1. Organizations

Pantheon of Peios and Veil

The old ways were abandoned perhaps millennia ago, and most have adopted the pantheon of Peios and Veil. The two progenitors, Peios and Veil, are the most well-known of this pantheon and have the largest amount of followers combined.

The pantheon is, in essence, divided in two; the deities associated most closely with Peios are called the White deities, and on the side of Veil, the Dark deities. Beyond the progenitors, combined there are six lesser deities, called a major or minor deity in reference to the quantity of their following and the breadth of their domain.

White Dark
Progenitors Peios Veil
Major deities Emissary, Draconiz Murk, Anvil
Minor deities Arepo Thrizur

Having a Dark deity as a patron is not seen as evil; the goals of a devout follower and their patron may be entirely different, though a follower is expected to follow the tenets of their deity.

White

Symbol of Peios

Peios, Embodiment of Order. Peios is a humanoid with stoic golden features, no hair, and he casts no shadow. He represents law and order. To worship Peios is to be systematic, adhere to reason, follow the letters of the law, and stamp out chaos. The holy symbol of Peios is a single, gazing eye, a symbol of his considering mind.

Those who follow Peios shape reality around them. A carriage arrives right on your doorstep despite being across the town moments before; wherever you sit, you find a chair; every location has exactly what you need by mere chance; and you never find yourself lost or stumbling.

The truly devout can bend reality to their will, fabricating objects or even creatures out of thin air with their divine power, and shaping the area around them to suit their needs. The power of Peios' followers, a peian, comes from their mind; a follower of high standing needs no weapon as long as they have their head, and they may even find themselves in multiple places at once.

To gain the favor of Peios, a follower can consider the following.

  • Building or restoring a temple to Peios. Peios accepts worship from anyone who is not chaotic in their base nature. Keeping order is paramount.
  • Helping preserve the balance of power in a city. The status quo is an important aspect to maintain when preserving balance. Smaller settlements like towns or outskirt villages are more Thrizur's domain.
  • Carrying out punishment on a fugitive from justice. Criminals, by default, are disorderly and are to be held in check to preserve law and order.
  • Solving a challenging riddle or puzzle. Raw power is not important to Peios. It is much better to resolve a test of strength using wit or skill.
  • Besting a Champion of Anvil, preferably through skill. Followers of Peios and Anvil are directly opposed, where Peios brings law and order, and Anvil has no care in this regard.
  • Assisting lawgivers in their duties and generally bringing order in times of chaos.
  • Honoring an oath. Conversely, breaking an oath is the highest offense to Peios.
Symbol of Emissary

Emissary, Lord of Creation. Emissary appears as tall, nondescript, and elven with glowing azure skin and is the patron of most users of arcane magic. Widely regarded as the lord of magic, worshipping Emissary is no different than casting a spell of arcane origin, and especially ritual casters might interweave their chanting with a short prayer. The holy symbol of Emissary is a balance, symbolic of the relation between the material and ethereal planes.

The followers of Emissary adhere to logic above all else. Many see them as cold and unfeeling in their actions, each step they take one measured objectively to an extreme degree. They often do not understand emotions, instead, stepping through the world in search of knowledge or greater power and understanding in the arts of the arcane. They value magic and knowledge.

Conversely, those with no magical ability pay Emissary no mind, and he pays those with no worth to him no mind either. The truly devout followers of Emissary are forces to be reckoned with, creating spectacles grander than anyone can imagine. A single and most-powerful follower of Emissary could, if they so willed, burn a forest to the ground in a fortnight.

To gain the favor of Emissary, a follower can consider the following:

  • Gain a new arcane skill, such as learning a spell.
  • Conjure great magical spectacles. Not for anyone else, but for the follower themself.
  • Stay on the path of learning and knowledge above the path of friendship or emotions. These are, to Emissary, only chemical reactions that get in the way of what is most important in this world.
  • Increase the breadth of knowledge in the world. However, to Emissary, whether said knowledge is hoarded or shared is immaterial.
Symbol of Draconiz

Draconiz, Aspect of Nature. Lord of the skies and nature, Draconiz may appear in a humanoid form as either an aarakocra or dragonborn, in all manner of vibrant colours. Some misguided individuals depict him as a half-dragon. When seen in his real form, he appears as a gigantic dark dragon with prismatic wings.

Most dragonborn revere Draconiz as their creator, and many captains and griffon riders might say a small prayer to Draconiz for good fortune on their journey. His holy symbol is a dragon's head in profile, a symbol of his might.

The deities, Draconiz and Emissary, have a long and complicated relationship and often avoid each other for reasons that are unknown to mortal people.

