Tinel,The God of Magic, Knowledge, and Truth

Magnificent, Aloof, Imperious, All-Knowing, All-Seeing, the Great, the Whisperer, of the Countless Locks, the Heavenly Archmage, Lord of Secrets, Keeper of the Key
Tinel (tuh-NELL) is the god of magic, knowledge, the mind, secrets, truth, science, magicians, those who rely on or admire magic, scholars, scribes, the inquisitive, and seekers of truth. A strange and mysterious god, the Tinel worshiped by most is chaotic good, for he seeks the mastery of magic and all knowledge for the good of the world, and to defeat evil.
However, there is also Tinel the Aloof: the same god, but with a different attitude. He sometimes seems to be a completely neutral god, interested only in the acquisition of knowledge and preservation of secrets, and otherwise disinterested in the mortal realm. For the purpose of determining followers’ alignments, consider Tinel to be both alignments, but note that followers differ greatly, depending on which aspect they worship. Tinel appears as a tall figure wearing flowing robes of white, with eyes and hair glowing gold. He has a red jewel on his brow, held there by a silver circlet. In his left hand he holds a tall staff engraved with countless runes, and from his waist hangs a ring, heavy with golden keys. His right hand is usually held aloft in a mystic gesture, as though casting a spell.

Symbolically, Tinel is represented by a golden key. The key symbolizes the keys to Heaven, but also to the world’s countless secrets. When necessary, this symbol can be quickly sketched as a two-tined key with very little detail, but this is rarely used. Worshipers of Tinel displaying his holy symbol wear at least one key about their necks, and some wear keys all over their persons.

Tinel is often associated with cats, ravens, monkeys, and weasels, all highly curious and intelligent creatures. Cats and ravens are particularly common associations, because they have about them an air of mystery as well as inquisitiveness. But the animal closest to Tinel is the rook, a bird that not only shows great curiosity and intelligence, but also gathers with others of its kind to share secrets. The rooks, it is said, watch the world of mortals from their boughs and the air, reporting what they see to All-Seeing, All-Knowing Tinel himself. Tinel is also associated closely with pseudodragons. It is said Tinel was the first of the gods to befriend dragons, and it was through his magic that this offshoot species was born.
Wizards, bards, rogues, and others who seek knowledge or secrets worship the Heavenly Archmage. Those who live a life of the mind, or survive by their wits and knowledge, hold Tinel dear, for he smiles on almost anyone who loves learning. Tinel is also patron of those who seek the truth, so those who investigate crimes or seek to unravel mysteries often invoke his name. He is quite popular with races that revere magic and learning, particularly elves, gnomes, and humans. There are halfling and dwarven worshipers of Tinel, but they focus more on knowledge and truth than magic.

