Gods And Beliefs

Religion and spiritual belief is a large part of the lives of mortals in Alvena. Faith moves mountains, wages war, heals the sick, and even calls back dead souls from the clutches of death. With such power, it is no wonder that religion is a driving force in Alvena and the lives of its people.

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• The world and all its inhabitants were originally created by the original seven gods from another world; whom eventually became known as the Seven True Gods, and later were forgotten after their pacts to avoid direct interference with the lives of mortals.
  • The Seven True can manipulate and direct the world as they see fit, and they are loyal to each other beyond mortal comprehension, literally being their closest friends and family for thousands of years; and thus they are slow to act on any matter without the approval or foreknowledge of their peers.
  • The Seven True made a Pact between them to avoid interfering with mortals and vanished into the farthest reaches of the world; and some say beyond the stars. While it's likely they watch their creations from wherever they are, they have unanimously decided that they should leave the fate of their children to their children, as their fates were left to them before they ascended.
  • The Seven True have been forgotten in time, and people do not believe in them anymore. Many people don't know they ever existed. What few devotees they do have are generally secretive, hidden, and gained through visions and dreams that the Seven send to them in their sleep. Such followers rarely promote a religious agenda, and often never mention their affiliations.
• Later on, new types of "gods" were created by their mortal followers. Each mortal of Alvena possesses a divine spark that offers them the same path to godhood that the original seven took; and that glimpse of divine power gave mortals power through their beliefs. As mortals imagined gods and ideals, their divine magic began to manifest; from that other mortals joined in their beliefs, and over time those beliefs give rise to a being known as a god.
  • Gods are born from the divine power of mortals. This power feeds them and increases their strength and solidity as a real being. What once started as nothing more than an idea gains a sentient mind, emotions, thoughts, feelings, and agendas. These beings while real, and effectively immortal, are incapable of affecting the material or other prime planes. They are born in an outer plane known as the realm-of-gods; where they are able to shape a paradise in their images. However, they are unable to manipulate anything outside of their realm.
  • Because they cannot directly interfere with the mortal world, but are almost compelled to try. As more mortals believe in their power and offer their prayers and divine energies to them, the gods become stronger, more vital, and more real, and become more connected to the real worlds. This drives them instinctively to lead their followers to gain more followers, and more believers in their power. A god's hand in the real world is their followers; whom they direct through communion and occasional visions or messages through low-level magic.
  • Gods answer the call of their clerics via spells like commune, which allow them to direct their powerful priests or priestesses in their will. However, should direct contact with them be attempted such as calling them through a gate spell, the best they can manage is sending some sort of emissary such as a celestial, fiend, or an aspect or avatar of themselves. Such beings are either called or created on their homeplane and sent in their stead since they cannot enter a prime plane themselves.
  • Gods are incredibly powerful on their own plane, and could eventually gain enough power to rival one of the Seven True; but only on their home plane. Their aspects and avatars are only a fraction of their power. They are slow to send such visages of themselves to the prime planes because the defeat of their avatars or aspects can shake the faith of their followers; which in turn can weaken their own power.
• Because of the divine power existent within every sentient soul and its ability to produce divine magic, sometimes mortals take to worshiping powerful beings as gods. Some powerful entities such as celestials, fiends, or even dragons are worshiped as gods. While it rarely grants their patron great power (it can offer some), many creatures find having legions of devote followers to be a good situation to be in. It's not terribly uncommon to find villages that pay homage to magical beings that live near them; such as offering gifts and prayers to couatls, fairies, or even hags.
  • Creatures worshiped as gods sometimes gain a special boon from their worshipers. With enough followers, they gain increased power in their abilities; but it takes a lot of devoted followers who believe in them to grant such gifts. Such knowledge is exceedingly uncommon, and there are no outward physical signs of its occurrence.
  • Some creatures actively may pose as gods for the purposes of gaining followers because they find them useful pawns and minions. It is exceedingly rare that they do so to gain spiritual power from their followers (because no one knows that it's possible), but can amass great physical power from their devoted followers in the form of riches or servants. Occasionally some creatures do so out of a desire to help their followers; others may believe themselves to indeed be of divine power; while others do so for more selfish reasons.
  • Followers of such physical gods often note them as demi-gods, or sacred beasts, or some sort of avatar of a higher god. Regardless, followers of such false deities are no less devoted to them; and trying to disrupt the religious practices of a village who reveres a water sprite can earn a bad reputation quickly, or harsh judgments, or even death in some extreme situations.

