The deities known as the pagan gods are a loosely affiliated group of gods that are not part of any single pantheon, but have worshipers among almost all the sentient races of the Known World (with the exception of the elves who for the most part remain true to the Celestial Bureaucracy). These gods are believed to be elder gods, gods who walked the Known World when it was new, and breathed life into much of the world. Including, it is sometimes believed, the other pantheons. Most of the pagan gods represent aspects, or forces, of nature; the wind, the forests, the sun, even magic itself. Most of them are neutral in alignment, with only a few being evil.
Many of the civilized cultures, most notably the Pelosians, believe that the pagan gods, and those who worship them, are primitives bordering on being savages. It is not uncommon for clerics to try and convert "wayward" children back to their own flock. Some question whether the pagan gods even exist. The exception to this is the Keldon people who worship one that would normally be considered a pagan; Tiamat, Queen of the Dragons.
Since the pagan gods are not an organized pantheon of gods, they are listed here in alphabetical order, rather than in the order of most important/influential as with other pantheons.
Bahamut
The King of Dragons, Master of the North Wind
Lesser Deity
Symbol: A dragon head on a platinum and blue shield
Home Plane: The Seven Heavens
Alignment: Lawful Good
Portfolio: Dragons, wind, chivalry
Worshipers: Dragons, paladins, cavaliers, leaders
Cleric Alignments: LG, NG, CG
Domains: Air, Dragon, Good, Law, Nobility, Scalykind
Favored Weapon: Claw (dragons), punching dagger (humanoids)
Turn or Rebuke Undead: Turn
When the sun rose on the Known World for the first time, Bahamut lifted his head and rose from his deep slumber. Rising from the earth and shaking the rocks free of his platinum hide, Bahamut clawed his way to the surface and moved across the land. He found the tallest mountain he could and climbed to the top and surveyed the land around him from his high perch. And then he beat his great wings for the first time and thus created the North Wind. Upon doing this he also awoke Tiamat and together the two of them begot dragonkind.
Despite being morally opposed to each other, there is a bond between Bahamut and Tiamat that cannot be broken. They are both each other's greatest enemies and most intimate consorts. All dragons, no matter the breed, pay homage to Bahamut as the King of Dragons.
Bahamut lives in a palace that can traverse the different realms of Heaven at his whim, and take him to the Known World. From a distance the palace is a sight to behold, catching the sun's rays and reflecting it in a blinding brilliance. When one draws closer they realize why; Bahamut's palace is formed of his treasure hoard. Platinum and gold forming the walls and towers, with sapphires and diamonds forming the windows. Within the walls of his palace he is attended by five cohorts, one of each of the main breed of good dragons; a Gold, a Silver, a Copper, a Brass, and a Bronze. All of them are paragons of their type and all are ancient wyrms.
Dogma
It is said that Bahamut fathered all of dragonkind and created the winds. He is stern and very disapproving of evil. He brooks no excuses for evil acts. In spite of this, he is among the most compassionate of beings. He has limitless empathy for the downtrodden, the dispossessed, and the helpless. He urges his followers to promote the cause of good, but prefers to let beings fight their own battles when they can. This is why he has many paladins and cavaliers among his followers.
Clergy and Temples
Bahamut has few actual clerics among his followers. Most of his devout are paladins and knight paladins, and they worship Bahamut more as an ideal to live up to rather than a deity to aide them and answer their prayers. Like the other dragons cults of Thunder Rift (Tiamat and Sardior), there are no true temples to Bahamut, but there are shrines built to him at various points along the cliff walls of the rift.
Boccob
The Uncaring, Lord of All Mages
Greater Deity
Symbol: Eye balanced on a pedestal in a pentagram
Home Plane: Outlands
Alignment: Neutral
Portfolio: Magic, arcane knowledge, foresight
Worshipers: Wizards, sorcerers, philosophers, sages
Cleric Alignments: N, LN, NG, NE, CN
Domains: Knowledge, Magic, Rune, Trickery
Favored Weapon: Quarterstaff
Turn or Rebuke Undead: Turn
Boccob is old, even by a god's standards, and many -- including some that don't worship the pagan deities -- believe that he even predates most of the other gods. There are some that believe he is the first.
