ÄRAM: Wake of Fallen Empire
RELIGION
The religious life of Äram has been punctuated historically by a succession of deities whose adherents have seen their own influence and powers strengthen and wane. Many cults have revered similar deities who differ only by name, while others borrowed rites from distant lands which over time would become enmeshed in the culture of the Continent. The current ascendancy of the Doma is rooted philosophically in the old sun cults of Hual, and historically in the life and works of Ben Duín born over eight centuries ago. The Doma's view of other cults fluctuates between grudging acceptance and wholesale incitement of religious violence. A more holistic view sees the pantheon of deities as sharing common roots, and now falling into divine categories of Creators (the Old Gods), Preservers (the New Gods) and Destroyers (the Dark Gods).
Classical Pantheon (The Old Gods)
The Old Gods of Äram embody divinity in its creative aspect. These are the deities who feature prominently in the shared creation folklore of the Continent and beyond. Due to their age, many of these gods are known by different names in different cultures, and yet many of the powers granted to their clerics are similar. The number of proponents of these gods have dwindled in the past several centuries. And today they are worshipped among the more isolated pockets of Äram, such as the druidic cults of Lephthra and Nerfyrda, the dwarven deeps of the West, superstitious mariners on the high seas, and the lodges of the barbaric northern tribes of Boream.
Era
All but the most rigidly patriarchal cults of Äram will agree that Era is the origin of all earthly life. A benevolent but fair universal mother, Era figures in all the major creation myths. But her own origins are either shrouded in mystery, or else understood as the single force without beginning or end. The realms of earth, nature and fertility are hers. As are the elemental forces of the cosmos. Her representation varies wildly between cultures, but it is not uncommon to see her as a triply-manifested goddess of consort/mother/crone in the south, or maiden/mother/crone among those northern regions with a prehistory of dowry rituals. Although reverence for Era is nearly universal, her worship is today largely relegated to the wilderness and more backward areas of Äram. Her strongest base can be found deep among the oak groves and cairn rows of the druidic cults of Lephthra and Nerfyrda, where her reclusive clerics ensure the bounty of the land, but whose rare morbid demands temper the even strongest chieftains.
domains: Earth, Plant, Air, Fire, Water
Etrych
If Era is the maternal origin of all beings, her consort Etrych is closest to a universal father. His name is the origin for the Teulan word enterych, meaning the firmament or height. He is considered by many to be the sky itself. And as such, he is historically understood to be the all-seeing, all-knowing protector, who dispenses measures of punishment and forgiveness.
He is now largely considered an impotent figurehead, as his power waned with the arrival of Jovurno, the southern rain god whom some traditions revere as Etrych's own son.
His many divine minions are still called upon by those who have suffered from seemingly random acts of fate, although mainly through superstitious acts such as tossing earth into air or knocking on an earth-bound stone.
Clerics of Entrych are rare, although not unknown, and he maintains strong associations with the realms of magic, math and astronomy.
name invoked in animating constructs though potency is unclear
domains: Air, Law, Good, Knowledge, Magic
Jovurno
rain, lightning, virility
seen by some adherents as the consort of Era
temples still exist in Arta, rural areas of southern Csorna, and the more remote holdings among the Free Princes
ancient southern origins, rumors of lightning/rain god in Asur indicate the worship of Jovurno by another name
clerics still have foothold in west, call lightning
domains: Air, Water, Chaos
Mananan
the sea, weather, seafaring, the unknown, the unconscious, drunkenness, the void
origin shrouded in mystery, perhaps the void before Era, bringer of Eaphalla, wine
some clerics, object of superstition among sailors
related to berserking cults of Lephthra and Nerfyrda
domains: Water, Travel, Luck
Ignfuarn
the raven, thought, wisdom
one of first beings of Era
associations with magic, appears on spellbooks, raven is a common familiar, tradition without religious component
barbaric cults, shaman culture
domains: Air, Animal, Knowledge
cigfran (raven)
Arath
the bear, strength, hunting, intuition, bringer of visions
one of first beings of Era
bear sacrifices far to the north
clerics and druids among the lodges of Boream
Animal, Protection, Strength
arth (bear)
Ysgyfarnog
the hare, messengers, trickster, logic of the absurd, sudden insight, enlightenment
one of first beings of Era
some adherents worship Ben Duín as an incarnation
clerics among dwarven cults of the deep
domains: Animal, Earth, Luck, Trickery, Travel
Crhywil
the locust, greatest good for the greatest number, collective identity, utilitarianism
one of first beings of Era
ambisexual parent of Fero and Feneth
dogfly as messenger, unclear as to whether one or many
influenced/tricked by Caladú to procreate
significant in that the death Ben Duín was caused by the rarely-fatal sting from a dogfly
clerics are rare, very few in Alfaad (Lawful neutral), some among anti-Doma cults of mountains of southern Gallume (Lawful evil)
domains: Air, Animal, Law
chwil (beetle)
Fero and Feneth
First Boy and First Girl, innocence lost, original sin, mortality, knowledge
forbidden children of Crhywil
parents of men and the subhuman races
banished (killed?) by Era and set in the sky (Twin Moons)
clerics do not exist
RELIGION
The religious life of Äram has been punctuated historically by a succession of deities whose adherents have seen their own influence and powers strengthen and wane. Many cults have revered similar deities who differ only by name, while others borrowed rites from distant lands which over time would become enmeshed in the culture of the Continent. The current ascendancy of the Doma is rooted philosophically in the old sun cults of Hual, and historically in the life and works of Ben Duín born over eight centuries ago. The Doma's view of other cults fluctuates between grudging acceptance and wholesale incitement of religious violence. A more holistic view sees the pantheon of deities as sharing common roots, and now falling into divine categories of Creators (the Old Gods), Preservers (the New Gods) and Destroyers (the Dark Gods).
