Accuris, The Sleeping God, The Unnamed

Accuris' origins are as mysterious as His work. His faithful say that He has always been here, and always will be here until the end of time. Accuris, alone of the gods and goddesses of Avamor, took little part in the great war against the Tae-esh-naree. His followers, however, were most active, slaying many of the immortal Progeny, and sending their souls to Accuris for judgement. In the times before the Cataclysm, Accuris rarely walked the lands, appearing only to destroy Bael's, Falrun's, or Set's undead armies. Far more often, Accuris merely lent His aid to Avaryan, Sylvanus, or perhaps Vorin when they faced the unliving.

Do not mistake Accuris as favoring the gods of Good or Neutrality. Baelites, Falrunians, and Settites often execute His will in the most direct of manners. Overzealous good mortals will often seek to extend their lives beyond their allotted span in a mistaken effort to do more good. These transgressors must be returned to the great Cycle just as those workers of evil who seek lichdom are.

The savages of the Ash'ainhal Desert have a legend: In long-ago Ancient Tesh, when the archimages of that great nation were corrupted and just beginning their war against all the non-human races, the evil mages cast out all Accurites and Esseans into the desert. Accuris sent dreams to His faithful, showing them where the scarabs had hoarded the flesh of dead animals to feed their young. Thus were the faithful able to survive their journey through the expanding Ash'ainhal desert by eating the meat and water that the humble scarab had stored away. Forever after, Accuris marked these scarabs with His symbol, so that all would know that the scythe scarab was sacred to Him. Now, scythe scarabs are found not only among the hot dunes of the Ash'ainhal, but also in the graveyards blessed by His followers.

Accuris cares only about souls. He has no interest in soulless, but sentient, creatures. He derives his power both from worship and from the souls that pass through his domain. Accuris does not seek the deaths of all who live. That would break the cycle of life, death, and rebirth, and end the supply of souls entering his domain. Instead, he fulfills a needed part of the cycle - sending souls on to their final reward.

Accuris knows the proper time of death for all living things. He seeks to maintain that time and place, though he has permitted his followers to influence time, place, and manner. He cares not for good or evil, law or chaos. Only that souls reach him without needless torment, and that the unliving are brought back into the cycle.

Everyone comes to Accuris eventually.

Of all the greater Powers, Accuris has the fewest regular worshippers. However, every time a family member prays to Accuris to spare the life of a sickly loved one, every time a warrior prays to Him for survival of the coming battle, and every time someone prays for the speedy journey of the departed on the bloody field, Accuris is there.

The priesthood of Accuris are not necessarily "bad" or "evil." They do not seek power or fame of any sort. They view themselves as a necesary part of a greater cycle that all souls must pass through. Those souls that break the cycle must be brought back into it, willing or not. Above all, this order is patient. Priests of Accuris see death as the ultimate fulfillment of peace. Therefore, they hate and despise the greater undead, especially vampires and liches, and will almost always attack and destroy them on sight. The priesthood seeks as many souls as possible to enter their Lord's realm, whether as converts to the religion or through the passing of life. Their reputation far outstrips their activities, mostly from those occasions where a Gatherer has shown stubborn or insulting fool "the true glory of darkness" (i.e. killed them).

Usually, priests of Accuris are found performing their god-sworn tasks in graveyards, or battlefields, giving last rites appropriate to the deceased's culture. They sometimes find themselves at odds with the followers of Talamyr, for even Gatherers will end the suffering of the dying rather than send a needlessly tormented soul to their Lord.

Watchers. Watchers are the guardians against the Undead, who seek to cheat the Afterlife. They seek out and destroy all undead they can find, especially the greater undead. Watchers are the most likely to be encountered on adventures. Almost all Watchers are Neutral Good.

Guides. Guides are the caretakers of the travellers (the dead and dying). They prepare the bodies of the dead for burial, according to the deceased's beliefs. They care not what Powers the traveller worshipped in life -- all must stand before Accuris for judgement in the Afterlife. The dying are made as comfortable as possible, even if this means cutting a throat. Guides are usually found in hospitals. They tend to be exclusively Neutral.

Gatherers. Those who seek to gain more than their share of lifespan, or those who take souls from the Sleeping God (swords of life stealing, for example) are the province of the Gatherers. It is the task of the Gatherers to gather travellers and send them on their way. Some societies call this assassination. Indeed, a quick knife in the back or a morsel of venomed food may be used to help the traveller on his or her journey, but this is for the traveller's benefit. After all, there is an appointment with Death to keep. Gatherers, by nature, are Neutral Evil. They can be found anywhere. They are the enforcement of Accuris's will and the avengers of wrongs done to his worshippers.