Mysterious Motives

Tinel is mysterious. His attentions are divided, for he knows the future. Tinel is more acutely aware than any of the other gods that someday he will cease to be, either because the Great Sphere will collapse, or because mortals will all become like the fourteen wizards who tried to chart Heaven. He believes the end is inevitable. For this reason, he slowly gives in to what mortal minds would call madness.
Sometimes, he pursues knowledge, and promotes the study of magic and virtue, because these matter to him, but otherwise he is utterly lost in his studies and secrets, and cares nothing for the numerous planes and their peoples. It is like he is two different beings, and because he is a god, can exhibit both personalities concurrently, even changing his appearance to fit each aspect.
It is not altogether unreasonable to call Tinel mad and perhaps his wife, Zheenkeef, has affected him. The Tinel focused on the world believes the individual is greater than the community, that one person who finds her true calling can achieve more than a thousand who do what is expected of them. For this reason, he drives those who seek him out in prayer toward quests of personal discovery and internal inquisition. There is no one dearer to him than someone who questions his own motives, accepts nothing at face value, and sees the entire world as a lesson.
Yet Tinel also suffers from a divine malaise. He retreats to his sanctum and studies every minute detail of the universe. Perhaps he seeks to unravel the mysteries of the Nameless One, to keep the world from ending, should his name be spoken. Perhaps he strives to ensure he and his family will never cease to be. Whatever possesses him, in this state he cares nothing for mortals, for individuals, or even for his own family. These two faces of Tinel are sensed by those who worship him, which has led to a profound schism in his faith. The divide is so deep, his church has expelled a large movement of “heretics,” and is often torn by internal bloodshed and rivalry. If this bothers Tinel, he seems to have done nothing to stop it.
Some believe he waits to see which side of the schism prevails, to put to rest his own struggle, and in the end he’ll become as the winning side sees him, forever. Just as he does not seem to care about the rift in his church, he also pays little attention to the rift in his own family. Zheenkeef and Shalimyr couple in defiance of the chaos goddess’ marriage to Tinel, yet he takes no heed. Many believe he refuses to admit his knowledge, just as even wise mortals often fail to see those hurtful things closest to them.
If there is one thing Tinel remains passionate about, it is his rivalry with his brother Terak. He opposes his brother in nearly all things. Like his brother, Tinel has changed the reason for continuing the vendetta from what it was in legendary ages. While he once fought to be the eldest, Tinel now argues with his brother because he sees in Terak’s doctrines the likely downfall of the gods. Terak would create a world where mortals need no gods and live as one people, obeying their leaders, questioning nothing. In such a world, the leaders are gods; truth is unimportant. Terak’s vision of the world is soulless, in Tinel’s esteem, and the individual will be crushed and washed away, if his brother prevails. Thus, the old grudge remains, only weakening in the neutral aspect of Tinel, lost in his studies.

The Scriptoriums of Tinel

The scriptoriums where Tinelites worship stand in most major population centers, and few shrines to Tinel haunt roadsides or the wilderness. There are a few scriptoriums in hidden towers, like the isolated mages’ towers of legend, but in general, one must go to a city or town to find one.
Scriptoriums vary in size. Many are just small libraries with facilities for scribes. The largest are multi-story buildings with thousands of books, or sometimes complexes of buildings. They are mostly funded by people who pay for access to the faith’s books or hire its scribes to copy texts.
Money gathered from these fees funds the schooling scriptoriums host. Teachers come to Tinelite centers of worship from miles around, where they may teach fundamental academics, or philosophical and esoteric matters, to reputable students—even each other. Beyond a base stipend provided by the faith, it is customary for those attending lectures to pay the lecturer a fee equal to what the listeners estimate the lecture was worth to them. The scriptoriums do not benefit from these transactions, and see them as part of their works in the name of Tinel.
For many years, the scriptoriums have been subject to the deep, ugly rift afflicting the faith. Most scriptoriums are controlled by the chaotic good side of the conflict, but a few are run by the neutral branch of the faith. The chaotic good scriptoriums are open to the world, whereas the neutral branches hoard their knowledge jealously, and do not follow the tradition of educating outsiders.
When Tinel pays attention to mortal affairs, he offers guidance through signs and portents to his faithful. However, the worldview of his church means he can appear distant, as the faithful are looking to learn through discovery, not to be ordered about. This suits Tinel; he views his followers as clever, wise, and worthy of his affections if they seek knowledge out of personal desire, not because he pushes them. It is almost unheard of for Tinel to appear or speak directly to one of his followers.
When a favored Tinelite is in terrible trouble, though, Tinel is not above lending a hand if a sign or small bit of guidance might snatch victory from defeat. He speaks to his followers in whispers of the wind, strange faces seen in clouds, creaking trees, and in other signs and noises, embedded in the world. Tinel ignores the schism between his followers. They are both right, and both wrong, and he is content to let them battle out their differences. After all, it is through struggle that mortals learn best. Yet he keeps an eye on the neutral faction, which sometimes comes perilously close in its “knowledge is all” philosophy to the hubris of the Fourteen Wizards.

Type

Religious, Organised Religion