The Ten Divines

Sarihs is home to ten beings of immense power, rightfully bearing the title of "Gods". This pantheon reflects the extremes of the nature of both man and the world around them, and they walk the surface of the planet as physical entities, feeding on its emotions and empowering those who exemplify their 'virtues'. Their followers are spread across the globe, in constant war against each other. Good versus Evil, Order versus Chaos. Worship of them is the most prevalent form of religious practice, ahead of worship of Demigods and Outsiders.

Those who find themselves expressing and acting on the ideals and 'themes' of the Divines will often find they form a connection with them; an extended will to form a bond, to follow their lead and act in their name. For the Good aligned deities, this is usually in the form of an offer, a hand held out to grasp for the virtuous. For the Evil, it can sometimes be a directive that cannot simply be turned down; you will feed the desires that brought you to them, or they may well feed on you instead.

## The Ten Cathedrals

Built as monuments to the Gods and what they each stand for, their followers constructed ten city-sized "Cathedrals" that operate as the religious center for that God, a stronghold of their power, and in some cases, a physical dwelling place for the Gods themselves. The actual style and construction of these Cathedrals varies greatly depending on the God in question, but each of them is undeniably a testament to mankind's abilities, and they stand as some of the greatest wonders of the world. As such, Cathedral is frequently used as a proper noun to refer to one of these grand temples, though cathedrals in the strictly architectural sense exist as well.

## Timeline

### Fate's Arrival

The first of the Divines was Fate; an extension of a vast cosmic will whose only purpose is to sustain balance throughout Creation, to keep it from collapsing under the weight of its own internal conflict. When the division of the Prime Ethereal Plane underwent a cascading system failure following the dawn of life on Sarihs, Fate turned its infinite gaze upon it to assess the damage. Finding that with the Negative all but severed from the system, simply repairing the world and its dimensional siblings was all but impossible, Fate decided to watch the world closely to attempt to guide it towards balance instead. When mankind began to develop proper sapience and the beginnings of society, it claimed four mortal bodies as avatars to host a fraction of its will, which would serve as a permanent watch, stationed there independently of the cosmic consciousness itself. Thus, Fate has been present on Sarihs for many millions of years, and has had physical avatars for thousands and thousands still. To the people of Sarihs, it is simply the firstborn of the Gods of their world, completely unaware of its roots and knowledge as something much greater.

### The Ascension

Nearly 1,800 years before the events of the Eleventh Cathedral campaign, the pantheon was born in an event now called the Ascension. This event served as the benchmark for the current calendar, diving it into P.A. (Preceding Ascension) years and the A.E. (Ascended Era) that the last 1,800 years have formed.

Over the course of a single year, eight more Divines came into being, bringing the total to nine. This monumental event completely changed the social and political landscape of the world, creating a number of banners that all could gather under with their beliefs and ideals. It was also around this time that Fate made its presence more globally known, no longer observing in relative secrecy. Their presence saturated the world, forming connections with those who embodied the desires and concepts the newly formed Gods represented, drawing strength from their devotion to spreading those concepts, and in turn granting them power to both incentivize their following and increase said following's ability to bring their desired world closer to reality.

The world still has much history that stretches back millennia before them. They are comparatively still quite young, but their constant impact on the way the world works is undeniable. Perhaps none more so than the last God, Vanagandr.

### The Birth of Vanagandr

On the winter solstice of the year 900 A.E., the world experienced a sudden and very dramatic change. Harsh, frigid winds coated the globe, and when night fell, it did not pass as it should have. The world was cast into darkness for weeks as the Tenth Divine emerged with no desire but to see all life snuffed out and all the world frozen in an endless, dark silence. The northernmost continent, where the magnetic north pole of Sarihs was, was completely frozen over and even in the present is simply lost, considered unretrievable. Massive swathes of land received a similar treatment as Vanagandr's rampage burned his seething hatred into the very earth. Millions died in those three weeks, civilizations crumbled, and specters of cruel hate ravaged the land without a single hint of hesitation. It was an event that rightfully has been given the title of 'The Cataclysm'. An unprecedented disaster in recorded history, one that surely would have lead to total extinction of man if it weren't for the intervention of the other Gods.

Vanagandr feasted on the world's despair and darkness, and the power of the other Gods waned as their followers died and lost faith in swathes. It took their combined power and cooperation to stop his devastation and seal him away under a nine-fold barrier of Divine magic on a remote island now known as the Isle of the Adamant. His being sealed away did nothing to undo the horror he caused, and indeed could not cut him off from the world completely. Even now, nearly another 900 years later, his power seeps out, offering his hateful power to those who find themselves staring into the darkness inside themselves.

For many years to come, the suns simply did not seem to rise anywhere in the world on the winter solstice, and even the moons and stars were somewhat shrouded in the dark. The world held its breath for another Cataclysm, but it did not come. Three days after the solstice, the suns would rise again and the world would celebrate in a holiday that has come to be known as Winterdawn. In many places, the solstice no longer brings with it days without light, though in others it has yet to fully fade, but regardless the holiday has become firmly cemented in traditions around the world.

The number of Gods has remained as Ten since.

## List of the Ten Divines

* Nautilus, the Bountiful Tide - Goddess of Life, Peace, and the Sea. Associated element is water, and her associated Divine Race is the Naga.
* Renacimia and Muerdelo, the Twin Dead - Two beings intrinsically tied together as one Divine, who together govern Death and the Afterlife, as well as that which surrounds them, and Secrets. Associated element is air (smoke and mist), and their associated Divine Race is the Walkers (Drifters and Reapers).
* Velos, the Slumbering Deep - God of Time, Tradition, Contracts, and Earth. Associated element is stone, and his associated Divine Race is the Stonekin Dwarves.
* Fate, the Arbiter of Souls - Divine of Balance, Destiny, and Stories. Associated elements are probability and knowledge, and their associated Divine Race is the High Elves.
* Aemifura, the Warden of the Wild - Goddess of Nature, Instinct, and Harmony. Associated element is natural life, and her associated Divine Race is the Beastfolk.
* Aronir, the Wandering Storm - God of Pain, Discord, and the Mind. Associated element is lightning, and his associated Divine Race is the Stormspawn.
* The Crystal King, Lord of Righteous Light - God of Truth, Light, and Justice. Associated element is gemstones, and his associated Divine Race is the Lightborn.
* The Red Queen, Tyrant of Cruel Steel - Goddess of War, Domination, and Pride. Associated element is metal, and her associated Divine Race is the Warborn.
* Solara, the Breaking Dawn - Goddess of Freedom, Fury, and the Cosmos. Associated element is fire, and her associated Divine Race is the Novakin.
* Vanagandr, the Hungering Winter - God of Hate, Destruction, and the Apocalypse. Associated elements are ice and darkness, and his associated Divine Race is the Winter Elves.