THE POWERS

powers - anthropomorphic personifications of the forces of the five elements, worshiped across the whole of Alyria

The majority of the denizens of Alyria worship personifications of the forces
of the five alchemical elements - earth, water, air, fire, and ether. They
are known as the Powers. Sub-classifications of these five Major Powers exist,
which vary among the sentient races, defining certain aspects of each greater
Power, but the essential forces remain the same. These Powers are named and
classified as follows:

MARADAS
Earth - Masculine, cold and dry in nature. Represented by the color
black and the direction north, and linked to the Physical plane.
Gnomes are the faerie creatures directly embodying the primal forces 
of this Power. 

ITHRILIS
Water - Feminine, cold and moist in nature. Represented by the color
blue and the direction west, and linked to the Astral plane. Undines
are the faerie creatures directly embodying the primal forces of
this Power. 

DIRA
Air - Feminine, hot and moist in nature. Represented by the color yellow
and the direction east, and linked to the Mental plane. Sylphs are the
faerie creatures directly embodying the primal forces of this Power. 

GATH
Fire - Masculine, hot and dry in nature. Represented by the color red
and the direction south, and linked to the Spiritual plane. Salamanders
are the faerie creatures directly embodying the primal forces of
this Power. 

VANDYNE
Ether - Androgynous and Neutral in nature. There is no faerie creature
directly embodying the primal forces of this Power. 

The Powers are themselves parts of the primal Unity - the point in the
universe from which everything stems,  simply, the 'One'. Some races do
not believe in this unity, stating that the five Powers are the only
forces in the universe, but it is known to the exceedingly wise that
the Powers are all extensions of the One. 

Priests will usually choose one of the five Powers or, depending on
their race, one of the many aspects or combination of aspects of a Power.
To tap into the forces of the particular Power they serve, they will
use a combination of chanting and gestures to bring about the appropriate
mindset. Representatives of a religion will be marked with a [Clergy] tag
in front of their names.  Players may become a religious follower by 
interacting with these clergy.

The lesser Powers are as follows:
Vehja - Smoke
Graph - Ice
Gonur - Ooze
Talur - Magma

The demiPowers are as follows:
Zanct - Lightning
Gerdun - Steam
Orth - Radiance
Malfat - Vacuum
Tripp - Minerals
Ethgon - Salt
Vaugal - Dust
Unter - Ash

Druids serve and respect all of the Powers and may call upon their
primal forces when needed. A druid will never call upon the One except
in a dire emergency, for the One embodies the combined forces of all
the Powers and is almost impossible to control without losing oneself
in the channeling.

In addition to the Powers, many other deities, demigods and self-styled
elemental forces, real and perceived, populate Alyria:

Ruthia - Ruthia is sometimes worshiped as the Goddess of Luck by Sigilians,
 but many of Her devotees have turned to Uath in recent times.

Theoorn - One of the old dwarven deific triumvirate, he is vital and
rugged like gemstones.

Asvin - One of the old dwarven deific triumvirate, he is courageous and
honorable like the bearded ancient ones.

Osvin - One of the old dwarven deific triumvirate, he is strong and 
powerful, like the mighty pickaxes.

Sumter - Little is known about Sumter, as all of the historical tracts
and books were lost when the Kells invaded the Temple of Sumter.

Xuchar - The drowish Demon Urge of Malice is viewed by most theologians
as one of the most powerful deities in the drowish pantheon.

Grorbol - A primary goblin deity, much of the goblin theological system
is too complex for non-goblins to comprehend, and thus Grorbol is named
metonymously for all that goblins believe in, and much of what non-goblins
hate in life.

Fallen-Gods - Their names are lost to time, but the idols and deities of
prehistory are still remembered on Arcane and in Mandrake Woods and elsewhere.

Ina - The patron goddess of Aequtus, Ina is widely believed to safeguard
the Western Sea between Sepharia and Avros.

Skah-tuk - Worshipped by the more primitive minotaur tribes, Skah-tuk is
their primary God of Rain.

Saenia - The sea-elves native to the Proving Grounds worship Saenia,
Goddess of Peace and Diplomacy, as a saving grace against the sahuagin.

Holzan - Little is known about this drowish deity. 

Nadazar - Worshiped as the patron God of Atlantis, nearly all local
mermaids pray to Nadazar.

