Winnehild

Winnehild is the goddess of war. This includes the study of tactics and strategy, and martial skill and general physical prowess also fall into her domain. Winnehild glories in combat and favors those who seek ever greater challenges. As the goddess of war, she is invoked by those seeking victory on the battlefield, though her appearance in times of peace can also herald a coming struggle. She is worshipped by orcs as a goddess of war, but also by dwarves and gnomes as a cunning tactician. Her epithets include Warmaster and Warbringer.

Symbols and Depictions

Winnehild always appears and is depicted as female. Her preferred appearance is that of a human in her physical prime, with chin-length red hair and a suit of armor that leaves her arms free. Although, because like all deities Winnehild can choose her appearance on the Material Plane, she has also been known to appear as an orc, dwarf, or gnome.

Most notably, Winnehild is depicted as having up to two extra pairs of arms, with each of her six arms wielding a different weapon. Each weapon corresponds to a mundane or celestial animal that is considered sacred to her. Depending on the depiction, these animals are both her messengers or representatives, and then become the very weapons she wields.

• Liondog - the longsword
• Tiger - the greataxe
• Qilin - the spear
• Crow - the dagger
• Fox - the quarterstaff
• Phoenix - the bow

Worship

Winnehild's formal temples are few and far between. She has no known major festivals, nor a recorded liturgy or canon. There is a conspicuous lack of codified tradition, lending credence to her apotheosis myth. If prayers are made to her, she is more likely to send one of her animal companions to intercede for her on the supplicant's behalf.

Because of this, it is said that she values deed more than thought. She favors those who honor her animal companions, who fell in battle for her. Warriors who seek her favor often bring a symbol of an animal companion into battle, such as wearing a tiger claw necklace or braiding a crow or phoenix feather into their hair, carrying her companions into battle as she did.

Myths

Winnehild's demiplane, the Battlefield Eternale, lies adjacent to Ysgard and Acheron. It is a land of unending combat against all manner of opponents.

One myth depicts Winnehild as a mortal adventurer who achieved an apotheosis. During her journeys, she befriended all manner of creatures great and small and from them learned to master all kinds of fighting styles and weaponry. When she fell in battle defending an innocent child, her six companions sacrificed themselves to allow the child to escape. For their great deeds, Winnehild and her companions were raised to godhood. Notably, origin myths concerning Winnehild are few and far between, so this may have some basis in fact. It also makes her a favored god of rangers.

Halone is Winnehild's bitter rival, as her cold, warlike nature and her relation to her father, Balogar, earned her some worship as a war goddess. Despite this, Winnehild does not appear to give much thought to the rivalry.

She is said to gather the souls of those fallen heroically in battle. These warriors fight each other in various arrangements and armies on the Battlefield Eternale, sometimes under Winnehild's command and sometimes against her.

When Althyk dies at the end of time, she will give a great cry as she leads the warriors' souls into battle in the War To End All Wars. Her goal is to buy time for the other gods to lay to rest Althyk and the world, lest it become a hellscape of eternal stagnation and entropy.