Caelistis (3.5e Campaign Setting)/Pantheon

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Religion

In Caelistis, religion is life. This statement holds true to almost every being in the world. When the gods were physical, they were kings and queens of the people. Now that they have gone, they still rule, but now through others who seek to advance their beliefs to as much of the world as possible. While degrees of faith differ between social classes, everyone pays tribute to at least one god. There is simply no reason not to. While there may be some people who, when raised among one religion, find that they believe the teachings of another god more, they are not usually frowned upon unless their new deity is the direct enemy of the one the community is based around.

However, as churches cannot truly control whole communities, there are often radicals who misinterpret the teachings of their patron and seek to further them without official support. These people are often considered troublemakers by other churches, and some churches seek to dispose of these sort of followers among their ranks. Many churches, however, are silent to these things, whether because they do not seem to care, or because their dogma states that the radicals are still technically within bounds.

As for god-based alignments, the churches turn down very few people because of their alignment. In mechanical terms, this means the god's alignment for the sake of worshiper alignments and other things may be anything, but in order to receive divine spells from a god with a alignment-based domain, the character must have the alignment of at least 1 of those domains, and be at most 1 step away from the other.

For example, Robert decides he wants to make a cleric to Agares, God of Fearless Understanding. While he may be any moral alignment (Good, Evil), he must be Chaotic in order to gain spells. Agares' faith is simply too based around the deconstruction of tradition and taboo for anyone Neutral or Lawful.

The Afterlife

Where souls go after death remains a mystery in Caelistis. Those that are resurrected with magic recall nothing of their time in the afterlife. People theorize that the gods know if a soul is going to be brought back to life, and so keep them from the after life until they are truly dead permanently. As such, there's no way to know what exists after a person will never return. The only planes that exist beyond the material, ethereal, and shadow plane are the planes of the Greatest Four, which are home of thousands of types of creatures that the gods created and sent to the material plane. Demons, devils, elementals... All matter of outsiders exist on those planes. Traveling to them seems to be nearly impossible, especially considering the difficulty of planar travel normally. Some believe that souls linger on Caelistis until they are reborn.

The followers of Ronwe know that she has some control over the souls of the dead, and while not everyone believes it, the most accepted theory is of reincarnation based on the appeasing of the Goddess of Death.

Individual Deities

Agares - God of Fearless Understanding

Agares is depicted as a eyeless crocodile with avian characteristics such as feathers and a downy tail. He is also sometimes described as a hawk who's every feather is covered with writing of lost languages that supposedly detail horrifying secrets. During the Age of Mortality, mythos records Agares as being a cannibalistic old philosopher with leathery skin. He is the god of forbidden knowledge, but also the god of finding information whatever the cost. Many social heretics flock to him, many deviants and many outcasts. Although his dogma is not inherently evil, the selfishness in his teachings and the negative opinions of his followers cause him to lean towards evil over neutrality. His portfolio includes taboos, secrets, and heresy. His domains are Chaos, Fate, and Knowledge. Agares' favored weapon is the spiked chain.

Amon - God of Alliances between Enemies

Amon is commonly depicted as a man with the head of a sharp-toothed raven, who's skin is colored with stripes of black and gray. During the Age of Mortality, mythos records Amon as appearing as a wolf with the tail of a snake. He is the deity of friendship from nothing, often worshiped or paid tribute by men on the battlefield to ask that their alliances do not go sour. Although he seems to prefer teamwork and allies, his teachings and actions seem very violent and he often leans towards neutrality over good. His portfolio includes civilizations, alliances, and contracts. His domains are Community, War, and Competition, and his favored weapon is the short sword.

Astaroth - God of Self

Astaroth is depicted as a nude man, holding a snake in one hand, while the other takes the form of a rigid blade. During the Age of Mortality, very few people knew of Astaroth. Unlike many other deities, he did not accumulate worshipers and march on the world. It was said that his appearance was that of a normal human, making him nearly impossible to recognize. Mythos records suggest that he may have been many people across time, those who were renown for doing or surviving amazing things. He is a god of inner strength, an indominable spirit and belief to listen to your true desires above all else. His worshipers have few churches, and are often spread out across Caelistis. His portfolio includes self-belief, inner strength, and non-comformity. His domains include Courage, the racial domain for their cleric, and Liberation. The favored weapon of Astaroth is the unarmed strike.

