Hunia
God of Beasts and Hunting
Hunia's role is seen as a somewhat subsidiary one to two other gods. On the one hand, his dominion over beasts strays into the territory of Jopha's nature domain. On the other, his domain of hunting transcends just the hunt of game for food and skins and, indeed, his work with Astus to hunt the souls rejected from the afterlife is a dominant aspect of Hunia's divine work.
The former is easily explained away, Jopha's withdrawal from Valinian affairs after her disastrous attempt to create the perfect divine being brought Khydar into existence left the other gods to split the aspects of nature between them for a time. As Jopha returned to a more active role, the others gradually returned their aspects of nature to her oversight. Hunia, as her child, requested to keep oversight of the beasts he has such an affinity for and Jopha readily agreed to her child's request.
The second is a curiosity. The idea of a god of the hunt naturally brings to the minds of mortal beings the thought of their own hunting of animals for resources or sport, but Hunia's role was always primarily as a hunter of souls in the circle of life, death and the afterlife. Prior to Khydar's emergence, Hunia hunted the souls of those rejected by Astus from the afterlife and the hunt was a measure of that soul's worth of another chance at life or whether it should be destroyed utterly.
When Khydar came along, the paradigm changed. Souls began to haunt locales, leaving them open to destruction by mortal beings. Khydar harvested the souls of those that Hunia did not reach first and souls that could have been made worthy of the afterlife were lost. The masses of undead grew to the point where even Khydar was forced to reign in his harvesting and work with the other gods to cull the undead rampage on Valine. Still, what had been a ritual became a competition and often a race, locking Hunia and Khydar in direct conflict over centuries.
Hunia was created by Jopha and Udros, God of Music and the Arts. Of all the gods he appears most often on Valine, but rarely interacts with living souls. He is, rather, tending to the beasts he loves or fully invested in the hunt, and so only glimpsed and rarely interacted with.
He appears most often in the form of a Longtooth Weretouched. When on the hunt, dressed in the greens and browns of wilderness camouflage and wearing an ox-skull helmet with a humanoid skull mask attached. When not on the hunt, Hunia appears on Valine in simple clothing.
Hunia is the twin brother of Mottuna, Goddess of Fire, and the two have a close relationship and affinity for each other that is reflected in their faiths on Valine. Twin temples of Hunia and Mottuna are not uncommon sights, especially in larger cities. He is married toMano, Goddess of Knowledge and Secrets. The triumvirate represent, along with Astus and Jopha, the closest thing to a united faction among the gods that exists. Which is not to say they don't have significant disagreements.
Divine Domains
- Beasts
- Hunting
Holidays
- 1st of Asmir: Divine First of the Pantheon
Divine Goals & Aspirations
Hunia hunts down the souls of those denied access to the Afterlife by Astus. The souls that he finds are given a chance to live again. Those that avoid the hunt are often claimed by Khydar before Hunia can reach them or they haunt a location as some kind of spirit until being dispatched by some other method at which point the soul is destroyed completely. Hunia's goal is to deny Khydar the most powerful souls.
Physical Description
Apparel & Accessories
When on the hunt, Hunia wears an ox skull as a kind of helmet and a humanoid skull as a face mask. He dresses in greens and browns or other appropriate camouflage material. When not on the hunt, a rare occurence, Hunia appears in simple clothing, as a longtooth weretouched.
Social
Family Ties
Relationships
Divine Classification
God
Religions
Spouses
Siblings
Children
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