Oria, the Bountiful Mother, is the bringer of all life, for she is the lifegiving earth. Her presence sustains all life, and the world could no more exist without her than the life-giving sun or the thirst-quenching water. She is beloved by all things, for her power sustains the plants, and the plants sustain the horses and other beasts. She is known across the world by many names, but the Pentans know she is Oria - the Great Mother, sister of Galana and Gor Gorma, and wife to Kargzant. Or perhaps to West King Wind. Or perhaps to Lozarl.
The Cult of Oria knows the secret, sacred truth: all three are her husbands and protectors.
Oria is one of the most well-loved goddesses, and her rank and glory are second only to Galana Horsequeen among the Pentans. The Half-Men love her even above this, for she is the blessing of the earth and the gifter of its bounty. She is the sister of Galana and Gor Gorma, one of the Three True Women, and leader of all of the earth goddesses and the gods of that which grows from the ground.
Oria’s first lover was Lozarl, brother of Yu-Kargzant, and from this union was born life and creation, the gods who make. However, Lozarl was not a warrior and was too impure to be a leader of the true people. This was fine while Yu-Kargzant lived, but with his death, he became unable to protect Oria and her children, for to protect in truth, he needed to lead.
Oria spoke the Secret Words of Ending to Lozarl, who understood them, for he is closest to the earth of all the male gods. While he loved Oria, he could not bind her, and she sought out her sisters for aid. Gor Gorma swore to avenge her and protect her, and Galana swore to find her a new love who would lead her children. She already knew two candidates - her son, Kargzant, and his rival, West King Wind.
Oria observed the challenges of the khan which Galana set the gods to, and she saw the justice of Kargzant, his generosity and purity, as well as the ambition of West King Wind, his responsibility and understanding. She knew then the true answer: both were worthy. Both would lead. Oria was of two souls, as all true gods of Pent are, and so she reasoned: she could have two loves - a khan and a stallion.
Thus she imbued both of her souls with herself, and she married both Kargzant and West King Wind, though she did not reveal the nature of her act to them. Each believes himself her true husband and protector, and each is correct. But as the Darkness grew worse, it became clear that without Yu-Kargzant, neither could sustain Oria’s world nor stop the Dread Enemy of the Earth, who sought to steal and claim her.
Oria spoke to her husbands and lovers. She would return to her mother’s house within the Earth, until the world was safe for her. Lozarl and Gor Gorma would stand guard, for they ruled beneath the soil. Kargzant would bear the light of the sun, to return to Yu-Kargzant and drive out Chaos. And West King Wind would return life to Yu-Kargzant in the Underworld by making right what he made wrong.
Thus did Oria enter the Underworld to sleep. She would not awaken until Kargzant and West King Wind found the Dead Court of Yu-Kargzant, where she lay sleeping, for eldest Gor Gorma and brave Lozarl had offered him a realm beside her mother’s. There, awakened by their love, she aided them. She wove a great net which would bind all of the gods’ power together, swearing to support it. This is the Great Compromise, which Yu-Kargzant guided over the world when he returned, locking away Chaos from the world and ensuring that Time would be bound inside, keeping the world safe from another death.
Other gods may claim this victory as well, but Oria is the force that guided it. Oria binds the First Herd together, not as its queen-mother but as its guiding mare, the khatun who leads beside her husbands and guides them with her wisdom.
Oria grants the inner power of the Earth, that energy which provides power and life to all things, eventually. Because this life-giving inner force is so closely tied to motherhood, only women are permitted to worship Oria, save through the subcult of Nandene the Jewel. Her cult is one of the largest in Pent, lesser only to Galana Horsequeen, Kargzant and West King Wind, and they oversee much of Pentan social life. In more sedentary tribes and communities, they oversee almost all crop growth, and their power over grass, pregnancy and growth gives them much power even outside such communities.
Oria’s Rider Aspect is depicted as a woman with red skin and brown hair, clad in traditional wedding clothing and carrying a basket that overflows with food plants. She often wears extensive jewelry. Her Mount Aspect is a thick brown mare with red mane and tail, often with a snake wrapped around one leg.
Oria is the source of the Earth Rune for Pent and receives wide access to the Life and Harmony Runes through her close relation to other deities of life, as well. She has extremely broad power over her domains.
EARTH: Oria has exceptionally broad power over the Earth Rune. Her initiates may use it to, among other things, call on earthquakes, bless or curse crops, command cattle or snakes, preserve things in the earth, hold things in place, pull things to the ground, summon and command lesser Earth spirits, shield against both magical and physical attacks, or draw strength from the earth. Initiates strong in the Earth Rune are careful, pragmatic, and prepared.