Bael - God of Sun and Life

Bael appears in history as a spider with the head of a cat, a frog, and a man, wearing a crown. During the Age of Mortality, mythos records Bael as a druid who's human form seemed to be made of several twisted materials, smaller mammals and vermin, and constantly dripped a black liquid from his feet and hands that stank of rot. He is the god of sun and the life-giving powers it holds. He is said to have power over natural disasters, and his followers claim that eclipses happen when Bael has turned his back on the world. The more manic usually take this period to slaughter all of Bael's enemies and hold national rituals in his favor. His portfolio includes farming, the sun, and domestic animals. His domains include Plants, Sun, and Storm. His favored weapon is the scythe.

Barbatus - God of Leadership

Barbatus is shown as a magnificent gold dragon enveloping an entire city with its tail. During the Age of Mortality, Barbatus was not shown to be any different. As one of the most ostentatious displays of godhood, Barbatus was often believed to be the most powerful. Mythos records the city depicted with Barbatus to still exist, now a spike of stone driving into the ground with marvelous towers on top of it. His followers are amazing, charismatic leaders, the churches teaching people from a young age to lead men. They lead by more than just charisma, however, as they are taught to be the strongest in existence, like their god was believed to be. His portfolio includes dragons, leadership, and power. His domains include Dragon, Indominability, and Leadership, and his favored weapon is the Fullblade.

Belial - Goddess of Decay

Belial is depicted as two decayed, dessicated corpses riding a large chariot. During the Age of Mortality, Belial was two people. A withering man and young, beatuiful woman. Mythos states that as the man came closer to death, the woman became more beautiful. She is the god of decay, spreading it around Caelistis to absorb the life of anything she can. It is believed the more blight the church helps spread, the closer to having their god reborn they are, as all stolen life floods to her. When identical twins are born, they consider it a sign of Belial. Her portfolio includes blighted life, decay, and corruption. Her domains include Pestilence, Undeath, and Corruption, and her favored weapon is the sickle.

Bolfri - God of Blood

Bolfri is depicted as a red-skinned soldier on a rust-colored horse, draped with royal red clothes. During the Age of Mortality, Bolfri was believed to be a vampire by many, but was actually a djinn, his body long and distended. Mythos records say that he could cast powerful spells using blood, but never mentioned how or where he got the blood he used so much of. Although morbid, he is also the god of blood-related relations, such as family bonds, but also blood-feuds between families. His followers are split into two factions. Upfront, only those who deal with tight blood-bonds of the family have churches. But many of those churches house, deeper in, rooms full of those who use blood to perform powerful ritual magic. Bolfri's portfolio includes blood, families, and rituals. His domains include Community, Blood, and Magic. His favored weapon is the scimitar.

Buer - God of Medicine

Buer is depicted as a hulking tauric creature, a combination of a wolf and a anthropomorphic robin. On his back climbs a spider with 4 eyes, who continuously spins its web into arrows and places them into the quiver as Buer's side. During the Age of Mortality, Buer was a medicine man who whispered to spirits in all inanimate things. Mythos records say that Buer had once compiled a book that explained how to cure any and all illnesses, but hid it away because other gods threatened him if he did not dispose of it. Many of his followers, who are often hospitalers and caretakers, look for the book constantly. Those who stay and work are known to be Caelistis' best and most reliable healers. His portfolio includes healing, subdual damage, and gentleness. His domains are healing, good, and protection, and his favored weapon is the longbow.

Caim - God of Violence in Excess

Caim is depicted as a thrush with feathers made of skin and flesh. During the Age of Mortality, he walked the land in the form of a barbarian king, attacking villages and defeating many men and women in battle. Mythos records say he preached constantly of defeating all things with violence and destruction. Power was all one needed to survive and thrive. His worshipers are brutish thugs, beating people and using nothing but violence to get what they want. They are very often successful in their endeavors. His portfolio includes violence, destruction and murder. His domains include Chaos, Destruction, and Deconstruction. His favored weapon his the maul.

