Annam

Annam, the All-Father, is the creator god of the giant pantheon. His symbol is a pair of crossed hands, held palms together with their fingers facing downward.
Annam is wise, learned, and philosophical, but also lustful, instinctive, and unpredictable, and he can become bored with endless contemplations. He can be both jealous and witty. He is selfish, sees all others as his inferiors, and is uninterested in the passage of time as it applies to others. Once he has made up his mind, he will almost never change his opinion. While he is all-knowing and prone to deep meditations, he makes many mistakes when he follows his instincts. He foresees the future but cannot prepare for it. Annam rarely sends an avatar to the Prime Material Plane, doing so only at moments of the greatest historical import. His avatar observed the Rain of Colorless Fire, for example, though if he had a role in this disaster he does not speak of it.
When he does appear, Annam takes the form of a 60' or 100+' tall giant with white hair, wearing a robe of midnight blue.
Annam fathered the gods Stronmaus, Grolantor, Iallanis, and Skoraeus Stonebones on an unnamed sky goddess. Surtr, the dead goddess Shax, Diancastra, Hiatea, Thrym, and Karontor are also said to be his children, but perhaps with different wives or concubines (of which Annam is said to have had many). Memnor is sometimes said to be his son with the sky goddess, and other times said to be his brother, or the spawn of a world-devouring monster that Annam or Stronmaus destroyed. An enormous, hideous ogress is said to have seduced Annam, with Vaprak as the result. Annam is most proud of his son Stronmaus, who inherited much of his power, but he wearies of his other, more quarrelsome sons. He seemed incapable at first of even noticing his daughters until Hiatea proved herself to him by means of a series of heroic feats. He accepted the later birth of Iallanis, and Diancastra's feats of wit impressed him greatly, convincing him to elevate her to the status of hero-deity.
In some myths, Annam is said to ride the ki-rin deity Koriel.
Annam’s Hidden Realm is on the plane of the Outlands. He originally lived in Ysgard, in a realm called Gudheim, but Annam departed for his crystal tower because he tired of having to watch over countless worlds and conflicts; in his realm a mechanical orrery of the multiverse simulates the perfection he craves. Gudheim still exists, containing an orrery similar to the one in Annam's current realm. Particularly pious clerics of the giantish gods are believed to be invited to Gudheim for one night just before their deaths.
The spirits of all giants who die in battle are said to be carried off to Jotunheim in Ysgard by Muspel and Muznir, a pair of Annam's servants who take the form of enormous owls.
Worshippers of Annam believe the giants are destined to rule the world. They are taught to honor the Ordning, the hierarchy of giantish society. They are advised not to raise their hands against their fellow giants, and taught not to fear the passage of time, which favors the giants over shorter-lived peoples. They are not to underestimate other races, but neither are they to allow them to impede their goals.
Annam is worshipped by almost all giants, who see him as the greatest example of their own subspecies, personifying the traits that they value the most. To hill giants, he is an enormous glutton; to stone giants, he is the greatest of artists. To frost giants, he is a mighty warrior and reveler.
Annam's priests are extremely rare since the god's retreat, and some worlds may have no priests whatsoever. They must be truly exceptional, having the blood of the elder giants in their veins, and rule their people as kings. Annam may grant omens to his priest-kings once they reach 10th level, revealing the broad course of the future history of the priest's people. He will do this only once in their lives, and will grant omens to no one else. Any priest or shaman of Annam who strikes another giant, willingly or not, must forfeit his position or undergo disvestiture.
The Grand Feast of the All-Father On the first day of the first month of each year, all giants put aside their other duties to ingest vast amounts of food and to celebrate Annam's eventual return. Most tribes celebrate their unity by sending ambassadors to attend each other's celebrations.
Ceremony of Investiture Once every two years, a priest of Annam holds a special ceremony to invest new clergy into the service of the various giantish gods. It is considered a great honor for a tribe's temple to be selected for this purpose.
Prayer Vigil Once a month, a prayer vigil is conducted to honor the All-Father and ask for his guidance.
Birth Annam is said to have been born from the primal forces of Chaos and Law.
Creation Annam is believed by giants to have created all the worlds of the Prime Material Plane. In some legends, he works with human and demihuman deities to create worlds in cooperation, but in most myths he creates alone. The storm giants think of Annam as a sleeping god, and believe reality sprang from his dreams.
Annam's retreat Some myths say Annam retreated to his hidden realm over despair at the endless quarreling of his sons. Some say, instead, that he fled to escape the wrath and nagging of his many wives and concubines, or in sorrow that he could never find a bride who was his equal. Still others say he is nursing the wounds he suffered when he fought the evil giant god Memnor.

