Description
[A]
Aesium
Attributes: Goddess of providence, mercy, justice, honor and sacrifice.
Twin sibling of the Black God, first daughter of Annisus and Lluorn. Though usually depicted as a being of light, Aesium's true nature is that of a warrior. She played no role in the creation of mortals, though she was instrumental in their survival. Aesium taught mortals to defend themselves, and in turn protects them from the more malevolently minded gods with all of her might. She is one of the most widely revered gods in Khassus, and her devotees are renowned and feared the world over. These warriors, which some call paladins, serve her temples by bringing her light to those who need it most. As they say, “She quells the dark, shelters the weak, bulwarks the law, and strengthens us all.”
Annisus
Attributes: Goddess of life, preservation and time.
To mortals, Annisus is without question or doubt the most important of the deities to ever form when mortals are concerned, because she is life. Perhaps it is oddly symbolic that she was the first deity, then. When she and Lluorn came together it formed the basis for the emergence of every deity since. All mortal beings regardless of which god created them or what spurred their existence carries within them a piece of the Mother. She is the instigation to think, to feel and to be. Without her mortals would be husks. The spark that makes them truly live is born of her flame. To deny this goddess is to spurn the very reason you draw breath. As such, she decries all destruction of her gift- all taking of life is hated by her and her most devout worshipers. Thus she seeks preservation, putting her at odds with her mate Lluorn, who constantly seeks to move things along, invariably to their end in many cases.
[B]
Black God
Attributes: God of space and darkness.
Frighteningly little is known of Aesium's twin, including its name. The Ancestor, the Empty, the God-Less, the Gloaming, the Abyssal; these are all titles it has been known by. Among the Brood it is a being to be feared – revered, but never truly called upon. They pray to it to keep it at bay. The dread tribe Sidheghul was formed under the Ancestor's guidance, only to be eradicated several centuries later. Those who have heard this being speak tell of several lines it repeats, most notably: “There is no tomorrow,” along with offers to seemingly save the individual or group being spoken to. As dark as its intentions often seem, the Black God believes that life is a precious thing, and truly believes it is saving and preserving those it touches. It has no true form, nor does it assume a gender – it can take an avatar, but most often “appears” invisible or as a shapeless mass of dark energy recognized by the viewer as the deity itself. The breadth of its power has never been witnessed, but those who have spoken with the Black God have described feeling as dust in the darkness, utterly consumed by what seemed like a living universe of eternal night.
[D]
Darad Dura
Attributes: War
To say that Darad Dura is a god of barbaric bloodshed would be to completely miss the nature of the being in question. He is not violent, he does not hunger for death. He is, more accurately, the lord of warfare. Strategy, luck on the battlefield, and superior tactics. He sees all paths a battle could take, and would grant to those he sees fit to have them the perfect plans to conquer their foes. In that frame, he is utterly neutral. Patron of the art of conflict, rather than the act. He is difficult to please, as few truly, solely value the craft of strategy rather than the lust for battle.
[E]
Essiphus
Attributes: God of Chaos
Mortal races throughout time have attempted to explain things that they do not understand, grasping for some kind of logic or sense behind such actions or intentions. One of the most notable of these is the concept of evil, and chief among beings that have received this label is the wretched monstrosity named Essiphus, the Lord of Chaos. His ill intent knows no end, and is personally responsible for millions of harmful events from personal misfortune to vast disasters, including the bloodiest of wars. No mortals worship him, and it is well known he despises these beings in all their forms, seeking only to cause them misery. He is perhaps the most hated deity in existence, though far from the most feared, and foreseeably has many more enemies than allies: Annisus, Aesium, Callefer, Deimas, Ninous and Gorodet to name some of the most prominent. Although Essiphus is often believed to be strongly connected with the Black God, this is in fact not true. Not only has the Black God professed to be among Essiphus' enemies- making the Lord of Chaos the only deity to have ever been named its antagonist- but there have even been a number of occasions where the Gloaming has opposed him outright.
[L]
Lluorn
Attributes: God of change, power and will.
