Urian

The Radiant, Thunderous, the Wind Lord, Sky King, Sky Father, Great Sky, the Moon and Stars, Windwright

Urian (YUR-ee-uhn) is the neutral good god of the sky, the sun, the moon, the stars, the winds, freedom, and salvation. His voice is heard in thunder, and his countenance is seen in lightning. To most, he is the father of storms, though all agree that rains come from Shalimyr, the waters.
Among those who understand Urian’s place in the pantheon, he is most often worshiped by the elves, who love his stars and the moon, and by humans and halflings, who love his sun and sky. Subterranean races care little for Urian.

Seven Servants

Urian has seven principal servants. The four winds, discussed above, can go alternatively by the names Rigyl or North, Ragyl or East, Wyndyl or South, and Wandyl or West. The Sky Father chains all the winds in his four great halls and unleashes them only when needed, under his careful control, to avoid the destruction of all in their path.
Alimus and Faro are forever bound to the sun and moon. Some cultures worship these two as gods, and believe they’re brothers who forgot their true origins. Indeed, they are quite powerful, for they have borne the loveliest of the heavenly orbs aloft for thousands of years, and it has affected them to the core. It is unclear whether worshipers of the two receive power from them or from Urian, but Alimus and Faro are so powerful it is quite possible that they grant power to their followers.
Closest companion to Urian, though, is Grifynne, his magnificent golden eagle. Grifynne is mother to the griffins (which are named after her), which were begat from her by Terak’s golden lion, Metteron. Grifynne has a wingspan as long as a mighty river, and her cry can be heard across the heavens. Her origins are mysterious, though most assume that Urian created her before the gods of the tree were even born.

Divine Domains

Air and Sky

Divine Symbols & Sigils

Icons show Urian as a mighty old man, with a great white beard made from the winds, and wild hair that crackles with lightning. In his eyes are stars and the moon, and when his mouth is open it shines with the light of the sun. He is sometimes shown with four beasts behind him on leashes of chain—the four winds, two of which are shown to be snarling, fierce beasts, while the other two appear placid and kindly. Urian’s faith visually represented with an orb of half gold, half silver. The gold half casts off the golden rays of the sun. Urianath clergy and some lay followers both wear this symbol. In times of haste when such symbols are not possible, this is made as just a simple orb flanked by four lines: the winds. This symbol is not used if the more formal symbol is possible, but can be found stamped on the bottom of weapons or items fashioned to honor the god.
The god of the sky is associated with no animal more than the eagle, though all the beasts of the feather are considered his children and wards of his domain. He is associated with the griffin, which is part eagle and was born of his servant. Urian is ardently worshiped by primitive people everywhere, and has among them more names than can be counted. The odds are very good that barbarians and nomad societies worship Urian, or some aspect of Urian (like the sun, stars, or lightning), under some name of their own devising.

Tenets of Faith

Bring Light to the World

Urian is the sky and the heavens. His purpose is to shine on the earth with his sunlight and make the landscape glow with the silver light of the stars. Bound up in this, though, is the central mystery of the worship of Urian, Shalimyr, and Rontra; all three gods are the elemental parts of the world, but they are also the guardians of those elemental parts, wandering among them and looking after them.

There is a legend of Darmon stealing stars from Urian, and Urian finding the fakes with which the Wily Darmon replaced them. How is this possible if Urian is the stars? It is a mystery that anyone who worships him must ponder.

Urian wishes to reach the world’s ignored nooks and crannies. There are places in the that none care for—perhaps they are ugly, horrible, or devastated by evil, but Urian reaches them still with his sunlight and starlight, his moon and his winds.

He brings the beauty of the heavens to all peoples and all places, and for this he is dearly loved by those imprisoned and enslaved, for he represents their hope and their freedom. The most common visual theme among these faithful is a prisoner reaching through the bars of his cell for the stars.
Urian is profoundly uninterested in the various petty conflicts of the gods, and he straddles both sides of the disputes between chaos and law. Sometimes he sides with one, sometimes the other; sometimes he takes no side at all. This is because Urian, more than any other of the gods, has a dual understanding of the world, and a dual interaction with it. Sometimes he is radiant and lovely and sometimes he is dark and cold. He sees both as legitimate, and he contemplates what is the proper time for each— when must he unleash the warm and gentle winds, and when must he let fly the bitter and cruel?

Holidays

The Urianath view each dawn and dusk as holy events, and most are sure to be outside to observe these events daily. Whenever there is a complete solar or lunar eclipse, the Urianath celebrate indoors, as they consider it a taboo to be under the sky at such times. Some cultures have special celebrations of the sun at harvest or planting time. These are usually festivals to Urian, and the local skylarks will aid in the celebration, but they are not universal celebrations across all cultures.
The eyries do not have regular times for services; they are places of constant meditation.

God of the Air and Sky

Divine Classification

Old God

Religions

• Eagles of Urian
• Hawks of Urian
• Holy Orders of Urian
• Skylarks of Urian
• The Great Church

Alignment

Neutral Good

Church/Cult

Holy Orders of Urian

Related Myths

• Dragging Sun and Moon
• First Thunder
• The Chaining of the Winds