Taliasha

Pronounced Tah-lee-AH-shah; AKA The Vow that Binds, Bloody Vengeance, She of Countless Partners

SN goddess of matrimony, home, lycanthropes, and revenge

Domains (PF 1e) Charm (Love), Community (Cooperation, Family, Home), Death (Murder), Law (Judgement, Loyalty), Protection (Fortifications, Purity)

Domains (D&D 5e) Life, Nature, Order, Peace, War

Favored Weapon fauchard;

Symbol two conjoined silver rings;

Sacred Animal wolf;

Sacred Colours red, silver

Holy Text The Binding Vows;

Holy Days All weddings where vows are exchanged, Reswearing (a day much like a wedding anniversary but more of a communal celebration,) Night of the Vengeful Hunt (historically, a day where wronged marriage partners seek violent revenge, but now mostly replaced by a tradition of expressing grievances and reconciliation)

Realm Tallwood Park, Gigaopolis

Allies

Enemies

Subordinates

Herald Howling Promise

Minions Wedlock wraiths, risen lycans

Worshippers wedding-goers, lycanthropes, betrayed lovers, polyamorists

Temples

Description

Taliasha is often depicted as a human woman from the neck down with a red haired wolf's head and dressed in a simple white tunic. She usually carries a wicked looking spear and a pair of wolves tied together by their feet with a ribbon. She is most famous for being the deity who created matrimony and protects the homes of couples and families. She holds marriage to be a sacred oath. Any who break their wedding vows find divine retribution. In depictions of her dealing with adultery, her mouth is filled with the adulterer’s gore and her clothes are stained in their blood. In depictions of her protecting the homes of lovers or families, she is just as violent, but the ones she protects are always safe and happy in their homes. At weddings, she is always depicted looking expectantly at the happy couple, hidden nearby.

Taliasha is a deity without a sense of morality but holds true to a promise she made long ago to protect the sanctity and safety of marriage and married couples. Those who seek to worship her are almost always soon to be wed. Even at weddings where the ceremony is held under the customs of another religion, it is offensive to not offer at least a cup of wine to the Oath that Binds. In more traditional marriages dedicated under her name though, a goat or chicken is the most common sacrifice.

It is said that she herself has innumerable husbands and wives. She is accepting of any marriage to another person so long as it doesn't break the vows of another and both participants are able to consent to it when the vows are made. The tale of the first marriage says that she was once a warrior and a monster that went from village to village only seeking to fulfill her needs and desires. She tore a bloody path across the countryside until, one day, she fought an unnamed hero who she defeated but only by a hair. She was so impressed by that warrior that she vowed that they would live together forever and that she would protect them and their marriage forever. Soon after, she vowed to uphold all marriages and, soon after that, she became a god after defeating an indescribable monster attacking a family home.

Lycanthropy is ancient but it is unclear whether or not she is a lycanthrope herself, if she is related to the origins of lycanthropy, or if lycanthropes only later adopted her as a symbol. There are tales of her defeating and marrying the King of Werewolves, but the accuracy of the tale and the question as to who that is, exactly, is entirely unclear. Lycanthropes that worship Taliasha tend to live as unknown protectors of remote villages and are seen as a good sign. Many wandering unaware or evil lycanthropes are mistaken as signs of Taliasha's blessing, which can lead to a village's doom.

Obedience

For those who are married, hold hands with your partner and shout your vows of matrimony out loud in a short ceremony dedicated to Taliasha. For those that are seeking marriage, offer a gift to someone you are romantically interested in or, if none are available, someone you wouldn't mind marrying. For those that are neither married nor seeking marriage, repair a fence or wall protecting a married couple's home or protect a married family from danger. Regardless, you must then sacrifice an animal that you defeated to prove your strength and if you witness adultery, you must either beat the adulterer unconscious or kill them and bring them to their partner and report the adultery. Gain a +1 sacred or profane bonus on attack rolls with a fauchard.