Myrmidia, Ranald, Taal, Rhya, Ulric

Myrmidia

Overview
Myrmidia is the goddess of strategy, discipline, and the art of war. Daughter of Verena and Morr, and sister of Shallya, she embodies military order and intelligent command. She is worshiped primarily in Estalia and Tilea, where she is considered the supreme deity, but her cult has slowly spread into the Empire. She is usually depicted as a tall warrior-maiden, armored, bearing a spear and shield — her sacred symbols.

Beliefs & Principles
Myrmidia teaches that war must be fought with discipline, not fury, and with strategy, not brute strength. She stands for professionalism in command, compassion toward civilians, and honor in victory. Her commandments forbid wanton cruelty and demand that prisoners of war be treated justly. She is often contrasted with Ulric, who represents untamed battle-lust; Myrmidia’s path is calculated, precise, and rational.

Worship & Practice
Temples to Myrmidia often double as military academies, where strategy, logistics, and engineering are taught alongside worship. Rituals involve oaths of discipline, war games, and offerings of arms before campaigns. Generals consult her priests before embarking on campaigns, and her sacred texts of war are studied by officers. She is most strongly worshiped in Magritta, where her greatest temple and cult hierarchy resides. Within the Empire, her cult is concentrated in the southern provinces and is popular among professional soldiers and tacticians.

Priests & Orders
Priests of Myrmidia serve as generals’ advisors, chaplains, and instructors in the arts of war. They wear armor and often carry the spear and shield of their goddess. Her high clergy in Estalia and Tilea are known as the Eagles, with titles such as the Last Eagle marking their highest authority. In battle, her priests do not fight recklessly but act as officers, healers of morale, and keepers of discipline. Their strength lies in knowledge and organization, and they often maintain libraries of tactics and chronicles of great campaigns. They sometimes clash with Ulrican war-priests, but most commanders respect their counsel for the order it brings to armies.

Ranald

Overview
Ranald is the trickster god of luck, fortune, mischief, and freedom. He is the patron of gamblers, thieves, rogues, and the downtrodden. Unlike the rigid cults of other gods, his faith thrives in back alleys, taverns, and gambling dens. Ranald is depicted as a smiling rogue in common dress, a coin between his fingers, or a shadowy figure vanishing into the crowd. His symbols include the crossed fingers, the black cat, and the playing dice.

Beliefs & Principles
Ranald’s creed is that life itself is a gamble, where cleverness, risk-taking, and boldness are rewarded. His faithful believe in cunning over brute strength, luck over law, and freedom over oppression. He despises tyranny and pompous authority, often blessing those who trick or topple the mighty. To his worshipers, he is both a protector and a joker, testing them with fortune’s twists.

Worship & Practice
Ranald’s worship is rarely formal. A gambler might whisper his name before rolling dice, or a thief may leave a stolen coin on a shrine hidden in a tavern. His shrines are often disguised or secret, tucked away in slums and guildhouses. Festivals to Ranald are chaotic affairs of gambling, games, and pranks, often ending in trouble with the city watch. For ordinary folk, invoking him is a way of asking for luck in daily life — throwing dice, making bets, or pulling a daring trick.

Priests & Orders
His cult is scattered and unstructured, composed of thieves, gamblers, beggars, and wandering tricksters who call themselves priests. They may take on different aspects: Dealers (luck and trade), Deceivers (spies and liars), Night Prowlers (burglars and thieves), or Protectors (rebels and liberators). They operate in secret networks, often hunted by witch-hunters or rival faiths. Priests of Ranald wear no uniform, but often mark themselves with subtle tokens of dice, cards, or lucky charms. Though reviled by many as criminals, some see them as folk-heroes, stealing from the rich or undermining tyrants. His cult embodies freedom, laughter, and the hope that cleverness can turn the tables even in the darkest times.

Taal

Overview
Taal is the god of nature, wild lands, forests, rivers, beasts, and storms. He embodies the raw, untamed forces of the natural world and is one of the oldest deities of humanity. His followers see him as a guardian of the wild, protector of animals, and lord of wilderness where civilization dares not tread.