Boccob is the god of magic and many believe the source of all arcane magic in the Known World. Boccob is known by many names across the world; Mystra, Emrys, Thoth, and many more, but Boccob is his most common name.
The truth is, he doesn't care what the mortals of the Known World call him, he cares only about the accumulation of knowledge and mastery over the arcane powers of the universe. Boccob -- rightfully -- believes that one can never know everything to be known in the world, and one can never learn everything there is to know about the weave of arcane power that binds the universe and realities together.
Boccob resides in the Outlands, a plane that is said to be the center of all existence and is home to many of the pagan deities. Here he spends most of his time in a structure called the Library of Lore, a sprawling labyrinth with corridors formed of massive bookshelves, upon which resides all the gathered knowledge and wisdom of the ages.
Dogma
Boccob is a distant god who promotes no special agenda, other than magic is the most powerful and important force in the world. And mastering the arcane arts involves the acquisition of worldly and other-worldly knowledge. As such, followers of Boccob who are not masters of arcane magic are gatherers of knowledge and lore of Known World. In this manner, some bards that are dedicated to learning the history of Known World are worshipers of Boccob. Within Thunder Rift, these bards are all found in the Bigby Academy on Mage Island.
Clergy and Temples
Clerics of Boccob are worshipers that have no aptitude for arcane magic. The majority of those who revere Boccob's name are sorcerers and wizards of all types.
The Closest thing to a temple that Boccob has within Thunder Rift is the Bigby Academy, where numerous wizards, sorcerers, clerics, and bards gather to study lore and the arcane arts.
Ehlonna
Mother Nature, Ehlonna of the Forest, Goddess of the Woodlands
Intermediate Deity
Symbol: A unicorn
Home Plane: The Known World, The Happy Hunting Grounds
Alignment: Neutral Good
Portfolio: Forests, good aligned woodland creatures, unicorns, fertility.
Worshipers: Druids, rangers, hunters, and farmers.
Druid Alignments: NG, N, CN
Domains: None
Favored Weapon: Scimitar
Turn or Rebuke Undead: n/a
Ehlonna has many faces among the races of the Known World, sometimes she is a red haired maiden with green eyes wearing a green dress, other times she is a pristine white unicorn, or a centaur with chestnut brown fur and mane of curly hair with leaves growing through it. Her most common form though is that of a fey-like woman just a little shorter than a human, with long tresses the color of golden wheat with green leaves twisted through, her almond shaped eyes are a deep, warm chestnut color, and she wears a long dress, the same color as the leaves in her hair. She wears no armor but carries a thin, light scimitar with images of woodland scenes etched into the blade.
Ehlonna spends most of her time dwelling in the forests of the Known World, on occasion returning to her home in the Happy Hunting Grounds, the Grove of Unicorns. She is often attended by twin celestial unicorns no matter which realm she wanders. The Grove of Unicorns is a great forest of mighty redwoods, the branches twisting together and creating a natural temple to her and her followers; unicorns, centaurs, and bariaurs.
Of all the pagan gods, Ehlonna is the most likely to draw worship from the gnomes.
Dogma
Ehlonna is the goddess of all things good about the wilderness and forests, she is also the goddess of nature magic. She is the patron goddess of the unicorns and is worshiped widely by the centaurs as well. Ehlonna promotes everything that is peaceful and good about the forest, and encourages her worshipers to preserve and protect nature around them from abuse and overuse.
Ehlonna exhorts her followers to live in harmony with their woodland homes, taking only what they need. The bounty of the forest, Ehlonna teaches, is a gift to be cherished and appreciated, not a treasure to be coveted or looted.
Clergy and Temples
Ehlonna has no clerics among her followers, all her priests and priestesses are druids and geomancers. As druids they are responsible for tending to their groves and maintaining the balance between mortals and the spirits of the land. Most druids of Ehlonna are not meat eaters and live off of fruits and vegetables and nuts.
