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Gods of Charagan
and Kivia
CHARAGAN Almost all of the major religions of Charagan share the same Creation Myth, though each has its own spin. They all maintain, in some form, that the peoples who came to populate Charagan were fleeing from a Great Enemy on another world, and that the Gods created Charagan to be for them a haven, and brought them safely thither. As a pantheon, the Gods of Charagan are collectively known as the Travelers. Followers of Brechen maintain that the First Sailors were fleeing in a huge fleet that stretched for miles, and that while most of the people fleeing the Enemy were killed, those on the ships were sucked into a whirlpool a mile wide, and brought up on the other side, into the Great Western Sea. The Clerics of Ell tell that, just when the armies of the Bright Demon were going to slaughter the masses, Ell heard them cry out for help, and so cast a great cloak of Darkness around the world. And while the Demon was blinded and confused, she caught up the people is a net of starlight and shadows, and placed them down in a place on which later was built Kallor, the City of Night, which to this day is shrouded in eternal twilight, and which is the home of the Church of Ell. The Knights of Werthis know that in the Penultimate War, Werthis himself fought hand to hand with the Cursed Warrior, giving his armies a chance to escape through a tunnel of His own making. Now they train, so that when the Cursed Warrior comes again to fight the Last War of Cleansing, the followers of Werthis will crush His foes. (Once, long ago, the Cursed One sent an invading army to test their readiness, and the Foe was beaten back.) Followers of Pikon maintain that the World was not created as a haven for those fleeing. Rather, according to His doctrine, Charagan was already there, created by Pikon himself with His own hands, for His worshippers to live upon. The other Gods brought their own people from some other world, but they did not create it. Those who worship non-human deities such as Yondalla and Morradin are somewhat divided in their opinions. Yondallans tend to side with the Travelers, believing that the Halfling folk fled with the others from the Enemy. The Dwarves agree with Pikon (insofar as maintaining that the world was not created by the Travelers), and claim to be the eldest living race on the planet. The Elves do not reveal overmuch of their Gods, and care little for the religious doctrine of others. The Travelers are: Brechen, God of the Sea, Master of Winds, Patron of sailors and fisherman. Brechen is often called The Tidal Master, the Sea King, and Waveguide by his worshippers. The holy symbol of Brechen’s church is a simple outline sketch of a fish. Churches of Brechen are only built on the shores of seas, rivers and
lakes. Priests are expected to spend 50 days of each year at sea,
ministering to sailors, and praying for favorable winds and catches.
Brechen has a tremendous following in Tal Hae (only Brechen’s cathedral
in Hae Charagan is larger); in fact, not even Pikon has as bountiful patronage
as Brechen in the Wooden City)
Ell, Goddess of Night, Queen of Sleep, Keeper of Dreams, The Dark Shield. The Dreamkeeper’s holy symbol is a flat black inverted triangle. Clerics of Ell must become completely nocturnal, and tend to avoid direct
sunlight. Churches of Ell are only open for services and visitors
between sundown and sunrise; during the day, all windows are shuttered,
and during the night they are flung wide. Clerics of Ell will only
offer succor to those who ask, and do not volunteer their aid. Although
many people fear Ell, and mistake her for a Goddess of Death, She is actually
a protector of sleeping folk, and it is She who restores health during
sleep
Werthis, God of War, Lord
of Conflict, also called Stormwrath, and the Blood-Taker.
Followers of Werthis know that war and violent conflict is the only true
means to settle disputes between cities or kingdoms (and for some, disputes
between individuals, though this is not official doctrine.) When
the next War of Cleansing falls upon Charagan, it will be the Stormknights
who will lead the Kingdom's forces against the invader (indeed, they claim
that this has already happened once millennia ago, and will happen again.)
Clerics of Werthis are officially called Stormknights, and spend as much
time sparring and practicing with weapons as praying...often the two are
the same. Knights of Werthis cannot cast healing spells.
Delioch, God of Healing, Patron of the Unwilling Soldier, the Healer, Star of the Soul, the Scarbearer, the Woundtender, the Soulmender, the Veteran. Delioch is pictured both as ever-young and fair healer, and as a scarred battle veteran. In both forms, his right eye gleams with the light of his manifest power, and his left eye gleams with the light of the supplicant’s soul. There are three main branches to the Mother Church of Delioch, known
as the Scarbearers (or Martyred Brethren), the Woundtenders (or simply
Healers), and the Soulmenders (the Revered). Contrary to most healing
spells, those of Delioch’s clerics (Soulmenders excepted) leave a scar
behind as if the wound had healed normally.
