#a pantheon of gods with some being race specific

[moltentarts]

Me: I'm finally going to make this comic I've been reworking since I was a high-schooler. Can't be that hard!

The comic: requires extensive world building, character connections so each character can exist outside of the main group, needs new villains because my old ones were never fleshed our or memorable, outfit designs, endings so I know where everything is going, and personality developments for each character so none feel interchangeable.

Me: wow really eating my words.

[dailyadventureprompts]

Do the ethnostates inherent in major fantasy ever feel real weird to you? You’ve got elftopia (full of elves, where everyone speaks elf and worships the elf gods), orc-hold (full of orcs and maybe their slaves, where everyone speaks orc and worships the orc gods), and dwarfton (made by the dwarves! for the dwarves!).

You might have some cosmopolitan areas, usually human-dominant, but those are usually rare enough in-setting that they need to be pointed out separately. Is this just based on a misunderstanding of the medieval era, and the assumption that countries were all racially homogenous?

This has been bouncing around my brain the last little while. Do you have any thoughts on that? Is it just in my head?

I think what you've noticed is a quirk of derivative fantasy writing, which like a lot of hangups with the genre originates in people trying to crib Tolkien's work without really understanding what he was going for:

Though it contains a lot of detail, Tolkien's world is not grounded. It functions according a narrative logic that changes depending on what work in particular you're focusing on at the time (The Hobbit is a fairytale full of tricks and riddles, Lord of the Rings is a heroic epic, The Silmirilion is a legendary history).

One of the reasons the races are separate is to instill the feeling of wonder in the hobbits as POV characters for the reader, other folk live in far off places and are supposed to feel more legendary than our comparatively mundane friends from the shire. The Movies captured this well where going east in middle earth was like going back in time to a more and more mythologized past.

In real life, people don't stay static for thousands of years, no matter how long their people live. They meet, mingle, war and trade. Empires rise and fall creating shrapnel as they go, cultures adapt to a changing environment. This means that any geographic cross section you make is going to be a collage of different influences where uniformity is a glaring aberration.

What the bad Tolkien knockoffs did was take his image of a mythical world and tried to make it run in a realistic setting. Tolkien can say the subterranean dwarven kingdom of Erebor lasted for a thousand years without having to worry about birthrates or demographic shifts or the logistics of farming in a cave because he's writing the sort of story where those things don't matter. D&D and other properties like it however INSIST that their worlds are grounded and realistic but have to bend over backwards to keep things static and hegemonic.

Likewise contributing to the "ethnostate" feeling is early d&d (backbone of the fantasy genre that it is) being created by a bunch of White Midwestern Americans who were not only coming from a background of fantasy wargaming but were working during the depths of the coldwar. Hard borders and incompatible ideologies, cultural hegemony and intellectual isolation, a conception of the world that focused around antagonism between US and THEM. These were people born in the era of segregation for whom the idea of cultural and racial osmosis was alien, to the point where mingling between different fantasy races produced the "mongrelman" monster, natural pickpockets who combined the worst aspects of all their component parts, unwelcome in good society who were most often found as slaves.

This inability to appreciate cultural exchange is likewise why the central d&d pantheon has a ton of human gods with specific carveouts for other races (eventually supplemented with a bunch of race specific minor gods who are various riffs on the same thing). Rather than being universal ideals, the gods were seen as entities just as tribalistic as their followers.

[laurelsofhighever]

Unpopular opinion time: I really don’t care for the Titans as a concept. Or rather, I don’t like the way they fit into the worldbuilding of Thedas. It’s a symptom of this ongoing problem BioWare has where everything has to have some grand, shocking twist and an intricate backstory that connects with the intricate backstory of everything else. It’s like a slow power creep to the lore that honestly reminds me most of Supernatural in how desperate it is to outdo itself.

The Dalish Creators aren’t apocryphal characters used to impart moral lessons or explain natural phenomena – they were real, and they weren’t really gods, just super powerful mages who enslaved a bunch of people and used them to build statues!

The Fade isn’t just another, natural layer of existence that only a few can tap into – it was created by Some Guy who decided to fight the Actually Real Elvhen Gods and then had a nap about it for several thousand years!

Lyrium isn’t just a toxic mineral that causes neurological degradation but also happens to enhance magical ability – it’s actually the crystalised blood of an ancient race of giant beings that were hunted to extinction by the Actually Real Elvhen Gods!

The dwarves don’t have Stone Sense because of their specific cultural identity and because their society that’s based underground needs to know how to navigate without the sun – they were literally created by an ancient race of giant beings who decided to make them to the same vague shape as other bipedal mammals for some reason!

(these aren’t the only examples, they do it with everything from character backstories to religious schisms)

It’s like they don’t trust the player to suspend their disbelief in a fantasy world where magic and dragons are real, and the ironic thing is that by dissecting everything instead of just letting these story elements just be, it makes everything about Thedas feel smaller, and less like an intricate, organic world.

In DAO, we’re introduced to many gods – Avvar, Elvhen, Andrastian, as well as the dwarven concept of “the Stone” – and they exist in the role that gods fill in the real world: cultural artifacts that create a shared sense of identity. It makes sense for there to be similarities between the Elvhen Creators and the Avvar pantheon, given the amount of interaction between the two groups before they became isolated by persecution. Similarly, it makes sense that dwarves would have an entirely different theology structured around the material that literally encases them their whole lives and marks them as distinct from the surface-dwelling races. to reduce these belief systems to single, quantifiable truths makes as much sense as trying to claim the Real Zeus was [specific guy] from [specific time period]. It also does such disrespect to the individuals who make up these cultures, and who would have, through history, changed it simply by being part of it.

With the Titans specifically, they weren’t needed. We already had a concept of dwarves that worked well as a framework for the stories being told in the games: insular, rigid caste system, hub of the lyrium trade, collective PTSD from a millennia of fighting darkspawn. It’s cultural background radiation that adds motive and flavour for character actions, and that’s all it needs to be.

We don’t need to know precisely how Stone Sense works, just that it does. We don’t need to know where dwarves – or elves, or qunari, or humans – really come from, it’s enough for the story that they exist within a collective cultural identity. We don’t need to know what lyrium is, we just need to know that bad things happen when characters play with it.

It's fantasy. A wizard did it. The wizard shouldn’t feel the need to pull back his own curtain and then also rip the casing off the mechanism, just to prove how clever he is.

[awritingcaitlin]

Semi-abbreviated History of Tyrysius

Most everyone believes that the high gods created the planet, brought about different peoples in various images, and then left. There are a few competing ideas, however.

Those particular entrenched in the faith of the cat lords recognize that they are not native to this planet, but they can still conquer it. The cats are actually closer to being right.

There was a Creator who made the planet and gave it someone to look after it. She was the first high goddess. She had other gods and goddesses in her pantheon.

This went on for centuries, if not millennia. However, when the planet started failing, she opened her gates to allow others to come and breathe new life into the world.

These are those "high gods" who "created" people. Except really they were just shepherds basically. Of both people and lower gods. None of them have the power to create from nothing.

After the Schism War and the end of the Age of Intervention, it wasn't so much that the high gods left, it was that gods were literally attacking one another and absorbing each other's power.

It gets way more complicated than that and most people alive today have no idea what all happened. They're just stuck on the very simplistic idea of creators who left.

But let's get more into the weeds. How long have people existed on Tyrysius? Did they just appear at some point? How did they appear? Who, if any, were first? What does this have to do with the gods?

Riela’s formal education had been cut prematurely short for a plethora of reasons and she hadn’t ever gone back. However, she’d become a voracious reader since. She knew that the gods had placed each race of people onto Tyrysius and had encouraged them to thrive.

Prevalent beliefs include people were created by the gods, or arrived on a fertile planet with the gods' help. Everyone would have gotten there around the same time, and if anything, the elves were first.

However, ruins outside Timernis revealed bodies dating back before any previously recorded history (that they know of). That's now a subject of significant debate in academic circles.

Nathaniel's doctoral thesis is about this topic. And, like many doctorate students, you get him talking about it, and he won't shut up. He wants to explain his findings.

“It’s about how the sitah might have been the original inhabitants of Tyrysius,” Adler said. He got several raised eyebrows and he repeated what he’d told Riela the other night, which felt like such a long time ago now. He mentioned the sitah bones dating back before the Age of Intervention and what that may suggest since there were multiple sets of sitah bones and a suspicious lack of anything else. He got a lot of intrigued looks.

It's making archaeologists question their dating practices. Are they wrong? Or are they right? Everyone is up in arms about who may have been the original people.

“See,” Adler explained. “The generally accepted doctrine is that everyone came to the planet at the same time. The larger sitah were there as protectors of the smaller races. Elves were the bridge across generations. Gnomes were known for their technology and dwarves their architecture. Halflings were the connection to nature. Humans were a balance between them all. No one asked for the orcs, but they showed up too. And then the cat-species had their own separate deals under their own pantheon.”

What they haven't quite pegged out the specifics of yet, is that civilizations have rose and fell many times on Tyrysius. The world also looked a lot different before the Cataclysm.

“The belief that we all got here at relatively the same time is the most prevalent one, but the finding of these bones in an archeological dig in Eastern Schmiedland several hundred miles north of Berthingtonn with no other sets of bones comparable implies that maybe the belief is wrong. What if the sitah have been around longer than anyone else? What if, perhaps, the sitah were here first, and the others came later?”

Religious doctrine allows (and honestly encourages) the argument between different theories because it distracts from the truth the Temples aren't even sure of anymore.

“The first belief,” Rinnie continued. “Is that the High Gods all got together and created us for a certain purpose, or that each of the High Gods designed a type of person in their image. The exceptions being the dwarves, who maintain they originated from the Stone. These first Stone-born were the original Ancestors who birthed the dwarven race.”