Beliefs & Principles
Taal’s worshipers are taught to respect all natural life and the cycles of growth and decay. He demands courage, endurance, and harmony with the untamed world. Destruction of wild places or cruelty to animals is sacrilege. His cult emphasizes the balance between freedom and respect for the natural order, and his followers often see the forests and rivers as sacred, living entities.

Worship & Practice
Taal is primarily worshiped in northern and rural regions of the Empire, especially Talabecland, Nordland, and forested borderlands. Shrines are usually outdoors: sacred groves, riverbanks, ancient oak trees, and stone circles. Rituals include offerings of hunted game, seasonal festivals marking the solstices, and trials in the wilderness that test endurance and skill. Hunters, foresters, and rangers are among his most devoted followers.

Priests & Orders
Taal’s clergy are often rangers, foresters, or hunters, wearing simple green or brown robes adorned with leaves or animal tokens. They serve as guides, guardians of sacred natural places, and teachers of survival and hunting skills. High priests maintain knowledge of ancient rituals, nature lore, and the cycles of the wild. They often collaborate with Rhya’s followers to ensure balance between nature’s fury and fertility.

Rhya

Overview
Rhya, the Earth-Mother, is the goddess of fertility, harvest, childbirth, and love. She embodies nurture, growth, and the gentle side of nature, complementing Taal’s wildness. Often depicted as a serene woman with flowers and flowing robes, she brings life and abundance to people and land alike.

Beliefs & Principles
Her followers honor the cycles of life and the land, cultivating fertility in fields, livestock, and humans. Rhya teaches compassion, care, and protection of the young and vulnerable. She is invoked for healthy offspring, successful harvests, marital harmony, and the wellbeing of communities.

Worship & Practice
Rhya is worshiped throughout the rural Empire, often alongside Taal. Shrines are simple, rustic, and integrated with the land: farmsteads, groves, and gardens. Festivals coincide with planting and harvest seasons, and offerings include grain, flowers, or small livestock. Midwives, farmers, and healers are her primary devotees. Her cult emphasizes charity, tending to crops, care of animals, and community wellbeing.

Priests & Orders
Priestesses of Rhya, and occasionally priests of Taal, lead ceremonies of fertility, blessing of fields, and care for children and livestock. They wear earth-toned robes, decorated with flowers or symbols of growth. Their duties include advising farmers, assisting childbirth, maintaining shrines, and performing seasonal rites. Though her priesthood is smaller than Taal’s, her influence is widely felt through folk customs and festivals.

Ulric

Overview
Ulric is the god of wolves, winter, and battle. He embodies personal strength, courage, and endurance, especially in harsh conditions. Often portrayed as a fierce warrior in wolf pelts, he inspires his followers to embrace challenges and fight with honor. The city of Middenheim is the center of his worship, and his cult is strongest in northern Empire regions.

Beliefs & Principles
Valor, courage, and personal honor are central to Ulric’s faith. Cowardice, deceit, and betrayal are condemned. Ulric’s followers respect honest combat, survive winter’s trials, and uphold oaths to kin and community. He represents the raw, unforgiving aspects of life and the moral clarity of strength tested by adversity.

Worship & Practice
Ulric is venerated in northern forests, mountains, and towns where survival is harsh. Temples and shrines are often exposed to the elements: mountaintops, frozen rivers, forests, and rugged halls. Rituals include winter festivals, trials of strength, hunting expeditions, and preparation for battle. Offerings often include weapons, pelts, and trophies from wolves or game. Priests bless warriors and lead communal rites of endurance and courage.

Priests & Orders
The cult of Ulric is highly martial. Warrior-priests accompany armies, lead warbands, and conduct rites of battle. They wear wolf pelts and armor, carrying symbols of strength and survival. The highest office is the Ar‑Ulric, overseeing local priests and knightly orders like the Knights of the White Wolf. Clergy judge moral courage, maintain shrines, guide festivals, and train adherents in survival, combat, and honor. Their influence is both spiritual and martial, embodying the god’s ideals in daily life and warfare