RELIGION : POWER OF GODS

If one was to consider the various powers, Aether, and elements of our local universe, there is little doubt that the most powerful beings are those we commonly and willingly refer to as gods. Whether they're Creators, Worldgods, spirits, or other similar beings, the gods of our world sit at the very top, and through their powers they have shaped and changed Nym's Eye to their own specifications and purposes. And, while it is true that the many Gods of Nym have grown weaker come the Third Era, they still possess considerable deistic strength.

We refer to the power of gods as Creation, and it involves anything that pertains to their general abilities to create, destroy, control, observe, and anything else that seems almost unbelievable to mere mortals. Unlike the simple magic that mortals wield, the power of gods seems to ignore any Universal Laws, aspects of reality, or general perceived limitations to achieve the results they desire; suggesting that they are above those laws and restrictions.

In actuality most gods wield the powers of the Everlasting Light, which extends throughout the known and unknown universe via Astral Light. Creators, in particular, are those who closest know and wield the Everlasting Light, though even they are incapable of summoning its full potential. They themselves were made from the Everlasting Light and its Aether, but they don't necessarily understand it fully.

Of course, despite their immense control over most Aether and aspects of the world and universe around them, gods aren't entirely without their limits and weaknesses. The gods themselves are well aware of what they can and can't do, or what they should and shouldn't do. Their powers are reigned in by their own perceptions, understandings, and desires; like how Creators made their own laws to limit their powers in Nym's Eye, and how the Worldgods are careful to not upset the natural balance of the world they have sworn to protect.

While they can control and change almost anything around them, such deistic feats also take immense amounts of Aether, and greater feats could require a lot of time. Once a god's powers are spent, they must usually replenish it. To mortals the process might seem slow as it could take decades or centuries, but to a god one can assume that it is merely a minor inconvenience. They are, after all, immortal, and who could tell how many thousands if not hundreds of thousands of years they have already lived. A few centuries are merely seconds in their eyes.

Gods know well that they could easily change and destroy whatever they want to, given enough time and Aether. But it seems that what usually stops them from doing anything so drastic is often other gods, celestial beings, their own selves, or their fascination or fondness for mortals and the world they have more or less sworn to protect.

There is also the matter of a god's self imposed limits, or the restrictions created by their fellow gods. If one god is already very powerful on their own, then only several gods could stand against the one. Any god who tries to defy the greater wishes of their fellow gods will surely not survive for long, as is evident in the tale of the Creator Gaerdras, who rose against his fellow Creators and started the War of Eternity. Gaerdras' side lost, and he himself was imprisoned within the core of Nym, and his lover, Melissana, was made the Goddess of the Faithless by the other Creators.

Mortals can't even begin to imagine how powerful the gods of our world are. There is little wonder that we regard them as gods, but even those gods understand that they themselves are not the most powerful beings in the entire universe. Creators especially seem to fear what is beyond Nym's Eye, and rarely dare to speak of or acknowledge what waits out there in the blackness of the Dark Beyond.

Rebirth & Immortality

Most gods are immortal, and they are able to be reborn. It will depend on the type of god, as Creators use the Solstree for their rebirth, while Worldgods turn to various rituals as part of their Wildpact. In the case of the Creators, their power for rebirth is supposedly something unique for those of them who are in our Nym's Eye. Tariel's Soulbind bound all Creators to the Worldsoul when they merged with the Solstree and in turn the Worldsoul itself, and thus the souls of Creators could be reborn in our world.

However, the Wildgod Zirche's creation of the Mortal Soul ensured that Creators wouldn't be entirely immortal. If their true forms should ever die while in the Nymworld, their souls will shatter and break, and their ability to be reborn will likely not succeed.

Several Creators have already died after the Mortal Soul was created, though it seems to be debatable whether they are truly dead, or if fragments of their souls still somehow linger. Shaar watches over these found fragments in Solitude's Apotheos, and it is uncertain if those fragments are merely the memories of Dead Gods, or the actual shattered pieces of them.

Aside from Creators, other gods like Eldritch Gods or Worldgods require other means of remaining immortal. Worldgods are reborn through their most powerful Wildpact servants when their own bodies begin to weaken, and the Eldritch Gods seem to feed on the Aether around them to sustain their soulless forms. Other gods might need blood sacrifices, or other obscure and secret rituals to ensure that they don't die forever.

What truly sustains a god's immortality isn't completely known. They seem to require vast amounts of Aether, and one could suppose that their immortality is mostly maintained through the worship of mortals, which could maybe explain why they depend on us so much, despite our obvious inferiority to their powers.

Worship & Domains

It would seem that a god's most important resource is his or her worship to their name and being. The power of gods is replenished and strengthened by their worshippers, and mortal acts like prayers, sacrifices, acting upon a god's domains, or generally just serving their gods transfer energies to the gods. There is an unnoticeable bond that transfers the Aether created through worship to the soul and body of a god, and those energies are transformed into deistic Aether; granting power to the god in question.

