Melathea

Greater Deity

Symbol: Ash Leaf

Alignment: Chaotic Good

Portfolio: Elves, plants, kindness, stark screaming insanity

Worshipers: Elves, barbarians, druids, the mad, gardeners

Cleric Alignments: NG, CG, CN

Domains: Good, Plant, Madness

Favored Weapon: Sickle

Description:

Most of the old gods, the alien immortals whose very presence can destroy the minds of mortals, are dead or sleeping due to the erosion of their domains; when a god's responsibilities become irrelevant, so does the god. Those few old gods who are still active are evil gods whose portfolios include dark impulses than mortals can hide but never truly eliminate. There is one exception: Melathea, goddess of kindness, elves and plant life. Fortunately for Melathea, her domains have survived into the modern age (albeit just barely), and so she maintains her position in the pantheon.

Melathea's innocuous portfolio doesn't make her any less alien, and this is a continual problem for the elves. The goddess is happy to provide her people with aid, visions and even rare personal audiences, but her freakishly pleasant demeanor and the alien geometry of her hedge sculptures are enough to drive even the most nature-loving elf to babbling madness. Realizing that she is one of the last of a dying breed, Melathea is active and generous in defending her portfolio, but when it comes to the trade disputes and political intrigue that have plagued the elves, the attention of an unspeakable horror (however kind) is not always an asset.