Indeed, religion is a powerful force in the world.

Gods of Alvena

Legend

• Alignment: Alignment of the god.
• Associated Domains: Domains typically associated with this god.
• Symbols: The gods signs.
• Lore: Information about the god.
• Favored Weapons: Weapons favored by the god's followers or tenants.
• Virtues: The positive aspects of the god's followers.
• Vices: The negative aspects of the gods followers.
• Typical Followers: Common character types that worship this deity.
• Other Notes: Additional information.
• Trivia: Interesting points involving the god or their followers in other lore.

Gods of Good

Sermon

• Alignment: Lawful Good
• Associated Domains: Good, Knowledge, Community, and Law
• Symbols: A pair of hands with a book in one hand, and an apple in the other.
• Lore: Sermon teaches his children to be upright, just, and pure. He promotes knowledge and social strength and unity. His temples are many and he is well received in most communities for the added interest in improving the standing of the societies surrounding them. Followers of Sermon consider it their duty to spread their religion to others, often competing with other religions for followers.
• Favored Weapons: Quarterstaves and Long-swords
• Virtues: Sermon's followers are tightly knit, loyal, and generally devoted to helping others around them. They are exceptionally abundant in their generosity and community assistance; as well as devoted to doing what is right at all times.
• Vices: Sermon's followers can be judgmental, overly concerned with how others act, and often purist; leading to splits within their religious sects; resulting in a religious base that is often different from one end of a city to the other.
• Other Notes:
  • The word "Sermon" in Alvena is believed to be derived from the god Sermon, and fits exceptionally well with the doctorate and methods used by the Sermons to spread their beliefs.
  • Sermon's temples are often filled with vast libraries that are open to the public. Clerics of Sermon use the money gained from their temple services to build libraries, and public service stations. Many of them consider teaching to be a sacred art.
  • Sermon's followers tend to shun other gods; and typically avoid talking about them over speaking of Sermon and the teachings of the Sermonites. This can sometimes offend those faithful of other gods highly. Additionally, Sermonites tend to be a bit cautious of fellow Sermonites who are open to new concepts or acknowledge other gods; believing them to be a bit heretical (resulting in mistrust, but rarely any actual harm towards the odd member).
  • It's considered heretical, and perhaps even a sign of insanity to speak of the Seven True Gods; leading young Sermonites who have received vision-dreams from the old gods to hide it closely; and beware of speaking of their experiences.
• Trivia:
  • Sermon's clerics and paladins often choose to wield quarterstaves for their utility and versatility. Many of Sermon's paladins take advantage of the ability to swap between using both ends of a staff and wielding it as a two-handed weapon; and many of them possess both the Two-Weapon Fighting and Power Attack feats.
  • The Book of Sermon hints to the existence of the Seven True Gods; but none of his followers have understood the true meaning of the text. The writer of the book was given a vision of seven stars that flew from the earth and away into the sky; leaving behind a charred world. Most mortals believe the vision to be a vision of the world's end rewinding in time; as seven stars crash into the world. They don't realize that it symbolized the seven gods that left the known world after a ruinous war.
  • It's said that the first priest of Sermon was a man blinded by the venomous poison of a spitting serpent. The man, blinded for weeks wandered from a desert to a forest where he fell down into a ditch. At the bottom of this ditch he found what felt to his hands like a book. In desperation, he opened the pages and tried to read it despite his blindness; desperate for some form of comfort in his loss. He heard words in his head as he turned the pages; words that traveled as if he were reading them off the pages of the book. These words instructed him as to where to go, and what to do; and led him to flowers and plants and herbs. It told him how to pick them, how to prepare them, how to chew them, and how to rub them into his eyes. As he did so without fear or doubt, his sight returned to him. He had never seen such flowers before in his homeland; and was amazed at their gifts. With this he opened the book again to find it completely blank. An old book that was never written in. It was then that the voice instructed him to use the flowers for ink and to write what it said; and spread the knowledge of his findings to the world. So was the first Book of Sermon written.

