Seen and Unseen gods

The main religion that is practiced in Duthgar is that of The Seven Seen and The Seven Unseen gods. Adherents believe that these fourteen are the only real gods and all other "gods" are pale imitations (though still of great power) and that these other deities are given their power from one or more of the true gods, either intentionally or through deception and trickery, or that the other gods are simply powerful beings that think they deserve to be called gods but really ain't. Gods like Bahamut, for example, are often conceived of in this way - he is a large, older dragon that got so powerful and full of himself that he started to demand that people called him a god and worship him, but in reality he is no more worthy of praise than an Owlbear or some goblin king that tells his clan to worship him.

The religion of the Seen and Unseen gods teaches that, when Trayst was created, it was barren, and out of the sadness of the world were born the Akarieans. They lived on the world and loved the world, thriving there and living off the land. They began to love the land that produced the food and the sun that provided the light. Out of this love, the gods were born. During the day, seven gods were created and were seen by the Akarieans, who rejoiced and partied until the evening. However, during the night it grew cold and dark, and the love of the Akarieans turned to fear. While they were huddling, scared, seven more gods were created, unseen by the Akarieans. The Seven Seen gods took on all aspects of love and goodness, while the Unseen took on the aspects of fear and evil. The Unseen gods waged war on the Akarieans, nearly wiping them out, but the Seen gods saved aspects of them which were planted in the ground of Tanalier where they grew into all the other species.

The virtues of The Seven Seen gods are considered to be good things (valour/honour, generosity, dedication, fighting with tenacity, power, curiosity, and sustainability), while the vices of The Unseen gods are seen as detestable (gambling, torture, destruction for no reason, tricking people with contracts, raising the undead, profiting at other's losses/assassination, and magical beasts).

Officially, it is illegal in Duthgar to worship any other gods but these fourteen; however, in most places, the worship of other religions is perfectly tolerated, though they are rarely given the same treatment as the Seen gods nor would they have anywhere near as large a following. In some areas, however, the worship of what locals consider to be a 'fake god' is illegal and even the worship of an Unseen god would be more tolerated.

### Titles

Leader of the faith = The Council of Seven = Faith Councillor ....

High Priest = Seer ...

Head Priest = Sight Speaker ...

Priest = Watcher ...

Acolyte = Devotee ...

### The Seven Seen gods

Iomedae (Human god (Torlund) righteousness and justice)

Sarenrae (Human god, Sun, harvest and growth)

Torag (Dwarven god, armaments and strength)

Gorum (Orc god, war and battle)

Gozreh (nature, change and the sea)

Desna (dreams, stars and hope and travellers)

Erastil (Elf god, hunting, farming and the forest)

### The Seven Unseen gods

Nivi Rhombodazzle (Gnomish god, Gambling Chance and Luck)

Venkelvore (Famine and Hunger)

Ravagug (Orc god, Destruction Chaos and Insanity)

Asmodeus (Human god, Contract, Lies and Bargains)

Urgathoa (Human god, Pestilence Disease and the Undead)

Achaekek (Elf god, Assassinations, Stealth and Subtlety)

Lamastu (Magical Beasts, The Pain of Child Birth and Selfishness)