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Message: <blockquote data-quote="DM_Matt" data-source="post: 372904" data-attributes="member: 1213">Some responses to your very good questions about the cosmology.The Tiamat of this campaign is based on the Bablyonisn Tiamat and on other mythologies involving the earth-mother motif, such as Greco-Roman and Mesopotamian mythology.  In this mythological motif, the earth mother represents the old, sinister, primal order of gods, and she is eventually supplanted by a new order, usually by a male storm god such as Zeus or Marduk, and their accompanying pantheons.In some versions, such as the Greco-Roman one, the earthmother (Gaia in this case), is not slain, but contained, and at times attempts to overthrow the new order.  (EX: Gaia and the titans VS Zeus , the hecatonchires, and some powerful human heroes such as Heracles).Some in academia consider this a clear-cut men dominating women myth, where it provides justification for that domination and equates it with civilization as well; but I am not sure if thats just the kind of far-left quasi-propoganda that universities like to teach or the actual meaning.Thus, Gaia is not really nature, nor are the nature spirits...they represent some of the negative parts that they are bound to, however.  It remains to be seen what would happen if they were slain, but likely, not much will, as the current nature gods would keep things just about how they are now.Silvanus would probably hate the Earth Mother more than anyone.  Silvanus, being an old and powerful god, would have been one of the original spirits.  Having actively fought against the Earth Mother, instituting a new natural order that accommodates the newcomers, Silvanus has more of a stake in defeating the earth Mother than anyone, being that he has more-or-less replaced her functions.Solonor is not as old or powerful, but like all nature deities with connections to elves and other humanoids, she too would be against the earth Mother, as the weaker nature deities would be the first ones that the Earth Mother would kill off.Reaper:  As I said, Shar was killed young by Tiamat and replaced by an aspect thereof.  Why?  Well, I decided that Tiamat would work through some other canon villain power, and I picked Shar 'cuz she's my favorite.And yes, in the end, Tiamat will want to kill of the goblinoids, too.  She uses them and (played a part in their creation), becuase they are a twisted mockery of the purer humanoid races.  However, as is stated in the intro, Ogre Magi are her own creation.  They are the leaders of the goblinoids.  Using the legend and body of Storm ,the great populist ogre-mage leader, she has managed to tear down tribal and even racial lines, disciplining and demagoging the goblinoids into loyalty.  The ogre mages lead them (some are feindish or half fiendish imports from the lower planes, while others are imp[orted from the eartern realms), as do actual feinds (particularly Ghour demons) and other fiendish and half-feindish beings.  There leaders are guarunteed a happy planer afterlife after all life is purged from the earth, and thus still support the Earth Mother's plan.   Sooner this happens, the sooner they leave the prime, which they are not too fond of, and join their god.These leaders, in turn, promise a good afterlife to the goblinoids as well, for their loyalty. The promise of an afterlife is a potent motivator common in real-world religions.  Besides the obvious (if slightly exaggerated) link between Islamist suicide attacks, one should remember that a good afterlife brought on by armageddon is a central (how central depends on what denomination) tenet of Christianity as well.The Uthgardt have indEed suffered greatly at the hands of Storm's hordes, but they have banded together somewhat fopr mutual defense, and thus are being isolated, but not destroyed.  Storm knows that many bastions are difficult to destroy, and chose Silverymoon because is was the most important.  However, after the losses that his forces sustained there, it will be some time before he tries to wipe out the Uthgardt, Turlang, Evereska, etc. The leader of the Uthgardt is now a legendary Raven shaman named Hermod the Grey (B1/C17, retired PC).  He is one of the only (depending on the veracity of various reports as to who survived the defense of Silverymoon and who was slain, perhaps the only) living beings to have both seen the chosen child and battled a spirit. (More on him later, perhaps)</blockquote>

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