Taliash

Taliash
Titles	The Storyteller Mistress of Pure Waters Wings of the Flock Loreweaver Trail of Serendipity
Type	Pantheonic deity
Areas of concern	Travel, whimsy, storytelling, fresh water, storms
Typical worshipers	Travelers, storytellers, adventurers, tengu
Domains	Freedom, Healing, Indulgence, Lightning, Travel, Water
Divine font	Heal
Divine skill	Acrobatics or Performance
Divine ability	Charisma or Constitution
Favored weapon	Staff
Symbol	A feather floating on water
Sacred animal	Waterbirds
Sacred color	Blue and green

Taliash (pronounced TAH-lee-osh) is the god of travel, whimsy, storytelling, fresh water, and storms.

Edicts and anathema

Edicts

Explore, listen to and share the stories of others, experience new cultures, spread joy, invite Taliash to listen to your stories

Anathema

Tell a boring story, belittle other cultures or beliefs, foul rivers

Description

There are many stories about the origin of Taliash. In some she was the great primordial river that filled the world's oceans, and in others she was the first storm that pushed people to shelter, giving them cause to tell each other tales for comfort and amusement. One very popular narrative is that she was born from laughter itself. It should be no surprise that the faithful of a god of storytelling have many legends about their deity.

Taliash watches over all the wanderers of the world, especially those that listen to the narratives of those they meet and share them far and wide. To her faithful, leaving one's home and exploring the world is the greatest calling in life. To revel in new experiences and tales is a form of prayer to Taliash, and her most devout travel endlessly towards this purpose, never passing up an opportunity to hear legends of local heroes and monsters as they go.

Taliash is also a god of rivers and springs, often so critical to safe travels through otherwise dangerous or remote parts of the world. She is widely seen as a guardian of those that make regular journeys using freshwater routes, and many toss offerings to her in the water to ask for safety on their travels. Taliash is also commonly connected to storms, an association originally drawn by her tengu followers but now widespread.

Followers

Taliash has a large following across Kishar. The sights to be seen and experiences to be had out in the world are a strong draw to many. Adventurers and travelers are her quintessential followers, but they are by no means the only ones drawn to Taliash. Her faith tends to be somewhat casual in nature, with a far larger emphasis on worship through deeds than through prayer. Storytellers and keepers of oral narratives also typically follow Taliash.

Her clerics can be found across the world, often in regions very far from their place of birth. They are endlessly keen in conversing with all, but rarely seek to proselytize, far more interested in sharing what they have heard and picking up the latest tales than in spreading their faith. To those living in particularly remote areas, the itinerant clergy of Taliash are often critical in keeping up with the events in the broader world.

Though popular with all ancestries, tengu usually feel an especially close connection to Taliash, who they refer to as the Great Storyteller. Worship of Taliash tends to be particularly strong in areas with a large tengu population.

Church structure

In large part due to the transitory habits of many of her clerics, there is few formal churches of Taliash. Her religion is highly fluid, a set of practices that constantly shifts as her followers from different parts of the world meet with each other and share their means of worship.

Holy text

Taliash's holy text is The Rivers and the Winds, a long and meandering story that her clerics memorize and recite as part of prayers or simply for entertainment. The Rivers and the Winds is a tale about the fantastical places and people encountered as the main character travels the world, with brief jaunts to other planes, usually told with the goddess herself as the principle figure.

Relations

The faithful of Taliash usually try to remain on good terms with the devotees of other deities. They naturally get along well with the followers of most deities on the good and chaotic axes, though they think very negatively of evil gods and not particularly highly of the followers of lawful faiths. Still, all have stories to share, and Taliash's clerics rarely turn down any opportunity to hear a new tale, regardless of who it comes from.

Depiction

Taliash is commonly depicted as a humanoid woman amongst a flock of waterbirds, crowded around her as if intently listening to a story. In some representations she is one of these birds herself, albeit larger and more elaborately colored than the rest. The exact kind of bird varies by region. In Thadria and Hellea an egret is most typical, while Khapeshan depictions usually use ibises, a shoebill is common in Brightmarch, and Kea Rachan art of the goddess use cranes.