Classical Pantheon (The Old Gods)
The Old Gods of Äram embody divinity in its creative aspect. These are the deities who feature prominently in the shared creation folklore of the Continent and beyond. Due to their age, many of these gods are known by different names in different cultures, and yet many of the powers granted to their clerics are similar. The number of proponents of these gods have dwindled in the past several centuries. And today they are worshipped among the more isolated pockets of Äram, such as the druidic cults of Lephthra and Nerfyrda, the dwarven deeps of the West, superstitious mariners on the high seas, and the lodges of the barbaric northern tribes of Boream.
Era
All but the most rigidly patriarchal cults of Äram will agree that Era is the origin of all earthly life. A benevolent but fair universal mother, Era figures in all the major creation myths. But her own origins are either shrouded in mystery, or else understood as the single force without beginning or end. The realms of earth, nature and fertility are hers. As are the elemental forces of the cosmos. Her representation varies wildly between cultures, but it is not uncommon to see her as a triply-manifested goddess of consort/mother/crone in the south, or maiden/mother/crone among those northern regions with a prehistory of dowry rituals. Although reverence for Era is nearly universal, her worship is today largely relegated to the wilderness and more backward areas of Äram. Her strongest base can be found deep among the oak groves and cairn rows of the druidic cults of Lephthra and Nerfyrda, where her reclusive clerics ensure the bounty of the land, but whose rare morbid demands temper the even strongest chieftains.
domains: Earth, Plant, Air, Fire, Water
Etrych
If Era is the maternal origin of all beings, her consort Etrych is closest to a universal father. His name is the origin for the Teulan word enterych, meaning the firmament or height. He is considered by many to be the sky itself. And as such, he is historically understood to be the all-seeing, all-knowing protector, who dispenses measures of punishment and forgiveness.
He is now largely considered an impotent figurehead, as his power waned with the arrival of Jovurno, the southern rain god whom some traditions revere as Etrych's own son.
His many divine minions are still called upon by those who have suffered from seemingly random acts of fate, although mainly through superstitious acts such as tossing earth into air or knocking on an earth-bound stone.
Clerics of Entrych are rare, although not unknown, and he maintains strong associations with the realms of magic, math and astronomy.
name invoked in animating constructs though potency is unclear
domains: Air, Law, Good, Knowledge, Magic
Jovurno
rain, lightning, virility
seen by some adherents as the consort of Era
temples still exist in Arta, rural areas of southern Csorna, and the more remote holdings among the Free Princes
ancient southern origins, rumors of lightning/rain god in Asur indicate the worship of Jovurno by another name
clerics still have foothold in west, call lightning
domains: Air, Water, Chaos
Mananan
the sea, weather, seafaring, the unknown, the unconscious, drunkenness, the void
origin shrouded in mystery, perhaps the void before Era, bringer of Eaphalla, wine
some clerics, object of superstition among sailors
related to berserking cults of Lephthra and Nerfyrda
domains: Water, Travel, Luck
Ignfuarn
the raven, thought, wisdom
one of first beings of Era
associations with magic, appears on spellbooks, raven is a common familiar, tradition without religious component
barbaric cults, shaman culture
domains: Air, Animal, Knowledge
cigfran (raven)
Arath
the bear, strength, hunting, intuition, bringer of visions
one of first beings of Era
bear sacrifices far to the north
clerics and druids among the lodges of Boream
Animal, Protection, Strength
arth (bear)
Ysgyfarnog
the hare, messengers, trickster, logic of the absurd, sudden insight, enlightenment
one of first beings of Era
some adherents worship Ben Duín as an incarnation
clerics among dwarven cults of the deep
domains: Animal, Earth, Luck, Trickery, Travel
Crhywil
the locust, greatest good for the greatest number, collective identity, utilitarianism
one of first beings of Era
ambisexual parent of Fero and Feneth
dogfly as messenger, unclear as to whether one or many
influenced/tricked by Caladú to procreate
significant in that the death Ben Duín was caused by the rarely-fatal sting from a dogfly
clerics are rare, very few in Alfaad (Lawful neutral), some among anti-Doma cults of mountains of southern Gallume (Lawful evil)
domains: Air, Animal, Law
chwil (beetle)
Fero and Feneth
First Boy and First Girl, innocence lost, original sin, mortality, knowledge
forbidden children of Crhywil
parents of men and the subhuman races
banished (killed?) by Era and set in the sky (Twin Moons)
clerics do not exist
