The Ilah

The Arab Gods

History
The ancient gods of pre-Islamic Arabia have been all but forgotten by the modem world. Once part
of a vibrant, chaotic pantheon that was worshiped by traveling nomads and settled Arabs alike, they
were gods of the celestial heavens and lights of the universe, embodied by sacred features of the
natural world that their people knew them to have awesome, eternal control over.

Each of the Arab tribes revered and worshiped rheir own patron deities, and together the gods ruled
over one of the most fractured and constantly-moving parts of the World as a fluid, constantly-
movingcollection of patrons of stars and sands, oases and deserts, tne inescapable march of Fare
and the powerful changes of war. Few understood their worship outside their native lands, but the
Ilah, distant as the heavenly bodies and as close as the rocks beneath their worshipers’ feet, have
never needed the recognition or understanding of anyone but themselves.

Where other pantheons’ myths and heroes have survived the test of time to become cherished
stories around the world, those of the Ilah, for the most part, have not. The long-ago struggle against
their sole Titan enemy all but decimated them, destroying the less powerful among them, damaging
their territories and powers and almost entirely wiping their worship off the face of the earth. Rival
religions, monotheism and war devastated their remaining centers of worship and left them
forgotten figures, unrepresented to modem mankind and only occasionally remembered as figures
of derision by the religions that came after them. And while the Ilah would not have minded this too
much if it were the price they needed to pay to defeat the Titans, the recent escape of the devastating
great powers has put them in a grave and dangerous position, with few resources, fewer allies and a
long, hard road ahead of them if they hope to triumph once more.

Relation With Other Pantheons

The Ilah have been absent from the political affairs of the other gods for a long time; most
considered rheir diminished pantheon unimportant for its lack of influence in the World or too
disorganized and disjointed to remain useful allies, but in the current conflict they have come forth
to offer their powers once more, and even the haughtiest of other pantheons have been forced to
admit that they can ill afford to turn down rheir help. They have few solid relationships with the
other pantheons and must rely on forging new treaties and sending their Scions out to spread rheir
name, reentering the divine world as they hope to reenter that of the mortals who once knew them.

-The Aesir: The Ilah feel some vague kinship with the Aesir, who, living as they do in the
inhospitable northern climes of the world, are in a sense just another kind of desert-dwellers. The
two pantheons share a fatalistic view of the Aesir usually feel the Ilah are not quick enough to take
decisive action.

-The Amatsukami: The Japanese gods are exceptionally snooty when it comes to the Ilah, who they
consider to have been a second-rate pantheon at best even at the height of their power. Thy doubt
that the Arab gods, disorganized and lackadaisical, could possibly be all that much help in the
coming conflict, and many have been known to wonder aloud why they even bothered coming out
of retirement. The Ilah, for their part, spend little time around the __ Amatsukami and, while
they are polite and observe their rules of etiquette when possible, don’t really understand what all
the fuss is about.

-The Aztlanti: Unfortunately for the Ilah, who would like the ferocity and powers over nature that
the Aztlanti wield to be weapons on their side in the current conflict, the two pantheons have a very
difficult time getting along. The Ilah emphasis on the powers of the night sky, particularly the moon
and stars, makes the slightly night-phobic Aztlanti suspicious of their motives and prone to
considering them merely a step away from Titans themselves; when they're not treating the Ilah like
traitors in training, they usually kx)k down upon them as a conquered pantheon that clearly didn’t
have the necessary strength to survive on its own. The Ilah, despite their admiration for the Aztec
gods’ obvious strength, find their tendency toward settled urbanization an obvious weakness, and
they have won no friends by pointing out that the European invasion that devastated the Aztec bases
of power would have been much less successful if they hadn’t been so conveniently concentrated in
sedentary capitals. The two pantheons have much in common as the patrons of civilizations long
ago supplanted by invading monotheists, but that common ground has so far not been enough to
allow them to see past their immediate mistrust of one another.

-The Celestial Bureaucracy: Oddly enough, the Chinese gods, on the rare occasions that they
interact with the Ilah, find that the two pantheons mesh quite well. Their modes of worship and
organization are wildly different and the Shen pity the Ilah for their lack of representation in the
World, but the tendency of both groups to resolve issues by committee and to pull together many
disparate groups of deities into a semi-cohesive whole allow them to understand one anothers
motives and ideas, if not exactly how they arrived there. They disagree widely on many
subjects, but they generally do so politely and are willing to reopen the discussion at a later

-The Devas: The Ilah are somewhat admiring of the Devas, who clearly know how to keep a
presence in the World and who share some of their favorite elements of worship including
circumambulation, but they really don’t understand their behavior and find the constant infighting
and misbehavior baffling in a supposedly “civilized” pantheon. The Devas, who tend to be
somewhat lofty toward most pantheons that don't rival their massive religion in the World, have a
distinctly condescending attitude toward the Arab gods; they don’t believe any pantheon that could
so thoroughly vanish from the world could possibly be of much help to them, and thus both sets of
gods usually come away from meetings disgruntled and annoyed.

-The Dodekatheon: The Dodekathcon arc one of the few pantheons that the Ilah have had enough
contact with to be said to be true allies; the gods knew each other through Roman times and
occasionally came to each others’ aid, though the Greek gods find the Ilah tendency toward
nomadism tiresome and the Arab gods arc none too fond of the bizarre Greek emphasis on
competition that serves no purpose. Still, they are more than willing to enjoy the exotic artistry that
each admires the other for, and have been known to pull together in times of crisis.

-The Loa: The Loa are actually quite fond of the Ilah, whom they respect for their willingness to put
the good of the World above their own politics and insistence on still fighting the good fight in spite
of the overwhelming odds against them. The two pantheons don't spend much time together and arc
a little fuzzy on what the others’ real problems and motivations are, but both are open to
cooperation if the opportunity presents itself.

-The Nemetondevos: While they had almost no contact with the Ilah in ancient times, the
Nemetondevos have begun an aggressive campaign to befriend, aid and work with the Arab gods
since the outbreak of the war against the Titans. The Gaulish gods see them as kindred spirits, their
influence in the World mostly destroyed but their determination and powers undimmed, and hope
that by banding together they may convince the other pantheons to rake them more seriously. The
Ilah certainly have nothing against the Nemetondevos, but they don’t share their burning desire to
force the other gods to notice them, and consequently often disappoint their new “best friends” by
remaining focused on the pragmatic instead of the spectacular.

-The Pesedjet: The Ilah and the Pesedjet have known one another for a long time, and bonds of
mutual (if distant and cool) see them able to work together for the greater good without more than a
few minor squabbles. The Pesedjet are among those pantheons secretly relieved to have some more
firepower in their corner, and their long memories recall how powerful the Ilah were when they
were truly active in the World; other pantheons may view them as a useless relic of a dead age, but
the Egyptian gods are not among them.

-The Tuatha de Danann: The combination of Ilah and Tuatha gods usually results in an excellent
party, an artistic triumph and an impressive hangover, but seldom in anything productive getting
done. The pantheons find their common ground in their mutual love of artistry anil excitement, but
they can never agree on the best way to get anything done, and the Ilah consider the Tuatha flighty
and pleasure-obsessed while the Tuatha think of the Ilah as ascetic introverts who need to lighten
up.

-The Yazata: Of all pantheons, the Ilah are possibly closest to the Yazata, who have in times past
been their nearest neighbors and most ideologically compatible allies. The Yazata wish the Ilah
would learn to make some decisions and do the right thing instead of always insisting on the idea
that there is no “right" or “wrong", and the Ilah have had their share of frustrations when it comes to
their Persian neighbors’ inflexibility, but both respect each other and are always ready to rise up and
take arms in one anothers’ defense.

The Pantheon
Scions of the Ilah face an enormous task: acting as the heroes and emissaries of an almost-gone
pantheon to both a World that has largely forgotten it. They face discrimination from condescending
deities, danger from the minions of the Titans in the windswept wastes of the Ilah lands, and the
confusion and distraction of trying to mesh an ancient, obscure power in their own veins with the
very modem, very different world that they now live in. Despite all that, they shine as the divine
children of a truly divine pantheon; they are among the most passionate of performers, the most
determined of warriors and the most enduring of heroes to join the ranks of the divine from any
pantheon. The World may have mostly forgotten the Ilah, but their Scions, brimming with holy
power and mantled with awesome destinies, will soon change that forever.

Virtues: Endurance, Expression, Piety, Vengeance

Al-Qaum

AKA: Al-Qawn, Shaj Al-Qaum, Shay Al-Qaum

A friend to humanity in the trackless wastes and blackest nights, al-Qaum is the god of safe travel
and patron of all those who depend on his help to make their way safely to their destinations. A
tireless guardian who never sleeps or takes his eyes from his charges, he is also the master of the
night, cloaking travelers in protective darkness and guiding them by the light of the stars. He
oversees not just those awake and abroad in the small hours, but also the fragile souls of sleeping
humanity.

Al-Qaum is often in the world, though he is seldom noticed there. He spends his time providing
guidance and safety to those who need it most, standing discreetly in the background or appearing
only as a helpful but soon-forgotten figure for those who are grateful for his aid. He has appeared as
a bodyguard to those in fear for their lives, an educator urging students to find safer forms of
transportation or a curiously compassionate border guard.

The caravan-god has few children, as he seldom finds time to sire them when occupied with the
ceaseless task of safeguarding travelers on their way, hut those few arc all the more precious to both
him and their pantheon. They are usually compassionate but restless, always seeking something but
never too busy to lend a helping hand to those in need. They often gravitate toward careers that
combine the two feelings, searching and aiding like their always-moving father.

Powers: Epic Stamina, Darkness, Guardian, Hajj, Psychopomp, Stars

Abilities: Awareness, Command, Empathy, Fortitude, Stealth, Survival
Rivals: Hachiman, Huitzilopochtli, Nephthys, Sarasvati

Interpreting the Uninterpretable

While the Ilah certainly existed and were an important power in their part of the world, most traces
of them have been eradicated in the modern day. The Arab habit of not creating images of their
gods, the fact that most of the religion was passed down orally, the reality of the desert conditions
swallowing their ancient sites of worship and the strong rise of Islam in the area have all combined
to make the pre-lslamic Arab gods one of the most obscure pantheons in the world. While humanity
knows vaguely of their existence, there are few stories remaining of their exploits, and those tales
are almost inevitably influenced heavily by the Muslim writers who recorded them.

Unlike most of the vibrant pantheons of Scion, who survive in myth and popular culture even in the
present day, the Ilah are as close to a dead pantheon as you can get. This supplement presents as
much information as remains on their worship, personalities and myths, but it also relies on traces
of Arab folklore in Islamic literature, later scholarly interpretations and theories, and writer
invention in order to provide enough of a setting to be useful when playing Scion.

Al-Uzza

AKA: Uzza, Uzzayan

Known to her people as the most powerful among goddesses, al-Uzia is the goddess of life and
strength, providing the bounty of the earth and the protection of her mighty arms to her people when
they are most in need of it. Beautiful and commanding, she is the goddess of the bright morning
star, looking down serenely over the world as its supreme mother, overseeing childbirth as well as
the welfare of those children when they grow to adulthood.

Al-Uzza is one of the preeminent goddesses of her long-forgotten religion, and she is in no hurry to
let anyone overlook or discount her. She usually appears as a paragon of striking and impressive
femininity, ruling countries as an iron-hard female minister, shocking the business world wirh her
cut-throat competitive tactics or wowing audiences as a wildly successful Olympic weightlifter.

Her Scions often follow the same mold, preferring the spotlight and adoration of those around them,
hut al-Uzza’s compassionate nature often manifests itself in them all the same, leading them to use
their fame and glory for the betterment of others. They tend to be philanthropists or celebrities,
using their own good fortune to parcel some out to others as well.
Powers: Epic Appearance, Epic Charisma, Epic Strength, Fertility, Hajj, Health, Stars
Abilities: Athletics, Command, Empathy, Fortitude, Presence, Survival
Rivals: Allat, Aphrodite, Ishtar, Isis, Manat

Allat

AKA: Al-lat, Alilal, Allalu, Q're

Allat is the luminous goddess of the celestial heavens, beloved by those who use her stars and
precious moonlight to navigate the night and worshiped across the desert lands of ancient Arabia as
the bringer of all-important fertility and life to the barren wastes. As the most martial of the three
daughters of Allah, she provides the steadfast and ordered powers of war to those who worship her,
parceling out military strength and the tender feelings of love in equal measure wherever they are
most deserved.

Though she is one of the three great goddesses of the Ilah, Allat generally rakes on a less prominent
role than her sisters, preferring to oversee her sacred sites and people from afar. She is too distant to
spend much time in the World, finding that it cramps her ability to keep tabs on things from the
night skies, hut when she occasionally descends it is most often as a quietly commanding figure, a
dedicated coach, head administrator or determined scientist leading her field in mapping the
heavens.

Allat’s usual preoccupation with the heavens means that she has few Scions of her own, hut they are
rare and wonderful creatures, as effortlessly dazzling and unreachable as their divine mother. They
are often introverted and distant, lost in their own worlds, bur they tend to enrich those around them
anyway, often channeling those faraway thoughts into work as artists, caretakers or visionaries.

Powers: Epic Charisma, Fertility, Hajj, Moon, Stars, War

Abilities: Command, Empathy, Occult, Presence, Stealth, Survival
Rivals: Aphrodite, Athena, Epona, the Morrigan

Amm

The father-god and ultimate protector of the southern Arab tribes, Amm is a figure of authority and
righteousness, handing down the laws of heaven and protecting and supporting those who enact and
respect them. As master of the vault of the sky and the shining disk of the moon, and hailed as the
wisest among gods, he was so beloved by his people that they referred to themselves as the Children
of Amm, taking on his name in the hopes that his goodwill and favor would remain with them in all
things.

Amm acts much as a distant father and gently benevolent protector for both humanity and the rest
of his pantheon, seldom involved in their day-to-day doings but always available in a moment of
crisis. He wanders rhe world in unobtrusive but enlightening guises, often taking on the appearance
of a professor encouraging brilliant new theories in his students, a journalist drafting surprisingly
insightful political criticism or a meteorologist who somehow manages to always be exactly right
about the change in the weather.

Scions of Amm tend to be thoughtful and ohservant, but that does not make them slow to act,
especially in defense of law and order or when a golden opportunity for learning presents itself.
They tend toward academic and insular pursuits, walking the world as scholars who promote the
greater good.
Powers: Epic Charisma, Epic Intelligence, Guardian, Hajj, Justice, Moon, Sky
Abilities: Academics, Command, Empathy, Fortitude, Politics, Presence
Rivals: Dushara, Hubal, Ilmaqah, Quetzalcoatl, Zeus

Dushara

AKA: Ara, Du Shara, Dushrat, Dusares

Perhaps the most widely celebrated among the Ilah, Dushara is the king of the natural world, the
lord of mountains, bringer of rain, god of the sun and protector of the fertile earth and its glorious
bounty. Nothing that provides aid and comfort to mankind from the world around them is outside
his control, and he was so popular with grateful worshipers that even the Romans sought his favor
and occasionally gave him due respect. A figure of respect and devotion across the many tribes of
the ancient Arabs, Dushara is among the most active and well-liked of the Arab gods.

Dushara loves to be involved in everything, preferring hands-on contact with humanity to distantly
observing them from Shanty, but his earthiness runs only slightly below the surface. He expects the
respect due to him as the lord of the physical world, and as a result usually appears in capacities that
allow him to participate while receiving the celebrity attention he demands. He has been seen in the
World as an inventor of green energy sources, the liaison to the press of a large corporation working
for environmental preservation and a relief worker bringing desperately needed supplies to stricken
victims of natural disasters.

