Llymlaen

Llymlaen is the goddess of travel, in particular over the sea. She is the patron of mariners and fishers, invoked for the safe return and the bountiful catch. Despite her association with the sea, she is considered to be a goddess with power over the winds. She is a major goddess in most human cultures, particularly seafaring ones. Halflings worship her as a protector of travelers, so they can return home safely, and elven culture places emphasis on her love of freedom and knowledge of navigation and nature. Her epithets include the Navigator and Watcher of the Seas.

Symbols and Depictions

Llymlaen is symbolized by the wave, often drawn simply as a triangle with a curling tip. The compass rose is her symbol as well as ships and sails. Driftwood is sacred to her, particularly if it is from a shipwreck, as it represents her sorrow for those who do not heed her warnings. The long harpoon is considered her sacred weapon, and she often is shown wielding it in drawings and carvings.

She always appears and is depicted as female. Although like all deities, Llymlaen can choose her appearance on the Material Plane, she most often appears as muscular human with weather-tanned skin and short sun-bleached hair - although she has also been recorded appearing as a half-orc, halfling, or rarely, triton.

Worship

Llymlaen has several temples in the Vale, including Redford, East Isle, Seashire, Rivey, and Griffinsgate. Her major holy day, the Festival of Five Fishes, takes place in early April.

Myths

Llymlaen's demiplane is the Far Harbor, a remote seaside village accessible only by passing through a narrow strait at the one point where Elysium and Arborea meet. She is said to be the only sailor capable of navigating the dangers that exist on either side of the strait - or those to whom she has given her blessing. However, she is said to primarily reside with her children Nald and Thal and her husband Bifelgan, in his demiplane, the Sigilant Market.

Llymlaen is the daughter of Thaliak and Oschon, born from the union of the knowledge Oschon brings back to Thaliak from his wanderings. From her fathers, she understands the relationship between the mountains, plains, rivers, and seas that shape the world and how the wind moves through them.

There are few gods Llymlaen has not ferried more than once to various planar destinations. Even if the god sets out alone, they often seek her advice and knowledge. It's said that she alone has travelled through every plane, going where even her father Oschon dares not.

One myth recounts how Bifelgan hired her to carry him over the Astral Sea in her ship and guide him through the winds of Pandaemonium to Ysgard. During their journey, he fell hopelessly in love with the brave woman who risked life and limb to get him to his destination. He hired her again and again to be his guide, and after many journeys together through the various planes, she admitted to returning his feelings, although she was unwilling to give up her traveling life. When he set out to find the perfect gift for her, he found himself hopelessly lost in Gehenna, trapped by Baphomet; it was her greatest challenge yet to find and rescue him, then find her way back home again.

She later married him and bore twin sons, Nald and Thal. As she was traveling when they were born, she swaddled them in sailcloth, which is why it is sacred to her. As a goddess with children, mothers under stress sometimes make offerings to her to protect and guide them. However, she has never truly settled down, often leaving Bifelgan and the twins behind (or taking them with her).

Llymlaen's rivalry with Baphomet, the Horned King, stems from his love of mazes and labyrinths and her ability to escape any trap he creates. Her navigation skills frustrated him so much that when he had the opportunity, he trapped her lover, Bifelgan, within a maze in Gehenna.