History became very fractured (intentionally) after the Age of Intervention. It became even more fractured after the Cataclysm (unintentionally.)

“The other exception is the varying cat races, who believe that their separate pantheon of Cat Lords created the tigrins, tirins, and pumins each to their own purpose. This theory does not, however, explain where the orcs came from, unless a particularly powerful demon or less than well-intentioned god made them and is not owning up to it. As we haven’t seen any orcs since the Cataclysm really, we can’t exactly ask any current opinions.”

This begs the question: what if no one originated on the planet at all? And does not answer: how did people come to Tyrysius? Where is the proof for any of this?

“The second basic belief is that all of the races were traveling without a home anymore and came upon Tyrysius which was empty of sentient life but otherwise habitable. This one explains where the orcs came from better, but there are no life-ships to back this up—though I know that at one point we colonized the moon. This one also doesn’t really explain our relationship to dragons, but that’s splitting hairs.”

So, why argue about it at all? Well, some of it has to do with ownership and who might have more rights to the planet. It's easiest to think that the older, more steadfast, peoples were around first.

“Ownership,” Adler said, answering the same way he’d answered to Riela when she’d asked. “The elves and dwarves both want to believe they’re the first even within generally accepted doctrine. The humans know they can’t claim that they were here first, so they’re certainly not going to complain when something suggests they were placed on the planet around the same time as others.”

Many people think it's terrifying that the sitah, a bigger race, might own it. Especially because the larger people could feasibly take over if they wanted to.

“What would happen if the sitah suddenly got ideas about being the first on the planet?” Killian suggested in the hypothetical. “Not that there are really any full-sitah left. But Timernis exists with a very large partial-sitah population. We’re bigger, stronger, and tougher to kill. What if they decided they owned the place and tried to conquer it? Of course, this doesn’t take into account that they’re outnumbered and the bigger you are, the more you are at risk if the world goes famine again.”

What if religious doctrine is only trying to keep the planet's population from fighting amongst themselves? (More than they already are.) What if it's something else entirely?

“No one really wants the sitah to start acting like they own the planet,” Kanjo said, leaning back in his seat. “They also don’t want other people fighting against the Timernans in a knee-jerk plan to preemptively eliminate the supposed sitah problem.”  

Yet, regardless of religious fears, scientists and historians plunge forward for the sake of knowledge. There are sitah bones dating back 17,000 years while the oldest elf bones only date back 12,000.

“Well,” he said. “Why sitah and no one else? But also because the aura dating of those skeletons found in Lorbush have undoubtable anatomically unique features that place them as sitah. And the aura dating goes back twelve-thousand years. And the ones found in Macrait are close to seventeen-thousand.”

Seventeen thousand years goes back before the Age of Intervention is believed to have started. Current theories put that at about 8000 years ago. This is also how old the oldest elf bones date back to.

“Yeah but that’s back before the Age of Intervention even started, right?” Mica asked. “Theoretically,” Adler said. “We estimate that the Age of Intervention lasted about five thousand years and like Rinnie said, there are little-to-no records before then.”

The oldest dwarf bones date back 7300 years. But, older architecture is larger, as if built for bigger people by bigger people. So what is anyone to think?

“Regardless of how long the Age of Intervention lasted, the oldest elf bones we have dates back to roughly eight-thousand years and the oldest dwarf seven-thousand-three-hundred. Both well within the range of when the Age of Intervention spanned. That doesn’t even get into the fact that there is architecture in the older cities like the lower levels of Berthingtonn and other places in Schmiedland that were obviously built by for larger-framed people.”

While there were once extensive historical records, the Thadan-Yurel War and the subsequent Cataclysm destroyed or destroyed access to a large percentage of them. Now there are holes.

Records from 1000+ years ago are hard to come by and what's available is fractured. Additionally, getting records from more than 3000 years ago is nearly impossible.

Academics try to patch those holes, but it's not easy. And, as is the case with any historical writings, they're written by the winners. Someone is always trying to hide something.

Anyone can find the existing historical records in libraries, museums, temples, etc. However, they'll run into the problem that the records only go back so far.

This era is the common era. Before that was the Age of Intervention which lasted about 5000 years. Before the AOI, there's conflicting thoughts as to what it was.

Common questions include: Did the world even exist? Did people? What kind of people? Who were the first people? Was magic different? There's not much literature one way or another.

It's clear if you look closely that someone is trying to hide major parts of Tyrysian history. The question is, who? No one has answered this question yet.

Everyone is taught history in school, though it varies by area. Different countries place emphasis on different things and bias is highly prevalent.

For example, Berthingtonn considers the war won 300 years ago a fight for their independence. Schmiedland considers the same war a mixed bag because they gained land, but not all of Berthingtonn.

There are museums and exhibits in all of the big cities and some smaller ones. Several gods have temples that are museums because they are gods of history and knowledge.

Some museums are free to attend, others require a small fee. The biggest cost is usually getting to one unless you are already in a bigger city.

For Berthingtonn in specific, the Inner City has way more museums than say, South Town. South Town has a couple of exhibits but nothing large.

And while people who live in South Town can go to the Inner City, and many schools do fieldtrips as part of the regular education. There's commonly deals between museums and schools.

There's lots of ancient ruins, some are still being discovered! Ancient Esternia is pretty much just archeological digs. Though there is an important library there that will become relevant.

Berthingtonn has tunnels that go well below sea level and people can only reasonably get so deep in that mountain before it becomes impossible to traverse.

The oldest city still standing is in fact, Berthingtonn, which had its Wall and Shield completed in the Age of Intervention several thousand years ago.

Berthingtonn's shield was meant to stop all major natural disasters as well as oncoming invasions. However, it was not prepared for some extra-terrestrial object to come plummeting down.

Said extra-terrestrial object damaged Berthingtonn's shield, took out part of their legendary wall, and created the Crater Sea all in one go. (Also it killed a dragon and caused a worldwide ice age.)

This is what's now known as The Cataclysm. Tyrysius still hasn't recovered from it. Since that point, magic has been less prevalent, weather less predictable, and lifespans shorter.

Berthingtonn has existed seemingly as long as time itself. (That isn't quite true but the only people who remember otherwise are not your average mortals and most are deities of some form.)

Current society dates back about a thousand years. Most current traditions and beliefs came about post-Cataclysm, which was about 1200 years ago.

Note: Tyrysius is always at war.

The Grainbelt War in the early 3000s was massive and horrific, the worst years being 05-06. That was only 9 years ago.

Essentially, Schmiedland and Perinathia are always going at it over the Grainbelt.

There was the Berthan-Eswaili Conflict in the 2950s. South Efrium Civil War in the 2930s. That resulted in South Efrium ceasing to exist and becoming Eswaisil.

Since then, Eswaisil wants to conquer Berthingtonn but has thus far been unable to.

The Yurel-Edansa War in the early 2700s, which is largely still relevant because Edan elves live that long. They're frequently going at it over ideology.

The big Berthington-Schmiedland War also happened around that time.

Schmiedland and Perinathia are constantly fighting over the Grain Belt, the border constantly shifting. They recently signed a new peace treaty. We'll see how long that lasts.

Edansa and the Yurels fight frequently. An old blood war over ideology. Currently, however, the Yurels are experiencing a Civil War. So there's no warring between them and Edansa presently.

Over the years, the Great Efrium Empire (with Berthingtonn as it's center) split into North and South Efrium. South Efrium eventually became Eswaisil - whose border with Perinathia is stagnant.

North Efrium then lost a lot of ground to Schmiedland and now Berthingtonn is a large city-state with an Inner Town and surrounding towns outside the Wall.

Eswaisil tried really hard to go after Berthingtonn a few decades ago, but it's been a cold war since. That tension is only going to get thicker as the years go on.

For reference, Heist is set 5 years before TBW. So the end of the Grainbelt war is fresher, and Eswaisil isn't about ready to declare war on Berthingtonn... Yet.

Holidays include:

Berthingtonn has Independence Week which is largely for Berthans but really anyone can celebrate.

Similarly, Schmiedland has Schmiedland Day.

The Yurels do a lot of ancestral worship so those are more private and reserved events.

Religiously speaking, most deities will allow for non-worshippers to join in celebrations because it nets them worship. However, only known followers and clergy can participate in the more sacred parts.

When you have gods that walk around on the planet, the line between history, legend, and myth, gets really fuzzy. Sometimes, the more people try to define it, the fuzzier it gets.

The language of Bûrdæn started declining at the end of the Age of Intervention. In part because other languages were more widespread, in part because of the stigma against it.

It's impossible to learn it now because any books written in it are long forgotten or already destroyed. However, there are more and more people around who seem to know it lately.

The term "frozen wastes" is an expletive interjection at the beginning of a sentence, usually said in surprise. It stems from the fact that much of the world is in fact a frozen waste as a result of the Cataclysm.

Historical fiction exists as a genre on Tyrysius. Nathaniel and Riela both love reading it. Killian too, but he's more critical of creative liberties.

[botanicalcanopus]

so like what denizens do you think the beta trolls have [no dupes with the humans except for echidna, and i'm reasonably sure gamzee had yaldabaoth on account of his connection to english]

I mainly stayed in the Greek/Roman side due to how much more I know about them and the trends of that pantheon being more often used. My takes for zero(ish) repeats:

Aradia: Atropos => The deity who cuts the thread of life and works with her sisters to help determine the natural lifespan of a mortal. Chosen because of Aradia's short life as well as her ability to commune with the dead.

Tavros: Aeolus => A ruler of winds that aided both gods and mortals. Chosen for Tavros as he seemingly is weak and has some very easy to blow through nervousness that becomes steadfast and eager like strong winds that Aeolus controlled.

Sollux: Thanatos => The god and one personification of death. Also a twin to Hypnos.

