The following is the first instalment in the pantheon of Anuru. Be patient and bear with me; if I keep to my plan of presenting two Powers, and their associated Servants and Avatars, per post, then it will take me seven posts to get through this.Each of the Powers, Servants and Avatars is what I consider a “true deity”; this is to say that they are immortal, and their statistics are so high that it is virtually inconceivable that any mortal could amass enough sheer might to challenge, let alone defeat or slay, one of them. Each is also an appropriate focus for followers and is capable of granting spells to divine spell-casters; although not all of them actually have large churches in the sense of “organized religion”.
Bræa is a case in point; while there is technically no “Church of Bræa” in Anuru, all of the hierarchies of the Anari pay homage to her, to one extent or another, as the head of the pantheon. Also, given that the Servants and Avatars remain free to travel the River of Stars (of which more later) in order to be physically present on Anuru, direct inspiration of worship is also not uncommon. So while there is no “Church of Bræa” per se, there are, for example, more than a few Paladins of Bræa, divine warriors who are inspired by her example, and who receive their divine powers directly from her.
One other caveat for would-be divine spell-casters. As I noted in a previous post, granted spells are limited according to the Order of one’s deity. To repeat the relevant part of the table:
1) only a Power may grant epic-level spells, and only a Power can raise or resurrect the dead;
2) a Greater Servant may grant up to 9th level spells, and may appeal, on behalf of a petitioner, directly to his or her Power for epic-level spells or revivification magic;
3) a Lesser Servant may grant up to 7th level spells, and may appeal, on behalf of a petitioner, directly to his or her Power for 8th, 9th and epic-level spells, or for revivification magic; and
4) an Avatar may grant up to 5th level spells, and may appeal, on behalf of a petitioner, directly to his or her Power for more potent magicks.
As noted in that previous post, it is also possible to select, as one’s divine inspiration, a Greater Minion or Lesser Minion; but these can only grant, respectively, 3rd and 1st level spells. Demogorgon may indeed be found somewhere on one of the Lower Planes; but he doesn’t have a cult, shamans, or clerics. He’s just a local big-shot.
With these caveats in mind, and without further ado, I bring you the two senior members of the Anari – Bræa and Tîan.
* * * * *
BRÆA
First among the Anari, called “The Beautiful”, and also “The Vessel of the Light of Anā”. Before that Light was taken from her, she appeared as a wingèd vision of puissance, too potent and brilliant to gaze upon, striding from cloud to cloud, accompanied by the birds of the sky, and by two white tigers, sprung from the Heavens. During the Age of Wisdom, she walked among her Children in the guise of a maiden of the Haradi, still beautiful, white-robed, with flame-red hair; which trait appears not among the pure Houses of Harad, but yet still tells among the Hiarsk alone, and those of the Esudi who count the Hiarsk among their forefathers. Few worship the Mother of the Children in these latter days; yet for those who do, her device is Bræadan, the Lantern that holds her light; and she welcomes the homage of all good creatures. Indeed, it is said that she did not depart Anuru with her power at the falling of the Dome of the Firmament; but that instead she relinquished her might that she might remain within the Dome, and watch over her children.
Alignment: True Good
Sphere(s): The heavens, light, life
Sigil: Golden sun on a blue field
Preferred hues: White
Preferred weapon: Open hand (clerics of Bræa may not harm any of the Kindred)
Worshippers’ alignment: Any Good
Domains: Good, Luck, Protection, Purification, Weather, Sun
Church: None (isolated followers only)
SERVANTS
None
AVATARS
SORYLLEA
Avatar of Winds, also called Queen of Eagles, whose aspect is that of a maiden of the Esudi, tall and strong, with the wings of an eagle. She soars the skies, clad only by the clouds; and her symbol is an eagle silhouetted before the sun.
Alignment: Chaotic Neutral (Good)
Sphere(s): The winds, birds of prey
Sigil: A stooping eagle, silhouetted before the sun
Preferred hues: White and scarlet
Preferred weapon: Talons
Worshippers’ alignment: Chaotic, non-Evil
Domains: Air, Liberation, Pact, Sun
Church: None (isolated followers only)
VORWENNA
Avatar of Protection, who appears as a woman of the Haradi, white-haired, with black eyes, and wielding the twin Rods of Bane and Banishment. She appears always accompanied by cats, who serve as her eyes and ears; and her sigil is a white ankh on a black field.