Dushara's children usually share his easy, almost automatic ability to charm and impress those
around them, and they often live somewhat charmed lives, finding that very little is truly difficult if
they set the considerable forces of their personalities to work. They usually work with their hands
and many prefer to win fame in natural and earrhy pursuits.

Powers: Epic Charisma, Earth, Fertility, Hajj, Sky, Sun, Water

Abilities: Animal Ken, Fortitude, Politics, Presence, Science, Survival
Rivals: Amm, Dionysus, Hubal, Ilmaqah, Sobek, Tlaloc, Zeus

Hubal

AKA: Hubalu

Hubal is a dual figure, both the god of hidden wisdom and knowledge, keeper of the oracles of
ancient Arabia and wise knower of all that is denied to mankind, and a fierce warrior god, uniting
the tribes against common enemies and leading them to victory until the very twilight of their
religion. Also a god of the heavens and sky, providing life-giving rain to the thirsty desert and
personifying the shining, inscrutable moon, 1 lubal is a figure of awe and worship even to some of
his fellow gods.

Of all the Ilah, Hubal is perhaps the least often seen in either World or Overworld preferring to
interpret his visions in solitude and gather his strength for any struggles yet to come, but he does
occasionally visit the world of humanity. When he does, he usually appears as dreamy and
distracted, an unpublished poet, a stargazing student or an old hermit with surprisingly wise insight
into the inner workings of humanity.

Scions of Hubal often share his moony demeanor, being possessed of big plans and fond of keeping
secrets, but they are always ready to act when necessary, bringing surprisingly brutal force to bear
in the defense of their loved ones or the service of a cause they believe in. They usually choose
careers that allow them to shine in moments of crisis but that leave them to their own devices most
of the time.

Powers: Epic Perception, Hajj, Moon, Mystery, Prophecy, Sky, War

Abilities: Awareness, Command, Empathy, Fortitude, Investigation, Occult
Rivals: Amm, Dushara, Ilmaqah, Odin, Zeus

Ilmaqah

AKA: Almaqah, Ilmuqah, Ilmuquh

A god of both day and night, the mighty power of the sun and the mystic influence of the moon,
llmaqah is one of the four lords of the Ilah, the father of a dynasty of mortal kings and the provider
of the all-important food and water that mortals so desperately propitiated him for in time gone by.
llmaqah is a protector of the sacred places of his pantheon and the few loyal worshipers that still
remain to them, still faithful to the ancient places of power long after their destruction and
repurposing in the World.

Llmaqah is straightforward and no-nonsense, preferring to get tilings done expediently and
efficiently rather than spend too much time on meaningless platitudes or irritating extra
considerations. When he brings his most impressive self into the world, it is difficult not to notice
him, immediately attracting attention as a powerful CEO, unyielding debater or prominent scholar
whose word cannot be contradicted.

llmaqah's children are similarly forthright, though this does not necessarily make them hurtfully
blunt or uncaring of the ideas of others. They enjoy feeling useful and often rake on hands-on,
direct jobs and responsibilities, making something new to enhance the world in which they live.

Powers: Epic Charisma, Fertility, Guardian, Hajj, Moon, Sun, Water

Abilities: Awareness, Craft, Fortitude, Politics, Presence, Survival
Rivals: Amm, Dionysus, Dushara, Hubal

Manat

AKA: Manah, Manalu, Manawat

Though al-Uzza is the strength of the pantheon and Allat its heart, the two of them most often
referred to as the greatest of goddesses, it is Manat that many of the Ilah secretly believe to be the
true power among the three. The goddess of Fate itself and mistress of all its inescapable magics,
Manat acts as complement to her husband Hubal, the active dispenser of the judgments of Fate and
the final authority when it comes to its edicts. There is no mortal life that does not begin and end
with her, nor any god who does not recognize the great power she wields over life and death.

Manat is generally pleasant and mild to he around, her unsettling occult connections for the most
part hidden beneath her placid surface, subtly behind the scenes. She is a gentle mother to the other
gods and extends her benevolence to mortals, who she most often encounters in the World in the
guise of counselor, psychiatrist or comforting funeral home director; she may be the final arbiter of
their lives, but she sees no reason to be cruel about it.

Scions of Manat are destined for great things, which they usually suspect or feel but are seldom able
to put into a concrete knowledge of where they are meant to go. They often unconsciously gravitate
toward careers that connect and control many other people, working as administrators or contact
people at the center of their own small webs.

Powers: Epic Intelligence, Death, Hajj, Justice, Magic, Prophecy

Abilities: Academics, Empathy, Fortitude, Integrity, Occult, Politics
Rivals: Freya, Isis, the Morrigan, Nanshe

Qos

AKA: Kaus, Kos, Qaus, Qaush, Qaws

Qos is by far the most boisterous of the Ilah, a god of storm, thunder and might whose associations
with the masculine bull and regal eagle recall his status as a popular patron of the proud desert
tribes. Lord of all weather and as fiery' tempered as the energetic lightning bolts he shoots from his
cosmic how, Qos was looked upon as a paragon of manliness and the dedicated leader of several
worshipful tribes in the rain-starved wilderness.

Qos has never been one to hide his magnificence, and his excitable personality tends to shine
through even when he walks in the World, surprising, delighting and frightening others as he goes.
He has appeared as a charismatic politician, a bad-tempered professional football player and a
dangerously driven terrorist leader.

The storm-god's Scions tend to be similarly rambunctious, though what form their energies take
often depends on their upbringing and whether or not something sufficiently exciting is going on
nearby to draw their attention. They often choose to perform thrilling but unsustainable roles that
challenge them to achieve great feats but have little in the way of payoff afterward.

Powers: Epic Strength, Animal (Bull, Eagle), Earth, Hajj, Sky

Abilities: Animal Ken, Athletics, Command, Fortitude, Presence, Thrown
Rivals: Lugh, Set, Susanoo, Thor, Tlaloc, Zeus

Shams

AKA: Chems

Shams is the Arab goddess of the sun, a shining, resplendent deity whose face glows with bronzed
health and whose footsteps are always filled with light. There is nowhere that Shams’ blazing eyes
do not see, her gaze as pervasive its the sun itself, and no other brilliance that can compare to that of
her fiery hair and clearly ringing voice. Though Shams is very beautiful, her brightness hurts the
eye and her ferocity could never be mistaken for the gentle femininity of other goddesses of her
pantheon; to the desert-dwelling Arabs, the sun was not a gentle friend but a harsh companion at
best, and the goddess of the sun mirrors its tierce, dangerous heat in everything she does.

When she descends into the world, Shams does not go unnoticed, quite the opposite. Her presence
overshadows all those who are close to her and hurts those who admire her brilliance. As a model, a
guest of honor at a reception or simply a passer-by in the street, those who see her remember them
all their lives.

The scions of Shams are just as unforgettable as their mother. They draw attention to them to the
point that we tend to forget those who accompany them. It's not really arrogance or indifference, it's
just stronger than them.

Powers: Epic Appearance, Epic Charisma, Epic Perception, Hajj, Sun, War
Abilities: Awareness, Fortitude, Investigation, Politics, Presence, Survival
Rivals: Amaterasu, Athena, Thor, Mithra Zeus

Wadd

A god whose name means simply “love", Wadd is the patron of all good feelings and the source of
all friendship and affection, ruling the hearts of mankind .as his fellow gods rule the elements and
laws of the universe. Connected to the pure love of friendship and brotherhood (rather than to
romance, which is the purview of his mother Allar), he also rules the world’s fertility, bringing new
children of both the human and animal persuasion into the world and protecting them once born
with the strength of his respected reputation as a warrior. Also a god of the moon, whose gentle light
allows midnight assignations and safety in the dark, he is one of the most beloved of the Arab
deities.

Wadd is always even-tempered and seldom acts in anger or haste, even when circumstances force
him to gird for war. His personas in the mortal World are similarly reserved, including such favored
roles as animal socializes peace treaty-negotiator and neighborhood philosopher; others seldom
realize how profound his influence is, but he always leaves a few more ties of friendship and
cordiality behind him wherever he goes.

Scions of Wadd are born socializes, effortlessly likeable and prone to easy, comfortable
relationships with everyone they meet. They often find themselves in search of more tempestuous
pastures, convinced that they could explain everything so that everyone else shared their sanguine
outlook on life, and to that end often volunteer for dangerous situations that they see as peace just
waiting to be discovered.

Powers: Epic Charisma, Animal (Snake), Emotion (Love), Hajj, Moon, War
Abilities: Animal Ken, Command, Fortitude, Empathy, Occult, Presence
Rivals: Aengus, Aphrodite, Freya, Ishtar, Tlazolteotl

Scent the Divine

The Ilah smell like sweet dates, and are accompanied by the sound of cry of a owl when sensed with
the Scent the Divine Knack (Scion Companion, pg. 56).

Pantheon Specific Purview: Hajj

For the ancient Arab people, wandering the deserts as nomads or embarking on difficult journeys to
worship their gods at their sacred sites, no concept was more important than htijj, the sacred
pilgrimage that proves spiritual worth and connects the human to the divine. For the Scions of the
Ilah, the secrets of pilgrimage and worship, foreign and confusing to others, are incontrovertible
facts of life; they know that it is not the destination that matters most but the journey that precedes
it.

The powers of Hajj aid Scions in their pilgrimages, journeys and travels, but they require that there
be solemn purpose behind them. They cease to function if the Scion is not actually traveling toward
a destination, and cannot protect Scions who are not actively going somewhere.

Safa (Hajj •)
Dice Pool: None
Cost: None

All pilgrims need assurance that they can travel safely to their destination, and the Scion with this
boon has it, making his wanderings under the peaceful, comforting blanket of safa, sacred serenity.
Few mundane sources may impede the Scion when he is actively traveling toward a goal; traffic
clears away, mortal authorities and passcrsby ignore and work around him, and mundane disasters
seem to never touch him while he is in pursuit of his destination. Any mortal who attempts to stop
or injure him must make a Willpower + Integrity roll of at least 5 in order to do so, and the Scion
gains a bonus equal to his Legend to all attempts to notice ambushes, traps, hazards or anything else
that would impede his journey. Only events of a supernatural nature or beings with a Legend rating
may seek to actively prevent, injure or delay him on his way without suffering penalties. Those who
travel with the Scion do not receive the luxury of this boon’s effects, but they may still try to ease
their way by following in his mysteriously charmed footsteps.

This boon protects the Scion only when he is in the act of traveling; whenever he stops, be it to have
a conversation, purchase supplies or take a night’s rest, he loses its protection until he continues
onward again.

Umrah (Hajj ••)

Dice Pool: None

Cost: 1 Willpower per use

While the body may take a beating during the long treks toward its sacred goal, the mind that
remains focused on the divinity of the Ilah is only strengthened by the ordeal. At any time, a Scion
with this boon may decide to embark upon a sacred journey or umrah; it may be to any destination
or for any reason that the Storyteller chooses to allow, but must be appropriately epic and important
(a quest to travel to another continent to look for a lost sibling is fine; a quest to go down to the
comer store for a sandwich is not). While the Scion is actively traveling toward this goal without
rest, she gains one automaric success to all Perception, Intelligence and Wits rolls for every day that
she continues her journey, up to a maximum of twice her Legend rating; if she stops in a way that
does not furrher her goal (she can wait in line for a train ticket or spend time trying to pick a lock to
continue, but she can’t get a hotel room to rest for the night), she immediately loses this benefit,
though she may activate Umrah again to start over. The effects of Umrah remain until the Scion
either reaches her destination or fails to continue consistently traveling toward it.

Alhram Shym (Hajj •••)

Dice Pool: None

Cost: None

The Scion with this boon is an accomplished world traveler, and as such understands the need for
diplomacy and respect for other cultures and their gods. Whenever he encounters a shrine, temple or
holy place dedicated to any deity and chooses to perform an appropriate ritual or offer an
appropriate sacrifice, he may gain temporary' divine favor from its owner, filling him with a
renewed sense of purpose and mutual respect. He immediately gains a point of Willpower and his
Legend as successes to all Willpower + Integrity + Legend rolls for the remainder of the day,
bolstered by divine appreciation for his status as a well-behaved traveler and polite guest. This boon
may be used only once per day.
At Storyteller discretion, a Scion who frequently uses Ahtram Shym at the shrines of a particular
god may find that god taking an especial interest in him, though whether as friend, pawn or
annoying irritant depends entirely on the god in question.

Ansab (Hajj ••••)

Dice Pool: None

Cost: 1 Willpower dot per use

Every god of the Ilah has an ansab (also called a baetyl), a sacred stone that represents rheir divine
self for the purposes of their adoring worshipers; the Scion with this boon may now join them,
making an idol for herself to represent her to the world. She may at any time choose a significant
item (traditionally an especially large, impressive or unusual stone, bur modern Scions have been
known to prefer more updated materials) and designate it as an ansab of herself, naming it now and
forever a part of her and conduit to her divinity. Once she has done so, anyone who wishes to
contact her has only to touch the ansab and spend a point of Willpower tor the scene; their prayers
and messages are immediately transmitted to her as if spoken to her face, no matter where she is or
what she might be doing (only she may hear them, however, not others near her). Should any
smaller piece of the ansab be broken off or removed, it, too, acts as a direct link to communicate
with the Scion (though, at Storyteller discretion, exceptionally small pieces may have poor
“reception” or come across as garbled). Scions who have become gods and possess the Hear Prayers
knack also gain instinctive knowledge of exactly where the person calling on them is.

A Scion may only create and maintain as many ansab at one time as she has dots of Legend. It is
difficult to destroy an ansab, as some piece of it usually remains if it is smashed or broken, but if it
is truly and permanently eradicated (by being melted in lava, for example), the Scion immediately
loses another permanent dot of Willpower from the shock of the connection snapping.

An ansab may take any form the Scion wishes, though the Ilah, who have no use for rhe petty
anthropomorphization of other peoples and have always viewed themselves as too thoroughly
divine to be reduced to mere human form, are likely to look down on those who create images of
themselves that are overly elaborate or human.

The Sacred Words

Many words used here to describe the powers of the Ilah arc also used frequently in modern Islam,
including hajj, t<mu/ and hudna. This is because the religious language of Islam is Arabic, just as
is the language of the Ilah, and as a result words that have a particular meaning (such as hajj,
meaning “sacred journey”) were used in both the ancient pre-Islamic religion and in Islam itself.
The two religions even share some core concepts, such as travel and circumambulation. Players
and Storytellers should feel free to overlap as many of these concepts as they like, or to play the two
as completely separate religions that just happen to share linguistic real estate.

Tawaf (Hajj •••••)

Dice Pool: None

Cost: 1 Willpower per use
Tawaf, or circumambulation, is the practice of circling a sacred shrine on foot; it was an ancient
requirement at the ansabs and sacred places of the Ilah, a symbolic continuing of the journey they
had set their people upon, and the Scions of the pantheon continue to draw on its powers to this day.
Whenever confronted with a temple, shrine, ansab or other sacred location, the Scion may choose to
walk circles around it at a steady, ceremonial pace (no more than half a yard per second), paying it
his respects and meditating on his own connection to the divine; once he has done so a number of
times equal to double his dots of Piety, the place becomes a living part of his own pilgrimage. He
may pause, rest or take any other actions be chooses here without being considered to have stopped
in his sacred travels, allowing his other Hajj boons to extend their duration unbroken for a full 24
hours, after which he must resume his journey again. Performing a tawaf also allows the Scion to
restore one spent Virtue Channel of his choice, and while he rests under Tawafs effects, all natural
healing occurs at double its normal speed. Scions may perform tawaf when not on a sacred
pilgrimage if they wish.

