Deolpholis appears as a feeble old man. He has waist-long white hair and an equally long white beard knotted and matted into a uniform tangle. Bits and pieces of food can still be seen trapped in the morass of hair. He wears simple white robes that are threadbare, and the bottom hem is tattered and mud-stained from travel. His eyes are a sickly-looking mess of solid white beneath a bushy uni-brow of white. His face is dirty and wrinkled. His hands match his face, and in his left hand, he carries a gnarled staff to guide his way. The only ornamentation adorning him is an ancient-looking holy symbol of Illiir.
Deolpholis has been around since the dwarves were giants. He was a human advisor to the celestial giants during their war against the dragons. After their victory, Deolpholis remained with the giants to guide them in their stewardship over man. When the giants began to lord over man instead of safeguard him as they had agreed in their bargain with Illiir, Deolpholis abandoned the giants to their evil ways and left to live in seclusion. When Illiir cursed the celestial giants and turned them into dwarves, he also visited Deolpholis. The god said, “you who were my agent among the stewards chose to leave them to their wicked ways when they needed your advice most. Though you did no wrong, you are not without fault. Since you turned a blind eye to their transgressions, forevermore shall you remain blind. Since you failed to advise them of their perilous course, forevermore shall you strive in vain to convey the warning of peril unto mankind. Though you shall perceive the dangers clearly, you will be unable to convey them to your charges in any coherent manner. Your messages will be unfathomable, and despite your best efforts, you will be scorned, ridiculed, and disregarded, from this day, until the end of time.” At that moment Deolpholis was struck permanently blind. Over the centuries, though, he has adapted and developed some amazing abilities. He cannot actually see, but he has a “divine sight” ability that is a combination of several detection-type magics. He also has the ability to spontaneously cast any divine spell. This is not the same as the way a sorcerer casts; it is something truly unique.
In the past, Deolpholis would receive visions warning him of dangers to man, but when he tried to relay the information to help prevent catastrophe, his words came out as riddles or poems or nonsense. Even more frustrating for him was the fact that he “heard” what he was trying to say, not what actually came out of his mouth. So he never understood why no one would heed his warnings. Since the fall of the Godswall, this has changed. He can now accurately convey his prophecies, though he does not know what caused this change, or why it has happened. Deolpholis has also gained the ability to use any metamagic feat in conjunction with any of his spells. So, theoretically, he could cast a quickened, silent, still, enlarged, empowered, maximized energy drain followed by a silent, still, enlarged, empowered, maximized energy drain in the same round! His final quirk is that dwarves feel a strange affinity toward him, though they don’t know why