Diety question

[Knowitall]

What would be the neutral/good equivalent of Anubis(egyptian guardian of the dead) on norrath? Ive seen wall pictoglyphs in some dungeons bearing the image of him but i know there are specific gods on norrath and i was curious so my templar could rp it better.(being hes from maj'dul/sinking sands region)

[Cusashorn]

The closest diety to ANY egyptian related god would be Anashti Sul, the Goddess of Eternal Life. She's been long dead for aeons. Died off before most of the current pantheon came to Norrath.

[Eriol]

<cite>Cusashorn wrote:</cite><blockquote>The closest diety to ANY egyptian related god would be Anashti Sul, the Goddess of Eternal Life. She's been long dead for aeons. Died off before most of the current pantheon came to Norrath.</blockquote>Well, <i>supposedly</i>.  It's unclear to me how any "God" could actually die.  And I've been through that questline entirely, and while the God had been long forgotten, is there reference that she was actually dead?

[Jindrack]

Anashti Sul, the original Prime Healer, was sentenced to non-existence by the other gods when she unwittingly released undeath upon the inhabitants of early Norrath.  Rodcet Nife would be later appointed to take her place.

[Gukkor2]

Wow, neat.  Can't say I knew that before.  I had assumed that Anashti Sul's domain WAS undeath, but I guess she was just incompetant.  Well, guess I'll have to revise my deity list accordingly.

[Cusashorn]

<cite>Eriol wrote:</cite><blockquote><cite>Cusashorn wrote:</cite><blockquote>The closest diety to ANY egyptian related god would be Anashti Sul, the Goddess of Eternal Life. She's been long dead for aeons. Died off before most of the current pantheon came to Norrath.</blockquote>Well, <i>supposedly</i>.  It's unclear to me how any "God" could actually die.  And I've been through that questline entirely, and while the God had been long forgotten, is there reference that she was actually dead?</blockquote>Other than Jindrack's response confirming so, you'd think there'd be a bit more mention of her, even in legend, if she was still alive to spread even the slightest bit of her influence outside of Silent City and the Living Tombs.

[Zarafein]

<p>Drinal could fit to anubis to some degree</p><p>from eq roleplaying game gamemaster guide:</p><b><p align="left">Drinal, The Silver Reaper</p></b><p align="left">Very few beings know ofThe Silver Reaper, associated with the</p><p align="left">gray moon seen from Norrath on all nights - Drinal. This moon</p><p align="left">was named after the spirit deity of night, destruction, and death</p><p align="left">by a humanoid tribe of nomads before the era of great cities and</p><p align="left">civilizations. Drinal, although representing that which is dark, is</p><p align="left">a neutral deity who represents the necessary end of the cycle of</p><p align="left">life. He does not maintain his watch over death out of malevolence,</p><p align="left">but out of the necessity for it to occur in order to fulfill the</p><p align="left">cycle of life. His Lujien followers personify Drinal as an upright</p><p align="left">white wolf whose paws, tail, and maw are midnight black. It is said</p><p align="left">that Drinal wields a silver sickle, the symbol of the crescent moon</p><p>that is most sacred to Drinal and his bestial worshipers.</p>

[Cusashorn]

Drinal isn't a god. It's a natural spirit of death and rebirth.

[Arianah]

<cite>Cusashorn wrote:</cite><blockquote>Drinal isn't a god. It's a natural spirit of death and rebirth.</blockquote>One doesn't have to be a god to be worshiped. <img src="/smilies/3b63d1616c5dfcf29f8a7a031aaa7cad.gif" border="0" alt="SMILEY" />

[Zarafein]

<p>who cares if drinal is a god? Drinal is a deity*points to topic name*</p>

[teddyboy4]