Only the Kathnyri and Ralkstag nations have large temples to Accuris. Most civilized lands do not tolerate obvious temples to the god of death. However, almost all villages, towns, and cities have a shrine to Accuris, usually near the graveyards or catacombs. The priesthood fulfills a necessary function - they make the final preparations for the deceased. As a result, mausoleums, crematoriums, funeraray homes, and other places where the deceased's remains are prepared almost always have holy ground dedicated to Accuris. There are always Guides on hand to comfort the living and care for the dead.

Where there are large temples to Accuris, they are huge, imposing affairs in the style of artfully decorated pyramids with obelisks and pillars bearing the masked, cowled visage of their Lord, or of peaceful funerary scenes. Heavy incense is common, as is low lighting. Temple guards, both magical and not, are circumspect and out of sight. Altars are simple affairs consisting of large blocks of stone or wood, carefully worked with bas reliefs of holy symbols and names of long-dead empires. Minor fees, usually in the form of food or worked goods, are charged for more elaborate funeral preparations. Donations and more lavish payments are distributed first to major temples, then sent where they are most needed.

Crows, ravens, and scythe scarabs are all sacred to Accuris. He uses them as messengers to His faithful, as signs of his favor or disfavor, and to warn certain souls of impending, premature death. Crows carry the spirits of the dead into the afterlife, and are most often associated with the Gatherers. Ravens guard His faithful. Many Watchers keep a token of the raven with them on their travels. Scythe scarabs embody Accuris's part in the great cycle of life, death, and rebirth. As a sign of their devotion, Guides often carry an amulet or ring bearing the form of a scythe scarab.

For those of His followers tasked directly by the Sleeping God, Accuris often sends an Omen in one of the three forms: Crow, Raven, or Scythe Scarab. The form the Omen takes is itself a sign of the task Accuris has set. Those accompanied by an Omen are especially feared, and honored. The Unnamed has claimed this servant as His Own. It is a sign that Accuris is directly watching the Omen's companion. Woe unto those who interfere with the chosen of the Death God.

Most often, Accuris approaches His faithful in dreams, sweeping them away to scenes of a great death, usually one that the follower needs to prevent. Gatherers frequently receive signs, portents, and dreams about those whom they must soon gather to their Lord's realm - a raven perched upon a house, the shadow of a Guide appearing behind the soon-to-die, or even a brief glimpse sent by Accuris of how the blasphemer plans to cheat the God of Death. On rare occasions, Accuris appears as a beautiful, pale woman. This is a terrible omen indeed, for it always foretells the deaths of many, many people. Only twice has such an omen been recorded: The first when the evil god Dargoth was released from his prison, and the second just before the Illithid War, when the mind flayers established their Hive upon Avamor.

Divine Protection (Ex): This isn't so much a granted power as a sign of respect and fear. When pursuing their duties of burial and last rites, described above, followers of Accuris are sacrosanct. There are extremely few intelligent beings who will harm Accuris's priests in performance of these duties - usually because the same priest may be called upon to care for an enemy's dead as well as an ally's. Baelites and Settites do not grant this respect and will likely use the opportunity to murder the Faithful.

Inspire Fear (Sp): With a gesture as simple as a look or wave of the hand, a priest of Accuris presents those before him with their imminent and painful death. Same as the 4th level Wizard spell, Fear. Useable 2/day.

Know Alignment (Sp): Useable at will 1/day. This ability functions as a Detect Chaos/Evil/Good/Law spell. A priest of Accuris often uses this ability in conjunction with Knowledge (Religion) to determine the proper burial rites for a corpse, or soon-to-be corpse.

Turn Undead (Su): The priest power. Accuris's Priests turn undead as if they were two levels higher than their current level. They can only turn or destroy Undead - extra-planar creatures are unaffected (unless they are also Undead). Nor can the priests of Accuris control Undead.

Halt Undead (Sp): Gained at 3rd level. Same as the 3rd level Wizard spell, Halt Undead. For every 4 levels of the priest, this spell can be cast 1/day at will (1st-4th level, use 1/day; 5th-8th level, use 2/day etc.)