Alignment: True Good (Neutral)
Sphere(s): Protection from evil, protection of the weak and helpless
Sigil: White ankh on a black field
Preferred hues: White and black
Preferred weapon: Rod (club or light mace)
Worshippers’ alignment: any Good
Domains: Community, Good, Protection, Sun
Church: Minor (Humans, Elves)
* * * * *
TÎAN
Second of the Anari, sister to Bræa, Tîan was betrayed during the War of the Powers by Zaman and Zaman’s Greater Servant, Balcocheth; pinioned for all time to a mountain peak by the unbreakable sword, Vasatri, ; she alone, of all the Anari, remains within Anuru, beneath the Dome of the Firmament. Tîan’s aspect is that of a woman of the Esudi, black-haired and white-skinned, bearing the horns of a bull, and the wings of an great raptor; but she is no longer beautiful, for she was wounded unto death long and long ago, and her agonies have lasted four ages of the world. Tîan is called variously The Just, The Lawgiver, and The Imprisoned One, and her sigil is of a simple sword thrust through a mighty stone. She is the embodiment of law and justice, and the ideal of kings and righteous warriors; and those who revere her carry a great sword.
Alignment: True Lawful
Sphere(s): Justice, Law, Retribution, Punishment, Rulership
Sigil: A sword piercing a stone (see above)
Preferred hues: Silver
Preferred weapon: Longsword
Worshippers’ alignment: Lawful, non-Evil
Domains: Force, Glory, Inquisition, Law, Mind, Purification
Church: None (isolated followers only)
SERVANTS
TIORETH
(Greater Servant)
The first of Tîan’s servants, Tioreth stood at her side during her battle with Balcocheth and Zaman, and after the betrayal, struggled to free his mistress from the embrace of the stone, and wept when he could not. He it was who first spat upon Zaman’s disfigured visage, and swore eternal vengeance upon her; and since that time, he has wandered Anuru, seeking out and destroying the creatures of the Dark. Tioreth, nearly alone among all the Powers, took up arms in defence of the Haradi at the Gloaming of the Wyrms, before the falling of the Dome, and he lay waste whole legions of the hordes of darkness. And it was Tioreth who, centuries after the death of Mordakris at the hands of Chuadwaith, gave fair answer to the prayers of the wolves, and accepted their overlordship in Mordakris’ stead; since which time, he has been known as Lupuspater in the Elven Tongue, and in the Travelling Tongue, Father of Wolves.
Alignment: Neutral Good
Sphere(s): Loyalty, Faithfulness, Wolves
Sigil: A silver wolf on a blue field (see above)
Preferred hues: Silver and Blue
Preferred weapon: Club or rod
Worshippers’ alignment: any Good
Domains: Animal, Celerity, Pact, Summoner, Travel
Church: None (isolated followers only)
CHAMDRAN
(Lesser Servant)
After the falling of the Dome, Tîan remained within Anuru; but she was imprisoned, and unable to travel hither and about, to answer the call of petitioners, and learn where her powers might best be applied. Tioreth was a mighty adjunct to her powers; but he was fey and wilful, too caught up in the fates of mortals, and to merciful to act as judge. And so Tîan called two mortals of Esud to be her Lesser Servants, and serve as the eyes and ears of justice throughout Anuru. The first to be called was Chamdran, a warrior-woman of Esud; a mighty fighter, but one who prized prowess in war, excellence in battle, and truth in all things above even her own life. Chamdran appears fully armoured, sword in hand, with a forbidding visage, black eyes, and golden hair in a warrior’s coif. Chamdran has served Tîan since the Eon of Darkness, for more than three millennia, as the patron of generals, judges, and those who battle the forces of undeath.
Alignment: Lawful Good
Sphere(s): Female Paladins, Command, Truth, Destruction of Undead
Sigil: A longsword superimposed on a smiling sun (see above)
Preferred hues: Silver and Gold
Preferred weapon: Longsword
Worshippers’ alignment: Lawful Good
Domains: Domination, Inquisition, Law, War
Church: None (isolated followers only)
IARWAIN
(Lesser Servant)
Iarwain followed close on the heels of Chamdran, both because Tîan needed more than a single advocate of law, and because Chamdran had little interest in serving as the patron of men. Iarwain had been a Paladin of Tîan in life, who had died in a nameless field, protecting a farming family from ravaging bandits. Like Iarwain, he appears armed and armoured, with golden hair; but Iarwain bears a noble visage and an indulgent smile. He excuses the foibles of mankind, and asks only that they stand for what is right.
Alignment: Lawful Good
Sphere(s): Male Paladins, Law, Justice, Protecting the Weak
Sigil: A black gauntlet on a silver and white field (see above)
Preferred hues: Silver and Black
Preferred weapon: Longsword
Worshippers’ alignment: any Good
Domains: Force, Glory, Law, Protection
Church: None (isolated followers only)
AVATARS
None
* * * * *
That's all for tonight, folks. Hopefully I'll get a few more of these "pantheon updates" up this week.