The followers of Draconiz value strength above all else. Break down the door, smash the frame into pieces, and do not waver in your resolve for even a moment. In groups, followers of the dragon are unstoppable, a force to be reckoned with, and as powerful as an army even in small numbers.

They hold no value in being great thinkers or scholars, instead, they pride themselves in shows of power and brawn. Secondly, a follower of Draconiz feels ill at home in a city, often instead favoring smaller settlements or natural settings. Though they are great in number, they can often be found congregated in secluded locations. Also friends of beasts and the skies, the followers favor animals and travel.

To gain the favor of Draconiz, a follower can consider the following.

  • Protecting a glade; as most followers prefer not to live in cities, they favor whichever secluded area they can find.
  • Exacting vengeance for a significant wrong done to you, usually with a show of strength.
  • Helping preserve the balance of power in any natural setting.
  • Winning a great feat of strength or skill.
  • Defeating a creature that has stepped out of its place, especially powerful aberrations.
  • Healing a sick or injured wild animal. True followers of Draconiz do not hunt for sport, but only when necessary.
Symbol of Arepo

Arepo, the Forgotten Son. Arepo is the son of Draconiz, and therefore his domain, while much smaller, is related to that of his father, and the followers of Arepo are few and far between. He appears as a male human of meek appearance. Where one might pray to Anvil for luck in a coming battle, Arepo is the deity of natural beauty, such as the spring flowers and the fall leaves, and niceties such as everlasting friendship, hope, altruism, and kindness.

His immediate usefulness is not apparent, Arepo's existence is often disregarded even among clerics and is even lesser-known among the common folk. Few recognise his holy symbol, a single curved leaf.

By far the most down-to-earth of all the Havilonian deities, Arepo cares very little for formalities or grandeur. His followers should treat anyone with respect regardless of stature, and in return, they can expect a close relationship with their favored deity, much more so than with any other god.

To gain the favor of Arepo, a follower can consider the following.

  • Creating a secluded shrine. Arepo does not favor grand temples or big gestures, instead, resorting to minor shrines such as a candle in a backroom, a short prayer over food, and so forth.
  • Ensuring that the deeds of someone are preserved. A person dies twice; once physically and once again when all memories of them fade. Followers of Arepo see to it that the second death never happens.
  • Making friends. Any new acquaintance is a potential ally, and followers of Arepo never assume the worst up front.
  • Feeding those who are starving, or creating fertile croplands. Under the guidance of Arepo, no one should go hungry, no matter who they are or where they come from.
  • Aiding the weak or impeding the strong. Arepo and his followers, few as they are, seek out first and foremost to help those without the means to help themselves.
  • Keeping calm in the face of danger. The arepoan followers should never give into fury or destruction.

Dark

Symbol of Veil

Veil, Lady of Death and Madness. It is said that Veil is the shadow of Peios. As the antithesis of Peios, she represents entropy and death. Veil is humanoid, appearing as a slender maiden or withered hag, with dark skin and seems to almost absorb light. Veil is said to stomp abandoned souls into the walls and pavement of the Wailing Citadel. Her holy symbol is a dark vortex, symbolic of the descent into madness. To worship Veil is to bring an end to haunting souls and maddened individuals.

For a follower of Veil, life is sacred. They value the safe passage of souls and the protection of the youths. It is veilkeepers, those who work in the veilmanors, the houses of the dead, that see to it that the souls of the recently departed have a safe journey on to the Wailing Citadel where the gods may sort them into their final resting place. To some followers of Veil, madness quickly follows; in many cases, this can be argued to be both a blessing and a curse as with her madness also come great gifts and power. One can never truly know if the lunatic is insane, or one of Veil's highest-ranking pious militants.

Veil is importantly a resentful god, one who takes great offense to be mistreated. To spit in the face of Veil is a death sentence in and of itself. The highest among her followers are masters over death. They both circumvent and protect the cycle of life and death and are fearsome to behold. Rarely do high-ranking followers of Veil congregate, instead, they are often on missions on her behalf, often related to stomping out death-defying creatures such as the undead, or those who create too much death in their wake.

To gain the favor of Veil, a follower can consider the following.

  • Building or restoring a temple or shrine in her name. Even just paying respects is greatly appreciated by Veil, same is providing coins and overseeing burial rites for those slain during a tragedy.
  • Easing someone's death or assisting with funeral arrangements.
  • Curing a dangerous affliction or destroying the undead.
  • Taking decisive action on impulse.
  • Avenging the helpless, especially children. Why protecting the youngest among the people is so important to Veil is not truly known.
Symbol of Murk

Murk, Weaver of Fate. Murk is a reclusive deity, a seeker of knowledge, and the patron of many scholars, often depicted as a tiefling woman. Her reclusive nature leaves her something of a mystery. Being a symbol for the advancement of knowledge, most mages favour either Murk or Emissary, with Murk favoured highly in places of general and public learning such as libraries or colleges.

