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The Wood God, the Sorrowful King Alignment: Neutral Domains: Animal, Earth, Plant Favored Weapon: Quarterstaff Symbol: A tree with sad human eyes Portfolio: Nature, wood Galaedros is an old nature god who has seen much destruction and misery come to his favorite lands and his chosen people, the elves. He believes in the cycles of nature that bring decline and death to all things, but also drives the forces that cause plants to bloom in springtime and the frost to thaw from the earth. Bent by age, he is shown as a man with tan skin and gray
CHAPTER 2:
GALAEDROS (GREATER DEITY)
hair, with living green leaves growing in his hair and from his clothes. Galaedros was once considered the king of the deities, but he stepped down from that informal position after the murder of his brother Hunael, the god of culture and invention. Like Eanius, Galaedros has a wide following. SuraKhiri is the only place where he has a formal church organization, built around holy landmarks and the circles of spellcasters devoted to protecting them. (Some of these elves have created minor circles in the Spirit Wood around Manifest.) He grants spells to clerics, druids, and rangers. Galaedran temples are always natural places with abundant plant life and sunlight, frequently marked only by a stone carved with his holy symbol (which is more often than not overgrown with moss and vines). His worshipers are protectors of nature, whether from the reckless logging of humans or from supernatural taints developed by necromancers and the yuan-ti. They teach farmers how to make better use of their land (negating the need to clear more forest) and try to heal and regrow places where nature has been despoiled. Galaedran worshipers pray for spells at dawn. They mark the turning of the seasons as holy days, and their celebrations of these events are somber recitations of recent gains and losses of nature followed by vows to do better in the coming season. His clerics and druids sometimes multiclass as rangers, and those living in the Spirit Wood sometimes become Arboreal Guardians. His clerics never rebuke or command undead. Rangers of Galaedros may use their ambidexterity and two-weapon fighting class features with their quarterstaffs. The faithful wear gray and green. History/Relationships: Galaedros is the oldest deity known in this part of the world. He is married to Phaant, but he has not spoken to her since she turned to darkness and murdered his brother Hunael over twelve hundred years ago. It was that event that caused him to abandon his role as king of the gods, and none have yet tried to take his place. He is allied with Eanius and Soggelos, tolerates Khostren and Nessek as dangerous but necessary aspects of natural forces, opposes Orcus as a capricious destroyer, and is cool to the “deities of civilization,” as he calls the rest. Dogma: Wood endures. Wood is patient. Learn from wood and study its strength. Plants provide the basic necessities of life—food, clothing, and shelter—and a wise person can survive anywhere with the proper knowledge of plants. Avoid the trappings of civilization, for something unknowable gnaws at the heart of civilized folk, making them forget where they came from and harm others for the sake of greed or merely harm itself. The green world soothes the wounds of civilization even as it bears the brunt of its wrath.
THE CITY OF MANIFEST
natural creatures), focusing mainly on those that would die or be maimed without such attention. The Eaniusha pray for spells at any time during the day or night, each choosing a time that is most meaningful for him or her. Their holy days are the spring equinox and any celestial event such as a planetary conjunction or eclipse. Celebrations always feature fine foods and frequently include fertility rituals. Since they are more concerned with earthly matters than the motions of the heavens, few of the faith track when these celestial events are due to occur, and these worshipers usually celebrate them spontaneously when they happen. Eanius’s clerics and druids often multiclass as rangers, and those living near Manifest often become Arboreal Guardians. Rangers of Eanius may use their ambidexterity and two-weapon fighting class features with their quarterstaffs. The faithful wear tan and blue. History/Relationships: Eanius is probably the second oldest deity worshiped in this part of the world next to Galaedros, whom the elves consider his halfbrother (although their father is not known and this may be just a cultural bond rather than a genealogical one). He and Galaedros get along well, and Durann and Soggelos are his other allies. He opposes Dracanish (whose obsession with death makes him a subtle enemy of life), Khostren (whose “children” are responsible for much misery among animals), and Orcus (who profanes life with undeath and defiles animals for evil ends). Eanius is indifferent to all other deities. Dogma: The breath in your lungs and the life-spark of every natural creature are the gifts of Eanius to the world. Respect those gifts and keep them in good repair. The only times a natural creature should be destroyed are to feed another, to protect another, or when the creature is beyond all hope of health. Take no more than you need, and in hunting take only the weak so that the strong may live and beget stronger offspring.
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