Gods of the Argent Host

The Clerics, Magistrates and Paladins of Aruvia and the surrounding lands often represent the deities of the Gods of the Argent Host. There are facets within facets, and many even serve several gods at the same time.

Summary

Jalis, The Judge. God of justice and truth. Jalis is the first of Tahl’s children. His father’s dying breath gave him instruction to care for and guide his younger siblings. Aruvian magisters, lords, and inquisitors worship Jalis and his teachings in their craft. Many detractors and critics of Jalis and his teachings are especially critical of his very rigid thinking and lack of compassion. His symbol is a silver sword embedded in the ground.

Gren, The Hoarder. God of treasure and greed. The Hoarder Gren is a god worshipped only in secret. Not for fear of persecution or punish-ment, but embarrassment. Gren is a miserly, lowly god, smallest and weakest of his siblings. He is envious and greedy, but clever and devious. Merchants, thieves and pirates alike, even the common man worship Gren in the safety and secrecy of their homes, hoping for blessings of fortune and treasure. His symbol is an 8 sided coin.

Magnar, The Huntsman. God of strength and self-reliance. Settlers, hunters and all proud Aruvians worship Magnar. He is of the forest and wilderness, but also of the hunt. At some point, he was punished for his overzealous hunting, and was cursed by Jalis on behalf of Yrgon to live as a beast every night. This is a cautionary tale told often to eager hunters, but rarely listened to. His symbol is a silver arrowhead.

Marna, The Whisper. Goddess of secrets and treachery. Marna, the patron saint of thieves, spies and hags. Even the darker denizens of Aruvia worship Marna in hopes of receiving her dark gifts. She is the matron of madness and harbinger of ill fortune. For her part in the deception of Lys, she cannot abide the light, and hangs high in the sky at night. Her symbol is a waning crescent moon.

Talbot, The Silver Hand, God of protection and bravery. The youngest of the Argent Pantheon, the Silverhand was a man named Talbot Horst. He led armies of rebels against the Dread Lord Nahrkin, and tore the vampires heart out of his chest with his silver gauntlet. He took the mantle of kingship and ruled justly for decades. After his death, his body was said to glow with a white sheen, and when burned on the pyre, the flames burned white. In the centuries since, he has been deified by the Aruvian people, and even by the official clergy. Clerics and paladins since have inferred that he received Jalis’ favour for his shrewd rule and heroic deeds. His symbol is a silver gauntlet fist.

Gisla, The Lantern. Goddess of compassion and charity. Gisla is the first of gods to acknowledge the material realm. Before her, there was only the dark-ness, and all gods thought this just, despite mankind and many other races fumbled in the dark. She gave men light and for this she burns forever. Her symbol is a stylized sun.

Helm, The Sentinel. God of wards and craftsmanship. The sentinel guards against the dark, not because of hate or even anger, but duty. Those who worship the sentinel value duty above all, and like their patron, they bind darkness in wards or fight it head on, protecting those who cannot protect themselves. Helm is a tragic figure, as he swore to protect mankind only as repentance. Redemption and duty is very important to Aruvians, and even tragedies can have ‘good’ endings in plays and stories involving Helm. His symbol is a tower.

Roda, The Tempest, Goddess of travel and storms. The sea, and its bounty, is important to the Aruvians. Oceans, lakes and rivers and the fish and whales within them have sustained them for as long as any can remember, but it is not without its terrors. Aruvians fear and respect the sea and its storms. The deep things that live beneath it are the children of Roda, and the sailors that live upon it know well to read the signs that portent their awakenings. Roda is not without mercy, and many sailors, travelers or pilgrims sacrifice to her before voyages. Her symbol is a compass.

Lys, The Keeper, Goddess of knowledge and arcana. Lys is the guardian of magic and knowledge. All things recorded she keeps, and all things thought she knows. Fate and future however, she considers dark and unworthy of her. She was betrayed by Gren, who was envious of her treasures and knowledge. He conspired with Marna to steal magic for himself, but Gisla discovered him as he was escaping. She smote him for his greed and saw what he had wrought. In an act of compassion, she spared him, but by doing so, knowing or not, she unleashed magic upon the world. Her symbol is an hourglass.

Hild, The Seer, Goddess of fate and luck. There are few things distasteful to the usually tolerant Aruvians, but fortune-telling and divina-tion is one of the worst of sins. The future and the contemplation of it is of little worth to people who are so aware of their potentially imminent mortality. Despite this, the Goddess Hild is con-sulted in business ventures, marriage prospects, but also in plots, planning and even war. Any worship is done in privacy however, and few will admit to seeking her aid. Her symbol is a lidless eye.

Nahrkin, The Dread. God of undeath and tyranny. Though not a god in his own right on his birth, his immense power in life and even after elevat-ed him to godhood in the Argent pantheon. Rarely worshipped, and even rarer still mentioned in anything but a curse or contrived morality plays. He is always however included in Argent imagery in churches, usually depicted as dying or already dead. His symbol is a wolf skull.

Yrgon, The Shepherd. God of nature and conservation. Unlike Magnar, Yrgon lives in concert with nature. Not only in concert, but it is believed that he IS nature. The forests and hills are his domain. Few ordinary people worship Yrgon, but druids and some hermits certainly do. he is considered to be the least ‘corruptible’ of gods. His symbol is a leaf.

Vigna & Dolvi, The Sisters. Goddesses of dreams & nightmares. The sisters are portrayed as a being of one form with two facets. She is the weaver of dreams, good and bad. Nightmares can be sent to enemies, or good dreams to those deserving, but it is always an escape. Duality and conflict are their domains. Their symbol is a two-toned disk.

In Art

Aruvian theatre is mostly based around tales of the gods. The gods themselves are usually portrayed as caricatures of their domains, excessively beautiful, or stern as stone. The clergy use their tales as well in their tapestries, carvings and statues. Stained glass pieces built around the veneration of the Argent deities is very common in aruvian culture.

Related Ethnicities