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The Prime, The Progenitor of Worlds, The Great Creator, The Creator of Worlds, The Creator-By-Thought God of giants, creation, magic, knowledge, learning, philosophy, and fertility Greater god

Alignment: True Neutral

Domains: Creation, Force, Knowledge, Magic, Plant, Rune, Sun

Symbol: Two hands with wrists together and fingers pointing down Annam All-Father (pronounced ON-urn) sits atop the Ordning. Rumored to be the son of a conjunction of Chaos and Law, he is the progenitor of the Ordning and all the giant breeds. All that giants are and will become is owed to his influence. All that giants do is in his service.

Annam is the Prime, the Great Creator, the fertile progenitor of worlds. He fathers other gods, creates worlds, and provides the tools for others to create upon his substrates, and he is even said to be the creator of the elements themselves. Far across all times, planes, and worlds, Annam's greatness unfolds itself. His merest passing thoughts have given birth to worlds and the god is seen as being without peer.

Annam has a conflicted nature which proves to be his undoing. On the one hand, he is an all-knowing god of learning, philosophy, and deep meditations, Annam is omniscient, but he chooses not to know certain things, in his wisdom. But, against this vastly cerebral nature, one must set Annam's instinctual, even lustful nature. He is not a god for whom contemplations hold endless attraction. Annam is fertile and vigorous, and he makes a considerable number of mistakes when governed by his instincts. Thus, his son Stronmaus makes him proud and contented, but his other sons have been distinctly less of a blessing to him. Their endless schisms and bickering weary Annam and bring him depression and loneliness since he has no mate who is his equal. Hiatea makes him realize that his exclusive preference for male offspring was a mistake and that he realized his mistake too late. Perhaps the coming of evil to his creation was related to his fathering too many sons, among whom envy and jealousy were bound to give rise to evil, hatreds, and warped nature and bodies.

Annam personifies his sons' defining traits to an almost unbelievable extreme. He is remarkably selfish, sees all others as hopelessly inferior to himself, and remains wholly uninterested in the passage of time (he has been known to take a thousand years to ponder the simplest of queries). Once he has made up his mind, he will never change his opinion, even in the face of new evidence or further developments.

Annam has largely retreated from events in the Prime Material Plane, grown weary of having to watch over countless worlds and conflicts. Several thousand years ago, Annam promised Othea that he would leave Toril and his Ysgardian palace until his sons restored the glory of Ostoria. So far, he has honored this agreement. As a consequence, he cannot grant spells to his priests, he is usually unavailable for commune, and he cannot normally manifest omens. So great is Annam's power, however, that he is sometimes capable of reaching out to his flock from his distant realm of exile (believed to be located among the tranquil landscapes of the Outlands). All giant priests (not only those dedicated to Annam) who attain at least the 10th level of experience will receive a single precognitive vision from the All-Father at some point in their lives. Normally, this vision comes during a holy festival and reveals a coming truth of great importance to the giants as a whole. Priests who experience the vision have no doubt as to where it came from and why it is significant.

Annam originally resided in Gudheim, a vast crystal palace located on the plane of Ysgard. At its center is a splendid orrery, a model of the planes, stars, and planets that endlessly spins in silent perfection. The model was crafted by the sons of Masud, the first fire giant, to honor the All-Father at the outset of the war against dragonkind.

