The Changebringer - Avandra
She is often depicted as a young woman of dark complexion and long, light brown hair that cascades to form the road left behind her. Most art shows her in constant motion, trailblazing and ever leading into the unknown.
The Changebringer's holy day is New Dawn, and takes place the first day of the first month, when the old year gives way to the new. The day of New Dawn is celebrated with a grand midnight feast that commonly features a short play that celebrates the changes of the past year.
The Platinum Dragon - Bahamut
This majestic being is often seen emblazoned on shields and armor, both functional and decorative, in the form of a brilliant silver dragon head in profile. Temples and art pieces present a massive, glittering dragon of vibrant platinum sheen and seemingly endless wingspan.
The Platinum Dragon’s holy day is called Embertide, and is celebrated on the fifth day of the eleventh month. This is a day of remembrance, solemnity, and respect to those who have fallen in the defense of others.
The Archeart - Corellon
Most modern tapestries and tomes depict the Archeart as an elven being of impossible grace and beauty, androgynous and alluring, framed by long wavy golden hair. They have been the inspiration for many early elven art pieces, and it's not uncommon to find elements of their visage or symbol included in most elven architecture.
The Archeart's holy day is called Elvendawn, or Midsummer. It is celebrated on the twentieth day of the sixth month, and celebrates the elves' first emergence from the Feywild. In Tir Erasleigh, the elves build magical wards in certain spaces and open small doorways into the Feywild and celebrate with uncharacteristic vigor with the wild fey.
The Allhammer - Moradin
Many guild halls and workshops contain images of the Allhammer, a faceless, stout dwarf-like being of immense strength, hunched over a flaming heart clasped within his massive hands.
The Allhammer's holy day is Deep Solace, and is celebrated on the eighteenth day of the fifth month. Especially devout followers of the Allhammer spend the day in isolation, meditating on the meaning of family and how they may be better mothers, fathers, siblings, and children. Other dwarven communities in Dun Buldahr and abroad celebrate with a full day of feasting and drinking.
The Dawnfather - Pelor
Tapestries of old match early text describing the Dawnfather as a patronly figure in silver and gold armor, his head a beacon of light and fire so bright that a face could rarely be seen within. Many statues in holy places treat the head as a brazier, lit with each dawn and extinguished with the dusk.
The Dawnfather's holy day is called Highsummer, and takes place on the fifteenth day of the seventh month. The entire week is celebrated with gift-giving and feasting. Festivities begin on Highsummer day and end at midnight on the twenty-first. In Candledeep, the feast of Highsummer is instead a festival of lights around the Sun Tree; gift-giving is traditional. Most folk choose to spend Highsummer with their family, recounting the small things they are thankful for.
The Moonweaver - Sehanine
Her depictions are as numerous as the myths and stories of her with meddling within simple unions. However, she is most often painted as a young girl of light blue skin and white hair, her body and limbs but wavy silk strands of silver moonlight that caress and create the edges of the shadows.
The Moonweaver has no holy day, but is celebrated by the elves on the night of the decade’s largest full moon. Elven astronomers track the moon’s phases and how it grows closer and farther to Nerath, and can predict these days with great accuracy. Many high and haughty elves use this festival as an excuse to be sly and mischievous; some younger elves use costumes and illusions to prank their peers.
The Lawbearer - Erathis
The Lawbearer is worshiped by the denizens of the Quadroads District in Vasselheim. Her temple is called the Crown of Erathis; the Holy Paramours of the Crown of Erathis approve magically-binding contracts under which the Slayer's Take hunts monsters and other creatures around Vasselheim.
The Knowing Mistress - Ioun
Common representations show the Knowing Mistress as a graying, mature woman of welcoming, matronly smile, swathed in billowing robes and scarves that fan into books and scrolls.
The Knowing Mistress has no public holy day. Only in certain locations has the Knowing Mistress's faith been resurrected-though her worship by the intellectuals of the city bears little resemblance to the knowledge-seekers of old.
