The Pantheon worshipped by the Human Tribes which followed the decline of their animistic and totemic beliefs, but preceded the arrival of the Empire. The Central Pantheon is the second most wide-spread belief system of the Aran Pantheons. While its followers may not be as numerous as the Northern or Southern pantheons, they can be found in viable communities everywhere from the shores of Zemla Sneg, to the plains of Terre de Collines, a distribution which can only be claimed by itself and the Imperial Pantheon.
Animalistic Powers
The gods of the Central Pantheon are typically associated with forces of nature. They are virtually all depicted as animal-headed humanoids and worshippers of the Central pantheon believe such animals to share a portion of their patron's power. While they seldom hold such animals as explicitly sacred, most believe that the gods will sometimes send animals of their likeness as omens or aid to their followers. Some find this connection similar to the Primals, but both groups of worshippers agree that their religions are not synonymous.
Members
Adhelm
Adhelm is the god of Justice, Law, and Protection. However, his Central Pantheon incarnation is more an enforcement of existing mortal laws. Adhelm punishes those who break the law or who do wrong to other people, but he is less of a judge and more of an executioner. While his priests will often seek his guidance when determining the guilt of potential criminals, Adhelm prefers to leave the judgement of such matters to morals. In the event where he is called upon specifically to render judgement, he always does so by the laws of the land, not by his own laws. He is a protector of the weak and innocent and a fierce adherent to the notion that the guilty must be punished.
Arrigo (Aston)
Arrigo is the primary god of the Central Pantheon and Aston's alias within it. Arrigo is a deity of hearth and home. He is also the protector god of humanity and, in some myths, its progenitor. Most practitioners of the Central Pantheon have an idol of Arrigo in their home, from elaborate golden or ivory effigies to humble hand-carved wooden idols. He is also beseeched by those who are lost to guide them back home.
Arrigo is also the god of communities and solidarity within them. He is said to be found where neighbors and fellow citizens come together and bolster one another.
Badulf (Bardolf)
Badulf is essentially the same as his Imperial counterpart, though he has a bit more of a "berserker" flavor to him. Badulf is a strong ally but a fearsome foe.
Brant (Brand)
Brant's domain is essentially identical to that of his Imperial counterpart. Brant is said to be the greatest of all the deities in the Central Pantheon, such that none of them might stand against him in single combat. Brant hates the children of Arrigo (often said to be his brother) and seeks to spread misery and suffering among them whenever possible.
Brechtje (Celestine)
Brechtje is the goddess of the Sun, the Moons, and the Stars. She is very similar to her Imperial Incarnation, but with much less focus on order. She still retains her association with honesty and sincerity. Though she does not directly punish those who lie or operate under false pretenses, it is believed that any such duplicitous dealings done within her sight will be exposed for others to react as they see fit. As a result, it was once quite commonplace for oaths or deals to be made in direct sunlight where Brechtje's view is clearest. This practice has largely died out even among followers of the Central Pantheon, but still remains prominent in some locations and survives as seemingly esoteric criteria for various ceremonies still practiced today.
Cudius (Sims)
In the Central Pantheon, Cudius is the God of Darkness, Secrets, Cunning, and Plans. Unlike his counterpart in the other Pantheons, he is not an inherently malevolent deity in the Central Pantheon. Cudius is sought out when blunt, straight-forward tactics are insufficient and a more indirect approach is needed. As such, his assistance is viewed as invaluable when one is faced with a difficult situation or rival that must be overcome. Cudius is also a keeper of secrets. Unlike his other counterparts, he does not dole such secrets out lightly, but assists in the safekeeping of things which others do not wish known. This often puts him at odds with Hughard and Brechtje.
Dunstan
In the Central Pantheon Dunstan is the god of soil, stone, and caves, like his Imperial counterpart. He is believed to provide good soil as well as gems and metals in moderation to those whom he favors. Those who are too greedy and attempt to extract more than what Dunstan is willing to provide raise his ire and provoke response from his underground children. Dunstan is a miserly God who hoards his valuables and doles them out only in small portions and to those who have made sufficient offerings to him.
Hart
In the Central Pantheon, Hart is largely identical to his Imperial incarnation, but with a heavier focus on woodlands rather than wilderness in general. However, Hart plays a much more prominent role in the Central Pantheon, as it originated from cultures for whom hunting was a much more key element to survival. Mortals pray to Hart before hunts, during winter to ward off predators, and before any trips into the forest. Wood gatherers and foragers also offer prayers for bountiful harvests and for safety when travelling into the forest. This leads to there being some overlap with Hart and Dunstan on the topic of plants, especially edible plants, in the forest. Typically, Hart is associated with wild fruits, vegetables, and fungi found in the woods, while Dunstan is associated with cultivated crops and wild crops found elsewhere.