<cite>Lhangion@Innovation wrote:</cite><blockquote><p>who cares if drinal is a god? Drinal is a deity*points to topic name*</p></blockquote>There's a big difference between spirit and god. Further, the English word "deity" derives from the Latin <i>"dea"</i>, (goddess), and '<i>"deus"</i>, (god)So Drinal is not a deity/god, she/he is just the natural spirit representing death. In Norrath especially, there seems to be a clear line of what makes a god, and as far as I know Drinal was never included in the pantheon or defined as a god.Also, I think the revelation that Anashti Sul was in the pantheon at one point, in the role of Prime Healer, only to be cast down and replaced by Rodcet Nife is really neat. Rodcet Nife has always been something of a mystery and I would absolutely love some clarification on his/her/it's origins. I don't know if it's actually ever been confirmed, but from clues people have put together over the years, Rodcet Nife seems to have been an "outsider" or "alien", that came to Norrath from somewhere in space in his ship which now serves as the Priests Guild Hall in North Qeynos and then ascended to godhood and took his place in the pantheon as the Prime Healer. Now, I had always assumed that before Rodcet Nife there was no Prime Healer, and the position of such among the pantheon was created when he ascended, it's very interesting to find that this was not the case.It really makes me wonder if the current pantheon of gods were the first to fill each position, or were there others before them. We know that some of the gods, mainly the gods governing the elements, were created by the Nameless, and up until now many assumed that many of the gods of Influence were also created by the Nameless while some others ascended to god-hood. It would be very interesting to find out the origins of the rest of the gods.

[Cusashorn]

<cite>Eandiil@Lucan DLere wrote:</cite><blockquote>Also, I think the revelation that Anashti Sul was in the pantheon at one point, in the role of Prime Healer, only to be cast down and replaced by Rodcet Nife is really neat. Rodcet Nife has always been something of a mystery and I would absolutely love some clarification on his/her/it's origins. I don't know if it's actually ever been confirmed, but from clues people have put together over the years, Rodcet Nife seems to have been an "outsider" or "alien", that came to Norrath from somewhere in space in his ship which now serves as the Priests Guild Hall in North Qeynos and then ascended to godhood and took his place in the pantheon as the Prime Healer. Now, I had always assumed that before Rodcet Nife there was no Prime Healer, and the position of such among the pantheon was created when he ascended, it's very interesting to find that this was not the case.It really makes me wonder if the current pantheon of gods were the first to fill each position, or were there others before them. We know that some of the gods, mainly the gods governing the elements, were created by the Nameless, and up until now many assumed that many of the gods of Influence were also created by the Nameless while some others ascended to god-hood. It would be very interesting to find out the origins of the rest of the gods.</blockquote><p>Yeah, Rodcet Nife is still a big mystery. There's not much known about him since he doesn't get involved with a lot of Norrath's happenings. Neither Rodcet or Bertoxxulous are even mentioned in the Brief History of Norrath story that tells when the gods came about. We know that Veeshan herself is deffinitly the first of her domain, since she terraformed Norrath into the habitable place that it is.</p><p>Back in Everquest's Alpha and Beta, some players said they remembered when Rodcet Nife had come into the game, as they remember seeing the flying saucer flying around North Qeynos until it finally settled down in the Temple of Life.</p><p>The drawing of him from the pantheon's description show an alien-like figure, so him being a god was questionable. Kind of like a boss character from the Futurama video game on the PS2:</p><p>"Alright, you win. I admit it... I'm not a god. I'm just another immortal omnipotent alien..."</p><p>However, we know there is a Plane of Health, so that's good enough for me to know he's a god.</p>

[Gukkor2]

Drinal, along with Ehayae and Sahteb Mahlni, are typically classified as "spirit deities" in the lore.  They have characteristics of both natural spirits and what we would traditionally refer to as gods.  They can't be solidly defined as either.

[KniteShayd]