Druids and rangers of Ehlonna are fierce in their protection of the wild and the animals that dwell there, driving out those who would abuse and over hunt the groves they have chosen to protect.
Her temples are outdoor locations that are maintained by the druid enclaves. To the naked eye they are hard to spot being so entwined with the natural world.
Fharlanghn
Dweller on the Horizon
Intermediate Deity
Symbol: A disk bearing a curved line with an upturned crescent above.
Home Plane: The Known World
Alignment: Neutral
Portfolio: Horizons, distance, travel, roads.
Worshipers: Bards, travelers, merchants.
Mask
Lord of Shadows, Master of all Thieves, Shadowmaster
Lesser Deity
Symbol: A black velvet mask tinged with red.
Home Plane: The Plane of Shadows
Alignment: Neutral Evil
Portfolio: Shadows, thievery, intrigue.
Worshipers: Rogues, shadowdancers, beggars, criminals
Cleric Alignments: NE, LE, N, LN, CN, CE
Domains: Darkness, Evil, Luck, Trickery
Favored Weapon: Short sword
Turn or Rebuke Undead: Rebuke
No one knows what Mask's true name is or what he looks like, not even his fellow gods. Mask came from the Shadowlands (known commonly as the Plane of Shadow), where he has a fortress that borders the Twilight Realm, a fortress known as Shadow Keep.
It is said that Mask appears as a man dressed in all black, leather and linen, with a mask (his symbol) tied about his face. The mask is no doubt enchanted for no amount of divining or spells such as true seeing can penetrate his guise and learn who -- or what -- the Lord of Shadows truly is. However, Mask is also a shapechanger and has never appeared to a person the same way twice. Only two things can be agreed upon; one, a head of thick, shiny, black hair adorns his head where the mask does not cover. And two, he always carries a short sword named Stealthwhisper.
Mask is self possessed, confident, and found of intricate plots. The Lord of Shadows is wary of his enemies, but cool, never loosing his temper. He always seems to be holding back a mocking comment or two.
Dogma
Disciples of Mask are not above taking a life, nor are they strangers to nefarious dealings in the dark, but despite this, they are not assassins. Nor does Mask seek to draw assassins into his fold. Thievery, stealth, intrigue and blackmail, these are all within Mask's domain, but not murder for hire. He prefers a more subtle approach.
Followers of Mask operate in the shadows and follow their god's creed that wealth (including wealth of knowledge) belongs to those who can steal it. Ownership is nine-tenths of what is right, and ownership is defined as possession. The world belongs to the quick, the smooth tongued, and the
light-fingered. Stealth and wariness are virtues, as are glibness and the skill to say one thing and mean another, twisting a situation to their advantage. Disciples of Mask strive to finish each day with more wealth than they had in the morning.
Clergy and Temples
Despite Mask's association with shadows and evil, his clerics are not necromancers, they do not surround themselves with undead followers, unlike many of the evil priesthoods of the Known World. Many neutral clerics turn undead rather than rebuking them, and evil clerics do not keep rebuked undead about them, save the occasional shadow. Followers of Mask come from all walks, humans, dwarves, half-elves, hobbits, and more make up Mask's clergy.
Among priests of Mask, the line between cleric and thief is very thin indeed, in fact many clerics of Mask are multi-classed cleric/rogues. Almost all thieves are worshipers of Mask, and without exception all thieves guilds follow his word. Many believe that Mask's religion is just an excuse for rogues of influence to keep the guilds in line and working together, in effect the church of Mask has created one of the largest syndicates of organized crime in the civilized regions of the known world, on par with the elven yakuza.
Clerics of Mask do not actively preach the word of Mask, instead they use their abilities to gain information and wealth, and to aide themselves or their fellow thieves/adventurers with spells to keep them hidden and/or alive.
Agents of Mask, both clerics and thieves, often wear black silk or velvet masks (like his symbol) when they are "on the job." Cleric and rogues who complete especially dangerous heists or perform great acts in Mask's name are admitted in the Circle of the Gray Ribbon.