For the Creators, Tariel's Soulbind established this connection to mortals, and it maintains it through the Solstree. All mortal Aether from mortal worship travels through the roots of the Solstree, until those energies find their way to their intended Creator directly or in their Hall. Worldgods and other non-Creator gods use worship as well, but they might require more specific acts to empower themselves. Rituals or blood sacrifices, or even active dedication in aiding a god in his or her domains seem to help their replenishment of Aether. Some gods don't even depend on worshippers, and use their own means and powers to gather their needed Aether.

Domains pertain to the various territories and fields of which a god has dedicated themselves to. Such domains can include various worldly aspects like fire, sorrow, war, love, laughter, wealth, and so on. There is no limit to what a god could consider their domain, and activity (whether it's consciously or unconsciously given by mortals) in a domain helps to strengthen the powers of a god.

A god's powers imitate the domains they hold influence over, and it will grow or decrease in relation to the size or number of domains they control. Creators tend to maintain many domains, whilst lesser gods or Worldgods dedicate themselves to serving one specific domain.

The Creators hold the majority of power in most of the domains of Nym's Eye, which means that they are the dominant gods. However, their domains are often more akin to feelings, abstracts, the actions of mortals, the outlying universe, or the flow of Aether. Other domains, especially on the planet Nym itself, are dominated by spirits and Wildgods, who consider themselves protectors of Nym. Their domains are strongest in the lands, elements and nature itself; usually surpassing the claimed worldly domains of Creator Gods.

Several gods can have similar or even the entirely same domains. This often creates some rivalry between those specific gods, and worshippers could be split between them. Creators especially try to outdo each other through whatever means they are allowed to, to try to outsmart their rivals and claim domains and worshippers for themselves.

Creation & Shaping

Gods are generally able to make use of vast amounts of Aether to create, shape, control and destroy. They seemingly ignore any of the universal laws when it comes to using their power, suggesting that they have no real limits (at least none that are obvious to mortals) except the ones they make for themselves.

Their only true natural limit seems to be the amount of Aether they need to perform various deistic feats, and the time they require to replenish their spent Aether through worshippers or other similar means.

Gods can change the world's lands, alter reality, influence the minds of mortals, and perform any other acts that might appear as typical magic, but is cosmically greater. Creators especially, like the name suggests, use their powers for the purposes of creation; usually creating personal servants that are meant to fulfil specific tasks. Such servants are mainly found in Solitude or in their Creators' Halls, although some also serve in the Nymworld.

Noteworthy creations of the Creators include the dwarves and elves. Dwarves were first made by Golmath during the War of Eternity, as he needed smiths and fortress-builders on Nym to help him build his personal armies. Elves, however, were created by accident. When Shaar couldn't choose between the love of Valonir or Eldrad, she sang a song of sorrow to their feud over her, which gave birth to the first elves.

Worldgods are less powerful than Creators in terms of actual creation, but they still possess powers that allow them to easily shape the world around them. The sudden growth of large forests, stirring of great waves on the seas, shattering earthquakes are usually done by the efforts of Wildgods and Earthen Gods.

During the War of Eternity, the powers of the Creators clashed in such cataclysmic fashion, that the First Sunder destroyed most of the world and made it barren. It took thousands of years for the world to recover, and Worldgods still work to reshape and heal the broken aspects of the world.

Bestowment & Ascension

One of the most common ways for a god to show their power, is to bestow deistic Aether upon those who worship and faithfully serve them. Gods can answer prayers of mortals, granting them surges of temporary divine power to assist them in their times of need. Sudden rainstorms for struggling farmers, calm seas for sailors, fortune and luck in a business transaction, or any other bestowal can be granted to various mortals or areas, depending on the benevolence of the god in question.

Priests often control these powers as an extension of their patron gods' reach, and can summon and make use of deistic Aether through divine spells. Sometimes certain priests might be granted visions or premonitions by their gods, as a way to guide them in spreading the gods' faith and worship.

Particularly strong servants might be given Paragonic powers; granting them ascension as chosen mortals of the gods. These Paragons might lead divine armies, go on pilgrimages, become leaders of Temples, or anything else that a god tasks them with. Unlike common priests, Paragons will be empowered by greater deistic Aether and abilities; almost making them godlike themselves.

Different gods use different means of reaching out to their worshippers. Worldgods are already in the world of mortals, and so their powers are often granted and witnessed directly. But Creators, who are forbidden from physically entering the Nymworld themselves, must use the Solstree to communicate with their worshippers on Nym, and it is through the Solstree's roots that they bestow their powers to mortals.

When it comes to Creators, the souls of dedicated mortal worshippers and Paragons are brought to their personal Halls in Solitude; ascended by deistic Aether to serve their gods in the afterlife. Such souls are usually omitted from the Cycle of Souls, and they will instead directly serve in their Creators' Halls, or fight for their gods on the fields of the Eternal Strife.