HARMONY: Oria is one of the great sources of Harmony in Pent, though she is not so great a healer as Erissa. Initiates of Oria have been known to use the Harmony Rune to, among other tasks, heal living beings, heal damaged relationships, heal the environment, create peace, bring people together in a united task, negotiate with outsiders, find acceptable compromises, create medicine, make alliances, weave cloth, or find alternatives. Initiates strong in the Harmony Rune tend to be merciful, calm, and forgiving.
LIFE: Oria has extremely broad access to the Life Rune due to her connection to plants and the earth as a source of life and motherhood. Initiates have been known to use the Life Rune to, among other things, bless children or mothers, ease childbirth, grant fertility to plants or livestock, induce desire, accelerate the growth of plants or animals, restore youth and vigor, ride horses, or cause animals to breed. Initiates strong in the Life Rune tend to be lustful, hearty, and generous.
Oria opposes the runes of Chaos, Disorder and Death.
Oria is one of the Three Sisters, and she is very close to Galana and Gor Gorma, even closer than she is to her husbands. All gods of plant life and the earth pay her homage as well. She is lover to or has married Lozarl, West King Wind and Kargzant, and while they and their cults do not understand the true nature of her triple marriage, she is close to all of them and all acknowledge her advice. Very few gods are her true enemies, for while others seek to possess her, most have no wish to harm her, for she is the earth.
The worst foe Oria has is the Lord of the Undead, the Taker and Waster, who is called Nondra. She also is a terrible foe to other Chaos gods, such as the blood-stealing Vivamort, and any god who wishes to destroy the earth and the life it produces.
Every tribe and Half-Man village maintains its own independent cult of Oria. Worshippers from different tribes and villages can easily worship at each others’ camps and shrines, though intertribal politics may make this difficult. Tribes occasionally fight over control of specific sites holy to Oria, as well, though in honor of Oria this fighting is usually kept relatively limited.
Each tribe maintains its own traditions for the requirements of priestesses to Oria, dictated by their ancestral traditions. Some are small, some large, but each tradition is sacred. Some require a priestess be a mother, others that they must be dedicated to a subcult, others that they have received specific kinds of training. Rank is usually correlated with age and number of children, however. Priestesses are not required to marry, but if they do marry, it is traditional to marry a follower of Lozarl, Kargzant or West King Wind. The ranking priestess of a tribe or village will hold great political power and rank, only just below that of the high priestess of Galana.
The sacred places of Oria are fertile places, sacred fields or meadows along the steppe where the grass grows especially thick and lush, or places where the water flows from earthen wells. Certain sacred caves are also holy to Oria, notable for the lush growth of plants and fungi. Animals are always common in the holy places of Oria, drawn by the upswelling of life.
All initiates of Oria must have the Earth Rune, but Oria may be approached through any of the Earth, Harmony or Life Runes as long as this is true. Almost all initiates are women, though men may join the cult via the Nandene the Jewel subcult. Initiates swear to honor Oria and emulate her deeds of compassion, harmony and peace. Breaking this oath often leads to curses placed on the entire tribe, for Oria considers her followers to represent their entire community. Initiates spend much of their time praying to Oria, taking part in communal care for herds and/or crops, and trying to calm arguments between people. Initiates do not become impure through contact with fluids from births.
The Clay Day of each week is holy to Oria, but only priestesses and devotees are required to spend these minor holy days focused entirely on ritual and sacrifice. Lesser worshippers simply give prayers of thanks and tend to hold particularly good meals on these days. Oria’s cult also holds shared holy days each season with one of her sisters or daughters, to help unite the community. Each tribe maintains a slightly different schedule, though Fire Season is generally shared with Galana and Dark Season is generally shared with Gor Gorma.
In the Fertility Week of each season, the holy day on Clay Day is particularly important, and the priestesses perform major ceremoneis and auguries as well as making plans for the next season. The rituals held on these more major holy days will usually involve the entire tribe, to spread fertility through the herds.
The holiest of these days is the one in Earth Season, which is Oria’s alone, celebrating and preparing for any crop harvest and ensuring the herds are well fed and prepared for the coming winter. The public rites are extensive, celebrating with the entire community, but the cult also holds secret, private rites that honor Oria as the Source of Life, the All Mother.
