5e SRD:Fantasy-Historical Pantheons

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Fantasy-Historical Pantheons

The Celtic, Egyptian, Greek, and Norse pantheons are fantasy interpretations of historical religions from our world's ancient times. They include deities that are most appropriate for use in a game, divorced from their historical context in the real world and united into pantheons that serve the needs of the game.

The Celtic Pantheon

It's said that something wild lurks in the heart of every soul, a space that thrills to the sound of geese calling at night, to the whispering wind through the pines, to the unexpected red of mistletoe on an oak—and it is in this space that the Celtic gods dwell. They sprang from the brook and stream, their might heightened by the strength of the oak and the beauty of the woodlands and open moor. When the first forester dared put a name to the face seen in the bole of a tree or the voice babbling in a brook, these gods forced themselves into being.
The Celtic gods are as often served by druids as by clerics, for they are closely aligned with the forces of nature that druids revere.

The Greek Pantheon

The gods of Olympus make themselves known with the gentle lap of waves against the shores and the crash of the thunder among the cloud enshrouded peaks. The thick boar infested woods and the sere, olive covered hillsides hold evidence of their passing. Every aspect of nature echoes with their presence, and they've made a place for themselves inside the human heart, too.

The Egyptian Pantheon

These gods are a young dynasty of an ancient divine family, heirs to the rulership of the cosmos and the maintenance of the divine principle of Ma'at—the fundamental order of truth, justice, law, and order that puts gods, mortal pharaohs, and ordinary men and women in their logical and rightful place in the universe.
The Egyptian pantheon is unusual in having three gods responsible for death, each with different alignments. Anubis is the lawful neutral god of the afterlife, who judges the souls of the dead. Set is a chaotic evil god of murder, perhaps best known for killing his brother Osiris. And Nephthys is a chaotic good goddess of mourning.

The Norse Pantheon

Where the land plummets from the snowy hills into the icy fjords below, where the longboats draw up on to the beach, where the glaciers flow forward and retreat with every fall and spring—this is the land of the Vikings, the home of the Norse pantheon. It's a brutal clime, and one that calls for brutal living. The warriors of the land have had to adapt to the harsh conditions in order to survive, but they haven't been too twisted by the needs of their environment. Given the necessity of raiding for food and wealth, it's surprising the mortals turned out as well as they did. Their powers reflect the need these warriors had for strong leadership and decisive action. Thus, they see their deities in every bend of a river, hear them in the crash of the thunder and the booming of the glaciers, and smell them in the smoke of a burning longhouse.
The Norse pantheon includes two main families, the Aesir (deities of war and destiny) and the Vanir (gods of fertility and prosperity). Once enemies, these two families are now closely allied against their common enemies, the giants (including the gods Surtur and Thrym).

Celtic Deities

Deity Alignment Suggested Domains Symbol The Daghdha, god of weather and crops CG Nature, Trickery Bubbling cauldron or shield Arawn, god of life and death NE Life, Death Black star on gray background Belenus, god of sun, light, and warmth NG Light Solar disk and standing stones Brigantia, goddess of rivers and livestock NG Life Footbridge Diancecht, god of medicine and healing LG Life Crossed oak and mistletoe branches Dunatis, god of mountains and peaks N Nature Red sun-capped mountain peak Goibhniu, god of smiths and healing NG Knowledge, Life Giant mallet over sword Lugh, god of arts, travel, and commerce CN Knowledge, Life Pair of long hands Manannan mac Lir, god of oceans and sea creatures LN Nature, Tempest Wave of white water on green Math Mathonwy, god of magic NE Knowledge Staff Morrigan, goddess of battle CE War Two crossed spears Nuada, god of war and warriors N War Silver hand on black background Oghma, god of speech and writing NG Knowledge Unfurled scroll Silvanus, god of nature and forests N Nature Summer oak tree

Greek Deities

Deity Alignment Suggested Domains Symbol Zeus, god of the sky, ruler of the gods N Tempest Fist full of lightning bolts Aphrodite, goddess of love and beauty CG Light Sea shell Apollo, god of light, music, and healing NG Knowledge, Life, Light Lyre Ares, god of war and strife CE War Spear Artemis, goddess of hunting and childbirth NG Life, Nature Bow and arrow on lunar disk Athena, goddess of wisdom and civilization LG Knowledge, War Owl Demeter, goddess of agriculture NG Life Mare's head Dionysus, god of mirth and wine CN Life Thyrsus (staff tipped with pine cone) Hades, god of the underworld LE Death Black ram Hecate, goddess of magic and the moon CE Knowledge, Trickery Setting moon Hephaestus, god of smithing and craft NG Knowledge Hammer and anvil Hera, goddess of marriage and intrigue CN Trickery Fan of peacock feathers Hercules, god of strength and adventure CG Tempest, War Lion's head Hermes, god of travel and commerce CG Trickery Caduceus (winged staff and serpents) Hestia, goddess of home and family NG Life Hearth Nike, goddess of victory LN War Winged woman Pan, god of nature CN Nature Syrinx (pan pipes) Poseidon, god of the sea and earthquakes CN Tempest Trident Tyche, goddess of good fortune N Trickery Red pentagram

Egyptian Deities

Deity Alignment Suggested Domains Symbol Re-Horakhty, god of the sun, ruler of the gods LG Life, Light Fist full of lightning bolts Anubis, god of judgment and death LN Death Black jackal Apep, god of evil, fire, and snakes NE Trickery Flaming snake Bast, goddess of cats and vengeance CG War Cat Bes, god of luck and music CN Trickery Image of the misshapen deity Hathor, goddess of love, music, and motherhood NG Life, Light Horned cow's head with lunar disk Imhotep, god of crafts and medicine NG Knowledge Step pyramid Isis, goddess of fertility and magic NG Knowledge, Life Ankh and star Osiris, god of nature and the underworld LG Life, Nature Horns around a lunar disk Ptah, god of crafts, knowledge, and secrets LN Knowledge Bull Set, god of darkness and desert storms CE Death, Tempest, Trickery Coiled cobra Sobek, god of water and crocodiles LE Nature, Tempest Crocodile head with horns and plumes Thoth, god of knowledge and wisdom N Knowledge Ibis

Norse Deities

Deity Alignment Suggested Domains Symbol Odin, god of knowledge and war NG Knowledge, War Watching blue eye Aegir, god of the sea and storms NE Tempest Rough ocean waves Balder, god of beauty and poetry NG Life, Light Gem-encrusted silver chalice Forseti, god of justice and law N Light Head of a bearded man Frey, god of fertility and the sun NG Life, Light Ice-blue greatsword Freya, goddess of fertility and love NG Life Falcon Frigga, goddess of birth and fertility N Life, Light Cat Heimdall, god of watchfullness and loyalty LG Light, War Curling musical horn Hel, goddess of the underworld NE Death Woman's face, rotting on one side Hermod, god of luck CN Trickery Winged scroll Loki, god of thieves and trickery CE Trickery Flame Njord, god of sea and wind NG Nature, Tempest Gold coin Odur, god of light and the sun CG Light Solar disk Sif, goddess of war CG War Upraised sword Skadi, god of earth and mountains N Nature Mountain peak Surtur, god of fire giants and war LE War Flaming sword Thor, god of storms and thunder CG Tempest, War Hammer Thrym, god of frost giants and cold CE War White double-bladed axe Tyr, god of courage and strategy LN Knowledge, War Sword Uller, god of hunting and winter CN Nature Longbow

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