Thread: TARAK TALES BACKGROUND THREAD - WORLD MATERIAL (no comments)

World Overview - Deities The gods that the Orders tend to are known by many names the major deities appear in cultures planetwide, while lesser deities, local spirits, and so forth are much more regional, according to their relative power. The gods of this world also tend to represent both the positive and the negative aspects of whatever realm they are responsible for. The difference between the aspects is frequently designated verbally stressing the first or last syllable of the name to indicate positivity or negativity is the Oresti tradition or by context in the course of a prayer or incantation. Unfortunately, during normal civilian observances, a third party cannot tell to which aspect of a god an individual is praying, so identifying evil is not quite so cut and dried as on some worlds. The major players in the worldwide pantheon using only their Oresti names Aarak God of Justice and Defense, War and Assassination. Aarak was born to be the Warrior God, guarding the two ends to which violence can be directed. In either aspect, he appreciates personal honor and valor, caring little for good or evil as long as the warriors comport themselves well. Aarak is favored by soldiers, naturally, and judges as well, for his attention to Justice, but he welcomes any combatant. Bontuu God of Knowledge and Study, Torture and Imprisonment. Bontuu the Student loves knowledge for its own sake, from magical lore to practical knowledge of the world to ways of misleading the ignorant. In his darker aspect, Bontuu the Interrogator oversees prisons and those who inflict pain on the helpless to gain knowledge in a different way. Bontuu is favored by librarians and students of all sorts, and those spell-casters who haven't focused on Zor prisoners often pray to Bontuu for strength to endure. Calavan Goddess of Travelers and Roads, Gambling and Chance. Calavan the Wanderer isn't strongly positive or negative, second only to Nex in her neutrality she seems to just care more about how things move around, whether people or gambling winnings. She also provokes the most frequent prophetic visions of faraway places and times. Zor may direct the grand sweep of destiny, but Calavan the Whisperer is known for sharing her peeks at the plans. Calavan is favored by travelers and gamblers, or anyone taking big chances. Lasalliana Goddess of Music and the Arts, Obsession and Insanity. Lasalliana inspires songs and paintings, guards the creation of all crafts, and generally inspires beauty. However, her beauty is as addictive as it is intoxicating, provoking obsession. As a result, the Beautiful One guards both the creation and disintegration of ideas. Lasallina is the favored god of many bards and artists of all kinds, and those who study mental illness also pay a degree of homage to her darker aspect. Nex God of Nature and Weather. Nex is atypical, in that it Nex is not bound to a single gender has no strong division of interests, but remains completely neutral. Nex the Green accepts worshippers of all persuasions, but remains impartial. The weather is under Nex's control, but it normally lets the weather run according to cycles. Nex is favored by outdoorsy types and many nature-loving halflings. Ra'an Goddess of Fertility and Famine, the Harvest and Disease, and Creation and Death. Ra'an is the Queen of the Gods, the Mother Figure of the mythology, who supposedly birthed the world while Zor built the sky and stars and everything else. Together, they produced the other gods, and when Zor finally created intelligent creatures, it was Ra'an who realized the gods must minister to all aspects of what intelligence would create. The Mother provides the gift of birth, but also the release of death. The other gods have input as to what happens to their loyal followers those worthy of reward are made into emissaries of the gods, while those worthy of punishment are given to Sharak the Smith. The majority are folded back into existence, being born again to live new lives. Ra'an is favored by farmers and those wishing for families. Sharak the Smith God of Smithing and the Earth, Punishment and Natural Disasters. Sharak is the patron of smiths and miners. The other side of Sharak is portrayed as Sharak enraged. In his fury, the Smith God hammers earthquakes, his forge-sparks light wildfires, and his bellows-blasts create tornadoes. The Forgemaster accepts the souls worthy of punishment, and uses them as fuel for his forge. Eventually, once their sins have been painfully burned away over centuries, the purified souls are either crafted into the tools and weapons of the gods, or are made into brilliant stars. Sharak enjoys great popularity among dwarves, and among miners and smiths of all races. Sule-Manoh Goddess of Healing and Romance, Jealousy and Revenge. Sule-Manoh, the Love Goddess, embodies both the heights of emotion her side job as the Healer Goddess does for the body what love does for the soul. However, the flip side of love is obsession, and those dark, ugly emotions also within Sule-Manoh's purview. As the Vengeful Bitch, she supports retribution, both just and unjust, simply for the sake of the payback. Thankfully, her positive aspect is more popular, partly because physical intimacy is considered a sacrament of worship. Sule-Manoh is followed by lovers and doctors of any race. Tenneh God of Truth and Language, Secrets and Lies. While his areas of focus suggest Tenneh the Speaker is as balanced as Nex or Calavan, that does not take into account the widely disparate interests his aspects follow. Oaths of truthfulness are always sworn to Honest Tenneh, but grifters and con men also invoke Tenneh's name. Tenneh attracts poets, actors, and lyricists, who observe both aspects of his being. His name is invoked at nearly all legal proceedings, but that does not mean officers of the law openly worship him. Ueliamon Goddess of the Rivers and Lakes, Storms and the Sea. Smaller bodies of water, streams and ponds and lakes and rivers, all are under the watch of Ueliamon, the Watery One, but the largest part of her domain, and the most unpredictable, are her oceans and seas. Marine Uelia's negative aspect is brought up more freely than any other god, as no one can avoid noticing how vicious she can be. At the same time, she does grant safe passages and good fortune during travel on the water. Ueliamon favors those who work on the water, and many spouses and families left waiting on the shore pray for the safe return of loved ones. Zor God of Magic both light and dark, Order and Destruction, and the Sun and the Night. Per the mythology, Zor is the Originator, Builder of the Universe, King of the Gods. He created Ra'an to give birth to the world while he constructed the heavens and laid down magic, the lifeblood of the universe. Zor first created intelligent creatures, who understood the concepts of good and evil, and thus forced the gods to provide both choices. He oversees the broad sweep of destiny, on a global and an individual scale, while leaving the precise details to the other gods. Zor is the favored god of sorcerers, as well as governmental officers and rulers of all stripes. The major gods frequently have minor gods and emissaries to assist them in watching over their domains, like lieutenants in charge of territories. Every river or mountain range has a lesser deity to supervise it, and some large mountains or streams have their own small spirit protector. Large towns have a minor patron deity of their own, and old Empires frequently have their own deities, presumed to be the spiritual remnant of some ancient ruler or another. It's not uncommon for families to appeal to the spirits of their important forebears, even though such a spiritual being would have comparatively little influence over the material world. Still, every little bit helps. It's not certain whether certain beings are actually the remnants of real people, or if a more powerful spiritual being simply decided to take on the role, for reasons of their own, but whatever the case, the roles are set and played as flawlessly as possible, given the context. These less-powerful deities frequently though not always simply take the name of their charge, so that the deity in charge of the Toral Range is simply called Toral. But this is not at all common the deity of the Gladrock Range, for example, prefers to be addressed as Rukatar, for some reason. Obviously, beings that have taken the role of real people, such as ancestors or emperors, maintain their original names, although additional monikers such as the Wise or the Powerful might be added, in the Clerical fashion. It's good to know which minor deities are responsible for what aspect of the world, but it never hurts to give respect to the boss, if all else fails. There is a great deal of overlap, and the hierarchy is generally easy to figure out.