User:Beale/Divine Origins

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These descriptions assume that the Discworld MUD timeline is an divergent one from the canon of the books, in which a holy war took place some time ago. It was caused by the 7 gods who now grant rituals, known as the Heptarchy, gaining this ability; the war was fought between the traditionalist priests with their armies and supporters, and the newly empowered priests of the 7 with their faith-bolstered troops. (Not much of it is decided yet.)


Hat, Bringer of Unexpected Revelations, the Uninvited Guest, the Vulture-Headed God

I'm thinking this guy comes from nomadic desert tribes - a shamanic god, bringing visions and revelations to those who are lost in the endless sands, first literally, then figuratively. He would come to be associated with unguided clairvoyance, snippets of unwise knowledge, the time of Death, the certainty of mortality, and the immediacy of the moment.

His source is the Oasis, where his people would return every year for a meeting of the tribes.

Sek, the Seven-Handed God, the Pain of Change, the Sacrifice that Brings Victory

Sek has probably gone through the ziggurat beating heart sacrifice phase, but could have come from a tribe who, faced with famine and sickness in their former rainforest home, had to emerge onto the open ground to find food, destroying the tribe living there in a few bloody skirmishes, and creating new tools and means of life, sacrificing their old ways and songs. Times were hard, but Sek helped those who helped themselves, and praised him. He would come to be associated with craft, tradition, flame, and the screams of the dying.

His place is where the trees meet the plains in the midst of Howondaland.

Gufnork, Master of Fluff, the Embrace of Comfort, the Ram

Gufnork is probably from the chalk, or thereabouts - maybe the people one step removed who only see the fruits of their labour. He probably started as a god associated with wool and sheep, and then became associated with all the related products, but especially symbolically important would be the batts. Traders' children would know the embrace of Gufnork as sleeping in the batts of wool as they drifted down the river, warm, safe, and secure. More rugged people would know the warmth of Gufnork's blessing as they weathered the chill of winter on the chalk, and would ask Gufnork for strength as they protected their flock. Nowdays, with times being richer, devotees of Gufnork can take more time to contemplate the more comfortable aspects. He would come to be associated with the warm embrace of a friend or parent, woolen things, the enjoyment of luxury you afford yourself, and the feeling of knowing you are safe.

His place is the border of the chalk, where the river emerges.

Other Gufnork, Master of Fluff, Filler of Spaces, Easer of Hardship

Gufnork began as a god of lost things, gathering in forgotten places. Dust, fluff, small loops of metal, near-worthless coins. When he finally made his way to Dunmanifestin, he mostly ended up in the library, gathering celestial fluff lurking thereabouts. In his idle times, he managed to dig up the loophole that allowed the rituals to work, and with Sandelfon, he made it into a plan. During the war, he served many roles -- in the beginning, his priests could instantly summon food and comfortable materials for the camps when their supply lines faltered, summon the first whirlwinds that gathered debris and used it against their enemies, and the feeling of comfort and protection he brought led many to associate Gufnork with a feeling of security and camaraderie. It was in the last days of the war, however, that Gufnork showed his true strength. When the traditionalists were all but certain that their cause was lost, they turned to the ways of magic. Hundreds of novice wizards, gathered from around the Disc, not warned of the dangers, were instructed to cast, as often and as many spells as they knew how. The raw thaumatological leakage caused a rift, and The Lost emerged from it, to cause carnage among the Hierophants' friends and foes alike. Gufnork and Sandelfon worked together again -- priests of Sandelfon creating space and enforcing the laws of reality upon it, and Gufnorkians filling that space with matter, any matter, from around the Disc. Broken stone, books, priceless artifacts -- objects of all kinds disappeared from across reality and were used to fill the breach, swathed in the divine fluff that Gufnork brought forth from places within his domain[1]. Heptarchy and traditionalist troops found themselves battling a common enemy, and the ironic truth is that this cooperation against the traditionalists' "weapon" ended both the war, and their support.

Gufnork's fluff came to be associated with succour, comfort, safety -- all the things he had brought the troops and the camp followers.

His place is nowhere, but sometimes in L-Space.

Another Gufnork, God of Fluff, Lord of Lint

Gufnork began life as a simple spirit of a good harvest in a remote town just off the Widdershins ocean coast. Like many other towns, once the harvests had been gathered in, the locals would have a festival of sorts, celebrating their industry and fortune. The town of Guphnor was known, however, for two things: its cotton, which in the temperate oceanic summers, produced long fibres for high quality cloth, and sugar cane, with which they would celebrate their festival with figurines of spun sugar and candy floss in imitation of the lint produced by the cotton gins at work. The high quality of their hard-won produce meant that they could afford to spare the fluff left over, which went to keeping the townspeople and children warm. As the town slowly grew, so did Gufnork's pride in his people, and with the increase in knowledge that comes with divinity, he would occasionally gift them things he thought they could use. Lacquer joined Guphnor's produce, and lacquered cloth was developed (independently from that used in Agatean armour) as protective clothing.

Gufnork was recruited for the Heptarchy as being a somewhat out of touch god, who had little interest in the established ways of Dunmanifestin, and genuinely wanted to make the lives of his people better. When war came, he carefully tried to keep his people out of it, but some took up arms regardless. He tried to bless and keep them as best he could, forming them into the Gufnorkian Templars. Those who stayed behind were untouched by the war, and even now, the Guphnorian people still produce cloth and celebrate annually the way they always have. Theologists speculate that Gufnork feels a tinge of sadness for his lost innocence, even as he stands astride the world as a fluffy colossus.

He is associated with fluff of all sorts, weakly (now) with harvest time, with protection and comfort, and somewhat with wisdom that comes with age.

His place is the town square of Guphnor, especially in the month of Spune.

Pishe, Goddess of the Grove, Slight Showers, Refreshing the Soul

Pishe was first raised to awareness as the goddess of a small grove in Lancre -- a pleasant place, and convenient for travellers to spend a little time resting in on the way between Ramtops villages. A small hut one travelling carpenter built, to allow people a little warmth in winter, became her de facto shrine, and with each passing mendicant, her influence over the grove grew. She learned that a soothing light rain worked wonders on those weary from journey, and the water pooling created a place where animals and pepole alike could refresh their water. Over time, she gained the ability to conceal those in the grove from those who would waylay them, and to calm the rage in those who would bring violence there. Near the climax of the war, her high priest was fatally wounded, receiving a spear through the chest and felled by mighty sword blows. The high priest died on the battlefield in the arms of his lieutenant, but on his death, the clouds emptied upon the battlefield. The body was lost, but the legends say that he came to the black sands, and was welcomed by the loving arms of his goddess. He entered the camp of the Pishites two days later, with little memory of how he got there or what he had seen. Since then, those who journey in dangerous places pay tribute to Pishe, in the hopes that they may likewise return.

Pishe has, and has always had, associations with healing, refreshment, protection, pacifism, and, of course, rain.

Her place is the shrine where Gath, her adopted daughter, lives.

  1. Falling through the cracks in reality, some of these items have been seen again, in a certain travelling shop.