The Southern Gods

Far more ancient than the Dragon Empire’s mysteries, hundreds of gods are known by name in the South, most of little consequence. But a few of the great Southern gods have expanded their followings deep beyond the Southern desert, or north into the wet, dark woods. The gods of the South are not creatures of draconic enigma or bloody reaving and wenching. Instead, they are creatures of finely honed knowledge, of perfect ritual, of the true and proper understanding of this life and the next. The Southern gods are deep and wise and treacherous, and never to be underestimated. Their faiths are millennia old. They have risen above the fray of a hundred petty citygods. They stand implacable and firm in the face of time, chaos, and decay, eternal and unyielding. At the same time, some of the peculiar Southern gods have animal heads and walk among their worshippers, pleased to sleep in their temples and terrify their priesthoods on occasion. The Southern gods are happy to meddle and happy to remain wildly inhuman, both cruel and kind. For all that their people love them, for Nuria Natal remains the oldest kingdom of Midgard, able to view all younger realms with a certain wry disdainfulness. The ancient gods of the realm make it so.

Deity	Alignment	Province	Domain	Symbol
Aten	Lawful Neutral	Midgard	Justice, Light	A mace and a shepard's staff crossed
Anu-Akma	Lawful	Helheim	Death, Justice, Travel	An Egyptian cross and a sickle
Apophis	Evil	Niflheim	Darkness, Dragon, Hunger	A black horned snake
Bastet	Chaotic	Midgard	Hunting, Moon	Cat with solar disk above it
Hel	Lawful	Helheim	Death, Justice, Travel	Three human skulls
Horus	Lawful Good	Midgard	Justice, Light, Tempest	An Egyptian style eye
Konshu	Lawful Neutral	Midgard	Moon, Justice, Travel	A golden crescent under a moon disk
Sobek	Chaotic	Midgard	Nature, Ocean, Serpent	A crocodile head
Set	Chaotic	Midgard	Darkness, Dragon, Prophecy, Tempest	His head
Toweret	Good	Midgard	Life, Nature	Ivory dagger
Thoth	Neutral	Midgard	Knowledge, Travel, Trickery	A book and quill

Aten

Aten is a rarity among the gods of Midgard: a jealous god who forbids the worship of all others by his followers. Priests of Aten may never be pantheistic priests, and his followers are known for their unyielding devotion to their faith, including the expulsion of “unbelievers” from villages devoted to Aten. He is not a maker and forger, but the shining light that defines the day, the protector of the weak and the elderly, a friend to heroes and the foe of dark gods. His radiant face is difficult to look upon, for his divinity and glory outshine all mortal understanding, and his solar magnificence likewise outshines all other gods. So sure are the Aten-worshippers of this that claim all other gods are mere “reflections” or “pale shadows” of true godhood. The only gods whose divinity they debate much at all are those of Lada and Khors, Aten’s semi-divine offspring. These the Atenites treat as saints, prophets, or powerful priests rather than as faiths of their own, and small shrines to Lada and Khors are common. The truly golden light of faith and reason, though, is clearly that of the Sun God himself.
Depiction. Aten appears as a bronzed giant with a braided beard, piercing black eyes, and powerful chest.
Worshippers. Aten is followed by humans, dwarves, and gnolls in Nuria Natal and elsewhere in the South.
Commandments

• Worship and sacrifice.
• Two hours must be spent in prayer daily; the sunrise, noon, and sunset hours are ideal for this reflection, and worshippers who fail to gaze upon the light-giving sun daily do so in peril of their souls and afterlife.
• Aten wants gold, gems, incense, and chanted prayers throughout the hours of the day, and candles, mirrors, and magical light to glorify his temples by night.
• All worshippers of Aten must attempt to convert infidels before slaughtering them, though this is sometimes a perfunctory effort at best.