The Stormlord - Kord
Within his temples and carvings, the Stormlord is shown as a paragon warrior, often nude and physically the epitome of muscle and strength. Often with beard and short, curled hair, most depictions have the Stormlord in mid-wrestle with a terrible beast, and always in a stance of dominance.
The Stormlord’s holy day is the Day of Challenging, and is celebrated on the seventh day of the second month. The Day of Challenging is one of the most raucous holidays, and thousands of spectators attend the annual Godsbrawl held in the Temple of the Stormlord to root for their favored deity’s champion.
The Wildmother - Melora
Seen immortalized through wooden reliefs and carved idols in hidden, overgrown groves and rural shrines, the Wildmother often is depicted as a beautiful woman of green skin nearly swallowed by a wild, tangled wreath of hair, leaves, and vines that dwarf her lithe form.
The Wildmother’s holy day is Wild’s Grandeur, and is celebrated on the vernal equinox, usually the twentieth day of the third month. The people of the southern wilds celebrate the Wildmother’s strength by going on a journey to a place of great natural beauty, like the top of a mountain waterfall, or the center of a desert. Wild’s Grandeur is rarely celebrated in Emon, but some folk will plant trees in observance of the holiday
The Matron of Ravens - The Raven Queen
Few existing visual depictions of the Matron of Ravens herself exist, with many temples merely using the raven as a symbol of her blessing. Those that do depict her, however, reveal a tall, pale woman wrapped in dangling black linens, her onyx-black hair straight and never ending, her face obscured by a white, porcelain mask.
The Matron of Ravens' holy day is the Night of Ascension, celebrating her apotheosis. The actual date of the goddess’s rise to divinity is unclear, but the Night of Ascension is nonetheless celebrated on the thirteenth day of the tenth month. Many people see this cheery celebration of the dead to be unnerving and macabre, but the Raven’s followers believe the honored dead would rather be venerated with cheer, not misery.
The Matron of Ravens is also considered by some the winter patron to the holiday of Winter’s Crest: the celebration in Nerath of freedom, celebrated on the 20th day of the eleventh month. Most, however, see this holiday belonging to the people of the land, and recognize no pertaining divine worship
The Lord of the Hells - Asmodeus
A twisted image of the celestial blood that once bore him, the Lord of the Hells is revealed in many tomes and murals as a handsome humanoid of deep, red skin and long, black hair. Two curling horns rise from his brow, and his lips ever bear a knowing grin.
The enemies of The Lord of the Hells are numerous, even among the Betrayer Gods, many of whom only follow the archdevil for fear of his immense power. The Lord of the Hells’s archnemesis is the Changebringer, whose mischief and cunning has vexed him throughout the eons. It was she who defeated him in the Calamity by tricking his fiendish armies into attacking one another. The Devil Lord’s greatest triumph during the Calamity was fooling and betraying the Everlight and slaughtering all her followers in one fell stroke—a move that today has united the followers of the Everlight and the Changebringer in an unbreakable bond.
The Strife Emperor - Bane
A dark reflection of the honorable warrior, the Strife Emperor is often depicted as a brutish ogre-like man clad from head to toe in jagged black armor. Heads dangle from his belt, and the shadow that obscures his helmeted face does not hide his unblinking, piercing yellow eyes.
The Strife Emperor’s greatest enemy is the Wildmother, the goddess who defeated him during the Calamity. The Strife Emperor grew his armies by corrupting noble creatures into monsters and destroying the wilds to fuel his terrible engines of conflict, and the two deities clashed many times during the war before his defeat. The emperor’s massive iron armor still litters Beynsfal, and his massive helmet houses the capital city of a ruthless hobgoblin empire
The Ruiner - Gruumsh
The Archeart shot out the Ruiner’s right eye during the Calamity, and the god of slaughter longs for the day he can return the favor twofold. Those who serve the Ruiner are sometimes hypnotized by his hateful rage from across the Divine Gate and fall into a strange bloodlust, longing to slaughter elves and those who worship magic at the altar of the Archeart.