Although Annam has not set foot in Gudheim since he made his pact with Othea, the palace is still occupied by his celestial children, the remaining members of the Ordning. Although it certainly lost something of its luster with the All-Father's departure, the mighty crystal palace is still a sight of almost unimaginable beauty and majesty. Giant priests believe that just before their deaths, particularly pious clergymen are invited to visit Gudheim for one evening to share a repast with the Ordning.

Surrounding Gudheim is Jotunheim, the home of the giant heroes. According to ancient legends, the spirits of all giants who die in battle are carried off to Jotunheim by Muspel and Muznir, a pair of Annam's servants who often take the shape of enormous owls. There, they are allowed to pursue their chosen virtues and defend the Ordning for all eternity.

Annam is currently believed to reside in the Hidden Realm, an endless domain which is not found on any map. The realm is said to be cloaked by magic, or maybe even sit in some parallel demiplane with a gate to the Outlands. This area is rather like a demiplane or pocket dimension in that no other being can locate or enter it without Annam's permission, and Annam permits precious few visitors. No other beings, not even petitioners, live within the Hidden Realm, and a deep sense of loneliness permeates the place. Annam's great mansion sits at the top of a huge mountain and features a crystal tower in which models of stars and planets whirl in perfect, silent motion, simulating the movements of the multiverse. Annam sits in the crystal tower, watching over the clockwork of the multiverse.

The Ace: All giant breeds tend to portray Annam as the ultimate champion of their Ordning talent. To hill giants he's an insatiable glutton, to frost giants he's an unbeatable wrestler, to stone giants he's a master craftsman, et cetera.

Achilles' Heel: Annam has a peculiar weakness, a damaging blow struck directly on the crown of his head will stun him for one round, plus one-half round for each damage bonus point the striker has for exceptional strength, rounding down.

Awful Wedded Life: Annam and his wife Othea were both unfaithful to each other, although her infidelity tends to be emphasized and condemned more by giants. Othea's affair with Vaprak resulted in the ogre race, and her later affair with the glacier god Ulutiu produced the giant-kin races. After Ulutiu's death, Othea was so upset that she refused to give Annam another child, but Annam tricked her to get her pregnant. They reached a compromise where Annam agreed to leave Toril until the child called for him, and in return Othea would not terminate the pregnancy.

A Deadly Affair: When Annam eventually found out about Othea's affair with Ulutiu, he sought revenge upon Ulutiu. Although accounts of the All-Father's retribution vary, with most giants believing that Annam killed Ulutiu, causing a massive tempest, another version instead states that Ulutiu bargained with Annam, agreeing to go into a slumbering exile in the Astral Plane on the condition that Annam would spare Othea.

Fertility God: Annam is, among other things, the giant god of fertility. He is the fertile progenitor of worlds and possesses a lustful, instinctive, and unpredictable nature, which causes him to make a considerable number of mistakes when governed by his instincts. Following his departure from the Prime Material Plane, his daughter Iallanis has taken over some of his role as a fertility god.

Godzilla Threshold: Annam will very rarely send an avatar to the Prime Material Plane. If he does, it is because of some epoch-shaking event that will affect the course of history for an entire world, or at least a continent. In different worlds, Annam's avatars have observed the Rain of Colorless Fire, the Storms of Undeath, the passing of Netheril, and the Zephyrs of Unbecoming. If Annam had a role in them, he does not speak of it, and sages are left to devote their lives to documenting just a little of what has happened when the avatar has walked in their world.

Good Old Fisticuffs: Annam's favored weapon is an unarmed strike or slam, although he sometimes prefers using a spear.