Anu-Akma

Anu-Akma, father of Anubis, guards the tombs of royalty in the southern deserts and stands against the scourges of age, madness, and the undead. Anu-Akma promotes purity and preserves order, watching over the timely and dignified death of all. His priests anoint those of royal blood to rise again as mummies or liches, and gnoll mortuary guards and guides protect vast ossuaries and cemeteries from desecration.
Depiction. When envisioned by humans and desert folk of the surface world, Anu-Akma is a tall, muscular, jackal-headed man whose flesh looks like the starry night sky. His eyes are golden, and he wears the garb of Nurian royalty. Among worshipers who live beneath the dunes, images of Anu-Akma depict a faceless darkness beneath heavy robes and mummy wrappings. His arms are held wide, welcoming all into his cold domain.
Worshippers. The humans of the Southern royal dynasties worship Anu-Akma. The elderly and the ill also worship Anu-Akma, hoping for an easy journey to the afterlife in the hands of holy gnoll guides. The gnolls themselves, and the ghouls and the darakhul, also follow Anu-Akma faithfully.
Commandments

• Respect the ghosts and spirits of the ancestors, and their resting places.
• Rob no tomb.
• You are the purifier of life and a custodian of death, so prepare those around you for their inevitable journey and destination.
• Remind even the youngest that time is short.
• Be strict and efficient in your work; laziness serves no one, least of all yourself.
• Destroy anyone who blasphemes against the paradise of the underworld.

Apophis

This great serpent is a child of Jormungandr The World Serpent. Because of such, its in Apophis' nature to want to bring upon destruction and an end to the Southlands. Many of the gods have battled this beast but non more than Horus and Set.
Depiction. Aposis is an enormous serpent, often depicted as golden, though just as often it has black scales on its back and a white underbelly. Most depictions of Aposis show a serpent at least 20 feet tall and more than 300 feet long, but its size is highly variable. Aposis has wide jaws, the better to swallow the sun or whatever else it desires. It hungers always, and its enemies are legion, for it seeks to destroy the world and bring on the apocalypse.
Worshippers. The followers of Aposis are fanatical supporters of the end of all things and the world’s destruction. They include human cultists, lizardfolk, some trolls and trollkin, as well as subek and werecrocodiles. Not all these supplicants are evil; some are simply stoic and fatalistic about what will happen once Aposis begins devouring the mortal world and the World Trees crash to earth.
Commandments

• Destroy Aten’s followers and all such bringers of light.
• Devour the earth.
• Prepare for the end of all things—and hasten it with acts of blood and murder.

Bastet

Bastet is the sunny, indolent, and dangerous goddess of sunny days and wild abandon, a force for chaos, and an opportunist. With her cat-headed statues and her slinky female form, she is the goddess of desire and the patron goddess of perfumers, alchemists, and those whose trade is beauty. With the scent of the wild desert in her mane when she is a lioness, she is also the simple domesticated cat that destroys rats, serpents, and mice, a friend to the farmer and granary overseer.
Depiction. Her ears are dark and her fur is golden; she has large breasts and sometimes six or eight of them. A solar or lunar disk hovers over her head, and she wears bracelets in the form of cobras or vipers.
Worshippers. Bastet attracts a strange medley of worshippers in keeping with her wild and fickle nature: alchemists, temple prostitutes, simple farmers, soldiers (though never officers), dancers—and gnolls and the metropolis of Per-Bastet as well. Gnolls are devoted to her, and her status as a supreme huntress endears her to these followers.
Commandments

• Take pleasure in life, and live for the day.
• Hunt and kill your food when you can; take joy in destroying serpents.
• Visit the perfumers frequently and offer up gifts of scent and spice to the goddess’s altars.
• To divine the future, read the entrails of an enormous, unblemished animal, and sacrifice such a creature before any great endeavor.

