Thursday 31 January 2013

The Pantheon and Calendar

Someone had asked me about the calendar system I use in my book, so I figured I'd go one better and post a list of deities as well. Since the calendar is tied directly to the deities (some, not all of them), it's important to know both of them, especially since times of the year are associated with certain gods and goddesses.

This list doesn't include everything, and it's still fairly rough. It's missing Anarak, the Stormbringer (Lightning); Daemon, the Lord of Order; Hexx, the Queen of Chaos; and an unnamed Deity for the Ice element. All of these Gods are Prime Gods. I wrote all of this over an afternoon and haven't done much proof-reading, since this was originally for my benefit. :P



The Pantheon of Galria

The Creator – The all-powerful entity that gave birth to existence and created the Prime Gods to watch over it. The Creator has not been seen since the beginning of time, and even some of the Gods themselves question whether he truly exists or not.

The Prime Gods
The Prime gods were given birth by the Creator, and they manage life across all existence in all planes, dimensions, and universes. In addition to overseeing major aspects of creation, the Prime gods are also in charge of their own home planes that were given to them at birth. There, the plane embodies the aspect of creation they belong to, and they have absolute control over all things that occur within their home plane.

Abyss, the Serpent of the Depths (Prime) – Abyss controls the element of water in all its forms. She has both a short temper, like that of a raging storm at sea, and a kind heart, like a calm inland stream. Her appearance is that of a gigantic snake with fins covering her body and a great set of fangs lining her huge maw. Seafarers from Rogust, as well as the Orthos and Varune races are her most numerous followers.

Athril, Goddess of Life (Prime) – Athril is the goddess who presides over the souls of mortals before they are born, and works to ensure the well-being of worlds yet to be formed. Because of this fact, she is allied with Ptolemy, the Master of Time, and knows all mortal lives before they are even conceived. She is at odds with Shinixuroc, the God of Death, but begrudgingly works alongside him to maintain the cycle of Life and Death. The majority of the followers of Athril are clerics and midwives who help with the birth of new children.

Gaia, the Foundation of the Earth (Prime) – A god embodying no physical form, Gaia is the very rock itself. Should interaction with mortals be necessary, he often chooses the form of a great moss covered earth elemental immaculately carved to resemble a humanoid of no discernible race. He is very passive, and rarely interferes with the world's affairs, preferring to observe and tend to Galria's structural integrity. The green dragon brood is most closely associated with Gaia, as are the Druids who tend to the land.

Ignis, the Flames of Creation (Prime) – Ignis is a god ruled by his own hubris. He is short tempered and stubborn, but he is a tireless craftsman that is always working a forge or shaping the world of his home plane. His appearance is that of a giant of immense muscle mass and covered in flaming plate armor, wielding a smithy hammer capable of shattering worlds. Blacksmiths, sorcerers, and even some of the desert faring races like the Cythran and Rhivar follow Ignis.

Lumine, the Lightweaver (Prime) – The Lightweaver is a woman of radiant beauty, appearing to her followers as their own race with a glowing, golden aura surrounding her. Her duty is to maintain the cycle of night and day along with her opposing deity, Sethyr. Clerics and Paladins who wield the holy light as both a weapon and an instrument in healing, such as the Lightweavers of Olaraa, worship her.

Ptolemy, Mistress of Time (Prime) – Few know of Ptolemy's existence, and even fewer worship her. Ptolemy watches over the space-time continuum, and ensures that no god nor mortal interferes with the flow of time. There are some exceptions though, minor interferences that she pays little attention to, such as the alterations caused by mortal magics that hasten or slow time on a single entity temporarily. Of those who do follow her are the few sorcerers who choose to use their magics to study events of the past and to scry into the future. She appears as a wise humanoid with fair skin, leaning on a crook and wearing flowing, colorless robes.

Sethyr, the Shadowalker (Prime) – The Shadowalker appears as a sinister man wearing a cloak of the blackest night and wearing dark leather garments. He works with Lumine, his opposing deity, to ensure that the cycle of night and day is always in balance. He is a loner, and chooses to avoid allegiances with the other gods as much as possible. Necromancers, thieves, and assassins pray to Sethyr in the hopes of bolstering their magics or aiding in preventing them from being found.

Shinixuroc, the God of Death (Prime) – This god presides over the realm of the dead, and collects the souls of the fallen to take them to Judgment. His appearance is that of a dark-skinned, muscular elf weilding a scythe in blood red armor. To some, he would appear to be a relic of a lost age, mistaking him for a creature that had long ago gone extinct, but to those who follow him, they are far less foolish and know that whenever Shinixuroc appears, death is soon to follow. His worshipers are necromancers, morticians, and some groups of shaman who revel in death and the work they do.