Cleric Alignments: N, CN, NG, NE, LN
Domains: Earth, Luck, Protection, Travel
Favored Weapon: Quarterstaff
Turn or Rebuke Undead: Turn
Fharlanghn (far-lahng-un) is a wizened old man with a weathered appearance, deeply wrinkled skin, and sparkling, intense eyes. He is so old that no one remembers his origin, including himself, but many suspect he is the brother of Boccob. He wears nondescript clothing, usually leather and unbleached linens, and carries a rather unassuming walking stick. He travels the roads of the Known World, he has no permanent home, only the road houses that take him in. He will be happy to converse with travelers he meets along the way, though not at any great length.
Dogma
Fharlanghn is the patron god of those who travel great distances, whether it is by land or sea (or in rare cases, air). He is the patron of those who suffer from a wanderlust that cannot be satisfied and wander the Known World in search of knowledge, lore, and adventure.
Fharlanghn insists that people need to move around and travel, that the state of the world is not fixed. People should seek out new lands, new ideas and sometimes a new home. Look to the horizon for inspiration.
Clergy and Temples
Fharlanghn's clerics are travelers of the world, pilgrims to foreign lands and those who help travelers that they meet along the way. It is not uncommon for a lone cleric of Fharlanghn to join a party for the time it takes to travel together, to offer aide and the Dweller's blessings along the way. Many priests of Fharlanghn are cleric/bards.
Many roads of the Known World have small roadside shrines built to honor Fharlanghn, places where travelers may offer up prayers and homage to the traveling god for his favor on their journey. Some roads are graced with full temples to Fharlanghn that act as road houses, welcoming travelers in and offering them a place to sleep for the night as well as providing them meals.
As traveling in Thunder Rift does typically not involve great distances, there is only one such temple to Fharalanghn in the great valley. The famous Warden House that exists on the broken trail from Melinir to Kleine, and rests between the Gauntlin Forest and Wizardspire. A night's stay here, including meals are free, though donations are always welcome. The clerics have their own small farm to grown their own crops to feed themselves and travelers, and since the winter curse, they have had a farmer from Torlynn staying with them to tend to the crops.
Obad-Hai
The Green Man, The Shalm
Intermediate Deity
Symbol: A mask of oak leaves and acorns.
Home Plane: Outlands
Alignment: Neutral
Portfolio: Nature, freedom, hunting, beasts.
Worshipers: Druids, rangers, hunters, barbarians
Druid Alignments: N, CN, NG, CN, NE
Domains: None
Favored Weapon: Scimitar
Turn or Rebuke Undead: n/a
Obad-Hai appears as an aged, not necessarily old, man, with weathered skin and a tan complexion. He wears green robes and looks to be a druid himself. Whereas Elhonna represents all that is good and peaceful and beautiful about nature, as well as the preservation of the wild, Obad-Hai is a manifestation of nature itself in all forms. He knows that nature is not always kind and friendly, that there are predators in the wild that would devour a person in a heartbeat if they were hungry enough. Nature can be wonderful and beautiful, but it can be perilous and savage as well.
Obad-Hai carries no weapons, instead he has a rather pain walking staff, and a magical shalm (a double reed wind instrument) that can perform various miracles, depending on what Obad-Hai needs of it.
Dogma
Followers of Obad-Hai are often more aggressive in their preservation of the wild than are those who worship Ehlonna. They are also more numerous with most of the druidic circles of the Known World revering The Green Man rather than the Goddess of Woodlands.
Much of Obad-Hai's teachings remind his followers that there is a structure to nature, a hierarchy that follows the law of survival of the fittest.
Clergy and Temples
Like Ehlonna, Obad-Hai has no clerics among his followers, instead his priesthood consists of druids. Unlike most other druid religions (Ehlonna, Danu, etc.), the followers of Obad-Hai are not loners and exist in enclaves of 5 - 10 druids that are charged with the watching of a specific area rather than a singular grove. For example, there is an enclave of 8 druids of Obad-Hai who watch over and dwell within Thunder Rift. The druids of the Green Man do not interact much with those of the "civilized" world, spending most of their time in their wild shape and watching from the borders of civilization.
