The Twelve
Mythology & Lore
Once there was nothing but a black void. Nothingness. Time did not yet exist and everything was abstract and devoid of substance. The essences of law and chaos existed and perhaps were the only things that existed within the void. Powerful, physical waves of energy that manifested themselves as the natutal orders of existence.
The twelve gods that reside in their homes in the Divine Isles wished to be seen, loved, feared, and worshiped. Primus left his home as the sun and gathered his brother and sister, Silvanus and Nocturna and began to create life on what they thought was a barren, lifeless world on the Material Plane. To their astonishment, they found a race of eldritch beings, now known as the Nameless Ones, evil beings that embodied pure chaos, were feeding on what little life the world had to offer; using the primitive people, that were little more than beasts, as slaves and food. Primus and his siblings called upon their fellow gods that dwelled in the Divine Isles, and they fought the Namelss Ones for dominion of this world in a battle that lasted several millennia. The three greater gods, as well as their smaller siblings and offspring vanquished the Namess Ones, succeeding in banishing the great evils to the six hundred and sixty-sixth layer of the Abyss.
But Primus and his ilk were wounded badly; weak from battle and much of their divine power depleted. They left the land where the last major battle took place; the land that would come to be known as the Silver Shores, leaving it and it's inhabitants to the whims of fate, so the gods could heal and regain their divine strength.
Their absence would last another few millennia, and in that time the beings once used as fodder for the Nameless Ones would grow and change and would wander the land. These savage humans would come to be known as the First Tribe. The First Tribe would settle this land, and come to worship the lords of the elemental planes as gods.
A descendent of the first emperor would unite all the tribes of humans, and part of this unification included the worship of the elemental pagan gods. Only the Northmen Of Brondheim resisted, their faith firm in gods that ruled the frozen wastelands, and the Dwarves would retain their faith Volturnus, the Halflings would continue to venerate Prospera, the Elves continues as servants of Silvanus and Serrenna; the deities of The Twelve that created them. But on a day when the gates of the Abyss opened, and the denizens of the Nether-world destroyed the Celinadian Empire, the elemental gods were nowhere to be found. It was assumed that the pagans fell out of favor with their gods, and therefore would not help their worshipers. Rather than be destroyed, they turned their attentions away from the Natural World never to return.
Divine Origins
Almost a hundred years after the fall of Celinad, priests and monks from other lands to the east began to appear in the kingdom known as Galador. Their message was that The Twelve were ready to return; their strength renewed from the almost devastating battle with Nameless Ones. They would help the people of the former kingdoms of the Celinadian Empire in return for their worship.
The denizens of the The Silver Shores had suffered from one hundred years of raiding and pillaging from the barbaric horse lords of eastern Katar. In hopes of salvation, prayers to The Twelve began. Churches were built, ceremonies established, clergy blessed and empowered by the gods themselves began to slowly turn the tide against the Kataran horde.
Cosmological Views
The Divine Isles and The Endless Sea are the home of the Twelve. Scolars and sages call these realms "The Higher Planes." Each island, or plane, is the home to a particualr diety of The Twelve, such as Ysgard being home to Tempus , for example. The islands are surrounded by the The Endless Sea home to goddess Naussica and surrounds the world as well.
A river of molten fire, named Infernus , ruled by Revanna , runs through the center of the world connecing all of existences to the "Lower Planes," where the unfortunate can find the realms of evil, such as the Nine Hells and the Six Hundred and Sixty-Six Layers of the Abyss.
Tenets of Faith
To accept that the Twelve are the creators of all and who fought to deliver the world from evil.
To do good works.
To work towards godliness by commiting acts as the gods themselves have done.
That upon death, each soul will be judged and sent to The Divine Isles, if pious and righteous, to dwell in Helios alongisde Primus for eternity.
To believe that that all people are fallible and to commit wrongs means praying to the Twelve for forgiveness or suffer an eternity in Hell after death. All wrongs may be forgiven, but mortal sins shall not. Those who commit mortal sins are sentenced to an eternity in the Nine Hells.
Each god in The Twelve also has their own set of edicts and tenets as well. These will be listed under that god's entry. Someone that has chosed that god as a patron diety need follow that particular god's tenets of faith lest their soul wander the eternal sea upon death.
Ethics
Belief in the teachings of the Twelve, and the origins of the faith. That Primus created the sun, Nocturna the moon, Naussica the seas, and Silvanus nature, and they in turn procreated and birthed the other remaining gods. Not believing or losing faith can be forgiven if a heart is pure and repentant.
All people are called to do good things. To be honest and not commit acts of deceit, to be generous and not greedy, to love and not hate, to be brave and not weak. These are also forgivable faults if a person repents and prays for forgiveness.
To be godly by offering aid and shelter to the weak, seek to right terrible wrongs, and protect one's family, community, and kingdom. To embody the traits of each particular god when a situation presents itself to do so.
All beings are fallible and commit faults. Failure to do the above are considered committing a fault which may be forgiven by a member of the clergy or by asking the god directly for atonement, if a person failed in the eyes of the god. A follower,priest or cleric of Vecna may even seek atonement if they renounce their devotion to the god of secrets.