Abacax - An icy balrog of evil and corruption, Abacax worshiped by the
vermin of Shadow Castle and their keepers.

Zeqolas - A tremendously strong shark deity worshiped primarily by the
Sahuagin, he incites frequent evilness, but is not particularly influential.

Hymula - The orcish deity of life and healing is prayed to and worshiped
dutifully, yet few truly follow her.

Allak-sunn - Among some dracons that hold onto old traditions, Allak-sunn
is believed to hold sway over the four winds.

Alkhan-Rakh - Traditionally invoked before attacking naive adventurers
within the Tower of Riga, He is the old ariel God of War.

Praios - Praios is well-known among travelers to Lowangen, for his
adherents prosytelization, and little more.

Uath - Popularly worshiped in Sigil as the God of Luck, Uath has many
gambling devices and games of chance dedicated to his favor.

Indra - The patron goddess of New Rigel, thieves and entertainers
uncharacteristically seek to gain Her favor in search of wealth.

Kalywak - A multifaceted being, the name Kalywak is the invocation of a
continuum of mischief, ranging from harmless jokes to clever pranks to terrible
turns of fate.

Selvicia - The mysterious Lady of the eponymous Cult, Selvicia is known
to have existed at one time, but few outside of the Cult know anything of her.

Vyst - A fiery being from another plane, Vyst seeks greater power in the
form of religious subservience.

Azathoth - A fiery balrog of evil and corruption, Azathoth is worshiped
by anti-paladins and his high priest Kalak in the caverns of Irda Isle.

Yourban - The self-styled master of all evil, Yourban is a demon seeking
to climb the deific hierarchy.

Ypayla - The orcs of Wroth dedicated a holiday and many statues to their
deity of suffering and agony.

V'ree - Little is known about V'ree by outsiders, save that it is one of
the drowish Demonic Urges.

Dracolich - The symbol and ostensible object of the Dracco cult's
attentions, the Dracolich predominately holds power within the Dungeon Avarice.

Beyonder - Only dracons worship this being, yet it is undeniably cosmic
in origin, and held in the utmost respect by the inhabitants of Vir for its
role as the protector of the Source of the dracon genesis.

Stormseeker - An unknown deity from antiquity, only the relics and
remnants of devices created to honor the Stormseeker remain.

The Jellyfish of the Universe - While few worship the Jellyfish of the
Universe, the children's story telling of the creation of the world by
sloughing off of Its egg sac is widely held to be true.

Hungry Implementors - Extra-planar gods of mischief, it is unknown
whether anyone actually worships them, or they simply are truly deific
manifestations that nobody worships.

Metonychoseuthis, with Swiveling Hooks - Presumptively held by cult
followers to be the destroyer of the universe, only the presumptive creator
deity, The Jellyfish of the Universe rivals the godsquid's advertised power.

Jaaek the One-Eyed - The leader of the orcish pantheon of deities, the
primary traits attributed to Jaaek are avarice, envy, and tremendous pride.

Queen Tirona - The eternal leader of the Fey, Tirona oversees the
Unseelie court and holds aspirations towards expanding her empire.

King Sandoval - The eternal leader of the Sidhe, Sandoval seeks to fend
off Queen Tirona's advances, and curry favor on the Physical plane.

Death - The eventual end of all things, death is subtle and sometimes
conflated with entropy on all levels, the patient dissolutor of everything.

Animism - Less an entity than a belief in the inherent life force present in
everything, including objects, animism is widely practiced among primitive people.

PIETY

piety - a personal quality that determines how favorably one's Power views them

 Religious adherents are subject to the whim of their chosen deity or Power's
 benevolence, dependent on how responsive that deity or Power's followers have
 been to their divine needs and whims. These are subject to that divine being's
 overall Benevolence, widely seen as a gauge of their temperament. Piety does
 not deal so much with how the divine entity is feeling, or how strong they are
 relative to their surrounding pantheon; rather, Piety is a strongly personal
 trait, only present, noticeable or meaningful to the individual.

 Piety affects the success rate, efficacy and strength of Religious Spells,
 even more, point-per-point, than Benevolence. For every 1 point of Piety
 possessed, a religious spell's power and level will increase by 1, up to 100.

 Piety may be obtained as rewards for good deeds by religious individuals the
 world over, most notably by doing marks.