Cloth, particularly expensive clothing, is a favored sacrifice to Oria, as is any well-cooked food. Jewelry is also common, and Oria loves alcohol, the stronger the better. She is also honored by the sacrifice of cattle, sheep and birds, and by the standard sacrifice of clarified butter. Rare among Pentan gods, she also loves the sacrifice of raw grain and plants in all of her ceremonies, and most also include sacrifice of bread. The specifics of what is to be sacrificed often varies by season, to honor the foods traditional to that season.
There are many subcults of Oria, and many of them have only a small number of members and are limited to a few tribes at most, honoring heroic women in tribal history. Many focus on specific aspects of Oria and may be highly local. Others are more widespread and can be found throughout Pent.
Asrelya, Giver of Plenty (EARTH): Asrelya is the mother of the Three Sisters, who gave of herself to make the world full of wealth and power for her children. She is typically worshipped by older women who can no longer bear children, many of whom retire to monasteries to commune with the ancient power of the earth and the treasures held in its depths. Followers of Asrelya may use their Earth Rune to hide wealth safely, to sense jewels and riches in the earth, or to protect the wealth of their kin.
Esrola (LIFE): Esrola is the physical earth, the manifest form of the goddess. She is the land, the soil from which all things draw life and strength. She is an aspect of Oria but also an independent goddess in the Pentan practice, the source of all animals and plants (except horses). Direct worship of Esrola is relatively rare, and there are few focused on this subcult. Followers of Esrola may use their Life Rune to dedicate themselves to and bless a specific kind of animal or plant, honoring one of Esrola’s many children through her.
Kayv (EARTH): Kayv is the daughter of Ernalda who was born of no father, for she is that which is foreseen and that which foresees. She emerged from her mother in darkness and secrecy, revealing to Oria the consequences of her choices and the omens of the earth. Followers of Kayv pursue her oracular power and divine wisdom, allowing them to use their Earth Rune to foretell the future and interpret omens. Kayv grants access to the Earth Sight Feat.
Honored Mother (HARMONY): The Honored Mother is Oria in her aspect as the mother of all people, the source of the ruder half of the Pentan soul. She embraces all, uniting disparate tribes and peoples into a single herd by making them all her children. In this aspect, Oria is the queen of the marriage rite and the tribal bond. Followers of the Honored Mother may use their Harmony rune to unite their community, discern good marriage partners, or quell arguments between kin.
Nandene the Jewel (EARTH): Nandene the Jewel is Oria’s favorite son, the only son who has ever learned the secrets of daughters. Nandene loved his cousin, Samporzan Gelding, the son of Galana who opened the path of Gelding, and he asked his mother to show his cousin and himself the secrets of family, of connecting children to their ancestors. Like Samporzan, Nandene accepted the Gelding, and in its pain he found the truth of ancestry, of parenthood, and of the endless thread of birth and death that connects the people to their ancestors. This is the only path that men may follow to join the Cult of Oria, and to do it, they must become Gelded and also take up the tasks and clothing normally worn by women, though they remain men. (Those falsely identified as male who are truly female need no special aid to join Oria’s cult.) Women also join Nandene’s subcult, however, to discover the secrets of ancestry and jewelcrafting which are his great powers. Followers of Nandene may use their Earth rune to perform adoption rites, reveal ancestral ties, and cut gems.
Orana Gold Chain (LIFE): Orana Gold Chain is the Marriage Maiden, the beloved daughter who brings people together through her unity in love with another. Oria gave her the Gold Chain, the greatest gift given to her by Yu-Kargzant, to honor her marriage to OdChigin, which forever linked the Earth and Sky. Orana is the protector of brides and wives, bringing joy with her in the creation of new families. Followers of Orana may use their Life Rune to bless families and communities, to find suitable marriage partners, and to spread joy.
Orventili the Peacemaker (HARMONY): Orventili is the aspect of Oria that rejects conflict and ends it, her self and her daughter, who bears the Rug of Peace. She traveled among the First Herd, mediating between the gods of Air and Sky and Earth, that they might all work together and become a greater whole. She oversees the work of peacemaking and diplomacy, and followers of Orventili may use their Harmony Rune to make peace between feuding groups, find common ground, and offer compromises. She offers the Peacemaker Feat.
As normal, an initiate of Oria with an Earth, Harmony or Life Rune at 11W or higher may become a devotee, forswearing all magic not derived from Oria. Devotees are required to marry and to bear or adopt a child. Even male members of the cult must take a husband, not a wife. Devotees are legally permitted to call on their husband and any resources he has access to for protection or aid, and the husband may not deny this for any reason without requesting a divorce.