Primitive clay representations can be found in savage communities of his followers, showing the Ruiner as a hulking, bulbous behemoth of an orc. The missing eye has shifted as a minor fold, the prominent eye now central to the face like a nightmarish Cyclops.
The Spider Queen - Lolth
Many icons and idols within dark elf society show the image of the Spider Queen, a darkly alluring woman of dark purple skin and silver hair, her abdomen swelling into the terrifying body of a monstrous spider.
The Chained Oblivion - Tharizdun
Now, its chaotic mind has fallen into more frightful dreams, imagining nightmarish aberrations into existence deep beneath Nerath. The Chained Oblivion’s demented cultists work without word from their twisted patron, awaiting the Epoch of Ends, when its freedom will be attained and all beings shall be consumed in deathlessness unending.
The few remaining followers of the Knowing Mistress are dedicated to ensuring the Oblivion is never again unchained. Their goddess led the charge against the all-consuming destroyer god’s re-emergence, and though her bravery allowed the other gods of good to shackle their enemy, the victory nearly cost her immortal life. Some say the Knowing Mistress can only be fully restored if the Chained Oblivion is destroyed for good.
Few attempts at depicting the image of the Chained Oblivion exist, and the existing texts speak of a creature of rolling, hungry ink and darkness; of a spreading cloud of lightless destruction born from a thousand Queenous mouths. Current references constrain the nightmare with chains of black and gold, barely keeping the dark at bay.
The Scaled Tyrant - Tiamat
The Scaled Tyrant’s hatred for the Platinum Dragon is as old as the Founding, and her cults are ever hunted by his justice. Her worship has for centuries been limited to chromatic dragons by these zealous paladins, but sects of mortal dragon-worshipers have been appearing across Nerath recently.
Most visual representations of the Scaled Tyrant exist as a warning within sanctuaries of the Platinum Dragon. She is often shown as a drake of frightful size, massive leathery wings birthing clouds of poisonous mist with every flight, while she shouts from five vicious dragon heads, each head depicting a different chromatic color of her evil children.
The Crawling King - Torog
The Dawnfather and the Everlight defeated the Crawling King during the Calamity by drawing their nemesis above ground. The Dawnfather pierced his body with 10,000 lances of sunlight, and the Everlight imprisoned him within her serene rays. The tears of suffering and rage the Crawling King shed burned through Nerath, and his faithful fled into these tunnels to escape their enemies’ holy light.
The Crawling king is largely rendered as a swollen, malformed worm that slithers through the dark below, a screaming, hairless human head at the helm with three arms carving through the lightless rock.
The Lich King - Vecna
As a deity, Vecna appeared as a decrepit lich missing his left hand and left eye. According to some, Vecna had an obsession with acquiring and maintaining secrets, believing them to be the source of true power. He was precise and calculating in his actions, but was at times prone to bouts of intense rage.
Vecna believed that every being in existence held a single secret that could be manipulated to bring about its destruction. Uncovering that secret and exploiting its truth were the key to gaining dominion over others.
The Cloaked Serpent - Zehir
The Cloaked Serpent loathes the Lawbearer and the Wildmother, for he despises life, order, and love above all things. His surviving worshipers relish in using poison and fire to undermine civilization and consume nature, hoping to throw the goddesses into fury and consequently cast Nerath into chaos.
Many forgotten temples were once built to the Cloaked Serpent, and within these chambers you would find his image engraved within much of the architecture. A human body with a half-dozen arms that houses a gargantuan serpent head, fanged and frilled in aggression. Strands of thick, dark hair that sprout from the scaled body swirl around to form layers of shadow, obscuring the entire form of the entity.
Also known as "She who makes the path," the Changebringer champions freedom, travel, trade, and adventure across the lands. Her will heralds open frontiers, and her call beckons her followers to discover that which awaits them beyond the known. This nature leads to few temples in direct civilization dedicated to the Changebringer, but they often can be found off the beaten path and near roads well traveled. Her worship is common among merchants, free spirits, and adventurers, with tavern cheers calling to her honor as a bringer of luck and fortune.