Dantalion - God of Thoughts

Dantalion is depicted as a man who's body is made of thousands of faces, all seemingly familiar. Always, he is holding a book, paging through it without a word. During the Age of Mortality, Dantalion was a sorcerer who could control minds and warp thoughts without any effort. It was said he knew the thoughts of all mortals and could change them at any time. Mythos records say that to look into his book was to invite death. His clerics are subtle manipulators, favoring the mind-altering magic Dantalion grants them to gain power. Naturally, however, his followers are granted resistance to such spells, and a few even gain immunity to mind-effecting abilities. His portfolio includes strength of mind, psychics, and mentality. His domains include Mind, Mentalism, and Domination. He has no favored weapon.

Eligos - God of Order in Battle

Eligos is described as a gray knight riding a draconic horse, wielding a lance made of curled snakes. During the Age of Mortality, mythos records Eligos as an animate suit of armor, who spoke with a voice that boomed with leadership. He is the god of convention of battle, and is often paid tribute by both sides of a war in hopes to end their conflict with a final, honorable battle. His worshipers are avid tacticians, who use landscape and weather to their advantage in battle. Many warlords pay tribute to him out of gratitude, hoping not to be cursed to forever fail in battle. His portfolio includes war, honor and knighthood. His domains are Law, War, and Strength, and his favored weapon is the lance.

Furfur - Goddess of Spontaneous Nature

Furfur is depicted as a deer with human arms and wooden wings. During the Age of Mortality, many believed that Furfur did not take a humanoid form, but became an animal. Those who worshiped Furfur never bothered to check if she had appeared on Caelistis, as they believed their god was everywhere, regardless of her form. Mythos records name Furfur as the force behind all natural disasters, such as thunder storms, hurricanes, earthquakes, and tornadoes. Her followers are often extremely devoted worshipers of nature, living in any climate possible. She is known to bless her followers to allow them to survive in any terrain, as many of them go to arctic climates, and some even near volcanoes or deserts. Her portfolio includes natural disasters, wilderness survival, and animals. Her domains are Animal, Nature, and Storm, and her favored weapon is club.

Glasya Labolas - God of Fear

Labolas is depicted as many forms of undead, usually a lich or skeleton. During the Age of Mortality, he was a master Necromancer who was able to control fear itself. Mythos records state that men could feel his impending presence from a mile away, and that anyone who spoke his name was doomed to return to the Caelistis in undeath. Despite this, he was not known to be evil or cruel. His worshipers summon many undead in hopes of giving him a mortal coil in which to rejoin Caelistis. Others are fearmongers, though some do this in a light-hearted manner, seeing who can play the most scary pranks. His portfolio includes undeath, fear, and necromancy. His domains include Undead, Necromancer, and Fear. His favored weapon is the quarterstaff.

Gremory - Goddess of Love

Gremory is depicted as a beautiful woman who wears a belt in the shape of a crown. During the Age of Mortality, she was believed to the the most beautiful of all nymphs, yet also the most personable. Her worshipers awe at her beauty and many women pay small tribute to her in hope of attaining her blessing. Although her physical appearance is the most known of her dogma, her faith speaks of love above all else, desire and connection between two people that transcends all barriers. Any of her clerics would tell you-- It is not beauty that gave her love, but love that made her beautiful. Her portfolio includes love, companionship, and devotion. His domain includes Pleasure, Sacrifice, and Family. Her favored weapon is the longsword.

Haage - God of Greed

Haage is depicted as large bull that stands on two feet, holding a wrought iron cane in one hand and a oil lantern in the other. During the Age of Mortality, he was a terrible magician who could change anything he touched into gold at will. Mythos records say he would often curse those who tried to steal from him with an uncontrollable ability. His followers believe that wealth is true power, and that money can buy anything. To them, power is the number of coins to one's name. Although they are often disliked, they do have many legitimately high-grade services-- All overpriced just enough to keep people paying more, of course. His portfolios include power, nobility, and money. His domains include Greed, Wealth, and Trade, and his favored weapon is the flail.

