The Alinian Pantheon: Part three

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The Druidic Trinity of Alina

        As it is explained in the Player's Handbook, the upper echelons of the the druidic society is highly organized even on Alina. This rigid organization is balanced by two things. First, lower level druids (below 5th level) are largely ignored by the upper echelons of druidic society; this makes a low-level druid no less a devout follower of her deity, but it does not give her access to the training and knowledge provided only to those select druids who are tested and then allowed to join the powerful fold of the druidic heriarchy. The second balancing factor is that Alinian druidic society is divided into three factions, each following a seperate portion of the Alinian Trinity: Sol, Luna, and Gaia. In consequence, instead of the single Grand Druid of the PHB, each of the factions has its own Grand Druid, which creates the ruling Grand Triumvirate and the final authority over all druids of Alina.
        It is important to note that most druids, particularly those off 12th level or above, are elves. No human has yet risen to the station of Grand Druid of any faction, Solif, Lunist, or Gaist - and, as elves are exceptionally long-lived, such a world-shaking event does not seem likely in the near future.
        As stated in the section on Player Classes, druids, like other clerics, must by second level choose to follow a single deity of the Alinian trinity.

Druids of Alina

Sol Literally the sun of Alina, Sol daily rises above the horizon, the edge of the magical ship that is Gaia, his sister, and travels across the sky. At night, he descends past the opposite horizon and travles across Gaia's undercarriage while Luna, his lover, rules about the night. Sol is a bright and loving entity, full of life and passion, the most sociable and personable of the Alinian Trinity. Solif theology, therefore, revolves about a passion and lust for life that few may encounter. Keenly aware of the fleeting characteristic of time, druids who follow Sol delight in warmth and sunshine, pleasant feelings and even outright hedonism. As with so many other sky/sun gods, Sol has a far-reaching view of his mortal charges, and imparts his cryptic divination to his followers.
The Solif community - rather than church - is rather loosely composed compared to that of either the Lunists or Gaists. A dominant druid who is not already part of the larger druidical hierarchy, tends to take up a leadership role which is given by mutual consent at the yearly Aldthing, or Assembly.

Symbols: The Sun, Light, Flame, the open blue sky

Artifacts: The Torch of Sol, held in guarded carefully by the Solif Grand Druid, is the ultimate oracular device of Alina.
Legends: The greatest druid of Solif legend is the the hierophant druid Guichemav, who ascended the Pillar of the World, the invisible mast of Alina, to join in the ultimate union with Sol himself, intercepting the deity on his daily course.

Luna Luna, the shy lover of Sol, is in many ways his exact opposite: she travels across the expanse of Nuin-covl during the night, she glows less with a light of life, but with a soft luminescence that pierces the deepest aspects of the fragile web of the mortal psyche. She is tacit when Sol is loud, giving way to his every whim when, in their eternal chase, Sol somehow catches his estranged bride. Luna is a kind, if mysterious, deity. Her children are the stars that dot Nuin-covl at night.
The Lunist communnity relfects the tacit but powerful presence of their deity, saying little, but always of one accord, to the outsider it appears as if druids of Luna develop some sort of telepathic communion. The truth is far simpler and more complicated: through their union of devout belief and the insights recieved by followers of Luna, each druid gains the ability to see into the depths of meaning of the simplest gesture or utterance. While outsiders may see or hear little at a Lunist Aldthing, far more is said then even at one of Sol.

Symbols: The Moon, the Stars, a field of deep blue such as Nuin-covl at twilight, the Wolf
Artifacts: The Nuin-arbé, while not an artifact in the strictest sense, is an immense tree hidden deep within the Great Forest. At the base of the Nuin-arbé Lunist druids receive their greatest communion with Luna herself and pass the final test to enter the Lunist community.
Legends: Lunist lore is frought with heros who must battle their inner-most fears, who must delve into the darkest realms of the psyche and who emerge completely transformed, either for the better - or often the worst. The most famous of all these stories is that of the wer-lupaen, the mystical origins of the werewolf of Alina. According to legend, a Lunist Grand Druid of antiquity retired from his post in order to solve the ultimate mystery of the mind. He dwelt in a cave far from any other living being for many years, communing with Luna and delving further into the darkest areas of his psyche. His quest was in vain, whether he was not pious enough, strong enough, or whether no man can venture as deep as he did, no one may ever know.

Gaia Gaia is the Earth incarnate, the spirit of all that is stable and constant in the world, though susceptible to her own slow changes over the vast expanse of geologic time. Gaia is a slow and ponderous diety, careful to preserve herself and her children, healing and protective. She is many ways more the opposite of Sol than Luna.
The Gaist community, more than either that of Sol or Luna, is comprised almost entirely of elves, for only that magical race seems to have mastered the great patience exhorted by the Mother. All things under the sky are the charge and care of the Gaist community: the forests, the rivers, the plains, the mountains and valleys, and all the living things that dwell within them. Despite their tendency to be slow to action, and speech, it is Gaists who are the forefront of the battle to restrict the overwhelming expansion of the human race, which is quickly invading areas once completely pristine and untouched by any mortal hand.

Symbols: The Earth, the mountains, the green forest, the Bear
Artifacts: The Staff of Gaia, again the careful protection of the Gaist Grand Druid, is a source of tremendous elemental and healing power, able to regenerate entire swaths of forest, heal or even bring back to live scores of unjustly killed ot hunted wildlife, and grant its possesor with a direct union with the Mother herself.
Legends: The best known legend of the Gaist community is that of Jean, an elfin hierophant druid, who at the tremendous age of more than three millennia, is still alive today, weilding more power than any druid ever as. A survivor of the Second Goblinoid wars, and the reigns of both Grüge and Baûl, Jean is both a source of power and inspiration.

The Pantheon

Demi-gods and Regional Deities

Much of the Alinian pantheon is yet unexplored, such as the Crimson Lord, secret demi-god of a poewrful secret society, or the strange exotic deities of the amazons of Chalûn. Look for supplements in the Articles section of the coming months.