God

Pantheon
Basic Information
Alternative name(s)	Gods of Life and Death
Creator deity	Gaea (High Plane natives)
Type(s)	Humanoid
Lifespan	Immortal
Region(s)	High Plane Land of the Dead
Language(s)	Common
Appearance
Height	Tall
Weight	Average
Skin color	Golden (High Plane natives) Grey (Land of the Dead natives)
Hair color	Golden (High Plane natives) Blue (Land of the Dead natives)
Distinctions	Divine creators of life and various races
Historical Information
Age	All Ages

"The more I see of you gods, the more you seem like a bunch of goddamn children. Picking on the weak, plotting against each other, throwing tantrums. Try to divide us all you want. Kill us, if that makes you happy. But you'll never bend the will of the world to serve you. We're...more than just...pawns!"

—Axikasha Keiran to Nergal

The Pantheon is a collective name for a race known as the gods who are immensely powerful and mercurial. Gods sprung from the All-Mother Gaea reside on the High Plane although other, unrelated gods reside in the Land of the Dead. The gods of the High Plane have fathered the Andain and have also affected the lives of many mortals and races and even caused entire events that have taken place through various Ages in the Land of the Living. Although gods can live forever, they can be killed even by mortals if they appear in their corporeal form. Usually they only possess a host, because the death of the host will not kill a god. Several gods are opposed to the Godslayer which has devoured their kin.

Known Gods

All the known gods, their followers and current high clerics (if any) are listed below. It is possible that more gods exist but simply haven't made an appearance yet.

High Plane

Portrait	Name	Title	Status	Info
	Artemicia	Goddess of Healing	Alive	Daughter of Nergal; niece of Shakkan; mother of the orc race Followers: Clergy of Artemicia High Cleric: Adela al-Saif
	Cardia	God of Order	Dead	Brother of Hephaestus; father of the elven race; devoured by the Godslayer Followers: Clergy of Cardia (gone), Church of the Memory of Cardia High Cleric: Jonathan Ferron
	Dionysus	God of Wine and Madness	Alive	Brother of Laverna; father of the troll race; friend of children; has an outgoing and quirky personality Followers: Clergy of Dionysus High Cleric: ???
	Ganesha	God of Commerce	Alive	Helped create the first trade consortium; regulates wealth Followers: Clergy of Ganesha High Cleric: ???
	Heath	Goddess of the Sky	Dead	Mother of the pixie race; tried to preserve the balance of the world after Gaea's death; slain by Malakhia d'Zarnagon Followers: Clergy of Heath (gone) High Cleric: Aramien Bitterleaf (dead)
	Hephaestus	God of Smithing	Alive	Brother of Cardia; father of the dwarven race Followers: Clergy of Hephaestus High Cleric: Axikasha Keiran
	Hivena	Goddess of Love and Fertility	Alive	Creator of--you guessed it--STDs; mother of the nymph race; plans to bring the Andain back by any means necessary Followers: Clergy of Hivena High Cleric: Nesa Mikoto
	Laverna	Goddess of Thieves	Alive	Sister of Dionysus; mother of the kitsune race Followers: Clergy of Laverna, Dwarven Triad High Clerics: Izanami-no-Mikoto and Izanagi-no-Mikoto
	Mardük	God of Chaos	Dead	Brother of Paedün; father of the demon race; devoured by the Godslayer Followers: Chaos Dwarves, Clergy of Mardük, Forgotten High Clerics: Distreyd Thanadar XIII (Clergy of Marduk) and Alathor (Forgotten)
	Nergal	God of War	Alive	Brother of Shakkan; father of Artemicia; father of the human race Followers: Clergy of Nergal High Cleric: Yoshimuriko
	Paedün	God of Knowledge	Unknown	Brother of Mardük and Thoth; father of the lefein race; sealed into a dimensional prison with the lefein Followers: Clergy of Paedün (gone) High Cleric: Liosliath de Mont Hault (last)
	Phil	God of Arseholes and Bastards	Dead	Devoured by Gaea Followers: Scundia High Cleric: Wes (self-appointed)
	Shakkan	God of Beasts	Alive	Brother of Nergal; uncle of Artemicia; father of the sirithai race and the titans Followers: Clergy of Shakkan High Cleric: Qadohi
	Thoth	God of Music and Storytelling	Dead	Brother of Mardük and Paedün; father of the dryad race; creator of music and first instruments; possessed by the Unnamed Evil and became Death Followers: Bards and muses High Cleric: ???
	Tiamat	Goddess of the Sea	Alive	Mother of the merrow race; blesses or curses ships depending on her mood; worshipped by pirates Followers: Blue Dragon, Clergy of Tiamat High Cleric: ???

