Asteth, the Empress

Asteth in Karel

The Karelagne Empire has adopted the worship of Asteth with gusto, and her flame cults have grown with such rapidity and vigor that the Karelagne crown fears they’ll soon become a threat to its political sovereignty. The government has cultivated a nationalistic image of Asteth, portraying her as a mother-goddess of warlike power and the homely hearth. It’s popular to name girls born after a troubled birth Asteth, to honor the Empress’s power.

Asteth in Ayris

In Ayris, Asteth’s fickle will is emblematic of the caprices of the market. Merchants and investors, particularly those who remain in Windcrown or in the Ayrissian capital on the Material Plane, issue prayers to Asteth for a sudden rise in their fortunes, or a favorable market crash—especially one that ruins their rivals.

Asteth Among the Drakes

Goddess of cannon fire and burning ships, Asteth’s burning visage has a place on the figurehead of countless pirate ships. The infamous ship The Drake was known for bearing her serpentine form on its figurehead.

The ancient ones told tales of Asteth, the Empress of Flames, a burning, three-headed serpent that emerged from a door of fire. She was a fickle ally, and always behaved in hungry self-interest. The astral titans kept her at arm’s length; close enough to borrow her power, but leaving enough room to retreat, lest they be burned by her caprices.

Asteth is often depicted as a three-headed serpent wreathed in fire, or a muscular humanoid woman whose crowned head is obscured in flame. Clerics of Asteth typically wield the domains of Arcana, Forge, Light, or War.