The pillar of justice, protection, nobility, and honor, the Platinum Dragon stands as a beacon to many paladins of order and good, and is revered by most metallic dragons as the first of their kind. The crest of the Platinum Dragon adorns many halls of high leadership and justice, his will expected present at all just judgments. To follow him is to look after those who cannot look after themselves.
Guardian over the spheres of spring, beauty and the arts. Corellon is the patron of arcane magic and the fey. The Founding inspired them to wander the twisted lands, seeding them with the first arcane magics and raising the most ancient of forests. It was by the Archeart's hand that the first elves wandered from the Feywild, and for this reason they are considered the Mother and Father of all elves. Those who seek art in all their work, whether magic or mundane, often worship at the alter of the Archeart. They loathe the spider queen and her priestesses for leading the drow elves astray.
The patron of craft and creation, the Allhammer is worshipped by smiths, artisans, and miners alike, granting inspiration where respect and prayer are given. He shaped the mountains from the chaos of the Founding, and stands as the patron protector of home and family. The devotion to the Allhammer is strongest in dwarven communities, and many of his temples mark the center of a mighty dwarven stronghold.
The Dawnfather stands lord over sun and summer, his vigil encircling the ages as the keeper of time. Lord of agriculture and harbinger of the harvest, his followers commonly include farmers and most common folk, his priests welcome in lands all over. Supporter of the needy and destroyer of evil, the Dawnfather is often the patron to Paladins and Rangers who follow a similar creed. The Dawnfather is also revered by those who hunt aberrations.
The Moonweaver sends her will as the goddess of moonlight and the autumn season, as well as the patron of illusions and misdirection. Widely worshipped within halfling and elven culture, she is largely considered to be the deity of love, protecting the trysts of lovers with shadows of her own making. Those who work in darkness and trickery often ask for her blessing.
Erathis, the Lawbearer, is the goddess of civilization and laws. The Lawbearer is shown as a hooded, armored woman sitting atop a throne, her face obscured or expressionless.
Revered by seers, sages, and teachers of all walks of life, the Knowing Mistress guided the growth of civilization throughout the Ages like sunlight guides the branches of a tree. Her devout worship in private, spreading knowledge, philosophy, and lore anonymously through traceless channels.
Where thunder cracks and conflict rises, prayers to the Stormlord are shouted into the maelstrom. The Stormlord’s followers revel in all tests of strength, and his blessing finds those who prove themselves on the battlefield. He is worshiped by athletes and warriors across Nerath, and his will exalts those whose force of spirit and penchant for victory call his attention. He brings tumultuous storms over land and sea, and those who wish for clearer skies offer their praises and prayers in hopes of appeasing his will.
The realm of the Wildmother extends to wherever the seas shift and the land grows over. Keeper of the wilderness, she represents the wild creatures of nature, the rush of the angry rapids, and the heat-harried stillness of the desert. Elves take up her worship, as do hunters of natural lands, accepting her guidance to exist harmoniously within savage lands. Those seeking safe passage across dangerous waters give prayers to her to guide them. The druids of the Wildmother and clerics of her lover, the Lawbearer, work together to preserve the balance of nature and civilization. It is said that the two goddesses grow furious when this balance is upset, and this fury manifests in Nerath as devastating natural disasters.
Master over the skein of fate and the mistress of winter, the Matron of Ravens stands as the god of death. Her gaze follows and marks the end of each mortal life, watching over the transition between life and death and ensuring the natural transition is undefiled. Many funerals call to her blessing in hopes that she will protect the deceased from the terrible curse of undeath. Those who keep ancient lore believe the Matron of Ravens was once mortal herself, and is the only known mortal to have ascended. Her rise instantly obliterated the previous, now-forgotten god of death, and the other gods quickly and fearfully destroyed the secrets to the rites of ascension.