Peace (Su): (Guides Only) Gained at 7th level. Guides may invoke Peace by touch. This has the same effect of a Friends spell on most beings. On those who are mortally wounded or otherwise near death, Peace removes pain and suffering, calms the final throes, and allows Accuris to gather souls unmarred by the torments of the final clutching at life. The priest may take no hostile action against those he invokes Peace upon without incurring Accuris's wrath. Briefly.

Mark of Death (Su): (Gatherers Only) Gained at 9th level. Lasts for one week. Once per month, a Gatherer may touch a creature and remove all protections and immunities that it has. For example: Creatures hit only by magical weapons become vulnerable to mundane ones (effectively negating damage resistance), fire creatures take half damage from fire, incorporeal creatures are vulnerable to non-magical attacks and have only a 25% chance to ignore damage from a corporeal source, creatures with poison become vulnerable to their own toxin, spell resistance is halved, and turn resistance is negated. Any priest of Accuris will see Accuris's mark upon the creature on sight. This mark cannot be concealed by any power save that of another Greater God. All priests of Accuris who use Contact Other Plane, Divination, Commune or similar magics will automatically be informed of any creature that has received this mark. Note, the Mark of Death is effective only against beings that have a soul. This does include some Undead (liches, vampires, shades, etc.), but does not include truly immortal creatures, such as Dragons, Unicorns, Drakes, Elementals, Demons, and so forth. This power is only rarely invoked.

Bane of Unlife (Su): (Watchers Only) Gained at 10th level. This power allows a Watcher to create a haven safe from Undead. The only requirements are that the place be bound by four walls and that it be a built structure. A natural setting surrounded by four cliff faces will not do. This power is limited to a single room in areas of multiple rooms. Within this area, lesser (unintelligent) Undead are immediately destroyed on entering. Greater (intelligent) Undead must make a Fortitude save (DC = 2x Watcher level) to enter, and then take 2d10 hp damage/round they remain within the Bane. Furthermore, any magical powers, including life energy draining, the creature uses must first overcome spell resistance (SR = 3/2 Watcher level) on the area. This ability cannot be used on holy ground dedicated to another faith, nor does it affect beings magically controlled by Undead (unless they are themselves Undead). Only one area may be so warded at a time. Warding a second area nullifies any previous Bane of Unlife bestowed by the priest. Multiple priests warding the same area has no effect. This power takes 1 hour of prayer to invoke, 1 move equivalent action to remove.

Finger of Death (Sp): Gained at 15th level. Same as the 7th level Wizard Spell, Finger of Death. Usable 1/week. Strong in His faith, the greatest of Accuris's followers may snatch a soul from the body with a mere gesture.

Dress. Accuris's priests must dress in flowing gray robes with black trim and ceremonial masks on holy days, or when performing any of the duties listed here.

Burial. Priests of the Sleeping God must see that any sentient being he or she kills is buried (or that whatever ritual is required for the creature is performed). Furthermore, they must properly bury the remains of any deceased beings they may encounter.

Guidance. Priests of Accuris are expected to guide those who are near death into the afterlife as painlessly as possible. At the very least, the priest should not add to the soul's torment. That is Accuris's judgement and not for the likes of mere mortals.

Last Rites. Performed over the dying. This duty must be performed whenever it is requested.

Investigation. Since they are most often called on to deal with mortal remains in civilized areas, Accurites are also often called on to investigate the manner of a creature's death. While the Unnamed does not require His faithful to tell the truth, Accurites are bound to ensure that any undead involvement is dealt with - to prevent the corpse from rising again, and to ensure that the soul completes its journey.

Tithes. 10% of all the priest's treasure must be donated to the priesthood.

Vigilance against any being that is unnaturally keeping Death at bay (undead). Those who use longevity magics, and are still alive, are usually exempt from this vigilance.

Class Skills: All priests of Accuris gain Knowledge (Religion) as a class skill.

• Watchers gain Knowledge (Undead) as a class skill.
• Guides gain Alchemy, especially drugs, as a class skill.
• Gatherers gain Alchemy, especially poisons, as a class skill.

Favored Weapon: Battle axe (styled as a headman's axe), scythe

Weapon proficiency: Battle axe (usually styled as a headman's axe), crossbow (light), dagger/dirk, garrotte, knife, lasso (often tied in the fashion of a noose), scythe, sickle, stiletto.

Creation of Undead. Under no circumstances may a priest of Accuris deliberately create any form of undead. If a priest deliberately creates an undead creature, she is immediately stripped of all spells and is cast out of the order. If an undead creature is created by mistake, the priest loses all domain spells and powers until the creature is hunted down, destroyed, and its soul returned to Accuris. The priest must then perform an Atonement.