Land of the Dead

Portrait	Name	Title	Status	Info
	Death	God of Death	Dead (spirit)	Formerly known as Thoth who was possessed by the Unnamed Evil and became Death who now rules the Land of the Dead Followers: Undead, Totenkopfs High Cleric: Kamen Grimgaze
	Gaea	Goddess of the Earth	Dead (spirit)	Mother of the High Plane Gods and the Faerfolc race; slain by Kagetsu I; ended up in the Land of the Dead where she became the present Tyrantess of the Underworld who acts as Death's consort Followers: Clergy of Gaea, Faerfolc High Cleric: Inari Okami (dead)
	Grim Reaper	Harvester of Souls	Dead (spirit)	Became a servant of Death after the fall of the Land of the Dead to the Unnamed Evil
	Kivutar	Goddess of Suffering	Dead (spirit)	Also known as Conquest; one of the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse
	Loviatar	Goddess of Pestilence	Dead (spirit)	Also known as Pestilence; one of the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse
	Surma	God of Pain	Dead (spirit)	Pet of Kivutar and Grim Reaper
	Vammatar	Goddess of Famine	Dead (spirit)	Also known as Famine; one of the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse

History

Origins

Not much is known about the origin of the Pantheon. Some ancient Creation Myths claim that at the beginning Gaea, the Goddess of the Earth, was the first god to emerge from the Cosmos and created the Land of the Living and life in general. After that she gave birth to the older gods, the first two of which were Heath the Goddess of the Sky, and Tiamat the Goddess of the Sea. Gaea later shaped the Faerfolc race to be the guardians of the Land of the Living which was eventually populated by various other races as life began to flourish.

Some of the gods, due to their differing and even opposing philosophies and natures and their immaturity at the time, didn't get along and eventually ended up fighting many devastating battles among themselves in the Land of the Living. After years of conflict, most of them settled down and began living in the High Plane which was separate from the Land of the Living where most mortal races were now living in.

Some myths speculate that the change in the gods' modus operandi might've been caused by the tragic losses of their brothers Dreamweaver the God of Music and Storytelling (who had been corrupted and became Death, ruler of the Land of the Dead), and Phil the God of Arseholes and Bastards (who had been devoured by Gaea for being annoying), which would've made the gods realize that even their divine race wasn't undefeatable.

The gods briefly collaborated by sealing primordial, eldritch beings known as the Essence in Light and the Watcher in Darkness into an interdimensional prison in order to prevent these eldritch beings from taking over or destroying everything the gods had worked so hard for.

Opposing Beliefs

Main article: War of the Andain

The gods occasionally visited the Land of the Living, and many of them bred with mortals, producing demigod offspring who became known as the Andain. Two Andain lords rose to prominence during this time: Taliesin and Kagetsu Aurelac de Maar Sul, fathered by Cardia the God of Order and Mardük the God of Chaos, respectively.

Kagetsu's founding of the kingdom of Ancient Maar Sul marked the beginning of recorded history in the Land of the Living and ushered in the First Age although other nations had existed prior to Kagetsu's kingdom, notably the kingdoms of Sul'gar Minh and Barjassil. Thanks to his efforts in promoting interspecies harmony, Kagetsu was elected as Lord of the Andain by his peers.

The land lived in prosperity for a few decades until Kagetsu, having forged Maar Sul into a powerful nation, suddenly declared war on the gods, claiming to want to give all mortals the same boons which the gods and the Andain had. This came as a total surprise to the gods who hadn't paid attention to the Andain Lord's growing ambitions.

On the eve of the battle, Gaea herself manifested in godflesh in the Land of the Living to try to talk some sense into Kagetsu but to everyone's shock Kagetsu slew her then and there, killing her off permanently. Everyone realized that gods can in fact be killed if they're killed while manifesting in their own godflesh, and they declared Kagetsu to be a traitor who would be henceforth known as the Dark Andain.