Thessix, the Judicator (Prime) – The God above all Gods. Thessix oversees the actions of the Prime Gods and ensures they maintain balance within the multiverse. All conflicts between the Prime Gods are quickly shut down whenever Thessix shows up. Some mortals, such as judges, executioners, and vigilantes worship and pray to Thessix, as they view his justice as being above all, even mortal law. Thessix however will never intervene in mortal affairs, and simply dedicates himself to handling the Prime Gods.

Zephyr, Angel of the Heavens (Prime) – Appearing like a man with feathery wings and carrying a golden bow, Zephyr is a warrior god who defends the planar realms and presides over the element of air. His vengeance against invaders into the planar realms can be as swift as the winds themselves. Navigators of ships and creatures capable of flight often worship him, hoping for favourable winds to carry them to their destinations.

The Lesser Gods
These deities are those created for the express purpose of watching over the various worlds and populating them with mortals. They are all at one point or another created by one or several of the Prime gods to perform this task. Just as with the Prime gods, each Lesser god has a plane of existence they can call their home, and they have absolute influence over the realm.

Aegis, the Twin of Spirits (Lesser) – This god was given life by Athril, along with his twin brother Vindicator, to oversee the maintenance of the spirit world. Together with his brother, they also contributed to the creation of the many animals and beastman races across Galria. Aegis is often worshiped by Shaman, such as the seers of the Snowhoof minotaur, as well as by beastmen of all races and callings. Both he and his brother appear as a mix of beastman traits. However, Aegis carries a huge tower shield and wears tribal garments.

Laren, Patron of Thieves (Lesser) – Laren appears as a human, with a scruffy beard and carrying all the tools a thief would ever need. Jealous of the goddess, Nova's creations, he set about stealing her work and twisting them. The results were the Human, Dwarf, and Jintaran races, and they are his most devout followers. Thieves who don't worship Sethyr often instead pray to Laren for a good haul.

Manul, the Silent Watcher (Lesser) – Manul has no appearance. He is the moon of Galria itself, and his influence extends only as far as he can see, and was given birth as a joint effort by both Lumine and Sethyr. He watches over the world and silently keeps track of important events, able to catalog the lives of millions of beings in a single day. His worshipers are mostly lycanthropes, who are at the height of their power when Manul is in the sky.

Nova, Matron of Magic (Lesser) – Nova is the queen of dragons and as their creator, she herself also appears as a great, prismatic dragon that towers over even the giants of Galria. She maintains the flow of mana in the world and is incredibly powerful, able to extinguish all life on a world with a single glance. In addition to the creation of the entire dragon species, she also gave birth to the elves, and as such is worshiped by both races. Practitioners of the arcane also give their prayers to Nova for the gifts they have been given.

Sytarel, Goddess of Warriors (Lesser) – Sytarel is credited with the creation of the troll, orc, and by extension of the orc's cross breeding, the ogres. She appears as an orc woman in spiked armors and equipped with more weapons than one could possibly wield. She rules her people with an iron-fist, and all her creations fear her. Those who willingly choose to follow her, such as warriors and mercenaries, tend to be of the short tempered sort and are unrelenting in their work.

Vindicator, the Twin of the Wilds (Lesser) – Just as with his brother Aegis, Vindicator was created by Athril. Unlike his brother though, Vindicator is tasked with watching over the animals of the world, and as such he is often worshiped by druids and healers who work with animals, as well as by beastman races across Galria. Both he and his brother appear as a mix of beastman traits. However, Vindicator carries with him a large battleaxe and wears plate armor.

Xenar, the All-Healer (Lesser) – Xenar appears as an ursar in pristine, ivory robes and carrying a golden censure. He is the creator of the Ursar race, having seen the works of the Twins and wanting to perfect their art, and is second to none when it comes to the healing arts. He is the only god of the lesser pantheon capable of, and daring enough, to pull a soul from the realm of Death. Ursar are strictly the majority of his followers and base their belief of Xen on the visions he imparted to one of their own. However, healers of other races are known to worship the All-Healer.


Months of the Year

The Galrian Calendar is named after the pantheon itself, and is comprised of both the lesser gods of the world and the prime gods. Each month lasts 30 days, and there are 16 in total, meaning that a full year lasts 480 days. Those of the religious community feel that the gods are at their most powerful during their month of the year, and their influence is most prominent.

1 – Athril (Life; represents the beginning of a new year)
2 – Zephyr (Air; Winter at its coldest)
3 – Sethyr (Darkness; Represents the long nights of winter)
4 – Abyss (Water; Beginning of spring)
5 – Vindicator (Fertility, animals returning from hibernation)
6 – Xenar (Healing; Rebirth after the long winter)
7 – Nova
8 – Ignis (Fire; Beginning of summer)
9 – Sytarel
10 – Lumine (Light; Represents the long days of summer)
11 – Thessix
12 – Gaia (Earth; Beginning of Autumn)
13 – Aegis
14 – Laren
15 – Manul
16 – Shinixuroc (End of cycles, death)

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