Paragons
in CosmologyThe Age of Mortals
The war was devastating and caused a wound that would be slow to heal among the gods. Eager to come up with a project to unit them again, like they were united before the war, Ethesis encouraged them to come together to make a new realm that they would all share.
Many of the gods arrived to help, and as they started to craft this new realm more gods would join. Everyone had a design, a request, or input, and quickly this realm grew into a series of nested realms that would all bleed into each other, creating a flowing balance. Out of his love for Nal'Yea, he made the centre of this new world the last realm she designed before her disappearance, a world he called Cadilon.
Before long generations of mortals had lived, and the gods, as always, started to develop favourites. Celestials too took part, and quickly the favourite mortals were gifted power and immortality. Forbidden relationships eventually occurred between celestials, mortals and gods, and their offspring were often left to be raised on the mortal realms. Desiring a connection with their children, gods were known to send visions or subtly push these mortals to quests to achieve greatness, eventually ending in the ascension to immortality and near divinity.
Paragons, Ascended, Immortal, Eternal, there are many names and terms that have come to be associated with the powerful beings that arse from the ranks of the elementals, fey and mortals from the Realms of the Inner Planes.
In general, these beings all still live in the realm they grew up on, though some have moved to others, or move from realm to realm. Each has achieved a level of power and influence that few dare dream of, becoming exemplars of their kind. Through some way, most have realized a way to stay alive far past their natural life expectancy, giving way to the rumours and myths that these beings have become immortal. Some achieved power and immortality by impressing the gods, others by intense arcane study. Some made deals and pacts with powerful, otherworldly entities, and some still seemed to have lucked into it.
World Codex
Ascended Mortals
The best, brightest, strongest or wisest of mortals sometimes ascend to immortality. It is believed that there is one perfect example of everything mortals can be. There is a perfect elf who ascended, a perfect paladin who ascended, etc. When they ascend, it is believed that they gain a greater focus and passion for the quality that caused their ascension.
There are rumours however that the gods always have a hand in creating the ascended, and that they choose these shining exemplars at their whim, and sometimes they are their mortal offspring that they bless with power. This theory is further reinforced by the fact that anyone who seems to have divine heritage seems to have the potential for ascension by birth.
Arch Fey
The fey seem immortal by their very nature. They either live impossibly long lives, or seem to be reborn in the next spring season, eternally living in a cycle of life and death. The strongest, and often oldest of the fey sometimes ascend to the rank of an Arch Fey. They gain for themselves the ability to control and change the The Realm of the Faerie, creating their own small domains similar to those of gods.
Many Arch Fey, like the Ascended Mortals, are rumoured to be the offspring of gods and demigods, or the children of the Arch Seasons. Arch Fey strike fear and awe into the hearts of fey everywhere as their power and influence over the realm they call home can make life very pleasant or horrific for those around them.
Shade Eternals
The opposites of the Arch Fey, Shade Eternals, or Dark Lords, are the powerful beings of The Veil of Shadows. These beings rule dark domains that are collectively called the Domains of Dread. They tend to be all dark, twisted, and evil beings that are either so self obsessed that they do not see the pain they cause around them, or they simply do not care. Some still are worse, enjoying the pain they cause others.
Ironically, the Dark Lords are more prisoner in their domains as opposed to the rulers they feel they are. They are trapped in the far reaches of the The Veil of Shadows by powers darker and more twisted than they are, cursed to suffer the same dreary loop that will ultimately end in their worst fears coming true before time restarts and they relive their lives in the dark domains again.
Elemental Lords
The strongest and most powerful of the beings of the elemental planes become Elemental Lords. They are the element they embody perfected, or the element personified. They exist to live their element, and see to it that their element and the plane that makes it is constantly powered by the internal sources of the plane.
Sometimes these beings are genies, by most of the time they are some type of perfect elemental being. Despite their obsession over their element, they are not unwilling to compromise and work with other elements on other realms. They are highly intelligent beings, and though they see no place or purpose for any other element on their home realm they realize that there is need for balance on the other realms.