The War of the Andain raged on between Kagetsu's rebels and the loyalists led by Taliesin for decades. Kagetsu was a successful tactician and strategist who won many victories while the gods, horrified by Gaea's death, stayed out of the way because they didn't want to share her fate. It wasn't until Taliesin finally beat and magically imprisoned Kagetsu that peace could be restored to the world, but never again would gods act as carelessly as they had before now that they had lost the All-Mother.

Growing Ambitions

Main article: Chaos War

Centuries after the War of the Andain, the god Mardük, maddened with grief by Kagetsu's betrayal but also by having seen three gods (Phil, Dreamweaver and Gaea) perish, finally succumbed to dark impulses sent by Death and unleashed his followers, the demons, upon the material plane in an effort to conquer it and turn every living thing in the Land of the Living in his image. He was opposed by the Grand Alliance which supported the god Cardia, and this conflict became known as the Chaos War.

Mardük was eventually imprisoned, but the damage had already been done: he hadn't been the only god who had been affected by earlier events. Cardia claimed to mortals that the other gods didn't exist, and Nergal decided to carry on what Mardük had begun by making nations fight among themselves in the following centuries.

Gods took a newfound interest in the Land of the Living, this time not fighting among themselves like Mardük and Cardia had done but by manipulating the mortal races to do their bidding for them and converting them to their cause. Many schemes were hatched in the following centuries, and various clergies rose to prominence as as the Second Age began.

End of an Era

Main article: Explosion

The Arawn Losstarot War turned out to be perhaps the most devastating conflict since the time of the Chaos War as the opposing forces of the mortal warlock Arawn Losstarot and Kagetsu the Dark Andain, who by now had managed to escape captivity, fought while the two forces of Taliesin and the Grand Alliance ended up in the middle. Eventually Arawn, who was leeching power from Mardük himself, turned out to be too great a threat not only to the world but to the gods themselves, and Taliesin, Kagetsu and the Alliance ended up allying briefly to defeat the powerful warlock together.

It was through the sacrifice of every living Andain, including Kagetsu and Taliesin, that Arawn was finally defeated. Before Kagetsu perished, however, he betrayed the Alliance and Taliesin and decided to carry out the mission he had begun centuries ago when he had rebelled against the gods even if meant he had to improvise. Kagetsu used the powers of his slain brethren to distribute the power of the dying Andain among mortals, thus giving rise to Innate Abilities.

However, Kagetsu's spell also resulted in the Explosion which killed many people and rearranged the continents. From that moment on, mortals had an inkling of the power which the Andain had once enjoyed, and gods could no longer breed with mortals and create new Andain because Kagetsu's spell had severed that connection between them. The Third Age had begun.

Rise of the Godslayer

Main article: Cataclysm

Mardük and the other gods kept manipulating mortals, and the Innate Abilities made the following wars between kingdoms even more devastating. It was during the Great War when Mardük was finally released from his prison and faced his archenemy Cardia in combat. The two gods and their divine and mortal followers saw this as the final battle after which the world would either follow the Path of Order or Chaos.

However, a new player appeared on the board as a horrific beast made its presence known and caught both Cardia and Mardük by surprise. The beast devoured the two opposing gods and sent their respective armies fleeing in terror while the demons whom Mardük had summoned ran amok now that their master was gone and could no longer keep them under control. The deaths of the two major gods shook the world and caused the Cataclysm which also ended the age of Innate Abilities. The beast became known as the Godslayer and forced the gods into hiding.

The gods Hephaestus the God of Smithing and Nergal the God of War took over the positions once held by Cardia and Mardük as leaders of the Gods of Light and Darkness, respectively. In the meantime various gods decided to remain neutral and observed the conflict from the sidelines although some of them have had shifting alliances. Due to different definitions of what actually constitutes a God of Darkness/Light, it can sometimes be difficult to categorize some gods who may promote some aspects but act in ways that seem to fit the other category, the prime example being Artemicia who as the Goddess of Healing can just as easily poison people who have annoyed her.

The Godslayer's existence forced the gods to adapt, but their schemes go on even in the present day. The rest of the gods' history is yet to be written, but they will do their utmost to ensure their survival in this new Age of Emptiness.

Appearance

Gods can appear in many forms although they often prefer humanoid forms with a golden glow around them. A sure sign that a person is being possessed by a god is when their eyes glow in a golden light and when they speak in a very resonating voice.

