Yenar - "Terror of the Dark Moon"
Yenar is the Terror of the Dark Moon, the Great Maw, and the Mother of Leviathans. Legend states that once, a great vortex formed in the coldest reaches of the Plane of Water, that drained at its endless bounty into a great and terrible beyond. From this rift came a colossal mass that sealed its passage, a cratered mass of stone of unfathomable size. The stone’s faint light attracted the denizens of the deep like an angler fish attracting prey. Creatures of miniscule and leviathan size alike would approach and go mad with hunger. Day after day, year after year, more of the ocean would become shrouded in the darkness, and those who managed to flee recorded nightmarish horrors in the dark.
Yenar is the source of these terrors, though many cannot be certain what her origin truly is, including her own followers in confusing “chicken or the egg” line of thinking. Some believe she is a malevolent intelligence related to or inhabiting the abyssal stone. Others believe her to be a terrible leviathan unrivaled in its power birthed by or puppeted by the stone, and others believe that she is an avatar of the stone made in its twisted image.
This stone is named The Dark Moon by the inhabitants of the Plane of Water due to its faint, ghostly light. Scholars that have dangered close to the outskirts of the area of darkness that surrounds it known as the Cradle of Monsters have confirmed one thing about the stone’s light however, that it presents itself as light in the mind of mortals, and cannot be seen or registered by the senses of mindless creatures.
Yenar possesses an intelligence and emotions like that of humanoids turned foul and more primal. Yenar delights in the act of a ship being capsized at sea by the rampage of a monstrous serpent. She desires the things mortals possess, from treasure and cargo, to the flesh and blood of their bodies alike. Mortal men since her awakening have been said to awake screaming aboard a ship, dreaming of a light in the dark, overshadowed and eclipsed by the passage of tentacled and terribly fanged monsters. To sail on a full moon without offering bounties of gold and meat to the cold depths is to invite the ire of the Mother of Leviathans, who stirs the bellies and more of the ocean’s many beasts.
Unlike many of her elemental godkin, Yenar’s true form rivals Calsarrex in his sheer mystery as none can be certain of her true origin, and even fewer are the amount of suicidal fools that would attempt to seek her out to discover these truths. As such, artists that attempt to capture her image tend to draw inspiration from their worst imaginations of the deep oceans and the things that lurk within it. The most common symbol of her few followers is a circular maw with a wheel of sharp fangs within for this is the most astute depiction of her, as an embodiment of the sea’s consuming power.
Areas of Concern: The deep sea, sea monsters, moons, sunken ships and treasure Divine Realm: Cradle of Monsters, Elemental Plane of Water Alignment: Neutral Evil Typical Follower Alignments: N, CN, LE, NE, CE Edicts: seek primordial secrets, drown others as offers of sacrifice, instill in others hydrophobia & thalassophobia Anathema: Save someone who is drowning, disrespect Yenar, settle far from the sea Doctrines and Beliefs: Yenar does not have a church like most deities, though she does possess cults that are found in coastal regions. Yenar does not beget virtues and only demands tribute and respect from her faithful, and to ensure that those who traverse the vast oceans to respect her through fear as well. Cults that dedicate their worship to Yenar have varying beliefs and usually depend on a cult by cult basis. Some are bloodthirsty madmen, others are doomsday cultists that yearn for the sea to engulf the land, and others are everyday folk that gather in secret to placate the Terror of the Dark Moon to avoid drawing her ire to their cities and towns. Equally as common are cults that venerate Yenar by proxy. These cults dedicate their worship to individual Krakens or other local sea & lake monsters and Yenar by extension. Rarely however does a being as ancient and ill-tempered as a Kraken enjoy this duality of faith especially towards a “god” that has barely existed for more less than a couple centuries. Yenar does not tolerate co-worship of the sea’s behemoths in every instance though. Oftentimes these cults get into conflict with other neighbor cults dedicated to creatures like the ancient Aboleth/Algollthu, as the Aboleths despise the new gods as much as the old and will happily mind control a worshiper of Yenar if it can. Linnorms also draw particular ire from Yenar due to their populous spawnings in the Unending Ocean of Palurin in recent centuries. She sees these spawnings as invasive and disruptive to true beasts of the oceans, and encourages their slaughter where possible. Worshippers: Among evil aligned deities Yenar claims very few worshippers in total, as she does not offer much to her faithful. The greedy and selfish can be found in worship of Nexia or Calsarrex, the insane in Reshiliah or Kimyra, and the nihilists in Darrilok. Yenar typically gains worship through fear, often by sailors that deliver offerings of flesh and coin to the oceans on full moons to avoid provoking her ire. Some are those who display a morbid fascination with the fathomless nature of the ocean and the beasts within, and offer prayer out of respect more than they do fear. These curious but still sane individuals usually are well meaning, hoping to teach others how to respect the oceans and avoid the wrath of Yenar. While Yenar does not favor these individuals as much, so long as her tithes of blood and treasure are sated she is content to spare them. Other rare individuals however are worshippers typically because they risked dying at sea from a sunken or capsized boat and offered life at the price of fealty, under punishment of nightly torment. Many start Neutral but become evil over time to cope with the things Yenar demands of them, or just lose their humanity in general.
