Erathis, the Lawbearer, is the goddess of civilization and laws. She is commonly worshiped by leaders and judges.[3]
Appearance and symbols[]
The Lawbearer is shown as a hooded, armored woman sitting atop a throne or a throne of pillars, her face obscured or expressionless. She is often depicted with light brown skin and a strong but lithe body.[3][4] She is described as one of the two most dutiful and self-sacrificing of the Prime Deities, alongside Bahamut.[5]
Places of worship[]
Issylra[]
The Lawbearer is worshiped by the denizens of the Quadroads District in Vasselheim.[6] Her temple is called the Crown of Erathis;[7] the Holy Paramours of the Crown of Erathis approve magically-binding[8] contracts under which the Slayer's Take hunts monsters and other creatures around Vasselheim.[9][10][11]
Her temple in Vasselheim also keeps texts recording times near the Founding, referencing the existence of two forgotten deities of the Exandrian pantheon, as well as a time prior to the creation of Ruidus. These texts, however, were stolen by agents of the Grim Verity.[12]
Tal'Dorei[]
Erathis is one of the most worshiped gods across Tal'Dorei, from the Lucidian Coast, across the Dividing Plains to the Bladeshimmer Shoreline, and down in the Rifenmist Peninsula (outside the Iron Authority, which is devoted to Bane).[13] The cathedral to Erathis is one of the two biggest in Emon's Temple District,[14] and a dual statue of Erathis and Melora stands in Azalea Street Park in one of the city's oldest neighborhoods.[15] A short rest taken here grants inspiration to a character once a week.[16]
In Whitestone is a small temple to Erathis called The Lady's Chamber.[17] By 836 PD, it is known as the House of the Lawbearer and is both a place of worship and a stately courthouse. A permanent Zone of Truth spell is active on the premises, and all who enter are sworn to tell the truth by vigilant clerics. The protection is fallible but sends a clear message to all visitors.[18]
During the occupation of Westruun by the black dragon Umbrasyl and the Herd of Storms, the temple to Erathis in the city was partially ruined,[19][20] but the temple to Erathis is noted as one of the three largest shrines in the city's Temple Ward a year later,[21] and the High Priest of the Lawbearer blessed the unveiling of the Black King, a construct intended to defend the city in times of crisis and otherwise stand as a statue.[22] A newer temple to Erathis, in the Underwalk Ward, shows up in the adventure hook Down Below in the original Tal'Dorei Campaign Setting sourcebook, set in 812 PD.[22]
By 836 PD, the First Bastion in Westruun, dedicated to the Lawbearer, is the most magnificent temple the Temple Ward. It is an opulent sanctuary of decadent gold-and-marble exterior that can't be imagined by most to be something that sits on the Material Plane, seeming like a building from the realm of the gods themselves, and is a common attraction for folks of all faiths. The First Bastion was a secret refuge while Kevdak occupied the city, and many Westruun survivors turned to worship Erathis afterwards because of her protective grace.[23]
Yearly, Clergy of Erathis send champions to the Godsbrawl Ring in Emon for the annual Godsbrawl celebrating Kord but rarely take it seriously because they scorn the Storm Lord's notion of "might makes right".[24]
Wildemount[]
The Lawbearer is one of the deities that is approved for worship in the Dwendalian Empire,[25] and her holy day is celebrated with feasts in honor of the laws of the Dwendal bloodline, with one seat at each table left open for the king to dine with them in spirit.[26] The Prime Arbiter of the Dwendalian Empire delivers judgements in the Temple of Writ, the central temple to Erathis in Rexxentrum.[27] Next to the temple is the Claykeep Prison, providing a reminder to anyone doing business in the surrounding Vigil Circle of the swift consequences for theft.[28]
The aarakocra city of Vol'antim prominently features dual temples to Erathis and Melora, and the laws are built around Melora and her respect for Erathis.[29] Rural folk persist in believing that aarakocra are angels of Erathis despite the aarakocras' attempts to explain they are not.[30]
The Mother's Lighthouse by Nicodranas was built from stone produced by the union of Erathis and Melora.[31]
There is a temple of the Lawbearer in Uthodurn.[32]
Commandments of the Lawbearer[]
Commandments of the Lawbearer
Utilize the company and aid of others. The efforts of the individual often pale against the capabilities of community.