Tawaf may be used on a given location only once per week.

Hudna (Hajj ••••• •)

Dice Pool: Piety

Cost: 5 Legend and 2 Willpower per use

All travelers among the Arab gods know and depend upon the hudna, the armistice that protects
pilgrims and prevents violence from erupting around them while they are on their sacred mission.
Whenever the Scion is traveling, to any location and for any reason, she may pay the cost to place a
hudna in effect on rhe area around her; while she travels through it, no violence may be perpetrated
within a radius eaual to her successes on a Piety roll in yards. Mortals and animals find themselves
totally unable to attempt violence against one another, themselves or even inanimate objects;
creatures with a Legend rating must roll their highest Virtue against the Scion's Piety rating or find
themselves similarly prevented from exercising their more destructive urges for the rest of the
scene. Even those outside her range of effect are unable to break the sacred truce, and no violent
action (ranged weapons or other means of perpetrating injury from afar) may be attempted from a
distance on anyone within Hudna’s radius. The Scion herself is also subject to this power, and she
may take no violent or threatening action toward others while it is in effect.

The hudna remains in effect for a single scene and moves with the Scion, allowing her to travel
through any area while bringing her divinely mandated cease-fire with her. It only aids her in her
travels, however; should she initiate violence herself or stop making an effort to continue toward
her destination, this boon’s effects end instantly and she is once more prey to the vagaries of the
world.

Sha'ir (Hajj ••••• ••)

Dice Pool: Charisma + Art

Cost: 3 Legend per use

Fortitude of the spirit is as necessary to a sacred journey as fortitude of the body, and rhe Scion with
this boon is able to help impart some to his companions and fellow pilgrims in their hour of need.
Just as rhe ancient poets and soothsayers strengthened their peoples’ hearts on the great pilgrimages
to worship the Ilah, so may the Scion embolden and enliven those around him with his innate
artistic skill. Whenever he is traveling with others, he may pay the requisite cost and roll Charisma
+ Art (any artistic pursuit will do, but it must be something he can perfonn while still traveling) in
an attempt to cause his performance to lift the spirits of his fellows and renew their strength of
purpose. All those within sight or earshot of his performance (up to a maximum of his successes)
are immediately uplifted and enhanced by his message; they immediately gain the same number of
dots of Piety he possesses (though toward their own beliefs and religion, nor necessarily rhe
Scions), and regenerate one Willpower automatically every hour for as long as he continues his
inspirational activities. In addition, rhe Scion’s impressive display of divinely-inspired art in turn
inspires others, and all listeners also gain a bonus of successes equal to their Piety to their next Art
roll, allowing them to join in and encourage more of their fellows in turn. The Scion’s strength of
spirit extends to bolster the strength of the body, and he as well as all those affected by this boon
gain a bonus of successes equal to their Piety to all Stamina + Fortitude rolls made while rhe Scion
continues in his efforts. Legendary creatures may choose to remain unaffected by Sha’ir if they
wish.

Like most boons of the Hajj purview, Sha’ir aids the weary traveler but is ill-suited for use on the
sedentary; should the Scion or any of his companions cease their travels while this boon is active,
its effects immediately cease to affect them.

Awan (Hajj ••••• •••)

Dice Pool: None

Cost: None

Now one of the Ilah herself, the Scion with this boon is able to benefit from her own sacred
pilgrimages and seasons, enforcing them for her mortal worshipers with her own holy power. Any
mortals who undertake a holy journey in her name automatically gain a dot of Endurance while they
are progressing toward their goal, and each one who arrives at her ansab for worship from a suitably
arduous distance grants her a single point of Willpower, their devotion in the face of overwhelming
odds a cosmic salute to her greatness. The Storyteller should roll a number of dice based on the
Scion’s population of mortal worshipers each day to determine how many of them arrive at her
ansab and grant her the benefits of Awan.

Hostile powers that drain the Scion’s Willpower also affect excess Willpower points gained from
Awan. Willpower points gained from Awan may exceed the Scion’s normal maximum, but they
remain only for the rest of the day; if she has not spent them by then, any Willpower points above
her maximum vanish.

Haram (Hajj ••••• ••••)

Dice Pool: None

Cost: 15 Legend and 2 Willpower per use

The Scion with this boon has truly become haram, the unassailable peace; when he chooses to travel
forth on a sacred journey, it is impossible for all but the most truly determined of evils to sway or
delay him. Once a Scion has embarked on a meaningful journey (as determined to the Storyteller)
and paid the requisite cost for this boon, he exerts a powerful, almost undeniable sense of awe and
pious peace over everything and everyone around him. No violence of any kind may be perpetrated
within a number of miles of the Scion euual to his total dots in all his Virtues; predator lies down
with prey, mankind lifts no hand against one another, and wars themselves stop in their tracks,
humbled by the alb important imperative of the Scion’s holy mission. Everyone within the Scion's
affected area regains their entire Willpower pool up to their normal maximum, and anyone who
attempts to enact violence against any being or thing must succeed in rolling their total dots of
Virtues against the Scion’s. Those who succeed may wreak havoc if they wish, hut only for a single
action before the Scion’s inescapable edict of peace descends back over them again, and they
immediately find themselves drained of their entire Willpower pool after doing so. Those affected
by the Scion’s spiritual urgency find that it improves their own, and any Virtue rolls made to resist
foreign powers (other than the Scion’s use of 1 laram itself) or avoid dangers in Underworlds or
Titanrealms gain a bonus of successes equal to the Scion’s dots of Piety. The only power this does
not apply to is the Justice purview; Haram offers no benefits to resisting Justice boons, and Justice
boons may be used against a deserving Scion with Haram with impunity as they do not constitute
violence.

The effects of 1 laram last for one scene, after which the world around the Scion returns to its usual
bloodthirsty behavior. As with other Hajj boons, the Scion must be actively traveling toward a
worthy goal or as part of a reasonable journey; if he is not, or he pauses or turns aside from his path,
this boon has no effect.

Hawatif (Hajj ••••• •••••)

Dice Pool: None

Cost: 10 Legend and 1 Willpower per use

The hawatif are the secret voices of the gods, the whispered words of divinity that every ancient
Arab hoped to hear from the lips of an oracle or dream of on their pilgrimages. The Scion with this
boon may now use her own hawatif to speak to and through her worshipers, guiding them on their
own journeys with the might of her own divinity. Whenever she wishes, she may orient herself to
any ansab of hers that exists in the world that she knows of; when she docs so, she may spend the
requisite cost to briefly embody the stone representation, lending it her divine essence. Everyone
within a number of miles equal to the Scion’s total number of dots of Virtues of the ansab
immediately gains the ability to speak, pray to or invoke her and be heard without physically being
at the ansab, and the Scion herself is able to respond in any way she chooses, whether through
omens in the sky, sudden bursts of oracular proclamations from a priestess or whispers sent directly
into the minds of her worshipers (she cannot do anything that would hurt anyone, however, nor can
she use boons or knacks through the ansab). She may also grant the benefit of any of her Hajj boons
to a number of people she is able to perceive equal to ten times her Legend simply by paying its
cost a single time, thus allowing her to guide and safeguard allies and worshipers from afar or while
she journeys with them.

Having become a power among the Ilah in her own right, the Scion is now also able to travel with
an ease and purpose envied by all but the most dedicated of universal travelers. She may use any
ansab dedicated to her as an Axis Mundi leading to Sharay, walking between the veil of worlds by
using the strength of her own connection to it to guide her.

Birthrights
Creatures
Umm Al-Kharab (Creature •••)

The tiny desert owl - round-eyed, sand-heckled and small enough to fit in the hand of the Scion who
owns it - once bore the ominous name Jmm al-Kharab or Mother of Ruin, referring to its ronnection
to the suffering souls of the dead. Yhe hirsty owl is a ghostly creature that was once a iving human,
haunting its grave plaintively after dying unavenged. Occasionally granted to Scions by Manat, the
goddess of life and fare, thirsty owls retain their human intelligence and may he able to serve as
aids, advice-dispensers and liaisons with the dead for those Scions who control them. The owl,
while too small and timid to he much use in battle, is one of the dead itself and is always able to
communicate with them as if with the Death Senses boon; it should he considered otherwise to have
the same general capabilities as a small bird (see Scion: Hero, page 329).

While thirsty owls can he very useful to their Scions, they also live up to their names. They arc
constantly thirsty and prone to crying their shrill, eerie shrieks about it, and they are obsessed with
the unavenged wrong done to them in liie. A thirsty owl probably spends a good percentage of its
time nagging its Scion with details of its death and pleas to go wreak vengeance on the perpetrator,
a theme that it always returns to whenever the Scion does not have it actively doing something else.

Relics
Eye idols (Relic ••)

Eye idols arc the special symbol of al-Uzza, whose cult represented her with these rude stone
blocks, weighing about fifty pounds with no imagery or outline except for a pair of blank feminine
eyes and a full, sensual pair of lips chiseled on their otherwise unremarkable surfaces. A Scion to
whom she chooses to grant an eye idol gains the ability to channel the Fertility and Stars purviews,
granting gifts from one of the most powerful of goddesses to a world that sorely needs them.

Thunderous Sling (Relic ••)

This sling is soft to the touch and immensely tough, fashioned of the hide of one of Qos’ sacred
bulls and refined so that it rarely misses its mark. Like the thunderous arrows of the god himself, the
sling crackles faintly with blue electricity and causes thundershocks whenever used, accompanying
the Scion’s attacks with an impressive booming and crashing din. In addition to allowing the Scion
to access the Sky purview, the sling enables him to use the Storm Augmentation boon (for the price
of an additional point of Legend) on all missiles he shoots with the sling for the remainder of the
scene.

The sling should be considered to have 3 accuracy, 5 damage (lethal or bashing depending on the
missile) and to attack at a speed of 5.

Chalcedony Amulet (Relic •••)

Chalcedony, a precious, colorful stone much covered in ancient Arabia for its polished sheen and
rainbow of hues, was also highly prized for its ability to protect the wearer from evil spells and
curses. This small amulet, unshaped and of irregular outline but polished to a sleek, satiny sheen, is
worn around the neck or wrist on a simple leather cord; it grants the Scion access to the Guardian
purview and allows him the ability, once per game session, to pay a point of Legend in order to roll
his Willpower + Integrity + Legend in an attempt to resist someone using the Evil Eye spell on him.

Hanging Poem (Relic •••)

The poetry ot the predslamic Arabs was known throughout the ancient world as some of rhe most
beautiful and virtuosic in existence; even the later Islamic poets acknowledged that they could not
compete with the artistry of the ancient Arabs. While the verses were mostly preserved only through
oral retelling and performance, most of them eventually becoming lost to the sands of time, a few of
the most perfect examples were preserved as the hanging poems, so called because they were hung
in and around the Kaaba in honor of that sacred place.
Most hanging poems have also been lost, but the lucky Scion with this relic possesses one of rhem
rescued from the Kaaba and committed to eternity, an expressive ode by an anonymous artist to one
of the ancient Ilah. Carefully inked in ancient Arabic on thin yellowed camel-hide, the poem grants
a bonus of the Scion’s Legend as dice to all Art rolls; in addition, if she performs the entire poem in
its original language to an audience of at least fifty people, she may regain one spent Expression
channel.

Portable Ansab (Relic •••)

Though the Ilah have far fewer ansabs than they once did, several of them still possess small pieces
or remnants of their ancient sacred stones. The Scion who owns one has a small rock or pebble,
small enough to be held in a single hand; such stones were often taken with nomadic Arabs who
hoped they would give them a tenuous link to their divine patrons in the long year until the next
hajj. It provides all the usual abilities of an ansab, enabling the Scion to call upon and interact with
his parent no matter where he is, and in addition grants him access to the Earth purview.

Of course, a Scion carrying his parent's ansab also carries a weighty responsibility, as losing or
destroying it would be inconvenient or even disastrous for his divine parent. It also allows the
Scion’s parent to keep very close tabs on him through use of the Hajj purview; while some Scions
may be unaware of this interference or appreciate the possibility of a god’s help now and then,
others, especially those seeking to establish their own new identities as gods, often resent such
overbearing and direct control from their parents.

Azlam (Relic ••••)

One of the silvery divining arrows of Hubal, this unfletched arrow has a blunted tip and is too
weighty to be useful as a missile, but it serves a far more important occult purpose than mere
bloodshed. Azlams were used by the oracles of many of the ancient Arab gods to forecast rhe future
and ask for clarification in weighty matters of state, and the Scion who owns one has a similar
connection to the secret advice of Fate. The arrow allows a Scion to access the Mystery and
Prophecy purviews, and once per story allows the Scion to add his Legend as dice to a single
Mystery roll or as successes to a single Prophecy roll if he tosses the arrow as part of his divination
ritual.

Brass Jar (Relic •••••)

This brass jar is ot a gleaming metal, burnished and clean despite having been created centuries ago;
it is roughly two feet tall with two graceful brass handles to either side and an ornate wax stopper,
ornamented with an image of the Scions parent, that seals its mouth firmly closed. The jar was used
by ancient Arabian royalty to trap and incarcerate unruly jinn; whenever the Scion is confronted
with a jinni of lower Legend than herself, she may spend two points of Legend to roll her
Willpower + Integrity + Legend against the jinni's in an attempt to force it into the sacred vessel. If
she succeeds, the jinni is trapped in the jar, unable to use any powers or to escape unless the seal is
broken. She may still converse with the jinni while it is thus trapped, though she may find it sullen
and uncommunicative, but in turn she may not use any supernatural powers on it, as the
enchantment that traps it in the jar also protects it from everything outside. Anyone with The
Unlidded Eye spell is able to see the trapped jinni within the jar, rhough she cannot do anything
more to it than identify it as being there.

The Scion may only trap lower-Legend jinn, and may only trap a single jinni at a time; if she wishes
to release the jinni, she may do so by breaking the wax seal, but jinn who have been forcibly
imprisoned and carried around like objects are generally unlikely to feel kindly toward their jailers,
and she may discover that it is even more bent on mischief than it was when she locked it down in
the first place.

Hey, Get Out of There!

It is highly unlikely that a jinni would intentionally submit itself to being trapped in any vessel;
many a spirit of flame has been trapped, in containers ranging from sacred boxes and jars to the
proverbial magic lamp, and most of them end up kept in libraries or museums or buried under
ruins, stuck in their cramped prisons for eternity. However, it is possible for a jinni that is in great
distress to intentionally seek out such a container for the protection it offers, using it as a hiding
place or perhaps hoping that serving the jar's owner will win it some political points it can trade on
in the future. Scions who want to be charitable toward jinn allies could even use the jar as a sort of
safe transport system, bringing the trapped but safe jinni through dangerous territory or on stealth
missions.

If a Scion finds that her jar has been occupied by a jinni she didn't intend to trap there, she may of
course attempt to free it, but if it doesn’t want to leave may be faced with a more problematic
situation. Some Scions go to higher powers to evict the creature or threaten to bury the jar or drop
it into the ocean if the squatter doesn’t leave; others, seeing opportunity, might attempt to bargain
with it for information or favors.

Guides
Qarin (Guide •••••)

AKA: Qarinah

According to ancient Arab lore, when a truly significant or important person is bom, a jinni is Kirn
at the same time, a spiritual twin and mirror in the world of the supernatural. Such a jinni is called a
qarin (or qarinah, if it is female), and it is the unseen guidance, energy and interference of the qarin
that inspires a man to greatness and encourages him to achieve his destiny. Arab Scions, who are by
default the most important children ever to be born of mortal men, almost can’t help but have a
qarin that is born with them; the Scion with this Birthright is able to communicate with and harness
some of the powers of his qarin, uniting his spirit with that of his unseen twin.

