Boda

Goddess of Chaos

The best of Boda is the free spirit, but the worst is unhinged madness.

Boda, the Moon and the Goddess of Chaos, Nature, Water and Earth, is one the of two celestial deities in the dualistic Syzygy Cosmology. The twin Sister of Ashra the Sun, Boda and her brother are jointly responsible for the creation of the planet Cynos, albeit inadvertently.

Boda's death at Ashra's hand during a solar eclipse.

As the Goddess of Chaos, Boda wishes to see the Universe free from restriction and limitation. She views rules and structure as shackles, and she instead encourages her devotees to push boundaries and live life to the fullest. Boda represents everything contrary and complimentary to her brother. Where Ashra's light falls, Boda casts shadows. Where Ashra seeks to impose order and law upon Cynos, Boda undermines structure and encourages nature to do as it pleases. Boda's existence angered Ashra, who chased her endlessly through the The Astral Sea and around Cynos. For millennia, she evaded him, too quick and lucky to be caught. In the year 0 BDB, during a solar eclipse that left Boda vulnerable, Ashra succeeded in killing his sister, resulting in The Impact.

Ideals

Boda offers encouragement to all those who operate outside the law, from benevolent rogues to savage murderers. She watches over all animals, beasts, sea creatures and birds, for they live without rules or institution. The best of Boda is the free spirit, but the worst is unhinged madness.

Provider of the Arcane

Boda's celestial body is the source of arcane magic on Cynos. She presented it as a gift to the planet, offering mortals an alternative to the divine powers of Ashra, which she considered to have too many strings attached. Her intention was to provide mortals with the tools to play and experiment, and to encourage them to see how far they could push the limits of reality. She did this by delivering the Eight Schools of Magic , one for each of her lunar phases.

After her death and the subsequent Impact in 0 BDB, all of the arcane energy stored within the Moon was released upon Cynos at once in a phenomenon called the Arcane Flood. Magic was at it's all-time strongest, resulting in a dramatic increase of Moon-Touched births. Unfortunately, without Boda to provide more of it, arcane energy had suddenly become a finite resource, which would one day deplete and magic would become a thing of the past. The arcane energy is most concentrated in eight colossal chunks of lunar rock known as Moon Shards, or Shards of Boda. These shards are scattered all over Cynos and are known to have bizarre effects on the surrounding climate and ecosystems. They are also often sought by mages hoping to bolster their magical power.

The Eight Lunar Schools of Magic.

Clerics of Boda

Boda looks with disdain upon the organized religions devoted to Ashra, but that doesn't stop mortals from worshipping her in less-mainstream ways. Clerics of Boda, or Moonlight Clerics, are known to practice a divine magic based on the chaotic nature of Boda. Unlike their counterparts, Moonlight Clerics and Paladins tend not to belong to clergies or participate in organized prayer. Rather, they worship individually, or in groups of two or three at most. Since Boda offers no tenants for mortals to follow, each Moonlight Cleric decides how best to revere the Moon in their own way.

Celestial Planes

Boda oversees the two Planes of Chaos: the chaotic-good aligned Arborea, and the chaotic-evil aligned The Abyss. The former is a place of lush, thriving nature, free-roaming animals and tranquil harmony. The latter is a nightmare-filled cacophony of twisted, terrifying and absurd environments, where demons brawl and vie for dominance. The souls of chaotic-aligned mortals will be delivered to either Arborea or the Abyss upon their death, in accordance with Divine Judgement.