Banzala
Banzala is a powerful demigod and spirit of death, and perhaps the most powerful of all the Living Gods. He is responsible for ferrying the souls of the dead to his realm of the afterlife, and primarily of those that worship him in the Tahosian Dynasty. His realm takes the form of a mysterious pocket dimension within the Blacklands called The Other Side. The more souls that are in his care within this pocket reality, the more powerful he supposedly is.
Banzala is described as neither benevolent nor malicious, though he can be both depending on his mood. He possesses a bond between himself and his worshippers that can be described as very personal and takes a close interest in the lives of mortals, able to read the entirety of a single mortal's history and experiences through their soul alone. Banzala is said to be a fan of conversing with mortals and mortal company, carrying himself with an air of charismatic, biting humor, and sometimes even manifesting himself to communicate directly with those seeking an audience.
True to his role as ferryman of the dead, Banzala is not without his darker side. He has sometimes been described as manipulative, and in spite of his role in the cosmic order, he is not above bending the rules to make the occasional deal or pact with mortals to get what he wants. However, his powerful gifts always come at a price.
Despite his darker aspects, Banzala purportedly despises the undead and sees them as an affront to the natural order of things, if only because the creation of such unnatural creatures subverts and interferes with the task given to him as a ferryman of souls.
It is rumored that Banzala may have once lived a mortal life before ascending into deific status. Some say he may have once been God-King A'latl, returned from the dead and given his role by unknown forces. Others say that he is a collection of many spirits given one voice and personality. This is debated among scholars.
Souleaters, Hounds of Death
To those who's deeds in life were rotten, malicious, and heinous, Banzala has his ways to reel in those who evade his judgement. In rare situations, the truly wicked may find themselves hunted by his hounds. These large, dark, spectral hounds are shadowy creatures who seek only the taste of the sinful and cruel, devouring the souls of the damned with a viscous appetite. The infamous hounds of Banzala are feared across Tansia by the superstitious, frequently depicted as black-furred wolves with decorated golden human skulls for heads. They are also seen as spirits of vengeance, and those victimized by the cruelest of people will often take solace that Banzala's hounds will always find their prey in the end. Those who have born witness to the moment a hound of Banzala finds its target describe the victim, in their last moments, crawling away from and screaming in terror at nothing, before being silenced with a blur of shadow.Depiction
To those who have seen him, Banzala frequently manifests as an eight-foot-tall, athletic human male with dark skin patterned with golden tattoos, and decorated with ornate jewelry and small bones. He wears an enormous crown of black feathers and possesses a grinning, extravagantly decorated skull in place of a head, with burning, icy-blue eyes. He is often seen with a serpent, coiled around a cane of bone, and an owl. Many times, his size may vary from eight feet all, to a massive thirty feet tall should he desire to look imposing. He is said to be able to manifest anything he desires at will that serves the moment.Tenets of Faith
Recognize that death is part of life. Death is not an ending but a beginning, not a punishment but a necessity. Death is an orderly process without deceit, concealment, and randomness. Help others die with dignity at their appointed time and no sooner. Speak against those that would artificially prolong their life beyond natural limits, such as the undead. Bring honor to the dead, for their strivings in life brought Tansia to where it is now. Forgetting them is to forget where we are now, and why. Let no human in all of Tansia die a natural death without one of Banzala's clerics at their side. Uphold your word. Banzala urges all of his followers to stay true to their promises and to keep their oaths, especially when it comes to deals and trades. To all followers of Banzala, the terms of any bargain are acceptable if all parties are clearly informed and willing without deception. Once a deal is made, a contract should be binding until fulfilled. However, the rules can be bent and altered if a more valuable offer comes your way. Do not give something valuable away for free. Seek out what others desire and provide it, but only for something of equal or more value. Make mischief and merriment. Life is far too short to spend wallowing in misery. Life without fun isn't worth living. Joy must be brought to all, and sometimes at the expense of others; bring mischief to the lives of the dour, the prideful, and the haughty, so they may be kept humble, as all souls—old, young, rich, and poor—will pass through the Gate of Mortality.Followers of Banzala
Banzala is popular among tahosian witches, witchdoctors, undertakers, and warlocks of all stripes. While most outsiders may see his worshippers as dark and untrustworthy occultists, their worship is not without purpose. To those in the Dynasty, death is revered as the beginning of a new cycle of life. His followers often celebrate him by donning feathered, golden ritual masks shaped in the visages of gemstone-studded skulls and bowing around braziers of blue flames during prayer. In turn, Banzala rewards his people by returning the spirits of their revered dead to the Materium one night every year so they may spend time with long-passed friends, family, and ancestral relatives. This day is called the Eve of Souls and is considered a major day of celebration in the Tahosian Dynasty. The Kingdom of Ban'zol honors Banzala as their patron deity, and countless shrines and tombs built within the swamps of the Tansin Wilds pay respect to him and his influence in their lives. Rituals to contact Banzala directly involve the scattering of bone dust and marigold petals across an altar surrounded by carved skulls. In most cases, this is often to make a deal with the god himself. This same ritual is also typically used during any casting of the 'Commune' spell. The people of the Dynasty do not bury nor cremate their dead. Rather they meticulously craft small boats from reeds and other plant matter, and wade the deceased out into rivers for the current to take. They believe that all rivers flow to Banzala and the Other Side. To some degree this is not without merit. The Great Tansian River is a favored place for funerals to take place. To the people of the Dynasty, the Tansin River is sacred, as it flows through the Tansin Swamplands where the sole greatest temple to the spirit of death is located: The Necropolis. All souls of the deceased that drift downstream are siphoned through the temple and judged by Banzala whether they are worthy, or whether they are to be cast downstream. Those deemed worthy by Banzala are sent through through to the Other Side. The Necropolis is the only place where the Other Side can be directly accessed by living mortals, and only with the permission of Banzala himself.Soulbinders & the Soulbound
Soulbinders are some of Banzala's most ardent followers and are most often found keeping safe some of the most sacred places of Banzalan worship. When a Banzalan faithful dies, regardless of status in Ban'zol society, their soul may be chosen by the deceased's family to serve as a guardian over their family's lineage or a sacred place. Of course, this entirely depends on the deceased's last wishes, and they are honored for the sacrifice they make of forsaking the ability to move on to the afterlife. Should the soul be willing, Soulbinders will bind the spirit to a place or location so it might serve forevermore as a local guardian. A soul might be bound to a memorial site, a grove frequented by the spirit in life, or even a magical golem. These golems are called the Soulbound. Soulbound golems are decorated and revered vessels for honored ancestral spirits long passed. Many have described these golems as walking mausoleums adorned with undying candles, magical marigold petals that never touch the ground, and the painted skulls of those who possess the golem. These golems cannot speak, and only during the Eve of Souls can the spirits of these golems leave their walking tombs to meet their descendants and speak with them in person. The greater the deeds a soul did in life, the larger and more powerful their golem tends to be. A veteran warrior might request his soul be fused with that of a Huge construct chiseled into the visage of his animal companion in life. A notable healer and medicine maker might request her soul be bound to a roadside shrine so that she might provide healing and rest to passing travelers. This honor also extends to Soulbinders themselves. Some of the most powerful Soulbound golems patrol the halls of the Necropolis, forever bound in service to protect their deity.
Portfolio
Afterlife, Death, Luck, Sleep, Souls, Trickery
Afterlife, Death, Luck, Sleep, Souls, Trickery
Divine Classification
Spirit
Religions
Alignment
True Neutral
Species
Realm
Children
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