The god of war and fire, Balthazar is often worshipped by Warriors and Fire Elementalists, though there are Monks who have been known to follow his
scriptures as well. Specifically, monks who are devoted to the Protection or Smiting disciplines can also be found among his devotees, and speak his name
with reverence.
Army commanders and guild lords will often say a few words to the Bastion of Martial Glory before leading their followers into battle. The Lord of War
watches over the battlefields and arenas of the world to see who glorifies his name. Balthazar gives strength to soldiers marching into battle and any
adventurer who is ready for a fight. He guides the sharpened edge of a sword or axe so that it cuts deeply. In arenas protected by his priests, followers
demonstrate their prowess in battle to earn his favor.
Balthazar is frequently shown holding a greatsword, its tip lodged in the ground, with a pair of battle hounds sitting at attention at his feet. In Cantha, the sword
is usually one of the single-edged imperial style, and the battle hounds are usually replaced with winged drakes. Some Elonian art portrays him with
majestic lions or other predatory companions crouching beside him. A Dervish taking the Form of Balthazar is a fiery presence, assaulting the world with
armor as resilient as heavy plate and a weapon as lethal as the deity's greatsword. |
The goddess of life and air, Dwayna is the even-tempered leader of the old gods. Dwayna watches the world from the heavens, beatifically observing humanity.
Her followers are primarily healing Monks and Elementalists specializing in Air Magic, though in times of war, there are few denizens of Tyria who have
not let fly a prayer to the Winged Goddess to spare them or their loved ones.
Countless heroes in need of healing whisper her name in prayer. Dwayna speeds travelers on their journeys, and when her followers are in danger, she
sends down lightning from the skies to punish their enemies.
In works of art, Dwayna is often depicted as young, tall, and slender, rising over the ground on huge feathered wings. Canthan artists often depict her
floating above the vibrant, living souls of their eternal ancestors. Elonian artists sometimes show her rising from lands ravaged by drought, disease, or
plague. A Dervish assuming the Form of Dwayna towers over mortal men, surrounded by elegant wings. |
Necromancers revere Grenth, as do Water Elementalists, who often punish their enemies with chilling cold. Necromancers learn early that the way to true
power is by bowing down at the foot of the god of death and ice and pledging total, undying allegiance. The Assassins of Cantha pay homage to Grenth, and
rarely take on a job unless a priest of Grenth places a blessing upon the task. Ritualists, who speak to and control the darker forces of the underworld,
also draw strength from Grenth’s teachings.
When the world is at its darkest, fearful souls pray to him as a means of last resort. Worship of Grenth requires sacrifice. Any path to his hidden secrets
tests the soul as much as it does the mind. His acolytes and cultists know that the veil between worlds is thin, but if they can pay a price of blood and
souls, the bodies of the dead will rise up and wreak havoc in the world of the living. The faithful know that when they die, their souls will eventually
pass on to the Mists... but they still pray to Grenth, so that he may ease their suffering along the way.
Monuments to Grenth depict the god with the body of a man and the narrow, skeletal head of a drawn-faced beast. Often, there are followers at his feet,
grasping toward his open, clawed hands, clamoring for the powers the unforgiving deity may feel so inclined to heap upon his subjects. Canthan artists
tend to add a draconic look to the skull. The Canthan version of Grenth stands astride a small mountain of the dead, but in Canthan art the faces of these
corpses are always averted from the god of death, as if in shame, to distinguish these enslaved dead from the “living” ancestor spirits. Throughout Elona,
many of these statues have piles of bone and ivory beneath them, left as offerings by anonymous and fearful commoners. When life is difficult, zealous
worshipers leave offerings of flesh and sinew, showing their devotion with fanatic displays of sacrifice. A Dervish assuming the Form of Grenth glares at
the world through a bestial skull, measuring the worth of each fallen corpse. |
The twin goddesses of beauty and illusion forming a paradoxically singular entity, Lyssa is the matron goddess of the Mesmer profession in the northern
Tyrian continent. Many Canthan Assassins revere Lyssa more for her intrinsic duality than her famous beauty and have been known to invoke her charms.
Lyssa wears many masks, appearing in myriad forms. In Cantha she also represents the incarnation of luck, both good and bad. Many a spellcaster has
fallen under the charms of these two, making it easy for them to choose to specialize in the mesmeric arts. Patrons of the arts effusively praise her,
particularly in the courts of wealthy Vabbi, but some fear her as a temperamental goddess. Behind her beautiful façade, some say, she maintains a deep
communion with chaos. Displays of art and culture please her, but her wrath is terrible to behold. Her followers use her magic for illusion, trickery,
and deception, twisting the magic of others to suit their own goals. By her whims, her enemies are brutalized by despair and hopelessness, while her
beautiful followers are elevated to heights of rapture. There are stories of young men stopping to gaze longingly at statues of the beautiful goddesses,
only to forget themselves and die of thirst while simply looking on.
Tyrian artists often portray Lyssa in her natural state as two goddesses: a pair of intertwined goddesses, twin figures of exquisite beauty entwined in an
eternal dance, back to back, no illusions or glamours involved. Depictions of Lyssa in Canthan culture reflect the typical northern style: lithe twin
figures of exquisite beauty entwined in an eternal dance. In Elona, the masks may change, and the dance may change, but Lyssa’s dual nature does not.
She is beautiful to some and terrifying to others. A Dervish assuming the Form of Lyssa wears multiple masks, channeling blessings for mayhem and magic. |
Many Canthans, especially the suspicious Luxons and the warlike Kurzicks, believe that the goddess of earth and nature has abandoned the empire. They
believe that not even Melandru could have withstood Shiro Tagachi's literally petrifying death cry. But Melandru’s devoted followers, the Rangers, Earth
Elementalists, and many cultist sects know that this is merely a misunderstanding of what the goddess truly represents. They know that the goddess endures
within the crystalline shell of the once-thriving Canthan landscape. It is said the Maguuma druids at one time worshipped this deity, but there are none
alive today who can confirm the truth of this rumor.
Rangers and Earth Elementalists leave offerings to Melandru, trusting to her guidance. Her statues attract weary travelers. Beneath her branches await
plenty of fresh water and shelter from the elements. Melandru’s roadside temples offer shelter, food, and water to weary travelers even in Cantha, though
such shrines are few, and separated by long stretches of lifeless stonescape. Throughout Elona as well, roadside temples to the goddess offer shelter and
water to weary travelers. Wandering Dervishes maintain many of these shrines. With her blessings, the ground can slow or snare enemies, wanderers can
survive in the harshest wilderness, and masters of magic can shake the very foundations of the world.
Melandru is frequently depicted in both Cantha and Tyria as a tall, winged dryad from the waist up. But whereas northerners see a creature whose lower
half grows naturally into the trunk, branches, and roots of a living tree, Canthan artists usually describe a severe figure ensconced in an outcrop of
Echovald quartz. Many temples use magic to shape her shrine from a living tree; for example, Elonian sculptures often rise from the base of a mebayah or
a rooted dreamflower. A Dervish assuming the Form of Melandru has an arboreal appearance, acting with the same resolve as a tree with roots deep in the
earth. |