Shalimyr (SHALL-uh-meer)

God of the Water

Shalimyr (SHALL-uh-meer) is the chaotic neutral god of the waters of the world: ocean, rivers, lakes, streams, and rain. He is the god of sailing, fishing, and all other mortal endeavors that rely on the water. To those living on coastlands, Shalimyr is the lord of sea storms (to landlocked peoples, Urian is usually considered father of storms). He is the patron of fathers, for he was the father of Eliwyn, the tree from which the gods and mortal races arose, but he is also the patron of grandfathers, for from Eliwyn came the races of the world.
Shalimyr is shown as a great blue-skinned figure, with his hair and beard made of white sea foam. He wields a mighty falchion name Seacrest, and wears armor made from seashells. In his eyes dance the wild waves of the sea.
Common symbols rely on a single cresting blue wave capped with foam. Those wearing a holy symbol of Shalimyr often display it as a wave made of painted shell, though elaborate versions may be crafted out of lapis lazuli and alabaster. In a hurry, when such symbols cannot be made, or when the area on which the symbol will appear is so small that such detail is not possible, a more basic form is acceptable: a simple triangle inside a circle, meant to show that at the center of all things is “the Wave,” as Shalimyr is called from time to time.
In nature, Shalimyr is often associated with the frightening beasts of the sea, such as the great kraken, but he is more commonly identified with simple fish. His favorite creatures are said to be whales, sharks, and dolphins, and certainly Shalimyr’s several faces can be seen in them, from the indifferent whales, to violent and dangerous sharks, and even friendly, helpful dolphins.
Shalimyr is worshiped most ardently by the aquatic mortal races: the sea-elves and merfolk. These two revere Shalimyr over all other gods. On land, he is worshiped by those who live by and with the water—primarily elves and humans.

Divine Domains

• Water
• Cold
• Travel
• Lightning
• Darkness
• Toil
• Destruction

Artifacts

Seacrest - Shalimyr's Falchion
In a contest among the gods, long and long ago, Shalimyr challenged Master Korak to make him a blade out of water. This was a task that drove the King of the Crucible to utter distraction, until one day he hit upon the secret: that water holds reflections. So he made a magnificent falchion of the most shining metals and gems, and then caught its reflection in a pool. He bade Shalimyr to take the reflection from the water, and because the water was a part of the Endless, and thereby the reflection, Shalimyr could do so. Holding aloft this great curved blade, Seacrest, the god of the ocean looked upon Korak with gratitude and offered to pay him with a boon.
Master Korak thought on this a time and could not think of what he would ask of Shalimyr the Endless. He did not ask for anything for many an age, until one day Shalimyr was prepared to flood the many mountain tunnels forged by the hands of dwarves. The Sea Father was infuriated that the stout folk hated the water and did not sail upon it.
So Master Korak asked for this boon: that the dwarven people be forgiven forever by Shalimyr for their arrogance. It has allowed the dwarves, more than any other race, to build lasting monuments of stone, and great cities unmarred by erosion and time,. Shalimyr is as good as his word and forgives them the arrogance of believing that anything they build will last.
What happened to the original blade, from which the reflection was caught? None can say.

Divine Symbols & Sigils

Tenets of Faith

Constant Change

Not as wild as Zheenkeef, Shalimyr does have a great love for dramatic shifts and changes in the world. He believes the world should be in constant flux, or risk stagnation, as his tidal pools grow stagnant with stillness. This is not to say that Shalimyr has no appreciation for the calm and the quiet. Indeed, he is as fond sometimes of silence and gentleness as he is of raging storms and tossing waves. There is a joy in both, but unlike his brother Urian, Shalimyr does not believe there is good in both. Nor does he care. Shalimyr loves to watch things break as much as he loves to watch them grow. He has as much appreciation for cruelty as he does for love, and believes they are equally valid instruments of change. This has been noted by his worshipers; they call the loving side of Shalimyr Grandfather Ocean, whereas the cruel and stormy Shalimyr is named Sea Father. All children of the world love the Grandfather and fear the Father, and Shalimyr seems to enjoy being both loved and feared. What he does not care for is what he sees as the arrogant illusion of permanence.
Shalimyr hates those who are proud and believe that they have built something that will never fall or fail, for they forget that eventually, everything collapses—even the world will crumble someday, when the Nameless One’s name is spoken again. Nothing lasts, no matter how strong or virtuous, and to believe something will endure forever is pure hubris. Because of this, Shalimyr, more than any other god, levels the proud. Like the myth of the Pirate King, tales abound of men, women, or nations that believed they had achieved perfection, only to have everything they were so proud of destroyed by the waters of Shalimyr.
While he loathes pride in others (including the other gods), Shalimyr is himself quite proud. He works his way into every crevice, slips into every available space, all to make sure he can see everything, destroying or nourishing as he chooses. He is unlikely to try to destroy the world, but he loves the power of knowing that drop by drop, he can undermine the foundation of any building, or topple any kingdom. After all, water is everywhere—it is in the air, in the dirt, in the blood of people. Thereby, Shalimyr is in all things, and all the people of the world live by his permission and through his grace. Or so he believes. All this said, Shalimyr can perform acts of incredible generosity. Since the earliest days, Shalimyr allowed the mortal races to sail on his back. Sometimes he rages at ships with his terrible rains, and sometimes he destroys a ship or two, but usually he is quite kind to sailors. The merfolk would have all died but for his grace. Whenever a town is thirsty and finds a new well, it is Shalimyr’s grace made manifest.
While it is true he is capricious and quite often a force for destruction, he is no more purely destructive than he is purely nurturing. He can give gifts to the mortal races that are every bit as magnificent as his punishments.
Among the gods, Shalimyr is usually aloof, except where Zheenkeef is concerned. His protectiveness eventually became an obsession, for Shalimyr the Wave is hopelessly besotted with the Mother of Madness. It is said he and she couple often and feverishly, all without the knowledge of her husband Tinel, the god of knowledge.

Holidays

The main holy days of Shalimyr revolve around the fishing seasons, and depend on climatic conditions. The night before fishermen sail out again after winter is called Return Night, and is a festival of absolute abandon. The Shalimyn drink and eat to excess, dance and sing, all to show their gratitude to the Sea Father. Often a great bull is sacrificed in thanks, and all Shalimyn feast upon its uncooked meat after its blood has mingled with the waters. The first week of winter, when the fishermen must dry-dock their ships, is a somber time, and none of the Shalimyn eat for the week, surviving on only water. All Shalimyn must fast during this week, praying in all three daily prayers for a short winter, even if they aren’t anywhere near a fishing community at the time. It is considered an unforgivable sin for one of the Shalimyn to eat anything during the first week of winter; there are tales of men who grew sick during the week and, after being were force-fed by friends, cut out their own tongues in abject shame. While most aren’t that zealous, it is not a matter to be taken lightly.

Divine Classification

Old God

Religions

• The Basins of Shalimyr

Honorary & Occupational Titles

The Raging, Magnificent, Endless , the Wave, Grandfather Ocean, Sea Father, the Great Sea, the Waters of the World

Related Myths

• The Lost Conqueror
• The Origins of the Merfolk

Abundant Servants

Shalimyr has many children from his copious couplings with mortals over the years, and they serve as his attendants. Chief among them are his four daughters, Ocean, River, Lake, and Stream, each overseeing some part of his vast waters for him. It is said Shalimyr lives in a mighty palace made of pearl and alabaster drawn through the waters by twelve colossal whales, each large enough to swallow a small fleet of ships. These whales are named after the sounds waves make when they hit the various types of land.