Limotae

• Alignment: Neutral Good
• Associated Domains: Charm, Community, Good, and Liberation
• Symbols: A nude lillend grasping a phallus in her right hand and her breast in her left.
• Lore: Limotae is a goddess of love, beauty, lust, and pleasures. Limotae's teachings promote both spiritual and physical love, devotion, and peace. Her temples are few, but the ones that exist are generally large and beautiful with gardens, warmed public baths, and many bedrooms where her priests and priestesses see to the needs of the faithful. Polygamy is a norm amongst followers of Limotae, with many of her followers having multiple wives, husbands, or both. Monogamy marriages are held in the highest regard and considered to be the most sacred bond two souls can share; and such vows are respected. Limotae's priests and priestesses are all trained in some sort of art, such as painting, drawing, music, song, or massage.
• Favored Weapons: Unarmed Strikes and Whips of Limotae*
• Virtues: Limotae's followers are often peaceful, protective, and open-minded. They are exceptionally slow to judge others harshly, and have little patience for evil, but much patience for those who've committed evil - favoring redemption and reformation of evil rather than harsh penalties. They are free-spirited and giving.
• Vices: Limotae's followers are often at high risk of being preyed on by creatures such as succubi who use charms to attack them (though their priests and priestesses are often just as skilled at charming such predators). A small number of followers pervert Limotae's teachings to focus more upon the physical lust aspects, and their own pleasures; twisting the meanings to try to justify darker indulgences while using her name and order as a cover.
• Other Notes: Limotae is actually an incredibly powerful Lillend that entered Alvena during the demon wars; and discovered the existence of the seven true gods; a fact she intentionally left out of her teachings out of respect for the gods of Alvena. While not a goddess herself, she was revered as one after the demon-wars; and passed philosophical teachings to her followers. She bid her followers goodbye after a final ceremony before beginning her search for the seven true gods of the world. While she has never been seen since, her voice is said to still answer the prayers of her followers.
• Trivia: Limotae is said to have had six subordinates that served her during the demon wars; three erinyes and three succubi, whom were said to have been fiends that she had redeemed through her love. She called them her risen ghaeles; whom proved that redemption was never impossible.

Keiga

• Alignment: Chaotic Good
• Associated Domains: Air, Water, Luck, Good, and Chaos.
• Symbols: A tan-skinned woman with silver hair surfing atop a leviathan.
• Lore: Keiga is the goddess of the ocean, and teaches her followers to be free spirited and fearless. She watches over sailors and fishermen who revere the ocean and its many beauties. She is the embodiment of the good aspects of chaos and good fortune; particularly with regards to oceans, rivers, and lakes. She favors those who brave the waters of the world out of love of the swim, or the thrill of the surf. Her devote are often well learned in the arts of fishing and surfing on exotic boards that allow them to ride the waves of the ocean along the coastlines. Her followers typically set up temples on beaches and coastlines; and occasionally on islands and even large sandbars (resulting in the temples sometimes being half-submerged during high tides).
• Favored Weapons: Spiked Gauntlet and Nets
• Virtues: Keiga's followers tend to be open minded, free spirited, and full of life. They are respectful of nature and the waterways, and they love partying on beaches and in the water. They appreciate the simpler things in life like a good catch of fish, the beauty of a tropical beach, and the wind in their hair. They're slow to act violently, and are very generous with their bounties.
• Vices: Keiga's followers are sometimes viewed as lazy or out of touch with reality. Many of them are a bit more reckless than they should be; even with the goddess's favor. This can lead them to getting into trouble from time to time; as they go for the next big thrill. Some of them drown from time to time due to their recklessness; but it's often considered a mixed blessing - as it means the goddess took the follower for herself.
  • Other Notes:
    • It's possible that Keiga was born from the memories of Sija the Free-Wind, one of the Seven True Gods. Both share the same moral outlook; love of freedom, fearlessness, and generosity. Perhaps the memories or folklore about Sija eventually gave rise to this new goddess.
    • Keiga's followers are generally physically fit; and many of them have levels if barbarian, as well as ranks in skills such as Swimming, and Acrobatics. Her clerics consider swimming and surfing to be productive past-times. Many of her clerics can swim in in arctic waters, or safely surf through a violent thunderstorm without fear of the lightning's touch.
• Trivia:
  • It's said that Keiga surfs atop the back of a mighty Leviathan; a powerful sea-serpent that is an aquatic relative of the couatl but much larger. Keiga is said to be able to call up the creatures from the deepest depths and surf across their coils even in a typhoon. Some of her clerics have embodied this trait and are said to be gifted with the ability to call sea-beasts to ride; or even transform their surf boards into small Leviathans.
  • The earliest accounts of Keiga in written texts date back to a sailor who was shipwrecked during a tropical storm. His account said that he was hit with a barrel coming over a wave after his ship capsized. He was knocked senseless but awoke atop a massive wave, in the arms of a woman half his size as she ripped through the ocean on the back of a mighty sea-serpent. She looked down at him and back up at another wave with a grin, and he passed out as they dove under it. He accounts that he woke up on the sea-shore as the storm was moving away. His wounds were gone, and in his left hand was a lock of silver hair, and his right a prismatic scale from a sea-creature. His first impulse was to seek the waves to see her again.

