

Catemar (Higher
Entity): God of Magic. Takes the
form of a wizened old man. His Holy Color is grey. He requires the
monthly sacrifice of magic. His Holy Days are the tri-annual
occurrence of all three moons being full at the same time.
The
philosophies of the followers of Catemar (who are not all mages as is the
common belief) center around the idea that magic is the ultimate force of
the universe. In this world view, Wizards are the supreme form of
reincarnation, the wielders of the stuff of the universe. In this
world view, humans do not reincarnate into halflings, then to gnomes and
on up to Elves. Instead, all the races reincarnate to mages of their
own species and races. Dwarves are, of course, eternally damned in
this religion and are hated and despised. The belief is that if you
honor Catemar and any mages you should meet, then Catemar will reincarnate
you into a wizard in your next life or so. The only mages who
worship Catemar are Sorcerers (which explains why his religion died out
after the Second Age and is now returning during the Eighth) who owe
Catemar for he gave them the Inner Spark which allows them to use
Magic. In this belief system, sorcerers and priests are both
considered mages by the common followers, for they know no
difference. Indeed, even the priests and wizards often cannot tell
the difference for they both engage in personal channelling and they both
are actively involved in promoting their religion, seeking out others with
the "spark".
The rivalry between the cults
of Tenebrion and Catemar is long and bloody. It stems from a shared
mythological belief. According to these cults, Tenebrion painted the
world of Inzeladun, creating it Ex Nihilio (from nothing), as a work of
chaotic art. Catemar supplied the magic for this creative act and
felt he had a stake in the planet. Tenebrion disagreed and the war
began. Catemar defeated Tenebrion (according to the Cult of Shadow,
Catemar cheated; according to the Cult of Magic, Tenebrion cheated and
lost anyway) and threw the artist down into the shadows of the Cosmos,
promoting Nemed Hob to be the god of arts and crafts. Catemar
imposed Order from Chaos, and Nemed supported this.
Tenebrion,
broken and defeated, did not sit around and pout. He gathered his
strength and became the Lord of the Shadows that Catemar threw him
amongst. Catemar did not believe there was any value in a
shadow. Tenebrion joined with the shadows and created the Elemental
Plane of Shadow, and his power grew. By now, there were people on
his world, but they were pitiful wretches, living in fear of the world and
the gods. Tenebrion, as a shadow, approached the men and gave them
fire, for fire made the shadows dance, and that gave Tenebrion
strength. The first Cult of Tenebrion was born - a cult of fire and
shadow.
This evil cult feared nothing, for fire was power, and this cult
was sweeping the world and conquering. Catemar retaliated by giving
his people fire... and magic. And thus was founded
Angust. And yet the Cult of Tenebrion continued to grow in the
shadows of even the great empire of Angust.
The rivalry continues to
this day. Still an artist at heart, Tenebrion wants more than
that. He wants Catemar's place as God of Magic. And Catemar
wants Tenebrion to be cast dead into the depths of the Astral.
The Domains of Catemar are: Knowledge; Luck;
Magic.
Hecate, Grindill, and Isis are three of Catemar's
Stewards.
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