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"Gods dwell around us, in the sky, in between clumps of soil and behind the veil of stars."

Whyte Lyon·12/4/2017, 1:41:45 PM·90 votes·4,308 views

######God I hope this isn't buried under all the Varus threads or ignored because it's not Varus related.

So recently AskRiot had a section to talk about religions in Runeterra: "Imagine a place in which the classical questions of our world, - does god(s) exist? What does god(s) want? Is there an afterlife? - are entirely redundant. In Runeterra, the presence of higher powers is indisputable and can be witnessed. Individuals with god-like powers walk through the world, and, the effects of magic and celestial power can be seen in the very landscape."

Now personally what was talked about was hardly a revelation to myself, although the insight AskRiot gives is aimed at those with an elementary level to the subject anyway. Regardless that has little to do with what I want to say. Below I have comprised a list of everything religious or godly related thing that I could find scattered throughout lore.

[DEITIES]

  • Great Weaver- Nature God, governs the tapestry of fate, Shurima origins.
  • Shurima Sun god- Before the Sun Disk Shurima had a pantheon of gods, they were disowned and now long forgotten.
  • Bearded Lady- Elder God, governs the sky; sea; movement, Blue Flame Isles/Buhru origins.
  • Ornn- Firstborn, demi-god of fire and craftsmanship, Freljord origins.
  • Anivia- Benevolent idol, demi-god of the bitter cold; wind; rebirth/transition, Freljord origins.
  • Volibear (Thousand-Pierced bear) - Ambivalent idol, demi-god of battle, the wilderness and thunder, Freljord origins.
  • Sealsister- Forgotten goddess of the frozen sea.
  • The Tusk Lord- Undisclosed demi-God, Freljord origins.

[IDOLS]

  • Gray Lady- Patron saint, the catalyst for Techmaturgy, Piltover/Zaun origins.
  • Veiled Lady (Morgana)- Patron saint of penance and atonement, Demacia origins.
  • The Protector (Kayle)- Patron saint of unwavering justice, Demacia origins.
  • Sivunas Alahair- prophesied hero, Shurima origins.
  • The Ascended Host/Darkin- all Sunborn were treated with god-like reverence, more so out of fear during the Darkin War.
  • Demon (Evelynn, Nocturne, Tahm Kench) The spiritual manifestations of various aspects of humanity, feeding on unnatural coveting and/or unhealthy addictions. Note: I would love to include related items as "Idols" too, but gameplay =/= lore.

[ENTITIES]

  • Aurelion Sol- Born when the universe first came to be and spent eons forging stars. this allowed for the formations of star systems, planets and planetary life across the cosmos.
  • Bard- A traveler from beyond the stars and an agent of serendipity to maintain balance where life can endure the indifference of chaos.
  • Nagakabouros- The exact size and scope of this being transcend mortal comprehension. However, this being is a Force of energy that connected all living things.
  • Vilemaw- Although not a god, this entity is far more than meets the eye.
  • Kindred- Runeterra's mythological representation of death. Spoken of only in whispered tones by those who narrowly avoided fatality and seen by all in life's last moments.
  • Aspects- A group of cosmic unknowns, each embody a particular concept and has the ability to imbue mortals with their power/persona.
  • The Watchers- the conscious manifestation of the unknown nothingness that lies beyond.
  • The Spirit of Ionia- An unknown entity that expresses itself in various magical ways, through the land and abilities of some the champs.

[RELIGIONS]

  • Cult of the Three Sister- (Avarosa, Serylda, Lissandra). Ancient Freljordian saints revered as if god-like.
  • Draklorn- Lissandra's own cult inquisition.
  • Solari- Targon Sun(light) worshiping.
  • Lunari- Targon Moon(light) worshiping.
  • Church of the Glorious Evolved- Faith through techmaturgy and the practice of sacrificing flesh with mechanical limbs.
  • Somersaulting like Rammus - Yeah, some weird thing Shuriman's do to honor Rammus.
  • Sun Disk- Shuriman Sun priests dictate the will of their God for those honored with the rite of Ascension.
  • The Illuminators- A charitable religious order and one of the only organizations within Demacia to utilize mages, albeit secretly.
  • Kinkou Order- An ancient clan dedicated to preservation of balance and the protection of spirits and humans alike.
  • Indigenous culture Buhru- Not much is known beyond their devotion to Nagakabouros and the many other serpent gods.
  • Brethren of the Dusk- They maintain and bury corpses, not too sure if actually religious though.

http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Lv6HtW-RlMU/VOZi27y14hI/AAAAAAAAkTA/wtoKduTTdjc/s1600/asddad.jpg

This is all the best to my knowledge, but I'm sure I messed up somewhere. Anyone want to contribute?