A qarin should be considered to be the same Legend rating as the Scion, and has most of the typical
powers of normal jinn. While, like most jinn, it will seldom if ever manifest where others can see it,
it may communicate with the Scion via subtle whispers in his ears and small, half-hidden signs and
messages scattered throughout his environment. The qarin is loyal to the Scion, who is after all
closer to it than any other relation in its life, but since it recognizes that its grand destiny is tied to
that of its Scion, it is likely to urge him toward ever greater feats of daring and conoucst, sometimes
even when he might not necessarily wish to pursue that path. Qarin generally live in Qaf with their
brethren and only occasionally visit the Scion to whom they are tied; as the Scion gains in power
and influence among the gods, so does the qarin gain in power and influence among jinn, so they
have quite an interest in making sure that their Scion “twins” rise to prominence as quickly as
possible.

Like all jinn, qarin have a hard time affecting things in the World and generally do not physically
interfere with things there, making them poor soldiers and guardians but excellent sources of
inspiration, intelligence and strategy.
Cosmology
The silent desert lands of the Arabian peninsula belie the rich hidden worlds just beyond the veil of
mortal sight. Fantastic cities, grandiose mins and hidden secrets lie around every comer, as solid as
stone or as ephemeral as shimmering mirages. No matter where a Scion travels in the lands of the
Ilah, she is only a secret door or sideways step away from the supernatural.

Overworld: Sharay
The divine home ot the Ilah has little in common with the splendid palaces and self-indulgent
pleasure gardens of other pantheons; its expanse of wilderness seems inhospitable and strange to
visiting gods and its secret places and powers incomprehensible. The seemingly simple wilderness
of Sharay and its related lands conceals just as much occult power as rhe Overworlds of more flashy
gods, buried beneath the unprepossessing and awesome might of the divine landscape.

Rhet Jeydh, the Good Journey

The greatest part of Sharay is a massive ring of fertile land, spanning huge distances but always
coming back around to join itself, forming an unbroken circle that continues into infinity. This is
Rhel Jcydh, what the Ilah call the Good Journey, a strip on which they travel around their
Overworld with ease anil comfort, remaining in constant motion even as their pilgrim devotees in
the world struggle onward themselves.

Rhel Jeydh's shape is reminiscent of a colossal racetrack, but it is seldom used for such a purpose.
Abundant pasture-land and soft earth are everywhere along its length, as well as sweetsmelling
desert flowers and trees; songbirds nest in the lush growth and rock-crawling lizards sun themselves
alongside large herds of camels and wild horses. Nothing here hinders the traveler, and the land
itself offers every convenience and comfort a pilgrim could ask for. The endless, gently rolling land
is illuminated constantly by the mellow, comforting white glow of the moon and stars, bright
enough to provide comfort and clarity for the traveler but never approaching the harsh glare of the
unforgiving sun. There are no paths in Rhel Jeydh, but the gods have no need of them; the way has
been worn by countless centuries of feet traveling across its easy and pleasant lands, and in any case
it is impossible to get lost unless a traveler chooses to leave the ring’s delights for the lands beyond.

Though the Good Journey renews itself continually and is always fresh and pleasant, it is a place of
travel and transience and resists anything that attempts to chain it to a single location or too
permanently change its features. Any structure, monument or other permanent object built in Rhel
Jeydh remains only as long as the builder is at its location, and vanishes once all travelers are out of
sight of it, making it impractical to attempt to settle or build within the great trackway. Objects or
items that do not significantly change the landscape may remain and be discovered by later
joumeyers (or by the god who lost them, should he choose to return or travel all the way around to
his original point again), but they, too, often go missing if left too long unnoticed. It is rumored
among rhe Arab gods that Rhel Jeydh is not a place but a constantly moving thing itself, and that the
ground benearh one’s feet there is never rhe same twice; the more distrustful gods of the other
pantheons whisper that it swallows and absorbs everything that does not move with it, the better to
constantly renew itself.

Travelers, as well, find it hard to become sedentary here; all who enter Rhel Jeydh’s lands gain a
point of Endurance that remains until they depart, and few can resist its siren call to continue rheir
wanderings through its perfect and serene environs. Those who already possess the Endurance
Virtue regain one channel for every day spent wandering along the Good Journey's way.
The Ilah, when they are not spending their infrequent seasons of rest at Ash-Sherq or Yegharrehow,
travel Rhel Jeydh constantly without hurry or difficulty, some in order to reach other parts of their
Overworld and others for the mere contemplative joy of moving along it. It is not uncommon to see
some of them traveling together, enjoying one anothers’ company and camping occasionally for
divine celebration and song, or to see lone pilgrims enjoying the solitude and quiet of an unbroken,
unhurried journey.

The Four Pillars

At the precise cardinal points of Rhel Jedyh stand the Four Pillars, monstrous mountains of stone
and sand that stretch up to unfathomable heights in the firmament and plunge their roots down
below the lands at their feet. They mark the boundaries of the Overworld, preventing travelers from
accidentally leaving the lands of the Ilah, and are so unfaihomably tall that the most determined of
travelers and most powerful of sky would still find it almost impossible to reach their summits.

The four mountains are the only truly permanent fixtures in Sharay, and are the site of the
infrequent times of the gods' rest and idle lives before they embark on their journeys once more.
Two of the mountains, Sherqey (“the eastern”) and Alegherbey (“the western”) are little more than
waystations as far as the gods are concerned, rocky edifices of impressive girth but mainly unused
by the deities that reside here. Gods on their way to the other mountains occasionally pause here to
perform projects or leave signs or messages that would not last in the ever-changing climate of Rhel
Jeydh, and it is also here, in the bare, rocky halls and rooms, more suitable for desert creatures than
for those who prefer comfort, that the Ilah most often entertain visiting deities who they do not wish
to permit into rhe more sacred sanctums. Various lesser immortals, especially jinn, also haunt the
area and make their homes here; they live on cliffs, under overhangs and in caves or, if they are
especially bold, reside in the halls of the Ilah when the gods are not present to stop them.

Yegharribow, the northern mountain, is the summer “home" of the Ilah; at the end of their
wanderings through Rhcl Jcydh, the Arab gods meet here for the two hottest months of the year,
holding councils among the ruling gods to iron out any disputes or discuss any issues that require all
the gods’ attention and action. In addition to various apartments, ranging in size from small square
rooms cut into the earth of the mountain to massive, many-tiered palaces, the lion’s share of
Yegharribow is devoted to the council chambers of the Ilah, which consist of a low, flat square table
with four chairs around it, one for each of the four jointly ruling gods of the Arab tribes, and several
tiers of seats and paths that allow rhe other gods to observe their deliberations or assemble if
necessary.

The fourth mountain, Ash-Sherq, lies at rhe southernmost point of Sharay and is the only permanent
home that the Ilah could accurately be said to have. The mountain resembles nothing so much as a
magnificent palace, its entire monolithic face chiseled, carved and shaped to form countless
dwellings, walls, artwork and communal spaces, run through by sweet-watered wells and streams
and always filled with lush vegetation and cool breezes. Every one of the myriad Arab gods
possesses a home here, as simple or sumptuous as they wish, and if Yegharribow is a place for
council and deliberation, Ash-Sherq is a place of rest, healing and leisure, a great mountainous city
of pleasures and delights awaiting the brief stays of the gods. Ash-Sherq is the winter home of the
Ilah, and they spend rhe two coldest months of the year there, enjoying its brief respite before
taking to Rhel Jeydh again on their many-month journey back north.

The Four Lords

The Ilah, being the gods of the myriad wandering tribes of the ancient Arabs, have no central
authority and instead rely upon the wisdom and guidance of their four most ancient and influential
gods, who act as a council and must agree on a course of action for matters grave enough to affect
the entire pantheon. Dusnara, lord of the mountains and the settled Arab tribes, provides his
expertise on matters of the natural world, while Amm, patron of ancient Qataban, acts as the source
of wisdom and statecraft, Ilmaqah, protector of the Sabaen tribes, keeps the sacred traditions and
calendars of the Ilah under consideration, and Huhal, once the patron of the Kaaba itself, is
consulted in matters of war and the inner workings of Fate. Their personalities often clash and
decisions may be difficult to arrive at, but no one of them can make binding laws or proclamations
to the other gods without the consent of the other three.

In times long past, the council also consulted with and listened to the final word of Allah on matters
that were of the greatest significance; the Ilah claim that he no longer has any sway over their
politics or decisions, but gods of the other pantheons still view their unorthodox power structure
with more than a little worry, afraid that it might have some greater authority behind it that fulfills
its will unseen.

Sherq, the Endless Waste

Though the Ilah themselves seldom consider the area important to their divine realm, the feature
that makes the strongest impression on most visitors is Sherq, the gigantic and seemingly endless
desert that forms the core of Sharay. Sherq is the center and by far the vastest part of the entire
Overwork!; it is a desert of inexpressible size and absolute hardship, as unforgiving and without
help as Rhel Jeydh (which runs in a ring around it, a thin strip of habitability constantly bordered by
Sherq s absolute refusal to support life) is gentle and easy. Nothing grows here except through
intervention of the most powerful gods, and dies in short order even so; neither docs any water
remain without sinking into rhe sands, swallowed up thirstily to leave bone-dry waste behind.
Terrible sandstorms of injurious and brutal force whip through it without warning, scouring the skin
and eyes of those who brave it, and its size and featurelessness arc so great that even the most
accomplished travelers and psychopomps find themselves lost or flagging before too long. Sherq is
the place that nothing can live and that only the most fortunate and hardy can survive passing
through; it is the desert that all other deserts dream of.

For the Ilah, it is also merely a fact of life; Sherq has always been there and they would not know
quite what to do without it. While traveling through this portion of rhe Overworld is an endeavor
that the most powerful gods themselves do not take lightly, it is also one of their greatest
advantages; Sherq, which represents the wilderness that must always be conquered for a truly
meaningful journey, connects to almost everywhere and anywhere that a god may need to go. It
functions essentially as a massive door to any destination in the World, Overworlds or Underworlds
(although it cannot invade the Sanctums of other gods, nor does it allow a visitor to bypass magical
wards or protections that might be in place around an area); all a traveler need do to use it as such is
journey to the very barren heart of the desert (which takes a number of days equal to 10 minus his
permanent Willpower with a minimum of one, reflecting his determination and commitment to the
journey) and spend five points of Legend, emerging from it to his destination as if wandering
aimlessly out of the wilderness. Such a quest is dangerous, however; a god must be able to make a
Wits + Integrity roll of at least 50 each day in order to keep his destination Firmly enough in mind
to find his way through Sherq’s unmapped, constantly shitting wastes, regardless of how quickly he
travels or in what manner, and every day he fails is merely a day of wasted wandering in the desert,
suffering from the harsh environmental conditions and miserable privations of the journey. He
suffers twenty levels of unsoakable lethal damage each day that cannot be healed while within
Sherq’s boundaries; no one, not even the most stalwart of gods, travels the father of all deserts
without suffering its effects, but wanderers may roll their Endurance each day and subtract their
successes from the total damage they take. Sherq is extremely difficult to find one’s way out of once
it has been entered, requiring a Perception + Survival roll of at least 75 to find the way back to the
welcome relief of Rhel Jeydh, and most find that once they have entered, they have no choice but to
find their way to the center in order to escape.

The Ilah have, in the past, used Sherq as both a convenient method of traveling quickly to otherwise
inaccessible locales (usually only when a serious need arises, as the journey is intensely
uncomfortable and dangerous) such as closed Terrae Incognita or remote corners of foreign
Overworlds, hut it has also been used as a combination of prison and punishment since time
immemorial. Enemies, criminals and other undesirables may he thrown into Sherq's unforgiving
wastes, left to fend for themselves with only a token guard to make sure they do not somehow
return to Sharay’s more habitable zones. Should such an enemy manage to survive Sherq for long
enough to escape it, the Ilah would consider her to be absolved of her past crimes, but the desert
sands cover the bones of far more of the Arab gods’ enemies than have ever made it through to the
other side.

The Arab gods consider it an elegant solution; a prison without walls or guards is exceptionally easy
to maintain, and should anyone have the fortitude of spirit to survive its rigors, she clearly deserves
to live another day.

Axis Mundi: The Heavenly Stone

As the focal point of the modem religion of Islam, the Kaaba is one of the most recognizable
structures in the world, a low, square sanctuary that houses the Black Stone, the most sacred object
in the Muslim religion. But before the Kaaba was venerated by the followers of Allah, it belonged
to the Ilah, whose worshipers filled it with ansabs and offerings to their glory, and before the Black
Stone was kissed by Muslim worshipers it was given all due respect by the ancient pre-Islamic
Arabs who knew it as the link between them and their gods. Other kaabas, housing other sacred
stones, once dotted the ancient Arab world as places of prayer and foci of pilgrimages, but they
have all been destroyed by time and rival religions unril only the Kaaba of Mecca, preserved by the
Muslims who considered it equally as holy as their ancient forbears, still stands.

It is not the Kaaba itself that acts as an Axis Mundi for the Ilah hut rather the Black Stone, which
long ago the celestial deities of the Arab gods let fall to earth to bind them to their people; it, and
any other meteorite or comet fragment fallen from the heavens, serve as the connection between
Sharay and the World, between the heavenly deities of the Ilah and the mortals who can only call
out to them. A god who recognizes one of these heavenly stones for what it is may use it to travel to
the Overwork! of the Arab deities, passing from the earthly abode of the stone to its heavenly
origins; when he does so, he finds himself at the foot of one of the Four Pillars, whichever one is
most diametrically opposed to his destination, leaving him to travel onward around Rhel Jeydh or
brave the sandy wastes of Sherq.

Meteorites must he sizahle and recognizable to function properly as Axes Mundi to Sharay, subject
to a Storyteller’s judgment. There are fairly few of them still remaining in the world, but besides the
Black Stone, would-be visitors may also find their way to the Overwork! by touching the Camel’s
Hump meteorite in the National Museum of Saudi Arabia, the Bacubirito Meteorite in Culacan,
Mexico, the Hoba Meteorite in Namibia or the Willamette Meteorite in the American Museum of
Natural History.
Palmyra

If you are using the Scion: Elohim supplement detailing the Canaanite gods, the city of Palmyra,
should he considered a favorite meeting place of the Ilah, particularly when they need to meet with
the gods of other pantheons. Several deities, most notably Manat and Allat, still have shrines
dedicated to them in the city and receive regular offerings there, and portals to the hustling markets
and temples of Palmyra exist in both the featureless walls of Yegharribow and the pleasant terraces
of Ash-Sherq. It is a matter of legend among the Ilah that the city itself was built by jinn working for
divine masters among the Arab gods, and as a result they tend to consider it belonging as much to
them as to whatever deity of the Elohim currently lays claim to it.

Since the Siege

The Alihal and Sharay itself still have not quite recovered from their cataclysmic battle to imprison
Allah in the first struggle against their Titan; they still have few remaining Axes Mundi, little in the
way of political power with the other pantheons and have completely lost their mortal worshipers to
time and religious disagreement. They are in a poor position to manage his return, and his assault on
Sharay has been subtle enough that they have only recently begun to realize how grave their
situation truly is. Sherq, once dangerous hut not actively destructive, has developed at its heart a
connection to Titans, allowing the Titans to exert his influence on the Overworld without needing to
enter it fully himself. It has become more difficult to travel Rhel Jedyh in peace; Sherq has begun
exerting a subtle but almost irresistible pull that causes travelers to stray from the Good Journey
into its endless wastes, and of those who have done so, some of the minor gods and spirits of the
Ilah have nor returned. Whether this is because they have been drawn into Titans through the desert
or whether the desert itself is becoming too impassible to escape is still unknown, and the Arab gods
are more reluctant than ever to pass into its trackless heart to find out.