<cite>Cusashorn wrote:</cite><blockquote><cite>Eandiil@Lucan DLere wrote:</cite><blockquote>Also, I think the revelation that Anashti Sul was in the pantheon at one point, in the role of Prime Healer, only to be cast down and replaced by Rodcet Nife is really neat. Rodcet Nife has always been something of a mystery and I would absolutely love some clarification on his/her/it's origins. I don't know if it's actually ever been confirmed, but from clues people have put together over the years, Rodcet Nife seems to have been an "outsider" or "alien", that came to Norrath from somewhere in space in his ship which now serves as the Priests Guild Hall in North Qeynos and then ascended to godhood and took his place in the pantheon as the Prime Healer. Now, I had always assumed that before Rodcet Nife there was no Prime Healer, and the position of such among the pantheon was created when he ascended, it's very interesting to find that this was not the case.It really makes me wonder if the current pantheon of gods were the first to fill each position, or were there others before them. We know that some of the gods, mainly the gods governing the elements, were created by the Nameless, and up until now many assumed that many of the gods of Influence were also created by the Nameless while some others ascended to god-hood. It would be very interesting to find out the origins of the rest of the gods.</blockquote><p>Yeah, Rodcet Nife is still a big mystery. There's not much known about him since he doesn't get involved with a lot of Norrath's happenings. Neither Rodcet or Bertoxxulous are even mentioned in the Brief History of Norrath story that tells when the gods came about. We know that Veeshan herself is deffinitly the first of her domain, since she terraformed Norrath into the habitable place that it is.</p><p>Back in Everquest's Alpha and Beta, some players said they remembered when Rodcet Nife had come into the game, as they remember seeing the flying saucer flying around North Qeynos until it finally settled down in the Temple of Life.</p><p>The drawing of him from the pantheon's description show an alien-like figure, so him being a god was questionable. Kind of like a boss character from the Futurama video game on the PS2:</p><p>"Alright, you win. I admit it... I'm not a god. I'm just another immortal omnipotent alien..."</p><p>However, we know there is a Plane of Health, so that's good enough for me to know he's a god.</p></blockquote><p>Which leads to the question, If Anashti'Sul had fallen, and the reigns were handed to Rodcet, Was Rodcet <i>deified</i> or was he Just allowed to take over already being a diety?</p><p>Bertox's only mention, I recall, was during the War of Plagues. I know people get him confused with Cazic and the Green Mist.</p>

[TheKons]

<cite>Bandorn@Venekor wrote:</cite><blockquote><cite></cite>Which leads to the question, If Anashti'Sul had fallen, and the reigns were handed to Rodcet, Was Rodcet <i>deified</i> or was he Just allowed to take over already being a diety?<p>Bertox's only mention, I recall, was during the War of Plagues. I know people get him confused with Cazic and the Green Mist.</p></blockquote>Why would they?

[Cusashorn]

<cite>Lilii@Unrest wrote:</cite><blockquote><cite>Bandorn@Venekor wrote:</cite><blockquote><cite></cite>Which leads to the question, If Anashti'Sul had fallen, and the reigns were handed to Rodcet, Was Rodcet <i>deified</i> or was he Just allowed to take over already being a diety? <p>Bertox's only mention, I recall, was during the War of Plagues. I know people get him confused with Cazic and the Green Mist.</p></blockquote>Why would they?</blockquote>Because the Greenmist is basicly a fog of plague and death...

[TheKons]

Is there anywhere that it actually describes the way they died? The way I always though about it was the greenmist can be used by any god. The way the victims die is decided by the god itself, It could be a cloud that when it touches its victim they become over-run with fear and die by heart attack or something.  But, if the actual death is described somewhere I would love to read about it.

[Cusashorn]

<cite>Lilii@Unrest wrote:</cite><blockquote>Is there anywhere that it actually describes the way they died? The way I always though about it was the greenmist can be used by any god. The way the victims die is decided by the god itself, It could be a cloud that when it touches its victim they become over-run with fear and die by heart attack or something.  But, if the actual death is described somewhere I would love to read about it.</blockquote>That is true, but early stories of the Shissar from when Kunark was released in EQlive said that they died by means of being rotted away to the bone.

[Sylaz]

<cite>Cusashorn wrote:</cite><blockquote><cite>Lilii@Unrest wrote:</cite><blockquote>Is there anywhere that it actually describes the way they died? The way I always though about it was the greenmist can be used by any god. The way the victims die is decided by the god itself, It could be a cloud that when it touches its victim they become over-run with fear and die by heart attack or something.  But, if the actual death is described somewhere I would love to read about it.</blockquote>That is true, but early stories of the Shissar from when Kunark was released in EQlive said that they died by means of being rotted away to the bone.</blockquote> More specifically, "The first snakes to be swallowed by the mist had their scales and flesh rot and fall from their bones. Glorious screams of suffering could be heard from within the mist. A river of flesh and blood flowed. The Iksar stood and gazed upon the carnage that was once the Shissar." Sounds like something I'd like to watch one day.

