Wanderer

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## Symbol/Places of Worship

There is no formal symbol of The Wanderer, and there is no formal worship of him either. He is not classed as a god with followers, and no one wishes to invite his notice by creating his symbol, and particularly not in bearing it. There are rumors of images and statues of faceless hooded figures, wearing a long cloak and carrying a staff which sometimes is pictured with the skull of a goat or bound with antlers, but these images are often associated with either madness or graffiti, and not with actual worship.

## Phrases

'*Don't go looking for the Wanderer.'
'Trouble comes for those who make it.'
'The dark is full of strangers this night.'
'I hope you cross the Wanderer's path.'
'You've a Stranger's tongue in your mouth.'*

## Lore

Of all the deities named, the Wanderer is the only one without a real and active following. Indeed, he is more akin to a superstition than an actual following, and an invoker of curses. When crops spoil, when accidents happen, when bad fortune dogs the steps of an individual, it is the work of the Wanderer. He is viewed with suspicion, dislike and more than a little fear, as well as the belief that amongst all the gods of Wildebourne and Thessir, he is perhaps also the most likely to be physically manifest in the real world.

The Wanderer is originally the Aspect path of deceit, expanded and built upon. Originally, the Elven aspect of deceit dealt with the nature of self deception, be it in the over-expansion of self ability, or growth in hubris, or in the misconception of the limitations of the self. Humanity however adopted the aspect to take on the nature of the unknown, and mistrust. As it stands now, the Wanderer is a receptacle of all personal misfortune and great calamity. It has resulted in the growth of a powerful superstition in the Human community, which associates the Wanderer with everything from a particular stroke of misfortune, to a continuation of bad luck, to a great calamity or disaster.

When the Great Plague struck, for example, many attributed its spread to the walking of the Wanderer, who went from town to town dragging the disease with him in his wake. Indeed, many attribute the peculiarity of the spread of the plague to this phenomenon - it appeared in one town after another, but rumour has it never two at the same time, implying that a single person was spreading it from town to town. History from the time is vague and imprecise, with the ravages of the disease itself and the damage it left on records, but the legend has entered into folklore since, and truly solidified the Wanderer as a figure of fear and misfortune. Since then, his name is mentioned with fear and distrust, and most homes have a ward atop their door, in devotion to one of the other gods, that is to keep the Wanderer from their home. No one wishes to entertain the lord of misrule.

For the most part, the Wanderer is a depiction of a simple mistrust of the unknown. His invocation comes in curses, in insults and in fears. His domain is the uncanny and uncomfortable, and in lies, deceit and misleading. People claim to see him walking down roads, always at a distance, but when they draw near, he is nowhere to be found. To have that hooded head turn towards you, is to invite calamity and despair.

When people see the familiar take on a strange, and uncomfortable shift, it is because the Wanderer is near. The touch of the wanderer, as it is usually called, shifts perceptions, inviting discomfort, and even madness in those that witness it. It makes the world seem different, uncomfortable, and strange, where the familiar becomes alien and disquieting as a result. When a person enters a room they have spent all their life within and takes pause, suddenly feeling like a stranger - that is when the Wanderer is near. Most individuals will at that point offer up a prayer to whomever may be watching. Sometimes the prayers work. Sometimes they do not. Sometimes it is a thing justly deserved - people say that the weight of one's lies will eventually draw the Wanderer to their door. For to lie is to invoke the Wanderer, it is said, to borrow his skill with deceit - but to do so brings a cost, a price that will one day be paid. To do so too much will almost always result in ruin, when the Wanderer comes to claim his debt - and the greater the lie, the more terrible the payment exacted from the one who dared use his gifts - or so it is said, in any case.

There is, however, rumor of those who claim to follow the Wanderer. These individuals are not known for their openness in such matters however, and next to nothing is known about them. If they were ever publicly known, they'd be reviled or shamed at the minimum, and more than likely (particularly if their presence was made known to some of the more established faiths) they'd be hunted down and burned as heretics or worse. But there are strange rumors about such individuals that follow the path of the Wanderer – some claim that they are not doing so willingly, but out of a curse of some kind. That they, for whatever reason, crossed the path of the great troublemaker and took on some of his powers, willing or not. They are Chaos Bringers, upsetters of the natural order, of disestablishment and destruction, but crucially, it would appear in some cases that it could very well be that they do so unwillingly. For the Wanderer is the bringer of fate, and it can be a fate cruel or simply unusual. The exact nature of the calamity he brings is not, it might be said, something he directly influences. Indeed, the very nature of chaos he creates could be either good, or ill, depending on the individual that carries it out.

Followers of the Wanderer may not even know that they are, in fact, tied to his will. They are not so much worshippers as much as they are bringers of fate. Where they tread, their actions, deliberately or otherwise, can bring about change. Sometimes that change is small, but sometimes, it is tremendous indeed - the sort of change that can wreak havoc. Whether the end result of that chaos is of benefit or detriment is a not matter of choice as much as it is a flip of a coin. Intention is one thing, but the results often are quite something else. The Wanderer cares not where the conflict comes from, nor whom it involves. If there is not enough, he will find a way, or a champion, to create it.