Shalaevar Shamaris

Shaelevar Shamaris is a god in the High Elven Pantheon, a primordial diety in opposition to Pyria Valeptor. He is known by the epithet The Last and The Plaguefather, and among his devout followers are Assassins, Necromancers (especially those aspiring to become liches), and Bandits. He is represented by depictions of his sacred animal, the mosquito. A creature of crisis, he represents plague, blight, and other natural disasters.

His sacred weapon is the rapier, a subtle weapon capable of causing great destruction when applied directly. His followers, through their devotion, gain access to the domains of Artifice, Knowledge, Magic, and Rune.

History

Shaelevar came into being at the same time as Pyria Valeptor, perhaps as a cosmic counterbalance to her design. Initially indifferent to her experiments with the Elves, his intervention resulted in the appearance of plague among them, and necessitated the creation by Pyria of Feno Ilirel. Since then, he has been an occasional antagonist of the Elves, appearing from time to time in the form of plagues, outbreaks of vermin, and other natural disasters. It is claimed that his disasters sequestered the Carcolie into the wild and lead to their divergent culture, and that his own torturous experiments on Atarlie he had captured lead to the creation of the Drow, within the Deeps.

Relationships

Shaelevar is the outcast bastard of the divine family of the High Elf Pantheon, having no place in Elysium and receiving a cold welcome when he appears there. Only Hycis Uriris (who he sired together with Camus Inakas) and Lysanthir Lugolor will deal with him willingly, and the latter does so only coldly, and usually in the hinderance of Shalaevar's designs.

Like most gods, he cannot long withstand Stasis, which is said to be his native plane. Instead, he spends his time as a sort of professional traveller diety, appearing in the courts of the various Princes of Hell or Lords of the Abyss.

Appearance

Shaelevar stands head and shoulders above the mortal elves he so despises, but would otherwise pass for a member of their race. He has long-white hair and ruby-red eyes, neither of which are natural for Elves, and has jet black skin; these attributes support the idea he created the drow. Shaelevar is known widely as a magus and so often appears

Realm

Shalaevar is the only god in the pantheon who does not have a permanent or semi-permanent home in Elysium. While cosmic law would draw him toward the plane of Stasis, and he can indeed call upon the negative energy from that plane quite deeply, he prefers to split his time in Hell or the Abyss, visiting with the other gods in those planes or with the Princes of Hell and Lords of the Abyss, some of whom he is more welcome with than others.

Providence

Shalaevar's best providence is the lack of his intervention, that being a time of pleasantness and peace. He occasionally will curse oracles with the knowledge of his plans and intercession, contradictorily allowing them to fight against his plans or putting them into servitude to further them.

Servants

Shalaevar claims the loyalty of a host of devils and demons who follow his destructive whims above and beyond their hatred of each other.

Unique Servants

The Behemoth of Akara

A gargantuan undead creature composed of the bodies of several giants, this unique divine herald has no will or mind of its own. Shalaevar sends his herald out as something of an avatar, speaking and acting through it at times when he would prefer to not be subtle about his point.

Church

For most Elves, worship of Shalaevar Shamaris is an unwelcome and unpleasant extension of the general spiritual life of the Atarlie Empire, aimed toward keeping him satisfied and as far away from them as possible. His temples serve little other purpose than to propitiate his compliance and keep him in check, though a few rogue temples are used by his cultists and oracles for more profane practices to try and further his earthly goals.

Worshippers

Known to all Atarlie, those who worship Shalaevar in a true way are rare. Many are bandits who share his disdain for the empire and imperial philosophy. Still others are necromancers, seeking his intercession in the furtherance of their own goals. Still more are cultists, touched by his profane blessings and determined to further his ambitions on Ahren.

Clergy

Clergy of the Plaguefather walk a very fine line indeed. All of them must necessarily dedicate their lives to his service, but the public expectation is that they do so, interpreting the will of their divine master with one hand while attempting to hold their god back with the other. His clergy lead rights of sacrifice and flagellant prayer intended to sate his appetites for destruction and crisis, while at the same time opening themselves up to his influence, risking that they turn themselves fully toward him and instead work fully toward his own goals.

For this reason, his clerics and oracles are rarely trusted by others, disdained even by other members of the priestly class within the Empire, and required by imperial law to wear his fly mark on the backs of their left hands as a tattoo.

Temples & Shrines

True temples to Shalaevar Shamaris are rare, and they are almost always subject to government review and inspection by officials of the church of Rophalin Imperitor. No fora are provided, and the form of worship is monitored to ensure it remains appropriately abjuring toward Shalaevar.

Rumours persist of more dedicated shrines and temples in the wilds of the Empire and the depths of under-maintained catacombs, where truly-faithful clergy congregate to participate in far darker rites, not all of which are aimed at keeping their god content and away from Ahren.

Holy Texts

Shalaevar maintains no holy text, as the only reliably sacred thing to him is his own whims. In substitute to scriptural proficiency, his clergy are instead subject to scrutiny as to their true loyalties.

Church History

Shalaevar's church has never been highly influential in the Empire. While his church has occasionally precipitated such crises, they always disavow the temple or cult that actively participated, and work together with the other churches in the Empire to stamp out such "heretical offshoots". The fact that this keeps happening suggests that they are perhaps not sincere in their abhorrence.

Holidays

Different cults celebrate festivals of sacrifice and debauchery at different times of year, dedicating them to Shalaevar Shamaris. The mainstream, public face of the church marks no holy days, but leads ceremonies on each new moon to petition for Shalaevar's mercy.

Favoured Animals

Mosquitos, who are known to spread a large number of diseases, are sacred to Shalaevar and his cult.