The Underworld: the Muquim

For many pantheons, the Underworld is the greatest source of dread and depression, a place that
even gods fear to tread and that mortals can never escape or challenge. Such cannot be said of the
Underworld of the Ilah, for one incontrovertible, incredible reason: they do not have one.
While death was certainly present for the ancient Arab gods and their peoples, the Ilah have never
bothered to create a holding pen for the deceased souls of their mortal worshipers; unlike other
pantheons, who labor to craft paradises for the worthy and unyielding parapets to hold in the
multitudes of the departed, the Ilah pay dead mortals as little attention as the sand they are buried
beneath. They have no final resting place of peace and plenty or final destination of terror and

torture; they make no judgments about the deeds of any mortal during his life and do not weigh the
quality of his soul. Their word for the departed, muqim, literally means “the sedentary”; those who
have stopped moving, the inactive, inert dead as opposed to the ever-journeying, ever-moving
living. As far as the Ilah are concerned, dead is dead. There is nothing more to say.

And, for the most part, the muqim seem to accept this. The ghosts of the dead within the areas of
the World once ruled by the Ilah remain, for the most part, in their graves, each of them tied there as
if truly sleeping and immobile. The binding of the dead to their final resting place is one of the
responsibilities of Manat, the goddess of Fate; it is, after all, the final expression of the fate decreed
for them, and while she certainly does not appear to spend an inordinate amount of time traveling
the world to manage them, still it is clear to those who can see such tilings that the dead in the
Arabian lands do not wander from their burial sites.
In the rare case that a mortal dies without fulfilling his fate, usually as a result of the interference of
supernatural forces, Manat has been known to allow him to return to the world in concrete form as a
tiny desert owl formed from the bones of his body, haunting the gravesite, crying out to every
passerby. It is only to those who speak the language of the dead that these cries are intelligible,
sounding like the pleading of a voice begging for someone to avenge its murder or fulfill its
unfinished business; to all others, it is merely the plaintive, haunting cry of an owl. For such an owl
to leave its grave is nearly impossible, but it is still dangerous to rest near such a restless soul; the
ancient Arabs knew that the sympathetic ties of Fate and death were strong, and believed that
anyone whose roof or tent was alighted on by such an owl was marked to follow it in unhappy
death. Anyone touched by one of the owls of the dead suffers for the next three days as if afflicted
by the Evil Eye spell.

Despite this danger, the gravesides of the muqim are still favorite campgrounds of the most
courageous or artistically motivated among mortals and Scions alike (those who remember any of
the ancient Arab customs, anyway). Poets and other artists may draw inspiration from the
slumbering wellsprings of the dead nearby, even if they are unable to speak to them; anyone who
sleeps beside the grave of a muqim gains a +5 dice bonus to rheir next Art roll, bolstering their own
abilities with the forgotten, unused arts of those who have gone before. Artists also draw some of
the suffering of death into themselves, however, becoming afflicted with the endless, desert-like
thirst of the dead; they suffer from a -5 dice penalty to all physical rolls that do not involve the
creation of art for the next 24 hours, and the overwhelming sensation of thirst has driven more than
one hapless mortal to alcohol poisoning or illness from overimbibing.

Other pantheons (particularly those with the Harmony Virtue) are usually shocked by the cavalier
attitude of the Arab gods toward their dead; they view the lack of Underworld as unforgivably
irresponsible and the idea that the Ilah apparently simply use the World itself to hold ghosts and
spirits dangerous and insane. It is extremely hazardous for living mortals to be in such close
proximity to ghosts, contained in their graves or not, and as tar as many other gods are concerned,
it is a flouting of the very natural order of the universe itself to allow them to remain in the World of
mortals as if they had simply ceased to exist. Other death gods, particularly those of their close
neighbors the Anunna and Pesedjet, occasionally attempt to “poach” the Arab dead for their own
Underworlds, seeking to keep any new ghosts from being left unattended in the World, but they
dare not do so too openly or frequently lest they risk a political incident.

The Ilah have listened to rhese complaints and concerns politely, but their answer is always the
same: dead is dead. The muqim have remained in their graves for thousands of years, and they see
no reason they cannot continue to do so, leaving the gods’ energy and time free for the living who
surely need it more.

Effect of Shattering

Since they have no Undenworld and no direct connection to Tartarus, the Ilah were nearly
unaffected by the shattering of the prison of the Titans; they lost no gods or minions in the
cataclysm and the muqim, safely in the World, went entirely unscathed (something that Manat
occasionally points out when irritated a little too much by those calling for an Arab Underworld).
Most of the Arab gods only noticed the event because they were called upon by other pantheons for
help, or only realized something was amiss when the minions of the Titans began to be seen again.
A more insidious danger lurks in the Shattering for the Ilah and their lands, however; the shaking
foundations of the Underworlds themselves reverberated up into the graves of the muqim, wakening
many of them from their long sleeps and crumbling and eroding rheir bonds to their graves. While
most of them still remain where they have for generations, many more of the Arab dead are now
awake as restless ghosts, and the landscape of the Arabian lands hits become distinctly more
haunted since the escape of the Titans. Whether this issue can be handily solved by the efforts of
Scions and other minions of the Arab gods or whether it presages a larger problem is yet to be seen;
the Ilah continue to ignore the dead, but the dead have stopped ignoring the living quite as much as
they once did.

Iram, City of Pillars

AKA: Ubar, Wabar

Iram is an ancient city, once one of the few permanent strongholds of the Ilah in rhe trackless
wastes of the Arabian deserts. The city was once the jewel of the desert, built of slender, graceful
towers, tall, imposing walls and lofty pillars that encircled and supported its artwork and masonry. It
was situated in a large and lush oasis, filled with abundant clear water and thick green vegetation,
and merchant caravans braved the dangers of the vast desert to reach its shining octagonal walls in
order to trade for frankincense, a precious commodity so ubiquitous in the city that it was said that
the home of the lowliest peasant in Irani was as perfumed as the chambers of a queen. Pleasure
gardens filled with delicious fruit, treasuries containing all the wonders of the desert world and
great palaces built of red silver were all common sights in Iram, all provided and cared for by the
Ilah, who lavished all comforts at their disposal on their most devoted people; the ansahs of the
Arab gods were housed in temples or open-air sanctuaries and provided with daily sacrifice and
adoration.

Unfortunately, Iram was one of the most spectacular casualties of the first war with the Titans, and
its loss was a crippling blow to many of the Ilah. Followers and minions of Allah attempted to
forcibly convert the population and deprive the Ilah of their most potent base of worship, and when
that failed destroyed the city utterly with droughts, armed assaults and finally a fiery storm that
wreaked havoc on the mostly mortal population. The dedicated protective gods of the city, the
brothers Samd, Samud and Hara, called upon Dushara and Al-Qaum to aid them in saving their
people, but their efforts came too late; though they managed to sink the city beneath the heaving
desert and tear it away from the World, the three brothers perished in the attempt, and Iram was
already beyond repair. It is the echo of that long-ago sunken tragedy that gives Iram the name by
which it is most often known in the modem day: Atlantis of the Sands.

Though Irani was not saved in time, the efforts of the gods were not entirely fruitless; it now exists
outside the World as a Terra Incognita, accessible to only the most intrepid explorers. Human
archaeologists have never succeeded in finding the ruins of Irani (for obvious reasons), but
Legendary travelers who come upon the featureless desert dunes where it once stood, buried deep in
the unremarkable wastes of modern-day Oman, may spend a point of Legend to transport
themselves there, sinking down into the sands as the city itself once did.

The Iram of today is a sad ghost of its former glory; it is an empty, dead place, lived in by no one
and nothing except for a few dispossessed jinn and whatever travelers seek it out. Tlie once-lush
oasis is gone, leaving behind nothing but barren, heat-blasted sand that has been slowly but surely
attempting to swallow the city for centuries, filling the floors of abandoned buildings and flooding
the once-lively streets with uncaring, dusty perseverance. The once-proud pillars, soaring forty or
fifty feet into the sky, are mostly toppled and crushed by time and the long-ago violence of Allah’s
assault; the graceful palaces and gardens are empty, broken shells and sun-withered graveyards. I
lere and there an eerie corpse of one of the ancient inhabitants may still lie half-uncovered by sand,
turned to a glass- and steel-like hardness by the fiery powers visited on the place, frozen in the
moment of death.

No one lives in Iram now; most of the Ilah avoid it for its painful memories of their failure, and
some of rhe older gods even consider it an object lesson in how dangerous settling in a city and thus
becoming vulnerable to assault truly is. Iram is, however, a veritable repository of ancient relics,
knowledge and secrets, long left to be buried by time and sand once their owners were killed. Most
visitors to rhe city are treasure-hunters, seeking relics of the ancient civilization now lost to all but
the memory of the Arab gods, looking for aged writings or works of art in some lost corner, the
fabled hoards of gold and jewels, or even discarded weapons of the first war against the Titans, left
unused in the long millennia since they were let fall by gods or Titans too weary to wield them.
Only the Ilah know for sure what treasures are still hidden behind Iram’s silent, crumbled walls;
they do not say, but some of them do still make a point of sending their Scions there to search for
something (they seldom say what, exactly). Whether they hope their offspring will find tools to aid
them in the war or are merely making a point about what might happen if they fail remains a
mystery.

The Three Brothers

Samd, Samud and Hara, the triple guardian gods of Iram, died in Allah's assault, using the last of
their strength to help their pantheon’s doomed attempts to aid their dying city. However, dead docs
not mean gone; the Ilah have no Underworld, and so the shades of the three gods have remained
where they fell, each at one of the half-buried gates that once allowed traders and supplicants
access to rhe city. They are largely powerless and do not attempt to do much to either help or
hinder travelers; after all, the dead are the dead, and in any case there is not much left in Iram for
them to bother with protecting.

They will not tolerate further destruction of the city, however, even in its current sorry state, and are
likely to use what few Guardian powers remain to them to prevent destructive pursuits nearby
(especially if anyone attempts to damage something sacred to the Ilah, in which case the force of
their Piety-fueled umbrage may be enough to allow their ghosts to materialize briefly, just long
enough to crack a skull or two). They arc not averse to well-behaved treasure-seekers, however,
having no use for the last riches around them, and a visitor with enough powers of Death to
converse with and persuade them might be able to gain knowledge of where certain items or parts
of rhe city might be, as well as details on the long-ago destruction of the place.

Samd, Samud anil Hara are identical triplet brothers, all strong-featured, dark-haired and
generally scowling when beholding visitors to their once-great city. They were all Legend 9 at the
time of their deaths.

Qaf, Mother of All Mountains

AKA: Jabal Al-Qaf, Kaf

Qaf is the Terra Incognita that serves as the fantastical homeland of rhe jinn, a landscape of magic
and wonder, curses and torments, exceptional beauty and abject terror. Stories about it and its
incredible inhabitants have flourished in Arabian countries since the first ancient poetry was written,
and continue on into the present day, when even the most modern and sophisticated of Arab people
may still believe in the unseen parallel world of the jinn without blinking. The jinn are believed to
live in a world so far away that it would take centuries to travel there, and yet, paradoxically, to be
so close that only the thin veil of invisibility separates them from humanity.

The vast bulk of Qaf is made up of a colossal mountain range, treacherously dangerous spires and
precipices towering into the dusky sky at incredible heights. The roots of the mountains are believed
to plunge down into the earth until they meet the roots of the mountains of the World, while it is
said that it would take a traveler five hundred years to travel all the way through the ranges to the
Terra’s edges, assuming he wished to suffer through the hail and lightning storms of the outer
reaches to do so. The mountains themselves are the most striking feature of Qaf’s landscape; they
are formed of solid, brilliant emerald in every conceivable hue of green, dazzling the eye anil
captivating the mind of mankind for centuries. Of course, the limitless wealth represented by this
much emerald is entirely lost on the jinn, who find humanity's preoccupation with gemstones
amusing. To them, the precious green stone is the most common rock out there.

There is no direct light in Qaf, which lacks a sun, moon, stars or any other heavenly bodies; instead,
all light is reflected from the everpresent glittering surface of the emerald mountains, bathing the
entire Terra in an eerie but soothing green glow. The sky itself is a perpetually clear, empty deep
green, lit by the reflection of the land below and empty save for the anqa birds that occasional y
wheel through it. Between the cities, largely undisturbed thanks to the general jinn disdain of work
and drudgery, lie huge swaths of meadows so white that they shine like silver, providing perfect
grazing ground for the fantastic beasts of the Terra, and plains of grain so ripe that it glows like
molten gold. The edges of Qaf, if a traveler survives the journey to reach them, are supposedly
ringed by the Impassible Ocean, an expanse of bottomless green water that the jinn themselves have
no interest in exploring.

Closer to home, there are a multitude of small cities, forts and kingdoms built into the shining
mountains, each one claimed by a jinn lord who acts as the ultimate authority over his small handful
of servants. Though many such tiny "kingdoms” dot the ranges, giving rise to a multitude of petty
“kings of the jinn”, there are in fact four tme strongholds of power within the realm: the shining
cities of Tharis, Taqil, Jabulqa and Jabulsa.

How Do It in Persia

Jinn are a widespread phenomenon across the Middle East, and their fanciful powers and
mischievous natures have often earned them infamy even outside the lands of their origin. The
Yazata, and through them their Persian worshipers, are all too aware of the jinn and consider them
to be most likely minions of the evil deevs or perhaps even deevs themselves (at least the most
powerful among them), though once in a while a particularly upstanding jinni might convince them
otherwise on a case-by-case basis. The Yazata and their children seldom visit Qaf, which they refer
to somewhat disparagingly as “Jinnistan”, but they keep an eye on the situation, ready to come
down on its inhabitants if the Alihan ever appear to be insufficient to keep them under control.
Should the Allah-aligned jinn of Qaf triumph and begin to pour forth to do the same in the World, it
is likely that the Ya:ata would take violent action against the jinn as a race; the Arab gods may
consider them a necessary people to be supported and used for their own ends, but the Persian
deities would lose no sleep at all if the jinn happened to be wiped cleanly from the faces of all
worlds.

In some Persian texts, Shadukiam, the Terra Incognita home of the fairy-like peri who serve the
Yazata, is said to be located in Jinnistan; while the two realms arc clearly not one and the same, it
is nevertheless true that they have been in times gone by, and that some peri may be found in Qaf or
jinn in Shadukiam on their own mysterious errands.

Tharis and Taqil, the Steadfast Cities

Situated respectively at the perfect north and south points of Qaf s heart, Tharis and Taqil are two of
the four ancient cities of the jinn, guarded by fortresses with garrisons ot thousanc and filled with
uncounted treasures and wonders that the inhabitants find entirely ordinary. In happier times, the
cities were places of rest and pleasure for not only the jinn but roving wanderers of the Ilah or even
a few mortals plucked out of the World; the great brass towers and ruby doors, ivory streets and
golden windows are still a splendid sight, bathed in the emerald light of the mountains and filled
with such wonders as animals that talk, objects that fly to their owners’ hands and treasuries that can
never nin dry. Tire cities are difficult to map, since the jinn that live there are prone to redefining
their borders on a whim much more frequently than mortals might, but they arc approximately
thirty-five to forty thousand miles in diameter, as truly gigantic in size as they are fantastic in
content. Streets twist and turn from wide boulevards to cramped, crazily crooked alleys; houses
range from opulent palaces to humble lean-tos and everything in between. The jinn are its varied as
humanity but far more strange, and their great cities reflect their characteristic whimsy.

