Spirits of the Tauren

Alright, a Paladin code is one thing, but I really don't know how to justify this work. Well, let's start with the basics: THIS ARTICLE IS NOT LORE. It's just an idea for enhancing Tauren RP. It has been inspired to a very large extent by the D&D 4th edition book Primal Power. With that cleared, I think I can begin.
The Tauren revere spirits. This is a well-known fact, but haven't you ever wondered what other spirits besides the Earthmother and her eyes they could worship? This is a field where I decided to come in (with my source material) and fill the Tauren mythology with a number of lesser spirits your character could revere, worship, call upon and defer to. Of Course, Orcs and Trolls can also make use of this list and worship them under the same or different names.
==Always-Falling==
Always Falling is a spirit of water in motion, strongest around rivers and waterfalls. River spirits have a way of mixing together and an alliance with Always Falling allows a character to come to a quicker understanding with local spirits and other characters' ancestor spirits. It is said that Always Falling has met everyone in the world worth meeting, although it takes him time to recall specific encounters.
==Blood Cousin==
The spirit known as Blood Cousin is dedicated to maintaining harmony between disparate tribes and she is instrumental in the creation of blood bonds between individual Tauren. Blood Cousin is regarded as a force for innovation among the tribes and new traditions are often attributed to her followers. In her name, friends of different families, tribes, or races sometimes adopt each other as blood cousins, pledging cooperation and support for each other's people. It is said that Blood Cousin once lived as a Warrior and members of that class believe that she favours their kind.
Blood Cousin is said to have been born and reborn many times into different tribes in the ancient times. In each tribe. she taught the same initiation ceremonies, showing the Shu'halo that they could welcome newcomers into the tribe without weakening it or disturbing the ancestor spirits. Tribes that follow her example are referred to as Blood Cousin tribes; even the most insular of these tribes sometimes adopt particularly worthy outsiders, whether from their own or another race.
==The Carver==
Carver lives in the final moments of each wave as it breaks along the shore. However, his name and presence are invoked even far from the ocean, for this spirit represents the ceaseless rolling power of nature that carves the world into its ever-changing shape. For coastal tribes, Carver is a symbol of bounty and change – the ocean constantly wearing away the land even as it supplies sustenance and casts its treasures on the shore.
==The Deep Voices==
The world below the world is still part of the Earthmothers' original raw creation. However, vast sections of the underground are composed of rock descended from the world above or areas shaped by an Old God's power. The Deep Voices are spirits that dwell in such areas, where they are revered by the rare Tauren who mine for earth's treasures.
Unlike the ageless great spirits of the surface world, individual spirits of the Deep Voices sometimes become lost and perish in the ancient labyrinths of caves and caverns, or – a fate worse than death – are swayed by the Old Gods, upon which they work to corrupt those Shu'halo who venture underground.
==Earthmother==
The Earthmother is the most ancient of all spirits and every single one of them defers to her. It was she who had originally shaped the world and granted it its natural beauty. It was she who cast her eyes across the sky when the Tauren race fell under sway of the Old Gods. It is she who still tends to it, cares for it and restores it.
The Earthmother moves across the face of Azeroth like a gentle wind. Where untamed arcane energy warped the world, dissolving it to a corrupted state, the Earthmother reshaped and repaired it. Where demonic power had scorched the world, consuming forests in fire and seas, the Earthmother restores life and health to the injured land. Even now, the Earthmother helps the world recover from tragedy and devastation, reinforcing the natural cycle of rebirth and renewal.
==Everflame==
Most spirits of flame are young – burning bright for a time, then flickering away to be replaced by new spirits. Unlike other spirits, these flame spirits make a point of introducing themselves when they communicate with mortals, since they know how unlikely it is that they will speak with the same characters a second time.
But not all flame spirits are so ephemeral. Everflame is an ancient flame spirit who has taken on a unique protective role. This spirit is a guardian who ensures that great fires blaze strongly enough to eventually burn themselves out. Flame is a cleansing force in the world, but only once it stops can the natural balance re-establish itself. Everflame whips the lesser flame spirits on, ensuring that they burn out quickly instead of learning how to live forever.