Gods of Balance

Gavel

• Alignment: Lawful Neutral
• Associated Domains: Law, Nobility, Protection, and War
• Symbols: A blindfolded angel holding a scale balancing a war-hammer and a shield.
• Lore: Gavel is the god of law and order, and teaches his followers that stability through order leads to better lives. Gavel watches over court hearings, deals, and bargains; and is said to deliver swift justice. He is often favored by those who have been wronged, or those who wish to protect themselves from wrong-doing. He is the embodiment of law in its purest form, and many of his followers are well versed in mortal courts of law; often functioning as judges, prosecutors, advocates, and occasionally carry out sentencing and executions. He favors those with a strong sense of justice, which also causes him to favor good over evil more often than not; as evil tends to create more injustice in the world than good.
• Favored Weapons: Hammers and Shield Spikes.
• Virtues: Gavel's followers help society function smoothly. Many take vows against lying and deception except for the use of unveiling greater truths. Gaveler clerics are often trained advocates or prosecutors and will occasionally assist people who have been greatly wronged and are under-represented without charge or out of principle.
• Vices: Gavel's followers are often seen as cold or heartless when the law falls against those who are altruistic but outside the bounds of the law. A gaveler who fervently defends the rights of homesteaders one week could be enforcing his former client's eviction on the following week if the case is ruled against them. Gavelers are often criticized for their inability to see past rules and order at underlying truths and abstract concepts.
• Other Notes:
  • Gavel was likely first conceived by the dwarfs, and indeed many of his followers are dwarfs. This is unsurprising given the loyalty to deals, contracts, and sense of honor that dwarfs possess; though a few records hint that Gavel was actually a god first worshiped by stone-giants after the fall of the dragons. Most faithful find neither account of little relevance to the case; but admit that dwarf society tends to fit the doctrines of Gavel more closely and view it as strong evidence.
• Trivia:
  • Gavel is the name given to the hammers used by judges throughout Alvena.
  • In religious texts, Gavel is described as wielding a war-hammer and spiked shield named "Law" and "Order" in battle.
  • Gavel's religious texts read more like books of laws; often including multiple paragraphs, sections, and notations such as "Book IV, Paragraph 12a, b, and z; second decade".
  • Gavel has been cited as appearing to people as an angel that has had its eyes torn out, wearing a bloodied white wrap over the empty sockets. As the story goes, he was judging a beautiful woman (though some accounts say it was a powerful succubus) that used her beauty and charms to manipulate the minds of others. Rather than be distracted from the facts of the case, Gavel tore his own eyes out during the hearing so that her beauty could not distract him from the truth.