The cities are now girded for war, however, and have been for centuries, heavily fortified and
restless as a result of the tumultuous civil war that has embroiled the jinn and their people for far
longer than any human memory recalls. While Tharis and Taqil aided the Ilah in their long-ago bid
to imprison Allah, rallying behind the Arab gods in order to preserve the integrity of the worlds and
their own free will, the other two cities, Jabulqa and Jabulsa, chose to side with Allah and his
promises of an egalitarian, undivided world. The cities have been in a ceaseless war with one
another since. Its ferocity has ebbed and flowed over the course of the many centuries (jinn being,
after all, fickle in their attention), but the escape of the Titans from Tartarus has brought it roaring
back to life with a vengeance.

The four cities of Qaf are ruled by the Four Heads, the greatest kings among the jinn; they are
powerful sorcerers, formidable warriors and cunning politicians, having kept their power over
centuries of magical intrigue and treachery in jinn society. Called upon by mortals as dispensers of
justice, vengeance and magical comeuppance, they symbolize the power of the jinn as a race and
are the figureheads who lead the currently-raging war against one another. Taykal, king of Tharis,
niles from the northern quarter of Qaf, while Qasurah, king of Taqil, rules the south; while both
have supported the Ilah in the past, especially in matters pertaining to the defense against Allah,
they are individual powers in their own right and have plenty of plots and plans of their own that
may or may not involve the Arab gods. Taykal, an imposing figure with dark, flashing eyes and a
ready scimitar, has seen his city suffer most heavily in the current war and is unlikely to be
convinced to do anything but continue until he has destroyed the rival rulers and wreaked thorough
vengeance upon them, while Qasurah, slim and thoughtful but supematurally swift in both body and
mind, schemes to see what political power he may be able to gain if any of the four cities falls.

The two cities have been in stalemate for some centuries, alternating between pitched battles,
skirmishes and uneasy cold wars, nut the return of Allah has lent surprising strength and verve to his
allies, and as a result things are beginning to go poorly for Tharis and Taqil. The jinn kings will not
seek active help from the Ilah (or anyone else, for thar matter) in their own matters of honor and
vengeance, but some of the Arab gods have begun to suggest sending them aid or counsel anyway.
They may be too proud to admit they need help, but the Ilah cannot afford for the jinn, as a race, to
all fall to their enemy.

Ansab, Anyone?

While it would he an easy matter for any god or Scion of the Ilah to leave an ansab in Qaf, thus
granting her easy access to the homeland of the jinn, it is considerably more challenging to keep it
there reliably. The jinn are finely tuned to recognize items and place of power, and it is unlikely that
any ansab will go unrecognized for what it truly is for very long, even if hidden in unlikely places.
Jinn tend to be independent and temperamental, and even those friendly toward the Ilah might take
offense to discovering such an obvious attempt to infiltrate their domains at will; ansabs left in
Qaf's major cities are more than likely to be moved to inhospitable or inconvenient other places
(usually whatever the jinni in question finds most entertaining, though particularly vindictive jinn
may intentionally place it somewhere injurious or difficult to recover), and even normally neutral
jinn might attempt to magically destroy them, viewing any psychic whiplash that affects the Scion of
the Ilah who left it there as their just desserts for spying.

It is not impossible for Arab gods and Scions to leave ansabs in Qaf, however; if given as gifts to
important personages with appropriate pomp, they might be kept and even venerated by those
among the jinn who still worship the Ilah, and enterprising Scions might be able to successfully
hide them in more remote or out-of-the-way cities, villages or cracks in the emerald rocks.

It goes without saying, of course, that jinn allied with Allah will destroy any ansab they encounter
with extreme prejudice.

Jabulqa and Jabulsa, the Cities of Order

The cities of the jinn who are allied with Allah are not discernibly different for most observers; they
are every bit as impressive in size, awesome in scope and opulent in ornamentation, featuring
artwork carved by master craftsmen and garrisons bristling with magical mayhem. They are
occasionally referred to as the “cities of darkness”, not because they are all that much darker than
the rest of Qaf but because the jinn that dwell there have mastered the art of redirecting the emerald
light for their own purposes with a combination of magical meddling and mechanical invention,
focusing brightness where they wish and leaving unaccustomed shadow elsewhere. Both cities have
expansive treasure hordes, often buttressed by wealth stolen from Tharis and Taqil and kept locked
up expressly to taunt them rather than because anyone particularly wants or needs it. Jabulqa is the
eastern city, ruled by Mazar, a dour and dangerously fanatical jinni who channels his considerable
power into constantly seeking ways to spy on and overthrow the other two cities; Jabulsa is the
western city and is ruled by Kamram, whose power over the elements and very souls of other jinn
around him is legendarily feared.

Recognizing that the jinn wielded considerable power in the World and would make useful servants
there for work that was too delicate for the blunt force behavior of the ghilan, Allah long ago
marked the race as one of his first conquests, succeeding in converting half the populace before the
Ilah managed to lend their support to the remaining, struggling half. Most jinn who support his
cause believe his claims that he will tear down the veil between their world and the world of
humanity, providing them with a vast new playground to enjoy and easing the difficulty of
interacting with mankind. In all technicality, Allah is not lying when he says this; he does plan to
destroy the boundary between Qaf and the World, just as he plans to destroy the boundaries between
all worlds and all places. Most of the jinn who support him (those who haven’t already been
swallowed into Whedh or turned into ghilan, phenomena that alarm the jinn but are attributed by
most to cowardly attacks from the other cities) are unaware of the true scope of his plans, or else
believe that their power as a race and loyalty in servitude can keen them distinct in spite of him.

More dangerous are those jinn who understand Allah’s true goals and support him anyway; Mazar
and Kamtam are two of these jinn, both burning with a magnificent madness that makes normal
fanaticism pale in comparison. They are aware that Qaf, along with everything else including
themselves, will eventually become parr of Whedh if Allah succeeds, but they believe that this is a
good thing, the final end goal of the desire of many jinn to unite their worlds. There will be no
inequality in this new world of Allah's, no separation and no disharmony. There will be no servants,
only rulers.

The two kings of Jabulqa and Jabulsa are afflicted by having been exposed to Allah's presence; they
are degraded slightly from their original personalities, and though the process is slow thanks to their
distance from Whedh, they continue to lose a little of their distinctness, very slowly, over time.
Given enough centuries undisturbed, both would devolve into ghilan, though luckily this process
would take so long that it is unlikely to occur before the war against the Titans is resolved one way
or the other. Close proximity to one another makes this effect worse, causing both to begin to
resemble one another at a much faster rate; it is actually a stroke of luck for the opposing two cities
that they have not realized that simply spending time together instead of in their separate palaces
would allow them to begin borrowing one anothers’ powers alarmingly quickly.

Qaf is always only a thin veil away from the World, and its entrances arc as many and varied as the
mischievous spirits that inhabit it. The most inhospitable mountain crags, buried deep in the deserts
of Arabia, may hide the private entrances of the jinn into their homeland, hidden in the wilderness
but still passable by anyone who locates them and spends a point of Legend. More commonly,
visitors gain entrance by visiting the magnificent Mosque of the Jinn in Mecca, where those jinn
who follow the faith of Islam are believed to worship and where mortal visitors tread at their own
peril; anyone who enters the mosque may spend a point of Legend to emerge into Qaf when they
walk back out its doors, though it is generally unwise to do so with too much fanfare lest one
disturb the potentially bad-tempered worshipers within. Finally, there are two entrances to Qaf from
Sharay itself; both Sherqey and Alegherbey, the stem, usually-empty fortresses of the Ilah, may lead
to Qaf at their rocky hearts, and as a result these are the areas of the Overworld in which jinn are
most often encountered.

Jinn

AKA: Djinn, Genies

The jinn are one of the mast ancient, ubiquitous and infamous races to ever share the sands with
hapless humanity; they have existed as long as there have been lonely places to haunt, mortals to
toy with and pleasures to indulge in. Few things unite the many fractured tribes, peonies and cities
of the modern Middle East, divided by religion, ethnicity and politics, hut if there is one thing that
all of them can agree on, it is the existence of the fractious jinn and their undeniable power over
their environment.

Jinn are a race of lesser immortals (see Scion: Hero, page 295), far more powerful than mere
humanity but for the most part still unable to compete with the potency of the pantheons
themselves. They display a wide range of powers, mostly having to do with trickery and deception,
including shapeshifting, illusions, magic and invisibility, as well as the most powerful among them
demonstrating control over Purviews that would nut even some Scions to shame. They have been
shunned and feared as the bringers of the potent evil eye, the causers of terrible illness and the
invisible menace that might fall upon or abduct any traveler alone in the desert, but they have also
been sought out and praised for their ability to inspire transcendent art, guard treasures from the
depredations of thieves and grant visions of the future to those they favor. While singly they cannot
hope to compete with the gods and in small numbers they are an annoyance at best, in their full
armies led by their most potent the jinn can be a force to be reckoned with even among the
pantheons. The jinn are their own power, answering to no one but themselves and aiding no one
unless they decide there might be something in it for them; where other lesser immortals are
controlled or browbeaten by the pantheons, the jinn are courted by the gods in the hopes that they
lend their considerable support or expertise to whatever divine projects might be brewing.
There have always been jinn in the World, which they consider an exotic playground that they often
abandon their emerald-green palaces to investigate; they enjoy "slumming it" among mortals, whom
they view as the ultimate in entertainment. The Ilah, whose disinterested attitude in the World does
not apply only to the muqim, see nothing wrong with this as long as the jinn behave themselves
within reason, and as a result seldom bother to evict them unless they are causing an inordinate
amount of trouble. The gods of other pantheons, when they encounter a jinni at large in the world,
are not always as charitable, hut for most jinn the threat of being bounced only adds to the
enjoyment of the game.

Jinn are called “the people of the fire" for good reason, being largely made up of magical, invisible
flame, which makes interaction with the World difficult even when they are physically present
there. Nevertheless, they have a long and rich history of meddling with mortals, from granting
prophetic visions of the future or making dreams come true to possessing mortals who anger them
or even falling in love with an especially lucky (or unlucky, as the case may be) human who catches
their fancy. Children can even be horn of these unorthodox love matches, though such half-breeds
tend to be frowned on; half-jinni children are usually spirited away to Qaf to be raised as jinn,
sometimes taken from the womb before they are even Kirn, but those who lean more toward their
human ancestry may occasionally remain in the World, usually wielding great power and influence
or possessing almost supernatural talents thanks to their otherworldly ancestry. The Queen of Sheba,
Bilqis, was in legend said to be one of these half-jinni creatures (though whether this is true or
merely humanity’s explanation for why a woman was able to seize so much power in a decidedly
unfennnist time period is anyone’s guess).

The Other Four Jinn

Popular Islamic folklore occasionally names four different jinn as the mlers of the race - Al-Ahmar,
Murrah, Shamurish and Mudhib - and suggests that they work in concert with the Four Heads,
either as their rulers or their servants. While the Four Heads themselves certainly seem to be
powers of their own and to lack any authority above them, the concept of the higher jinn lords
remains popular even today; perhaps these are merely aliases that the jinn have usea in the past,
now given life of their own by mankind’s imagination, or perhaps they arc the names of their
dedicated servants rather than their masters. It has also been speculated by other pantheons in the
area that, if these four shadowy kings of the jinn are truly some higher power above the Four
Heads, it is notably coincidental that the Lords of the Ilah also number four.

While there is no guarantee that jinn encountered in the World are in any way controllable, a few
have been magically bound to various objects, usually as a punishment by an angry deity or higher-
ranking jinni who has been annoyed by their shenanigans. Such bindings may range from merely
preventing the jinn from leaving a certain location to forcing them to obey anyone who owns the
object, giving rise to the rales of jinn granting wishes to the owners of the items they haunt. Jinn are
also a particularly favored Birthright Follower for Scions of the Ilah, who receive them from parents
wishing to give them a magical edge or hoping to kill two birds with one stone by aiding their child
while also punishing a jinni who has offended them. Of course, a jinni tied to a Scion against his or
her will is likely to attempt whatever mischief he or she can dream up... but the Ilah tend to feel that
being occasionally harassed by a jinni builds character.

Jinn range in power, influence and behavior, and may be anywhere from equally matched with
Legendary Mortals to powers that rival minor gods; they are also said to possess a vast range of
different powers depending upon where they live, what they do and who encounters them. Below is
a sample of a fairly average jinni, but Storytellers should feel free to adjust these attributes however
necessary to accommodate different types and power levels of jinn.

Virtues: Endurance 3, Expression 5, Piety 1, Vengeance 5

Strength 5, Dexterity 6, Stamina 5;

Charisma 6, Manipulation 6, Appearance 5;
Perception 3, Intelligence 4, Wits 5

Abilities: Academics 2, Art (Poetry) 4, Athletics 3, Awareness 4, Brawl 3, Command 4, Empathy 4,

Fortitude 3, Integrity 2, Investigation 2, Larceny 5, Medicine 2, Melee 3, Occult 5, Politics 3,
Presence 3, Stealth 5, Survival 5, Thrown 2

Supernatural Powers:

-Boons: Assess Health, Blazing Weapon, Blessing of Health/Curse of Frailty, Bolster Fire, Eye of
the Storm, Fire Immunity, Fire’s Eye, Flame Travel, Fool's Gold, Heal/Infecr, Hornet’s Nest,
Inferno, Labyrinthine Lingering, Paralyzing Confusion, Recurring Distraction, Sabot, Stolen Face,
The Subtle Knii'e, Virility/Muliebrity Spells: Beast Shape, Bona Fortuna, Bound Spirit, Deus Ex
Machina, Evil Eye, Fateful Connection, The Unlidded Eye

-Epic Attributes: Epic Strength 3 (Divine Rampage, Holy Rampage, Titanium Tools), Epic
Dexterity 5 (Car’s Grace, Divine Balance, Escape Artist, Lightning Sprinter, Perfect Partner,
Untouchable Opponent), Epic Stamina 4 (Devourer, Holy Fortitude, Inner Furnace, Tireless
Worker); Epic Charisma 5 (Benefit of the Doubt, Blame James, Boys Will Be Boys, Charmer, Pied
Piper), Epic Manipulation 5 (Advantageous Circumstances, God’s Honest, Instant Hypnosis,
Knowing Glance, Mass Hypnosis, Overt Order), Epic Appearance 4 (Detail Variation, My Eyes Are
Up Here, Serpent’s Gaze, Undeniable Resemblance, Unusual Alteration); Epic Perception 2
(Parallel Attention, Real McCoy), Epic Intelligence 2 (Language Mastery, Perfect Memory), Epic
Wits 4 (Opening Salvo, Perfect Impostor, Psychic Profiler, Scathing Retort, Social Chameleon).

-Infernal Inspiration: By touching any mortal and breathing his fiery breath into her ear, the jinni
may grant her inspiration beyond normal mortal ken. She sustains three levels of bashing damage as
the hot wind makes her internally ill, but gains +10 dice to all Art rolls for the remainder of the day.
If she is healed of her sickness, the jinni's gift vanishes along with it.

-Invisible Flame: Jinn are naturally invisible and hidden from most of the world; by spending a
point of Legend and a point of Willpower, the jinni may become visible and corporeal to the World
of humanity for one scene through sheer force of will, at the end of which he will vanish again.

