Theros Pantheon

A pantheon of fifteen gods guides religious life in Aravikos. From the sun and agriculture to death and passage into the Underworld, the gods oversee the forces of nature and the most important aspects of mortal life. These gods are quite real to the people of Aravikos, who see them moving across the sky at night and sometimes encounter them face to face. Thus, most people perform rituals and devotions that honor various gods, hoping to win their favor and stave off their wrath. They tell and retell the stories of the gods’ deeds—even as they watch those stories continue to play out in the vastness of the night sky.
Not every mortal serves or acknowledges the gods, though. Some philosophers in the schools of Taea teach that the gods of the pantheon are subordinate to a higher reality, perhaps Nyx itself. And other people, believe that the gods are undeserving of mortal reverence.

Divine Characteristics

The gods of Aravikos are far more active than the deities of of other pantheons. But that doesn’t mean they are ordinary creatures—they aren’t mere mortals, nor are they monsters that can be fought.
Further, the gods of Aravikos aren’t omnipotent. Although they are physically and magically powerful, ageless, and all but indestructible, their actions are bound by the decrees of Klothys. They can tangle the threads of destiny to a point, but they are forbidden from overstepping their assigned places in the pantheon. The god Kruphix is able to confine them to Nyx, preventing any direct interaction between the gods and the mortal world.
Likewise, the gods aren’t omniscient, though they see and hear everything that occurs inside their temples and before their altars. They have perfect recall of everything they experience. Certain liminal spaces—cave mouths, shorelines, crossroads, forest edges, and so on—enable mortal voices to reach the gods as well, though most gods have little reason to pay attention to what is spoken there.
Gods can speak directly to their oracles. They can appear in the dreams of mortals or manipulate natural phenomena to create omens. They can also create Nyxborn creatures to serve as messengers or emissaries.
Gods grant their clerics the ability to cast spells, and they can effortlessly duplicate the effect of any spell they could grant. They also have broad influence over aspects of the world associated with their portfolios, beyond what can be defined by spell effects. For example, Purphoros can make a volcano erupt, and Thassa can call up a tidal wave. Gods can bestow supernatural blessings on mortals, and they can lay terrible curses (such as when Mogis turned a herd of cattle into catoblepases).
The gods can assume any form they choose. They most commonly appear as humanoids—the form in which the people of Aravikos most easily imagine them—but on an enormous scale. They often seem to be walking across the dome of the sky, with their feet disappearing just below the horizon. Any part of a god’s body that isn’t directly lit takes on the appearance of the starry night sky of Nyx. The gods sometimes also appear as animals or magical creatures, or they manifest in insubstantial forms like sunlight or wind.
When physically present in the mortal world, a god is capable of devastating physical attacks. Heliod's spear striking the polis of Harthenon caused it to sink forever into the sea, and an errant blow from Purphoros's hammer shaped the mountains.
The power of the gods exceeds that of any mortal being. Even so, a god killing another god—let alone a mortal attempting the task—is virtually inconceivable. Any kind of direct confrontation against a god by mortals would require the assistance of at least one other god, and ideally more than one, to have any hope of success. A group of adventurers might try to convince a group of gods to lend their aid against a god who has become a threat to the mortal world, hoping to get the gods to band together to restrain or punish the offender. Kruphix or Klothys might be able to force a god into a physical form that doesn’t fill the sky (perhaps something similar to an empyrean or the tarrasque), which could enable adventurers to battle the god, especially if they have access to a divine weapon. But defeating the god in that form would merely weaken the deity, allowing other members of the pantheon to capture, bind, or punish them.

Divine Relationships

The Theros Pantheon is a family—a large, often dysfunctional family riven with petty jealousies and rivalries but also held together by genuine affection, admiration, and cooperation. It is easiest, after all, for mortals to conceive of gods that are very much like themselves, and the gods of Aravikos are very humanlike in their foibles and their exploits.
The Theros Pantheon has expanded through four generations of divine evolution. Some tales describe these as actual generations, suggesting (for example) that the storm god, Keranos, is the literal son of Thassa, god of the sea, and Purphoros, god of the forge. Others describe the generations in metaphorical terms, suggesting that Keranos represents the combination of Purphoros's creative energy and Thassa's deep knowledge, resulting in lightning-like flashes of inspiration (as well as the fury of a physical storm). In all their various forms, though, the myths agree on the basic structure of the pantheon’s development.

Worship

The most prevalent form of expressing reverence is the practice of libation, pouring out a splash of wine or water in honor of the gods. Pious people perform a simple rite of prayer and libation every morning and evening at a household altar or hearth, while the less devoted might still pour out a splash of wine before drinking the rest.
The defining feature of a Theran temple is a statue of a god—which the actual god can occupy and animate at any time. Worshipers kneel before it, touch and kiss it, drape it in garlands and fine cloth, and leave offerings before it. These acts are sometimes spontaneous outpourings of love or gratitude, and sometimes petitions, imploring the god to cure an illness, send rain for crops, guarantee a safe journey, or perform any other favor related to the god’s sphere of influence.
Most people aren’t devoted to a single god, though many prefer some gods over others. Someone might ask Pharika to spare a loved one from disease, then later offer prayers to Karametra for a bountiful harvest or to Thassa for safety on a sea journey.

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 Harvests
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, God of the Sea