Her holy symbol is a shaded cauldron. To worship Murk is to seek out knowledge, unveil mysteries, and catalogue uncharted territory. Referred to as the Weaver or the Horned One, the destinies of mortals are said to be written in scrolls by Murk.

Once a year in Withertide, followers of Murk pay tribute to healers, teachers, and weavers. The community comes together to weave a large tapestry, and high-ranking followers imbue the tapestry to predict the fate of a local child, and they make promises for the following year as an appeal to fate.

To gain the favor of Murk, a follower can consider the following.

  • Ensuring that the deeds and more importantly knowledge of someone who has died are preserved. All knowledge is important and should be preserved in the eyes of Murk. Even if it may have no apparent value at present, it will someday. Similarly, a follower may consider going to remote locations to recover lost knowledge, uncover new knowledge, or chart unknown territory.
  • Preserving something despite its uselessness. Broken treasures or artifacts still hold historical value.
  • Saving people from the brink of death, especially so if it involves creating a new cure. Murk is a healer and a mother to those who favor her. Under her, followers should see to it that no unfortunate circumstances befall the undeserving.
  • Restoring a shrine or temple to Murk. This can take many forms for Murk, though the rare displays of grand gestures are appreciated by her. One could offer up a recovered artifact in her name or claim a remote area as a historical location.
  • Appeasing the flow of fate or aiding a chosen champion or servant of the deities, white or dark. If the fates are woven by Murk, one should make sure not to destroy her work.
  • Teaching others new methods, researching lore, protecting a place of learning, and uncovering truths or unveiling mysteries.
Symbol of Anvil

Anvil, Smith of Strife. Anvil is a bulky red-haired dwarf, often depicted with darker skin. Often the patron of craftsmen, dwarves, warriors, and warlords, his holy symbol is fittingly a shaded anvil. He grants his favour to those who keep the world moving and in turmoil.

To follow Anvil is to leave a path of destruction and turmoil. A shopkeeper is bullied into selling his stock for mere copper pieces; a zoo is left unlocked and the animals free-roaming; or the prison of a city has suffered a large-scale jailbreak, you can take the bet that a follower of Anvil has passed by and had their own particular kind of fun with the place.

Also, the patron of artisans and musicians, the very people that shape the culture of the world, to a craftsman devout to Anvil shaping a set of plate armor comes easy and natural, and that 117-page poetry book simply flows out of a poet of Anvil with no writer's block. To a follower of Anvil, their asset is their hands and their ability to craft or even destroy. A locked door blocking your way is much easier to smash into pieces than it is to find its missing key.

To gain the favor of Anvil, a follower can consider the following.

  • Build or restore a shrine to Anvil. A shrine to Anvil can take many forms, usually involving a great display of grandeur, such as a massive temple, an architectural masterpiece, or even an art exhibit.
  • Sowing chaos in a city. Creating turmoil where order reigns pleases Anvil greatly as long as it is for personal gain.
  • Manifesting a masterpiece. Art and creation are what a follower of Anvil should aspire to be great at. This can be anything from paintings to poetry and armor pieces and buildings.
  • Brute forcing your way with great success. There is no need to do things the right way if the wrong way gets there faster, the consequences be damned.
  • Taking great risks for great rewards.
Symbol of Thrizur

Thrizur, the Shelter. Depicted as an orc, Thrizur is the patron of outcasts, such as half-elves, and half-orcs; those people who find that they fit nowhere by their nature. Orc tribes who have adopted the Havilonian pantheon typically lean towards Thrizur as well due to the obvious familial link. His holy symbol is a wolf's head. To worship Thrizur can take many forms, most related to tribal or settlement culture.

To follow Thrizur is to provide a safe harbor for people. Many innkeepers follow Thrizur and bless their homes in his name. Hunters and trackers go about their lives in his name as well, and with his blessing, they are able to create settlements and find shelter from the weather with great ease. When a small town springs up in a remote location in record time, one can be certain Thrizur has been involved in some way.

The highest of his following are able to weather any storm and track any beast with great ease. They are considered to have great shamanistic powers.

To gain the favor of Thrizur, a follower can consider the following.

  • Hunt a great beast and create a trophy. Hunting to feed a people is seen as an equally big tribute.
  • Building a settlement, a home, or providing safe shelter for travelers and outcasts of society.
  • Conjuring up a great bounty or feast.
  • Safeguarding nature such that people can live within it peacefully.

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