Karkat: Styx => Goddess of the River Styx, oaths, and another death deity. She specifically was used a form of swearing on something as she was vengeful and any oaths promised/swore under her name were guaranteed to be upheld or there would be extreme consequences.

Nepeta: Anteros => God of requited love. Should be pretty obvious due to her love of shipping but also related to her unrequited love she sadly deals with. Hopefully Anteros can give her some peace over that.

Kanaya: Echidna (as stated in the ask)

Terezi: Mnemosyne => Goddess of wisdom but specifically memories. I put her with Terezi due to how Terezi's looking to the past is part of her personality. I mean this in the sense of both ability to help retcon things as well as her trials she would hold relief on witnesses testifying what they remember

Vriska: Cetus (in the actual story)/Eos (my choice) => Goddess of the dawn who delivers light. Also known to have many desires that she acts upon without others consideration and is known to be a bit selfish. I think a brat dealing with a brat would be fun as a denizen challenge for Vriska.

Equius: Harpocrates => Greek rendition of Horus that is deity over secrets and silence. Pretty obvious void connection but also pulls on Equius's land which was the Land of Caves and Silence

Gamzee: Yaldabaoth (as stated in the ask), but I'd also agree with it

Eridan: Zelus => God of eagerness, jealousy, and the root of the word zeal. He is also one of the few gods assigned to be under Zeus and sees that his command is done. I think jealous and zealous can sum up the positive and negative traits of Eridan.

Feferi: Hera => The Goddess of marriage, women, family, and main wife of Zeus. This is more a reference to the Peixes lineage, as it is matriarchal, the leader of the troll race, long-lived, and all about royalty. I think Hera and Fef would butt heads and the presented Choice would be interesting.

[dailydemonspotlight]

Day 24 - Idun (Request)

Race: Megami

Alignment: Light-Neutral

April 23rd, 2024

accidentally spoiled this one, oops.

Norse mythology, as any amateur theologian would likely know, is a bizarre beast to look into- a winding complex of bastardized tales and Christian retcons that makes even some of its most iconic gods appear scantly and obscurely in its stories. However, our demon of the day is one of the most recurring goddesses in the entire pantheon- the goddess of apples and youth, Idun.

Well, maybe that's a bit of an overstatement, but a Norse god appearing in more stories than one in the Prose Edda is an accomplishment in-and-of-itself. Idun, also known as Idunn, Iduna, or Iðunn, is the ancient Norse deity who resides over apples, spring, youth, and rejuvenation- she was likely well worshipped in her place, representing such pleasant thoughts (outside of spring due to the scourge of pollen, but let's not get into that) and ideas. Her name even seems to be based upon ideas of kindness and healthiness, as it's based upon the old Norse words ið, meaning "again," and unna, meaning "to love."

All of this, alongside her association with one of the best fruits (objectively), apples, seems to paint her in the light of being a goddess that the common people looked up to and worshipped for a nice, peaceful life. Idun is also the wife of Bragi, the god of poetry, something that adds on to this lovingly creative persona- she seemed to have been a lesser goddess, yet one still revered and loved for her role in cultivating a beautiful year with fantastic food. Even today, in some pagan circles, she is still worshipped, as she was in the past as well, a goddess representing good spring and fortune.

Idun's most famous myth comes about with those same apples she treasures so dearly- they weren't any old apples, you see, as the ones she specifically grew were apples of immortality. These apples were relied upon by the pantheon to remain young and spritely (likely leading to her title as the goddess of youth given her role in cultivating those apples) and she protected the orchard where they were grown diligently. However, a jötunn by the name of Þjazi forced Loki's hand, getting him to drag Idun away from her orchard only to kidnap her. As a consequence of her absence, the gods soon began to grow old and frail, and finding nobody else responsible, they found the blame to be on the trickster god present.

The gods weren't mad with him specifically, though- they knew that Loki wasn't that petty and mean to steal the immortal apples without reason. As a result, in an effort to make him right his wrongs, they sent him out to retrieve Idun from the claws of the jötunn, Loki adopting the form of a falcon and chasing after the giant in great pursuit. After a while of searching, he found the (likely terrified, or maybe even annoyed) Idun, who turned into a single small nut to let him escape with her untouched. Shortly after Loki makes his daring escape, the giant comes back to find his captive goddess gone with the wind, and chases after Loki in hot pursuit in the form of a massive eagle. However, the gods devised a plan to stop this rampaging jötunn, causing the eagle to run right into a then-lit pyre and setting him ablaze. With Idun returned to them, they went back to eating from the immortal apple stock, and all lived happily ever after. Until Ragnarok stuff happens, but let's not worry about that!

While Idun does fill a role as an archetypal 'damsel in distress,' her main story does show how important she actually is to the Norse pantheon; without her, they wouldn't be able to live. As a result, while a minor deity, she has a major role in the pantheon- one that is reflected perfectly in her role in SMT V.

In SMT V, Idun's only current appearance, she appears as a late-game healer and support demon with a whole sidequest attached- one that I can't recant here due to not playing V, but it seems fun. Design-wise, she bears a striking resemblance to Little Red Riding Hood (as well as Aigis for some reason), something which feels obvious given her role as the owner of the divine orchard with a wicker basket holding her magical apples, drawing clear parallels with the apples that Red Riding Hood delivers to her grandma.

She also tends to hit the griddy.

Why? Because it's cute!

Overall, this charmingly designed demon from one of the most famous mythologies out there gets an A in my book. The influence behind her design is clear, it's cute and effective, and it works given her folkloric prescedent.

[alatismeni-theitsa]

okay, i've heard you're one of the 'greek gods are white' people. how do you explain 'zeus athiops', considering linguistic research proved that's a word for what we now call Black. how do you explain drastically different depictions of the same deities in Syria and Lybia and more. how do you explain that a third of the pantheon have eastern roots. like girl... please get out of that mindset.

i think you need to legit drop that whole whiteness thing. it'd reductive as fuck, to us Europeans too. leave it to the people who made it, adhering to whiteness is just erasing heritages.

If that's what you got out of the discourse, you have a really USAmerican thinking pal, albeit not a USian. Or perhaps someone simplified this to you in this way and you took it word-by-word. Let me tell you what the discourse is actually about, and why there's a problem even when the Greek gods are depicted (for example) blue-eyed and blond, like N. Europeans.

It is about the treatment of pantheons by Western nations, a treatment with colonizing and imperialistic attitudes which separate the gods from their culture. A treatment that ignores depictions of a culture with an extremely large history and reduces it to distinctly Western and Anglophone pop-culture and Fandom.

Just because this happens to a nation which is considered generally light-skinned it doesn't mean it shouldn't alarm you. And the complaints of Greeks only alarm you when they address changes from lighter to significantly darker appearance, and not the opposite.

I bet you didn't send Greeks any hatemail when they were complaining about actors being too pasty and saying "This person doesn't even look like a Greek. More Irish. They even have an Irish accent…" We had this problem for centuries. N. Europeans had this super pale depiction of our gods which they considered "noble" and they saw actual Greeks are dark barbarians who are "not like the original Greeks". Now this type of projection is happening again, in order to make the West feel better, and we are actually told how we look and don't look.

Now we constantly hear "You are too light to be Greek"/"You don't look Greek" because another stereotype has settled among the powerful nations that control our image. Needless to say, this is negative too, just by the nature of being untrue, and harmful to Greek people. But this doesn't seem to worry you. You only worry when the West tells you to worry because now the cause is "noble" according to them. They never stopped seeing themselves as the righteous and noble ones. Fuck other cultures and their specific issues and histories, right?

Treating popular pantheons as a blank canvas will happen to more "races" and ethnicities when they start being considered "white" specifically in the US, our "beloved" planetarch nation. (There's already some discourse about Mexicans and Asians being the "new white"). In 50 years perhaps your grandchild will shout at a Mexican for not understanding why "it is okay" for the deity Tezcatlipoca to be depicted half-Chinese half-Nigerian.

The same thing happened to the Greeks. In many parts of the world, Greeks are still "non-white" and in the US we only recently became "white". The Middle Easterners and N.Africans are also "White" on paper. The Greek Whiteness is also only on paper, since the Westerners get the hickeys every time they hear our names, or see a part of our culture which so resembles the Middle Eastern ones. Or they clock us as Mexicans, Arabs, Turks etc. But I digress.

My point so far is that this Western approach, in its effort to be progressive, has used pantheons of foreign cultures in a way that it negates these cultures and their depictions, or their beliefs. (Something that I wouldn't call progressive)

Onto the depictions themselves. As you understand, me - and the overwhelming majority of Greeks - wants to maintain them. To this day, within the Greek culture I haven't seen depictions of native gods as - we would say today - Black. If we had some that would be okay. But we don't. I reckon, even other lands who got Hellenized didn't change the "race" of these gods. Sometimes they were alterations, yes, but to the point we are talking about a new deity, and certainly not a deity the Greeks would recognize or worship. Then we are not talking about Greek mythology, but mythology of other nations which, at some point, came in contact with the Greek culture.

But, again, it doesn't look like the Greek gods had different races in the depictions of other nations. Even today the Mediterranean and Middle Eastern nations don't racebend the gods. They see them as they are in the ancient depictions. Perhaps they indeed saw these gods looking a bit more like them but if you think Greek people and their neighbors (N. Africans, M. Easterners) belong to different races… you might want to check some racist notions you might hold.

"Aithiops" can mean "glowing" and "of burnt face". (αἴθω < πρωτοϊνδοευρωπαϊκή ρίζα *aidʰ- (φλέγω) = burn/on fire + όψη = face/look) It's an Epithet (an adjective) of Zeus on the island of Chios (Lycophron, Cass. 537, with the note of Tzetzes.). You can see where this island is and you may easily understand that it had more or less the same population as the rest of Greek areas, in which "Black" individuals were very rare.

