Dogma of Ehlonna write-up

[Deedlit]

I may do something like this for other greyhawk deities, but seeing how I am most familiar with this one, I will start here.

1. All life is sacred, and should be protected. Avoid killing whenever possible, and not needed to prevent more death. Protect the life of others, and help them out if they need it.
2. The forests are a beautiful place to be protected. If the forest is threatened, protect it.
3. Do not actively seek out evil like followers of many other deities do, but if the evil will threaten nature, then fight it.
4. Unicorns and Planetars are my messengers, and even those who do not follow me should be treated with the utmost respect.
5. The elven pantheon(Excluding Lolth and those who followed her example) is my family, and the elves my people. Do not seek converts from the pantheon as actively as you do from other religions, and treat elves and the pantheon well.
6. The other nature deities(Excluding Obad-Hai) are my allies, and should be treated well. Nature should never be harmed by conflicts between us.
7. Obad-Hai is my rival, and seek converts from his religion. Never actively kill his followers though, unless they threaten the forests. Nature shall never be a casualty of our rivalry.
8.Harm neither hide nor hair of animal, unless needed. If an animal threatens you, and there is no other way, you may knock it out.(This does not apply to famililars of evil wizards, blackguard mounts, or awakened evil animals.) Do not seek out animals to hunt, but if you come across a dead animal, or have been forced to kill one, or there is no other food, you may eat animals.
9.My temples should blend with the forest, and not alter the forest to fit the temples. They should be places of natural beauty, where people can see nature, and not long boring services filled with the reciting of dogma.

So, how is it? Do you want more? Am I forgetting something important, or going against something from a source I am not familiar with?

 

[Staffan]

There is a shorter writeup of her dogma in the Living Greyhawk Gazetteer. I really can't see anything in Ehlonna's character there that would make her a pacifist or make her opposed to hunting for food (hunting for pleasure is a totally different issue, of course).

 

[Deedlit]

The whole all life is sacred thing, and the opposition of killing animals for food when plants are available I got the idea for from something I read on Canonfire. I don't see her as a pacifist, merely not someone who seeks out evil actively like followers of some other dieties.(Heironeous comes to mind.) It says to avoid killing when possible, but if something threatens the forest, Ehlonna's followers are as warlike as anyone. I know about the living greyhawk write-up of dogma, but this is to expand on it. She is opposed to omnivorous creatures hunting for food when other foods would sustain them.

 

[grodog]

Deedlit---

I think this could be a good start on an Ehloona credo, however I do agree with Staffan that I wouldn't define her as pacificistically as you have. Her original illustration back in EGG's Gods of the World of Greyhawk column in Dragon 68 pictured her hunting with her bow. That said, if you like her that way, go for it.

I would also round out the ideas some more: I like what you do with unicorns and planetars, so work up more ideas like that.

 

[Barendd Nobeard]

I may do something like this for other greyhawk deities, but seeing how I am most familiar with this one, I will start here.

1. All life is sacred, and should be protected. Avoid killing whenever possible, and not needed to prevent more death. Protect the life of others, and help them out if they need it.
2. The forests are a beautiful place to be protected. If the forest is threatened, protect it.
3. Do not actively seek out evil like followers of many other deities do, but if the evil will threaten nature, then fight it.
4. Unicorns and Planetars are my messengers, and even those who do not follow me should be treated with the utmost respect.
5. The elven pantheon(Excluding Lolth and those who followed her example) is my family, and the elves my people. Do not seek converts from the pantheon as actively as you do from other religions, and treat elves and the pantheon well.
6. The other nature deities(Excluding Obad-Hai) are my allies, and should be treated well. Nature should never be harmed by conflicts between us.
7. Obad-Hai is my rival, and seek converts from his religion. Never actively kill his followers though, unless they threaten the forests. Nature shall never be a casualty of our rivalry.
8.Harm neither hide nor hair of animal, unless needed. If an animal threatens you, and there is no other way, you may knock it out.(This does not apply to famililars of evil wizards, blackguard mounts, or awakened evil animals.) Do not seek out animals to hunt, but if you come across a dead animal, or have been forced to kill one, or there is no other food, you may eat animals.
9.My temples should blend with the forest, and not alter the forest to fit the temples. They should be places of natural beauty, where people can see nature, and not long boring services filled with the reciting of dogma.

So, how is it? Do you want more? Am I forgetting something important, or going against something from a source I am not familiar with?

Ehlonna, my less powerful sister, do not send others to do your work. But if you must, I will reply.

I know times are rough in the forest. All are starting to realize who the true god of nature is.

1. Is it not natural to protect all life. Is is natural for the predator to become the prey. Just as the rabbit eats the grass, and the bear eats the rabbit, so, too, might something eat the bear.

2. Yes, the forest should be protected. Mainly, protected from your followers, but that debate is too long to recount here.

3. One must seek out evil, for evil is not natural. True creatures of the woods are not evil; it is only natural for those who protect the forest to destroy such evil. If they do not, the evil will surely destroy the woods.

4. Of course, your messengers deserve special protection. Without such protection, they would not last long in any natural forest.

5. Ah, yes, your people. They are not the only ones who live in the forest, and deserve no special protection. The woods belong to all who appreciate them.

6. "Other" nature deities? My dear, I am the nature deity. I should never have let you out of the house, so to speak, my little sister. But, as gnats exist in nature, you apparently exist to needle me.

7. What's the matter, dear Ehlonna--Not enough pointy-ears to satisfy your ego? You must raid my followers? Good luck, little one; I doubt those who follow the true god of nature will fall for the tricks of a pale shadow. Those that do, are not worthy to follow me in the first place, and you are welcome to their minds--and all the "loyalty" they posses.