Strive to tame the wilds in the name of civilization, and defend the points of light and order against the chaos of darkness.
Uphold and revere the spirit of invention. Create new settlements, build where inspiration strikes, and expand the edicts of the Lawbearer.
Known worshipers[]
Fan art of High Cleric Yuana Bretei, by Marissa Mulea.[art 3]
- Aldor, a member of the Slayer's Take[33]
- Holy Curator Curtis Uleas, one of the Dawn Marshalls of Vasselheim[34]
- Ishto, a holy warrior from Yios fighting the Ruby Vanguard[35]
- Lord Ivan von Musel, Baron of the Third House of Whitestone and Grand Master of the Grey Hunt[36]
- Theona Balmhand, wandering cleric and member of the Golden Grin[37]
- Head Cleric Umentu of the temple to Erathis in Westruun[22]
- Herald Voloshin, Lawmaster of Zadash[38]
- Keeper Yennen of the Lady's Chamber in Whitestone[39]
- High Cleric Yuana Bretei, former holder of the Spear of Judgement[40]
History[]
Background[]
Official art of Melora and Erathis, by Zuzanna Wuzyk @zuzartii. Artwork from Tal'Dorei Campaign Setting Reborn..[art 4]
Erathis has a tempestuous and furious romantic relationship with Melora, the goddess of nature, that "tempered only when civilization and nature are in balance."[3] When this balance is disrupted, "civil unrests and riots bloom in her beloved cities".[4] Zehir detests both Erathis and Melora, and sends his followers to destroy civilization and deplete nature.[41] Erathis also despises Bane, seeing his reign as a perversion of law into authoritarianism; Bane is also an enemy of Melora.[42]
Erathis and Melora created humans through their passionate love as the third race on Exandria. They granted humans passionate hearts as well but also a chaos that blessed them with the ambitions, mirth, and curiosity of their two creators but also cursed them to be too short-lived to fully fulfill these impulses.[5]
Official art of Erathis and Bahamut battling Asmodeus and Gruumsh at Vasselheim, by Kent Davis from "Exandria: An Intimate History" (Sx61) at 3:53.[art 5]
Official art of Erathis again battling Asmodeus during the Calamity, by Kent Davis.[art 6]
Erathis was among the Prime Deities who fought against the Betrayer Gods in defense of Vasselheim shortly before the Calamity, and again fought against the Betrayers in the Calamity.[43] Certain artifacts for Erathis were crafted and repaired at the Underforge within Kravaraad.[44] The records of the Scalebearers state that, at the end of the Calamity, it was she and Bahamut who came to Vasselheim and declared that the Prime Deities would also leave Exandria. Though this was initially met with protest from both the divine and mortal, the other gods ultimately agreed, finding this "unimpeachable and just". Thus, the Divergence occurred and the Divine Gate was created.[45]
Soon after the 730s PD[46][47] Lady Melanie von Musel de Rolo, who had become the sole ruler of Whitestone after her husband's death, initiated a project to to expand Whitestone after a third of it ended up destroyed in the Great Whitestone Fire, occupying land in the Parchwood Timberlands encompass an old holy site of the Dawnfather where a proper temple would be built. However, Lady Melanie didn't show the Lawbearer due respect as the goddess of civilization, so the Prime Deity started causing troubles: many accidents took place in the construction, wild animals attacked people, and some talked about visions and phantoms appearing (even claiming to have witnessed the late Lord Wolf de Rolo himself); only the Temple of Pelor was completed with minimal incident. It was Melanie's cousin, Ivan von Musel (a cleric of Erathis who had been studying in Whitestone for a year), who identified the problem and ended up solving it (killing a grey direwolf sent by Erathis to test him and mark how far the city-state should expand). Ivan was rewarded with titles and responsibilities in the city-state, and his bravery created a precedent for similar problems many years later: for any slight against the goddess of civilization, a citizen of Whitestone must answer the call and go to the Parchwood, where they will be tested. The outcome of said test determines Erathis's current disposition.