Category:Religion and Belief

The people of the Old World recognise many deities. Some are worshipped across the whole of the Old World; some are restricted to one nation or region; and some are patrons of just a single town or occupation.

Gods of the Empire

In the Empire, the pantheon of gods is split into three broad categories: the Old Gods, the Classical Gods, and the Provincial Gods. Standing apart from these is Sigmar, the first Emperor, and patron deity of the Empire as a whole.

The Old Gods

The Old Gods refer to the pantheon of deities worshipped when the Empire was unbroken forest populated by wandering tribes of barbarians. Many Old Gods stood as patrons to one of the tribes, and to this day some are still associated with the old geographical hunting grounds of those ancient peoples. Although few say so out loud, many citizens of the Empire regard the Old Gods as the true deities of the Empire, and the Classical Gods as relative newcomers.

As time passed, five gods rose to prominence amongst the Old Gods, worshipped by dominant cults spread from one end of the Empire to the other: Ulric, Taal, Rhya, Manaan, and Morr, representing the primal spheres of war, nature, fertility, seas, and death.

The Classical Gods

The Classical Gods spread from the southern lands of Tilea, Estalia, and the Border Princes through trade and diplomatic contact. Today, their worship is popular in the cosmopolitan towns and cities, and some nobles and townsfolk secretly regard them as more sophisticated than the Old Gods — though few would risk voicing such opinions aloud!

The most widespread cults of Classical Gods in the Empire are dedicated to Verena, Myrmidia, Shallya, and Ranald, patrons of wisdom, strategy, mercy, and trickery. Hiding behind these, there is also Khaine, the God of Murder, though his cult is outlawed in most places.

The Provincial Gods

The Empire hosts a wide variety of deities — patrons of provinces, towns, forests, lakes, rivers, crafts, and much more besides. Formed into complicated pantheons by local legends and myths, the Provincial Gods often have small cults dedicated to them, but few have much influence. However, there are exceptions: standing high above other Provincial Gods, worship of Handrich, the God of Trade, has spread significantly with commerce and now boasts a significant cult-presence amongst the Empire’s rising merchant class.

Sigmar

Sigmar founded the Empire over two-thousand years ago, and his legend recounts how he conquered unthinkable foes and overcame impossible odds. Reigning for fifty years, he eventually abdicated and turned east to return his magical warhammer, Ghal-Maraz, to its forgers: his old allies, the Dwarfs. He was never seen again. Not long after, oracles and prophets claimed Sigmar had ascended to godhood, invested by Ulric before the entire pantheon of old gods and new. Today, many centuries later, the cult of Sigmar, patron of the Empire, has spread to such an extent that its leader, the Grand Theogonist, is arguably more powerful than the emperor himself.

Other Pantheons

The different countries and species of the Old World all have deities of their own. Some, according to theologians, are aspects of other deities worshipped under different names. Others are particularly revered by a particular species: examples include Grungni, the Dwarfen God of Mining and Dwarf Pride; Isha, a Goddess of Fertility and Nature who is seen as the mother of all Elves; and Esmerelda, the Halfling Goddess of Hearth, Home, and Family.

The Chaos Gods

The Daemonic gods of the Realms of Chaos are the greatest threat to the Old World, each determined to bring absolute ruin to the mortal realm. Their worship by lost and damned souls is pervasive and clandestine, with uncounted dark cultists infiltrating all levels of society. Khorne, Nurgle, Tzeentch, and Slaanesh: Gods of Rage, Despair, Ambition, and Excess. Few dare whisper their twisting names, for they harbour malevolent power, and leave mutation and horror in their wake. They are known as the Ruinous Powers for a very specific reason.