Cults of Stygia: Vouruska, the Seafarer

Vouruska, the Seafarer

Cult of Vouruska, the Seafarer, of the Nine Immortals (Stygian, Theistic)
Vouruska, the Seafarer, is one of the Nine Immortals of Stygia, Mistress of the Deep, Storm Witch, the Wave Rider, the Golden Khursar. Vouruska was reputedly a Hyperborean pirate queen, hot tempered and filled with wanderlust, who sailed the world ocean, took Mazda, the Firewalker, as a consort and captain, and taught the nomadic Stygians the ways of the sea, putting them on the path to their new home in Borea. It is said the site of the Lagoon Temple in Rhages, Stygia's oldest city, was once Vouruska's pirate haven, which she gave over to her favorite consort as a gift for his people.

Today, Vouruska sleeps beneath the waves, held in the icy embrace of the world ocean, dreaming of violent storms and the riding of sea swells, waiting to be awoken by Mazda and the other Immortals so that she can turn the fury of the deep against the Oncoming Darkness and destroy the Lie in the furthest recesses of its emptiness.

Vouruska has no formal priesthood. Instead, her temples, shrines, and coastal holy sites are commissioned and maintained by those who find their livelihood on the world ocean: sailors and sea captains, pirates, and merchants. Those who desire a deeper connection with the Immortal seek out Vouruska's khusars, itinerant pirate priestesses found wherever ships ply the open sea, for further instruction in Vouruska's mysteries. After all, when one travels the world ocean, one must pay the proper respects to the Seafarer, lest she bring you forever into her watery embrace.

Nature and Aspects
Mistress of the Deep, Storm Witch, the Wave Rider, the Golden Khursar

Lay Members
Standard Skills: Boating, Swim
Professional Skills: Devotion, Exhort, Navigation, Seamanship
Folk Magic: Breath, Calculate, Dry, Repair

Initiates, Acolytes, Heroes, Priests
Initiate Miracles: Breathe Water, Dismiss Elemental, Predict Weather*, Summon Elemental, Water Eyes*
Acolyte Miracles: Call Winds, Propitiate, Strength of the Sea*, Thunderclap
Hero/Priest Miracles: Extension
Gifts: Wellspring (Priests only)
* denotes new miracle

New Miracles
Predict Weather
Area (Tens of Kilometers), Duration (Instant), Rank Initiate
When this spell is cast, the user can know approximately what the natural weather will be like for the next 24 hours. This spell cannot account for the actions of storm demons or the use of weather-affecting spells.
Adapted from Gods of Glorantha Cults Book (Chaosium, 1985), pg. 31.

Strength of the Sea
Duration (Hours), Rank Acolyte
This spell doubles the target’s base STR, with no restrictions on maximum limit. The target must be in contact with seawater when the spell is cast.
Adapted from Gods of Glorantha Cults Book (Chaosium, 1985), pg. 73.

Water Eyes
Area (Tens of Meters), Duration (Hours), Rank Acolyte
This spell allows the user to see through water as if looking through air (or vice versa, for water-dwellers). It accurately eliminates all reflections and refractions. If the water is murky, or the air foggy or smoky, the spell will not render the medium transparent.
Adapted from Gods of Glorantha Cults Book (Chaosium, 1985), pg. 64.

Cults of Stygia: Mazda, the Firewalker

Mazda, the Firewalker

Cult of Mazda, the Firewalker, of the Nine Immortals (Stygian, Theistic)
Mazda, the Firewalker, is the First Among All of the Nine Immortals, the Flame of Truth, the Sword of Light. It was Mazda who took the Stygian peoples to the sea and brought them to Borea. Founder of Xiras, the old Stygian capital city, and builder of the Great House of Fire, the Firewalker was also the Great Smith of the old Stygian Empire, laying an iron foundation forged in the hottest fires that, in the end, bowed only to the Witch-Kings of Vanor.

Today, he sleeps the Immortal Sleep, the Deep Dreaming, somewhere in the maze-like catacombs of the Great House of Fire, waiting for his time of need, waiting for the End of All, the Oncoming Darkness, so he can awaken again with his fellow Immortals and vanquish the Lie once and for all.

Cultists of Mazda make the proper Mazdic offerings of fire and water, promote justice and righteousness throughout Stygia, and teach the guiding principles of the Mazdic Rites, an ancient set of proscriptions, rituals, and procedures from before used to prepare the Stygian people for the struggle against the Oncoming Darkness. As the vanguard of this struggle, Mazdic priests also craft and stockpile weapons and armor for the Great Battle at the End of All, which has a nice side benefit of providing a steady income for the cult.

The Bull Processionary, Great House of Fire, Xiras

Aspects
The Judge, The Smith, The Flame of Truth, The Sword of Light

Lay Members
Standard Skills: Insight, Perception
Professional Skills: Devotion, Exhort, Lore (the Nine Immortals)
Folk Magic: Avert, Firearrow, Fireblade, Light

Initiates, Acolytes, Heroes, Priests
Initiate Miracles: See the Light (Cure Blindness), Forged in Flame (Sacred Band), Steadfast, Sunspear, True Sword
Acolyte Miracles: Consecrate, Judgment (Omen, from Monster Island)
Hero/Priest Miracles: Excommunicate, Rain of Fire
Gifts: Reincarnation (Priests only)

The Tiered Altar, Chamber of the Eternal Flame, Great House of Fire, Xiras