The Zodiac
The Super-pantheon formed by the 14 most powerful Constellations is acknowledged by the vast majority of humanoid society. As the some of the oldest constellations, they played an integral part in the Dawn War against the Obyrith and the Primordials, leading the world against the forces threatening to consume them all. Having achieved incredible power through the creation of Divinity during the war, they were established as the greater deities, ruling above the other deities and maintaining the cosmic order.
As constellations, the members of the Zodiac exist in a higher space than what mortal minds can fully understand, and as such their known interactions with the world are cryptic and vague at best, with avatars, prophets, acolytes, disciples, champions, and manifestations, of their will being the most direct means of interaction they are capable of.
In the current age, the Zodiac have given very little direct guidance to their followers, causing their worship to be widespread, but unorganized and split into different sects of followers.
Because of this, the Zodiac tend to keep to their own responsibilities, and the other pantheons of the world do the majority of the work with the Planes themselves. An avatar from any of the Zodiac has not been seen on the Prime Material Plane since the Beginning of the Silence, and the reasons for their general detachment from their worshipers is unknown.
Structure
The Zodiac is made up of its 14 members, which are all thought to be related in some way to one another. There is no strictly known hierarchy, with the exception of Ophiuchus and Polaris, who are known to be later additions to the pantheon.
Public Agenda
The Zodiac are the most powerful of the Constellations. They rule over vast domains encapsulating their respective fundamental concepts, with the gods of the other pantheons drawing their power from ever more specific or narrow concepts. Each member of the Zodiac has their own goals, and it is unclear to what extent they work together, or what ends would require them to work together.
The members of the Zodiac almost never interact with the world in the present day. Losing all contact at the beginning of the Silence and only establishing the most cryptic and indirect forms of interaction with the world and their churches when the Silence ended. Reliant on the leadership of their churches to interpret and do their will, the goals of each god are hard to understand, but still have the potential to drastically affect the world regardless.
Assets
Every member deity has their own formally established Churches and Religious systems, which have consistently been among the most powerful organizations on the planet, with incredible assets and wealth, along with the direct backing of said powerful deity.
The Zodiac as a whole is also known to have two major Holy Sites that are tended by High Priests of each deity and are considered major religious sites, each lying on incredibly powerful Terminals. The Candidissimi Stella in the Sea of Falling Stars is considered one of the most beautiful areas in the world, and is a difficult, but very famous pilgrimage many undertake. However, the Ascending Temple in Bellome is more widely traveled as it sits on the outskirts of Soulmon in the Butheauxnian Empire, and is home to much more of the actual machinations of organized religion.
Mythology & Lore
Myths of the Lost Age
Th exact origins of the Zodiac are known only through a collection of myths recorded by the priests and clergy of the various churches of the Zodiac. These myths are general tales of the abilties and history of their associated deities in the Lost Age, where no other form of record remain. It is generally described as a golden age of civilization, before the members of the Zodiac had discovered Divinity and were instead only the immortal rulers of the world due to their own power.The Dawn War
The Dawn War is the most prominent myth of the Zodiac, as each member played a prominent role as leader of the Stellar armies as they fought against the combined might of the Obyrith and the Primordials. It is in this framework that the Zodiac are said to have discovered the Rites of Divinity, creating deities as we know them today, granting them the ability to draw power from other living beings through worship and faith. Their victory in the Dawn War is the reason they are granted their supremacy over the other gods and their vast domains. It is also said to be when the other deities and powerful beings agreed to the Pochumil Ritual, which allowed the Zodiac to take a share of the worship and offerings creatures made to other deities as their own.The Silence
The Era of the Silence is a historical age rather than a true myth. This era is defined by the loss of contact between the Zodiac and subsequently most other deities, kicked off by the words of the Zodiac member Ophiuchus in "Do not worry. It is all going to be alright." This lead to a period of great religious and political upheaval, which ended when the lights of the Zodiac member Polaris flared impossibly bright and most gods reestablished contact with their faithful, although they would not say what had happened. The Zodiac themselves never interacted with the world as directly as they had before, only doing so cryptically and to their most faithful.Divine Origins
The Zodiac began as all Constellations do, born from the stars themselves the first time a creature truly thought about a concept- be that justice, communication, or ambition. Once the concept came into existence, they are given physical form as the incarnation of their constellation in the world. For a time, if their myths are to be believed, they lived on Earth as creatures with immensely powerful souls, ruling over all other creatures in the Lost Age.
Cosmological Views
It is unclear where exactly the realms of the Zodiac are located, with the two main theories being somewhere in the Astral Sea as with most other gods, or in the Far Realm, back among their home in the stars.
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