Kaylaar, Goddess of Magic
Kaylaar is the patron goddess of the Free, so it should come as no surprise that the vast majority of her followers are Free Folk, living in Trentare.
Although The Free live primarily in Trentare, their brightly colored wagons are their true homes and each year, long caravans snake out and away from Trentare and make the rounds in the Basin, offering trade goods, entertainment and the sharing of news from other parts of the fractured land.
It is an inefficient system of communication but without the Free Folk caravans, the Basin would be a dimmer, darker and frankly, less informed place than it is today. The gypsy folk serve a vital function in the Basin, in addition to being the most colorful and interesting group of People who call the place home.
Scholars have often points out that the home life J'honsa and Kaylaar shared surely wasn't a happy one, what with her being the mistress of chaos and magic and J'honsa being the embodiment of order, and there has certainly never been any love lost between folk of the Witching Way and the Priesthood of J'honsa, so it's probably little wonder that Ollux wound up being a bad egg - he had just about every imaginable strike against him!
Although there is nothing definitive to support this, there are some scholars who flirt with blasphemy and offer the possibility that J'honsa and Kaylaar were once mortals. DM's, if you've read the In the Beginning... , then you can clearly see that those scholars may be onto something, and may indeed have a more direct connection to Aeloah than anyone realizes.
As part of her function of the Goddess of Nature, Kaylaar is also the Patron Goddess of travelers and those who are lost. Scholars who study Kaylaar make much of the fact that she is patron to all those who wander, whether they are lost or not - a little known curiosity regarding The Free is the fact that they actually have no word for "lost." The nearest they can come to describing the phenomenon is to say they have "misplaced" themselves if they should happen to wind up in an area where they ought not be (which happens on a fairly regular basis).
Highlights
- Smallest of the three major religions.
- The Faith was brought to the Basin by the Free Folk contingent of the refugees fleeing from Old Imperium and by the Haaradan, who also declare for Kaylaar.
- First head of the Lady of Magic's religion in the Basin: Lady Dierdranna.
- Current head of the faith: Lady Rhiannon, of Shaladare.
Divine Domains
- Arcana
- Light
- Nature
- Trickery
Vows
- Ancients
- Feywilde
- Nature
Holy Books & Codes
None.
Holy Sites
- The Silver River
- The Forest of Shaladare (the Basin's other enchanted wood).
- Kaylaar's followers also lay claim to StroudHaven and the World Tree, but have never actually processed it.
Tenets of Faith
Kaylaar’s followers value freedom and independence above all else. Their ceremonies are filled with wine and dance and song. If you aren't an accomplished dancer and cannot hold your ale, you're probably not cut out for a life of worship of Kaylaar. This, as much as anything else, explains why the Free Folk have such a fondness for the goddess.
She is welcoming and accepting, especially of the fey but understands that followers may come to her of all shapes, sizes and backgrounds. As such, where J’honsa is a very human-centric god, Kaylaar finds followers among the small population of elves and dwarves that now call the Basin home, and she is held in high regard by most, if not all of the fey.
Make no mistake, however: Clerics of Kaylaar may enjoy frivolity and fun, but they are guided by an inner moral compass that is honed to a keen edge. Her followers can ferret out untruths and those not pure of heart and when such creatures are found, they are harshly and decisively dealt with. These things are regarded as sinful by the Lady of Magic:
- Failure to be true to oneself – If you find yourself doing what everyone else is doing for no other reason than the fact that everyone else is doing it, you’re probably sinning in the eyes of your goddess.
- Despoiling the natural world – The natural world is the tapestry upon which you get to paint your story by way of your free and independent actions. The destruction of that tapestry is then, in a real sense, diminishing you. It cannot be allowed to stand.
- Sloth – The slothful man is a poison upon the world. Anyone who uses “freedom of choice” as an excuse to justify sloth is squandering the life and breath the gods gave them.
- Greed and Avarice – The wonders and treasures of the world belong to all. Greed and avarice are signs of shortsightedness and weakness of spirit.
- Wanton Cruelty – This covers a wide range of potential sins from the heartless application of too-strict laws in the name of preserving order to torture. While followers of Kaylaar are noted pranksters, they never seek to be needlessly cruel and do not tolerate those who are, regardless of the reason or justification. Standing by and allowing such actions to occur is a venial sin.
Game Notes
This is pulled from the Cleric's Splat Book, but is worth repeating here: Given Kaylaar’s close association with magic, she is often seen as a patron of the wizardly classes or at least kindly disposed to them. That, combined with her more permissive nature means that a Cleric who follows Kaylaar are able to heal any creature without it being regarded as a sin (though the effectiveness of the healing is still subject to other factors as explained later—Healing a Chaotic = 1 step improvement, Neutral = normal die, Lawful = 1 step reduction). Although Kaylaar’s followers believe in freedom and independence, they also understand that a well-placed or well-timed charm spell has its uses, providing of course, that such temporary measures are not applied with cruelty or malice and that in the end, some kind of recompense is offered to individual held under such sway. Kaylaar’s followers are not anarchists. They understand the value of civilization, but they also deeply understand civilization’s more destructive impulses. These are to be resisted. If a law is unjust, then those living under that law are right to rebel against it and should be supported. Worshipers of Kaylaar delight in giving aid and comfort to the underdog. If there is a group that is downtrodden or persecuted, you can bet that Priests of Kaylaar will be there to lend support and advocate for them, resorting to violence if needs be to ensure that desperate people without a voice are heard. Yes, her followers sing and drink and dance. Yes, they celebrate life and passion and magic, but they also apply their passions to aiding those that are unable to help themselves. Basically, Kaylaar is a great choice if the DM doesn’t want to have to track a character’s behavior too closely. Clerics of Kaylaar have significantly more latitude and leeway than either of the others.Physical Description
General Physical Condition
Kaylaar appears to mortals as a a fit, somewhat diminutive woman, with eyes that pulse with Eldritch power which gives her a towering presence that far outstrips her physical size. She typically favors black or darker blues in dress, and is much kinder and more forgiving than her outward appearance might suggest.
Relationships
History
J'honsa and Kaylaar are a study in opposites. They'd really have to work at it to be more different than they are. Kaylaar is wild and free. Tempestuous. J'honsa is staid and steady. A hard man, but a fair one. Even so, for someone like Kaylaar, he's a difficult man to love, or even remain close to, and yet...she recognizes the inherent weakness that too much chaos and unpredictability can breed. It was she who made the conscious decision to remain at J'honsa's side, rather than going her own way long ago.
Divine Classification
Magic, Light, Nature, Trickery, Feywilde, Ancients
Alignment
Chaotic
Age
Unknown
Spouses
J'honsa, the God of Hardships
(spouse)
Siblings
Children
Gender
Female
Eyes
Violet, mysterious
Hair
Long, white and flowing, with hints of its former black
Skin Tone/Pigmentation
Pale
Height
5'3"
Weight
106 pounds
An Arcana Priest
A Priestess of Light
A Priestess of Nature
A Trickster Priest
An Oath of the Ancients Paladin
An Oath of Protection Paladin
An Oath of the Feywilde Paladin
Comments