Ares

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War god. The god of blood lust. There are several gods of war, but Ares alone sees battle as an end in itself. In desperate times Ares is a great god worshiped by those who have little fighting skill, but know that even they could be dangerous opponents with his aid. Many temples dedicated to Ares are laid out like arenas. In times of peace these arenas are in most cases unused (see below), but when war calls Ares demands that an arena must be washed in blood before the temple priests can work properly. To some this sounds harsh, but Ares is not loved in peaceful times, as opposed to Modi, who has a high standing at all times, especially among the barbarians. 
In Pellas and Grone there are temples where a kind of boxing matches are arranged in his name. The priests think that by fighting these matches, a man can get rid of any possession by Ares. To the Pellan way of thinking, it is a way of offering tribute to Ares by doing small scale fighting so that the god is appeased and does not take the man's soul entirely. 
Other believers consider these matches, that only in rare cases have a fatal outcome, a sacrilege. These few, but true, believers constantly seek out real battle. They might be adventurers, but usually hire on as mercenaries - they are too bloodthirsty for the common army - and throw themselves into the fray attacking right and left. 
There are not that many Ares priests, and most of them practice rather than preach.
Holy day: August 12th. Symbol: A bear or a bloody axe.