Where the pit-props fail and the roof caves in, Abbathor has weakened them; where the firedamp lurks to blast dwarves to the next life, he has gathered it; where the sudden flood fills the mine and drowns the miners, he has filled the water-pocket; and where the seam peters out and the gold is gone, Abbathor has gathered it to himself. Moradin’s great foe, his brother Abbathor represents all that is evil in the dwarven race. Most of all, he is greedy. His lust for treasure - gold, above all - is greater than any other hunger in the universe. Some twisted dwarves honour Abbathor, mostly those dishonest ones who become thieves from other dwarves, but generally he is acknowledged as existing but seldom if ever mentioned. His domains are Chaos, Evil, Death and Destruction.

While dwarf leaders, generals and nobles will pray to Moradin before a battle, the average footsoldier will invoke Kord instead. Kord is the master of the headlong attack, the surprise overrun, and the stand against terrible odds. His nature is more chaotic than any other dwarven deity, and where dwarves have to deal with chance, luck or hope, they call on Kord. His domains are War, Chaos, Luck and Strength; sometimes (but not always) Good.

A cult of Kord exists among humans also, venerating the same god but viewing him differently; the humans see him with a sword not an axe for a start. This aspect of Kord is sometimes referred to as Kord Battlemaster, whereas the dwarven aspect is called Kord of the Axe, or more often just Kord.

Kord has taken considerable interest in recent events, largely through the agency of the Hand of Kord. Hildraft's inadvertent focussing of Kord's power into what became the Kordasa has greatly increased Kord's influence and significance on the Prime Material, not least by a sudden increase in worshippers.

Moradin rules and leads the dwarven pantheon, and his people have many names for him; Soul Forger, Dwarffather, All-Father, Creator and so on. He forged the first dwarves out of iron and jewels and breathed life into them. He governs the arts and sciences of the dwarves; smithing, metalworking, engineering and war. His domains are Earth, Good, Law and Protection.

More honoured by the Sea Elves of the coast than the other kindreds, Anfadil is the raiser and queller of storms and the protector of ships. Never once has any elven ship foundered whose crew had made due reverence to the Lord of the Deep. Of all the elf gods, Anfadil is least tolerant of humans, and has no compunction about raising storms to sink human vessels. He is also the patron of honour, justice and law, and is called on when difficult legal matters are at hand. Many tales are told of his horse, Tilonlias. His domains are Law, Water, Travel and Destruction.

Anfadil is the god whose curse, laid on Cain, was twisted by the latter to make him into the First Vampire.

Mithlendel the Maker is revered as the Cunning Hand, the crafter, designer, solver; he is the patron of those presented with insoluble puzzles. Patience is one of his virtues, and his followers think nothing of spending a hundred years making a single object. He also wields the arcane, and governs the energies that power elven magic. His domains are Magic, Law and Knowledge.

Nimnarie cares for all wooded lands, and unlike Ehlonna takes a rather dimmer view of logging. Her devotees live as “close to nature” as possible, either living wild or encouraging trees to grow into a form suitable for use as shelter. Her domains are Earth, Plant and Protection.

The warriors of the Elvenhost revere Nodonn, the Swift and Sure, Silver Hand, Battle Lord. The least predictable of all elven gods, he grants and withholds his protection on a whim or chance, although he clearly favours the brave and daring over the dull and plodding, and despises cowards. He yearns for the day he can face Gruumsh in a fair fight and finally kill him forever. His domains are War, Luck, Strength and Destruction.

Aderra is the deity people appeal to to settle things, for ideas, for justice and for answers. Her priests are often experts in divinations and informational magic. Books and the written word are very important to followers of Aderra, and her priesthood maintains several of the biggest and best libraries in the Empire. Followers of the faith may research there at will; outsiders must donate significant contributions to the church to be allowed in. Her domains are Knowledge, Magic and Law.

In recent centuries, Aderra's church has declined in popularity in the North.. Many of the libraries have closed through lack of funds or personnel; the libraries in Karsten and Lanirkos were burned on the orders of the Theocracy.