Soul-Destroying Magics. Priests of Accuris are forbidden from using any device that destroys the soul. As a general rule of thumb, any magical device that destroys a sentient being completely, such that only the intervention of a deity can bring that being back to life, is forbidden. This includes spheres of annihilation and most (but not all) energy-draining weapons.

Magics that imprison the soul are permitted, but the priest must give the soul up to Accuris for judgement.

All priests of Accuris must take one skill point in a written language.
Light armor only, no shields.
Death Domain - cannot create undead.
Destruction Domain - Gatherers only.
Healing Domain - Guides only.
Protection Domain - Watchers only.

Make the priest able to tell when Accuris has laid claim upon a being's soul: The priest will briefly see a dark cloaked figure behind the soon-to-be-deceased, sometimes wielding a scythe, sometimes not. The figure will gesture towards or strike at the "victim." The clearer the figure is, the more imminent, and likely, death is. Make the player aware that this is not certain death - the priest may (rarely) take actions to prevent or delay the death.

Gatherers should not heal even their allies and friends in the middle of combat. Instead, they should wait until the battle is done before granting magical healing of any sort. This is out of the near fanatical belief that if Accuris intends to claim a person, the priest has no right to interfere (this also means that Gatherers will not stop hit point loss due to being below 0 hit points). But, once the fighting is over, it is obvious that Accuris wished that person to live, and it is alright to heal them. Gatherers should frequently talk about how they are looking forward to harvesting the souls of their "friends" for their Lord, give a slow death's grin whenever someone nearby is in danger, and stand behind that endangered person with their axe ready - to grant a merciful, quick death "if it becomes necessary." Gatherers should also speak in a slow, "graveyard," sepulchral tone of voice. Make frequent use of the Inspire Fear power, especially when they are being delayed.

Watchers should generally act kindly, until the conversation turns towards life and death, or especially Undead. Then they become passionate and fanatical (i.e. unable to be reasoned with). Watchers should be very quick to anger when their task (hunting Undead) is interfered with: "My friend, it is my fervent and dear hope that you will cease to thwart My Lady's will, for She will likely claim your soul this very evening for having the temerity to delay Her most humble servant for even a second. Verily, She may well visit your entire household and speed every man, woman and child to the executioner's block if you don't move your fat, sniveling carcass from my path!" They should use Inspire Fear very rarely. They sometimes have to work with Paladins of Avaryan, after all. (Note: Accuris is referred to as both "he" and "she."

Guides should be very quiet and unnoticed. They should come across as mystics, doing Accuris's True Work. They try to be inoffensive to everyone. They will behave almost like servants, even while performing their work. In discussion or argument, they will side with the course that will result in the greatest number of deaths; but will never seek personal confrontation with their companions (read: tools).

Amara, The Silver Lady

Born of Sylvanus, Amara is the caretaker of all plantlife and the ground that those plants exist upon. Forest or field, farmer or woodsman, wherever green grows or roots delve, Amara is there. Her affinity for the earth grants her followers the Earth and Plant domains. Her favored weapon is the club.

Priests of Amara are also known as Caretakers, for they care for those rare or endangered species of plantlife threatened by civilization or by marauding creatures. Though the followers of Gruumsh and Bael often regard Amara as weak and easily broken, the opposite is true. Amara has her dark side, as well.

As the mighty oak roots itself deep in the ground, so too does Amara's power. Rock and soil pay heed to her. Those who threaten her Work may well have the very ground beneath them erupt and swallow them whole! A collapsed mine is a sure sign of her displeasure. Indeed, those few fortunate victims who are rescued before their air runs out often speak of strange roots slowly growing towards them as they watched their companions die.

It is said that Amara and Vorin are sometimes lovers, for the storms bring rain that the earth might flourish. If so, they contest against each other often, for though Vorin reigns over the sky above, Amara does not submit to his aerial dominion.

Many druids, rangers, Plainsriders, and farmers venerate Amara, though the majority of her priests reside in farming communities or on the edges of forests. They are caretakers, ensuring that the land is not overharvested, the forest is not cleared too extensively, and that all have enough to eat.

Amara regards Bael as her greatest enemy, for the Corruptor would turn the very land against all that lives, leaving the soil poisoned and sterile. The pestilence that Falrun looses on the world is also anathema to her. Her followers will thwart either at any opportunity.