Ipos - God of Time

Ipos is depicted with the body of an angel with the head of a lion, the tail of a hare, and the feet of a goose, and less frequently in the same shape but with the body of a lion. During the Age of Mortality, he was depicted as an almost too-perfect human, who's body had no blemishes and who never fatigued and never forgot anything he was told. He is the god of time, but in a sense that time is an inconstant mass of chaos, to be used to the fullest whenever possible. Rather than scholarly sages, his followers are opportunists and entrepreneurs. His dogma teaches to take advantage of every possible outcome, always work to improve yourself, and never let life pass you by. He is often paid tribute by orcs and other creatures with shorter lifespans. His portfolio includes, opportunities, time, and fitness, and his domains are Strength, Celerity, and Chaos. His favored weapon in the greatsword.

Leraje - God of Conflict

Leraje is often depicted as a marionette lit aflame, made of broken arrow shafts, discarded books, bones, and glass vials. During the Age of Mortality, mythos records Leraje as appearing as a child with a hideously broken and deformed arm. He is the god of conflict and war, relishing in wounds and battle scars as signs of grisly defeat. Many of his followers will go into battle with little armor in order to accumulate garish scars, often leaving arrowheads in their bodies as signs of devotion. His portfolio includes scars, pain, and conflict. His domains include Pain, Evil, and Chaos. His favored weapon is the kama.

Marchosias - God of Strength

Marchosias is depicted as a man with griffon wings and the head of a wolf. During the Age of Mortality, he was a swordsman and a conjurer, who fought with magic and blade in tandem. His worshipers believe that they should be capable of both might and magic, denying neither in their pursuit of power. Although his dogma seems clearly helpful, he has comparably few followers, for his churches sift the weak from the strong, and only those with capability for magic and melee are accepted and trained. Regimens are long and difficult, but his strongest followers have unequaled power and versatility. His portfolio includes versatility in arms, summoners, and battle clerics. His domains are Summoner, Spell, Strength, and Mysticism. His favored weapon is the bastard sword.

Naberius - God of Diplomacy and Word Play

Naberius is often depicted as a three-headed hound, speaking in a deep, gravely voice that makes him sound hostile despite his eloquent speech. During the Age of Mortality, mythos records Naberius as an anthropomorphic black crane, who's rhetoric could awe nations. His worshipers revel in wit and cunning, riddles and all manner of speech-craft. Often diplomats of the highest caliber, followers of Naberius are able to do anything they wish with words. Intimidation and lies included. His portfolio includes speechcraft, lies, and diplomats. His domains include Charm, Word, and Herald. His favored weapon is the rapier.

Orias - Goddess of Maps

Orias is often depicted as a glowing form of light in the shape of a monstrous humanoid. During the Age of Mortality, her worshipers say she was a woman who's skin was covered in tiny pricks of white light, as if she was filled with a glowing holiness. Mythos records claim she knew the position of everything in existence at once, and could map out the planes, the stars, the world, and even dreams. Her worshipers search the world to create marvelous maps and to discover all that can be discovered. They also look for those marked by Orias-- Creatures with similar, glowing pock-marks on their bodies as that of Orias' mortal form. Her portfolio includes discovery, maps, and recorded travels. Her domains are Travel, Oracle, and Planning, and her favored weapon is the quarterstaff.

Paimon - God of Mysteries

Paimon is depicted as a large, muscular man with the face of a woman. Although his gender is mutable, he is often described in a masculine sense. During the Age of Mortality, mythos records Paimon as appearing as an androgynous merchant, traveling paths to monetarily dead towns. He is the deity of mysteries of the world, along with art and science. Often his followers will search to find long lost information, only to destroy it after reading it. Due to the creativity of his followers, many believe his oddly human appearance to be only one among many more mysterious forms. His portfolio includes mystery, art, and lost information. His domains are Knowledge, Magic, and Chaos. His favored weapon is the whip.

