The Four Gods of Zosoa

Zosoa is a diverse world in terms of religion, in part due to its connection to the other Planes of Existence, but one pantheon is followed by the majority of the world's people: The Four Gods. Their global religion has many denominations, variations, and sects throughout the world, each with a unique interpretation of the gods and the nature. Often, a version of Four Gods worship will view one god as the leader of the pantheon, or focus specifically on their worship.
The one most commonly revered as the supreme deity is Zosoa, creator of the world and its namesake. Zosoa is generally worshipped as the god of creation, and their opposite is Jovac, the primordial god of destruction. Some believe this godly competition is an eternal battle between good and evil, while others believe them to be forces that must be kept in balance, and still others believe they are neutral deities simply filling their role in the maintenance of the natural world.
The other two gods have an even more intrinsic connection to nature: Ennera, the god of water and the ocean, and Idali, the god of air and the sky. Unlike Zosoa and Jovac, these two do not compete, but rather coexist and cooperate to provide for the living things of the world. Thunderstorms are considered sacred in some regions, as they combine parts of all the gods: the storm comes from the air, has rain and clouds representing water, the storm causes destruction, and the plants that will grow from the rain represent creation.
Though this pantheon is known to have created the world, there are other religions created by those who choose to follow other gods or philosophies, or animist beliefs. Some have no religion at all, or disbelieve the existence of the gods entirely. Additionally, there are multiple religious institutions throughout the world, and some choose to follow only one or two of the gods, or omit one.

Mythology & Lore

Most myths and sages agree that the world was made by Zosoa, but was a hot and barren world. It's said that Jovac, who had already coexisted with Zosoa for millions of years, then attempted to use their divine power to smash the new world with a barrage of meteorites. Infuriated by this attempt to ruin their favored project, Zosoa retaliated, enveloping Jovac in a divine prison that now forms the moon, and a war that would last for uncountable years began.
With Jovac out of the way, but only briefly, Zosoa focused their power to create two more gods. Ennera made water that flowed across the world and allowed life to arise, and soon, Idali filled the skies with air. But Zosoa expended a great deal of power to birth two gods, giving Jovac time to find out how to break free from their captivity. The battles between deities resumed, and Zosoa decided never to waste their strength making new gods, in order to prevent Jovac's rise.
It is believed that the gods reside in the Outer Sphere, in the region nearer to the Material known as the Astral Sea.

Divine Origins

Since the existence of the four gods has been proven, it's believed that the gods have been followed since the dawn of civilization. However, information about this time period is quite scarce, mostly acquired through rare, ancient beings or the magic of diviners and knowledge clerics. At first, the religion was even more divided and disorganized, but since then, multiple institutions devoted to the gods have appeared in each continent.

Priesthood

Sometimes, usually in urban centers with magical communities, the highest levels of ministry are controlled by clerics or demigods, or paladins in the case of more militant sects. Demigods are a rare, but special occurrence--deities regularly send seemingly mortal avatars into the world, whose children are expected to serve the god in some way. A few demigods reject this burden and choose their own life, but most take advantage of the prestige and influence that being the child of a god affords them. They have powers beyond normal mortals, but are still far from being fully divine.
In most places, there are not enough mages available, so ministers usually advance either through experience and dedication or are chosen from specially trained children drawn from the elite classes. In some societies, there is no organized clergy, and religious services are either conducted individually, by the community, by those who declare themselves holy people, or by the children of one who did.

Granted Divine Powers

A small percentage of priests and other faithful gain a fraction of divine power from their deity, known as clerics. Clerics of Zosoa tend to focus on healing, law, the attainment of knowledge, and aspects related to creation. Clerics of Jovac are more likely to focus on waging war and using their powers to influence death, though not all of them are single-mindedly dedicated to inflicting violence. Clerics of Ennera focus on the power of nature and magical deception, and clerics of Idali usually are experts in wielding the divine power of light and the storm.

Founding Date

Before Recorded History

Type

Religious, Pantheon

Permeated Organizations

• Audren
• Great Kivosian Empire
• Old Tritonic Empire
• Ufra Empire