The Gods - Proposal

[Xanthuss]

The Gods are immortal beings, with almost infinite power, who rule the world from the Heavens & Realm of The Deities. There are many gods, some as ancient as time and some only newborn. Gods are created in various ways. The Fruit of Arth can turn a mere mortal in to a God, but it has many side effects, including the inability to feel emotions. The Goblet of Saskrah, forged by the First God of Creation, can turn a mortal in to a God, but it requires the life blood of a Dragon for it to work.

The only way a God can be created without horrible side effects for the mortal realm is for the Eternal Father of Time and Fate to create the God from scratch or bless a mortal with Godhood. Once a God is created, they are sustained by the worship of their believers and if a God is no longer worshiped, he or she will cease to exist.
____________

Important Gods Recognized by All or Most Religions
The Eternal Father of Time and Fate - The first God and the one who will be the last God, he has no name and is the one who controls the destiny of the universe. But not even the Eternal Father can change or control the free will of a sentient being though, so he only controls the events in the world, not the actions of the people within the world.

The Mage-Druid of Justice - The second God, the Mage Druid has many names, but she is always known to exist by the people of the world. She will be the second last god to die, and is the one who governs all Justice in the world.

_____________

Please comment on this proposal.

[StormWolf]

I like where you are going with this, Antlers, so alllow me to add some notes I have made in the past couple days.


The Old Religeon
Originally followed by the Pictsish nomads and barbaric people of the land before civilization grew out the primordial muck. With the expanse and maturation of modern civilization, the Old Ways started to either be phased out or forgotten completely in certain parts of the world while other regions of the world still follow the Old Religeon and even practice the Old Customs.

The Æsir, the druidic elfin folk of the Godswood in the Isle of Skye, are said to be the Keepers of the Old Religeon who watch over the holy Yggdrasil Trees, the golden leafed and pale barked trees that bear the Arth and are said to have the face of the Father of Time grown in to the broad trunk of the trees. Cutting down a Yggdrasil Tree is said to bring about a terrible set of curses to the guilty soul and his family for seven generations. The last time a Yggdrasil Tree was cut down was during the Age of Shattering, when Saint Abaddon and his men of the New Faith ordered all Yggdrasil to be cut down and burned. This started a war with the Realms of the Old Religeon, a war that lasted seven generations.

The Father of Time and Fate has a name in the Old Religeon, and his name is Oerdun. He is the Father of the Heavens who is wed to Lorien and copulated with her on the horizon to create the earth and the sky. He is the creator of souls, as Lorien is the creator of bodies. He ultimately weaves the intricate veil of fate in Ashahiem from his golden throne in the Heavens.

She who planted the Yggdrasil is known as Lorien in the Old Religeon, and is also known as the Mage-Druid of Justice in the New Religeon. In the Old Religeon, she is the Mother of the Earth who bears every creature of the earth from her sacred womb. She created the Yggdrasil Trees so that her Children could be heard by the Gods. Lorien is the only Divine Being who can bestow the Gifts of the Yggdrasil upon a mortal and ascend them to godhood.

Tor is the god of the Tempest, whose mighty battleaxe can split the sky and the earth. It is Tor's duty to change the face of the world when Oerdun commands it. With the mighty heave of his axe, Tor can shatter continents in to islands, turn deserts in to oceans, and raise mountains from the depths. Tor is the eldest son of Lorien and Oerdun. Tor is a symbol of masculine might and fertility.

Tyran is the God of War and brother to Tor. While Tor can change the shape of the world, it is Tyran who changes the lines that define the world. He watches all battles in Ashahiem, from great crusades to single combat. He dispatches his Valkyries to retrieve the souls of those who have fallen in battle and ferrys them to the Halls of Judgment. In turn, Tyran will bless worthy warriors, sending his Angels of Fury to guide and protect his greatest champions.

The daughter of Lorien, Mitra, is the goddess of Mercy, whose Angels are sent to ease the pain of those in suffering or kindle fires in the hearts of the hopeless and downtrodden. Be it the smallest mouse to the greatest titan, she will not abide suffering, and will be sure that suffering endured in life will be paid back in peace and pleasure in the White Shores. That is, unless Oerdun forbids it, for if the soul was rightyly tortured, then he will be banished to the Abyss.