But the most important thing is, we also haven't found a depiction of Zeus as a "Black" individual. If we had found a statue with the features of a "Black" man and the name Zeus underneath, I'd be happy to say "Some Greeks indeed saw Zeus as Black". I don't mind the "race", I mind how everyone gets in mental gymnastics to try and defend a lie just because it sounds progressive.

Perhaps in their minds this aspect of Zeus had the appearance of a Middle Eastern but... this is not what you call another race. Even today Greeks don't consider Middle Easterners and South Arabs a different "race". Also, as I said in the beginning, it could just mean "Glowing Zeus", like his face is glowing so much as if it is on fire. One word can have more than one use. The "αιθ-" root is also used about the sky, because it's glowing. The word Aether/Aitheras which we still use in Greece (αιθέρας/αιθέρες) refers to the skies. Maybe he had a "appearance/face like the sky"

Also, very important: Back then the region where the country of Ethiopia is today was called Abyssinia. The Greeks, in the period you're thinking about, probably had no contact with the land which today is Ethiopia. Aethiopia was a whole region, possibly the Middle East. (See the post here where many sources are gathered)

The first depiction of Andromeda, an Aethiopian princess as "Black" came from Ovid, who came much later and who is not part of the Greek narrative. He's also very unreliable because with his stories he wanted to oppose the status quo and therefore the mythological figures of his time. The Greek depictions have Andromeda and her family look more or less like Greeks. (Otherwise, they would have noted the difference in appearance)

Plus, Andromeda and Perseus birthed the nation of Persians. As you know, while there are "Black" Persians the population, in general, is not "Black". Plus, I am not even sure the Greeks had contact with the "Black" Persians because they are mostly extremely far south. Such a small population so down south it's not something to base the whole Look of a Nation on, at least.

It's the Northwesterners that always use the Mediterranean and Middle Eastern nations as an excuse to disrespect these depictions. (Meanwhile the Mediterranean and Middle Eastern nations don't agree with this. They never get ACTUALLY asked)

Not to mention, the changes the western nations make are not part of a cultural exchange and they don't happen naturally through cultural osmosis. It's plain theft and ownership over the gods of a foreign culture, which they have been doing for some centuries now. The Western cultures are dominant over the Greek one. We are towards the bottom of the ladder socioeconomically in Europe. The US is literally a puppet-master of the Greek nation (and many other nations). Our government can't even fart without checking with the US. Oh, and the US also helped the 70's Junta rise to power.

Lastly, the Greek gods don't have "Anatolian origin". This rhetoric (which again implies that ancient people of a region were all the same stock) has been refuted. Nobody "stole" gods from anyone. There are so many posts on these blogs about it. Greeks were also in Anatolia for 3.000 years before the genocide, so we are not even talking about separate regions. (But I know that you saw them as separate so I approached the argument the way you meant it)

There are common roots, common beginnings, perhaps but the difference grew so much that neighboring nations had distinct gods. They also believed that their gods were distinct. You have to respect that, and also you can't lump them all together because they "all look the same to you" or some sort of a similar mindset. The Greek gods are not interchangeable with the Assyrian gods etc.

One or two, like Dionysus, indeed were brought from outside. But most are considered native to the land. (Aphrodite, too, is native to the island of Cyprus) And the Greek gods are considered ethnically Greek. The Greeks considered themselves born by these gods. Each line had a god that gave birth to it or claimed to descend from a god. See more at the end of this great video: (Video with Timestamp) Again, the Greek gods are not ethnically Japanese, or ethnically Argentinian, or ethnically Norwegian. They come from a specific culture, with specific stories and appearances. You cannot imply otherwise without making all cultures a disservice.

You can see more discussions about this, including why the argument "But a minority must be represented!" kind of argument.

Some are a bit old but the general point is the same.

*In my language "Black" for a person is not exactly a positive term so it's in quotations. The term "race" is also extremely bad in Europe. I leave this disclaimer cause I know no one gives a shit if non-Anglophones must say slurs to convey a point, as long as we all speak the USAmerican way :) We also know that the individuals I am talking about weren't identifying as "Black".

[vh-rp]

Religions of Thedas

RELIGIONS ONSITE Here you can find a list and a little information about some of the religions found in Thedas. Note that some of these religions are race-specific. If there is a religion you'd like to know more about or think should be added, please PM a member of staff.

ANDRASTIAN CHANTRY The most prominent religion in Thedas, Andrastian Chantry is based on the Chant of Light, a series of teachings written by the prophet Andraste, bride of the Maker. To the Chantry, followers of all other religions -- especially non-humans, who they believe have turned from the Maker's grace more than humanity has -- are thought to need saving. The Chantry's goal is to spread the Chant of Light to the four corners of the world, interpretted as such from the Chant of Light. Once all peoples have accepted the Chant and practice its teachings, supposedly the Maker will return to the world and return it to its previous Edenic state.

Followers of the Chantry are Andrastians, and "Chantric" is used to refer to something or someone having to do with Chantry religion. The Chantry calendar is used everywhere in Thedas, save for the Tevinter Imperium. Funeral rites in the Chantry involve cremation, so that demons cannot possess them, and because Andraste was burned at the stake. Chantries are present in nearly every village, town, and city, and in some large organisations such as Circles and Fort Drakon. Some -- including the Chantry in Kirkwall -- maintain a Chanter's Board, a job board for mercenaries and others willing to do good deeds or make money. When not capitalised, the word "chantry" refers to a place of worship, be it a Chantry or not.

Roles Within the Chantry:

Divine: This is the head of the Chantry, and may only be held by someone who is female (whether assigned at birth or they come to the conclusion they're female later). She resides in the Grand Cathedral in Val Royeaux, Orlais. She is addressed as "Most Holy", "Your Perfection". Grand Cleric: This is the role directly under the Divine. This role may also only be held by someone who identifies as female. Each Grand Cleric presides over her own region and represents many Chantries. The Grand Clerics convene at the College of Clerics, located in Val Royeaux, Orlais. Their title is: "Your Grace". Every Grand Cleric has one kingdom that hse presides over. Mother: Mother's are responsible for looking after the spiritual well-being of their flock, and they may be in charge of a Chantry—if this is the case, her title changes to Revered Mother or "Your Reverence". Brothers & Sisters: These people are your lowest ranking members, both male and female identified (non-binary folx too). They are usually fitted into three groups. Affirmed: These people are the regular folx that are serving the Chantry for their own reasons. Clerics: Clerics are your academics, devoted to the pursuit of knowledge. They're in charge of books, relics and lore. Older clerics receive the title "elder" and others are known as "brother" or "sister".

AVVAR GODS It is nearly impossible to speak of the Avvarian people without speaking of their beliefs. Faith is the vibrant cornerstone of their existence, filling their harsh lives with sacred implications, for the Avvars believe as the Alamarri once did: The gods live in all things. Wind from an unexpected direction, birds flying in unusual patterns, a sudden silence amidst the high peaks in the spring—these are nothing but chance to a lowlander, but are messages from the gods to an Avvar.

The Avvars believe without question that their gods have protected them and kept them strong, for do they not thrive despite their numerous enemies? Wise lowlanders avoid pointing out that the hillsmen have been pushed into some of the most inhospitable terrain in all of Thedas. In truth, the Avvars love the Frostbacks and would only take offense at the thought that they were “forced” into the mountains. The Avvars have a complex pantheon, which includes both nature spirits and legendary mortals who have ascended to the heavens. This is further complicated by the fact that the pantheon varies somewhat from hold to hold, as every clan has its own sacred tales and heroes; however, all Avvars agree on the three greatest gods. These are Korth the Mountain Father, Hakkon Wintersbreath, and the Lady of the Skies. Imhar the Clever and the Great Bear Sigfost are also revered in most communities.

The Avvar deem spirits as their gods, treating them as patrons to be lulled and wooed. The Avvar deliberately invoke spirits for strength in battle or solicit them for advice. Such spirits have lived with in their holds for many generations, and sometimes took the form of an animal or departed relatives when they pass on their wisdom. In the event a god is destroyed, the Avvar begin a year-long time of offerings and prayers and rituals. At the end of this period, a new spirit takes on the name and role of the old one.

Avvar believe in a hazily defined afterlife governed by the "Lady of the Skies" where the dead are reunited with their kin. Avvar also believe some of their people are destined to be reborn, i.e., the essence (the soul) returns clothed in new flesh. The core of the concept is thus: the souls of a few Avvar "favored" by fate "migrate" on death to inhabit new bodies destined for them, so they may return and perform great deeds for the good of their hold. These resurrected souls are not expected to remember their past selves consciously, but instead are assumed to be subtly "guided" by their previous experiences, especially through visions and portents.

DWARVEN BELIEFS The dwarves do not have an official religion. They do not believe in gods. Instead, their philosophy promotes excellence, and an almost intimate tie to the rock -- the Stone -- that houses them. They speak of it as if it is alive. They respect, fear, cherish, and give thanks to her for protecting them and providing them with her bounty. Dwarves believe that when they die, they return to the stone and become Ancestors. Criminals, disgraced, surfacers, and their descendants -- the "unworthy" -- are cast out, so that their failings may not weaken the Stone.

Worship and spiritual guidance are reserved for the Ancestors, and above the Ancestors and all others are the dwarves that have been raised to Paragon status for great achievements, whether in combat or something else entirely. Paragons are examples for the dwarves, to be followed and to be revered. In death, it is said the Paragons become one with the densest stone at the base of all mountains -- a foundation upon which all dwarven society rests. These Ancestors communicate their wishes to the living via brutal trials-by-combat called Provings. The Ancestors' collective wisdom is maintained by the Shaperate, which stores its records in lyrium.