[TheKons]

<cite>Sylaz wrote:</cite><blockquote><cite>Cusashorn wrote:</cite><blockquote><cite>Lilii@Unrest wrote:</cite><blockquote>Is there anywhere that it actually describes the way they died? The way I always though about it was the greenmist can be used by any god. The way the victims die is decided by the god itself, It could be a cloud that when it touches its victim they become over-run with fear and die by heart attack or something.  But, if the actual death is described somewhere I would love to read about it.</blockquote>That is true, but early stories of the Shissar from when Kunark was released in EQlive said that they died by means of being rotted away to the bone.</blockquote> More specifically, "The first snakes to be swallowed by the mist had their scales and flesh rot and fall from their bones. Glorious screams of suffering could be heard from within the mist. A river of flesh and blood flowed. The Iksar stood and gazed upon the carnage that was once the Shissar." Sounds like something I'd like to watch one day.</blockquote>Good enough for me, and I agree, that would be a sight

[KniteShayd]

<cite>Cusashorn wrote:</cite><blockquote><cite>Lilii@Unrest wrote:</cite><blockquote><cite>Bandorn@Venekor wrote:</cite><blockquote><cite></cite>Which leads to the question, If Anashti'Sul had fallen, and the reigns were handed to Rodcet, Was Rodcet <i>deified</i> or was he Just allowed to take over already being a diety? <p>Bertox's only mention, I recall, was during the War of Plagues. I know people get him confused with Cazic and the Green Mist.</p></blockquote>Why would they?</blockquote>Because the Greenmist is basicly a fog of plague and death...</blockquote>exactly

[KniteShayd]

<cite>Lilii@Unrest wrote:</cite><blockquote><cite>Sylaz wrote:</cite><blockquote><cite>Cusashorn wrote:</cite><blockquote><cite>Lilii@Unrest wrote:</cite><blockquote>Is there anywhere that it actually describes the way they died? The way I always though about it was the greenmist can be used by any god. The way the victims die is decided by the god itself, It could be a cloud that when it touches its victim they become over-run with fear and die by heart attack or something.  But, if the actual death is described somewhere I would love to read about it.</blockquote>That is true, but early stories of the Shissar from when Kunark was released in EQlive said that they died by means of being rotted away to the bone.</blockquote>More specifically, "The first snakes to be swallowed by the mist had their scales and flesh rot and fall from their bones. Glorious screams of suffering could be heard from within the mist. A river of flesh and blood flowed. The Iksar stood and gazed upon the carnage that was once the Shissar."Sounds like something I'd like to watch one day.</blockquote>Good enough for me, and I agree, that would be a sight</blockquote>Faces of Death: Norrathian style

[DeBasilisk]

Ok, so if Anashti was punished for her misdoings and sentenced to non-existence, and Rodcet was then appointed to take her place, that implies to me that there is some kind of determined organization of the pantheon. This seems strange to me.Are the gods obliged to perform their functions? By whom?Are there many candidates out there ready to apply for the job if another retires? Does there have to be god of war, growth, fear etc.?Imagine: Bertox accidentally heals someone important rather than infecting them with some horrible illness: sentence, non-existence. And, to balance the pantheon, the keys to the Plane of Disease are handed to.....Fippy Darkpaw!

[Gukkor2]

<cite>DeBasilisk wrote:</cite><blockquote>Ok, so if Anashti was punished for her misdoings and sentenced to non-existence, and Rodcet was then appointed to take her place, that implies to me that there is some kind of determined organization of the pantheon. This seems strange to me.Are the gods obliged to perform their functions? By whom?Are there many candidates out there ready to apply for the job if another retires? Does there have to be god of war, growth, fear etc.?Imagine: Bertox accidentally heals someone important rather than infecting them with some horrible illness: sentence, non-existence. And, to balance the pantheon, the keys to the Plane of Disease are handed to.....Fippy Darkpaw!</blockquote>I don't think such organization is established in any concrete sense, though it may be the case for some seats of the pantheon.  The primary examples of gods who break this rule, though, would be the Marr twins.  They were not born with their domains, but were instead sent to Norrath by their father to experience mortal life and use that experience as inspiration to claim domains of their own, which they did..

