Almagest (Human Pantheon) – The Royal Scribe

Followers of the Almagest faith, a human pantheon, worship twelve co-equal gods who takes turns taking dominance for one month. They are depicted rotating through the heavens as constellations. Each god is associated with one of the twelve primary constellations and has dominance in the pantheon the month that constellation appears in the heavenly skies.

The Almagest calendar is solar and semi-seasonal, following the constellations that represent the gods as they take dominance in the skies, and millennia ago became the basis for the months of the Common Calendar used globally. The New Year begins on the Winter Solstice, a day that itself is not part of any month, and many believe that babies born that day are gifted by the gods. The year begins with Winter and continues through Spring, Summer, and Autumn, with the last day of the calendar year falling on the last day of Autumn.

Each god is associated with a fantastical creature. In some depictions, they are shown as tall, slender grayish humanoids mounted on the creature, while in other depictions they are the creature themselves, or have the ability to shapeshift into the form of that creature.

These gods include:

Though the gods are often referenced using masculine pronouns, they are universally seen as beings without gender who are capable of manifesting as male, female, or neither.

Almagest followers often choose a particular god as their individual patron, though they respect and honor all of the gods during their feast days or in a time of crisis specific to that god. Some will choose the god who was dominant the month they were born. Others may choose a god based on their profession. Each god is also associated with a school or type of magic, and many wizards will choose a patron based on the school of magic they specialize in.

The Almagest people believe in reincarnation. After death, their souls will return eventually in another form to learn new lessons until the soul reaches enlightenment. When this happens, the soul is brought up to the heavens to twinkle as stars amongst the gods.

Gods by Element, Quality, and Season

The twelve gods are classified by three different aspects: an element, a quality describing the nature of that element, and the season of the year.

Elements

Air: Intelligence and willpower
Earth: Nature, stability, desires of the flesh
Fire: Spirit, courage, passion
Water: Emotion and insight

Qualities

Ascendant: The element in its primal, wild, most dangerous form
Resolute: The element in its natural state, calm but powerful
Adaptive: The element harnessed by mankind

Season

Winter: Cold, death
Spring: Light, rebirth
Summer: Sun, fertility, aggression
Autumn: Harvest, old age

Element & Quality

ELEMENT / QUALITY	Ascendant (Life)	Resolute (Order)	Adaptive (Trickery)
Air (Knowledge)	Garuda, the Peryton	Chryasor, the Pegasus	Altair, the Griffon
Earth (Nature)	Elapida, the Basilisk	Pausanius, the Manticore	Ketesias, the Unicorn
Fire (Forge)	Bennu, the Phoenix	Melusina, the Dragon	Atrarora, the Salamander
Water (Tempest)	Tuthose, the Kraken	Chelys, the Aspidochelone	Melquart, the Hippocampus

Seasons

Winter (Death)	Spring (Light)	Summer (War)	Autumn (Twilight)
Elapida, the Basilisk	Bennu, the Phoenix	Tuthose, the Kraken	Garuda, the Peryton
Chryasor, the Pegasus	Pausanias, the Manticore	Melusina, the Dragon	Chelys, the Aspidochelone
Melquart, the Hippocampus	Altair, the Griffin	Ketesias, the Unicorn	Atrarora, the Salamander

Gods by the Calendar Month

The months of the Common Calendar are each named after the Almagest god whose constellation is most prominent in the sky that month.

Elapida, the Basilisk – Elapidaans, the first month of Winter
Chryasor, the Pegasus – Chryadaans, the second month of Winter
Melquart, the Hippocampus – Melquedaans, the third month of Winter
Bennu, the Phoenix – Bennedaans, the first month of Spring
Pausanius, the Manticore – Pausadaans, the second month of Spring
Altair, the Griffin – Altadaans, the third month of Spring (31 days)
Tuthose, the Kraken – Tuthodaans, the first month of Summer
Melusina, the Dragon – Meludaans, the second month of Summer
Ketesias, the Unicorn – Ketedaans, the third month of Summer
Garuda, the Peryton – Garudaans, the first month of Autumn
Chelys, the Aspidochelone – Chelydaans, the second month of Autumn
Atrarora, the Salamander – Atraradaans, the third month of Autumn

Description of the Almagest Gods

Altair, the Griffin – The Griffin is Air Adaptive, inquisitive and curious. He is the god of air in its controlled state harnessed by mankind: fanning the flames to stoke a fire, blowing air to forge glass, making music by blowing in wind instruments, using sails to catch the wind. His month is the sixth of the Common Calendar, Altadaans, and the third month of Spring. He is the patron of diplomats and Arcane Tricksters, as well as the arcane school of transmutation. Domains: Arcana, Grave, Knowledge, Light, Peace, Trickery.