[48] That tradition might have been connected to the interrupted attempted expansion of the city-state to the east between 812 and 836 PD (monsters from the Parchwood attacked the project)[49] and the so far successful expansion in 843 PD.[50]
As of 812 PD, clerics of Erathis and druids of Melora worked together to keep civilization and nature in balance.[51]
Appearances and mentions[]
- Campaign One
- "Hubris" (1x17), mentioned only
- "Family Matters" (1x96), mentioned only
- "The Fate-Touched" (1x103), mentioned only
- "The Ominous March" (1x109), mentioned only
- Campaign Two
- "Lingering Wounds" (2x89), mentioned only
- Campaign Three
- "Hope Within History" (3x55), mentioned only
- "Rush for the Bloody Bridge" (3x82), mentioned only
- Specials
- "Critical Role: Bar Room Blitz" (Sx21), mentioned only
Trivia[]
- The Lawbearer's holy day is Civilization's Dawn, celebrated on the autumnal equinox (22 Quen'pillar).
- Ironically, on Civilization's Dawn in 810 PD, while traveling to the cradle of civilization in Vasselheim, Vox Machina was attacked by lawless pirates at dawn.[52]
- In 842 PD, a party called the Everdawn began on Civilization's Dawn and promised to continue all the way into the new year[53] more than two months later. The symbol of the Everdawn is the double-bladed axe of the Lawbearer turned into a chalice.[54] The adventuring party of Exandria Unlimited attended this party the night before the events of the first episode.
- Both she and her divine enemy Zehir have their realms (the Bright City and the Towers of Night respectively) located in the Astral Plane, but since the Cloaked Serpent keeps his domain hidden[55] it is unlikely that both places are at war in that plane.
- Ogden Trickfoot claimed the curse afflicting their family had been placed upon an ancestor of theirs by Erathis as punishment for fratricide. However, this curse did not actually exist.[56]
- In "Critical Role: Bar Room Blitz" (Sx21), Jayne Merriweather pretends to be a disciple of Erathis, but is actually a follower of Tharizdun.[57]
References[]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 See Explorer's Guide to Wildemount, p. 21.
- ↑ See Tal'Dorei Campaign Setting, p. 16.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 3.6 See Explorer's Guide to Wildemount, p. 22.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 See Tal'Dorei Campaign Setting Reborn, p. 29.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 See Tal'Dorei Campaign Setting Reborn, p. 13.
- ↑ See "Trial of the Take: Part 1" (1x18) at 46:51.
- ↑ Or "Erathis's Crown." See "Hubris" (1x17) at 3:12:00.
- ↑ See "Hubris" (1x17) at 3:05:10.
- ↑ See "Trial of the Take: Part 1" (1x18) at 39:07.
- ↑ See the written contract from Alchemist Ozwyn Gruude.
- ↑ See "Trial of the Take: Part 3" (1x20) at 39:32.
- ↑ See "Dark Portents" (3x29) from 2:54:59 through 3:02:26.
- ↑ See Tal'Dorei Campaign Setting, p. 43. See also pp. 52, 76, and 87.
- ↑ See Tal'Dorei Campaign Setting, p. 90.
- ↑ See Tal'Dorei Campaign Setting, p. 93.
- ↑ See Tal'Dorei Campaign Setting Reborn, p. 136.
- ↑ See "Whispers" (1x29) from 1:56:59 through 2:02:59.
- ↑ See Tal'Dorei Campaign Setting Reborn, p. 78.
- ↑ See "Best Laid Plans..." (1x50) at 2:46:18.