Phenex - Goddess of Purification

Phenex is depicted as a hawk made of flames, that sings with the voice of a child. During the Age of Mortality, she took the form of what is now referred to as a Salamander, the upper body resembling a human made of molten stone. Mythos records Phenex as being devoted to the purification of all things through fire, though her agenda is unknown to most. Some worshipers are fanatics, trying to burn every thing they see, while others actively search out points of corruption, burning away evil with holy flames. Her portfolio includes fire, purification, and life, her domains are Fire, Purification, and Life, and her favored weapon is the torch (club).

Ronwe - Goddess of Death

Ronwe is often depicted as a woman of monstrous height, holding a staff, without detailing her appearance. During the Age of Mortality, Ronwe was never seen directly save for her apostles, who often died afterward and never shared their sights with any living being. She is simply a goddess of death, collecting the souls of those who die without passing on to a higher plane, then throwing them back into the void to be reborn. Some who worship her believe that by pleasing her, they can be reborn as a higher being or as a person with higher social status, but most follow her with the desire to draw all lost souls to their final destination. Her portfolio includes death, secrets, darkness, and inevitability. Her domains are Death, Darkness, and Deathbound, and her favored weapon is a one-sided great axe.

Sabnock - God of Resistance

Sabnock is depicted as a soldier with the head of a lion holding 1,000 weapons. During the Age of Mortality, he was a powerful Knight who's body was made of soft earth through which vermin and worms often crawled. Mythos records him as ineffably immortal, more-so than the other gods. When damaged, his body would simply be rebuilt from the inside as the worms and vermin sewed his body together with more dirt. He is the god of resistance in many forms, both through strength to survive, and through resisting oppression. Sabnock is strongly aligned with earth and its strength, for you cannot break soil in any way that cannot be repaired. His portfolio is resistance, defense, and earth. His domains are Earth, Resistance, and Protection, and his favored weapon in the warhammer.

Sitri - God of Pragmatic Foresight

Sitri is depicted as a leopard with leathery wings. During the Age of Mortality, he was a renown archer and assassin, who seemed to be constantly one step ahead of any of his enemies. Mythos states that he once studied for a single day, and at that had enough information and tactics decided to take down an enemy nation. His is the domain of pragmatism in combat and survival, using tactics and even traps to his advantage. His clerics take very many precautions in combat, often carry several distinctively different weapons, and are never caught unprepared. His portfolio includes tactics, investigation, and archery. His domains include Knowledge, Archery, and Celerity, and his favored weapon is the longbow.

Valefar - God of Chance

Valefar is often depicted as a monkey with the head of a donkey, which some say he was cursed into from another god. During the Age of Mortality, Valefar was a great thief, well known but never able to be proven as the culprit. Mythos records him as having stolen one item from every other deity, even the original Greatest deities. His followers a thieves, trapsmiths, locksmiths, liars, and pirates. Although many believe he has power over games or chance or luck because of his name, it is not known if he truly blesses his followers. They could just be cheating. His portfolio includes stealing, law-breaking, and smuggling. His favored weapon is the hand axe.

Vassago - God of Inner Machinations

In the past, Vassago has been depicted as a long red dragon with hollow eyes, black holes of void where its eyes should have been. In more recent scriptures, however, he is depicted as a humanoid machine, who's chest is full of spinning gears and swinging pendulums. During the Age of Mortality, Vassago was an extremely elderly man who was said to make clicks and ticking sounds whenever he moved, and even when he slept. He is the god of all things mechanical, but also any thing which functions in mysterious ways. Constructs, formula, mathematics, traps, locks... Vassago is a master engineer, who's followers are always crafting whatever they can. The most holy object to the worshipers of Vassago are his notes from the Age of Mortality, which show how to make wonderous machines and constructs. So valuable are these notes, that there are even squads of followers who retrieve any fallen Vassago machinery so that they may continue a monopoly on such goods. His portfolio includes constructs, craft, and mathematics. His domains are Craft, Creation, and Construct. His favored weapon is the warhammer.