Surprisingly, for a dynamic and expansionist empire, Diruc is the closest there is to a war god in the Erlyid pantheon. Diruc the Steadfast brings rewards and honour to those who hold fast, keep the line, watch their comrades’ backs, honour their word. His church sponsors several fighting orders, including the Order of Kellan. His domains are Good, Law, Strength, Protection and War.

Diruc's church has split, with the mainstream Church of Diruc abhorring the orc alliance and refusing to have anything to do with them, and the Church of Diruc the Warrior adopting a more accomodating approach to the new allies, even to the point of allowing half-orc and occasional full orc priests. Relations between the two are not good, and occasional flare-ups and even fighting will happen in towns where there are churches of both denominations.

The Lady of the Forests watches over all good people who live in the forest, love the woodlands, or make their livelihood there. She is sometimes depicted as an elf, although the reasons for this are unclear. Most hunters and rangers revere Ehlonna. Her domains are Animal, Good, Plant and Sun.

Since the decline of the relationship between the Empire and the elves, and the destruction of Sildor, Ehlonna's cult has faded into the background; and only in the Asedor forest, and the Estor in Stryre, are the woodland temples still operating.

A splinter cult, the Redeemers, live on the fringes of the Desolation, and dedicate their lives and powers to trying to undo the damage wrought by the dragonarmy. What with the hostile terrain, the fell creatures that wander the region, and the dragonarmy's patrols, their lives are hard and often short, but they continue to try, yearning to reclaim any tiny piece of the beauty that was once Sildor.

Gonvan is not strictly speaking a god of the Erlyid pantheon, but a demon arrayed against it. In the mythology of the Erlyid, if a harvest fails, Gonvan has attacked Morganna; if a war is lost, he has tricked Diruc, and so on. Pelor is his sworn enemy. There are no public temples or followers of Gonvan, but a few desperate or corrupted individuals do worship and call on him. His domains are Chaos, Death, Evil and Destruction.

Since the coming of the Orcs, Gonvan has begun to blur together in the popular mind with Gruumsh, chief god of the Orcs. The more conservative in the Empire - and especially the Churches of Pelor and Diruc - have actively encouraged this, seeing it as a way of casting the orc people into disfavour and associating them with the mythological symbol of darkness, bad luck and evil.

Where the cycles of nature tick around, bringing the Spring planting around to the sweet harvest, Morganna is there, warming the seeds and nurturing the crops. All seekers after fertility and growth come to her, and a priestess is always present at harvests. Her domains are Earth, Animal, Plant, Healing and Law.

Whether they work for the Imperial nobility, the heirachy of Nhased or the Kings of Stryre, the farmers and peasants are pretty much as they always have been, and her rites are celebrated at the corners of the year, just the same.

Olidammara is the god of rogues; he delights in wine, women and song. He is a vagabond, prankster and a master of disguise. His temples are few, but many people are willing to raise a glass to his homour; for he represents the blind stroke of luck, the happy chance, the good guess. His domains are Chaos, Luck and Trickery.

Little has changed for Olidammara's cult, except in Nhased where it is discouraged as are all but the One. In fact, many people rely more on luck in these turbulent times than they do on Imperial law and order.

Pelor is the creator of many good things, supporter of those in need and the adversary of evil. His cult is the most common among the humans of Alair, and his priests are generally well received wherever they go. The knightly order of Aeglor’s Fist is sponsored by the Church of Pelor. His domains are Good, Healing, Strength and Sun.

The priesthood of Pelor are vehemently opposed to the alliance with the orc race, and no orc or halforc is allowed near any temple of Pelor. Aeglor's Fist have in the past refused to supply knights to Imperial military actions where orcs are involved, and will do so again. While the alliance holds and the orcs are beholden to the Empire for their place to live, Garkaur can do nothing overt about this, but it is a poorly-kept secret that any priest or paladin of Pelor who is discovered in Orcland can expect nothing but a slow and painful death

The Scales of Steel (the meaning of Shuskrah in Krultac) is the archetype of the perfect Lizard warrior; strong, quick, cunning and merciless. He shows his people the safe islands and the deadly quicksands, and gives them the strength they need to overcome humans and crack their bones for meals. The shamans of Shuskrah teach what little magic lizardmen use, but are also deadly fighters and canny marsh rangers as well. His domains are War, Water, Evil and Strength.

