St Daffyd

Saint Dafydd Morwyn

St Dafydd is the patron saint of Gwenydd, Cape County, the sea, and sailors. He was a Gwenyddian tribesman who lived near contemporary Ceannastra in the 1700s of the second age. He has had a mixed reputation and varying levels of popularity over the years. Hardline Old God followers see him as a traitor to his people, whilst Goose God followers have always seen him as an inspiration and heroic figure. In recent decades, The Commonwealth has come to see him as a national hero and symbol of pride and he has evovled into a more secular figure.
St Dafydd's tale was traditionally told orally, but was transcribed by the monks of St Rhytian's monastery on Merensdey isle in 2a, 1945. The original 'Tayle of St Dafydd' penned by these monks was looted by the Skalbjorn clan of Aedrinar during the Pillage of Merendsey in 2a, 2156. A copy does exist in the Holy Basillica in Neapia, and later written editions that have been written are based off of this version.
The story starts with St Dafydd being a poor fisherman in Gwenyddian kingdom ruled by a cruel nameless clan who extort and harass the villagers. St Dafydd saved St Cormilius from the hands of these clansmen. He took the saint to a cave far in the Craggy peaks where he was enlightened in the ways of the Goose God. St Dafydd then went on a quest for justice and equality, and the story goes into detail on his various quests and missions.
The first saga details his travelling of Gwenydd evangelising and toppling the nameless clan who subjugated his people. He gained the aid of mythical creatures ranging from centaurs to fey. The key feature is his entrapment by the Old Gods in the spirit world, where he escaped after claiming a magic staff from a hag called Nanny Gwên Annuwiol. He had the staff blessed by calling upon the Goose God and used it to escape his imprisonment. Using the staff he cast the clan from the mortal plane, removing them from all memory.
The second saga details his conflict with the Kraken of the Terrassic. The Beast arose from the hells and plagued the coast of Gwenydd and Cape County. By this time St Dafydd had been cast out from his home village and had taken residence in his cave up on the caves. Fourteen petitioners travelled from various clans to his cave to seek the holy man's help. Dafydd accepted, and he travelled to the coast where he blessed a single dead tree. He cut it down and formed a small craft and waited for an almighty storm to begin. He set out in the boat and met the kraken in battle, where he and the vessel were swallowed whole. He spent a week inside the beast, his holy boat shielding him. During this, the kraken and numerous demons would try to tempt him to break his faith, but the saint kept still and continued praying. After the week was done, he unleashed a mighty divine spell from his staff that destroyed the beast from within.
The third saga is about Dafydd travelling Cape County, evangelising and preaching to the tribes there including the king of Kernow himself. Dafydd answered the three tasks of the king to test his faith, the first being to jump from the highest tower of his keep and survive, the second to cast the beast of the moors into the hells, and the third to tame a mighty dragon without killing it. After all these tasks were completed, Dafydd allegedly sunk a fleet of invading Marcians. Dafydd spent the rest of his life in his cave. The location of this cave has been lost to time, and it said St Dafydd remains buried there along with his magical staff.
St Dafydd's legacy has been mixed. In Gwenydd he became a simple folk hero, with most of his religious significance left out. Some die hard religious figures amongst the old gods disowned him entirely, whilst others incorporated him into Old God myth instead. In Cape County, he has been seen in his traditional religious capacity and his myth widely revered. During the Eldrian Empire's occupation, he was seen as a figure of imperial enforement of their religion. It was only after the imperial occupation ended and during the Commonwealth struggle in the forty years war that St Dafydd's legacy as a nationalist hero.
His worship has seen a resurggance amongst both the goose god worshippers and the old god faith within the commonwealth. His recognition as a national hero has seen his feast day become a popular festival amongst commonwealth citizens. St Daffyd's day is also a sorce of pride amongst Commonwealth expats, with Gwenyddian bars across Prima Terra.

Divine Domains

Name	Allignment	Province	Domain	Symbol
St Dafydd	CG	Sea, Gwenydd, Cape County, Sailors	Tempest, Nature	An octopus with a halo

Holidays

St Dafydd's Day: (13th Newsun) St Dafydd's Day is a prominent Goose God festival held in the Commonwealth. The festival involves plentiful drinking, often with themed bar crawls and patriotic singing. St Dafydd has been reclaimed by the Commonwealth as a symbol of national pride, so even non-goose god believers will partake in this festival, and in recent years it has taken a more secular role.

Divine Classification

Saint

Species

Human

Ethnicity

Gwenyddian

Church/Cult

Goose God

Gender

Male

Eyes

Blue

Hair

Long, brown, wavy

Skin Tone/Pigmentation

White

Height

5"9