[illegiblewords]

SOME ILLEGIBLE RAMBLES AND REFLECTIONS: A DIVINE CALLING

Continuation of the Dungeons and Dragons cosmology rant I started here, post-Baldur's Gate 3. This is more side-notes with odd bits and bobs I've noticed about Faerûn’s pantheon along with what amounts to a campaign premise.

There are layers, but whether on a realistic ‘human history of polytheism’ front or even compared to other fantasy pantheons—the way gods operate in Dungeons and Dragons is fucking weird.

In a lot of stories, mortal belief shapes the nature of gods. This is partially the case here but not entirely. Sometimes a thing exists or happens, and you just end up with a deity or primordial claiming dominion over that thing. The jurisdiction a god presides over is referred to in Dungeons and Dragons as a 'divine portfolio'. Sometimes gods are born spontaneously out of the aether or by other gods. Sometimes gods quit or die and pass their positions on to others. Mortals can ascend to godhood sure, but that usually takes a fair amount of work along with strategy. Not to mention shit comes with certain caveats.

EX.

Karsus fucked up by using magic to try and replace the goddess of magic. That logistically left him responsible for consciously maintaining the entire Weave when the goddess Mystryl had done it constantly and unconsciously. It wasn’t something he could ever hope to pull off along with his spell. It’s as if Karsus was a top notch marathon runner, but during his hardest race also had to consciously beat his own heart and breathe and send out signals from the brain when that was all previously autonomic. Shit wasn’t gonna work.

What I’ve noticed across lore videos (but also in Baldur’s Gate 3) is, some of the gods are actively acting against their own portfolios and followers on the regular. More than that, divine jurisdictions are a mess and there is just no oversight most of the time.

It’s not even a morality thing for me. It’s not ‘oh Zeus fucked another mortal and Hera went on another rampage’. It's not ‘there’s a stupid beauty contest between the gods and war ensues because no one wants to lose’ either. It’s that the gods of Dungeons and Dragons are mind-blowingly unprofessional about being gods. For many, there is zero accountability for the specific areas they are appointed divinity. It would be like Athena being a goddess of weaving but also an actively shit weaver. Some of what I've seen seems like outright divine malpractice, for lack of another way to put it.

Shar’s portfolio is darkness, forgetfulness, loss, secrets, and night. If it was purely going off of her portfolio and not the goddess who holds it, she’d fit perfectly in terms of coping mechanisms, navigating grief, finding shelter/comfort at night and while concealed, and overall the unknown as something gentle and merciful. People are stated to seek her out specifically for those things, as her portfolio indicates.

Shar is not a trickster-domain goddess, or a goddess of lies, or a goddess of spite and vengeance, or a goddess of treachery, or a goddess of destruction. She adopts those things arbitrarily for herself and wields them through/against her own followers, but they have nothing to do with her actual portfolio. Her actual porfolio is needed, but is being neglected because Shar doesn’t give a shit. She was born as a goddess of those things but she doesn’t bother with them except insofar as they can be exploited for personal gain.

She’s like a grief counselor you go to in your lowest, most vulnerable moment seeking help. There is nowhere else and she’s supposed to be a specialist. Then Dr. Shar tells you 1) kys 2) kill a bunch of other people on your way out.

Again, it’s not even a matter of her being an evil goddess. It’s that she’s an UNPROFESSIONAL evil goddess. Lolth has zero problem because she’s clear about her portfolio and has fucktons of followers who know what she’s about and are on board. Doesn't matter how unhealthy it is, it's eyes wide open. Lolth worked for what she has and runs everything with the Drow seamlessly according to her office. Good for her.

Related, I saw people on twitter getting really angry at the Faerûnian pantheon when Asterion revealed he’d tried to pray to any god he could think of only to be ignored. People were arguing it’s because the gods discriminate against vampires/the undead.

But there are gods of the undead. At least two I know offhand. Orcus namely (although he’s sort of between minor deity and just a straight up demon), as he DOES explicitly work with vampires. (The other god is Vecna, by the by. But he's also evil and mainly focuses on other things + liches.) Orcus is both chaotic evil and a demon. It's worth noting he specifically wound up with his portfolio because he was the only guy remotely qualified for that job regardless of how he felt about it. He doesn’t strictly want to be there but because of how he operates in terms of alignment and abyssal nature he can get away with fickleness. Guy had godhood thrust upon him.

I’d argue he’s the closest to managing Asterion’s jurisdiction so far as undeath is concerned, but Asterion’s alignment and situation are both outside it. Asterion needed a neutral or good deity of the undead, and that role remains unfilled. On a personal level he’d be eligible for ex. Ilmater, but where metaphysical filing was concerned he automatically got rerouted to Orcus who’s doing as little as he can manage on the best of days where divinity is concerned.

It’s not even Orcus’s fault. Again, Orcus didn’t ask for that. Orcus is a terrible person/demon/god and isn’t out for responsibility of any sort. He has never given cause to believe otherwise. Undead ask Orcus for favors or help becoming liches and shit, and sometimes he’s on board. He gave Vecna a hand when he needed it. But it’s on an ‘if I feel like it’ basis for the guy. Taking this openly chaotic evil demon and nominating him to answer the prayers of all undead irrespective of alignment and circumstances is so far outside this dude’s job description it’s insane. You wouldn’t do that to a deity of the living. Hell, even deities of the dead there are like at least four managing different aspects of it at any given time.

And much as I like Jergal, my guy gave his portfolio away to the first three people who asked and let them sort out who got what over a game of knucklebones. He’s in a position that’s a better fit for him personally now and I’m happy for him, but he did not depart from office in the most professional fashion he could have.

(Taking a moment to discuss my understanding of Kelemvor after checking some lore videos, with the disclaimer this is secondhand knowledge. Kelemvor was once a mortal. When he became god of the dead, Kelemvor wanted to ensure non-adherents were treated fairly instead of blanket-punished for not following a god. He tried to make a system that rewarded people who were virtuous but not devout, for example. Except word got out and mortals who had been worshipping deities purely because they wanted a certain afterlife guarantee left in favor of being unaffiliated, which drained those deities of power/resources. Led to a whole tantrum from multiple gods until Kelemvor bowed to divine nepotism saying ‘I’m sorry I was thinking with my mortal brain’. I think he adjusted the system so that non-adherents would be grouped with other non-adherents of similar moral standing, and they’d need to construct their own afterlives together. Which, not bad but holy fuck the fact that other gods banded together and bullied Kelemvor until he changed policy to benefit them again is kind of scary.)

I would argue there needs to be a campaign where disenfranchised mortals come together across alignments and creeds to appoint a divine manager holding gods accountable in some capacity and maintaining professional standards. I was trying to figure out if it was a matter of unions or OSHA or something, but naw man this is actually why managers are needed. It isn’t even HR. It’s someone making sure the workplace functions and that customers aren’t being fucked over/driven away so to speak.

I want to see adventurers convincing the forces of chaos that this is ultimately to their benefit too. I want to see weird alliances/resource pooling. See if Mechanus will lend a hand. Nominate contenders for the position from workplaces across Toril. Do elves have an advantage because they don’t need to sleep? Who is organized enough? How would delegation of responsibilities work—would there be more active involvement from celestials and clergy?

And like, what would a divine manager DO? One example I can think of is that since ex. Shar is an example of supreme nepotism, either:

A. She gets her shit together and addresses her actual portfolio properly in the spirit it was constructed B. She surrenders her portfolio to another deity who can actually address it to either become a demon (more personal freedom but less power) OR adopt the domain that actually reflects what she does instead of false-advertising.

If she wants to be a goddess of spite, theft, destruction, trickery, lies, vengeance, and/or treachery she can be a goddess of those things--but it might lower her divine rank somewhat by connection. If she wants to be ~true to herself~ with a new portfolio that's fine but she's going to make less bank than Selune does and that's something she's going to have to live with.

Shar was promoted beyond her personal capabilities, and while she might still be employable somewhere I don’t think it should be in the same position she’d been fucking up. She misused all of her funds and prayers on interior decoration. She thought seniority meant she was above reproach and she deserves to be held accountable.

A divine manager could see if there’s a need for a particular employment position and start organizing to have that position filled. Ex. If deities of neutral or good undead are needed, that’s a spot where aspiring mortals can apply. And the sorts of tribute a divine manager might get could be hilarious. Imagine sacrifices of caffeine and fantasy office supplies. What symbols/titles would they get?

And you know this deity would get all kinds of bullshit prayers from entitled mortals too. Like a person calling the police because their hamburger was supposed to have large fries on the side but they’re stuck with medium. Sometimes concerns are real but sometimes people abuse the resource. The divine manager needs a will of adamant.

Anyway.

The final detail I’ll mention in this whole ramble is—I think for deities at least, there needs to be some level of reasonable to their portfolios/modus operandi that lets you understand how a regular person would pray to them. Tying to the previous post, if all Bhaalists are Orin then Bhaal just isn’t going to have a whole lot of disciples. Might get a small pocket of serial killers I guess but grand scheme he’s going to be weak as fuck. But if you step back and go ‘Bhaal isn’t a god of sadistic and gratuitous murder, Bhaal is the inevitable death-price of life’ suddenly he makes a whole lot more sense. You get philosophers of Bhaal too, who you can have a perfectly pleasant lunch conversation with. Yeenoghu gets a pass for doubling as a demon lord (akin to Orcus) with power independent of divinity.

[entering--hyperspace]

Dragons, and the influence the Faerûn Pantheon has (or rather, does NOT have) over them. And how it relates to my tav

I've been thinking about how much the gods of dnd actually play a role within bg3, and kinda how having a True Dragon (albeit at first unknowingly) influences the story just a bit because of what he is.

To get started, Dragons have their Own Pantheon, assuming we are not ruling out pre-5e lore entirely. Bahamut and Tiamat are the most well known of course, they are also included in the Faerûn pantheon, so I won't be talking about them too much.