Atrarora, the Salamander – The salamander is Fire Adaptive, fire tamed and used as a tool for light, heat, cooking, and metalworking. His month of Atraradaans is the twelfth month of the Common Calendar and the third month of Autumn. He is the patron of blacksmiths as well as the arcane school of conjuration. Domains: Arcana, Forge, Grave, Peace, Trickery, Twilight.

Bennu, the Phoenix – At the end of its life, the phoenix is consumed in fire and then reborn as an egg ready to hatch. So too does Bennu represent rebirth and reincarnation. He is Fire Ascendant, representing fire in of its uncontrolled aspects (like lightning and wildfires, including fires in nature as well as out-of-control fires that may have been started by men). His month is the fourth month of the Almagest calendar, Bennedaans, which begins on the first day of Spring. He is also the patron of wild magic sorcery. Domains: Arcana, Forge, Grave, Life, Light, Peace.

Chelys, the Aspidochelone – The Aspidochelone is a massive turtle-like creature whose shell is often mistaken by sailors to be an island. He is Water Resolute: the great sea depths in their untamed but passive state. As such, he is the patron of seafaring traders as well as of naval warfare. He is also the patron of the arcane school of illusion. His month of Chelydaans is the eleventh of the Common Calendar and second month of Autumn. Domains: Arcana, Grave, Order, Peace, Peace, Tempest.

Chryasor, the Pegasus – The Pegasus is Air Resolute, the skies in their natural state. His month of Chryadaans is the second month of the Common Calendar and the second month of Winter. He is the patron of lawyers, battle strategy, and the arcane school of enchantment. Domains: Arcana, Death, Grave, Knowledge, Order, Peace.

Elapida, the Basilisk – The Basilisk is Earth Ascendant, earth in its primal, dangerous state such as earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, and mudslides. His month of Elapidaans is the first month of the Common Calendar and the first month of Winter. He is the patron of architects, and as the patron of the Magic of Ki, he is also the patron of all monks. Domains: Arcana, Death, Grave, Life, Nature, Peace.

Garuda, the Peryton – The Peryton, a creature consisting of the upper body of a stag with the wings and lower body of a hawk or eagle, is Air Ascendant: air in its wild, dangerous state such as tornadoes and windstorms. His month of Garudaans is the tenth of the Common Calendar and the first month of Autumn. He is the patron of judges and the courts, scholars, and of bardic lore. Domains: Arcana, Grave, Knowledge, Life, Peace, Twilight.

Ketesias, the Unicorn – The Unicorn is Earth Adaptive, earth in its controlled and manipulated state (such as the use of mud and stone for masonry, mining for valuable metals, and the like). But he is also the god of playful innocence, maidenhood and virginity, and healing, and protective abjuration magic. His month of Ketedaans is the ninth month of the Common Calendar and the third month of Summer. Domains: Arcana, Grave, Nature, Peace, Trickery, War.

Melquart, the Hippocampus – Melquart, depicted as a sea creature with the front half of a horse and the back half of a fish, is Water Adaptive: water in its controlled state used to drink, cook, wash and clean, power mills, and all its other uses. His month of Melquedaans is the third month of the calendar, and the third month of Winter. He is the patron of fishermen as well as the arcane school of divination. Domains: Arcana, Death, Grave, Peace, Tempest, Trickery.

Melusina, the Dragon – The Dragon is Fire Resolute: fire in its untamed but not rampant state, specifically the Sun, Sola, which the Almagest believe to be a great ball of fire in the sky. He is dominant in the month of Meludaans, the eighth month of the Common Calendar and the second month of Summer. Melusina is the patron of evocation magic as well as sorcerers with a draconic bloodline. He is also the patron of military leaders as well as monarchs and rulership. Domains: Arcana, Forge, Grave, Order, Peace, War.

Pausanius, the Manticore – The manticore is Earth Resolute, stubborn and sure. His month is the second month of Spring, Pausadaans, the fifth month of the Common Calendar. He is the god of nature in its untamed state, the unexplored wilderness. But he is also a god of war, specifically as the patron of soldiers. He’s also the patron of the arcane school of necromancy and the undead. Domains: Arcana, Grave, Light, Nature, Order, Peace, War.

Tuthose, the Kraken – The Kraken appears as a giant squid-like creature. He is Water Ascendant, representing water in its primal, dangerous forms like storms, whirlpools, and hurricanes. His is the seventh month of the Common Calendar, Tuthodaans, and the first month of Summer. He is the patron of eldritch magic, the cultivation of power through pacts with powerful beings, and is therefore the patron of warlocks of all types. Domains: Arcana, Grave, Life, Peace, Tempest, War.

By Domain

Each deity has dominion of six domains. Three of these are common to every deity. The remaining three are based on the deity’s element, quality, and season.

As each deity is the patron of differing types of magic, each has Arcana as a domain in their portfolio. In Almagest culture, clerics were often involved in brokering treaties, alliances, and cease-fires, and as such, each has Peace as a domain. Finally, as clerics are often called up to give comfort to the dying, each has Grave as a domain.