Shuskrah's cult suffered dreadfully under the Dragon. Varkar decreed that there was only one god in the Dragonrealms, and that god was Varkar Barduric. All temples of Shuskrah, even the hidden ones in the deep Trakar, were destroyed, and all known priests slaughtered. Nonetheless, in odd corners, followers of the old god remained faithful, and many otherwise concretely loyal lizard warriors would surreptitiously make the Sign of the Scale before going into battle.

There were persistent rumours that there was a secret temple hidden somewhere so deep in the Trakar that even Varkar could not find it - some said it was underwater - where a secret society of lizardfolk worked and planned for the day their people could throw off the yoke of the Dragon and revive the true faith of the lizard people. This group came out of hiding during the invasion of Varkar's realm by the Elvenhost, and provided assistance. After the war, they settled in the north to found what is now Dalaghendor. The location of their secret temple, however, has never been discovered.

Bahgtru is the son of Gruumsh and Luthic the Cave Mother. Though scorned and derided for his stupidity and lack of self-will, no one says ill of his awesome might. Other orcish gods call upon him for assistance; he is obedient, though his incredible strength always exceeds the expectations of others, and he may accidentally (?) cause harm to those who command his services, especially if they fail to give him some respect.

It is said that Bahgtru once fought a tremendous reptilian monster from another world, and slew it barehanded by breaking all of its legs. His symbol is derived from this epic battle. Since this, Bahgtru has never been known to use weapons or armor of any usual kind. He wears little other than a great pair of cesti, or gauntlets, studded with steel rivets, with which to beat his victims flat.

Bahgtru is a huge, incredibly muscular orc with dirty tan skin and dull green eyes; his tusks, protruding from either side of his mouth, are glistening white from gnawing on bones.

Stronger clerics of this cult may help weaker clerics along to the next plane, usually without the latter’s permission.

“Old One Eye” is the primary Orcish deity, although he has a family of other appalling gods under him. His name is forbidden to be spoken except by his priests, and he’s referred to by euphemisms (Old One Eye, The Eye, The Unsleeping, etc). His enmity for the eleven gods is undying and never-ending, particularly for Nodonn who he has fought once and swears one day to crush. The orcs revere him, but they fear him more, and they sacrifice and pray primarily to keep him away. The power of the priesthood depends primarily on the wits and cunning of the individual priests; if things go wrong for an Orc group and the priest is not clever, they will often blame him and slaughter him as unworthy of One Eye; if he’s clever, he will shift blame to the “sinful weakness” of the community and induce them to sacrifice heavily to reverse their recent bad fortune. His domains are Death, Destruction and Evil.

Since the alliance with the Empire and his election as Overking, each successive Garkaur has taken care to link the improved fortunes of the orc race with himself, and thence through to One Eye. While not himself a priest, he has a battery of Royal Priests who make sure the word of Gruumsh agrees nicely with the word of Garkaur. Gruumsh himself is apparently not unpleased at this development, as Garkaur remains in the saddle and the fortunes of the orcs remain, on the whole, good.

While orcs are allowed to join some Erlyid churches, One Eye's cult remains closed to all but those with at least some orcish blood. This is regularly pointed up as a sinister sign by the church of Pelor, though it is also true that very few humans would have any desire to join Grummsh's cult in any case.

When Gruumsh does not have time to command his armies in Hell, he turns the job over to his chief lieutenant, Ilneval, master of command and strategy (next to Gruumsh, of course). llneval is the symbol of the leader type, the one who plunges into battle with nothing but victory and destruction on his mind. It is hinted that llneval covets Gruumsh’s position as the chief god of the orcs; he has been said to have deposed one or two other orcish gods, relegating them to lesser status, in his climb to power.

llneval is more of a "captain’s god" than a god of the common orcish soldier; Gruumsh is preferred by chieftains and orcish kings, and Bahgtru by common warriors. Though Gruumsh does not trust Ilneval, He-Who-Never-Sleeps has Bahgtru on his side, and this relieves some of his concerns.

llneval wears a suit of red iron chain-mail, and wields a sword that slays all non-orcs it strikes. He cannot be touched by missile weapons because of his armor’s magical powers, and is immune to non-magical weapons as well. He appears to be a very war-wise and confident being; his face and arms are heavily scarred from the many battles he’s fought, but the scars only increase his appeal to his orcish followers.