Hel

Among the golden sands of the Southern deserts, Hel guards the tombs of royalty and stands against the scourges of age, madness, and the evil undead. Deep underground, her worship as ruler of Helheim takes a darker turn, combined with the rites of a devil she conquered long ago. There she is venerated as the greatest patron of the Ghoul Imperium and Lord of the Underworld. Everywhere except in Orlais, Hel promotes purity and preserves order, watching over the timely and dignified death of all. Her priests anoint those of royal blood to rise again as mummies or liches, and gnoll mortuary guards and guides protect the vast ossuaries and cemeteries from desecration. Her ghoulish followers, meanwhile, await each burial as a new source of flesh for feasting, while Hel preserves the souls of those unfortunate corpses.
Depiction. Hel is portrayed as a woman seemingly split in two right down the middle, her right half is that of a lively beautiful woman while her left half is depicted as a horrid undead woman.
Worshippers. Hel is worshipped by the humans of the Southern royal dynasties—especially the elderly and ill, hoping for an easy journey to the afterlife in the hands of holy gnoll guides. The gnolls of the South, and the ghouls and darakhul under the earth, also follow Hel faithfully
Commandments

• Respect the ghosts and spirits of the ancestors, and their resting places.
• Rob no tomb.
• You are the purifier of life and a custodian of death, so prepare those around you for their inevitable journey and destination.
• Remind even the youngest that time is short.
• Be strict and efficient in your work; laziness serves no one, least of all yourself.
• Destroy anyone who blasphemes against the paradise of the Underworld.

Horus

For long eons, as long as the sun and moon traversed the heavens, Horus was lord of the sky and the righteous god-king of the South. In time he grew tired and old, and the upstart Aten seized the mantle of power and cast Horus down. The people mourned, and briefly turned their eyes to the blinding glory of the sun. Aten was soon absorbed by his vanities, and dark beings stirred in that time of neglect. Dragons rose in the West, a weakened Horus wandered the desert, the realm of his old rival Set, now defeated by the demon serpent Apophis. Horus rescued Set’s corpse from defilement and performed the proper funerary rites. As reward, he gained dominion over Set’s kingdom. Engulfed by the fiery desert, Horus arose rejuvenated from his ashes. Reborn as a young warrior chieftain, hawk-headed or with the face of a handsome prince, Horus strives to reestablish the order of the world. Demons must be slain, and usurpers put in their place. Through bold deeds will Horus reclaim his rightful place and reunite Nuria Natal’s fractured cities, and cast the dragons back into the West from whence they came.
Depiction. Horus is depicted as a large man clad in golden armor with the head of a hawk.
Worshippers. The southern people all follow Horus. People of action, they steer their tribes through the hardships of desert life and all threats to the people. Among his older following in the Nurian cities, Horus’s popularity has diminished little, though other gods inspire louder, more public gatherings.
Commandments

• The Code of Horus separates noble nomad from uncouth barbarian; obey it always.
• Battle and slay ancient abominations and their cults.
• Carry yourself in an upright manner, whether great king or lowly peasant.
• Treat others with hospitality and honor.
• Kill enemies who threaten your homeland and enslave their kin.
• Be princes among men and Horus will watch over you.

Konshu

Konshu is the god of the moon and the night sky. He acts as a god of vengeance and one of the ultimate judge. He weighs the hearts of the dead and can see directly into ones soul. When he isnt judging the dead, he is either actively seeking to reward the righteous or more especially, punish the wicked. He is known to be both very manipulative and genuinely caring. Konshu, more so than most southern gods, takes a keen interest in mortal society; regularly interfering and meddling in it. He is often known to be a big risk taker.
Depiction. Konshu is typically depicted as a tall skinny man with green skin and the head of an undead bird.
Worshippers. Gamblers, the young, adventurers, catfolk, and minotaurs,
Commandments

• Punish the wicked.
• Avenge those who need avenging.
• Great fortune comes to those who do great things.
• Free will is important above all, so choose to do the right thing.

Sobek

Those who live on or near the water know Sobek, though few worship him exclusively except for his children, the crocodilian subek. He is a creature of great strength who lurks in the shallows and is given to devouring the unwary, but is also a stalwart protector of eggs, serpents, and reptiles, and sometimes of soldiers and generals, who prize his swift movement and ambush tactics. The living, growing world is Sobek’s domain, and some circles of druids are said to revere him and his children in the most fertile marshlands of the river.
Depiction. Sobek is most commonly depicted as a massive muscular crocodile man most commonly refered to as the subek.
Worshippers. Sailors, bargefolk, rowers, and subek.
Commandments

• Eat well and hunt the creatures of the earth; you are like unto a small god to those foolish enough to cross you.
• Protect your territory and your buildings; a lair and a nest are home and hearth to the scaled folk.
• Watch the river for your opportunity; the wise know that patience is one of the greatest virtues.
• When the time comes to strike, be swift and show no mercy.