Corilayna, Goddess of Gamblers, Mistress of Thieves, Lady Luck, the Puppeteer, the Hand of Fate, the Shepherd of Fortune. It is common for thieves to worship the Hand, and many taverns will
have her holy symbol, a six-sided die balanced on one corner, over the
door. Most people consider her a Goddess of good luck only, though,
as her clerics will attest, She is not biased toward good luck or bad.
She will sometimes bestow fortune as befits a person’s character, though
this is not often so...story has it that the first High Priestess of Corilayna
was struck down by a bolt from the Heavens, not for any misdeeds, but rather
as a demonstration that Fate is controlled by no one, and one’s actions
in the material world cannot guarantee favor or disfavor in Her eyes.
Uthol Inga, The Silent One, Goddess of the Faithful, The Watcher, She Who Waits Clerics of Uthol Inga maintain that Her church is dedicated to "preparing for the Awakening," though they are not permitted to speak of what exactly that means. Despite seemingly peaceful operations of Uthol’s church, other religions are exceedingly hostile towards this group, especially the Stormknights. This is because they believe that Uthol Inga was the Consort to the Great Enemy, and only fled with them to this world because she feared that the Enemy would slay her once the battle was won, seeing her as a future threat. Uthol Inga has very few followers among lay persons. There are no towns or cities in Charagan with churches of both Werthis and Uthol Inga. On Kivia, followers of Uthol Inga know her rather as a patroness of
music and crafts, and call her the Skilled One and Lady of Songs.
They maintain that Uthol Inga only pretended to love the Great Enemy, to
distract Him and give the other Gods time to escape His wrath.
Other Human Gods of Charagan
Pikon, God of the Common Man, Watcher of Peasants, the Protector, Lord of Farmers, Bringer of the Harvest. Pikon is the most worshipped Deity in Charagan, being the patron of
all who toil, especially farmers. Without him, even the Gods would starve.
Followers of Pikon tend to hold the nobility in some contempt, although
no official church doctrine condones rebellion. Rather, peasants
and farmers are taught that appreciation for their labors is not relevant
-- it is the toil itself, and the good that comes of it that are important.
Anyone healed in a church of Pikon has their hands examined by the healer;
the effectiveness of the healing is greater for those who have the hands
of a laborer. After any major healing, the recipient must pay with
sweat from his or her brow; that sweat is used as a component for future
healing done there.
The Black Circle, Symbol of Knowledge The Black Circle is an uncertain object of worship. It is revered by some as a symbol of knowledge and power, necromancy and dark magic, a universal embodiment, rather than a conscious God. Others maintain that there is a God behind the Circle, who never reveals his true aspect to mortals. Whatever the case, Its Clerics are granted powers from some source. The Black Circle is considered more of an evil cult in the modern day, though it is somewhat on the rise, after being thought gone for good a few hundred years ago. On Kivia, the Black Circle is considered by most non-worshippers to
be benign, and its Clerics are willing to offer information and knowledge
to those who seek it. Some on Kivia, however, clearly do not trust
the Black Circle or its followers.
KIVIA The two High Gods of Kivia are Yulan, God of Time
and Reality
These two created together the World and the Five Greater Gods, who are Kemma, Goddess of
the Sun, Truth and Wisdom
Each of these was instructed by Manisette to make one Creation of their own, and these would have been the Five Lesser Gods. There are only four: Nifi, God of Fire
and Destruction; creation of Tiria
Palamir was created by Yulan and Manisette to be the God of Magic and the Arcane, but being prideful and sure of his ability, he strove to create not one God but four. Manisette punished Palamir by Unmaking him, and Remaking him as a God of Honor and Loyalty, who is the embodiment of the Dutiful Soldier. All four of Palamir's creations were diminshed in power, and are not the equal of the Lesser Gods. They are: Paro, Demigod of Protection,
Defender of the Innocent
There are other Gods, who include Thoresh, God of Farmers
and the Harvest, who is the son of Manisette and Quarrol
Sylwik is the God of Excess, Debauchery and Revelry, whose origin is not known Myr-Madar is aloof
from the other Gods, and is said to be feared even by Yulan himself, for
he was not a creation of the Greater Gods. He is the God of Judgement,
also called the Body of the Law, the Punisher, and the Peacekeeper.
Also worshipped on Kivia are the Black Circle,
Uthol Inga, and Yondalla, among others.
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