Ymir the Exiled One is a mighty god who fell from the grace of Oerdun by siring the race of Giants. To do so, Ymir had to physically enter Ashahiem and lay with several prime women all over the world. Their offspring was a severe deformation of the humans that Oerdun created in his image. Oerdun bid Tor to battle with Ymir, and the melee that ensued forze the greatest expanses of the north of the main continent (name pending) and burned the south.

The Dread Wolf is the bringer of death, though the dead is not peaceful. The Dread Wolf devours the soul of those who are afflicted by the Gods, sniffing out those who are cursed and tearing their very spirit asunder. The Dread Wolf, like many other Gods, is said to send his spirit down and become a seed in the womb of a woman so that she may birth a rare breed of warrior, the kind that has given the followers of the Old Religeon a barbaric reputation. The Dread Wolf has the name Fenris in other parts of the world, and the New Faith simply calls him Death.

Monadh, son of Mitra and Ymir is the God of the Mountain. He is worshipped heavily in mountainous regeons and by warriors, who ask for Tyran's fury for fighting spirit and Monadh's strength for body. The New Faith does not worship Mondahn, for they see it as a redundancy to Worship the Druid-Mage and a god of the mountain. This angers Mondah, and so during any crusade against those of the New Faith, he will grant his favor, even to the chagrin of the other gods.


this is all i have for Old Gods right now. Feel free to add more and if you want to make New Faith equals (ie a Juperter to my Zeus) go ahead.

[Atrum Daemon]

I'll toss in an expansion of Elysian religion since this seems the best place for it.

The Elysians, too old and isolated to be truly exposed to the Old Religion, crafted theirs around a great divinity they call The Old One. In the days of the Ancient Elysians, the Old One walked among them, his first creations. It is said that the Old One expended much of his power creating the Elysians and their home and that he now sleeps at the heart of the world.

The Old One’s last act before his sleep was to create several guardian “Demons” who would watch over the Elysians and, when the time came, prepare the Old One to awaken.

The Demons are:

The False King - The first Demon to be born and undeniably the strongest. He takes the form of a red eyed Elysian and dwells in a crumbling fortress within the heart of one of the jungles of Gaia. He is the Demon’s leader and will be the one who first creates the fog when the Great Awakening comes.

Flame Dancer - A great beast of fire and steel dwelling within a great volcano. It is thought that the raging flames produced by the Flame Dancer provide power to the forges of the Cyclops. The Flame Dancer is extremely aggressive and his flame second only to ancient dragons.

The Leechmonger - Dwelling within a great valley of swampland, the Demon has turned the valley into a land of pestilence and disease. Aside from the Leechmonger, the valley has become home to the lost and forgotten, the poison and plague corrupting their minds. The Demon itself takes the form of a figure covered by rusty plate armor and tattered robes.

The Old One is represented in Elysian culture by an enormous tree with archaic decorations. Old texts say that Elysium itself was crafted by from the roots of the Old One.

Elysians believe that Ashaheim will come to an end during an event called the Great Awakening. During the Great Awakening, the Demons of the Old One will cover all the world in fog and harvest all mortal souls to feed the Old One and awaken him. After the Old One awakens, the world will be reshaped and new life given to it. The Great Awakening is a beginning just as much as it is an ending.

This is what I have for now. I will be adding more, such as explanations of the "Demons" and such as I finish them.

[Xanthuss]

Asthlare has also evolved much of a religion all of its own, though Lorien and Oerdun are recognized in it. Centred around the Goddess Daha, who is worshiped as the prime deity besides Lorien and Oerdun and is the Goddess of Love, the traditions of Asthlare say that Daha and her brother Mahak hold the world in check, the elements of Love and War holding the world in harmony, and that without them all would die in the world, even the Gods themselves.

The gods of Asthlare are:
Mahak - The Second God of War, Brother to Daha, Mahak simply came to exist sometime in the very beginning of the world of Ashaheim, at the same time as his twin sister. Sometimes called the God of Revenge, Suffering and Vengeance, Mahak keeps the hateful and war-like emotions and powers of the world in check. Together with Daha, he balances the world.