Set

Restored from ashes by Horus after he gave his life to protect Aten from Apophis, Set has never forgiven his rival for showing him mercy; indeed, the debt stings and rankles. Set was once a contender for the title of Protector of Nuria Natal, but the title and the temples went to Horus. This humiliation, also, Set has never forgiven. The storms and earthquakes that he commands are sometimes referred to as “Set’s anger,” and for good reason.
Depiction. Set is a god with white skin and spiky red hair similar in texture to the pelt of a donkey. His head has a black, curving snout and an animal’s ears, somewhat like an aardvark’s or a donkey’s.
Worshippers. Peasants, farmers, and watchmen are all followers of Set, for he protects the weak from the crocodile and the lion, and his priests bring healing salves and medicines to the ill and the dying. In times of strife and war, when Horus and Bastet prowl the land and banditry is everywhere, Set can be relied on as a protector, a strong force against robbery, oppression, and the hammer of law. In particular, Set confuses the gaze of the heruti (ravenfolk), and the commands of the servants of Horus, when Nuria Natal’s armies plunder farmers of their crops and steal the bread from the poor. Set’s fogs and sandstorms have saved many a silo of barley and many a herd of goats from confiscation by the troops. In addition, Set is the god of rebels, usurpers, impious nobles, and desert raiders who thrive on chaos.
Commandments

• Be humble and strong.
• Speak what you mean, and destroy your enemies utterly.
• Strike down the foul followers of Horus; they are prideful liars and unworthy of life.
• Protect farmers and peasants, for they are the true-hearted strength of Nuria Natal, and they deserve mercy more than any lordling or prince.

Toweret

Taweret is the goddess of the households along the river, and the goddess of hippos. She protects her worshipers and their residences. Her milk is said to confer divine healing and rebirth in the afterlife. Her shrines are tiny and quiet, commonly marked by little more than a stone carved to resemble a hippopotamus. She is said to be the greatest of a group of sisters (the other hippo goddesses are Ipet, Reret, and Hedjet; these four are often confused).
Depiction. She is often depicted as a large busty woman with the head of a hippo.
Worshippers. Bargefolk, farmers, pregnant women, children, and families.
Commandments

• Protect the living from the dangers of the river.
• Raise children well; guide the young and guard them from the dangers of the world.
• Heal the sick.
• Protect the home, and help the dying on the river and in dark tombs find their way into the afterlife.

Thoth

Far more important than his statues are his libraries and his market shrines, for Thoth is the patron of both the retiring scholars and the worldly, engaged merchants who carry goods throughout Midgard in search of profit.
Depiction. The face of Thoth-Hermes is a strange one, represented as an ibis, a stork, or sometimes a winged human head. His body is thin and sometimes stooped, sometimes a lithe youth, and he is frequently shown with either a cloak of feathers or winged sandals.
Worshippers. Thoth-Hermes is worshipped by scholars, scribes, merchants, thieves, messengers, travelers, and wizards throughout Nuria Natal and in Novigrad, and to a lesser degree in the Crossroads. They come from all sorts of backgrounds, but they are collectively curious, learned, and interested in knowledge both licit and illicit. Most prominently, Thoth is the patron of magic and runes, and being wizards turn to when their arcane workings confound them and their magic fails.
Commandments

• Be literate and numerate; ideally, most have valuable knowledge or skills useful in the creation of further knowledge, trade, or wisdom.
• Produce a collection of new lore, maps, arcane mysteries, or personal experiences once in their lifetime, creating a “life book” of value to savants and future generations.
• Destroying books is forbidden, but their theft is a sign of skill and divine favor.