Grandpa God: Annam appears as a giant with flowing white hair and a regal beard. Have You Seen My God?: Annam has largely retreated from the Prime Material Plane, and there are many myths of his withdrawal from active involvement with his creation, ranging from the tragic (despair at the schism between his sons) to the comic (fleeing to escape the wrath and constant nagging of his many wives and concubines). Another version instead states that Annam retired to heal his wounds from his epic battle with the evil god Memnor. However, the most popular theory involves a betrayal by his wife Othea. After Annam impregnated Othea through trickery after she had refused to bear him more children, the two reached an agreement which involved Annam promising to turn his back on Toril until the day the child called his name and restored the failing giant kingdom of Ostoria in exchange for Othea promising not to expel her unborn child prematurely. Unfortunately, Othea was eventually poisoned by her son Lanaxis, and her death stunted the growth of her final son with Annam, known as Hartkiller, who attempted to pursue his destiny of restoring Ostoria. However, he was rejected by the other giants due to his stunted growth, eventually being slain in a war he provoked between the giants and his human and giant-kin allies. As a result, Annam remained bound by his word, for the most part unable to interact with the world, and his avatar never comes to Toril.

Large and in Charge: Annam appears as an enormous (100'+ foot) giant. A widely accepted belief among giants is that taller giants are inherently more holy and powerful than smaller giants. According to the general ethos of the Jotunbrud, Annam made sure his sons towered above the other races in order to insure that they would always stand closer to their father's heavenly throne than any of their rivals.

Magic Staff: The only magical item that Annam always carries with him is his ever-present staff of power, charged with 1d4 wishes (in addition to its normal complement of charges).

The Maker: Annam is accepted by all giant races as a great creator god. However, his role in creating the giants (and the worlds) is very differently interpreted by different races and in different worlds. In some myths, Annam is the Creator of Worlds, the true Prime Power, and the other gods merely establish their races on the worlds he makes. Frequently, such myths tell of a pre-history in which giants were the first and only sentient race in the multiverse. Some versions tell of a fall of the giants (a fall from grace is sometimes mentioned by the good giant races). In other myths, Annam works with human and demihuman gods to create worlds together, but usually he keeps his creations separate and aloof. In subtle mythologies, Annam is the Creator-By-Thought, a "sleeping god" whose dreams form the substance of reality and the enabling principle which permits creation by other deities. This view is often held by storm giant shaman-priests much given to deep philosophical reflections.

Parental Favoritism: Annam favores Stronmaus, Hiatea, and Iallanis over his other children, whose endless schisms and bickering weary him and bring him depression and loneliness. Thrym and Surtr in particular have long rivaled for Annam's affection and pride. Because Annam was swayed more by Surtr's well-crafted gifts than by the trophy heads Thrym laid at his feet, frost giants bear more ill will toward Annam than most other giants do.

Psychic Dreams for Everyone: Annam sometimes reaches out to his flock from his distant realm of exile by sending once-in-a-lifetime omens to his priest-kings. All giant priests (not only those dedicated to Annam) who attain at least the 10th level of experience will receive a single precognitive vision from the All-Father at some point in their lives. Such a priest may once in his life call for a precognitive vision from Annam after a period of ritual meditation not less than one month in duration. Normally, this vision comes during a holy festival and reveals a coming truth of great importance to the giants as a whole. In these visions, the broad course of future history of the priest's race (or community, warband, etc.) is revealed to him. Priests who experience the vision have no doubt as to where it came from and why it is significant. Really Gets Around: Annam is a polymorphous, libidinous god who has had many wives and concubines, although Othea was regarded as his main consort. As a result, he fathered a lot of demigods with various other goddesses and mortal giantesses that caught his eye.

Top God: Despite the diversity and multi-faceted nature of Giant religion, the one thing that all giants agree upon is that Annam stands over all other gods in the Ordning. All that giants are and will become is owed to his influence, and all that giants do is in his service. However, since he disappeared from Gudheim, few giants are directly devoted to the worship of Annam, though all giants revere him. One notable exception is the stormazîn, who acts as a spiritual father to the priests dedicated to all other giant deities.

Member

Giant Pantheon

100

Annam

100

Steed for Annam

Koriel

85

Annam

85

Koriel is associated, in various myths, with a god of creation or sky-father type who uses him as a mount. Some myths say that he will be the steed of Annam on the final day of creation.