Heliod, God of the Sun

Heliod personifies the light of day, and by extension, he is associated with many metaphorical aspects of the sun’s circuit.
As the sun rises without fail every morning, so Heliod values faithfulness in oaths and bonds. Courtroom testimony and marriage vows are sworn on his name, for he can’t tolerate the breaking of a solemn promise. He is the arbiter of morality, virtue, and honor.
The sun’s nightly descent into darkness symbolizes bravery and self-sacrifice—the willingness to endure the horrors of the dark for the sake of others. Those who protect innocents in his name receive Heliod’s favor.
As sunlight casts out darkness, Heliod’s justice casts out chaos and lawlessness. He is the god of the laws that govern society and the laws that punish the wicked. He is interested not only in punitive justice, but also in the establishment of fair and equitable relationships among people and gods, in service to the common good. He also takes an interest in the bonds of family—the relationships that tie people most closely to each other.

Heliod’s Goals

In Heliod’s mind, he is the ruler of the gods, and he wants merely for his rightful place to be recognized. He imagines Nyx rebuilt as his personal palace, where all can witness him in his glory. He considers himself a kind and beneficent ruler—a benign autocrat, not a tyrant—and he doesn’t expect abject servility from anyone, god or mortal. He just wants everyone to defer to his will and carry out his orders. He believes that his decisions are always just and right, and that if his sovereignty were properly respected, there would be peace and order in Nyx and the mortal world alike.

Divine Relationships

Heliod’s repeated attempts to establish himself as the ruler of the pantheon anger Erebos and Purphoros, who both have a degree of the arrogance he demonstrates.
Thassa and Nylea, by contrast, aren’t bothered by his efforts because they see themselves as being safely outside his reach. He could declare himself the ruler of the pantheon, they reason, but his dictates can’t alter the rhythms of the sea and the cycles of nature. Thassa and Nylea will continue as they are, as they always have been, whatever squabbles their brothers might have.
Ephara, Karametra, and Iroas are closely aligned with Heliod in attitude and philosophy. In some ways, these three gods represent the principles and the abstract nature of Heliod made tangible and concrete through the lives of mortals. Heliod represents a divine, natural, moral law; Ephara gives those laws a concrete manifestation by establishing mortal society in the poleis. Heliod controls the radiant sun that makes the natural world flourish; Karametra brings the interplay of light and nature to life for mortals in the practice of agriculture. And while Heliod stands for justice, Iroas actually fights for it, taking up arms against brutality and injustice in defense of what is good and right.
Heliod hates and fears Erebos, his dark twin and his shadow. He views the god of the dead as a pathetic liar and coward who wallows in self-pity in his exile.
Heliod is also plagued by a nagging suspicion that the true ruler of the pantheon is Kruphix, a mysterious being who is capable of sealing the borders between the mortal world and the divine realm of Nyx. Kruphix is perhaps the only being who can impose limits on the other gods’ actions, which makes Heliod resent and fear the god of horizons.

Worshiping Heliod

The brilliance of Heliod’s sun is impossible to ignore. Thus, virtually everyone on Theros pays at least grudging respect to the sun god in forms of worship that range from simple gestures to days-long celebrations.
Some families, particularly in the polis of Pheros, follow a practice of bowing in the direction of dawn’s first light—or winking, in a gesture of respect for the sun god’s luminous “eye.” More dedicated worshipers offer short litanies at dawn, noon, and dusk, acknowledging the sun’s passage across the sky.

Earning and Losing Favour

You increase your favour with Heliod when you expand the god’s influence in the world in a concrete way through acts such as these:

• Carrying out punishment on a fugitive from justice
• Exacting vengeance for a significant wrong done to you
• Defending a polis from attacking monsters
• Building or restoring a temple to Heliod

Your favour with Heliod decreases if you diminish his influence in the world, contradict his ideals, or make him look ridiculous or ineffectual through acts such as these:

• Breaking an explicit promise or oath
• Violating any just law
• Putting others at risk through your own cowardice

Theros Pantheon

Athreos, God of Passage
Ephara, Goddess of the Polis
Erebos, God of the Dead
Heliod, God of the Sun
Iroas, God of Victory
Karametra, Goddess of the Harvest
Keranos, God of Storms
Klothys, Goddess of Destiny
Kruphix, God of Horizons
Mogis, God of Slaughter
Nylea, Goddess of the Hunt
Pharika, Goddess of Affliction
Phenax, God of Deception
Purphoros, God of the Forge
Thassa, Goddess of the Sea