66 Comments

Morgan le Fey12/4/2017, 5:15:44 PM24 votes

It'd probably be best to have another section just for demigods. The Ascended, the Freljordian demigods (Ornn, Voli, Anivia, possibly Lissandra or the Watchers?), maybe a few others?

Also, don't forget Janna. She's an air spirit now, remember? She was a goddess of the wind on the high seas, too, but since she (and maybe other gods?) needs prayer, badly, she has withered through a lack of attention.

TheStoneThinker12/4/2017, 3:04:20 PM9 votes

OOH! OOH! OOH! I have one!

Karthus' bio mentions the tally-men of Kindred, who are the undertakers in Noxus. It seems, from the name and the fact that their occupation is directly tied to death, that they may also qualify as at least a quasi-religious order.

Thanks for putting this together, by the way.

P.S. Everything is OK! You made the Front Page! The Varus posts didn't block you :)

Knalxz12/4/2017, 6:54:58 PM6 votes

The problem I've always had with apparent gods in most series is that you're always asking "Why the hell are you all assholes?" or "What the hell are they doing up there?" You almost always have to give an excuse for them not solving every problem.

Elder Scrolls probably has done it the best with Lord of The Rings being the worst.

in TES, the gods are just far more valuable in the mortal realm since they HAVE to take a mortal form thus they use people of their faith to do their biding in the mortal world. Daedra or Aedra, they are all far weaker outside of their own realm and easy targets for their foes so leaving them is EXTREMELY DANGEROUS to their faith with the best example being Jiggalyalg The most powerful lord ripped apart by his enemies because they got him out of his throne world.

If gods in TES can't outright solve a problem they'll appoint a champion to do so. The biggest one being the Dragonborn from Skyrim. Quite literally made to make sure Alduin the son of the to god doesn't destroy the world. The only reason the top God doesn't stop it himself is because in the previous title HE DID! He stopped the problem but the issue with him coming to the mortal plain is that it requires so much power that only select artifacts can even do it and the last one was used to have him end what is basically a demon war.

In LotRs the are literally gods so much stronger the Sauron that it's not even funny. The Gods have an army of people leagues stronger then any of the 5 wizards sent to put Sauron down but refuse to because they've just stopped caring about mortals. OPENLY TOO, which is confusing on why people even praise them in the first place.

Linna Excel12/4/2017, 6:38:53 PM5 votes

Someone forgot Soraka.

[sg-soraka]

Dear Cryophoenix12/6/2017, 2:04:25 AM3 votes

Hi there!

I appreciate your post. I would like to clarify regarding the size and scope of Nagakabouros, however. The original Illaoi RPer (who did extensive research but did not stay around very long) explained that deity to me, and I thought it was interesting, so I'm going to post it here in case anyone else is curious.

Nagakabouros doesn't "govern" the sky any more than atoms govern water. She is the sky, the ocean, the planets, and all life. Or, rather... she's the energy that flows through all life. Not just on the planet Runeterra, but in that entire universe. All is Nagakabouros. When life forms grow in ability and knowledge, Nagakabouros Herself expands. Those motes of energy that make up spirit of living things eventually return to the great vortex, once death has claimed those beings. And, for the record, death itself is said to fear the Great Mother. Kindred does a service to Nagakabouros by helping life forms return their essence to the vortex, so that their energy may once again mix and mingle with the rest, and be renewed. Some bits of energy are sent to worlds for new life, and some remain in the boundless ocean of life energy. We are all of that great ocean, and the movement of one affects us all.

Undead are so abhorrent to Nagakabouros because their life energy stagnates; they do not grow, change, or renew. Still water grows putrid. Because it remains apart from the rest of the great vortex, it ceases to be connected as it should be. The intrinsic connection of all life is crucial, but only deities and other entities with an enormous view are able to truly comprehend how important it is. (This connection, incidentally, is also one reason Aurelion Sol is so anguished at the death of one of his stars. He understands on a fundamental level how crucial his daughters are to life in the universe; his anguish at their death isn't merely because they're his creations, although that's part of it.)

Staying in motion refers to growth, which we reach through learning, changing, pursuing goals, and continuing. Someone who moves around a lot but doesn't pursue or learn anything isn't staying in motion to Nagakabouros.

The "bearded lady" is a paylangi term and speaks of the misunderstanding that most Runeterrans hold for the Great Mother. Of course, the elder serpentcallers haven't helped to clear up misconceptions. This is partly due to their xenophobia, and partly due to their own limited understanding of Nagakabouros. They saw that calling upon Nagakabouros would affect the deep beasts in the ocean, and their conclusions were much more limited than the real story. A raindrop cannot comprehend a river valley, after all. It took a prophetess willing to immerse herself to get a broader picture of who Nagakabouros really is. While the serpentcaller religion has its origins in the serpent isles, the Great Mother herself has existed before the stars and even before their creators.

