Ophane, Goddess of Poison

Ophane is the Goddess of Poison and Corruption. She is the daughter of Mealyn and Vorokar, and the twin sister of Yorexa.

## Origins and Creations

In the First Era, Mealyn, the Goddess of Change, appeared to Vorokar, the Elder God of Darkness, in the guise of one of his consorts. Mealyn tricked him into creating children with her, and she birthed a pair of twins: Ophane and Yorexa.

Ophane created many varieties of poison, as well as many different plants and animals that are poisonous or venomous. Due to the races' affinity for poisons, many drow will pay respect to Ophane, in spite of the fact that she does not care at all for Lolth.

## Appearance

Ophane's favored form to appear to mortals on Somara is usually that of a very tall female drow. She has white hair that she keeps tied back into a tight braid, sharp facial features, and intense, violet eyes. She has an air of haughty arrogance about her, and like the poisonous creatures she is found of, has a seductive yet deadly beauty.

Ophane often wears a simple green dress with a pair of poisoned daggers at her hip. She is also fond of emerald jewelry, and will frequently wear items that she sometimes gifts to followers.

Ophane frequently uses snake motifs in her appearance, jewelry, and messages. The most apparent way she uses this, however, is through her chief servant, the snake Cahlind. Cahlind (theorized to be a minor demigod of some sort) can apparently take any form he chooses, but will most often appear as a green viper. Ophane often appears with Cahlind wrapped around her neck and arms, and she appears to enjoy the uncomfortable response that a snake can evoke in many mortals.

## Personality

Ophane is often described as a sadist, gaining pleasure from inflicting pain on others. She often forces her followers to imbibe deadly poisons; those who survive earn her respect and favor. She believes that she does this out of some noble pursuit, culling the weak from society, and bringing to the forefront those who are naturally stronger and more resilient.

Ophane has little patience for those that she judges to be weak, and makes it known. She freely speaks her mind, and is not afraid to tell anyone what she thinks. At the same time, she is a masterful manipulator, and if she thinks someone could be useful to her, she has a knack for telling them exactly what they want to hear.

Ophane does not have many friends among the other gods of Somara, as most fear or look down upon her. Mealyn, her mother, gets along with her, as does her twin sister Yorexa. Lolth, the Demon Lady of Spiders, and the patron deity of the drow (while not a god) seems to admire Ophane to some extent, though Ophane does not seem to reciprocate this, not allowing her followers to also worship Lolth.

Ophane enjoys bringing about pain and suffering in mortals, but more than anything, she enjoys giving desperate mortals exactly what they wish for, allowing them to be the architects of their own ruin.

## Worship

Ophane's worship is isolated to small, extremely dedicated cults, likely due to her cruelty and extreme selectiveness when it comes to choosing followers.

Her followers tend to be fanatically devoted drow who wish to develop their skill with poison or the political movements. Her clerics usually fall under the Death Domain, but she will rarely grant some followers blood magic under the Blood Domain. She also has a small following of Oath of Treachery paladins working as a mercenary company that delight in sowing chaos and discord among their enemies' ranks, called the Fanged Corruptors.

The House of the Night's Embrace is a large temple dedicated to Ophane located in the independent drow city of Mezvynr. It's a place of pain and hedonistic pleasure, run by powerful priests and priestesses of Ophane.

Ophane also has a sizable group of followers among the Yuan-ti peoples, for much the same reasons as the drow.