Unlike hearth spirits and the legion of shorter-lived flame spirits, Everflame seldom has shrines. Places of power dedicated to him are more common, and are often found near volcanoes and elemental flame vents that erupt with deadly force.
The common folk have little contact with Everflame, since simple cooking fires and bonfires have no need of his power. However, among tribes of the spirit way that burn their dead, Everflame is invoked so that a pyre will burn quickly. Player characters and other heroes commonly know of Everflame and they might call on his power in the course of their adventures.
==Fate Weaver==
The great elder called Fate Weaver is also known as Grandmother Spider and the choice of name corresponds with a people's optimism regarding their future. Those who face great challenges or peril speak of Fate Weaver, invoking a sense of impartial fate and a belief that their troubles are beyond the cares of the spirits. Those who are more content with their prospects – or who are intent on maintaining a positive outlook regardless of circumstance – think of Grandmother Spider, patiently weaving webs that connect all living things in providence.
Aside from her role in spinning the webs of fate, Fate Weaver is also a protective spirit. Shamans may call upon her to protect allies or tangle enemies in her spirit webbing.
Fate Weaver is also said to have spun the webs that bind the planes together, keeping the Emerald Dream tightly linked to the world. It is because of Fate Weaver's web that events in the world often echo across other planes and that bond also enables the primal spirits to extend their power out from the world into those other planes. Travellers who know Fate Weaver's patterns, it is said, can use the strands of her webs to cross between the worlds.
==The Grandmothers==
The Grandmothers are an extended group of female ancestor spirits. They are accorded collective elder spirit status because many scattered groups of people know them by the same name and because Grandmothers of widely separated groups are capable of sharing information and memories. The Grandmothers are on good terms with most other ancestor spirits, though they are often at cross-purposes with Old Grandfather.
==The Great Current==
Great Current is a single name shared by a multiplicity of water spirits who move the deep waters of the sea. Many coast-dwellers and seafarers honour Great Current.
==The Great Watcher==
Great Watcher is a mysterious, formless spirit said to see and hear everything that takes place on the surface of the world. She carries the winds of change across the world, paints the leaves in autumn and brings omens and signs of the future to those who know how to watch. She is revered for her prescience and insight and Shamans call upon her when they try to discern what the future holds.
Those who understand nature's constant change emulate Great Watcher by observing that change without being swallowed up by it. Detachment and balance are the ideals that Great Watcher embodies and her follower strive to emulate them.
==The Hunter Twins==
The Hunter Twins were a mortal brother and sister who should have been born in the ancient times. While still in the womb, they realized that if they both came into the world, their mother would die. To prevent this fate, they struck a bargain. One of the two children was born, growing up to become the world's greatest hunter. The other child's spirit slipped into the world to take the form of many animals, so that its twin would have prey to hunt. When the mortal twin died, the two traded places, and so the twins have taken turns as hunter and hunted for all time.
Depictions of the Hunter Twins typically show a male wearing an antlered headdress alongside a she-wolf or a female wearing a wolf skin. These spirits are popular among druids and hunters who draw on the twins' strength for their transformative beast form and hunting powers respectively.
==Hunter of Winter==
Known to the Taunka rather than Tauren, the Hunter of Winter is said to hunt in the midst of fierce blizzards and ice storms in the form of a great white tiger. Some seek to emulate the ferocity of this elder spirit while others ask it to drive prey to them or to provide food in the depths of winter.
==Lo'gosh==
The Spirit Wolf is a powerful warrior and protector spirit who defends the world in the way a papa wold\f ferociously defends his cubs. The common folk think fondly of Lo'gosh and they show a certain amount of reverence for the natural beasts that share his form. For those who respect Lo'goa\sh, hunting a wolf is undertaken only with humility and the proper sacrifices. However, no issue is made of those who defend themselves from a wild wolf's unprovoked attack.
