the New Gods of Empyrean
No one knows when the gods discovered the Empyrean Universe, if they all discovered it at once, or one at a time, or really anything about them before the time known as the Coming of the Gods. The Secret Truth is that the gods discovered Ora and the Empyrean Universe in situ, crawling with life, but completely devoid of divinity. Whoever created it was long gone when the gods came. They found a strangely constructed, empty universe, with an enormous amount of latent divine energy, seemingly abandoned. They immediately began taking the reins of the universe all at once, dividing the divine power amongst themselves. They made their presence known to the mortals and other lifeforms in the universe and took control all at once. Then they set about adjusting their new home to their liking during a time called the Reshaping, and now that the gods have settled in and established their new celestial order, Empyrean carries on under their rule, it's mysteries still unknown even to the New Gods themselves.
Because of this strange situation the gods of the Empyrean Universe are overall not as contentious as in other universes. They disagree, and there have been significant squabbles, including the sealing of Tharizdun early on, but by and large, there is enough power to go around and the gods all work together. Here, because there are so few of them, each god’s share of divine power is greater than in other worlds. The gods have vast portfolios of power and have all agreed to a great divine pact to keep it that way.
This pact is called The Covenant and it outlines how the gods divide power amongst themselves, and how they will arbitrate disputes, but most importantly it includes a binding oath to keep Ora and the entire Empyrean Universe secret so no other gods are attracted to it, diluting the great stores of power at their disposal. This includes snuffing out any other gods that attempt to arise naturally through the beliefs of Ora’s inhabitants, as well as shielding the universe from prying eyes by means of the Insensible Cage, a powerful shell which protects and cloaks it from outside forces.
The New Gods of Empyrean and their Portfolios of Power
- Anor - Air/The Sky/Wind/Storms/Thunder/Flying
- Ashtar - The Day/Light/The Sun/Renewal/Dawn/Joy/Fire/Stars
- Bahamut - War/Justice/Strategy/Conflict/Vengeance/Conquest/Courage
- Chauntea - The Seasons/Agriculture/The Harvest/The Hearth/Cooking/Fertility/Celebration
- The Dyad - Good Luck/Bad Luck/Fate/Fairness/Truth/Lies/Mischief
- Ishtar - The Night/Darkness/The Moons/Loss/Twilight/Fear/Cold
- Morrighan - Life/Death/Creation/Destruction
- Mystra - Knowledge/Magic/Art/Literature/Secrets/Divination
- Primus - Order/Technology/Civilization/Craft/The Forge/Trade/Travel/Time/Entropy
- Rona - Water/The Sea/Rivers/Storms/Lightning/Sailing
- Selene - Love/Sex/Beauty/Compassion/Healing/Charity
- Silvanus - Nature/Beasts/The Hunt/Wild Spaces/The Earth
Tharizdun - Entropy/Darkness/Madness/Fear/The Void
Heirarchy and Relationships
Ostensibly all of the New Gods are equals, but in practice, either through force of personality or due to the nature of their responsibilities, certain gods are looked to as leaders among their ranks.
Foremost of these is Primus, who as the god of pure order had a major hand in ordering the universe and distributing the divine power between their cohort. Due to his implacably objective personality, Primus is often called upon to be the arbiter of any disputes between the gods, he drafted The Covenent, crafted the Insensible Cage, and presided over the Trial of Asmodeus which established the Devil's rule over The Hells and their role in both holding back the Demons of The Abyss and funneling divine energy to the gods through the souls of mortals.
Bahamut, the Platinum Dragon is usually the god that carries out the bidding of Primus in matters of divine law. As the god of justice and war, he is the god the other gods would fear if not for his overall righteous and compassionate demeanor. These qualities are enough to make Bahamut a great force even amongst the gods.
Similarly, Mystra, the goddess of knowledge and magic is equally respected. She holds the answers to every question and can divine the truth of any matter. Without her formidable assistance Primus could not have constructed the Insensible Cage that guards Empyrean from the worlds beyond.
