The SLuRP Gods
Spawn, Animus and Terminus
The three orginal beings that existed in the time before time. Animus and Terminus became Hagol and Necros respectively, while Spawn departed to some other realm. Generally, these beings are only referred to by scholars, and there are no churches to them.
Hagol
God of the sky, the Allfather. The
highest of the gods, he represents Nobility. He favours Lomara,
and respects Elna and Knort. He particularly encourages the controlling of Kylax and Kalar, but Necros is considered a secondary concern.
The original meaning of "Nobility", and the purpose of Hagol, is about the defence of the innocent and the upholding of justice. However, in these modern times, Hagol is more often seen to stand for dignity, conservatism and the stiff upper-lip attitude. In either case though, he advocates strict adherence to codes of conduct, and the maintaining of law and order. He smiles on those who stand out as shining examples of good conduct, and frowns on chaos and erratic behaviour. He will approve of warfare as long as it's conducted in a civilised manner, and it is against a worthy (or particularly heinous) adversary.
All authority figures will say they worship Hagol. He is the politically
correct god to follow. Any speech by a councillor will mention him. All
'right-thinking' people follow Hagol.
[The Church of Hagol]
Elna
The Earth Goddess, the mother of all
creatures. Worshipped by all who live off the land, or have dealings with its
creatures, she represents nature. She is compassionate and nurturing, but as the keeper of
Kylax she recognises the inevitabity of harsh necessity. She is 'Married' to Knort, and bows to
Hagol. She resents Kalar, and greatly fears Necros and his minions.
Elna is probably the easiest god (goddess) to understand. She encourages the love of life and the upkeep of the natural world. Such issues as morality are of little concern as her followers recognise that they are constructs of the mortal mind. Nature's creatures are incapable of immorality, and nothing is intrinsically evil. Although warfare is a blatant disrespect for the sanctity of life, killing in the name of survival is acceptable, and only if someone was killed wrongly or unnaturally will she allow their life to be returned to them. As keepers of the natural world, Elna's Followers are expected to assist those in need, and to generally make everyone as content in their lives as they can. While such issues as justice mean little, deliberate destruction or cruelty should be combatted.
Most people you meet will be, if anything, Elna worshippers as Keese is the first city of Elna in the Barony. There is a
major church to her in Keese, headed by an Arch-Priest called Felix.
[The Church of Elna]
Knort
The Marine God. Worshipped by sailors
and fishermen, he represents the oceans. He is strong and serene, but also often
takes charge of Kylax to become brutally harsh. 'Married' to Elna,
bows to Hagol, does not see eye-to-eye with Lomara.
Perhaps unsurprisingly, Knort shares many of the views of Elna. However, along with taking care of the more aquatic aspects of the natural world, Knort celebrates adventure and exploration into uncharted realms. He is a much more dynamic god, smiling on those who survive against the odds, or who accomplish the seemingly impossible. As well as the obvious people like fishermen and sailors, Knort watches over explorers, mountaineers, pioneers and other such lunatics. He scowls on people who take the easy way out, or those who give up at the first obstacle.
Knort features in all nautical mythology. All the Sinbad-esque stuff
you'll ever hear will feature him at some point. Fishermen and sailors worship him actively, explorers often carry his symbols, but he has few other Followers. Any port will have a temple to him at least, a seaside town will
have a major church.
Lomara
Goddess of language and wisest of
the gods. Worshipped by scholars and mages, wanderers and merchants, she
represents Learning. She also protects homes. She is peaceful and wise, and will
always help anyone she finds in need. She tries to distance herself from the
other gods, but is polite.
Lomara advocates the use of words and thought over all else. She deplores the use of violence or any form of impetuous action, being the most actively pacifist of the gods. She encourages such things as solitary meditations and vision quests, and supports those who wander the world seeking enlightenment. Lomara teaches her Followers to be resourceful, and to be dependable, but to be self-reliant. She frowns on large assemblies, prefering instead small groups of maybe a dozen people, gathered in the home of the host to share experiences and stories. The very essence of Lomara is about the gathering and exchanging of thoughts and ideas. This is often extended to include the ideas of exploration and trade, and thus sometimes there is a conflict of interests with Followers of Knort.