Variations by pantheon

Pantheon	Name	Notes
Aserdian	Tucana	Tucana (pronounced too-CAH-nah) is a goddess of travel, whimsy, stories, and fresh water. She is also the patron of nomadic groups and peoples - it is believed that she taught them that travel brings wisdom and a breadth of experiences, and that there is always more to see in the world. Her clergy are habitually itinerant, traveling widely to meet other followers of the goddess and grow her flock. They are endlessly keen in conversing with all, but rarely seek to proselytize, far more interested in sharing what they have heard and picking up the latest tales than in spreading their faith. To those living in particularly remote areas, the clergy of Tucana are often critical in keeping up with the events in the broader world. Tucana's priesthood widely share and teach her holy text, The Rivers and the Winds, a long and meandering story of fantastical places and people. This holy text has its roots in the Chaskan interpretation of the god, Taliash, though it was adopted in a continually altered form by her Aserdian faithful centuries ago. Tucana is commonly depicted as a woman sitting amongst a flock of waterbirds, who crowd around her as if intently listening to a story. In some representations she is one of these birds herself, most commonly a spoonbill, larger and more elaborately colored than the rest.
Chaskan	Taliash	In the Chaskan pantheon, Taliash is commonly associated with alcohol, merriment, and taverns. Her followers believe that consuming drinks with others leads to the best stories, both as old ones are misremembered or exaggerated and as new ones are created.
Hellean	Areto	In the Hellean pantheon, Areto is a goddess of public entertainment, and of theater in particular. Her clergy often hold performances in public amphitheaters and other venues, open for all to attend.
Khapeshan	Qadesh	In the Khapeshan pantheon, Qadesh is widely worshiped by those that live around desert oases. She is believed to have placed the oases there to aid in travel across the harsh landscape.
Laurentian	Austron	In the Laurentian pantheon, Austron is a goddess of camps, bonfires, and ghosts. It is believed that she was the lightning strike that created the first bonfire, bringing people together to share in the festivities that pass the cold nights. In some regions that follow the Laurentian pantheon, and in particular in the Whispering Hills, campfires attract lost ghosts. These ghosts are believed by many to be servants of Austron that have come to hear stories and pass them along to their goddess.
Elven	Nethans	Nethans (pronounced NETH-anz) is a goddess of travel, stories, the air, and flight, with her aspect as a goddess of travel is especially emphasized. She is a goddess of flight in particular, one seen to be closely connected to the aeroliths and those living on them. Among followers of the Elven pantheon, her worship was once much more widespread, but today she takes a relatively minor role. Many Redemptionist elves still pray to Nethans, however, as they wish to one day return en mass to her aerial embrace. It is traditional to give a small offering to local birds, seen as Nethans' emissaries, before one sets out on a long or possibly dangerous journey. Doing so ensures they will watch as one travels, passing knowledge of any potential threats or hazards to Nethans so that she can divert them from the path. In the Elven pantheon Nethans is considered to have a more regal appearance than in her depictions in other pantheons. She often takes the form of an elven woman with wings made of clouds, sometimes with an entourage of wisp-like birds.
Orcish	Dzakar	In the Orcish pantheon, Dzakar is especially associated with bards and skalds. More so than with other variations of the goddess, in the Orcish pantheon the stories told in Dzakar's name have a tendency to be more sensational, fiction told for entertainment rather than dramatized but accurate accounts of real events and people.
Tengu	Great Storyteller	The Great Storyteller has countless names, collected by the deity from amongst all of those used by her disparate followers. As such, the goddess is rarely referred to by name, and her epithet is almost always used instead. In addition to her other roles, the Great Storyteller encourages her followers to collect trinkets and other baubles, as they help in remembering the many places one has been. Her aspect as a storm deity is far more emphasized in the Tengu pantheons than with other variations of the goddess. Her religion is fluid, something that is made obvious by her ever-changing holy text, known as The Rivers and the Winds. Adopted from the Chaskan pantheon, this holy text might be completely different when recounted by two different tengu clerics. Still, it remains the same work, as these differences, vast as they may be, is simply thought to be the narrative influence of the goddess at work. Her clerics can be found across the world, often in regions very far from their place of birth. They are endlessly keen in conversing with all, but rarely seek to proselytize, far more interested in sharing what they have heard and picking up the latest tales than in spreading their faith. The Great Storyteller is given a distinctly anthropomorphized form. Tengu usually see her as much like themselves, frequently depicting the goddess in the appearance and garb of a mundane traveler, laden with the evidence of places she has been.