Daha - The Goddess of Love, Sister of Mahak, Daha came to exist sometime in the very begging of the world, at the same time as her twin brother. She has been referred to as the Goddess of Lust, Beauty and Female Fertility. Daha keeps the loving, devotional and sometimes lustful emotions and powers of the world in check and dispenses beauty among the people of the world. Together with Mahak, she helps balance the world.

Gudbrandr - The Guardian of Mahak and Daha, Gudbrandr is not strictly a god, though he could be considered the God of Warriors. He was created just after Daha and Mahak, and he is there younger brother. Gudbrandr is assigned the task of protecting the God of War and the Goddess of Love. He has been gifted with the power to split himself in to two bodies, both controlled by a single mind.

Fáfnir - The God of Greed, Lust, Sin and Ambition, Fáfnir is the first son of Daha and Gudbrandr. He is the manifestation of Greed, Lust and Ambition in the world, and his fate was sealed at birth by his mother, when she uttered the prophecy that governs his life: "For you, Fáfnir, life will be hard and power will seduce you, until your end, when you will become selfless and save a mortal life in exchange for your own; becoming what you were meant to be in that moment."

Ásvaldr - The God of Divine Miracles and the God of Prophecies, Ásvaldr is the second son of Daha and Gudbrandr. He is the god who performs miracles in the mortal realm, and no God but Lorien and Oerdun can perform a healing of a mortal without his blessing. He can see the future, and he bestows prophecies on the people of the world, and only Lorien and Oerdun can stop a prophecy that he has uttered from becoming true. Because of his great curse, he is almost never physically seen by anyone, even other gods, as he hides in his own realm.

Fenris - The God of Hell, Fenris is the son of Mahak and Daha and originally the God of Wisdom. He started the Great Schism and tried to kill the Gods of Asthlare. Fenris also created the first Hydra, and killed the Goddess Kelda. He was banished to hell and became the God of Hell when his plan failed and his banishment will end only at the end of the world.

Ári - The God of the Wind, Ári is the second son of Mahak and Daha. He is also the reincarnation of the Goddess Kelda. He holds the strings of the winds in his hands, and stops the world from being ravaged by the powers of the wind. Ári holds all the memories of both of his incarnations in his mind, and he is sworn to gain revenge on Fenris, which he can only do when the end of the world comes and Fenris's banishment ends.

Kelda - The Goddess of the Seasons, Kelda was the only daughter of Mahak and Daha. She was killed by The God Fenris and reincarnated as the God Ári. She pushed the seasons across the world, until her death, when the job of God of The Seasons was destroyed and the seasons began to control themselves, resulting the creation of the Spirits of The Seasons from her spilt blood (Father Winter, Mother Autumn, Daughter Spring and Son Summer).

--------
The Great Schism is the fate that befell Titus, the second kingdom of the continent of Asthlare. This war occurred when Fenris attacked the Goddess Kelda, killing her and smashing the Seasons, which in turn birthed the Spirits of the Seasons from Kelda's spilt blood (Father Winter, Mother Autumn, Daughter Spring and Son Summer). His worshipers, who lived in the kingdom of Titus, were killed when Mahak and Daha, together with Ásvaldr, Fáfnir and Gudbrandr all hurled their powers had Titus, burning the kingdom and entrapping Fenris in the burning of fire. Mahak and Daha then cursed him to hell, entrapping him there till the world’s end, when Ásvaldr prophesied that he would escape and he and Kelda's reincarnation would battle a battle that would shake the dieing world and end only when one of them was dead. Fáfnir then cursed him with all the greed, lust and ambition that every man and woman alive at the time felt, Mahak cursed him with the suffering of every person in Titus who had died, and Daha took his beauty from him, turning him in to a hideous monster. As he left this realm, he sliced open his arm on a fallen sword and his blood dripped on to a statue of a three headed monster, bringing it to life even as its creator vanished.

[StormWolf]

added 2 more gods to the Old Religeon

[Atrum Daemon]

Added the first three Demons to the Elysian religion.

[Awean8]

I'm going to actually go on and do Storm's idea of the New Faith along with some Muspell exclusive gods.

New Faith

Dyeus - God of gods, who rules over the rest of the New Faith. He is also associated with eagles, lightning, the sky itself and often fathers. He sees all within Ashahiem and despite the fact that he is an angry/jealous god he still loves all of his subjects.