Personality and Traits

"By our very natures, we must oppose each other. I exist to create, to build, to aid prosperity. He exists to destroy, to wage war, to spread strife wherever he goes. I can no sooner alter my nature than a fish could choose to live on land. It is the same for Nergal."

"Maybe mortals don't have it so bad after all. At least we're free to choose what cause we serve. What good are the powers of a god if you can't even control your own destiny?"

"I cannot control my nature, nor would there be any point in denying who--or what--I am. That does not mean I cannot control my actions. I do the best with what I have been given, and the choices I make are my own."

—Hephaestus and Axikasha Keiran

Gods are mercurial beings who can, help, hinder or act indifferent to mortals depending on their mood. Many of them see the mortal races that they have created as their children who are pawns to be manipulated for whatever outcome the gods desire. Some of these manipulations are subtle, but sometimes they require a higher degree of intervention, so the god will either possess a mortal to deliver a message or appear in godflesh.

Because of their different natures due to the aspects they represent, gods often clash with one another. However, they're known to work together on occasion if they face something that could threaten either of them although this is rare. Some gods are more deeply linked, viewing each other as brothers and sisters whereas some are friends and others view each other as parents and children.

They can be provoked by even the slightest offense such as when Artemicia poisoned her son Leon Alcibiates for asking for her help in dealing with a group of thugs, which the goddess didn't see worth bothering her with. On the other hand they can also offer words of wisdom to mortals who are in a deep spiritual crisis, especially if said mortals are their worshippers, such as when Hephaestus appeared to his cleric Axikasha Keiran.

Powers and Limitations

"Manifest in the flesh."

"That would make me an even greater fool than you and Cardia. I have no desire to share Gaea's fate."

"Gaea fell to an Andain; there are no Andain left. That mortal, even with Dawn, was no real threat to me."

"He could have been. Even without a magic weapon, a mortal could kill one of us. Yoshimuriko would do it merely for the glory of slaying a god."

—Artemicia and Nergal

In order to directly influence the world, a god must either occupy a mortal body (possession) or manifest in their own pseudomortal godflesh.

Gods must have a mortal host's consent in order to occupy the body. The host remains aware for the duration of the possession (although the god is in control of the body) and can, by an effort of will, expel the god at will.

If a god manifests without a host body (that is, in their own pseudomortal flesh), they can be killed by any means that would slay an ordinary mortal. If the host is killed while the god is possessing him or her, the god simply abandons the body and returns to the High Plane unharmed.

It's necessary for a god to appear in their own pseudomortal flesh in order to reproduce; if they possess a mortal host and use that person to reproduce with another mortal, the child will be just like any other mortal child. Before the Explosion, unions between gods and mortals resulted in the births of Andain who were demigods. Thanks to a spell cast by Kagetsu I in the Explosion which killed all the living Andain, gods can no longer breed with mortals; the only known exception is Nyanna Mikoto whose parents are the mortal paladin Nesa Mikoto and the goddess Hivena who chose Nesa for the express purpose of finding a loophole in the limitation which Kagetsu's sacrifice had imposed on the gods. Whether this actually makes Nyanna someone with the power that past Andain possesses remains unknown, however.

Gods have access to the highest level of magical power, but it drains them the same way it would drain a mortal; even the gods must rest, or else abandon the host's flesh and return to the High Plane. If a god casts high-level spells while possessing a mortal, the mortal remains fatigued as though they had cast the spells themselves, even if they do not have the ability to cast them. A god using a host body for possession is thus weaker than a god manifesting in godflesh as the latter has full access to his or her divine powers.

Locations

Gods generally reside on the High Plane. It is a realm separate from the Land of the Living where mortal races live. Mortals can't access the High Plane directly and usually can only access a "shadow" of the realm via magical transportation such as through the Mirror of Truth. Elementals, however, also reside on the High Plane, and can travel between the two planes.

Various prominent gods have built cities on the High Plane. The most notable ones are Xar Daeon (for Mardük) and Starholme (for Gaea, Cardia and currently Hephaestus). The cities reflect their masters' mental state, so Xar Daeon is presently in a chaotic, sorrowful state after the demise of its master in the Cataclysm.

See also

• Andain
• Creation Myths
• Death
• Godslayer
• High Plane
• Races
• War of the Andain