Bountiful Mother (LIFE): Oria is the source of birth and fertility, and it spreads from her. When Oria became pregnant with one of her husband’s children, she decided to spread the joy and bounty of new life to the whole of Pent. She entered a state of purity, then rode in a cart pulled by mares, which bore a huge bronze cauldron. All who asked her for a blessing received it, even Half-Men. Any farmer’s field she blessed bore three harvests, while any woman or animal she blessed bore triplets. When the enemies of Life tried to stop her, her husband appeared and defeated them while she maintained her purity, for none could stand against the power of fatherhood which she had granted him.
Earth Sight (EARTH): Oria knows the deep secrets of the Earth and can read all of the omens of stone, soil and growth. Kayv came from within her and showed her the threads that make up the future. While Kayv is in a state of purity, she can reveal the consequences of an action to the person doing it, choosing either to terrify them with visions of the future or inspire them with the benefits to come, though she herself cannot say to any other what these visions contain. She may expend her purity to speak her secret, revealing to all present what she has shown and ensuring it will come to pass.
Peacemaker (HARMONY): Oria wove a great rug of peace, which bore the image of her face, atop which she placed a woven basket, and runes that marked places for enemies to sit with their supporters, two guards to keep the peace, and space for many gifts. This rug was the home of Orventili, who is Oria and is Oria’s daughter. Orventili foreswore all love, keeping herself chaste that she might be neutral, and swore to maintain her purity. While she is pure, those who came to her to make peace would not fight, would understand what each other wanted, and would be brought to a compromise. She owned nothing but the rug and lived off the gifts they gave her, for she swore to take no side and have no desires until her state of purity was ended.
Tree Sister (EARTH): Oria was a friend and lover to the god Flamal, the Elf Lord, having grown up amongst the trees and Aldryami. However, she was eventually expelled from their lands, for she was not a plant. This killed many forests, including those of Pent, until Oria’s kin Aldrya invited her back. Oria did not return, but instead negotiated peace between the First Herd and the Aldryami. When she is in a state of purity, no plant will harm her and she will harm no plant. She is welcome in their courts, and negotiates a peace with them. The forests of Pent cannot return, but Oria may give up her state of purity to beg the aid of the Aldryami, who must send her some form of help.
Oria is the greatest of the gods of the Earth, and she is mother of or cousin to the gods of fields, valleys, plateaus and other deities of the land itself. These gods are worshipped through Oria, appearing in the form of horses, and grant blessings to the tribes that pass through their territory in exchange for sacrifice. Oria also has many servants and elemental spirits that follow her and can be summoned by her worshippers.
The Esnans are divine protectors of the earth, appearing as serpents or horses. They may travel through eany natural earth, and may carry any objects they wish with them, provided those objects are in contact with the earth. They primarily serve to reclaim objects stolen from holy places, usually stealing valuables from the thieves who took them as well.
The Gornans, also called the Shakers, were gifted to Oria by her sister, Gor Gorma. They appear as dinosaurs or monstrous horses, causing objects and the ground to shake around them. They especially love tearing things down, particularly buildings and tents.
Talosi appear as earthen serpents, though they rarely emerge from the ground. They may swim through earth as if it was water, and may leave holes or tunnels behind them if they choose, or may not. They are often used as messengers by the Cult of Oria or as guardians of sacred objects. They may carry things or even living beings within themselves safely, and while they are inside the earth, they and anything they carry are unable to be harmed by most physical things. They can fight by opening their mouths directly under people, dropping them into holes which close around them and drag them to the Talosi’s summoner in great discomfort.
Belnans are small spirits that protect the holy places of Oria against those that would profane them or those who do not give sacrifice to Oria when they should. Though they are usually invisible, they can appear as small snakes which coil around the legs and feet of their victims, slowing them down. This curse can be removed by performing sacrifices in atonement.
Drimans are spirits that possess objects belonging to their victims. They target members of the Cult of Oria that forsake their duties and so harm the earth, generally those who harm members of their own family or community, who refuse to help their tribe, who slaughter an animal without the correct ritual, or who order their kin to do something the First Herd teaches is wrong. The Driman sits inside the object and makes it heavier and harder to use. If the object is discarded, the Driman will move into one of their victim’s other belongings, always choosing the most appropriate and important object it can find. It can only be driven away by making restitution to the community and being granted atonement by a priestess.