Alphatia

(Lady of Peace)

Lesser Power of Elysium, LG/Celestial of Energy, L

In her mortal life, Alphatia was Aasla, a common Alphatian woman. She was born in Old Alphatia and traveled to Mystara together with other Alphatians when the old empire was destroyed. Aasla and her followers founded a new city (named after herself) on their new continent. In the next 200 years, the city of Aasla and the kingdom of Haven were transformed into a place of beauty, civilization, and art. Thus Aasla became the Immortal Alphatia.

The Church

Dogma: Alphatia believes in a peaceful existence, enriched by beauty and artistry. She abhors violence and wars, and encourages her followers to speak for peace in the Alphatian Empire. This is not to say that her followers cannot fight - they are merely not allowed to initiate violence of any kind, except to defend themselves or those under their protection. Even then, they must strive not to slay their opponents, unless no other alternative presents itself. Followers of Alphatia are also encouraged to engage in artistic pursuits whenever possible, and they are absolutely forbidden to damage any beautiful or artistic things. Needless to say, followers of Alphatia are extremely hostile to the followers of Alphaks, and the Immortal often looks the other way if her followers initiate hostilities against Alphaksans.
Day-to-Day Activities: Alphatia's priests spend their time in quiet study or creation of art. They are not required to spend every single moment of their day doing that, merely when it is possible and when inspiration strikes them. They also travel around the world, observing and admiring the beatiful arts of other people and cultures. The priests are also a force for peace in the Alphatian Empire, and they have several members of the clergy in the Grand Council; these members advocate peace and speak out against expansionistic wars.
Important Ceremonies/Holy Days: The 11th of Vatermont marks the foundation of the city of Aasla. It is considered a holy day by Alphatia's clergy, and on this day they are visited by divine inspiration that allows them to create especially fine works of whatever art they like most. Obviously, this day sees the creation of a lot of beautiful things throughout the Alphatian Empire.
Major Centers of Worship: Alphatia is worshipped mostly by common folk in all regions of Alphatian Empire except Esterhold. More imperialistic Alphatians scoff at her followers, but she is nonetheless a patron of all Alphatian people. Alphatia also acts as one of the protectors of Gentle Folk elves in the Hollow World. In Sind, she is known as Latehani, patroness of pacifism, and has a following among the lower castes and among the Kei mystics.
Affiliated Orders: As mentioned above, the Kei mystics of Sind take a major part of their philosophy from the teachings of Alphatia (Latehani). They emphasize self-defense by being out of the blow's way before it lands. In Aasla, the Society of Artistic Devotion is an art club whose members share their artistic insights with each other and undertake joint projects to create particularly extensive works of art. The wizardess Mylertendal is the Society's most prominent member.
Priestly Vestments: Alphatia's priests wear ceremonial robes that must contain all colors of the spectrum somewhere on their surface. The colors can be arranged into any sort of images, or just be mixed together randomly (though with artistic sense).
Adventuring Garb: When adventuring, priests of Alphatia also strive to have all colors visible on their clothing somewhere. If they carry shields, these are often colored to represent the likeness of Alphatia's symbol (and can be used as a holy symbol in spellcasting).

Alphatian Spells

Artistic Inspiration (Enchantment)
Level: 2
Sphere: Charm
Range: Touch
Components: V, S
Duration: 1 day/level
Casting Time: 1r
Area of Effect: 1 creature
Saving Throw: None
This spell instills a willing target creature with divine inspiration, prompting him to create art objects. For the duration of the spell, the creature gains +4 bonuses to all artistic proficiencies, and on the roll of 3 or less he creates a truly masterful work of art. During the time the spell is in effect, the creature will feel an urge to create art objects, but is not in any way forced to do so. Multiple works of art can be created with the above bonuses as long as the spell persists. Only willing creatures who are capable of creating art can be affected (thus most animals and mindless creatures are excluded); undead are also not affected. The spell does not make the target change his views on what constitutes art; thus, works of art created by an orc would likely be quite strange to most humans, while works of art created by a mind flayer would probably include elements that are abhorrent to members of other races (the priest should be careful in such cases lest he himself become part of the art object).

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