The devil god of the Hells represents mastery of tyranny and domination. His words are honeyed and carefully crafted, soothing and corrupting the mortal heart. The Lord of the Hells holds his domain with an iron rule, and the punishments that await those that cross him are legendary: the basis of nightmare. Evil entities pay him tribute alongside his devils, while warlocks are drawn to his power.
Blood-drenched armies of brutal warriors oft crush their foes in the name of the Strife Emperor, the evil patron of war and conquest. To serve his will is to accept the call to conflict, seeking lesser people to break and subjugate. Warmongering nations and goblinoid tribes worship the Strife Emperor as they strike out at the world to bend it beneath them. The Strife Emperor twists all living things to his iron will, even forcing nature itself to bow to his whims.
The Ruiner commands roving hordes of barbaric marauders across the lands to destroy, pillage, and slaughter for the joy of it. Orderless and without honor, the creeds of the evil hordemaster push orcs and other evil, savage creatures to devour the world around them, giving in to the chaotic and selfish nature of the predator. The Ruiner’s most devout servants in Nerath are the Ravagers, a lawless band of orcs and goblins who delight in slaughtering innocents across the lands.
The evil god of deceit, shadows, and spiders, the Spider Queen weaves a complicated web of schemes and treachery through her worshipers, deceiving allies and enemies alike to gain power. The Spider Queen’s worship is entwined with the society of dark elves, even as the drow fall ever deeper into the thrall of the Chained Oblivion’s aberrant minions. It is said that the Spider Queen can see through the eyes of all spiders, and that she is truly all-knowing. The Spider Queen holds a searing grudge against the Stormlord, for with one throw of his mighty thunderspear he impaled her against a cliffside, leaving her drow armies leaderless during the Calamity. The Spider Queen and the Ruiner also share a burning hatred for the Archeart—whom she claims drove her children below the earth—and she often manipulates the Ruiner’s followers into attacking her enemies so that the drow may remain safe. The only being the Spider Queen fears is the Chained Oblivion; she dreads its alien mind and is furious over what its madness is doing to her children.
It is darkness unending, less like a god and more like another world. Life and death do not exist within the Chained Oblivion, an engine of utter destruction and madness. Even the other Betrayer Gods treat this mad god with caution. In its endless imprisonment, it dreams the infinite depths of the Abyss into reality, along with all its demonic legions. The Prime Deities had thought it locked away during the Founding until it nearly returned to ruin the world during the Calamity.
The evil queen of dragons is a fearsome god of greed, envy, and hoarded wealth. While chromatic dragons are her clearest worshipers, the Scaled Tyrant accepts the worship of all who love wealth over all things—except the queen of dragons herself, of course. All chromatic dragons have a reverence for their tyrannical queen, but many dragons of near-deific power and ambition chafe under her rule. The Scaled Tyrant is often pleased by the chaos that is spread across Nerath.
The dark god of the endless tunnels and caverns beneath Nerath, the Crawling King acts as patron to torturers, slavers, and jailers across the realm. His tears of pain and anger carved the pathways under the world, and his realm of imprisonment is a network of deadly caves and manacles where few return. Those who rob others of their freedom offer prayers to him in cellars and other subterranean domains, and other creatures who live in the darkness below worship him and seek his guidance.
Vecna was a lich who ascended to godhood. While he was once considered the most powerful lich to dwell on that world, over the ages he spent in undeath Vecna became maligned across the multiverse, and was considered the scourge of all civilization.
Wanderer in shadow and creator of snakes and serpent-kin, the Cloaked Serpent is the evil god of poisons, assassins, and darkness. Much of ancient serpent-kin worships him over all other deities, dragging screaming offerings to their temples in his honor. Most of the Cloaked Serpent’s worshipers were annihilated during the Calamity, and those who weren’t are either suspended in self-induced stasis or hunted for sport by the servants of the Spider Queen and the Crawling King. But perhaps the Cloaked Serpent is merely biding his time, waiting for the proper moment to unleash his hidden armies upon the world once more.
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