LLIIRA
Our Lady of joy, joybringer, the Mistress of Revels
Lliira is a beloved goddess, a deity of contentment, re-
lease, joy, happiness, dance, and freedom. As the patron
of festivals, she is honored at any celebration, and dance
is the primary way to worship her. The Mistress of Rev-
els is said to abhor violence, and any fighting or drawing
of weapons (except in ceremony) at a celebration will
cause her to withhold her favor. Her priests and priest-
esses, known as joybringers, take it as their mission to
make other people happy, even if just for a moment.
Her faithful always wear at least one clothing item of
a bright, cheerful color, and her priests' vestments have
more in common with festival attire than with somber
ecclesial garments. Rubies and sapphires are sacred to
Our Lady of Joy, and her priests bless anyone they see
wearing such adornments.
Lliira's followers aren't frivolous, however. To them,
divine joy is a very real gift to the world of mortals, and
one much needed. To that end, they fight those who
would bring misery to others. They are fierce against
their foes, and joyous revelers when their work is done.
LOVIATAR
The Maiden of Pain, the Scourge Mistress, the Willing Whip
Pain isn't a means to an end for Loviatar's faithful, but
an end unto itself. To them, nothing is as transcendent
as suffering, and all pain is holy, from the crudest bar-
barism, to the most sublime torture, to the emotional
suffering of the heartbroken or the betrayed.
The pain that one feels is proof of the Lady's attention,
and so her faithful are notorious self-flagellants. Pain
is also a path to power, in terms of both one's ability to
inflict it and one's ability to endure it. A cold, cruel de-
meanor is considered ideal because it best emulates the
Scourge Mistress, and for the same reason her faithful
appreciate beauty, cultural refinement, and a certain
adeptness at manipulation.
Though temples to Loviatar are rare, her faithful are
more numerous than might be expected. Loviatar is
the chosen deity of those who inflict pain as a matter
of course, including torturers and others who need to
break the will of their victims. She is favored by sadists
and masochists, and some of her followers form cultish
cells of secret adherents. Each of these groups is led by
someone who takes pleasure in administering pain and
SYMBOL OF LLllRhdominating others, supported and backed up by a num-
ber of submissive sycophants.
Worshipers of Loviatar rarely gather in numbers ex-
cept in the more populous cities. When small cadres of
faithful operate quietly in such places, few citizens take
notice or raise a fuss if they do witness cult activity. The
sufferers who endure the lash, however, aren't always
willing participants, and Lovatar's cults sometimes op-
erate secret slavery rings, which can draw the attention
of the authorities. The open worship of Loviatar and
temples clearly dedicated to her are rarely seen except
in lands where slavery is an accepted practice.MALAR
The Beastlord, the Black-Blooded One
Malar epitomizes the dark side of nature, the world that
is red in tooth and claw. His faithful believe the hunt is
the center point between life and death-the facing off
of hunter and prey, forcing the issue of who lives and
who dies. People believe that Malar can't be propitiated
and knows no mercy, so he receives prayers only from
those engaging in a hunt. Such supplicants pray to Ma-
lar for two reasons: to beg the aid of his peerless skill
as a hunter, or to adopt his fearsome mantle and thus
ward off other predators. Malar is the god of those who
delight in the hunt, don't shy from bloodshed, and savor
the fear of their prey.
Many lycanthropes consider Malar to be their divine
father, as do some other intelligent predators. He has
many devotees who are druids and rangers of partic-
ularly savage inclination, and many barbarians take
Malar as a patron for his ferocity and cruelty. His priests
use claw bracers, impressive gauntlets bedecked with
stylized claws that jut out from the ends of the fists, as
ceremonial weapons.MASK
The Lord of Shadows, the Master of All Thieves
Mask is a trickster god, the patron of ne'er-do-wells,
spies, and thieves. All that occurs within shadow is in
the purview of Mask. People whisper a prayer to Mask
whenever stealth is required or intrigue is afoot. Court-
iers and diplomats invoke the god's name in hopes of a
smooth negotiation.
Those who favor Mask usually pursue thievery and
other forms of acquisition of what belongs to others,
such as pickpocketing, burglary, mugging, and conSYMBOL OF Mt.LhR