As for my followers threatening the forest, well, dear sister, thank you for the best laugh I've had in centuries! My following will continue their work, striving to achieve the natural balance that so many disrupt.

8. So, creatures of the woods are only to eat the rotten carcases of dead animals they stumble across? A person who lives as one with forest, is accorded all rights of the natural creatures. They must hunt to live--and the stronger animal may hunt them in return.

9. Your temples are a blight on my forests, but are no more noticeable than a mosquito bite on a giant.

Well, dear sister, this chat has been fun. But I must be off--I have to send some wolves to visit one of your temples!


Obad-Hai





[edit--silly deity forget to sign his work]

 

[chatdemon]

Originally posted by Deedlit
I may do something like this for other greyhawk deities, but seeing how I am most familiar with this one, I will start here.

1. All life is sacred, and should be protected. Avoid killing whenever possible, and not needed to prevent more death. Protect the life of others, and help them out if they need it.

8.Harm neither hide nor hair of animal, unless needed. If an animal threatens you, and there is no other way, you may knock it out.(This does not apply to famililars of evil wizards, blackguard mounts, or awakened evil animals.) Do not seek out animals to hunt, but if you come across a dead animal, or have been forced to kill one, or there is no other food, you may eat animals.

I must disagree with these two points. Ehlonna has a strong huntress/archer aspect, similar IMO to the Greek Atalanta. Quiver of Ehlonna anyone? I really don't think the Lady of the Forests would have such a non-violent dogma. Death is a part of the cycle of nature, and killing is a completely natural part of living. Hunting for sport would probably be frowned upon, but hunting for food or the skins and other products an animal can yeild would be perfectly acceptable, and even encouraged among the clergy and lay faithful.

2. The forests are a beautiful place to be protected. If the forest is threatened, protect it.

Agreed, well said.

3. Do not actively seek out evil like followers of many other deities do, but if the evil will threaten nature, then fight it.

Maybe, though I see the clergy actively working against any evil that may wander into their territory. It is important to consider the idea of subjective alignment here though. Just because a race is listed as evil doesn't mean a druid/ranger type would see them as evil. A tribe of kobolds living peacefully in the forest would be tolerated just as much as a village of humans or elves.

4. Unicorns and Planetars are my messengers, and even those who do not follow me should be treated with the utmost respect.

Works for me.

5. The elven pantheon(Excluding Lolth and those who followed her example) is my family, and the elves my people. Do not seek converts from the pantheon as actively as you do from other religions, and treat elves and the pantheon well.

I would exclude Rillifane and perhaps Fenmaril as well, since they are strongly tied to the Grugach, who are extremely insular and xenophobic, considering even the most devout druids, rangers and nature priests as interlopers in their forests.

6. The other nature deities(Excluding Obad-Hai) are my allies, and should be treated well. Nature should never be harmed by conflicts between us.

I don't really like this idea, though there is nothing inherently wrong with it. Greyhawk has laid a solid foundation for the idea that faiths of similar gods will not always get along, consider especially the Pelor/St. Cuthbert relationship and even the LG Pholtine/LN Pholtine schism. It's, imo, a lot more fun when you have different followers of the nature gods meddling in each others business and arguing/fighting over the best way to serve nature. A bit more realistic at least.

7. Obad-Hai is my rival, and seek converts from his religion. Never actively kill his followers though, unless they threaten the forests. Nature shall never be a casualty of our rivalry.

The rivalry is defintely there, but actively encouraging your followers to convert the faithful of another god is bad juju. Last thing Ehlonna would want is some sort of sylvan jihad (though now that I think about it, that could be a really cool plot) since it is not clear whose side the other nature gods and the 'godless' Old Faith druids and rangers would take.

9.My temples should blend with the forest, and not alter the forest to fit the temples. They should be places of natural beauty, where people can see nature, and not long boring services filled with the reciting of dogma.

Sounds good. I picture shrines to the nature gods being stone circles (ranging from grand Stonehenge like marvels to simple patterns of large rocks arranged in a clearing), large trees marked with runes, small wooden huts or shelters alongside a trail, etc. Nothing fancy. Same with dogma and formal ceremony. Dancing and singing and storytelling around a campfire, yes, ornate ceremonies with uniforms and cathedrals, no.

 

[Nightfall]

Well since we are doing Dogma, I'll do Ethrynnalls

1. Might is always right, when it comes to taking what you deserve.

2. Testing your might against those that are weaker than you is fine, so long as you do not lose your might.

3. Always leave a wake of blood and death, so that those that serve you know your might is great indeed.

 

[seankreynolds]

I really reccommend that y'all start with the writeups in the Living Greyhawk Gazetteer, as those are the official versions of the gods, and involved a lot of research by me to create, thankyouverymuch.

 

[Deedlit]

Now, as for Nerull

1. Life is something horrendous, that must be stopped. The living should be slaughtered.
2. While it is important to slaughter the living, avoid causing your own death until you have wiped out as many others as possible
3. Unlife is highly encouraged. Money should first go towards persuing unlife, then towards killing others.
4. The temple should be a place which no life can enter, guarded by the dead. Pray only as much as necesarry, for too much prayer hurts our goal.
5. Ignore the pleading cries of those who wish to be spared. Kill them just like anyone else. Be ruthless in causing the extinction of the living.

 

[Acmite]

You should check out the Fleet Runner of Ehlonna PrC and the Monk orders of Nerull from two different Dragon magazines.

I think they both have additional information on the ethos and dogma of the two faiths.

Oh, and help save Farscape! See my SIG for the details.