Some other fun notes I came across as I was researching this:

Nagakabouros makes use of those serving her because she is, to a degree, blind to those things that are not a part of her. Illaoi's idol, which she used to focus and call upon her god's power, is called the "Eye of God."

How WAAARGHbobo sees gods:

Illaoi's god is not the only god. (See above: God is a tricky term). Nagakabouros is not even the only god worshipped in Buhru (though it is the most popular on that island). Illaoi's religion is about life serving the universe. But Nagakabouros is see as bigger than that goal. Illaoi knows, she can not comprehend her god or it's plan. So she and her religion are attempting to serve and understand a small portion of that god idea. She is aware that Nagakabouros is a mental construct based on human's limited perception and intellect -- but it is an attempt to illustrate a greater truth (See Brahma vs Para Brahman for an example of this.)

I did a lot of research on pre-christian faiths and Hinduism when creating this religion. Our real world pantheistic religions do not (and did not) believe in individual gods in a childlike way. It was/is a very philosophically complex view of the universe, where elements, and ideas are broken down and given constructs to hold greater concepts. Those constructs exist as dualities == both a truth and as mere symbol of a higher truth. (Thus the signifier is viewed with equal import as the signified) Using those definitions (which is how Illaoi sees the world). A god is not simply "a being of a particular power level" it the reflection of an abstract truth.

Aurelion Sol didn't make all the stars. He's a bit of a braggart.

Sources:

The broadness of Nagakabouros: https://boards.na.leagueoflegends.com/en/c/story-art/dsnsEdU2-history-of-illaoi?comment=0002

Shadow and Fortune on where Nagakabouros exists:

“The Bearded Lady rose from the sea...” said Rafen.

“Don’t be stupid all your life,” said Illaoi. “I said Nagakabouros doesn’t live under the sea.”

“So where does she live?” asked Rafen. “In the sky?”

Illaoi shook her head and punched him in the heart. Rafen grunted and winced in pain.

“There is where you find her.”

On Illaoi's test: https://boards.na.leagueoflegends.com/en/c/story-art/icewate2-what-exactly-are-illaois-powers-and-which-champions-would-survive-the-test-of-nagakabouros?show=flat&comment=000000000001

Insight into movement: https://boards.na.leagueoflegends.com/en/c/story-art/8XAaiZoF-bearded-lady?show=flat&comment=0002

On the Eye of God: https://boards.na.leagueoflegends.com/en/c/story-art/HHlgv9Jo-waaghbobo-are-you-going-to-tell-us-more-stories-about-nagakabouros-soon?comment=0001000200010002

Epicurus12/4/2017, 3:34:47 PM3 votes

What do you see as the difference between the Freljordian demigods and Aurelion Sol? They seem rather similar to me. They are all of comparable magical power, all of them are figures of mythology and folklore, but none of them are actually omnipotent like Kindred or Nagakaborous. Why is Sol an entity while the rest are deities?

RastaBrotha12/4/2017, 6:23:18 PM3 votes

Well since there was a mention of varus around here that reminds me...

The Darkin are dieties too aren't they? or evil ones maybe? I can imagine some satanic psychopaths (vlad) worshipping the beings that gave mortals the blood magic as Varus mentioned.

And Aatrox has also been worshipped as an angel of war in the OG lore.

When you look at Rhaast however, it kinda does make you forget that they are immortal and formless.

TheHappyReaperz12/4/2017, 10:28:15 PM3 votes

I feel like the Black Rose organization has some religious aspects. Elise is feeding people to Vilemaw, and she's connected to them. Additionally, you don't get to be powerful dark magic users without sacrificing something to some dark entity.

xxxDogmanxxx12/4/2017, 11:50:55 PM3 votes

Baron Nashor - Big Wormy Boii

LordGeovanni12/5/2017, 1:09:21 AM3 votes

I loved this. You didnt mention Rammus as an Entity at worst if not a demi god You didnt Mention The Church of Karthus who believe in the eternal afterlife (though I think he was part of the brethren of dusk or it was Yorick and im not sure or willing to check) Though in new lore idk how Karthus spreads his religion when the Shadow Isles bind any soul they make undead except Yorick who sits in limbo Janna Nautilus? Though im curious as to why you put uncertain Demacian and Piltover gods in the god catagory rather than the religion one but put kindred in the entity category when Lamb I think is revered for mercy and wolf is feared. Eliese's church. Leblanc's cult ? though you did mention vilemaw.

PokladnicaZla12/4/2017, 6:32:05 PM2 votes

Why is Camille a.k.a. the Grey Lady labeled as a Deity?

Eve could be also considerate as an idol,since she has a cult dedicated to her.Don't know if you would classify a cult as a religious order or not.

Risk of Fate12/4/2017, 2:58:34 PM2 votes

[deleted]

JooshBox12/4/2017, 10:38:33 PM2 votes

Are the ascended not demigods? Azir Xerath Nasus Renekton