What I'm mostly concerned with are the two defying aspects (Life, Death, and fate) seeing as Withers is very obviously Jergal, and how The Dead Three (along with Vlaakith and Mystra) are all within bg3 in some way.

The Most Influential Dragon god is Asgorath/Io, the originator. He is briefly mentioned by Lae'zel within bg3 in a throwaway line. Known as the Ninefold Drgaon, Asgorath influences the fates of all dragons

There is also Chronepsis, Dragon god of Fate, Death and Judgement. A multi aspected god who may also be known as Null.

Now, to have a Dragon be put into the center of conflict of a story is rare indeed, which is why I like Págos so much. Dragons are often treated as mounts, villains, bosses, or otherwise just out of reach wells of knowledge one party may encounter only to move on with their lives.

It's special in the sense of bg3 because you are dealing with a Lot of Faerŭn gods, but in my canon bc Págos is a dragon none of these gods have Any actual influence over him? Dragons are outside of their jurisdiction unless specifically asked for their help by them. They have no hand to mold their clay, that is for their own gods. This is what makes Págos such an anomaly, because that is essentially what he is in bg3's story...An Anomaly.

Págos is from the ancient past frozen in time and wound up in the present. His fate is guarded by his own gods, leaving the faerûn pantheon to simply watch what is essentially a wild card wander into what could be a world-ending conflict. Withers mentions this, for being a god watching over fate and death, he had no insight into Págos which made dealing with him unsettling at the very least. In my head Elminster also mentions this to Gale as a forewarning about Págos from Mystra, Vlaakith knows this and becomes even angrier not just because of Lae'zel going against her, but because lae'zel is traveling with a companion that makes the entire situation much more dangerous for her, Same with Shar. It is why raphael tried so desperately to get págos into a contract with him. The stakes are higher with a glitch in the system, outside of their control and outside of their influence. Not to say they couldn't hurt him of course, they could they're gods, but its with the knowledge it isn't as simple as smiting someone when a greater power has placed them there, when doing so creates a plethora of problems than it would if págos was simply another mortal. I just think its all very funny. Its also my reasoning why they dont just directly influence him or the game outside of whatever reasoning is already provided.

And also, as a little side note about how ive been having so much fun with him as a character...its kinda like i said before. Dragons in dnd are incredibly powerful, knowledgeable, otherwordly PEOPLE. They are PEOPLE, they are highly intelligent (moreso than the mortal races) and can outlast civilizations...but they are never treated as such, a product of being a game npc. Dragons are regulated to side characterss, npcs, animals, threats, mounts, but never really delving deep into their own personhood. Never the heroes of a story...until now! Thats why I like Págos so much! Because I get to play with How a dragon actually interprets life and emotion differently. I get to delve deeper into lore like this, I get to play with a dragon interacting with others not as this outside influence but as a friend, as their ally. Especially with him being a chromatic dragon its doubly important since chromatics are often just considered evil and are more likely to be treated as animals despite the fact they are just as capable as their metallic counterparts. Anyway I just think its fun! Thanks for coming to my Tav ted talk.

[skunts-own-truth]

First full session of my group’s new Runequest campaign tomorrow! I’m running a settlement game, with a dispossessed and homeless clan gaining a powerful land claim stele from the Prince of Sartar herself. All they have to do is go out, find unsettled land, plant the stele and enact a ritual and 12 hides of land will be theirs, fully recognized by the Orlanthi pantheon of gods. For better or for worse, they will be bound to it. Where they settle, who their neighbors, rivals, and foes will end up being will primarily be up to them! I’ve written some specific villains that will show up wherever they go, but for the most part how they interact with the clans and elder races around them will determine what sort of campaign this will end up as.

In our last session, the party had a small adventure to fight some scorpion men to get the feel of the game system and understand their spirit and runic magic better. During it, they came across some trolls that could have very well been enemies, but with some well fought wrestling and good natured bellows of challenge, mutual respect was gained and our Stormbull cultist invited the trolls out to join the settlement. That should prove… interesting. Especially since these trolls worship the god of destruction. By nature they’re gonna want to break things, disrupt order, and see some sort of blood spillage. I’m very curious as to how the party will keep the Uz pack entertained.

[rotten-games]

Does the god parent’s race (or their visual race, since I guess it’s just visual for them as gods?) affect their half children? Additionally, so their half-mortal children typically have any physical traits from their god parent? I think I remember that they can get Weird traits from just being half-mortal (I think you mentioned horns and the MC’s own funky purple fire being those kind of traits) but can they get specific appearance traits from their god parent? Like their nose shape or skintone

Kinda. It's a little complicated.

At the end of the day, unless the god comes down into the physical plane themself and does the dirty deed, there is technically nothing biologically that would make a Godkin any different than their mortal peers. Most of the time, the Gods come to mortals in possessed bodies or via proxies with a tiny sliver of their power within. Thus, the physical characteristics of the union would be a combination of traits from two technically mortal parties.

It doesn't necessarily change the fact that even this small sliver of power can have an effect on how the child looks. Like mc, this can affect the way their abilities manifest, or offer different characteristics that might otherwise not show up in the parents' races.

That being said, if a God were to come down and partake in sex the good ol' fashioned way that would result in something very different. The race of people that make up the Aebrexian pantheon cannot actually pass on their genes to a mortal child traditionally; the result would pretty much be an exact copy of the mortal parent in appearance just with some very... strange oddities. Of course, the child is much stronger than a typical Godkin but in the same vain cannot handle such raw power within their flimsy mortal bodies. Eventually, the Godkin dies. This death could be immediate, or could take a few years, but whatever the case is the child always dies well before their time.

As such, this is not a common occurrence anymore.

[lividria]

Vivlore: Elementia & WORMWOOD

PLEASE FOR THE LOVE OF GOD READ THE POST LINKED HERE FIRST NONE OF THIS WILL MAKE SENSE IF YOU DON'T

I totally didn't forget I was doing this when my brain turned into popcorn after the metroid prime 4 trailer no you're crazy what are you talking about

last vivpost was about the main gimmick of the world, now it's time to introduce the character and a half who caused the apocalypse, and the first of many tragedies to befall this consarned world, and i do fucking mean many

Elementia, Delusional Demiurge

At some point in early human history, on the continent of Vitalem, masses of every individual type of magic all somehow merged together into one living being. How? I dunno, doesn't matter. This being was Elementia, because I have very original names.

Elementia somehow believed they were god, when there's like... An entire pantheon of gods above them that they didn't know about. So, they got to work helping out the humans around them, giving them knowledge, fire, shelter, all that with their all-powerful magic. They even made helpers corresponding to each specific magic type to cater to specific needs or wants of humanity... I only have one of them solved, and they deserve their own future post, so just keep this concept in mind in the future. Or don't.

They even built a giant structure in space to contain any Negative Vehemoths that formed, fittingly named the Land of the Vehemoths, instantly warping them there any time Elementia found them with their awesome not-god-powers. As such, nobody ever really figured out how to dispose of them, because they had a demiurge to take care of it from them.

But then the gods sent down an angel to go let Elementia know that they aren't actually god. That was the message, in its entirety. It wasn't malicious, they didn't tell them to stop being nice to humanity, they just wanted to correct the misinformation. But, of course, Elementia, not having known these guys even existed and having developed an ego to go with their god complex, lashes out...

And gets a massive scar carved into their chest, in the shape of the symbol of the gods, as the angel leaves. A permanent reminder to know their place. And with that, Elementia was in pain, confused, horrified, and alone, because obviously humans have no clue what the fuck is happening.

Elementia's Exile

Elementia, unfortunately, didn't get the proper message. They just got shown a glimpse of the power of the beings above them, and that angel easily could've killed them if they wanted to, so they know without a shadow of a doubt they're not god anymore. If they're not god, they shouldn't be helping humanity anymore, they need to just... Go away, and cry in the corner. Obviously, they aren't thinking straight.

They retreat to their space jail thing, the Land of the Vehemoths from earlier, because at this point they view themselves as an equally abhorrent being to a Vehemoth because of their fuck-up, so they just kinda hang out with the hate monsters for a while, unsure what to do for the next couple eons.

But, soon, they had an idea. Using their powers, they created a miniature planet in the Land of the Vehemoths (don't worry, there's plenty of room, and they made sure to cut it off from the rest of the exclusion zone). If Elementia can't help humanity, if they're not god, they can make their own people. Help them prosper. Watch them grow, and succeed. Be their god.

So Elementia got to work, creating a beautiful landscape across the planet; lush wildlife, awe-inspiring creatures, enough water, food, etc. for life to survive anywhere on or even in the planet. They then tried to make their own people, their own humanity. Of course, they tried to make it distinct. Humanity isn't theirs, they can't have it, they need their own toy.

But, indeed, nobody short of a fantasy author could exactly come up with an entire completely unique race of sentient organisms when their only exposure to such a concept was humanity, and this people mirrored humanity far too much. So did everything on the planet, really. The planet itself, too. It reminded Elementia too much of home. They left it behind, returning to the Land of the Vehemoths. They couldn't... They just couldn't, you know?

Remember how basically any living being can make Negative Ardor? Yeah, Elementia's really fucking going through it, and it's starting to overcome them like an infection. They're unwillingly becoming an Immortali. Of course, they recognize this and try their best to cheer up, find some way to get the Ardor off, but it doesn't exactly work, and the Vehemoths are circling like sharks.

Elementia, eventually, violently rips off as much as they can, shape it into a ball, and just... Hurl it away. Vehemoths try to feed on it, but it's so big, it dwarfs them, and consumes them, just growing bigger... It hits the edge of the Land, and it breaks through the wall.

And lands on Earth. On the same continent where Elementia lived. Vitalem.