As the second deity to form, it might be said that his first act was to change the number of gods to two. Lluorn the Father is one of several gods known for their neutrality alongside their natural aspects. Neither good nor evil, he simply is. As the lord of change, it is within his realm to move things. To change the nature of all things, never allowing the world to stagnate. Often people will pray to him when someone dies, and in some ways he is viewed as a god of passing. Lluorn is the god of power. Strength, political prestige, magical might. All who are strong owe thanks to the Father, for without him they would be nothing. Through him the world is shaped by those with the ability to command and control. Lluorn is will. The will to exist, the will to achieve, the will to destroy: he is will. Without him there is no ambition. Without Lluorn the world of mortals does not move, does not grow; there is no death simply because without him there is no purpose nor meaning and therefore no reason for life to exist at all. He bestows this.
[N]
Namashadva
Attributes: God of Nature; the nature of the universe: encompassing the laws of physics and the forces therein.
The “Idiot God” knows no emotion, has no disposition. It favors none, listens to no one, cares for nothing. It neither wakes nor sleeps, sees nor hears, touches nor feels. It is simply there. Pure, perfect existence; ruling over those forces within its domain with cold neutrality, having nothing to do with the affairs of other gods or mortals. It never interferes, never meddles. It roils within itself: amorphous lights; eternally expanding and imploding simultaneously – its churning fueling the anchors of reality, keeping worlds in their orbits and stars in their wells. It is the Blind Idiot whom holds in place the force of gravity: the binder and the holder. As such, it is not praised by any; its name never lifted on the lips of mortals for any reason. Even were this done, there would come no answer save silence.
Ninous
Attributes: Goddess of beauty, purity, eternity and peace.
There was once a great jetting of the Dragons' eternally radiating energy. The deities observed it curiously until it began to take shape into a new god. Several of the twenty currently existing gods hoped to influence this latent being, but, before any could lay a finger on the coalescence of power, Annisus stepped in and ended any possibility of another deity interfering. In the process of shaping this twenty first god, Annisus placed a piece of her own essence into it, but for the most part allowed it to form with little more than subtle guidance. The end result was Ninous, the last of the great twenty one original deities. Many of those who pray to her seek beauty and immortality, though the latter is not a gift given lightly. Ninous knows no hate nor violence, and like Annisus loathes war and destruction. As such, she is beseeched when someone seeks to end any strife. Some interpret her as a goddess of nature as well because she is often depicted surrounded by birds. The story goes that birds were creatures of her realm before she gifted them to the mortal world.
[T]
Tarsus
Attributes: God of Waters
Tarsus' realm is simple, yet expansive. He is one of the few gods who is centered around the possession of a particular element of the physical world. That being water. He is often mistakenly titled the lord of the ocean, and though that does fall under his domain it is not the extent of what he commands. All water on Khassus is his, and everything it covers belongs to him and falls under his protection. The great beasts of the waters are his servants, and the merfolk submit to him absolutely. He is one of the most capricious deities in existence. His gifts to the worthy who seek them are plenty, yet his wrath is terrible when warranted. Great care should be taken when beseeching Tarsus, for an accidental slight or dishonest intentions will never end well.
[Y]
Ystess
Attributes: God of madness, festivity, fear and deformities.
Despite the epithet “the Grim God”, Ystess is most often depicted with a warped, hideous smile on his face set beneath empty black holes instead of eyes. The name comes not from his countenance, but his influence. Ystess is a mad god - if such a being could truly exist. He spends his time corrupting mortals; creating abominations and aberrations. Horrible monstrosities to populate mocking cities hidden on the surface or far underground. The worst part of these.. mutations.. is that they are always inflicted with wide and eerily joyful smiles, comically giddy voices, and their minds beset by a twisted jubilation. They will warmly greet a traveler at the same instance as disemboweling them, thinking nothing of this at all. Not much is known of Ystess himself. He rarely reveals himself to mortals. The few instances it has been confirmed he appeared to masses of mortals documented that such occurrences are known as "Celebrations". During these visits, many die instantly upon witnessing his appearance, while others are morphed into horrid shapes. Throughout the course of the Celebration, food and drink and music will be plentiful - supplied by wretched nightmares from his personal realm - all of which will ultimately leave not a single living person as they once were. All will have been wrought with the Grim God's afflictions, forever under his weave.