The clerics of Ilneval use broadswords as weapons, wear red metallic armor, and are expected to be good military leaders as well as good clerics.

Luthic governs several spheres. She is the goddess of female orcs, orcish fertility (more so for females; Gruumsh is the male fertility god), caves and caverns (which she digs herself), servitude (as she serves Gruumsh), and primitive medicine, and she helps restore orcish morale.

Luthic is the deity closest to Bahgtru, her son, and he will follow her commands over all others’, even those of Gruumsh. Other orcish gods and goddesses fear her great claws, which are so strong they can tunnel through solid rock. Orcish clerics call her the Cave Mother and conduct her services underground.

Though she represents female orcs, she is worshipped by males as well for her ferocity and her healing powers.

Luthic appears as a huge female orc who wears no armor, but has unbreakable black claws four feet long. Her hair and eyes are dull black and her skin is dark brown with a medium brown on the nose and ears. If she hears anyone abuse her name, orc or non-orc alike, she may choose to render that being susceptible to any disease, so that the next time the victim catches even the most minor of ailments, it will prove fatal within days.

Orcs who follow her worship sometimes rub dirt on themselves to ensure they will have many children, and clerics use earth in casting curative spells (though this is purely a symbolic gesture and not a true material component of the spell). Luthic’s worship is one of the few that allow male and female orcs to become clerics; nearly all of the other deities permit male clerics only.

Orcs in her tribe (Vile Rune) generally dwell underground, and seem to commit fewer raids against other creatures, though they are especially fierce if their lair is threatened.

Shargaas the Night Lord lives in a tremendous cavern system below the fiery plain of one of the levels of Gehenna.

It is said that his caves extend infinitely, and are darker than the blackest night.

There no creature has sight but Shargaas himself and his orcish spirit servants. Shargaas, though blinded completely by light from the sun, can see perfectly well in darkness out to a range of a mile or more. He can also climb any surface, even perfectly smooth ones, without slipping. In the days when he is said to have walked upon the earth, Shargaas could also hide himself and his followers so well that no mortal could detect his ambushes or lairs.

As might be expected, orcish bandits and half-orc thieves hold Shargaas as their patron, as do other regular orc tribes. The major religious holidays in the worship of Shargaas are the times of the new moon, when the sky is dark and cloudy.

Yurtrus the White Handed is the terrifying orcish god of death and disease. He appears as a huge, vaguely orcish giant covered with peeling, rotting green flesh; his hands, however, appear completely normal except for being chalk-white in color.

Yurtrus has no mouth and doesn’t communicate; the orcs have a way of saying "when White-Hands speaks" when they mean "never." Yurtrus is surrounded by a huge envelope of stinking gases out to 120’; any mortal beings within this radius are incapacitated by the foul miasma.

The clerics of Yurtrus wear pale white gloves made from the skins of non-orcish humanoids, humans, or demi-humans, during their ceremonies. They wear thin armour woven of the same materials. In combat they use maces with the weapon’s head made in the shape of a white fist. When plague or disease strike the orcs, the clerics of Yurtrus appeal to him for an end to the illness with great sacrifices of slaves and prisoners.

A mighty horseman and archer, Hobushu once had a bet with his father the Sky and mother the Earth that he could shoot an arrow through the moon in the daytime; the prize was to be everlasting strength and freedom for his people. His shot struck home, and the splinters that were broken off the moon became the stars; every month, the side of the moon he knocked off turns to face the world and can be seen to this day. The nomads of the Red Dust believe that if they live well, fight bravely and die in battle, they will join the mighty Kozaki that ride the skies with Hobushu. His domains are Animal, Protection, Travel and Strength.

Events in the north are so distant to the nomads that they have barely heard of Varkar; if they think of him at all, they believe he is some kind of large animal that Hobushu will hunt and shoot if he needs to.