[Arianah]

Kind of off topic but aye, the deities got to where they are in different ways.Bertoxxulous, from my understanding was born and then demanded to be treated as a god, and became the god of Disease etc.I'm not sure he's a demi-god here, but on EQ1 Mayong Mistmoore worked towards becoming a demi-god, and stole the Plane of Music and made it his own.Mithaniel and Erollisi Marr were the children of Tarew Marr, neither had something to be a god/dess of, and so set forth (on their own acutally, their father didn't send them out) to find what they were drawn to. Erollisi found herself amongst the elves, where she learned of love. Mithaniel learned of valor when the Frogloks and Barbarians (children of the Marr's) rescued him from Cazic-Thule and Terris-Thule.These are just the ones I know of off the top of my head.

[Gukkor2]

<cite>Arianah wrote:</cite><blockquote>Kind of off topic but aye, the deities got to where they are in different ways.Bertoxxulous, from my understanding was born and then demanded to be treated as a god, and became the god of Disease etc.I'm not sure he's a demi-god here, but on EQ1 Mayong Mistmoore worked towards becoming a demi-god, and stole the Plane of Music and made it his own.Mithaniel and Erollisi Marr were the children of Tarew Marr, neither had something to be a god/dess of, and so set forth (on their own acutally, their father didn't send them out) to find what they were drawn to. Erollisi found herself amongst the elves, where she learned of love. Mithaniel learned of valor when the Frogloks and Barbarians (children of the Marr's) rescued him from Cazic-Thule and Terris-Thule.These are just the ones I know of off the top of my head.</blockquote>Double-checked, and you are correct, the Marr twins did indeed set out of their own accord.  My mistake.

[Cusashorn]

<p>Perhaps Anashti Sul was destroyed because she tried to step outside her boundaries as a god and force her influence on everyone else in the world or something. Instead of just being the God of health, she tried to take over other domains of physical and emotional properties that didn't even closely resemble her position.</p><p>Kind of what Rallos Zek, Innoruuk, and even Solusek Ro have done from time to time, only much more severe.</p>

[Gukkor2]

<cite>Cusashorn wrote:</cite><blockquote><p>Perhaps Anashti Sul was destroyed because she tried to step outside her boundaries as a god and force her influence on everyone else in the world or something. Instead of just being the God of health, she tried to take over other domains of physical and emotional properties that didn't even closely resemble her position.</p><p>Kind of what Rallos Zek, Innoruuk, and even Solusek Ro have done from time to time, only much more severe.</p></blockquote>And Mistmoore, though of course he wasn't supposed to even be a god in the first place.

[Apocroph]

<cite>Arianah wrote:</cite><blockquote>Bertoxxulous, from my understanding was born and then demanded to be treated as a god, and became the god of Disease etc.</blockquote>Sorta semantics here, but Bertoxxulous didn't really demand the Xulous treat him as a god so much as he duped them into doing it.  He chose to manifest through the corpses of their honored dead, rather than in his own physical form, so I'd say it was more subtle coercion than brute force.

[Gukkor2]

<cite>kuraan wrote:</cite><blockquote><cite>Arianah wrote:</cite><blockquote>Bertoxxulous, from my understanding was born and then demanded to be treated as a god, and became the god of Disease etc.</blockquote>Sorta semantics here, but Bertoxxulous didn't really demand the Xulous treat him as a god so much as he duped them into doing it.  He chose to manifest through the corpses of their honored dead, rather than in his own physical form, so I'd say it was more subtle coercion than brute force.</blockquote>Yeah, considering how many of his followers are completely insane, Bertoxxulous himself can actually be pretty intelligent and calculating when he wants to be.

[Arianah]