-Possession: By paying three Legend, touching a mortal and breathing himself into her via the
nostrils, ears or any other orifice, the jinni may possess her and use her body as if it were his own
(she may resist by spending a point of Willpower). His control over the body is not especially good
and she may appear disjointed, clumsy or even epileptic at times; most jinn use this power in order
to punish mortals who anger them or occasionally in order to be close to a beloved mortal, rather
than for purposes of stealth.

Join Battle: 9+11

Attacks:
Brawl - Accuracy 10 + 16, Damage 5 + 4B, Parry DV 21, Speed 5
Melee - Accuracy 10 + 16, Damage 5 + 4L (plus weapon damage), Parry DV 21, Speed 5
Soaks: 12B/10L/4A
Health Levels: -0x14

Dodge DV: 16 Willpower: 8

Legend: 6 Legend Points: 36

The Devil You Know

No character in the colorful tales of Islam is as infamous as Ihlis, the first and most powerful of all
jinn and the prideful evildoer whose name is synonymous with the Devil. While the jinn predate
Islam and appear to have no greater authority than themselves, the pervasive strength of the
legends of Ihlis have led some, particularly new Scions of the Ilah, to wonder whether or not there
might be a grain of truth to the idea of his existence. Storytellers who wish to involve Islamic
stories in their chronicle might consider Ihlis to be some shadowy forbear of the jinn, pulling the
strings from behind the scenes, or else perhaps the Yazata are right and Ihlis is another name for
Ahriman, the Titan Avatar, exerting influence over the jinn as he does over everything else he hopes
to corrupt. Some fringe Islamic texts call Ihlis an angel instead of a jinni, so perhaps he is some
minion of Aten, possibly even created expressly to harry and annoy Allah and his followers; or,
most surprisingly, perhaps Ihlis is a name used or attributed to the Ilah god al-Qaum, whose
position as jinn-like god and guardian of the empty desert spaces and those who travel through
them has caused more than one Scion to wonder if the god might have originally been a jinni
himself.

As always, Storytellers should choose whatever interpretation is most enjoyable for their game and
players and avoid involving religious elements that might make some players uncomfortable. It is
also completely possible, after all, that there is no such person as Ihlis - mortals have made up
stories based on misinformation and syncreiization before-or, if Islam is a powerful force in your
game, that he is exactly what he appears to he and has nothing whatsoever to do with the Ilah or
their problems.

Anqa

The anqa are the Arabian phoenixes, magnificent birds the size of men who wheel through the
glowing green skies of Qaf free and unfettered. Though they appear from a distance to be somewhat
drab specimens, a dull greenish color without any real sheen, when seen up close it becomes
apparent that they are actually formed of the dust of the emerald mountains themselves, whirling in
constant motion but always retaining the general shape of the bird. They are compared to the
phoenix because of their extraordinary ability to reform themselves from dust if they are
killed; the only way to permanently prevent one from doing so is to remove its dust from Qaf and
scatter it somewhere far away from the green mountains, Riving the bird no raw materials from
which to rebuild itself. To the ancient Arabs, the anqa symbolized the untouchable reality of the
spirit world of the jinn; it can be seen but not touched, chased but not captured, and deftrated but
never killed.

Anqa should be considered to have the same capabilities and powers as the Lesser Phoenix (see
Scion: God, p.296), though of course they do not possess enter Infernal or the Luminous templates.

Antagonists
Allah and Aton

Allah is the name that the Ilah give to Titan Aton, it's the same character.

Al-Rayyan, Avatar of Terra

AKA: Kujata

The great hull al-Rayyan is of massive stature and filthy temper, said to carry the entire universe on
his hick when he is behaving himself and to cause fearsome earthquakes and collapses when he is
not. Like the Greek Atlas, he was bound by the Ilah long ago to remain in Tartarus where he could
not damage the fragile World of mortals, but his escape has left him free to run, rumble and stomp
once more. The bull represents the eternal nature of the earth, which despite being harnessed,
damaged or moved by humanity never truly changes or gives up its secrets.

Al-Rayyan is a fearsome beast to behold, a creature with a glistening ruby-red hide thick enough to
turn all but the most potent of weapons, vast, razor-sharp ivory horns and a thickly, ominously
muscled body that is so large that even the most impressive of gods might find it intimidating. The
stamp of his thunderous hooves causes tremors and quakes to spring up for miles around, and, most
disconcerting, he possesses thousands of eyes, ears, noses anil mouths across his vast bulk, enabling
him to perceive (and bite) in all directions.

The great bull is far from a dumb beast, however, and is among the most fiendishly intelligent
Avatars of Terra, delving into esoteric sources ot knowledge and containing forgotten lore of
countless civilizations in his enormous bovine skull. 1 le remembers his humiliating defeat at the
hands of the Ilah with great bitterness and seeks to destroy them in one grand gesture in vengeance
for their presumption; in particular, the god Qos, who used his powers over bovines to overwhelm
even al-Rayyan's incredible intellect and who was instrumental in the bull's binding to Tartarus, is
his most hated foe and the target of many of his wrathful plans. It rankles especially that Qos is not
especially bright for a god; brawn triumphing over brains and the confines of civilization binding a
creature of unfettered nature are both concepts that stoke the already glowing-hot furnace of the
great bull’s fury. He is determined not to strike too quickly lest he suffer defeat again; rather, he
waits in Terra, bending his incredible thoughts to discovering every secret and weakness of his foes
while he engenders a neverending stampede of cattle-like minions, and only when he has succeeded
in both will he once again attempt to assault Sharay.

While the Ilah are spending most of their time trying to deal with Allah’s rampages, al-Rayyan is a
serious danger to them as well, especially since the bull possesses hefty powers of prophecy and
foresight. If they dally too long in attempting to rebind him, it is possible that he will discover a
final means of attempting to put an end to them as a pantheon - or worse, convince Fate to bend its
weave to help him do so.

Virtues: Ambition 4, Malice 5, Rapacity 2, Zealotry3

Supernatural Powers:

-Avatars: The Beast, The Wyrd

-Boons: Every one- to eight-dot Boon from every Purview except Death and Sky, which are
forbidden to him. Al-Ravyan also has all Boons from the Animal (Bull), Mystery and Prophecy
purviews and possesses all Boons from the Hajj purview.

-Epic Attributes: Epic Mental Attributes at the 10-dot level (with all appropriate Knacks). All other
Epic Attributes at the eight-dot level (with all appropriate Knacks).

Bahamut, Avatar of Drowned Road

AKA: Banamoot, Behemot, Behemoth

Bahamut has swum the waters of the Drowned Road since time immemorial, creating tidal waves
and typhixms from his smallest movements and swallowing up the less fortunate sea serpents and
sharks of that domain to feed his bottomless, cavernous stomach. In the deepest waters of that
crushing domain he is more at home than anywhere with a prayer of encountering light and air; the
empty fathoms of the deepest oceans are Bahamut’s solitary domain, for no other inhabitant of the
ocean can compete with his sheer girth and overwhelming predatory instinct. Bahamut is not a Titan
Avatar who embodies the finer points of the realm of water; he is simply the ultimate expression of
the power of the deeps and their ability to create things that could never exist in the world of the
breathing.

To put it very simply, Bahamut is an enormous fish; but “enormous” does not really do him justice,
as his size is so great that even the other Titan Avatars pale before him. It is said among mortals
who remember such legends that the oceans of the World would fit in Bahamut’s nostril as if they
were a single mustard seed; it is said among the Ilah that when the fiercest of storms rage across the
ocean, Bahamut has cause the turmoil by lazily flicking a single spine of his body. Some of these
size reports may be exaggerations, but whatever Bahamut’s exact dimensions, he is monstrously
large and capable of laying waste to all but the most massive creatures that might come before him.

Bahamut’s exact physical makeup is a matter of some debate, as few really want to get close enough
to him to examine him and the other Avatars of the Drowned Road are not exactly forthcoming, but
those gods who have seen him and lived to tell the tale describe a fish with a multitude of scales that
gleam with their own eerie, anglerfish-like light, and a nightmare landscape of fins, spines and
terrible teeth, all necessary to keep the gigantic beast moving in the waters and devouring what he
encounters. Bahamut doesn’t really bother with hunting as much as with simply swimming around
with his mouth open; often, his sheer size prevents potential meals from realizing he is about to
swallow them until it is too late.

Legends exist regarding those who have been swallowed by Bahamut but managed to survive in his
belly long enough to devise a means of escape; though no particular god has stepped forward and
claimed to perform such a feat, it is true that since much of the fish’s food goes unchewed, there is a
potential chance for unfortunates trapped in his maw to attempt to teleport, chisel or find their way
out through his digestive tract before the viscous Titanic digestive acids do them in. Certainly
Bahamut would be unlikely to notice such an escape unless it caused him considerable pain. Some
of the more creative Titan Avatars have suggested using Bahamut as a sort of safety deposit box,
allowing him to swallow things or people they would like to keep hidden until they need them, hut
for most the prospect of having to rescue precious items from the monster fish’s belly is too
unpleasant and dangerous to take the idea seriously.

It goes without saying that Bahamut is a potent destructive weapon for the Avatars of the Drowned
Road, though in most cases it is easier to use smaller, more tractable creatures than to drag the
monster up from the depths. The fish himself is inscrutable and his motives, if he has any beyond
eating, unknown; whether he carries enmity for the Ilah and other gods who entrapped him or is
simply very hungry is known only to him.
Virtues: Ambition 2, Malice 4, Rapacity 5, Zealotry 2

Supernatural Powers:

-Avatar: The Beast, The Flood

-Boons: Every one- to eight-dot Boon from every Purview except Earth and Fire, which are
forbidden to him. Bahamut also has all Boons from the Animal (Fish) and Water purviews and
possesses all Boons from the Hajj purview.

-Epic Attributes: Epic Physical Attributes at the 10-dot level (with all appropriate Knacks). All other
Epic Attributes at the eight-dot level (with all appropriate Knacks).

The Biggest Bad

While Bahamut is occasionally referred to as Behemoth, the Behemoth is more properly a massive
beast out of Hebrew legend, not necessarily a fish but with more in common with a hippopotamus.
While many scholars believe that legends of the one may have influenced the other, the two
creatures have distinct features and could easily be considered separate beasts for the purposes of
Scion games. What might happen if the gargantuan Behemoth met the unfathomable Bahamut face
to face is something even other Titan Avatars aren’t in too much of a hurry to find out, hut
considering their bestial natures and opposing elements, it seems inevitable that a truly epic battle
might ensue.

Falak, Avatar of Muspelheim

Falak, the fiery serpent, is without a doubt one of the most massive beings in existence; where other
creatures gain power through their exceptional magical skills, their cunning or their ferocity, Falak
is simply huge. It is impossible to describe Falak’s size meaningfully; the ancient Arabs allowed
that he was larger even than Bahamut, but that it was impossible for any mortal mind to
comprehend his size. A vast expanse of burnished, burning scales and fiery heat, Falak lies around
the borders of Muspelheim - or, more accurately, is the border of Muspelheim, at least as far as
anyone has been willing to travel to find out. Being confronted with Falak is like seeing a wall of
solid red flame that stretches up into the unfathomable heights of the sky as far as the eye can see -
assuming, of course, that the overwhelming heat his body gives off doesn’t incinerate the viewer as
soon as he approaches. Falak represents the eternal and inescapable nature of flame; there is no
place in the World that fire cannot go, nor can it ever be permanently extinguished, because each
flame is part of the vast fires of Muspelheim.

Tine massive serpent really only has one goal, which is to devour anything and everything he
encounters to sate his endless, gargantuan hunger. 1 le has no real intelligence above that of a
normal serpenr, making him easy to redirect anil confuse, and as a result he is unable to find his
way out of Muspelheim to devour the other worlds without help; he moves around Muspelheim’s
far-flung reaches restlessly, slowly hut with the force of a particularly magma-like glacier. The other
Avatars, preferring to keep their bases of influence rather than see Falak devour them, routinely
send out teams of minions to poke and prod at his sides and nose to convince him to change course
around them; these minions seldom come back, but that’s a reasonable price to pay for avoiding the
massive snake’s possible rampages through their territory. Falak’s general lack of intelligence
makes him a poor tool for anything requiring subtlety, but should the other Avatars ever manage to
pull together enough power (probably with the help of many powerful psychopomps) to unleash
him, he would wreak absolute havoc on whatever world his burning, destructive hulk was dropped
into.

Falak himself has only dim memories and thoughts, hut he remembers exactly one being very well:
Allah. Falak is not fond of Allah, who is the only being he has ever encountered that could
conceivably hurt him, and was so put off by the sensation of his enormous self being taken away
from him that he avoids anything and everything that reminds him of the other Titan Avatar at all
costs. Minions of Allah, if they can stand the heat, arc the most effective herders of Falak as he will
automatically change course to head away from them, and while he is eager to devour the worlds of
the gods and humanity, he would doubtless balk extremely strongly if faced with the prospect of
entering Whedh. Falak’s exceedingly dim intelligence might at some point he convinced that Allah
can he overcome, but until that time the serpent continues to live in dim and unfocused fear of the
Titan of Unity and its servants.

Virtues: Ambition 2, Malice 1, Rapacity 5, Zealotry 3

Supernatural Powers:

-Avatars: The Beast, The Devourer

-Boons: Every one- to eight-dot Boon from every Purview cxccmt Health and Water, which are
forbidden to him. Falak also has all Boons from the Animal (Snake) and Fire purviews and
possesses all Boons from the Hajj purview (though what on earth he does with them is anyone’s
guess).

-Epic Attributes: Epic Physical Attributes at the 10-dot level (with all appropriate Knacks). All other
Epic Attributes at the eight-dot level (with all appropriate Knacks).

Ruda

AKA: Ortalt, Ruldaiu

Ruda is one of the oldest of the Ilah, predating most of the other deities by at least a few centuries
and long venerated by the Arab tribes as a protector and distant patron, controlling the world around
them so as to grant them defense in their times of need. He was well-known to his people but
seldom worshiped, being passed over for more popular young gods like al-Qaum or Dushara, but
continued his function of protecting barriers and saving the needy from danger regardless. Ruda has
made appearances at the councils and journeys of the Ilah more and more seldom over the centuries,
appearing only once in a great while now, even if called; when he does show his face, he resembles
an aging man slightly past his prime, his hair and face caked with sand and earth from his travels,
his limbs strong but his eyes wandering and confused.

Unfortunately for the Ilah, who could use his help in their current conflict, Ruda is a continuing
casualty of the first war against the Titans, and is almost entirely mad. He is not generally
dangerous to mortals or the other gods, but the loss of his sun-goddess wife Nuha and star-goddess
daughter Atarsamain in battle long ago has caused him to withdraw from the rest of his pantheon so
that he will not be reminded of them, especially avoiding those deities who share his deceased loved
ones’ powers. His depression over his failure to protect them was so great that he volunteered for
front-line duty in the fight against Allah over and over again during the first war, with the
unfortunate result that, while his help was undeniably important in restraining the Titan, he has been
exposed to Whedh’s power too many times and has begun to degrade both mentally and physically.
Ruda is now a shadow of his former self, with few memories of anything save his duty to protect
the Arabian lands and the aching loss of his family, and no amount of counseling or comfort from
his distant pantheon has been able to snap him out of it.