While symbols of Lomara appear in homes and academies and various other
places, her worshippers are people who rely on themselves. Thus a church to
Lomara is most uncommon.
Kalar
The Trickster. Worshipped by jesters
and fraudsters, he represents Trickery. He is cunning and deceitful, and always
looking for ways to cause mischief. He bows to no-one, hates Lomara and despises Hagol.
He is the only god to sympathise with Kylax or Necros.
Kalar strongly advocates freedom, but freedom and the maintaining of the status quo are mutually exclusive, so the activities of Kalar are generally regarded as anarchic and anti-establishment. However, Kalar is not as destructively chaotic as Kylax, or as intent as Necros, he merely stresses the necessity of shaking up people's world views in order that they never become constrained within artificial confines. He encourages mockeries of the system, he protects those who upturn established conventions, he supports all actions that illustrate the arbitrary and counter-productive nature of the established order. These arbitrary rules include such things as honesty and ownership, so Kalar Followers are often thieves or con-men, and these activities meet entirely with his approval.
Anyone who openly worshipped Kalar would probably be found murdered as a
general precaution, but being open is not something they're prone to. Although they are not as certifiable, or as dangerous as the
Kylax cultists, they are viewed as not to be trusted.
Yorcas
God of War. Worshipped by
professional soldiers, and prayed to by anyone in a conflict, he represents
Battle. He is powerful and quick to anger, but believes himself noble. He bows
to Hagol, but does not like Lomara.
Yorcas is the embodiment of combat. He does not represent hate, or even aggression, but battle for its own sake. He thinks in extremes and superlatives, teaching that only through strife can a mortal grow. As death is the ultimate source of strife, and combat is the best source of death, it is through killing that one becomes closer to god. In combat, the body, the mind, and the soul are united in one purpose - to kill. The devoted Follower of Yorcas spends his lifetime seeking and conquering ever more extreme manifestations of strife, in the hope that he can prove his worth by announcing to god, with true conviction, that the only way he will ever die is by his own hand.
Noble cavalier or mercenary, anyone who regards themselves a warrior will
give penance to Yorcas. He has few true worshippers though, and few churches.
Priests will often conduct large rituals to him before battle, with all the
warriors as the congregation.
[The Church of Yorcas]
Kylax
The Beast of Destruction. Worshipped
by nutters and weirdoes, it represents only Chaos. It is not intelligent, and is
feared by all, both mortal and god. To placate the Beast, one prays to
Elna (or Knort if at sea).
Kylax is not sentient in the proper sense. It does not teach, or advocate, or scorn. It is a force of nature, a physical law. It just is. In all worlds, destruction is easier than creation, and all things naturally tend towards a more chaotic state. Kylax represents the natural final state of all things. Left to its own devices, it would reduce all things to the state of greatest chaos. It would obliterate all constraints, break all rules and laws however inviolate. To some, it represents the ultimate freedom - a total disregard for all confinements, and is thus attractive for the extremists and anarchists who consider the teachings of Kalar to be too liberal or lightweight.
It is considered bad luck to mention Kylax by name. Kylax worshippers are
invariably cultists, and usually dangerously insane. Kylax is the main
little-kid-frightener (eat your sprouts or The Beast will get you).
Necros
The God of Death, and The End of All
Things. Worshipped by drop-outs and suicidals he represents Oblivion. He is an
outcast amongst the gods, and is cold and uncaring. He speaks to no-one, and
no-one speaks to him. He seeks only to end the world.
Necros teaches that oblivion is the natural state, and that life is merely a postponement of the inevitable. Life is an expression of chaos, with randomness and uncertainity everywhere. Death is the ultimate expression of order - utterly certain, utterly reliable. In death, everything is peace, everything is whole and complete. In oblivion, the universe is returned to the oneness from which it was forcibly torn. Any attempt to ascribe order to life is illusory, and thus Necros does not recognise such concepts as deceit or betrayal. Followers of Necros are permitted to use any means available to further the great work on the priciple that any chaos sewn by a single mortal in the vast well of chaos that is life, is basically trivial.
Necros cultists are killed whenever possible. If they are found in a
region, parties are sent out to kill them. If a lot are found, council sessions
are held to discuss how best to kill them. For all intents and purposes, Necros
and his followers can be regarded as evil.
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