<cite>kuraan wrote:</cite><blockquote><cite>Arianah wrote:</cite><blockquote>Bertoxxulous, from my understanding was born and then demanded to be treated as a god, and became the god of Disease etc.</blockquote>Sorta semantics here, but Bertoxxulous didn't really demand the Xulous treat him as a god so much as he duped them into doing it.  He chose to manifest through the corpses of their honored dead, rather than in his own physical form, so I'd say it was more subtle coercion than brute force.</blockquote>Here's some snippets from the book The Necropolis of Lxanvon:<i>"a festering evil began to take over the lowest bowels of the crypts of the kings.""As years passed, the evil presence in the bowels of Lxanvon grew stronger, and there, within the rotting kings, Bertoxxulous was born.""Bertoxxulous, donning the decaying bodies of the dead Xulous nobles, appeared before these royal priests <b>demanding obedience, reverence, and sacrifices</b>.""Bertoxxulous deceived and corrupted the minds of the royal priests and their allegiance belonged to the Lord of Death and Decay above their living kings."</i>So yeah, we're both probably right, though it says he was donning the bod<i>ies</i> of their dead nobles (I was going to say they probably just thought he was a king risen from the dead until I saw the plural...). But he did demand to be treated as a god, as you can see.  <img src="/smilies/3b63d1616c5dfcf29f8a7a031aaa7cad.gif" border="0" alt="SMILEY" />

[KniteShayd]

<cite>Gukkor2 wrote:</cite><blockquote><cite>Cusashorn wrote:</cite><blockquote><p>Perhaps Anashti Sul was destroyed because she tried to step outside her boundaries as a god and force her influence on everyone else in the world or something. Instead of just being the God of health, she tried to take over other domains of physical and emotional properties that didn't even closely resemble her position.</p><p>Kind of what Rallos Zek, Innoruuk, and even Solusek Ro have done from time to time, only much more severe.</p></blockquote>And Mistmoore, though of course he wasn't supposed to even be a god in the first place.</blockquote>And neither was Zeb, but he found away to become one, or not in our timeline.  Speaking of, didn't Mistmoore have an interest in him because of that?

[Apocroph]

<cite>Bandorn@Venekor wrote:</cite><blockquote><cite></cite>And neither was Zeb, but he found away to become one, or not in our timeline.  Speaking of, didn't Mistmoore have an interest in him because of that?</blockquote>Zeb has always been the Ungod...  well, ever since he figured out the secret to undoing divinity.

[Gukkor2]

<cite>Bandorn@Venekor wrote:</cite><blockquote><cite>Gukkor2 wrote:</cite><blockquote><cite>Cusashorn wrote:</cite><blockquote><p>Perhaps Anashti Sul was destroyed because she tried to step outside her boundaries as a god and force her influence on everyone else in the world or something. Instead of just being the God of health, she tried to take over other domains of physical and emotional properties that didn't even closely resemble her position.</p><p>Kind of what Rallos Zek, Innoruuk, and even Solusek Ro have done from time to time, only much more severe.</p></blockquote>And Mistmoore, though of course he wasn't supposed to even be a god in the first place.</blockquote>And neither was Zeb, but he found away to become one, or not in our timeline.  Speaking of, didn't Mistmoore have an interest in him because of that?</blockquote>Zebuxoruk's a god in EQ2's timeline, just as he is in EQ1.

[Wilde_Night]

I thought with the Fallen Dynasty pack he's mortal once more.

[Cusashorn]

<cite>Aeviel@Venekor wrote:</cite><blockquote>I thought with the Fallen Dynasty pack he's mortal once more.</blockquote>He has changed back and forth many times over the course of his existance. He realized that he was once again a god when you released his memories, but he will no doubt be sent back to mortal status sometime sooner or later again.

[Gisallo]

<cite>Gukkor2 wrote:</cite><blockquote>Drinal, along with Ehayae and Sahteb Mahlni, are typically classified as "spirit deities" in the lore.  They have characteristics of both natural spirits and what we would traditionally refer to as gods.  They can't be solidly defined as either.</blockquote><p>I think that brings us to the classic "history is written by the victors."  If your society is on top then your god(s) are gods.  If you even bother to acknowledge the "lesser" other culture's deities they are relegated to the place of Saints, Spirits, demi-gods or even demons etc.  As they said Drinal was worshipped before the cities were even built, but such cultures are now the "losers".  Also when you look at Shamanistic faiths in RL they often use the term "spirit" rather than god because the diety is clearly an anthropromorphization of a natural primal concept, sometimes even primal in its intelligence, a true force of nature.  You real don't have cultures making them "gods", "dieties" etc. until they start taking bits of the primal out and putting bits of ourselves into the god to make them more like us, the whole "we were created in his/her image" stuff or "they consorted with comely women" (alla Zeus) etc.</p><p>I </p>