Upon death each soul is taken by Revanna to Infernus. There she escorts the soul to be judged before their divine patron where they will dwell in that god's home for eternity if worthy, or if there not a patron deity to sit before Primus to see if that soul spend their afterlife in Helios. If a deity judges a soul not worthy, they may wander the The Endless Sea or worse sent to the Nine Hells to spend eternity.
Mortal sins can never be forgiven, nor atoned for. These would be consorting with devils and demons, seeking to overthrow the Twelve as Vecna has done, or giving up one's soul for any reason.
Worship
All beings in the Silver Shores are beckoned to worship The Twelve. Your everyday citizen of the Silver Shores pray to the gods of the pantheon as a whole, and then a specific deity if the seek favor or fortune that would fall under the domain of that particular god. The farmer would pray to Tempus to bring rain to end a drought, or to Prospera for a bountiful harvest.
All people of the Silver Shores venerate and pray to the entire pantheon, but it is not uncommon for a person, settlement, or kingdom to have a patron deity. While clerics are the most likely example, for individuals this choice for a patron god is chosen by that person's occuptation. A farmer would likely have Prospera as a patron deity, as an example. A location would as well, but this choice is typically based on the purpose of that particular settlement. A farming town could select Propsera, a fortress would choose Tyrannus, a druid circle Silvanus, etc.
The holy day of the week is Godsday, the middle of the week according to the Imperial Calendar established during Celinadian times. On Godsday, worshippers halt their daily toils and tasks and gather at the closest Temple of The Twelve. There they pray and give their offerings to the pantheon of gods. Most people seek spiritual guidance and strength, or pray to the Twelve for their aid with a particular trouble.
In each temple there exists an individual shrine dedicated to each deity. Each temple is tended to by a priest. All gods are venerated here, even the not-so good ones. Tyrannus would be prayed to by a soldier's mother to spare her son from death in an upcoming battle, and even vile Vecna could receive a prayer to be granted knowledge or insight; just as examples. When praying to a single god of The Twelve, that god usually demands an offering or sacrifice, and even possibly a specialized prayer, according to that god's tenets of faith. The temple priest would lead that person in whatever ritual needs to be performed.
Vecna is the only deity from the Twelve who is not represented by a shrine or priest at a Temple of The Twelve. Open worship of Vecna is illegal and considered heresy (though it is fine to utter a quick prayer, praying and worhsipping are considered two seperate acts), and priests of Vecna are typically feared, shunned, and even imprisoned throughout Galador.
Priesthood
Priests make up the vast majority of the clergy for The Twelve. They reside in and oversee maintainance of the temples to the gods. There they perform religious ceremonies such as weddings, preside over funerals, lead their worshippers in prayer and worship on Godsday, and deliver atonement and spiritual advice to those that require it. The number of priests assigned to a temple depend on the size of the temple.
The clerics are considered holy warriors or missionaries for a particular god. Each cleric picks a patron diety whose ideals and tenets they embody, and they receive divine magic from that deity upon performing their daily prayers. Most clerics serve at a city or temple, but many wander the lands doing their god's will.
Finally, there are the paladins. Paladins are holy warriors that do not have a patron diety but serve the Twelve and the cause of good. These are highly trained martial fighter and receive powers and abilities for serving the Twelve.
Granted Divine Powers
Each god of the The Twelve grants to their some of their priests and all clerics who serve a patron diety, divine powers from the domains (also known as apsects), that they preside over. Primus grants his clerics powers that relate to the sun and healing, while Volturnus grants his clerics powers relating to earth and fire.
The powers of paladins come from being the holy champions of The Twelve and include laying on hands to heal the sick and wounded, to increase their own strength and fighting spirit, to detect and smite evil, and to summon a holy mount. These powers are to aid this holy warrior in his fight against the forces of evil.
Political Influence & Intrigue
In Vaszkya, Tyrannus is that kingdom's patron diety. While faith and belief in the rest of the Twelve is necessary other gods prayed to, worship and devotion to Saint Cuthbert and Tempus is illegal and punishable by imprisonment.
Heresy is conidered illegal in all the kingdoms of The Silver Shores. What is considered heresy differs from kingdom to kingdom.
Sects
As stated above, each temple of the Twelve contains a shrine to each god of the Twelve save Vecna. Some smaller villages and settlements may not possess a temple but often contain shrines devoted to one or more particular patron deities, or even a small modest church that contains an altar and some holy receptacle for receiving offerings or sacrifices surrounded by bas reliefs of each god's holy symbol.
Vecna is the only god where open worship and devotion is illegal and ruled a heretical act punishable by imprisonment in Galador. Thus his priests and followers meet in secret. in dark and foreboding locations. Asking favor from Vecna is not heresy however, as prayer and devotion are considered two different things.
Demonic cults and the worship of devils exist as well. These sects and worship of these evil beings (for they are not gods, even Asmodeus was stripped of his divinty) is considered heresy and therefore illegal.
Maps
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Cosmology of the Silver Shores
A loose atlas of the The Divine Isles and The Endless Seaand The Silver Shores Silver Shores-also known as the Natural World. The isles themselves are not fixed in those exact locations, often drifting aimlessly The Endless Sea.
Type
Religious, Pantheon
Leader
Permeated Organizations
Deities
Divines
Controlled Territories
Related Myths
The Murdered Gods
- Mystra
- Ketsimus
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