During pregnancy and childbirth, some mothers call on ancestor spirits such as the Grandmothers, or gentler spirits of water and earth such as Always Falling. However, sometimes the spirits tell an expectant mother that the child she bears is destined to become a great hero. Those mothers are inclined to call on Lo'gosh to ensure that their children follow in the protector's path to defend the world from harm.
==The Monster Slayers==
The Monster Slayers are a group of heroic ancestor spirits that warriors and heroes of all tribes look up to. The story of the Monster Slayers is told in variant forms in many different traditions. Though each version invokes a different set of ancestors and local spirits, the common core of these tales provides adventurers with a well-understood place among the Shu'halo tribes.
Most tribes count Monster Slayers among their ancestral spirits and most folk who follow the spirit way have at least a passing relationship with ancestor spirits that were once adventurers. When a child turns his or her eyes to the threats of the wide world, parents remember Monster Slayer ancestors and support the child's dream of adventure. Like the Monster Slayers of old, heroic adventurers fight for the security and preservation of the world.
A few followers of the spirit way, however, do not revere the Monster Slayers or welcome those who follow in their footsteps. Some bitter shamans claim that the Monster Slayers released the monstrous scourge in the first place, simply as a test of their own skill. Others tell stories of adventurers who brought destruction to their people by angering monsters in the wild, drawing the monsters' wrath and vengeance. Still others speak of powerful magic that turns great heroes into monsters themselves.
==Old Grandfather==
Old Grandfather claims to be the very first ancestor spirit – a battered and embittered Shu'halo who endured a hard life and death and who has complained about both ever since. Old Grandfather is much less helpful than other ancestor spirits, most of whom are dedicated to maintaining dignity in and respect for their family lines. As a result, no group, tribe claims a connection to him.
In truth, Old Grandfather's original tribe is long gone, which inspires his role as a sort of ancestral gadfly for clans and tribes across the world. Fortunately, his spirit can't be everywhere at once and most folk have learned that the better Old Grandfather is treated, the sooner he tires of having nothing to complain about and moves on.
Characters who become involved with Old Grandfather fare better than common folk. The grumpy old spirit resents his descendants for not living up to the standards he believes he set. However, when Tauren rise in power as heroes, Old Grandfather becomes less annoying and considerably more helpful. He might even offer assistance in exchange for a favour – a secret task he has been unable to complete through all his long years.
==The Primal Beast==
The spirit known as the Primal Beast plays a part in the power of every shaman and druid. Countless other beast spirits are at large in the world, but the Primal Beast taps into an ancient, raw strength that may even equal that of the Earthmother.
The Primal Beast is a predator from the dawn era, when the first sentient races were just another kind of prey for the mighty beasts. The Primal Beast has no love of mortals. The heroes who can call on this spirit are treated as fellow predators – lesser members of a hunting pack that can tear gods to shreds and feast on their remains. Lesser mortals do as little as possible to draw the Primal Beast's attention and adventurers who flaunt their connection to this mighty spirit might quickly find themselves feared and shunned.
Fear of the Primal Beast has a far-reaching influence on the lives of many people who follow the spirits. By tradition, some folk of the spirit way do not raise herd animals as food, for all primal tribes tell tales of how the Primal Beast sends the world's greatest predators against such herding folk. To the Primal Beast, animals are for hunting, for riding, or for companionship and tribes that attempt to upset that natural order pay the price. Those people who do raise livestock tell stories of great ancestral heroes who won a reprieve from the wrath of the Primal Beast, or perhaps a divine sanction that protects them from the Primal Beast's wrath.
==The Soul Wyrm==
A great dragon said to guard the gate of dreams, the Soul Wyrm has gleaming, iridescent scales and glowing eyes that shift colours with its ever-changing mood. Mortals passing through the gate of dreams become like spirits, no longer bound by time and space and able to interact with the primal spirits face to face. Likewise, some primal evocations draw spirits through the gate of dreams so they can take physical form in the world. The Soul Wyrm watches over these passages, coiled in a perpetual state of watchful dreaming.