Primus, Bahamut, and Mystra often keep each others council and make decisions for the group. For the most part, the other gods do not take issue with this, but there are those who find it grating.
Anorand Rona are twin sibling gods and preside over the air and water respectively. Together they also hold the portfolio of storms and it is through their combined power that they control the weather of Ora.
Rounding out the four foundational elements are Silvanus who controls earth, and Ashtar who commands fire. The pair are often antagonistic towards one another as Silvanus finds Ashtar to be reckless and hotheaded, while Ashtar thinks Silvanus is stubborn and uncivilized. However, they will work together for the greater good, should the need arise.
Chauntea is the wife of Silvanus and together they are most loved by agrarian communities, farmers, ranchers, hunters, etc. You can also find shrines or statues to either or both gods in urban parks or community gardens throughout Ora. Their relationship is a strong, loving dynamic, though Silvanus may be gone for long periods of time hunting in the woods of his great demiplane of The Beastlands he is always welcomed home in his wife's farm on the demiplane of Arborea.
Selene is the goddess of love, healing, pleasure, and compassion. She is well-liked by the other gods and throws the most incredible parties in her demiplane of Panacea.
As the gods of Empyrean hold vast portfolios of power compared to the more diverse and specialized gods of other multiverses, it should be no surprise that Ashtar is also the god of the sun, in addition to being the god of fire. His lover, Ishtar is the goddess of the moons. Together, they handle most interplanetary relationships as well, making sure everything functions in accordance with the great Orrerry of Primus.
Additionally, Ishtar is the goddess of darkness, and the night, darkness being a domain she was rewarded, along with fear, after Tharizdun was bound to the Insensible Cage. He was also stripped of his power over entropy, which was enfolded with Primus's control of time, leaving him with only his madness, and the power over The Void necessary for the cage to work.
Tharizdun is known as the Great Betrayer, amongst many other names, and for good reason. During the Reshaping he tried to use his powers of entropy to sap the divinity from Ishtar as part of a secret plot to kill the gods and destroy the Empyrean Universe entirely. He was thwarted in this by Primus who, though unaware of Tharizdun's actions noticed the time anomaly while monitoring the Infinity Web and made an adjustment which corrected the flow of time that Tharizdun had stopped in order to steal Ishtar's power. Ishtar awoke, and a great war ensued, called simply The Betrayal War, which lasted more than a year, and involved all of the gods as well as the Primordial Elementals, and the demons of The Abyss, and culminated in The Moonfall and The Binding of the Dark God.
The two remaining gods, Morrighan and The Dyad are the most alien and ineffable. They both exhibit dualistic natures, Morrighan holds sway over life and death from their castle, the Spire of Rebirth which exists simultaneously within The Shadowfell and the Feywild while also being the prominent fixture of their home demiplane of Fugue whose location is unknown, even to the other gods. Morrighan is often serious, sometimes dour, but is not usually cruel or capricious. They are a neutral deity, and represent the fact of creation or destruction, without emotion. Those are the purviews of other gods. Primus has been known to hear the whispers of The Veiled One, and take their council to heart.
The Dyad is equally implacable, though much more chaotic to be around. The Dyad does not have a humanoid shape as the other gods tend to favor. It often changes shape or configuration, but generally chooses to appear as a massive geometric bust made of some kind of stone or metal. Hovering at the top of the sculpture are two enormous masks with nondescript, vaguely feminine features, one black, and one white. The masks slide into position at the front of the sculpture and orient themselves depending on which one is speaking. It is generally assumed that the white mask always lies and the black mask always tells the truth, but it is impossible to say. The Dyad is not often sought out for interaction by the other gods, but will often simply appear when something of import is happening. Otherwise, it can be found in its home demiplane of Fortuna. It does not take any overt part in the management of Casino Infinum, but rather leaves that to its more gregarious Principality Prosperia.
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