- ↑ See "Best Laid Plans..." (1x50) from 2:56:31 through 2:59:47.
- ↑ See Tal'Dorei Campaign Setting, p. 59.
- ↑ 22.0 22.1 22.2 See Tal'Dorei Campaign Setting, p. 61.
- ↑ See Tal'Dorei Campaign Setting Reborn, p. 92.
- ↑ See Tal'Dorei Campaign Setting Reborn, p. 138.
- ↑ See "Steam and Conversation" (2x09) at 0:46:11.
- ↑ See Explorer's Guide to Wildemount, pp. 22–23.
- ↑ See Explorer's Guide to Wildemount, p. 106.
- ↑ See "Frigid Propositions" (2x109) at 1:58:36.
- ↑ See Explorer's Guide to Wildemount, p. 92.
- ↑ See Explorer's Guide to Wildemount, p. 165.
- ↑ See "The Ruby and the Sapphire" (2x33) at 3:04:13.
- ↑ See "Hope Within History" (3x55) at 0:59:33.
- ↑ See "Hubris" (1x17) at 3:11:47.
- ↑ See "The Search For Grog" (Sx42) at 32:16.
- ↑ See "Rush for the Bloody Bridge" (3x82) at 2:01:08.
- ↑ The Chronicles of Exandria - The Legend of Vox Machina Volume II, p. 92.
- ↑ See Tal'Dorei Campaign Setting, p. 37.
- ↑ See "Steam and Conversation" (2x09) at 2:53:35. The Herald is named earlier.
- ↑ See "Whispers" (1x29) from 1:56:59 through 2:02:59.
- ↑ See "Breaking and Entering..." (3x20) at 2:55:51.
- ↑ See Tal'Dorei Campaign Setting, p. 19.
- ↑ See Tal'Dorei Campaign Setting Reborn, p. 35.
- ↑ See official art on this page.
- ↑ See "Clay and Dust" (2x72) at 1:58:46.
- ↑ See Tal'Dorei Campaign Setting Reborn, p. 16.
- ↑ See The Legend of Vox Machina Episodes 10-12 Q&A at 47:49.
- ↑ This assumes 80 years ago from Campaign One, set in the 810s PD.
- ↑ The Chronicles of Exandria - The Legend of Vox Machina Volume II, p. 92.
- ↑ See Tal'Dorei Campaign Setting Reborn, p. 80.
- ↑ See "A Desperate Call" (3x36) at 0:28:06.
- ↑ See Tal'Dorei Campaign Setting, p. 18.
- ↑ See "Skyward" (1x15) at 1:59:39. The date is not mentioned, but calculated by working backward from Winter's Crest that year.
- ↑ See "The Nameless Ones" (E1x01) at 12:08.
- ↑ See "The Nameless Ones" (E1x01) at 1:05:32.
- ↑ See Explorer's Guide to Wildemount, p. 29.
- ↑ See "Family Matters" (1x96) at 1:46:56.
- ↑ See "Critical Role: Bar Room Blitz" (Sx21) at 39:07.
Art:
- ↑ Symbol of Erathis from Critical Role: Tal'Dorei Campaign Setting.
- ↑ Symbol of Erathis from Explorer's Guide to Wildemount by Claudio Pozas. (source)
- ↑ Fan art of High Cleric Yuana Bretei, by Marissa Mulea (source). Used with permission.
- ↑ Official art of Melora and Erathis, by Zuzanna Wuzyk @zuzartii (source). Artwork from Tal'Dorei Campaign Setting Reborn. Used DM response with permission.
- ↑ Official art of Erathis and Bahamut battling Asmodeus and Gruumsh at Vasselheim, by Kent Davis from "Exandria: An Intimate History" (Sx61) at 3:53. Used with permission.
- ↑ Official art of Erathis again battling Asmodeus during the Calamity, by Kent Davis (source). Used with permission.
- ↑ Fan art of Hestavar, the Bright City, by Madeline (source). Used with permission.
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