WORMWOOD, Horse of the Apocalypse

It's name is only stylized like that to make it cooler (Relic of before I made Elementia... Or, rather, transplanted them into this story, and WORMWOOD was the unexplained sole cause of all this), and I actually stole this idea from Metroid Prime's Leviathans, only to find out it might've come from the Book of Revelations, so I just stole the name from the Bible version because it's fun. It'll just look like I took it directly from Revelations to anyone I don't call this out to, anyways.

WORMWOOD, being a giant ball of Ardor and leftover magic from Elementia, touches down in the middle of Vitalem, in a large lake, immediately sterilizing the entire resulting area. It's a combination of the impact fucking shit up, and Negative Ardor getting launched everywhere and effectively destroying the environment. This place goes on to be known as the Fervent Wastes, with the immediate area around WORMWOOD fittingly being named the Ocean of Wormwood. The immediate effect beyond killing a ton of people upon landing, is that the Vehemoths are no longer being sent to the Land of the Vehemoths any time they form (Well, ever since Elementia left, but people have been doing fine so this only becomes a problem now), multiple of them came along with WORMWOOD and got launched off, and even more are pouring out of the LotV and coming back to Earth.

Humanity is immediately overrun, and I'll describe the fight they put up in the next post. But, all you need to know right now is that they fail, and are almost completely wiped out. This is the apocalypse.

But, also, something more insidious begins. WORMWOOD is alive too, like the other Vehemoths, but instead of acting as an apex predator of humans like the rest, it instead grows roots that dig into the Earth. They sap all magic from everything they touch, and from the surrounding area. They use this magic to grow and find even more, though most of it is sent back to the primary ball to grow stronger. Why is it feeding off of magic instead of Ardor? I don't know, and it doesn't matter, and I also don't care.

One day, when it has grown to become unstoppable, it will pry itself from the Earth's crust and bring about a final doomsday. Plants, animals, humans, magic beings, other esoteric entities that defy characterization, any object containing magic, they will all be sapped of their magic by WORMWOOD in it's endless search to consume more power, and when it is done with Earth, it will depart to another planet, because aliens are canon. Or so the prophecy foretells. Don't worry, things don't ever get THAT dire, this story has a main protagonist with plot armor.

And, of course, Elementia does have a fate after they damn their former home and former people, but I'll save that for the future. You can probably vaguely guess what happens to them, though.

Oh, yeah, by the way, despite all of that, neither Elementia nor WORMWOOD are the main antagonist of Vivlore. He's coming up in like... 3 posts? Yeah, that sounds right.

[rakubalka]

Just me rambling about Dr Doom backstory and how it might break with some Slavic parts thrown in the mix

I will put it out there that I am not an expert or that knowledgeable in Romani culture so this is only on the Slavic part

While I know a lot more on marvel it's still not that much so we are going whit the Slavic side of things

So as I was heading home i stumbled on the thought that Victors mom making a deal with Mefisto makes sense only in a purely christian there are only god , angels and demons along with humans sense . Which doesn't make sense for a rural Slavic county in which legend and myths thrive and which considering that (even trou a very very very inaccurate depiction) the Slavic pantheon does exist , dracula and vampires exist and probably other Slavic associated mythological races also exist . Again makes absolutely zero sense as to why she , a presumably at least relatively strong and knowledgeable user of magic would risk her soul and posable life when she can much more easily make a deal with a Leshy(a master of nature in Slavic mythology who rules over the forest) for protection and hiding their tracks for the much much lesser price of tings like alcohol , human made food and other relatively small offerings . And I know that their group is Romani but when you live in an area you start to hear and know at least some of the local legends which if they have been in Latveria for at least one or two generations they would learn overtime , especially if it is a cautionary tale . So over time they would know of at least some legends .

Now while I don't know what specifically category Victor's mom is in , at in least Slavic magic I'm pretty sure we can rule her out as(I'm using DND naming here to make it easier to google to understand) cleric . Which leaves us with her being :

A) a warlock by using a newer version of Slavic magic in which case you make a deal with the devil and in exchange get a couple very low ranking demons to command and take power from , and if this is the case it asks the question as to why would Mefisto kill her as her soul wound probably be his if she doesn't give the demons away to someone else , which would probably be Victor but with how dangerous her life was , it might have killed her before that . Not to mention that is only if she is a practically a Saint

B) a sorceress with probably dampiric descent which makes more sense as to why he might try and kill her but also ask the question as to why she would sell her soul as she already had a relatively strong magic being at least partially dampire who were known as very good vampire hunters and also very talented in the magic department which would explain as to where Victor might be getting some of his talent for magic as there is very very little chance that a purely human person without a patron or sponsor of some kind get their magic to the same level or even near it as Dr.Doom even if they are training their whole life . And Victor did in like a 2-3 decades at max once he put himself to seriously learn magic . It's because he is naturally drawn to it and naturally good at it .

Another thing because I just saw the wiki on Victor's mom . She isn't the chief ? I was under the impression she was . Any way if what the wiki says is right , for Victor's dad hiding her being a magic user I would like to know why is that ? Does the clan/tribe think it's taboo for a woman to use magic or if uses of magic it's considered taboo purely on itself . Because in Slavic myths a magic user gender or genitalia doesn't determine how good they are at magic or as a person . That and also in times of great trouble which they probably constantly are as if the baron can't even properly take care of the "first class citizens" aka what would be considered the majority of the people it doesn't really give a good impression of what would happen to a minority , so having someone who can maybe predict the future a bit(not as Romani stereotype as the Slavs also have ways of divination) , have some healing spells, know their way around the herbs or just a straight up fighter who might be able to zap lightings or trow fire at people would come handy very often .

[alatismeni-theitsa]

Hi! First I just wanted to say that I really like your blog and that I’m very happy that you’re talking about this. Secondly, I wanted to talk about something my classmate said that has bothered me for a while. She was talking about how the myth of King Midas was inspired by Mansa Musa, which is…blatantly wrong at best, since Mansa Musa lived around the 1300s and the King Midas myth has been around for much longer than that. She then went on to say that everything about Europe’s culture, including Greek Mythology, is inspired/stolen from African culture. I wanted to know your thoughts on this, because yes, the Greeks do have history in Africa, but calling everything from Greek Mythology “stolen” seems incredibly biased and very offensive towards actual Greeks.

Hello and thank you for the lovely words 🤗

I'm sorry I will be the one to tell you this but I'm afraid your classmate is an Afrocentrist. Afrocentrist rhetoric basically claims that half of history is wrong and that almost everything worthy was done by Black people and that the world wants to hide it because of racism. Classic conspiracy theory.

Now even kind Midas can't stand on his own? They have come for the Middle Eastern figures too? Gosh...

Oh, and of course this is incredibly offensive to other cultures. There are so many disadvantages other countries have, especially if they are weaker or have suffered wars recently, so looking at it only through the lens of race is a great disservice. You don't get a pass to worsen the bigotry someone faces just because you're Black or because you support one of the Black movements. (to be clear, I am not saying Black movements are bad. I am saying this specific one is) As a Twitter user once said:

What your classmates said was just the tip of the iceberg. Many Afrocentrists accuse native Egyptians of kicking the "original" Black Egyptians and colonizing the land thousands of years ago..... Afrocentrists are also often Islamophobic because they correlate the prevalence of Islam in North Africa with another supposed Black expelling from N. Africa.

According to them, most Greek gods are African gods, too, and that Medusa was "Black hair" and that's why the locals called her a monster. Literally none of the above has a historical basis.

Certainly humanity had many common points millions of years ago but it's been so long that what's left behind between distant nations are some faint similarities. I'm sure many Africans would be disturbed if they heard one proclaim that their pantheons and figures are interchangeable with the Greek or Irani/Iraqi ones.

[diinferi]

RACES

[YOKAI] You’re a Yokai, one of the various mythological beings of Japanese folklore. Choose an option below for specifics but in general, you will take a human form or you can take the option to be of a feral variety of your chosen Yokai species to reduce the cost by half. If you take this option with Hanyo you will be like Shinenji, appearing monstrous outside the night of the Full Moon.

[KITSUNE] Kitsune, Fox Spirits. In Yokai terms this describes those of the fox family which do not serve a god. Take for example Shippo and his father. They are tricksters and Pyrokinetics by heart but older Kitsune can be quite powerful. A Daiyokai would have nine tails and be roughly on that level. If given Miko-like powers, a Kitsune will generally be stronger than their equivalent without them.

[DAIYOKAI] Remember all those mentions of Daiyokai? Yeah, this is an upgrade for all Yokai and can be purchased by Hanyo. Basically, take the prize of your choice and double for the total cost. What does this get you? Well for starters you become roughly twice as powerful as normal, you can change into an animal form, a massive one though your age will certainly limit your size.

LOCATION

[INU NO TAISHO’S GRAVE] This is strange, no living being should come here, and you certainly can’t get out that easily. This is the final resting place of Inu no Taisho, the mightiest Inu Daiyokai to ever live. His remains (the size of a FREAKING MOUNTAIN) are the resting place of Tessaiga, the most offensive (not in that way unless you mind swords made of dog fangs) sword on the planet. Also, there is a Shikkon no Tama shard here.

PERKS

[BARRIER DEMON] Creating Barriers is a useful ability to have. While not as powerful you are an expert at Barrier making on par with Naraku, making them as easy to create a breathing. Your power will determine how resistant to damage these barriers are, naturally, but don’t expect barrier-piercing attacks to be reflected unless you got some sort of Universe-level Powerlevel or something.

[BASIC MEDICINE] You have a basic understanding of how to prepare medicine and treat wounds using materials available in these lands to a degree that would make “Doctors” in the West shout witchcraft.