Hart is also associated with archery, as a byproduct of his association with hunting and trees. This is not as widespread of an aspect of his portfolio and it has faded away even further in more recent times, but there are still some archers who pray to Hart and some of Hart's followers who take up archery for that reason.
Himilgan (Osric)
Himilgan is the god of magic and the future. His Central counterpart is not attributed with granting divinity to the rest of the pantheon, but he is believed to be the primary source of magic in the world. Himilgan is said to view time in reverse, able to "remember" the future as we do the past, but only able to make predictions and speculation on things of our past. Himilgan is also associated with what few celestial objects which are visible with the naked eye and are not the sun, stars, or the four moons. He is sometimes associated with the fifth moon, with some variations even going so far as to claim the fifth moon is his physical form. Himilgan is something of a stingy deity who does not hand out boons freely, but requests offerings to be made for such gifts.
Hughhard (Eldred)
Hughhard in the Central Pantheon is virtually identical to his Imperial counterpart, but he does not deal in secrets. In the Central Pantheon, Hughard gives his knowledge freely, though he is a fairly reclusive deity and not easily contacted. Hughard is also associated with exploration and maps/cartography.
Ida (Tolliver)
Ida is the goddess of craftsmen (especially carpenters and wood-workers), tools, and labor. She is also the patron of unskilled laborers. She is greatly valued in the Central Pantheon with its more rustic origins, but is otherwise largely the same as his Imperial counterpart.
Marlis (Anwen)
Within the Central Pantheon Marlis's purview is somewhat altered. While she still has connections to travel, travel is not explicitly her domain. Rather, she is a goddess of weather. People may, and often do, beseech her for her blessings of fair weather before travelling. She is viewed as a very capricious goddess being fair of spirit one moment and full of wrath the next. Sometimes this emotional fickleness leads her to be associated with certain aspects of femininity, due to the belief that women are more emotionally turbulent than men. The degree to which this is accepted varies, however.
Nedra (Ambrus)
Ambrus, known as Nedra, is a much less important, more focused, and more actively malicious deity. Nedra also has Ambrus's association with illness, but she visits sickness and poison more indiscriminately. She does dispense healing, especially to those who have curried her favor, but she is much less generous with it. She is also associated with oaths and vows and takes particular delight in causing illness to those who have broken one.
Ohtidis (Ferrégine)
Ohtidis is the goddess of revenge and domination. She is a cruel, merciless goddess who seeks to command and control those who do not obey her. To her followers she parcels out her domain for them to rule as her subordinates. She delights in tempting mortals into acts of cruelty and depravity in pursuit of their revenge. If she can engineer things in such a way as to encourage the revenge-seeking party to wrong someone else who will, in turn, seek revenge on them, even better.
Otmar (Twain)
Otmar is the god of fortune, luck, and riddles. However, unlike his Imperial counterpart, Otmar is believed to be far less random. He is less an embodiment of luck and more the one who controls it. Those who appease him will find things will "just go their way", while those who upset him will find things play out much differently. Otmar is said to love puzzles and riddles. He often orchestrates such things as tests for his faithful or to those who pray for his boons.
Tangast (Cicely)
In the Central Pantheon, Tangast is similar to her Imperial counterpart. She represents the inevitability of death, but unlike her Imperial counterpart, she enjoys toppling the works of mortals and thwarting their pride via an untimely death. Her dreams are believed to be phantasms meant to toy with her victims. Sewing ideas of false hope, ambition, or terror. She is believed to occasionally offer glimpses of the afterlife through these dreams as well. Despite this, she is not a vindictive or unfair goddess. Death comes for everyone equally and her reminders of this unavoidable fate are often credited as providing perspective for life's hardships and joys. Her clergy encourage their flocks to live life fully to spite Tangast when she finally comes to collect their souls.
Wynnflæd (Blithe)
In the Central Pantheon, Wynnflæd is the goddess of mercy, revelry, beauty, and fertility. In much the same way as the Imperial Pantheon, she is far less concerned with formalized rituals and worship and more concerned with her adherents living their lives in a compassionate manner. While most of the Central Pantheon's clergy are exclusively men, Wynnflæd's are exclusively women. Traditionally their role would be to offer pleasure to those of their community, often in a carnal fashion. They typically reach out to the lonely and most in need of compassion. Because of this, Wynnflæd priestesses are forbidden to marry. Attempting to force oneself on a priestess is considered extremely heretical, as it is equivalent to stealing and devaluing the gifts of Wynnflæd. Wynnflæd is also said to be able to make (or simply to always has) a magic wine known as Vergoldetes Blut, or "Gilded Blood". It is said that this wine is made from the life essence that becomes flesh and blood. Drinking it is said to ease one's pain, cure wounds, and provide a sense of vigor and happiness.
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