The Old Gods
The Elven scholars say that there was a time when gods and goddesses walked the world, able to interact with it as they pleased. They also speak of a time when the creator left this world to live in heaven full time, but had not yet called the rest of the gods to join him in abandoning the mortal plane. During this time the people of the world worshipped many gods and goddesses, often prefering to call on those closer, who they could actually see rather than a God who had left the world for good. Eventually God called the other holy beings off the material plane and placed a barrier preventing those of great power from simply strolling into the world.
During the Deliverance, when the deliverer united the known world on his holy quest to slay dragons and thus decrease the power of Zolmov, several of these gods, including many worshipped by the elves in particular were considered to be anathema. Some deities were supportive of God in his conflict with Zolmov and thus were acknowledged by the deliverer's followers even if their worship was illegal. But many dieties chose to support Zolmov, remain neutral in the conflict, or had somehow pissed of God or the dwarves enought to make them hated. When the deliverer's followers came upon the influence of these dieties their followers were killed, their holybooks burned, and their names erased from everywhere they could be. Merely mentioning the name of a forbidden god was punishable by death. In doing this the deliverer severely limited the power of those dieties to effect change in the world.
The old gods, as they are called by the elves, are those who were most active before the deliverance. There is no official definition as there is no combined church of these gods, while they are sometimes worshipped in groups there is no combined church of the old gods. Dieties that fall into this classification are broadly defined as those worshipped by the elves before the deliverance, and by the northern houses of Zirdy to this day. Some of them are known as the forgotten gods, because their names have been lost to history. When the deliverer purged the religions from Zirdy he also purged the mages, which in ancient elven society was nearly everyone over the age of 200. Without religious texts, religious followers, or the elderly to remember, the names of several important dieties were forgotten. Those whose names have been lost are generally refered to by a collection of titles or monickers such as "The Formless One", "The Great Protector", "Red Mistress", "Mother Magic", or simply "Fate".
During the Deliverance, when the deliverer united the known world on his holy quest to slay dragons and thus decrease the power of Zolmov, several of these gods, including many worshipped by the elves in particular were considered to be anathema. Some deities were supportive of God in his conflict with Zolmov and thus were acknowledged by the deliverer's followers even if their worship was illegal. But many dieties chose to support Zolmov, remain neutral in the conflict, or had somehow pissed of God or the dwarves enought to make them hated. When the deliverer's followers came upon the influence of these dieties their followers were killed, their holybooks burned, and their names erased from everywhere they could be. Merely mentioning the name of a forbidden god was punishable by death. In doing this the deliverer severely limited the power of those dieties to effect change in the world.
The old gods, as they are called by the elves, are those who were most active before the deliverance. There is no official definition as there is no combined church of these gods, while they are sometimes worshipped in groups there is no combined church of the old gods. Dieties that fall into this classification are broadly defined as those worshipped by the elves before the deliverance, and by the northern houses of Zirdy to this day. Some of them are known as the forgotten gods, because their names have been lost to history. When the deliverer purged the religions from Zirdy he also purged the mages, which in ancient elven society was nearly everyone over the age of 200. Without religious texts, religious followers, or the elderly to remember, the names of several important dieties were forgotten. Those whose names have been lost are generally refered to by a collection of titles or monickers such as "The Formless One", "The Great Protector", "Red Mistress", "Mother Magic", or simply "Fate".
Priesthood
To this day many of these dieties lack any form of organized religion, instead they are worshipped in the home with small shrines. For those without a formal church simply being a cleric of the diety is enough to be a priest, those able to cast 8th tier holy magic are awared the title of Archpriest.
Type
Religious, Pantheon
Deities
Notable Members