Andraste - The War Goddess, she is an aggressive god who is said to keep the pelts of all those she has slain at the foot of her bed. She revels in the destruction that mankind constantly creates.

Pallis - God of Wisdom. He has an affinity towards nature, and is often depicted as an adviser to Dyeus. In legend he is said to help heroes along their journey for he is fond of mortals who act selflessly. He is associated with libraries, scholars, owls and bards.

Dion - The Drunk God. He rules over all revelry, and celebration. He is often associated with wine, music, dance, and the theater.

Anyone can add more if they so wish.

-------------------------------------

Muspellian Gods

Amun-Ra - Creator of the other gods, he represents the sun. He created the mankind with his own sweat, and is presumably the creator of all life. He is often associated with phoenixes among other birds. He was first worshiped by the Stygians, until they had attempted to ascend to godhood where he took offense and buried their entire civilization beneath the sands. He is now worshiped by mainly humans.

Aset - Goddess over mothers and love. She answered the prayers of the artisans, sinners and downtrodden. She is often associated with fertility, magic, rain and the stars.

Osiris - God of the dead, life, and the afterlife. He is one of the most important gods. In myth he was once a great human pharaoh who ruled his people well despite the dangers of the desert. The gods loved him, and so in honor of his righteous rule a party was thrown in order to celebrate Osiris being given the gift of godhood. However is jealous brother, Sheth, conspired against him. Just as Osiris was to receive his divinity Sheth swiftly stabbed him with a dagger coated in strong poison immediately killing him. After cutting the body of Osiris into fourteen pieces and hiding them away across sands, Sheth than took the divinity for himself becoming the god of the desert. This was the beginning of a long epic where Horus, the son of Osiris, guided by his mother tracked down the pieces of his father while constantly battling the desert and it's ruler, Sheth. In the end Osiris is resurrected as the god of the dead, while his son became the god of war.

Sirius - God of the Underworld. He is the guardian of the dead who stands watch over the River of Styx as the dead travel to be judged. He is often associated with jackals, mummies, and Black Hounds.

Horus - The God of War, the sky, heroes, and protection. He is the son of Osiris, the god of the dead, and the nephew to Sheth, god of the desert. A famous epic was written of his adventures as a mortal where he traveled all of Muspell in order to gather the fourteen pieces of Osiris' dismembered body while at the same time battling both the desert and Sheth.

Sheth - God of the desert, darkness and chaos. Infamous for being the original killer of Osiris, he was the antagonist for the story of Horus. He has an affinity with all the animals who reside within the Muspellian deserts, and will often use them for his own plots. Dark Elves are known to worship him along with some Stygians.

[Xanthuss]

The New Faith and Asthlare

Believing in the so called 'New Faith' in the Draca Isles or Asthlare is the most unholy sin that anyone can commit. The Original Gods of Asthlare are said to rain destruction on anyone who reveals themselves to be a believer of the New Faith, and the Dragon Lords have outlawed it; though even this has not stopped some from turning to it. And it hasn't stopped secret temples to several of these gods popping up.

The Gods of the New Faith recognized in Asthlare include:

Taris - The God of Chance and Luck, Taris is the sole New Faith god who actually has relations with the Gods of Asthlare. He is the son of Daha to Dyeus, and a mix of the two religions of the New Faith and the Old Asthlarian Faith. He is the only God of the New Faith who can be worshipped openly in Asthlare without having his followers exiled or killed. He goes against all that Ásvaldr stands for, so he has even less to do with the God of Divine Miracles and Prophecies than the other gods, but he is still partly bound by fate and destiny and prophecies, though he has the ability to turn a prophecy on its head and change its outcome randomly, as long as that outcome still fits inside the words of the prophecy. He is often represented by dice or a spinning top.

Gilus - The God of The Moon, Stars and the Celestial heavens, Gilus is a mysterious god who invented astrology, clairvoyance and other future predicting methods used by mortals. He is the responsible for the tides and the phases of the moon, and he is the patron God of the Afterlife for the New Faith. He is represented by a Crescent Moon, a Star, A Crystal Ball and a Angel.

Note: He is worshiped secretly be several sects in Asthlare, and he has had some dealings himself with the Asthlarian Gods. He is cousin to Tiris and was born from Andraste and Mahak; making Gilus yet another half Asthlarian God, Half New Faith God.