Living ENWorld:Pantheon:Taka

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[edit] Taka

"TAH-kah"
The Falcon

Enworldian Lesser Deity
Symbol: A green falcon's head on dark gray
Home Plane/Domain: Gray Waste of Hades/The Truth of Lies
Alignment: Neutral Evil.
Portfolio: Thievery, dishonesty with self.
Worshippers: Rogues, assassins, self-justifiers.
Cleric Alignments: LE, NE, CE.
Domains: Evil, Trickery, Luck
Favored Weapon: "Falcon Claw" (spiked chain).
Special Possessions: Falcon�s Claw, a dire spiked chain that is capable of stealing memory.

DESCRIPTION Taka is the goddess of thievery � be it the theft of physical objects, or something more metaphysical, such as dreams or ideals � as well as the goddess of deceivers, those who deceive others and who deceive themselves. Taka is also known for being the source of a small religion that teaches that belief in the self will lead one to the truth, rather than following a deity. Physically, Taka appears as a robed human woman, dressed in the garb an assassin would wear while on a job. She is also usually accompanied by a peregrine falcon, which sits upon her left shoulder.

DOGMA Take only what you can steal without getting caught. Destroy the illusions of those who believe in them fully. The truth is a weapon � use it wisely. Falsehood is also a weapon, but be cautious in its use. True knowledge is something to be kept to the self; but knowledge of what is false is just as important. People believe what they can see; use this fact to your advantage.

CLERGY AND TEMPLES The followers of Taka vary wildly, since they always disguise themselves in places where her worship is not openly acceptable � which is almost everywhere. A given temple and its clergy will generally disguise itself as a temple to another deity, though many choose to act as Mortalist temples. They often teach that mortals need not answer to any god, but only to themselves; they should act as they see fit. This teaching attempts to lead followers into a web of self-justification that they themselves created, hopefully leading them away from the worship of deities other than Taka (though the self-justifier is never aware that they are actually following Taka � once they do, they usually turn away from the teachings in question).

In regions where they exist, clergy in the temples will often work closely with mercurial initiates, allowing them to use the temple as a base of operations; this relationship is mutual, as the clergy gains knowledge and information from the initiates, while the initiates gain access to a place where they will be protected.

RITES AND RITUALS Takan rites are often incredibly subtle, filled with innuendo and double-meaning. Their purposes are often very obscure; though they may seem good-intentioned at first, their uses are often more sinister.

LEGENDS The legend of how Taka became the goddess of untruth is a relatively well-known one. It is said that, at first, Taka wished to create a race of beings to call her own; however, she lacked the creative energy to do so, and thus mimicked the efforts of the other deities. The other gods disapproved of such mockery, however, who viewed her efforts as an intrusion upon their domains. They punished Taka, and transformed her children into a naturally hideous race, capable of only changing their shape to mimic others: thus were the first doppelgangers born. Angered by this, Taka took the change in her offspring to heart, becoming like them in goal and form, and began her teaching of cognizance of truth and falsehood, reality and illusion; she also began disguising her followers and her clergy, giving them ways to lead the followers of other deities astray, in retribution for what they did to her efforts. Since then, Taka has been at odds with almost all other deities, working with them only so long as it served her needs.

-Created by GnomeWorks