Hero Gods of Atlazan

GAIUS CASSIAN
The First Paladin

Type.  Hero God
Alignment.  Lawful Good
Domains.  Light, Protection, War
Portfolio.  Defense, Hope, Light, Defiance, Righteousness
Symbol.  A bastard sword with a crossguard stylized to look like a sun flanked by bird wings
Favored Weapon.  Bastard Sword

Gaius Cassian was a telluran man whose sense of justice and morals seemed to have been born to him despite the dark Age of Beasts he lived during.  He kept these throughout his life, no matter the darkness he saw.  In many circles he provided the pivotal link between Mul’hili’s fervent speeches and Raeshana’s calming light.  Some scholars believe that the two would not have succeeded without the crystallizing efforts of Gaius and his knights.  Through discipline, training, and steadfast belief in the cause, Gaius and his order became more than simple soldiers wielding radiant energy against the demons.  To this day, among the Tellurans especially, there are paladin orders dedicated to Gaius Cassian, the First Paladin.



KAPUNA’MANO
The Shark Elder

Type.  Liege Wyrm / Hero God
Alignment.  Chasotic Good
Domains.  Tempest, Nature
Portfolio.  Rage, Nature, Sharks, Sea, Vengeance
Symbol.  A harpooned sea serpent, blood dripping down shaft
Favored Weapon.  Harpoon

The being now simply called The Shark Elder was responsible for one of the biggest turning points of the Age of Beasts.  Few realize that the spread of demonic filth began to get so bad during that time, it began to affect the kala’kai despite not having a presence on Atlazan.  Kapuna’mano was once a pirate captain rumored to be capable of becoming a man-shark of some kind.  It is said that when he found ships turned to demonic arts and destroyed from the inside, he become a driving force for the kala’kai and led them to help Atlazan.  Part of this venture was, in fact, infecting kala’kai with shark lycanthropy and even rallying the aeq’or.  He became a fearsome leader and hero of the battlefields leading flanking charges from shore and river, ahead of the ships in his fleet.



MU’HILHI’ONDRAX
Mu’hili the Chainbreaker

Type.  Liege Wyrm / Hero God
Alignment.  Neutral Good
Domains.  Freedom, Good, Vengeance, War
Portfolio.  Revolution, Freedom, Uprisings, Common Cause
Symbol.  A morningstar flanked by two halves of a broken chain
Favored Weapon.  Morningstar

Ashiok is one of the most known names of Atlazan and has been since the Fourth Coil, when he and his mate gathered together everyone and anyone for revolution.  All people were rallied by his words and he could steer even the most darkened soul towards fighting for more.  It is not unsurprising that the Atali with deeper fighting spirits looked to him as savior, most of whom were scale-kin.  Even today, his worship is favored more in the Temtektaggre Empire where the scale-kin reign and hostility and posturing can be a way of life.



RAESHANA’KAI’VAREN
Raeshana the Lightbringer

Type.  Liege Wyrm / Hero God
Alignment.  Neutral Good
Domains.  Light, Peace, Good, Freedom
Portfolio.  Freedom, Hope, Guidance
Symbol.  A lit lantern hanging off a shepherd's crook
Favored Weapon.  Mace

Raeshana the Lightbringer is the calm and thinking half of the pair of hero wyrms that saved Atlazan.  Mate to Mu’hili, she represented the light at the end of the tunnel and the hope that things could get better.  It was her who managed to keep the races from being foolhardy when Mu’hili rallied them and her who kept their spirits when failure seemed imminent.  Though such long term, calm though prevails in the Great Avian Alliance, she is still worshiped all over Atlazan as a symbol of hope.  From those who are starving to those who are lost, Raeshana’s name is whispered by people who need something to keep them going.



WITHERBARK
The Unbreakable

Type.  Hero God
Alignment.  Chaotic Neutral
Domains.  Nature, Tempest, War
Portfolio.  Courage, Rage, Survival, Unforgiving, Relentless
Symbol.  A dead grey tree rooted upon a large demonic skull
Favored Weapon.  Club

While the mortal races fought the legions of beastmen and minor demons, it was up to the great Liege Wyrms and other ancient beings of Atlazan to take on the Demon Lords themselves.  One such being was Bregolad, thought to be the first sentient treant.  In a battle with Xipe Totec, the Demon Lord struck down the Bregolad with a bolt of fiendish lightning.  The ancient tree burned for days, before going out, the blood of the fallen soaking the land around him.  In the wake of this death and his failure, a part of Bregolad’s spirit could not depart.  The withered corpse pulled itself out of the ground and strode back into battle.  Atali and other good mortals gathered to the being which became known as Witherbark the Unbreakable.  In a battle that raged on, seemingly without end, for nearly a week Witherbark made it back to combat with Xipe Totec.  This time Witherbark was not the only being to fall and it is believed such spirit cannot die.  Rybarik and magari both have a heavy worship of the relentless force that was Witherbark to this day.