Melora (Meh-lore-a)
Overview
Daughter of Mehena and twin sister of Varen. Melora is the god of the rural and simple life, with hunting and farming being her focus. Her religion has the oldest known temples that survived the calamity, depicting when small farming communities and hunter-gatherers prayed to her for bountiful harvests and successful hunts. She leads her followers by stories of examples and good deeds rather than flowery rhetoric. The members of The Deadeye's clergy are active in their respective communities, leading by example and serving in various capacities as needed by those that live around them. Her herald is the Great White Stag, who is called upon to lead the creatures of the forest to war against evil forces.Portfolio and Responsibilities
She is a goddess whose portfolio includes villages, hunting, farming, the wilderness, and hard work. Melora teaches her followers to embrace traditional and simpler ways of life, free of the constraints of modern civilization, a trait that often results in disagreements with more progressive deities such as her brother. The faithful of the Woodwoman can be found in nearly every wilderness community. They usually choose to live simple lives and practice her teachings away from the complications of more advanced societies. Sites dedicated to Melora are simple affairs, even in more civilized locations; shrines are usually nothing more than a wooden building or house serving communities of her faithful. Perhaps in relation to her son, Xavius, Melora’s clergy condemn suicide, and it is said that any of her faithful who commit suicide are barred from their preached afterlife.Manifestations
When Melora manifests, it is most often as a glowing white stag who gallops through the air. At times, she appears like a radiance of green and gold colors, showing her followers the way in dark times. To test behavior, Melora sometimes appears as a mortal woman lost and alone in the forest, asking for aid.Divine Domains
Animal (only Feather and Fur), Community (including Cooperation, Family, and Home), Good (including Archon), Law (including Archon), Plant (all except Decay), Protection (including Defense and Solitude), Travel (only Exploration)
Artifacts
Bow of the Heartwood - This +5 composite longbow is carved from the heartwood of an ancient oak tree that grew in a forest blessed by Melora. Three times a day, it can strike its target perfectly, and aid in the tracking of creatures.
Divine Symbols & Sigils
Holy Weapon - Bow, Spear
Holy Animal - Deer, any farm animal
Holy Color - Brown and Green
Holy Mineral - None, although flint is used often
Holy Symbol - Bow and Arrow
Tenets of Faith
Edicts - Live a simple life far from large cities. Hunt to survive.
Anathema - Enter a large city. Work only to obtain wealth. Commit suicide
Holidays
Melora's worshipers celebrate Planting Week on the Greengrass, Archer's Day on the 3rd of Mirthul, and Harvest Feast on the autumnal equinox.
Meta Information
Obedience
Plant five seeds in fertile earth, spacing them out in the shape of an arrow. The seeds may be those of any plant that can potentially grow in the region, though edible plants are preferred. The seeds don’t need to be from a type of plant that could thrive in that soil—all they must have is a chance at survival. If no suitable earth exists, place a small bundle of seeds (again, those that grow edible plants are preferred), a small bundle of preserved food, or a quiver of arrows in a place where a passerby might see it. Mark your gifts with Melora's sign, and say a prayer for the health and safety of the communities in the area and those who may be in need of her guidance. Gain a +4 sacred bonus on Survival checks.Divine Boon
1: Animal Friend (Sp) charm animal 3/day, animal messenger 2/day, or summon nature’s ally III 1/day 2: Hunter's Ally (Sp) Once per day as a standard action, you can summon a pair of hound archons. The hound archons follow your commands perfectly for 1 minute for every Hit Die you possess before vanishing back to their home in Heaven. The hound archons don’t follow commands that would violate their lawful good alignment. Such commands will not only earn refusal and scorn from the hound archons, but could cause them to attack you if the command is particularly egregious. 3: Communal Table (Sp) Your devotion to caring for your community allows you to evoke Melora's divine bounty to feed your friends with a banquet of cooked game and simple beverages. Once per day, you can use heroes’ feast as a spell-like ability. Creatures that eat from this communal table, a process that takes 1 hour, gain a +2 sacred bonus on attack rolls and Will saving throws instead of the usual +1 morale bonus. Whenever you cast this spell, choose one teamwork feat; you may select a new feat every time you cast this spell, but once it’s cast, your selection can’t be changed. Anyone who eats from the communal table gains the benefits of the chosen teamwork feat. The benefits of the heroes’ feast, including the bonus teamwork feat, last for 12 hours. A character doesn’t need to meet the prerequisites for a teamwork feat granted through this ability.Paladin Code of Melora
Paladins of Melora are strict traditionalists. They seek to preserve rural life and their communities.- My community comes first, and I will contribute to it all that I can. If I don’t give something back, who will?
- I must offer the poor in my community assistance, but I may not do the work for them—instead, I must teach them to contribute to the settlement. It is only through cooperation that a community grows strong.
- When danger threatens, I am not a fool. I seek first to make sure the weak and innocent are safe, and then I quell the danger.
- I keep to the old ways, the true ways. I am not seduced by the lure of money or power. I remember that true honor comes from within, not from the accolades of others.
- I remember that reputation is everything. Mine is pure and upstanding, and I will repair it if it is broken or tarnished. I stand by my decisions, and live so that none shall have cause to blame me.
- I show respect to my elders, for they have done much. I show respect to the young, for they have much left to do. I show respect to my peers, for they carry the load. And I shall carry it with them.
- I am honest, trustworthy, and stable. If I must leave my lands and community, before I go, I ensure that they will be tended in my absence. Even when duty calls, my duties to my home come first—letting them lapse makes me a burden on my people.
Unique Spellcasting Rules
Cleric/Warpriest
Goodberry can be prepared as a 2nd-level spell Animal Messenger can be prepared as a 2nd-level spell [may use on any nonhostile animal (including friendly guard animals and domesticated animals)]Druid
Goodberry can be prepared as a 1st-level spell [can cast on nuts or seeds as well as berries]Paladin
Goodberry can be prepared as a 2nd-level spell Animal Messenger can be prepared as a 2nd-level spell [may use on any nonhostile animal (including friendly guard animals and domesticated animals)]Ranger
Goodberry can be prepared as a 2nd-level spellOther Rules
Clerics and druids of Melora are proficient with the shortbowPhysical Description
Body Features
Depictions of Melora are often seen in the homes of his followers. Such images usually portray the deity as either an aged dark haired woman with the bow and gear of a trapper, or as an elk-headed woman. They often show The Deadeye holding fast against various beasts and animals of the wild. In times of need, Melora has been said to appear to lost hunters in the form of a deer.
Divine Classification
Rank 15 Intermediate Deity
Alignment
Lawful Good
Realm
Church/Cult
Honorary & Occupational Titles
“The Deadeye”, “The Wildmother”, or “The Woodwoman”
Children
Pronouns
she/her
Aligned Organization
Other Affiliations
