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The [[Prime Material]] in which Avendar resides was created by the Overgods [[Iandir]], [[Jolinn]], and [[Ashur]]. They in turn created many deities of Their own to help steward Their new creation; over time, yet more deities came from elsewhere or ascended to godhood from ordinary mortality to preside over various aspects of the Prime. All deities ultimately bow to the will and might of the Overgods, whose power is absolute, though some more resentfully than others. |
The [[Prime Material]] in which Avendar resides was created by the Overgods [[Iandir]], [[Jolinn]], and [[Ashur]]. They in turn created many deities of Their own to help steward Their new creation; over time, yet more deities came from elsewhere or ascended to godhood from ordinary mortality to preside over various aspects of the Prime. All deities ultimately bow to the will and might of the Overgods, whose power is absolute, though some more resentfully than others. |
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The gods are ubiquitous in Avendar and intervene regularly to the degree the Compact allows in the lives of mortals. Even the casual, passing attention of a divinity can leave a mark on a person's soul that manifests on their body in some way, known as a [[god touch]]. Particularly notable devotees of a god will sometimes be given a [[sigil]], a usually-visible symbol of their devotion and a visible representation of a deity's investment in that mortal. These individuals will usually be quite long-lived at the very least, and some are even [[Immortal divine|functionally immortal]]. |
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==Deities of Avendar== |
==Deities of Avendar== |
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==Nature of the Divine== |
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==Theology== |
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The gods of Avendar are a diverse group of immortal beings of miraculous and immense power. Each god pursues their own interests, purposes, and plans, and most of the various native [[lineage]]s each have their own presiding trinity of deities that lay claim to that lineage's destiny and which have heavily shaped their chosen peoples' culture and history. Alongside this focused stewardship, deities freely welcome worshippers from any lineage or culture provided they act in accordance with that deity's values and purpose. Through their following, religious artifice, [[Great House]]s, and individually chosen and sigiled [[immortal divine]]s, deities may enact their designs and spread their influence upon the world in accordance with the ancient [[Compact]] laid down by the Overgods. |
The gods of Avendar are a diverse group of immortal beings of miraculous and immense power. Each god pursues their own interests, purposes, and plans, and most of the various native [[lineage]]s each have their own presiding trinity of deities that lay claim to that lineage's destiny and which have heavily shaped their chosen peoples' culture and history. Alongside this focused stewardship, deities freely welcome worshippers from any lineage or culture provided they act in accordance with that deity's values and purpose. Through their following, religious artifice, [[Great House]]s, and individually chosen and sigiled [[immortal divine]]s, deities may enact their designs and spread their influence upon the world in accordance with the ancient [[Compact]] laid down by the Overgods. |
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Revision as of 03:17, 16 February 2024
The Prime Material in which Avendar resides was created by the Overgods Iandir, Jolinn, and Ashur. They in turn created many deities of Their own to help steward Their new creation; over time, yet more deities came from elsewhere or ascended to godhood from ordinary mortality to preside over various aspects of the Prime. All deities ultimately bow to the will and might of the Overgods, whose power is absolute, though some more resentfully than others.
The gods are ubiquitous in Avendar and intervene regularly to the degree the Compact allows in the lives of mortals. Even the casual, passing attention of a divinity can leave a mark on a person's soul that manifests on their body in some way, known as a god touch. Particularly notable devotees of a god will sometimes be given a sigil, a usually-visible symbol of their devotion and a visible representation of a deity's investment in that mortal. These individuals will usually be quite long-lived at the very least, and some are even functionally immortal.
Deities of Avendar
Deity | Chosen Lineage | Values | Icons |
---|---|---|---|
Iandir | None | Earth, order, law, leadership, honesty, creation | a crown/runil |
Aeoleri | aelin | Purity, romance, gallantry, refuge, guilt, charm | roses, silver blades |
Alil | aelin | Empathy, liberation, responsibility, spectacle, transformation, reaction | lotuses, butterflies |
Serachel | aelin | Corruption, provocation, secrecy, grief, obsession, preservation | forget-me-nots, masks, hedgehogs |
Enirra | alatharya | Balance, equality, rebellion, obsession, monotheism, lost causes | an equilateral triangle, a single eye |
Alajial | caladaran | Peace, healing, diplomacy, mercy, compassion, charity | lilies, flowers in general, bumblebees |
Chadraln | caladaran | Knowledge, precognition, revelation, history, diligence, continuity | a leminscate, an open book, a quill |
Jalassa | caladaran | Transcendence, reason, patience, meditation, restraint, penance | a set of scales, a snowflake, a mandala |
Elanthe | chaja | Stories, narratives, inspiration, heritage, drama, the bardic arts | moths, any musical instrument |
Kurion | chaja | Depression, apathy, pessimism, dread, misery | a spiral |
Kyana | chaja | Perseverance, prophecy, defiance, sympathy, suffering, comfort | the stars, a candle |
Rystaia | ch'taren | The Weave, freedom, passion, joy, zeal, revelation | a pegasus |
Vaialos | ch'taren | Hope, sacrifice, martyrdom, poignancy, memory, insight | a teardrop |
Elar | ethron | Nature, symbiosis, renewal, family, druidic magic, growth | a leaf or new shoot, any tree |
Nariel | ethron | Hunting, anarchism, heroism, mischief, vivacity, disobedience | an arrow with white fletching, a longbow |
Lielqan | ethron | Mortality, surrender, fate, rebirth, hard truths, boundaries | the sunset, sharks |
Dolgrael | human | War, honor, pride, metalsmithing, victory, defeat | any weapon, a forge hammer |
Jolinn | human | Water, life, protection, community, purification, healing | a spear, shield, or chalice made of sapphire |
Lilune | human | The moons, blood, wonder, intensity, illusion, enervation | Lunus and Rhos |
Ayaunj | nefortu | Trade, contracts, wealth, cooperation, strategy, discretion | coins of any denomination |
Bayyal | nefortu | Fire, wrath, ruin, violence, consumption, malice | a flame |
Arkhural | shuddeni | Ambition, domination, sadism, larceny, pleasure, excess | a clenched fist, a knife, a scorpion |
Ashur | shuddeni | The Void, death, demons, apocalypse, silence, finality | a void dragon or drake |
Rveyelhi | shuddeni | Tyranny, subjugation, industrialization, efficiency, bureaucracy, attrition | a black staff, interlocked gears |
Fenthira | srryn | Swamps, evolution, fertility, shelter, supremacy, gratification | a clutch of eggs, a nest |
Sitheus | srryn | Undeath, punishment, jealousy, obedience, decay, exile | a black serpent |
Sythrak | srryn | Expedience, territoriality, the hearth, xenophobia, loyalty | a hearth, claw or bite marks, red scales |
Nature of the Divine
The gods of Avendar are a diverse group of immortal beings of miraculous and immense power. Each god pursues their own interests, purposes, and plans, and most of the various native lineages each have their own presiding trinity of deities that lay claim to that lineage's destiny and which have heavily shaped their chosen peoples' culture and history. Alongside this focused stewardship, deities freely welcome worshippers from any lineage or culture provided they act in accordance with that deity's values and purpose. Through their following, religious artifice, Great Houses, and individually chosen and sigiled immortal divines, deities may enact their designs and spread their influence upon the world in accordance with the ancient Compact laid down by the Overgods.
Deities rarely manifest bodily in the world, but when they do it is usually in the form most familiar to their chosen lineage, even to those not of it. The exception is the Overgods themselves, who appear in various forms appropriate to the lineage they are manifesting for. Each lineage or culture thus has wildly different ways of perceiving each of the Overgods, down to their species, gender, and general disposition.