Overview
The Berunic Pantheon is a collection of demigods, folk heroes, and pagan champions revered in the icy northern realm of Beruna. Some old traditionalist Arcadians also retain their pagan superstitions, traditions, and legends related to the Berunic Pantheon.
For those who believe in the Berunic Pantheon, the universe began when two titans of heat and cold collided in the empty sky. All of the elements immediately went to war and vied for supremacy. In the midst of the chaos, humankind was born with a destiny to set order to the world.
Members of the Berunic Pantheon
The Berunic Pantheon is entirely made up of mortals who became demigods or powerful nature spirits. The belief that mortals can ascend to godhood by completing heroic feats is central to Berunic followers. While it is widely understood that very few will find divinity, Berunic followers do believe that behaving heroically and achieving glory and honor for their tribes will earn them a place in the stars regardless. The stars are their ancestors watching over them.
Virtues for followers of the Berunic pantheon include:
Hard work
Diligence
Courage
Ambition
Berunic demigods, folk heroes, and pagan champions include:
Name | Overview | Description |
Alba | Benevolent Frost Witch of the East | Alba makes her presence known only to those claimed by the cold, frostbitten, on the verge of death. Her touch is that of friendship and warmth. Pain and misery flee before her, leaving those blessed by her feeling comfortable and at peace as they succumb to the cold. For many decades, she was little more than a rumor, a mythological footnote. It was not until someone who had received her blessing was saved from the brink of death that Alba's existence became widely known. She is believed to visit those who are about to lose their lives to the cold, her blessing a gift to ease one's transition into the next life. |
Bjorn | Dwarven Skald of Feasting | Bjorn the dwarf and Woden the human were once dear mortal friends. Frost giants plagued their homeland, so they fought and killed the frost giant king in an epic battle. Bjorn claimed the giant’s hammer and set out on a long, slow path to godhood. With several children born out of wedlock, Bjorn’s hot-blooded, virile nature is a testament to the gregarious, adventurous spirit he inspires in others. He extols confidence, taking action, going beyond boundaries, and finding glory in battle. Singing songs, slaying giants, and getting up to rambunctious shenanigans are how he became renown across Beruna. Bjorn’s voice can destroy mountains and hallow ground. Its powers of destruction and sanctification make singing an exalted pastime of his followers. Bjorn is invoked at weddings, at births, and at special ceremonies for these abilities to protect and sanctify. He is a guardian and protector for all who worship him. |
Kalian | Wandering Frostmaiden | Not much is known about this figure other than she was once a half-elf. She is considered young amongst her brethren. She can be seen on dark nights at the interface between fresh and salt water, specifically where glaciers run into the ocean. Sightings of Kalian are interpreted as omens that herald great change. She is said to walk the edges of glacial snouts, and her footsteps trace the boundaries along which icebergs calve off glaciers. |
Pan | Elusive snow-gnome and mischief-maker | Like her twin brother Pin, Pan only appears when the aurorae are overhead. Unlike Pin, Pan is quiet and discrete in her movements and no one knows the sound of her voice; as it is told in the myths, she exploits the attention Pin draws upon himself to sow her own gifts unnoticed: odd coincidences, little misfortunes, and other benign mischief are often attributed to Pan's need to constantly correct the natural balance disrupted by Pin's careless benevolence. Like Pin, Pan is represented by two overlapping circles, except in hers, the left partially obscures the right. |
Pin | Elusive snow-gnome and gift-giver | Only when the aurorae are overhead can Pin be heard scampering over snowy rooftops and clambering across the great branches of the northern trees, singing an unknown song in a forgotten language. He leaves no sign of his passage even when the snows are deep, but for the little fortunes of luck and prosperity that follow in his wake. Often represented by two partially overlapping circles, the right partially obscuring the left, symbolizing his tendency to "leave an extra egg in the coop" as alluded to in oral traditions. |
Teren of the North | The Boreal Hunter | According to legend, Teren was once a human hunter who died on Teren’s Mountain when he lost his way in a blizzard. Since then, his spirit is said to follow those hunters beset by storms, ensuring their paths are not lost beneath snow or erased by wind so that they may find their way home. In return, he takes a breath off their life for every step he preserves. |
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