A relatively recent faith, currently restricted to the central regions of the Erlyid Empire. In the year 420, a mysterious prophet appeared in Lanirkos and began preaching the faith of a god he would call only The One. His own name he never revealed, saying only that he was the voice. The cult was a simple and undemanding one, involving a basic respect for all forms of life, and an energy created by harmony between all living things. The only drawback was that the faith of The One precluded tolerance of the existence of any other gods. This was not popular with the Imperial authorities. Over the next few years, The Voice of The One was persecuted and hounded, though his followers some of them in high places managed to preserve him from major harm. Claims of miracles were alternately voiced and denied. Finally, in 453 Imperial, The Voice of The One died in Karsten and was immediately and publicly assumed into Heaven. The cult of The One has been growing ever since, although it has become more militant in the years since its first and only prophet lived and died.

The Church of the One has worshipers of all kinds and races, and the domains of Good, Healing, and Animal.

Since siezing control of the central province of the Empire, the heirachy of the One have waxed massively in power, exerting a strong but generally benevolent dictatorship over the population, and achieving some measure of control of very nearly every facet of life in their land. Generally, their rule is no better or worse than that of most secular governments, but in one aspect they are absolutely adamant; there is no true faith other than that in The One, and all other faiths are false idolatary and not to be tolerated. All citizens of Nhased must be members of the church in good standing; anyone holding any form of power or publicoffice above a certain level must be a member of the priesthood; the penalty for preaching a foreign faith anywhere in the land is branding and banishment for the first offence and death for the second. Visitors of different faiths are tolerated, though overt displays of their creed - public worship, open wearing of holy symbols, public use of clerical magic - will be punished severely.

The great mother-temple, the Cathedral of The One, is the largest religious structure ever created in Alair, and also the de facto capital of the Theocracy. There are several knightly orders which serve the Church, of which the most notable are Vokrid, Rogryn and Fimgalet. Knights of Rogryn are particularly noted for their unceasing vigilance along the fringes of the Desolation.

As documented in the forbidden book of the Sopedalia, Cain was the first elf ever to murder another elf, back in the Golden Age before the coming of other races to Alair. Cursed by the elven god Anfadil, he twisted the effects of the curse to suit his own ends, now horribly distorted, becoming the first vampire in the process. Believed dead, he operated under cover, bestowing the Blood Gift on more and more sentient creatures. The elves, mightier then than in later days, proved too resistant for his purposes, perhaps because their lifespans made the "eternal" life of the vampire less appealing, but with the arrival of humans Cain was furnished with all the raw material he needed, and his power grew rapidly.

The oldest of the High Clans were created personally by Cain to organize his forces, though some rebelled and abandoned his cause to pursue their own goals.

Finally, the existence of the subculture of the vampires became known to the elves, and five of their greatest heroes, led by <a href="G2409.htm">Galoriand</a> and <a href="G2427.htm">Elverandil,</a> challenged Cain in his lair. Though they defeated him, they were unable to put an end to him, and were forced instead to imprison him on the demiplane Arnora, pinched off and sealed against any conceivable intrusion.

An attempt to rescue Cain by using one of the two Primal Weapons to breach Arnora, masterminded by Cullinan, was foiled by the destruction of the Vintares Gate and the sequestering of Zero-One in the Hallows.

The Lord of the Gods, Isetbashyat keeps a rather unruly pantheon in line, especially the warring brethren Hektis and Sabath

Hektis is Sabath's brother, and must constantly be on watch for his sibling's treachery and malice.

Nebekheshut is the messenger, the courier. He delivers all effects to their cause. He does nothing, makes nothing, takes nothing. He simply connects things to where they must go. He brings life and death, but he neither creates nor kills. He is inescapable and unchangable, the ultimate instrument of a cold and indifferent fate.

Sabath is the brother of Hektis and hates and envies him. Constantly scheming to bring down the other Gods, he is often outcast, but ever forgiven by Isetbashyat, who has some undisclosed reason for needing Sabath in the future.

Gennen of The Book is the knower of all things, the keeper of the scrolls, the wise man, the holder of the answers. He knows the deeds and thoughts of all men and helps judge them after death, assisting his consort Nepthis in this

Consort of Gennen, the night-black Nepthis controls and oversees the fate of the souls of the dead. Judging the departed with her husband's help, she sends their souls to the afterlife they deserve. She grants or denies all interplanar travel.