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Excerpts: EPG Religion
Eberron Player's Guide

In today’s Eberron Player's Guide preview, we introduce elements of the Eberron religion and information on the deities!

Religion is important in Eberron, but not because the deities take an obvious and direct interest in the world. Rather, organized faith is important in both a spiritual and a secular sense. Temples and shrines are sources of community and peace (or conspiracy and corruption) in villages and towns. In cities, highranking members of the clergy can wield as much power as the nobility.

In this war-torn time, numerous Khorvairians have come to scorn deities and higher powers. Just as many, however, actively participate in organized religion as a way to make sense of the world.

The Sovereign Host

Good

The Sovereign Host is a group of nine deities collectively representing the entire world, but focusing on aspects of civilization—community, the protection of the weak, the slaying of wild beasts, fertility, construction, and the like. The Sovereign Host is the most widely worshiped body in Khorvaire. Nearly everyone offers prayers to the Host as a whole and to individual deities for specific actions. For example, a farmer might whisper a prayer of thanks to Arawai when his baby is born healthy, and a blacksmith might sing the songs of Onatar when working at her forge.

The Sovereign Host finds worshipers among all races and from all walks of life—peasants, kings, and adventurers. The faithful worship the pantheon as a whole, rather than devoting themselves to specific deities. Worshipers of the Sovereign Host are called Vassals.

As a group, the Host exhorts its followers to:

  • Place your trust in the community. The group is stronger by far than the individual. The great light of a city is composed of the thousands of flames of its citizens. You must ensure that your flame is as bright as you can make it.
  • Treat others as they deserve to be treated. If they haven’t harmed you or yours, treat them kindly.
  • Bring the light of civilization to the darkness of the wilds.

The Dark Six

Evil

Complementing the Sovereign Host and its focus on the light of civilization, the Dark Six represent the darkness of the wilds. The two pantheons were once combined, but a great schism separated them. The Dark Six now oppose the Host on all fronts. Where the Sovereign Host is generally good, the Dark Six are by and large evil. Where the Sovereign Host values community and government, the Dark Six value individuality and anarchy. The Dark Six are cruel, passionate, brutal, and wild.

Although worship of the Dark Six is not common, the people of Khorvaire haven’t forgotten that these deities have power over aspects of the world. Although the average peasant reveres the Sovereign Host, few people are so assured that they refuse to offer a prayer to the Dark Six when appropriate. Everyone knows that the neighbors do the same, although none ever speak of it.

With the exception of the mysterious Traveler, the Dark Six are evil deities, and thus inappropriate sources of veneration for PCs. (As described in the Player’s Handbook, a character can worship an evil deity without sharing that alignment, but doing so is tricky.) For that reason, only the Traveler is discussed below (the other members of the Six are described briefly at the end of this section).

The Traveler

Unaligned

The great trickster, the Traveler is a deity of cunning, deception, and change. The Traveler is a consummate shapechanger and master of disguises, and thus the being’s true nature is unknown—texts variously refer to the Traveler as "it" rather than "he" or "she." Many doppelgangers, shifters, lycanthropes, thieves, and rogues revere the Traveler, as do a few artificers who focus on the deity’s innovation and cleverness.

The Traveler is sometimes called the Giver of Gifts, but proverbs warn that one must be wary of its gifts. Ostensibly a member of the Dark Six, the Traveler seems to have no connection, familial or otherwise, to its fellows.

The Traveler’s commandments must often be inferred, for its holy texts are few. Its tenets are:

  • Revealing your true self is weakness. Shroud yourself in misdirection and disguise so that even you do not know what dwells in your core.
  • Nothing is permanent. Ensure that change improves your lot and damages your enemies.
  • The best weapons are cunning plans and intricate deceptions. Mortal minds are predictable and easily manipulated.

The Pantheons and Deities of Eberron


Faith, Pantheon, or Deity Alignment Areas of Influence
The Sovereign Host Good All the world, focused primarily on aspects of civilized life
Arawai Good Agriculture, fertility, the wilderness as natural resources
Aureon Unaligned Knowledge, law, arcane lore and magic
Balinor Unaligned Beasts, the hunt, the cycle of life
Boldrei Good Community, home, hearth
Dol Arrah Lawful good Light (physical and metaphorical, the goodness of the soul), honor, selflessness, military strategy, war
Dol Dorn Unaligned Courage, duty, physical prowess, soldiers and warriors, war
Kol Korran Unaligned Wealth, trade, commerce
Olladra Good Fortune, luck, success
Onatar Unaligned Forges, crafts, industry, fire
The Dark Six Evil All the world, especially the primal wilderness and nature’s destructive forces
The Devourer Chaotic evil Storm, flood, famine, other aspects of nature's wrath; also, the sea
The Fury Chaotic evil Wrath, passion, vengeance
The Keeper Evil Gluttony, greed, necromancy
The Mockery Evil Violence, betrayal, dishonorable victory, love of carnage, war
The Shadow Chaotic evil Ambition, dark magic, corruption
The Traveler Unaligned Change, cunning, innovation, deception
The Silver Flame Lawful good Protection, generosity, destruction of evil and the unnatural
The Blood of Vol Unaligned Divine power of the blood, immortality, undeath
The Path of Light Lawful good Light, progress, self-improvement, freedom
Elf Religion Unaligned The elf people and society
The Undying Court Unaligned Immortality, elven society, history
The Spirits of the Past Unaligned Glory, elven history and heroes
Khyber Cults Chaotic evil Madness, destruction, aberrant creatures, darkness


Excerpt Schedule

Monday Friday

May 18

10 Important Facts About Eberron

May 22

Alchemy
Alchemical formulas and sample items.

May 27

Paragon Path: Self-Forged
"I improve myself by any means necessary."

May 29

Religion
The pantheon and sample deities.

June 1

Paragon Path: Warforged Juggernaut
"Our of my way, flesh bags!"

June 5

Rituals
By level, and sample rituals.

June 8

Epic Destiny: Champion of Prophecy
"Nothing can stop you. You were born for this.
It’s who you are."

June 12

Feats
Heroic tier feat table.



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