Religions of the world

The following are the various gods/religions of the world. Some may be listed as old gods,
these are deities that have fallen into obscurity within the bounds of the Empire and are no
longer widely worshiped though some still pay homage to them, especially in Valadhon. The
following paragraph explains the impact of this and how religion works in this world.
The gods of this world are not just vague, spiritual entities. They are actual creatures,
some as old as time itself and some far newer. They are not mortal, not even the everlong mortality of some races such as Dragons (with one exception, explained later).
They are eternal beings that reside on what mortal mages refer to as The Outer Reach,
a separate plane of existence. Their power correlates directly to the worship they
receive in the mortal realm, meaning that gods with thousands of faithful followers
can employ physical heralds, send visions of the future or otherwise directly affect
the mortal world. Gods that have fallen into obscurity can still offer limited power to
those that pay them worship but only to a degree that many spellcasters may be able
to outmatch. Others still lay long forgotten, their scripture perhaps adhorning the
walls of ancient lost temples awaiting to be rediscovered, their power a bare trickle
that has practically no impact on either plane at all.
Some of these obscure or long dormant entities are contacted more directly and can
be bargained with by Warlocks who may stumble upon such ancient writings but
those bargains are costly and require great diligence to maintain that link, simple
prayer is rarely enough. Often the forgotten gods (or Great Old Ones, as they are
sometimes known) are wrathful of their status. On the very sparse occasions such
creatures are truly awakened they vent their fury upon the world with terrible power
but in every case they have been defeated by the influence of other deities who enjoy
the worship of many mortals.
Note: Gods are not assigned an alignment in this world. A god's power, being so
dependent upon those that follow it, tends to align itself with the general direction
those followers put it to. For instance, in times of great strife, The Imperial Father
could be seen as Lawful Evil, his power lending itself to selfish practicality where the
Empire's interests are concerned. His guidance to his powerful clerics will lean
towards an "ends justify the means" mentality. In times of prosperity, the same
guidance will lean more towards the betterment of the Empire through knowledge,
understanding and tolerance.
Essentially, the gods are mercantile in protecting their influence. That and their true

wants or designs are so far above the concepts of good and evil as they are
understood by mortals that they cannot be so easily categorized.
Imperial Religion:
One of the reasons for the vast and rapid rise of The Great Empire was it's religion. The
original emperors were devastatingly powerful sorcerers, as legend goes, that united many
smaller kingdoms through a mixture of their incredible personal might and a cult of
personality they cultivated among those that followed them. This admiration and loyalty
evolved into worship over a few centuries of expansion, conquest and rule by the Imperial
bloodline until eventually, Emperor Levitus VIII, who reputedly wielded the most formidable
magic of any mortal before or since, gained such a following that he ascended onto the
Outer Reach. In short, he was so widely worshiped and so powerful, he literally became a
god.
Though this sparked the brutal uprising known as the Magus Insurrection, in which many of
the wizards of the empire overthrew the imperial bloodline out of fear, Levitus' place in the
divine pantheon was secured when his descendants rallied in his name to reclaim the
Empire in the War of Reclamation.
Since then, Levitus has been the one true god for Imperial subjects and was renamed The
Father.
Despite this, the Empire does not forbid other faiths within it's borders. In fact, Imperial Edict
encourages that the cultures assimilated into the Empire retain traces of their heritage as this
serves to show that The Father cares for all his subjects. This has aided in further expansion
whilst also serving to show that The Father stands mightier than all gods before him,
encompassing other deities as his children.
The Father's symbol is that of an open hand, palm up, cradling five stars that represent the
old gods of the Imperium. His temples are in every Imperial City though subjects often have
his symbol depicted in their home, usually carved above the bed or door and window frames,
meaning prayer and worship can take place practically anywhere.
The Father: Domain - War, Knowledge.
Old Imperial Human Deities:
Mare, mistress of the waves: Domain - Tempest, Life
Liber, The Lorekeeper: Domain - Knowledge
Ansus, Guardian of the Reach: Domain - Death, Light
Silva, Tree Mother: Domain - Nature.
Deballa, The Soldier: Domain - War.
Old Imperial gods are all depicted as constellations amidst the stars that represent their
forms. Mare, for instance, is the constellation that appears just below the North Star and
appears as three wavy lines. Likewise, Silva is a constellation that forms the shape of a great

tree.
These old gods are still paid service to, especially during the winter and summer solstices
and have many small shrines in towns or on the roads.