Aesium
Attributes: Goddess of providence, mercy, justice, honor and sacrifice.
Twin sibling of the Black God, first daughter of Annisus and Lluorn. Though usually depicted as a being of light, Aesium's true nature is that of a warrior. She played no role in the creation of mortals, though she was instrumental in their survival. Aesium taught mortals to defend themselves, and in turn protects them from the more malevolently minded gods with all of her might. She is one of the most widely revered gods in Khassus, and her devotees are renowned and feared the world over. These warriors, which some call paladins, serve her temples by bringing her light to those who need it most. As they say, “She quells the dark, shelters the weak, bulwarks the law, and strengthens us all.”
Annisus
Attributes: Goddess of life, preservation and time.
To mortals, Annisus is without question or doubt the most important of the deities to ever form when mortals are concerned, because she is life. Perhaps it is oddly symbolic that she was the first deity, then. When she and Lluorn came together it formed the basis for the emergence of every deity since. All mortal beings regardless of which god created them or what spurred their existence carries within them a piece of the Mother. She is the instigation to think, to feel and to be. Without her mortals would be husks. The spark that makes them truly live is born of her flame. To deny this goddess is to spurn the very reason you draw breath. As such, she decries all destruction of her gift- all taking of life is hated by her and her most devout worshipers. Thus she seeks preservation, putting her at odds with her mate Lluorn, who constantly seeks to move things along, invariably to their end in many cases.
[B]
Black God
Attributes: God of space and darkness.
Frighteningly little is known of Aesium's twin, including its name. The Ancestor, the Empty, the God-Less, the Gloaming, the Abyssal; these are all titles it has been known by. Among the Brood it is a being to be feared – revered, but never truly called upon. They pray to it to keep it at bay. The dread tribe Sidheghul was formed under the Ancestor's guidance, only to be eradicated several centuries later. Those who have heard this being speak tell of several lines it repeats, most notably: “There is no tomorrow,” along with offers to seemingly save the individual or group being spoken to. As dark as its intentions often seem, the Black God believes that life is a precious thing, and truly believes it is saving and preserving those it touches. It has no true form, nor does it assume a gender – it can take an avatar, but most often “appears” invisible or as a shapeless mass of dark energy recognized by the viewer as the deity itself. The breadth of its power has never been witnessed, but those who have spoken with the Black God have described feeling as dust in the darkness, utterly consumed by what seemed like a living universe of eternal night.
[D]
Darad Dura
Attributes: War
To say that Darad Dura is a god of barbaric bloodshed would be to completely miss the nature of the being in question. He is not violent, he does not hunger for death. He is, more accurately, the lord of warfare. Strategy, luck on the battlefield, and superior tactics. He sees all paths a battle could take, and would grant to those he sees fit to have them the perfect plans to conquer their foes. In that frame, he is utterly neutral. Patron of the art of conflict, rather than the act. He is difficult to please, as few truly, solely value the craft of strategy rather than the lust for battle.
[E]
Essiphus
Attributes: God of Chaos
Mortal races throughout time have attempted to explain things that they do not understand, grasping for some kind of logic or sense behind such actions or intentions. One of the most notable of these is the concept of evil, and chief among beings that have received this label is the wretched monstrosity named Essiphus, the Lord of Chaos. His ill intent knows no end, and is personally responsible for millions of harmful events from personal misfortune to vast disasters, including the bloodiest of wars. No mortals worship him, and it is well known he despises these beings in all their forms, seeking only to cause them misery. He is perhaps the most hated deity in existence, though far from the most feared, and foreseeably has many more enemies than allies: Annisus, Aesium, Callefer, Deimas, Ninous and Gorodet to name some of the most prominent. Although Essiphus is often believed to be strongly connected with the Black God, this is in fact not true. Not only has the Black God professed to be among Essiphus' enemies- making the Lord of Chaos the only deity to have ever been named its antagonist- but there have even been a number of occasions where the Gloaming has opposed him outright.
[L]
Lluorn
Attributes: God of change, power and will.
