Terak ,God of War and Valor

The Valiant, Bold, the Mighty, King of Heaven, Marshal of the Gods
Terak (TAIR-ack) is the god of the body, valor, war, physical struggle, brotherly unity, and battle. He is worshiped by soldiers and warriors of all stripes, those who need the protection of physical strength, and protectors of the weak. Terak is shown as a powerful figure, broad of shoulder and with a great barrel chest. His hair falls to his knees and is either braided or left loose, depending on the culture that made the icon. He is also usually shown with a long beard, blonde hair and icy blue eyes. He is often armored, always carries his battle axe, and is represented wearing a cloak of fur and bones—bones taken from his son, Aerix. Two symbols represent Terak. The first, used by those who follow the lawful neutral interpretation of his teachings, is the fasces: a bundle of sticks lashed together with a golden cord. When one is in a hurry, this symbol can be fashioned as several small circles around a central circle. This is used for stamps on weapons, low detail work, and hasty scrawls. This set of circles cast of bronze is often used as a holy symbol, even though it is not supposed to be. The second symbol, and the one used by his lawful good worshipers, is Terak’s axe. Forged in the first epoch and the first weapon made, the axe was used by Terak against his own brother and the tree of life, Eliwyn, but also against Kador, and the dark god’s wicked progeny. The double-headed axe of Terak bespeaks this contradiction. Weapons have two sides. They can be used for great harm, or great good. This lesson is dear to Terak’s lawful good followers. The simple version of the axe is a circle with a line that moved from its top, through the middle, and past, to become the axe’s handle where the circle stands for the blade. The correct holy symbol of Terak, and the one worn by most of his faithful, is a bronze likeness of the axe. Sometimes one head of the axe is golden and the other, black, but this is an ornate symbol only worn by commanders and similarly powerful faithful. Even though this is the “correct” symbol, many lawful neutral clerics wear the fasces, and have no trouble casting their spells. He is associated loosely with animals of war like dogs, horses, and hawks, but his closest association is with the lion. He is served in the heavens by lamassus , the mystical creatures with which he is often associated, and the children of his animal companion, Metteron (see below).
Terak is worshiped most fervently by the mortal races that wage war in an organized and tactical manner: humans and dwarves. Elves, halflings and gnomes certainly pay their respects to Terak as one of the gods, but his worship is not especially popular in their homes. Because of the religion’s strict belief that all five mortal races are equal, the worship of Terak is incredibly popular with ostracized half-orcs and half-elves. Terak is lawful neutral or lawful good. There is a pronounced rift among Terak’s worshipers and holy orders. He is worshiped in two distinct ways and, depending on which group you ask, can be described as either alignment. Most religious scholars consider him lawful good, and his church primarily follows this alignment, but clerics may be lawful good or lawful neutral.

Might Makes Right

Most myths and many scholarly works present Terak as a sort of knuckle-dragging, violent maniac. The reasons for this are simple: First, he really was a violent maniac in his youth, as were his siblings Tinel and Zheenkeef. Second, these sources are usually written by the worshipers of Tinel, Zheenkeef, or one of the other chaotic gods. Terak is best understood as the wily king or general from a warrior culture. He sits on his throne pondering warfare and the strengths of nations. Elaborate aesthetics, matters of learning, and books hold little appeal for him. However, he is no longer the simpleton he is represented as. He loves sincere songs, and poems without double meanings or bits of hidden cleverness.
He enjoys the simple pleasures a life of decency brings. Since the death of his son Aerix, he has ceased pursuing the expansion of his personal power. In the past, Terak was a primitive god who sought glory, strength, and supremacy, which brought him into conflict with his brother Tinel. Now, while he is still in conflict with his brother, it is for different reasons. Terak sees there is one thing that truly matters in the world: strength. While his brother Tinel puts faith in the strength of the individual and the power of knowledge, magic, and other abilities an individual might possess, Terak puts his faith in the power of the many. He sees true strength in a unified society.
And while he sometimes makes it clear he opposes the use of that strength for evil, at other times he seems to support the power of unity without question. These mixed messages led to a schism among his followers that is generally cordial, but sometimes grows fiercely argumentative. Terak wishes to see the mortal races unified. He would see a world where the will of the many prevails over the few. He is fondest of the common people, and those who protect and serve them, such as soldiers. He has little love for those who consider themselves superior because of their knowledge or magic, or because they possess greater wealth. He seems to have no problem with those who use their physical prowess to unify people against the elite and learned.
In Heaven, Terak is king because his wife is queen. He bears no special authority as king over his chaotic brother and sister—indeed, they resent his status. Terak would like to unite Heaven under goodness, but his pride keeps him from extending much friendship to Tinel.

The Temples of Terak

The churches of Terak, called temples, enjoy great popularity in lawful nations, and among folk who find themselves at war. Soldiers, mercenaries, and others who must rely on military prowess daily are usually worshipers of Terak, and are called the Teraketh. The faith is split is between those who see Terak’s teachings as a call to almost blind unity and order, sublimation of the self to the will of the masses, and those who see Terak’s wisdom as a reminder that strength and power must be used for the good of the many, not just the individual. Where this division of thought would cause a public and deep divide in most faiths, Terak’s laws promoting order, structure, and discipline have kept the temples united thus far.
That said, there is no world-spanning organization for the Teraketh faith. Because the religion so strongly promotes the idea all mortals are equal and that personal prominence is only worthy in pursuit of the good of the common man, temples are gravely suspicious of any oligarchic power structure. Instead, every region has a council of commanders who determine what actions the local faithful will take. In the faith, one ministerial region is defined as any area that can muster a council of seven commanders, typically across multiple temples.

temples raise support for a region’s righteous military actions, and supply clerics to barracks and units. The three most common functions of Terak’s faithful are military service, martial leadership, and protection of the common folk. To serve these ends, most temples also have superlative teachers who instruct in matters of warfare and weaponry. Many consider these teachers the best in the world, and their services are well worth the time— and the money they ask for in donations. Terak is very fond of his church, sending what aid he can to the soldiers and crusaders of the temples without violating the Compact. He is particularly impressed with the laws that have arisen from the faith and thinks of them as his own inventions, though they were not.
Perhaps than any other god, Terak has been as affected by the mortal races as they have by him. When first born from the tree, he was in fact the battle-hungry barbarian represented in myths. Since the mortal races were born, and even more so since the creation of the Compact, Terak has come to love them and wish for their happiness and prosperity. For this reason, he is very fond of the lawful good followers of the church.
He has also been influenced by the death of his mortal children, and has watched as they have faded into obscurity and myth. While they all live on at his side, history shows him that no act of individual heroism appears to have a lasting effect, but powerful societies and empires live on for generations. For this reason, he believes the unconditional unity of the mortal races is their only path to happiness, so he is also very fond of the lawful neutral faithful.
That he is equally supportive of both sides of the schism helps to keep it going, as neither side has any reason to believe it is wrong. This is also what keeps temples together, despite their powerfully disparate philosophies—there is no clear reason for either side to believe Terak disapproves of the other. Terak is most fond of the truly pious, who carefully follow the Teraketh laws, and strive to unite people in faith. He has no tolerance for hypocrites, or those who think highly of themselves, their wisdom, or their martial prowess. He personally takes such members of his faith down a peg or two if these offensive behaviors grow too prominent.

Type

Religious, Organised Religion