Farmers regularly consult with Amara's disciples to ensure bountiful harvests. Engineers and other builders also take heed of Amara's wishes. It is not Her desire to preserve the natural world at the expense of civilization - as some of Sylvanus's followers believe. Rather, she seeks harmony between the needs of civilization and the needs of the plantlife that civilization depends on.

Nearly every farming community has a simple shrine dedicated to Amara, usually a carefully tended grove or copse. These shrines are often mistaken for Druidic groves - and indeed, Druids are welcome in these places, and often tend them. Most families who farm the land or cut trees have a woodcut of Amara placed on the lintel over their door as a sign of their faith and adherence to Her ways.

Because Amara's religion does not build large edifices, they do not have much political power. However, the common folk and many fey regard Amara as their personal protector. Because she is part their everyday lives, because it is her blessing that allows crops to grow, fruit to ripen, and homes to be built, many people feel a connection to Her. Thus, the priest's wishes are easily conveyed to a kindly ruler, or more subtly directed to and obeyed by an unkindly one.

Nature Sense (Ex): Amara's faithful, through their link with the Goddess, can identify plants (species and traits), and only plants, with perfect accuracy by sight, taste, or smell.

Boon of the Green (Ex): At 3rd level, Caretakers gain a +3 situation bonus to all saves versus plant-based poisons, drugs, and similar effects.

Nature's Touch (Sp): At 7th level, Caretakers can Control Plants (as the spell) 1/day. They may invoke this power 2/day at 14th level.

Turn/Dominate Plants (Su): At 10th level, Caretakers can turn or dominate plants. Use the cleric's turn/dominate undead ability, treating the plant as the undead.

One with Nature (Su): At 13th level, Caretakers can merge fully with a tree or other plant of at least a size equal to the Caretaker. During this time, the Caretaker doubles all his healing rates. If she also has the Healing skill, she can make a skill check as per normal to double that healing rate as well. During this time, the Caretaker needs no food, drink, or air. She shares the bounty of her chosen ground, taking of its strength to restore her own. While merged with the tree, the Caretaker is blind, deaf, and very, very vulnerable. She is flatfooted during the entire duration of One with Nature. Any damage inflicted on the tree also damages the merged Caretaker. Cut a major branch from the tree and the caretaker likewise loses an arm. If the tree is killed, the Caretaker likewise dies. The Caretaker can merge or emerge from the tree as a full-round action at will.

Sharing Amara's Gift (Su): At 15th level, Caretakers can temporarily grant the One with Nature ability to one other person. The tree (or other plant) used must reside within the Caretaker's chosen ground (see Caretaker under Duties below), and the Caretaker's Healing skill is used rather than the beneficiary's. In all other respects, the treat recipient of Amara's Gift as if he or she had the One with Nature abilitiy.

Caretaker. All priests of Amara must choose a region of at least 1 acre per level that they are personally responsible for the care of. A priest called away to do Her work may give over this care, temporarily, to another of the faithful, or a trusted ally. But any mishap rests solely on the shoulders of the priest.

Responsible Use. Priests of Amara must work for the responsible use of land. Fields must not be overplanted. Forests must not be overcut. Nor should fields lie untended too long, nor a forest allowed to choke itself with undergrowth. As the priest travels, she must determine if the land is being abused in any way. If so, she must put it to rights.

Priests of Amara gain Knowledge (Agriculture) as a class skill.

Favored Weapon: Club.

See also Restrictions below.

Armor. Caretakers who wear armor that is primarily composed of metal suffer the same spell failure rates as for Arcane spells.

Weapons. Caretakers avoid weapons made of metal, such as swords, daggers, chains, and the like. They can use wooden-handled, or hafted weapons (battleaxes and polearms, for instance), but they prefer weapons of stone or wood.

Caretakers aren't generally an adventuring group. Amara's followers tend to stay in a local environment to look after the land in their care. Those few who do travel will return as often as they possibly can to their home - because they miss it, and because they are required by their goddess to do so.

Amara's faithful feel a very strong connection to the land, and all that grows upon it. They enjoy the sight of a planted field, ripening under the sun as dearly as they enjoy a forest untouched by mortal hand. They seek to teach people how to live in harmony with the land they depend on for their lives. When they must take action, they prefer to do so quietly, from a distance. They use advice, rumor, and the local people who depend on them for bountiful harvests to sway miscreants. Violence is the last choice, but it is a powerful one.