As the second deity to form, it might be said that his first act was to change the number of gods to two. Lluorn the Father is one of several gods known for their neutrality alongside their natural aspects. Neither good nor evil, he simply is. As the lord of change, it is within his realm to move things. To change the nature of all things, never allowing the world to stagnate. Often people will pray to him when someone dies, and in some ways he is viewed as a god of passing. Lluorn is the god of power. Strength, political prestige, magical might. All who are strong owe thanks to the Father, for without him they would be nothing. Through him the world is shaped by those with the ability to command and control. Lluorn is will. The will to exist, the will to achieve, the will to destroy: he is will. Without him there is no ambition. Without Lluorn the world of mortals does not move, does not grow; there is no death simply because without him there is no purpose nor meaning and therefore no reason for life to exist at all. He bestows this.
[N]
Namashadva
Attributes: God of Nature; the nature of the universe: encompassing the laws of physics and the forces therein.
The “Idiot God” knows no emotion, has no disposition. It favors none, listens to no one, cares for nothing. It neither wakes nor sleeps, sees nor hears, touches nor feels. It is simply there. Pure, perfect existence; ruling over those forces within its domain with cold neutrality, having nothing to do with the affairs of other gods or mortals. It never interferes, never meddles. It roils within itself: amorphous lights; eternally expanding and imploding simultaneously – its churning fueling the anchors of reality, keeping worlds in their orbits and stars in their wells. It is the Blind Idiot whom holds in place the force of gravity: the binder and the holder. As such, it is not praised by any; its name never lifted on the lips of mortals for any reason. Even were this done, there would come no answer save silence.
Ninous
Attributes: Goddess of beauty, purity, eternity and peace.
There was once a great jetting of the Dragons' eternally radiating energy. The deities observed it curiously until it began to take shape into a new god. Several of the twenty currently existing gods hoped to influence this latent being, but, before any could lay a finger on the coalescence of power, Annisus stepped in and ended any possibility of another deity interfering. In the process of shaping this twenty first god, Annisus placed a piece of her own essence into it, but for the most part allowed it to form with little more than subtle guidance. The end result was Ninous, the last of the great twenty one original deities. Many of those who pray to her seek beauty and immortality, though the latter is not a gift given lightly. Ninous knows no hate nor violence, and like Annisus loathes war and destruction. As such, she is beseeched when someone seeks to end any strife. Some interpret her as a goddess of nature as well because she is often depicted surrounded by birds. The story goes that birds were creatures of her realm before she gifted them to the mortal world.
[T]
Tarsus
Attributes: God of Waters
Tarsus' realm is simple, yet expansive. He is one of the few gods who is centered around the possession of a particular element of the physical world. That being water. He is often mistakenly titled the lord of the ocean, and though that does fall under his domain it is not the extent of what he commands. All water on Khassus is his, and everything it covers belongs to him and falls under his protection. The great beasts of the waters are his servants, and the merfolk submit to him absolutely. He is one of the most capricious deities in existence. His gifts to the worthy who seek them are plenty, yet his wrath is terrible when warranted. Great care should be taken when beseeching Tarsus, for an accidental slight or dishonest intentions will never end well.
[Y]
Ystess
Attributes: God of madness, festivity, fear and deformities.
Despite the epithet “the Grim God”, Ystess is most often depicted with a warped, hideous smile on his face set beneath empty black holes instead of eyes. The name comes not from his countenance, but his influence. Ystess is a mad god - if such a being could truly exist. He spends his time corrupting mortals; creating abominations and aberrations. Horrible monstrosities to populate mocking cities hidden on the surface or far underground. The worst part of these.. mutations.. is that they are always inflicted with wide and eerily joyful smiles, comically giddy voices, and their minds beset by a twisted jubilation. They will warmly greet a traveler at the same instance as disemboweling them, thinking nothing of this at all. Not much is known of Ystess himself. He rarely reveals himself to mortals. The few instances it has been confirmed he appeared to masses of mortals documented that such occurrences are known as "Celebrations". During these visits, many die instantly upon witnessing his appearance, while others are morphed into horrid shapes. Throughout the course of the Celebration, food and drink and music will be plentiful - supplied by wretched nightmares from his personal realm - all of which will ultimately leave not a single living person as they once were. All will have been wrought with the Grim God's afflictions, forever under his weave.