==Stoneroot==
The spirit Stoneroot embodies the ageless forces that thrust mountains toward the sky. Every proud mountain spirit owes allegiance and fealty to Stoneroot and the peoples of the mountains venerate his strength and endurance. Even in areas far removed from the mountains, followers of the spirit way acknowledge Stoneroot's power as a source of stability, invoking his name to summon the strength of the earth.
==Stormhawk (Aviana)==
Stormhawk fought a great invasion of demons in the ancient times and was a major force that demonstrated to them that the world could stand against them. Adventurers and other heroes favour Stormhawk for her focus and for his power when he is pushed to anger. The common folk respect Stormhawk for her wisdom and instinct, though they have few reasons to call on him in daily life.
As a spirit of transformation that understands the place of stealth and perseverance in combat, Stormhawk is popular among druids who call upon her to take the form of a bird, even as the fury that she summons for her battles echoes a fighter's rage. To shamans, Stormhawk is an all-encompassing force – a spirit whose great wings take them past all points of the world in a heartbeat.
==Tree-Father==
Tree Father is an ancient and trusted spirit whose days of might and power are largely behind him. However, he is still called on and respected for his gifts of wisdom, as well as for his association with hunting and with the great forests. Other primal spirits and gods claim a part in the creation oft he trees, but Tree Father's accomplishment lies in the forging of bonds between trees and other living things to create the forest.
Tree Father is popular among tribes who live close to woodlands but is dismissed by the Kaldorei, who follow the a host of forest spirits collectively called the Ancients.
==The Wheel==
Though many Tauren have settled and plant crops, some tribes stay on the move and subsist only on what nature has to offer. The spirit named the Wheel provides for such tribes, offering bountiful food to sustain them on their journeys. When these tribes are in harmony with the Wheel's turning, their travels become part of the area's natural pattern. With the spirits of that area in harmony, whole fields of herbs, berries, and fruits ripen just in time for the arrival of the tribes that depend on them.
Their relationship with the Wheel inspires those tribes to maintain consistent migration patterns; these tribes show little tolerance for outsiders who impinge on the territories and routes they have marked out. Tribes that rely on Earth Wheel to supplement their hunting activities are more accepting of strangers. Tribes that depend solely on Earth Wheel for their survival treat their bounty as a sacred trust and can be dangerous if challenged.
==Whisper==
The spirit Whisper goes by different names and aspects across the world; Dark Sister, Fox Woman, and Little Dragon are among the most common. Whatever her name, Whisper makes trouble. Her voice is the rustling leaves and the wind through the grass. She weaves many tales – some true, most not. In stories, she plays tricks on mortals, elementals, hapless ancestors and other spirits.
Some believe that Whisper had a hand in the return of the primal monsters, the threat of which brought the Monster Slayers into being. However, many also believe that Whisper first warned the gods that the primordials were set to destroy the world, or that it was she who tricked the primordials into taking their battle with the gods to other realms, sparing the world from destruction.
No one fully trusts Whisper, and those who bear her marks – typically tattoos of the moon and stars, a fox's eyes, or a dragon's tail – often live as loners, away from the suspicious eyes of others in the tribe. Shamans admire Whisper because she hears things she shouldn't and because she is sometimes willing to share that forbidden knowledge. Warriors revere her ability to drive folk to anger and rage with her subtle taunts, while Druids respect her guise as the cunning fox. Still, the Shu'halo don't like to draw on Whisper's power, though the rare ones who can maintain a sense of humour alongside their sense of duty and obligation are sometimes influenced by her example.
==The World Tree==
The most ancient spirit of the forest, the World Tree is closely associated with Tree Father, but they are not the same spirit. The roots of the World Tree extend to the foundation of the earth, circulating life and primal power throughout the world. In fact, some Shamans say that the World Tree is the spirit of the world itself – not any particular aspect of it, but the entire creation, its interconnected inhabitants and precariously balanced environments.
Some stories say that the Earthmother planted the World Tree and in that way seeded all the forests of the primeval world. Other legends say that the Earthmother or Tree Father, or the two spirits working together, gathered seeds from the World Tree and spread them across the world to plant the first forests.
Category:Guides