Phenax

God of Deception Phenax

Phenax is the masked patron of lies, cheats and theives. They are a shadowy and mysterious figure who uses is impecible judge of character to often con others into doing their bidding or for their own entertainment.

Divine Domains

Subtlety and manipulation are the cornerstones of Phenax's power and this gives him influence of mortals and gods alike.

Phenax takes pleasure in finding ways to subvert or corrupt champions of law, order and justice, turning them from their cause without them realizing. Whether feeding the hubris of a champion of Heliod or subverting the moral code of an upright follower of Iroas, Phenax enjoys forcing them to make small, seemingly inconsequential decisions unti their moral compass is far from where it started.

Artifacts

Phenax rarely lends their mask Metemsi out, instead encouraging his followers to come up with their own disguises and tricks. Their mask does allow them to easily change their appearance and morphs the wearer to something more believable to better aid deception.

Holy Books & Codes

Following Phenax means devoting yourself to a life of trickery and guile. To a champion of Phenax, a life without risk is no life at all. Some rules are meant to be broken, some secrets meant to be shared, and order must be upended from time to time.

Earning and Losing Piety

You increase your piety score to Phenax when you expand the god’s influence in the world in a concrete way through acts such as these:

• Helping a fugitive escape justice
• Pulling off a daring robbery
• Obstruct champions of other gods
• Building or restoring a temple to Phenax

Your piety score to Phenax decreases if you diminish Phenax’s influence in the world, contradict his ideals, or make him look ridiculous or ineffectual through acts such as these:

• Forthrightly assisting lawgivers in their duties
• Swearing and then honoring an oath
• Bringing order in times of chaos

Phenax’s Devotee

Piety 3+ Phenax trait
As a devotee of Phenax, you have proven yourself accomplished at deception. You can call on Phenax’s blessing and cast disguise self with this trait. While the spell is active, your shadow still resembles your original form. You can cast the spell in this way a number of times equal to your Charisma modifier (minimum of once). You regain all expended uses when you finish a long rest. Charisma is your spellcasting ability for this spell.

Phenax’s Votary

Piety 10+ Phenax trait
Your words are inspired by Theros’s greatest liar. You have advantage on Charisma (Deception) checks.

Phenax’s Disciple

Piety 25+ Phenax trait
When you are hidden from a creature and miss it with an attack, making the attack doesn’t reveal your position.

Champion of Deception

Piety 50+ Phenax trait
You can increase your Dexterity or Charisma score by 2 and also increase your maximum for that score by 2.

Divine Goals & Aspirations

Phenax doesn't want to rule and feels themselves an outsider amongst the gods. They only wish to disrupt the plans of their fellow dieties and every lie and betrayal allows them to sow discord. They respect a well-planned prank or heist and sometimes rewarding followers with the opportunities to serve as champions.

Phenax is also the metephorical parent of the Returned, so they take the time to protect and foster their children to further disrupt the world.

Physical Description

General Physical Condition

Phenas is a mysterious and shadowy figure. They have been known to appear before mortals as a willowy humanoid with shen gray skin clad in elegant robes, but this changes depending on the role they are intending to play. They also appear in various animal forms, like asps, mockingbirds, rats, etc. When in humanoid form, a golden mask always conceals the blank face of the first Returned, but since all their followers also wear golden masks, it is hard to determine whether you are dealing with a follower of the god, or the god themselves.

Social

Contacts & Relations

Being the god of deception, lies and betrayal does not make for close and lasting friendships.

Erebos and Athreos dispise Phenax because they were the first mortal soul to escape their realm and establish a route for this to be repeated, the fabled Path of Phenax. Erebos seeks to find a way to permenantly slay Phenax and return them to the Underworld where they belong.

Heliod and Iroas both uphold the opposing ideals of honesty and honor and are thus diametrically opposed to Phenax. They are often foiling each other's plans, the honest gods through straighforward means and Phenax through lies and deception. To them, a fair fight isn't worth fighting.

One event puts Phenax at odds with the other gods more than all the rest combined. Phenax as instrumental in the apotheosis of Xenagos, which shook the pantheon and threatened their stability. Helping a mortal ascend to godhood was an ultimate act of subversion of authority and it was entertaining to watch.

Sex

Intersex

Gender

Nonbinary

Presentation

Changes

Eyes

Change colors

Hair

Changes colors and lengths

Skin Tone/Pigmentation

gray