Zhoth'ilam Folio -- The Electronic Misadventures of a Rambling Sage |
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Quale
Master of Realmslore
1757 Posts |
Posted - 03 Oct 2013 : 18:42:09
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| I pronounce it like the Phoenician god, B'l |
Edited by - Quale on 03 Oct 2013 18:43:17 |
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Wooly Rupert
Master of Mischief
USA
36803 Posts |
Posted - 04 Oct 2013 : 04:21:12
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quote:
Originally posted by Erik Scott de Bie
Bhaal in my Realms campaign is played by Christian Bale, and everything he says is in capital letters: "I AM THE NIGHT," or "SWEAR TO ME!" or "I'M THE GODS-DAMNED BHAAL-MAN!"
CHeers
Would that make him Christian Bhaal, then? |
Candlekeep Forums Moderator
Candlekeep - The Library of Forgotten Realms Lore
http://www.candlekeep.com -- Candlekeep Forum Code of Conduct
I am the Giant Space Hamster of Ill Omen! |
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TBeholder
Great Reader
2427 Posts |
Posted - 04 Oct 2013 : 07:50:12
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quote:
Originally posted by Wooly Rupert
quote:
Originally posted by Erik Scott de Bie
Bhaal in my Realms campaign is played by Christian Bale, and everything he says is in capital letters: "I AM THE NIGHT," or "SWEAR TO ME!" or "I'M THE GODS-DAMNED BHAAL-MAN!"
Would that make him Christian Bhaal, then?
You're joking, and now and then people use the names without looking up... |
People never wonder How the world goes round -Helloween
And even I make no pretense Of having more than common sense -R.W.Wood
It's not good, Eric. It's a gazebo. -Ed Whitchurch |
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Bhaal
Acolyte
22 Posts |
Posted - 04 Oct 2013 : 19:07:43
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quote:
Originally posted by TBeholder
You're joking, and now and then people use the names without looking up...
Moloch had a pretty sweet deal going if you ask me.
And I set up all my children for murder. Took a while, but worked for me! Sometimes you have to break a few eggs to make a nice tasty omelette. 
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The Masked Mage
Great Reader
USA
2420 Posts |
Posted - 12 Oct 2013 : 06:52:40
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| I always assumed that Bhaal was based on Baal from real world ancient religions. |
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Drustan Dwnhaedan
Learned Scribe
USA
324 Posts |
Posted - 12 Oct 2013 : 06:59:05
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| That's what I thought as well. Although I must admit, the two don't seem to have all that much in common; Bhaal being a god of murder, whereas Baal was a fertility god. (I think. It's been a while since I read anything about him, so I'm probably mistaken.) |
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Markustay
Realms Explorer extraordinaire
USA
15724 Posts |
Posted - 12 Oct 2013 : 14:19:13
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Thats why I theorized that Bhaal was the son of Baal... who started-out as a fertility god, and then went bad.
Out-of-game, we know from historic records that that is just another case of one group of people 'demonizing' another group's gods, but we can use that.
Child or no, Bhaal may have simply had Baal as a patron (perhaps unknowingly - he may have had a grudge against one of the 'Seven Lost Gods'). |
"I have never in my life learned anything from any man who agreed with me" --- Dudley Field Malone
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Edited by - Markustay on 12 Oct 2013 14:19:53 |
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The Masked Mage
Great Reader
USA
2420 Posts |
Posted - 17 Oct 2013 : 22:47:49
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| I thought Baal was one of the fallen from grace gods - a demon or something... can't seem to find anything online explaining that belief except they used the name for Diablo as well. |
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Pronunciation of Bhaal