Ab'hir and An'drel

• Alignment: True Neutral
• Associated Domains: Air, Earth, Fire, Water, Sun, and Darkness
• Symbols: A pair of serpents intertwined around a sun and moon connected in the shape of an "8".
• Lore: Ab'hir and An'drel are the two most prominent nature gods in Alvena. Ab'hir is a male god associated with the earth, fire, and sun, while his wife An'drel is a female goddess associated with the Air, Water, and Darkness. Most simply call them "the lovers". They teach the combination of opposites to bring harmony. They represent that the world cannot exist without the balance of the elements. They are favored by countless druid groves, witch covens, and those who exist on the fringes of nature. Their temples are often scattered about in thin forests, or carved into caves in hill-sides; and on the edges of lakes. Their followers tend to be a diverse group who keep to themselves unless threatened.
• Favored Weapons: Dagger and Scimitar (An'drel), Battle-axe and Flail (Ab'hir)
• Virtues: Followers of the lovers tend to be very open minded and slow to judge others. They are often open to people trying to get away from a troubled history, and tend to offer advice and wisdom that sounds more down to earth. These traits often lead to them swaying evil-doers to a more benevolent path (or at least a less malevolent one). Since many of them actually disbelieve or put little stock into concepts of good and evil, they often see things unclouded by morality.
• Vices: Followers of the lovers tend to be slow to help others, and often appear selfish or uncaring. They often lead do-gooders down a less altruistic path, or sow seeds of doubt in their ideals. Since many of them actually disbelieve or put little stock into the concepts of good and evil, they can become entirely self-serving and prone to selfish acts that can lead them to more evil actions than good ones.
• Other Notes:
  • Followers of the lovers often favor one over the other, but the two are always worshiped as a pair.
  • Temples to the lovers are often strange or frightening to outsiders, bearing great beauty, healing, art, and even those with celestial companions such as latern archons; while also finding fiends such as imps and quasits perched on the shoulders of priests and priestesses; and some temples have necromancers that guard them with black arts of undeath.
  • Most temples to the lovers have a central chamber that houses the four primary elementals (air, earth, fire, and water). The size and strength of the elementals is usually proportionate to the strength of the temple (most temples have small or medium elementals, while one in thirty might have a group of large elementals, and one in sixty might have huge elementals; elder elementals rarely inhabit temples on a regular basis).
  • The scrolls of Ab'hir and An'drel suggest that when the primary moon (An'drel) is full she and her lover the sun (Ab'hir) are in their time of deepest love; but it's said that when the moon eclipses that An'drel is in a foul mood and distanced herself from her lover. Followers of the two gods attribute a female's menstrual cycle to this phenomena; often citing it as an example of such patterns.
• Trivia:
  • To be added…

To Be Added

Gods of Evil

To Be Added

The Seven True Gods

Akaia the Twilight Queen

• Alignment: Neutral Good
• Aliases: Ak'serai, Al'hai'ah, Ashia, Ak'sha
• Associated Domains: Creation, Death, Astrology, Repose, and Magic
• Symbols: A crescent moon behind a beautiful robed maiden.
• Biography and Lore: Akai'a was one of the seven true gods who created Alvena; and the goddess who petitioned her peers to stop their roaming of the multi-verse to create Alvena. She is the most powerful known spellcaster to ever exist in the world, and is also said to be a powerful lich-goddess; having achieved immortality even before her ascension to godhood. She helped the goddess Sija teach and imbue the mortals of Alvena with magic - something she has been both proud and ashamed of throughout the centuries. It's said that she and the god Duron painted the night skies with the secrets of the world; and she created the first moon of Alvena as a sign of her love for mortals. She taught the first necromancers the arts of animating the dead; an act that is considered sacred within her temples.
• Typical Followers: Neutral and Good undead, necromancers, any spell-casters, divine casters of associated domains, and sentient creatures who love the night and darkness.
• Additional Notes: Akai'a is one of the seven forgotten gods. She is considered false, a legend; never to have existed at all. Some religions find the mention of her heretical, or her worship to be a sign of insanity. Finding notes on her current or past existence is difficult, and people could go their entire lives without even hearing her name. It's still possible for her to speak to mortals; most likely through dreams or visions; but she has never appeared before a mortal since the seven's pact.
• Trivia: Akaia is the younger sister of the goddess Kray'ci; and before her ascension to godhood she bound her soul to her sister's as her phylactery. Because of this, Caedren later restrained his anger against Kray'ci after his violation by the goddess; for Akaia's sake. Additionally, the god Geraldus who generally is seen as cold and self-serving shows Akaia immense favor; most likely due to her having stolen his heart while they were mortals.