Areas of Concern: The deep sea, sea monsters, moons, sunken ships and treasure Divine Realm: Cradle of Monsters, Elemental Plane of Water Alignment: Neutral Evil Typical Follower Alignments: N, CN, LE, NE, CE Edicts: seek primordial secrets, drown others as offers of sacrifice, instill in others hydrophobia & thalassophobia Anathema: Save someone who is drowning, disrespect Yenar, settle far from the sea Doctrines and Beliefs: Yenar does not have a church like most deities, though she does possess cults that are found in coastal regions. Yenar does not beget virtues and only demands tribute and respect from her faithful, and to ensure that those who traverse the vast oceans to respect her through fear as well. Cults that dedicate their worship to Yenar have varying beliefs and usually depend on a cult by cult basis. Some are bloodthirsty madmen, others are doomsday cultists that yearn for the sea to engulf the land, and others are everyday folk that gather in secret to placate the Terror of the Dark Moon to avoid drawing her ire to their cities and towns. Equally as common are cults that venerate Yenar by proxy. These cults dedicate their worship to individual Krakens or other local sea & lake monsters and Yenar by extension. Rarely however does a being as ancient and ill-tempered as a Kraken enjoy this duality of faith especially towards a “god” that has barely existed for more less than a couple centuries. Yenar does not tolerate co-worship of the sea’s behemoths in every instance though. Oftentimes these cults get into conflict with other neighbor cults dedicated to creatures like the ancient Aboleth/Algollthu, as the Aboleths despise the new gods as much as the old and will happily mind control a worshiper of Yenar if it can. Linnorms also draw particular ire from Yenar due to their populous spawnings in the Unending Ocean of Palurin in recent centuries. She sees these spawnings as invasive and disruptive to true beasts of the oceans, and encourages their slaughter where possible. Worshippers: Among evil aligned deities Yenar claims very few worshippers in total, as she does not offer much to her faithful. The greedy and selfish can be found in worship of Nexia or Calsarrex, the insane in Reshiliah or Kimyra, and the nihilists in Darrilok. Yenar typically gains worship through fear, often by sailors that deliver offerings of flesh and coin to the oceans on full moons to avoid provoking her ire. Some are those who display a morbid fascination with the fathomless nature of the ocean and the beasts within, and offer prayer out of respect more than they do fear. These curious but still sane individuals usually are well meaning, hoping to teach others how to respect the oceans and avoid the wrath of Yenar. While Yenar does not favor these individuals as much, so long as her tithes of blood and treasure are sated she is content to spare them. Other rare individuals however are worshippers typically because they risked dying at sea from a sunken or capsized boat and offered life at the price of fealty, under punishment of nightly torment. Many start Neutral but become evil over time to cope with the things Yenar demands of them, or just lose their humanity in general.
Devotee Benefits:
Divine Ability: Constitution or Wisdom Divine Font: Harm Divine Skill: Intimidation or Occultism Sanctification: Can choose Unholy Favored Weapon(s): Kalis Domains: Abomination, Cold, Nightmares, Void, Water Alternate Domains: Darkness, Destruction, Indulgence, Wealth Cleric Spells 3rd: Aqueous Orb, 4th: Hydraulic Torrent, 5th: Cone of Cold
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