Daughter of Tionnia, God of All Living Things, and Blizria, Goddess of All Demons, Tona inherited part of her father's gifts with the animal kingdom. She is also the goddess that most female warlocks, witches and mages align with, regardless of race.
There are a lot of similarities with Freyja, the Norse Goddess:
Freyja, the Norse goddess of witchcraft, death, love, and fertility, was later condemned by Christian missionaries as the “Queen of Witches.”
I did not actually know that when I wrote my pantheon back in the 80s college days, but in looking for some images that portray her, I found this image by irenhorrors, and rolling with the queen of witches (and perhaps I had been reading some Norse mythology or just got really lucky by coincidence):
Tona's animals include a wide variety of the "lesser" creatures, so does not include dragons and other sentient creatures of a similar ilk. She is often portrayed as a healer, from the abada whose magic horns is the antidote to all known poisons . This creature is originally from Central Africa and in my part of Cidri, exists in the plains and mountains. Read up on that from Cryptids, Creatures and Critters by Rachel Qunney. Another Kickstarter book that looked interesting, and I thought I could use it for an inspiration for gaming. And I am :)
And going through the Lesser Key by Psychoda Press, another Kickstarter book for generating religions in fantasy worlds. Written more for DCC, it requires dice I do not have. Yet. May have to see about a DCC dice set to get a d24 and d30. So I am faking some of the rolls. and re-rolling or picking what sounds better. And I apologize for this being more of a stream of consciousness than it should be. At some point I may collect my pantheon postings and try to get them ordered a bit. Not that I've
Tona's heralds are usually in the form of various creatures, though they may be larger or smaller than typical. Additionally, there is a 50% chance that the Herald will also be covered in flames, a gift from Blizria that Tona sometimes has difficulties with. The animal will always be native to where the Herald is encountered. One that is hunted or killed will often bring down her wrath with another Herald in a much larger form. Fortunately, her Heralds are easy to detect as not a normal creature on 2d6 versus IQ. That and they will talk, as well as possibly being enveloped in flames. Her Heralds will often come upon wounded travelers, and will exchange healing for a quest. Her quests are usually to aid those who are victims: witches being persecuted, animals being abused, fay being attacked.
Upon the appearance of a Herald, there is a silence that extends from the Herald. Animals are frozen, even birds in flight are frozen in place. The Herald's voice is in the characters heads and speaks their native tongue. Afterward, other than the quest given, little can be recalled of how it sounded. Upon leaving, the Herald will bound away, returning to what appears to be a normal version of that creature. The sounds start back up and birds continue their flight. It is as if time has paused for all but the Herald and the adventurers.
There are often shrines and temples for Tona, found in all sorts of environments. The temples usually house 2-12 clerics and have statuary of various creatures. Often inside the statues are vials of healing and antidotes, used by the clerics to help heal their flock. More often than not the clerics are women but men are equally welcome in most temples. Some, however, are often all female, and can be actually belligerent to men for a variety of reasons. Temples tend to be a bit serpentine with some central chamber approached via a curving corridor. For Tona and her adherents, life is never a straight path. Her temples often carry her symbol: a mace on an octagonal base, and an animal engraved on the mace. The animals vary by location, usually depicting a local magical creature, but may often be something simple as a rabbit or turtle as well. The symbols are usually made of bronze. Clerics have a sort cape made of cloth, and the symbol is often embroidered on this cape in bronze threads.
Services are held using percussion instruments as the background with singing predominating the service. Sacred texts are usually inked on linen sheets. There are a few high services held at mid-solstice, and prayers sent to renew protections for the community. The community could be the native animal population, or any group that needs protection. High services last for a week, starting on Thursday and starting at midnight. Regular services tend to be sporadic and when enough people come together to want to share a service, or if the cleric determines that a service is needed.
There are no relics for Tona. Saints are usually those who have served her by saving or rescuing those in need, be they creatures or beings. They are usually depicted bowing, holding a mace with an animal carved into it, wearing a loincloth and guarded by a Herald. A small bowl to hold gems is the usual offering; these are often used to build the temples and feed those in need.
And I've reworked by little adventure a bit, incorporating a bit of this info. PDF should be below.
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