Temples to Obad-Hai do not exist but he does have holy sites. Formations of standing stones, henges, where the druids gather on the night of every new moon to pay homage to their patron god. One such henge exists in Thunder Rift. It is located in the Northern Gauntlin Forest, in a clearing located between a bend in the Drake River and the Wailing Plateau. This clearing seems to be immune to the Gauntlin Forest's wild magic.
Sardior
The Dragon Prince, The Ruby Dragon
Lesser Deity
Symbol: A glowing ruby.
Home Plane: The Known World
Alignment: Lawful Neutral
Portfolio: Dragons, psionics, the night, secrets, art.
Worshipers: Dragons, psionic creatures, wild talents, bards.
Cleric Alignments: LN, N, CN
Domains: Charm, Darkness, Dragon, Knowledge, Law, Scalykind
Favored Weapon: Claw (dragon), punching dagger (humanoids)
Turn or Rebuke Undead: Turn
Sardior is the Dragon Prince and master of psionics. His origins are shrouded in mystery, some legends claim that he was unearthed -- like a gem -- when Bahamut rose up from under the surface of the World. Others claim that he is the offspring of Bahamut and Tiamat, while others claim he is Bahamut's brother (in other stories he is Tiamat's brother). Whatever his origins, he is a unique breed like the other two dragon gods and though he is associated with the gem dragons, all dragons pay homage to him as the Dragon Prince. At first look Sardior appears to be a massive and bright Red dragon, but upon closer examination an observer will notice the scintillation of his ruby scales. Long and sinewy, Sardior is agile even for a dragon. Sardior is great conversationalist and people are often unprepared for his sharp wit.
Sardior dwells in a great castle on a floating island that orbits the Known World. It's orbit keeps it on the dark side of the planet at all times, so it can only be seen at night. The floating island his castle rests on is filled with veins of pure rubies, giving it a red glow. When seen with the naked eye, many on the ground think that his island is a red moon. Within the castle, Sardior keeps a court of five thanes, one of each type of gem dragon being represented. Like with Bahamut and Tiamat, Sardior has a treasure hoard that defies comparison among the other dragons. Many adventurers try to find ways to get to Sardiors floating island to raid his treasure, and the rubies.
Sardior spends most of his time in his castle as a red robed wizard who spends most of his time in the library.
Dogma
Sardior stresses that one can never learn enough. The acquisition of knowledge is paramount to the Ruby Dragon, but not through the process of just reading a book. Sardior wants his followers and dragons to learn through personal experience, and insists on storytelling as a way to pass the new found knowledge along. Sardior also has a love of gems of all kinds, especially rubies.
Clergy and Temples
As with Bahamut and Tiamat, Sardior has few clergy among the non-dragon races, but those he does have are devote followers. Clerics of Sardior are constantly on the search for new knowledge and new experiences. Many clerics of Sardior are multi-classed cleric/bards or loremasters. As with Bahamut there is no formal organization to Sardior's cult.
Temples to Sardior do not exist. Instead his followers keep shrines to him in their homes, and dragons keep one in their caves. The shrines are pedestals with rubies of substantial value mounted on them.
Nerull
Nerull, known across the Known World as The Reaper, was a powerful deity who had the power over life and death. He was a greater deity that was the god of death, the undead, and murder. For thousands of years his name drew fear from mortals when it was spoken aloud. Then one day it all came to an end.
Nerull is a dead god, slain hundreds of years ago by an unknown entity that presumably took over his dominion of influence. As with Heironeous (the God of the Pelosians), the entity that destroyed Nerull is unknown, and many believe they are one and the same.
Abandoned temples to Nerull can still be found scattered throughout the Known World. Though they are mostly overgrown with wild foliage and crumbling with age, they are sought out by sorcerers and necromancers to plunder them for their dark, ancient secrets. It is rumored that the Book of Vile Darkness is entombed in an ancient temple to Nerull.