[COMBAT PROWESS] A basic fact of these times you find yourself in, sadly, is that fighting for your life is a daily routine for most of the population, whether human or supernatural. This era is known as the Sengoku Jidai, the Warring States Era, in later years for a reason, you know? But don’t worry, you can rely on your prowess as a warrior to see you through these times! This Perk grants you prowess in the use of two traditional, Japanese weapons, such as the Katana (Sword), Yari (Spear) or Yumi (Bow). This can be purchased a second time to either gain proficiency in another 2 weapons on the same level, gain actual mundane levels of mastery of said weapons, or to specialize in a more specialized/unusual weapon of the same kind (Nodachi for Katana or Naginata for Yari for example).

[COMMANDING AIR] You can be the biggest brat of a lord in all of Japan and still, you command respect and subservience. You breathe intimidation and bear the sheer extent of how capable you are on your sleeve. Your strength alone can bring thousands of Yokai or Samurai to their knees as long as you are stronger than them and they’ll follow you into the bowels of hell and even come when called even if you just want to demonstrate your newest toy.

[DIVINE PASS] The divine can pass to many places such as the afterlife and paradise. Regardless of what pantheon exists or not, you may enter between the world of the living, dead and divine in any world you visit freely.

[ENDLESS WANDERING] You know how large Japan is? It may not look like it, but going through the Japanese countryside in this time era would be torture for most people! Thankfully you have this perk! For free it doubles your endurance when wandering on foot or Bicycle, for 100 on the other hand it gives you infinite stamina and endurance while moving on foot and the ability to do so for 24 hours straight with a human powered vehicle, such as a bicycle.

[FEROCIOUS FANGS] Like Toga the Inu no Taisho you possess tremendous power within your fangs. Should one be removed they can be forged into powerful weapons by an expert Blacksmith such as Totosai. Your personal Power will naturally determine how powerful the blade becomes, but this Perk on it’s own will guarantee it to be at least on par with Tokeshin in power and to have one ability appropriate to it. Daiyokai can with this Perk naturally make some real bullshit similar to Tessaiga and Tensaiga, obviously, and the outer edges of the galaxy are the limit as far as potential goes. Any teeth taken will regrow in a week.

[LESS WORRIES] Feudal Japan doesn’t exactly have a lot of areas to take a dump. This Perk ensures you won’t suffer accidents as you’ll never suffer from needing to take a piss or a dump, so to speak, until you are already in position for it in a bathroom.

[PURIFICATION] Whether by holiness or the power of your Yoki, you are capable of driving out corruption from objects. As long as this corruption, supernatural in nature, is not greater than the evils a person may impart upon the Shikkon no Tama, you can purify it. Naturally, as you grow stronger so will also your scope of purification capabilities.

[RAPID LEARNER] Learning is not a simple matter of desire, it is a necessity. To learn fast is to survive and no other can learn as fast as you in these lands. Whether it be studying, from experience or by practice, you can absorb knowledge and skill at a rate 5 times greater than before. If you buy this multiple times the multipliers are stacked linearly, so 5+5+5 instead of multiplicatively.

[TIMELESS LINGUISTICS] Isn’t it odd when your future boyfriend from 500 years in the past understands your 20th century Japanese? Because it sure is, it’s like there is an author who doesn’t understand lingual drift that occurs over 500 years, no matter how isolated a nation is. Well, you don’t have to worry about that. As long as you know one variant of a language you can communicate with anyone who has another variant of the same language, even if it shouldn’t work.

[TOTOSAI'S APPRENTICE] Who knew that Totosai had another student? You are a skilled blacksmith, able to forge powerful, balanced and enchanted eapons with ease. If given the bone or fang of a still living, supernatural entity you can even forge powerful mythical weapons similar to Tessaiga or Tensaiga, though the quality and power will vary by material origin. Don’t worry about being possessed though, it won’t be an issue.

[TRAINGING PEAK] To train is to grow stronger. To grow stronger is to gain a survival advantage over the competition. And you my friend can positively compare to the likes of certain Shonen Anime not related to this one, or a certain gender fluid Anime of the same author. All training you conduct will now progress 5 times faster with your physical training bearing fruit as long as you place effort into it, and naturally to grow stronger more and more you need to train harder, though it will take only 20% as much time for the same results. Naturally this applies to systems of growth composed of numerical values too. If you buy this multiple times the multipliers are stacked linearly, so 5+5+5 instead of multiplicatively.

[UNCAPPED POTENTIAL] Most people reach the peak of their possible capabilities at some point, when they plateau in their growth. You do not suffer this fate. You can choose one perk, ability or skill you possess and put it into a “Slot”. As long as it stays in this slot you can make it become more powerful and versatile by repeatedly making an effort to push the limits of the ability, such as attempting to use a Perk capable of mind reading 10 people on 11, then 12 and so on. After every second Jump (Gauntlets not included) which lasts at least 10 years, you gain an additional slot to use this with.

[YOKAI POTENTIAL] You have the power of Yokai within you, any power common among your species or Yokai in general, such as Shapeshifting for Kitsune or claw beams such as used by Inuyasha, can be performed with this Perk. It also means you possess Yoki, essentially the Yokai equivalent of Reiki or spiritual energy, which fuels abilities for Yokai including transformations and attacks.

ITEMS

[WARDROBE] A full wardrobe including all manner of clothing found in the Sengoku Jidai and the modern era, yes this includes underwear, but not magical attributes, sorry. But at least this isn’t a cumbersome wardrobe, it is more of a pocket dimension. You can summon all the articles of clothing onto yourself. For an additional 50 CP this includes mundane armor pieces common in Japan as well as Western clothes.

[WEAPON] Now you may wonder what this is about. This is a weapon for which you must choose the prize dear Jumper, what else? For Free this is a mundane, non-powered weapon such as a Katana, Yumi or Yari, no you can’t have a Banryu-style “Cloud Strife and Sword Kirby ask for thier “BFS Guy” Title Back” Halberd. For 100 CP instead this is a weapon with two abilities to be chosen from the Weapon Customization Menu down below. You can buy additional abilities for 50 additional CP per extra ability. This cannot be a firearm and if it is a Yumi, aka a bow, it will impart it’s offensive traits onto an arrow fired. Yes Hirakotsu works for this as a basis. You can buy multiple instances of this item with power pools separated.

[BAG OF TRICKS] A Infinite bag full of various tools and toys such as small bombs that can be infused with Yoki for more powerful blasts, leafs perfect for Illusion Magic and enabling shapeshifting, various toys that can give the illusory impression of pain or weight, as well as magical mushrooms and acorns for communication or throwing at enemies. Your own strength determines the effectiveness of this.

[ARMOR OF A NOBLE RULER] This set of Yokai derived armor is reminescent of Toga’s, the Inu no Taisho, personal armor and is able to protect the wearer from most attacks as it’s durability scales with the user. The armor will disintegrate if transformed into a form too large for it and features two trailing fur “Tails” along the shoulders.

[WEAPON: HEALING NEGATION] You know that annoying ability many beings have? The ability to regenerate? Yeah, fuck that shit. Your weapon can now inflict wounds that cannot be healed with self-regeneration, neat right?

[WEAPON: ONLY MINE] Your weapon can only be used by you and no one else. If someone were to pick it up to cut someone they'd find it does about as much damage as a pool noodle, if they can even pick it up at all.

[HINEZUMI COAT] A coat made of the hide of a Firerat similar to Inuyasha’s Kimono. This Item can be added to any article of clothing to add it’s nature to that item and grant it fire repelling effects along with greater durability and damage resistance, making it better for protection.

[PRAYER SLIPS] A bag containing at all times 100 paper slips depicting prayer to the Buddha or Shinto Gods. Beyond being simply used for prayer these papers are potent weapons against Yokai, able to seal their powers and drain them of energy as well as ward them off and exorcise evil spirits if used correctly. Comes with the knowledge on how to use them, refills to full if the bag is closed.

[WARLORD] Less of an item and more of a title with a lot of land. You have control of a Japanese province-sized territory rich in resources and with a central castle as your stronghold. The residents of this territory are loyal to you and see you as their rightful ruler and either Patron or even god, depending on what type of race you are. This may be a historical province or a patch of land that may not be found in modern Japan. Additional purchases of this item will grant equally sized adjacent provinces as your territory.

[BAG OF FOOD] This is a large duffle bag made of canvas inside of which one can see a large lunchbox. Regardless of what mundane food the holder wants, when this box is opened it will hold exactly what they had desired, no matter what it is. Furthermore, more boxes will be found inside when you don’t look with them being stacked three high even when observed. The boxes themselves, when emptied or no longer needed, will disappear instantly. Includes any sauces, garnish and Soy sauce needed as well as spices.

[MIGHTY FANG] This is a Fang from a powerful Daiyokai, a perfect material for a sword or to integrate into a pre-existing weapon through reforging. This Item can be used by a Blacksmith to make a powerful Yokai weapon, such as Tessaiga, Tensaiga or other such weapons, by a skilled craftsmen, such as Totosai or, if you have the skills, by yourself. You can choose 5 abilities from the weapon customization options below to give the resulting weapon. Slot Count doesn’t apply.

DRAWBACKS

[SIBLING RIVALRY] You have an older sibling who is superior to you in power, skill and experience. They have stronger versions of all your perks from this Jump and will feel entitled to everything you obtained in this Jump and some things you carried over from previous ones. Essentially, this is your Sesshomaru. They won’t always attack or try to kill you, aiming for humiliation for the most part to show dominance.

[THE LONG WAY DOWN] You don’t start a day after the Shikon no Tama was shattered, you start around the time of the 11th century, or when Inuyasha was born. You can’t leave until the Shikon no Tama has been destroyed.

[LONG HAUL] You’ll be stuck here until you reach the modern era. And I mean by the long way, living from the Sengoku Jidai until Kagome travels back in time, you understand? I hope you got some longevity going Jumper. That’s 500 years at least.

FUTURE

[INTO THE WELL] Move Along, take 200 and get outta here! You move to the next jump in this chain, because why would you stop here?