Ruda’s first and only priority these days is the defense of the Arab lands, no mean feat when he is
hampered by a mortal population that seems bent on civil strife. He has forgotten much of what he
once knew about the maintenance and protection of a kingdom, and has determined that, while the
locals might insist on fighting one another, the much greater threat lies in anything that might
threaten them from outside, whether it be the intervention of the Ilah, the minions of the Titans or
the military might of other mortal nations, lie has therefore begun attempting to isolate the Arab
lands (especially northern Saudi Arabia, which was the strongest center of his ancient influence)
from the rest of the World, placing wards and obstacles wherever he thinks they will be most useful;
in his addlement he has been going about this in a somewhat slapdash pattern, but if it occurred to
him to attempt to use bis most formidable powers to truly prevent anyone from getting into or out of
the area, he could cause considerable disruption and dismay in the World.

The Ilah, who view their aged war hero with a combination of apprehension and sympathy, are not
entirely certain what to do about Ruda. Certainly he can’t be allowed to isolate part of the World;
such an act would be dangerous for the mortal populations living there, not to mention for Ruda
himself if he weighs himself down too heavily with Fatebonds. He is so distant and
uncommunicative, however, and has become so contused and vague thanks to his past traumas, that
they fear actively attempting to oppose him lest he mistake them for enemies and turn on them.
They could use his help in the current titanic conflict, but while he might agree to aid them, he is so
unstable that they are unable to count on him to really make a difference. For some of the Arab
gods, Ruda is a depressing reminder of all they have lost and a relic to be protected in reward for his
ancient service; for others, he is a dangerous unknown quantity who might easily end up as one of
Allah's most powerful minions or even a renegade danger himself if not controlled.

It has been suggested by some of the more optimistic gods that Ruda might recover, at least in part,
if reunited with his lost family members. Unfortunately, Nuha and Atarsamain perished within the
boundaries of Whedh while coming to his aid, and it is extremely unlikely that either of rhem could
have survived even as ghosts in that Titan's unforgivingly absorbent environment. Their spirits
might still remain if they had been rescued by a powerful psychopomp, but as the Ilah have no
Underworld, it is unlikely that such a thing could have happened, and impossible to determine
where they would have been taken or who would have done such a thing (especially without telling
Ruda about it).

Ruda has a Legend rating of 11.

Virtues: Endurance 5, Expression 3, Piety 3, Vengeance 3

Strength 8, Dexterity 8, Stamina 10;

Charisma 10, Manipulation 7, Appearance 6;
Perception 6, Intelligence 9, Wits 7

Academics 2, Animal Ken 3, Athletics 3, Awareness 4, Brawl 3, Command 5, Control (Camel) 2,

Empathy 2, Fortitude 5, Integrity 1, Investigation 2, Medicine 2, Melee 4, Occult 2, Presence 4,
Stealth 3, Survival 5, Thrown 2

Supernatural Powers:

-Boons: Ruda possesses all boons DIO in the Guardian anil Moon purviews.
-Epic Attributes: Epic Strength 6, Epic Dexterity 7, Epic Stamina 10, Epic Charisma 9, Epic
Manipulation 5, Epic Appearance 4, Epic Perception 5, Epic Intelligence 8, Epic Wits 7

-Other: Ruda possesses all ten boons of the Hajj purview.

Shamal, King of the Jinn

Shamal, also referred to reverently by his followers simply as the North, is an exceptionally
powerful jinni and possibly the mast influential of his kind in the World. He has monumental force
of will, appearing as solid and visible much more frequently than do mast jinn, usually in the form
of a tall, imposing man with dark skin tinted slightly red and blazing eyes beneath bushy eyebrows.
Entire mystery cults grew up around the North and his worship in lime long gone, in which he was
treated as a mere step away from the Ilah themselves; he is considered the master of winds, the
heater of air and the being by whose permission the arrow flies through it. It is true that many petty
jinn call themselves kings of their kind, and that the Four Heads are the true rulers of their race, but
ShamaPs claim to be king of the jinn is not a lie; he is the ruler of rhase jinn who reside in the
World of mortals, and no other jinni there is sufficiently powerful to challenge him for the title.

While most jinn treat the World as a vacation destination or unfortunate exile area, Shamal is one of
few to choose to permanently reside in it, eschewing his homeland of Qaf entirely in favor of the
world of humanity. He long ago recognized its potential as a largely untouched land waiting to be
conquered by a capable ruler, and thanks to the non-magical weakness of mortals and the reluctance
of other jinn to expend so much energy to keep themselves able to interact with it, that vacuum was
just waiting for him to fill it. He travels throughout the Arab world gathering followers and has
managed to accrue a sizable small army of both mortals and jinn, drawn in by the force of his great
charisma, the demonstration of his miraculous powers anil his promises to grant them fabulous
wealth and influence. This might be enough to satisfy a lesser creature, but Shamal thinks big; he’s
not interested in ruling only his small enclaves in the desert, but rather in full world domination,
something that he believed he was well on the road to before the escape of the Titans threw a
wrench into his plans.

Shamal is ruthlessly ambitious and prone to remorselessly mowing down the competition, but he is
not entirely heartless; much of his time these days is spent in attempting to safeguard his territories
and less powerful followers from the depredations of Titanspawn. Nevertheless, his following has
grown significantly more quickly in the past few years than ever before in history as more and more
jinn are dispossessed by the war in Qaf and more mortals seek the protection of something greater
than themselves. He is fast approaching the point where gods are likely to take notice of his
activities; which gods catch him in the act first will likely determine whether he is courted as a
potential ally against the Titans or attacked for his temerity in bending the mortal population to his
will. In either case, he is likely to fight back to defend his territory and people, but will abandon the
whole mess if it becomes clear that he has no hope of triumphing.

The gods might benefit from Shamal’s help in their current troubles; he has an army of jinn which
could be useful (if fractious), and he certainly has a vested interest in seeing that Allah does not
triumph, as he has gone to some lengths to set up his kingdom outside the boundaries of Qaf. Even
if the jinn managed to keep their identity in the wake of Allah bringing the two worlds together, he
would Find himself in the uncomfortable position of having to compete with the Four 1 leads for
power, something that he knows he is ill-equipped to do as things stand now. On the other hand, he
is a jinni with a characteristically temperamental nature, and various Titans might be able to make
him offers that play to his innate ambition and sense of mischief.
Shamal has a Legend rating of 8, and in addition to these attributes possesses the same special
powers as others of his race.

Virtues: Endurance 4, Expression 3, Piety 1, Vengeance 5

Strength 7, Dexterity 7, Stamina 7;

Charisma 8, Manipulation 5, Appearance 6;
Perception 6, Intelligence 6, Wits 6

Academics 2, Athletics 4, Awareness 4, Brawl 2, Command 5, Empathy 3, Fortitude 4, Integrity 4,

Investigation 2, Larceny 4, Marksmanship 5, Medicine 1, Melee 4. Occult 2, Politics 4, Presence 5,
Stealth 3, Survival 3, Thrown 2

Supernatural Powers:

-Boons: Shamal passesses all boons 1-7 in the Chaos, Fire, Mystery and Sky purviews.

-Epic Attributes: Epic Strength 7, Epic Dexterity 7, Epic Stamina 6, Epic Charisma 7, Epic
Manipulation 4, Epic Appearance 5, Epic Perception 5, Epic Intelligence 4, Epic Wits 5

Others Dieties
Al-Kubay, the Scribe

AKA: Al-Aktab, Al-Kutba, Aktab-Kutbay, Kutbay

Something of an enigma among his rootless, wandering people, al-Kutbay is the scribe of the Ilah,
the god of knowledge, wisdom and artistic expression who kept the precious secrets of writing and
records so that his people would not be entirely forgotten. As the god of writing, he was an especial
patron of poets and historians, though often he only inspired them to pass down rheir tales orally; as
the god of wisdom, his intellect was held in awe and his advice frequently sought by the other gods
in particularly complex matters. He was never one of the most popular of the Ilah, his talents more
suited to a select few than to the masses, but his reach nevertheless extended throughout the ancient
Arabic world; he was one of only a handful of Arab gods to have a temple erected in his honor in
Hgypf, and in the northwest lands of the Greeks and Romans he was compared to Mercury for his
associations with messages and commerce.

Al-Kutbay is ill-equipped to be a front-line solder for the Ilah, and he spends most of his time in
Sharay instead, serving as a consultant for other gods' efforts. He is usually found wandering Rhel
Jeydh, lost in thought, or waiting in the council chamber of the Ilah in case he is needed. The scribe-
god's appearance is usually that of a fairly unremarkable Arab man, slightly paler than his brethren
thanks to more time spent inside instead of on the road. Though the other gods generally refer to
and treat him as male, al-Kutbay nas a habit of appearing as either gender on a whim; he claims that
occasionally taking on the role of a goddess gives him interesting new insights and vice versa, and
the Ilah view this little idiosyncracy with fond scorn but no outright hostility.

While the more wrathful and active gods like Qos and al-Uzza take on the pantheon's enemies head-
on, al-Kutbay is concerned with fighting a much more subtle battle; knowing that he cannot help
when it comes to raw might, he spends as much of his time as possible bending the power of his
mind toward seeking a solution to the dangers that plague the World. The more writing occurs in the
World and the more people jot down their unique thoughts, the more individuality and free choice
are asserted there; by tirelessly promoting, inspiring and even creating some new art and literature
of his own, he hopes to give humanity the tools to continue to fight back against Whedh in rheir
own small way. Of course, a whole library of original poetry won’t save a mortal if the Titan has its
way, but al-Kutbay continues to try, and has even been seen recently in deep conference with
Manat, seeking a way to use the bindings of Fate to enhance and elevate the powers of literate
creation.

Virtues: Endurance 3, Expression 5, Piety 5, Vengeance 2

Strength 5, Dexterity 9, Stamina 6;

Charisma 9, Manipulation 7, Appearance 5;
Perception 5, Intelligence 10, Wits 6

Academics 5, Animal Ken 2, Art (Literature, Poetry) 5, Athletics 2, Awareness 3, Brawl 2,

Command 3, Empathy 5, Fortitude 2, Integrity 5, Investigation 4, Medicine 3, Melee 1, Occult 5,
Politics 5, Presence 2, Stealth 2, Survival 2, Thrown 1

Supernatural Powers:

-Boons: Al-Kutbay has all Boons from the Magic and Hajj purviews up to level 9.

-Epic Attributes: Epic Strength 3 (Holy Bound, Making It Look Easy, Titanium Tools), Epic
Dexterity 8 (all appropriate knacks), Epic Stamina 5 (Divine Fortitude, Holy Foritude, Self-Healing,
Solipsistic Well-Being, Tireless Worker), Epic Charisma 9 (all appropriate knacks), Epic
Manipulation 6 (Advantageous Circumstances, Blurt It Out, Overt Order, Return to Sender, Rumor
Mill, Secondhand Persuasion), Epic Appearance 5 (Detail Variation, My Eyes Are Up Here, Tailor
Made, Undeniable Resemblance, Unusual Alteration), Epic Perception 4 (Clairvoyance, Parallel
Attention, Scent the Divine, Telescopic Senses), Epic Intelligence 9 (all appropriate knacks). Epic
Wits 6 (Instant Investigator, Meditative Focus, Opening Salvo, Psychic Profiler, Scathing Retort,
Social Chameleon)

Join Battle: 9 + 7

Soak: 17B/14L/5 A
Health Levels: -0xl4/Incap

Dodge DV: 40
Willpower: 9
Legend: 10 ; Legend Points: 100

Dhat Badan, Goddess of Dreams

Dnat Badan is one of the least-often seen and most enigmatic of all her semi-mysterious pantheon.
Once worshiped in the far southern reaches of the Arab lands, she was called upon for her life-
granting abilities but truly revered for her stores of rich, incredible dreams, in which were
embedded unfathomable occult wisdom, visions of things yet to come and incredible feats of artistic
emotion. She seldom granted these tantalizing visions, however, and competition among mortals to
be her favored priestess and the vessel of her dreams was fierce. She has granted her visions to
supernatural beings fewer than five tunes over the ensuing centuries, doing so only in times of
utmost peril when the urgency of her portents demanded that she share them immediately for the
good of the entire pantheon.

Dhat Badan does not talk to anyone, even the other gods of the Ilah. The oldest among them have
never heard her voice, and some believe that she may not have one anymore, confined exclusively
to communicating through a dreamer rather than speaking for herself. She appears at the infrequent
gatherings of the Ilah now and then, always as a tall, slender woman, mostly swathed in concealing
robes and cloths, only her expressive, dark-skinned hands communicating with those around her.
For centuries, Dhat Badan has been merely a curiosity, just another of the ancient, forgotten
goddesses of the Ilah, her worship long forgotten and her dreams long put to bed.

But now, however, that has changed; Dhat Badan has a new dreamer. It was Hubal who first
noticed, struck by a vision of the dreamer’s impending importance in the World, that the ancient
goddess must have found a new priestess to be the vessel of her dreams and recipient of her occult
wisdom. While the dreamer was always easy to pick out in the days that the Ilah held sway over the
Arab world, acting as the priestess of Dhat Badan’s temple and the keeper of her ansab, today all
those ancient centers of worship are gone and the goddess’ very name all but forgotten. While the
Ilah have their hands full with the continual depredations of Allah and have no time or resources to
go scouring the world for the new dreamer, they recognise her importance; she will have wisdom
from beyond the veil that no other mortal will possess, and will most likely change the course of
mortal affairs drastically, for good or for ill. Several among them, especially Hubal and Manat (who
have more than the usual interest in the affairs of Fate and visions of the future), have begun
recruiting Scions and even jinn or other lesser immortals to search the World for the girl, hoping to
find her and harness her power for good instead of the evil it could so easily be turned to. They have
precious little to go on, however; all they know is that the dreamer will be mortal, a woman, and
that she will possess at least some fragment of one of Dhat Badan’s ansahs (whether an ancient
remnant of one or some new artifact the goddess has created on the sly).

Dhat Badan, of course, could easily find the dreamer, who possesses her ansab and with whom she
communes through the secret mists of her dreamworld. But, as always, Dhat Badan says nothing.

Virtues: Endurance 2, Expression 5, Piety 3, Vengeance 2

Strength 4, Dexterity 6, Stamina 5;

Charisma 9, Manipulation 9, Appearance 3;
Perception 9, Intelligence 7, Wits 4

Academics 2, Animal Ken 2, Art (Illusion) 5, Athletics 2, Awareness 5, Brawl 1, Command 4,

Fortitude 3, Integrity 5, Investigation 3, Occult 5, Presence 2, Stealth 3, Survival 1

Supernatural Powers:

-Boons: Dhat Badan has all boons from the Fertility, Illusion, Prophecy purviews up to level 9.

-Epic Attributes: Epic Strength 3 (Hang On, Making It Look Easy, Titanium Tools), Epic Dexterity
5 (Car’s Grace, Divine Balance, Escape Artist, Microscopic Precision, Omnidexterity), Epic
Stamina 5 (Devourer, Divine Fortitude, Holy Fortitude, Inner Furnace, Self-Healing), Epic
Charisma 9 (all appropriate knacks). Epic Manipulation 9 (all appropriate knacks), Epic Appearance
2 (Lasting Impression, Perfect Actor), Epic Perception 9 (all appropriate knacks), Epic Intelligence
6 (Cipher, Instant Translation, Know-It-All, Language Mastery, Perfect Memory, Telepathy), Epic
Wits 3 (Meditative Focus, Psychic-Profiler, Social Chameleon)

Join Battle: 9 + 4

Soak: 16B/14L/5A
Health Levels: -0x20/Incap
Dodge DV: 20
Willpower: 10
Legend: 10 ; Legend Points: 100

Dhu Khalasa, God of Redemption

AKA: Dhu al-Khalasah, Dhu Khulasah, Dhul Khalasah

Despite the fact that few outside of his native lands have ever heard his name, Dhu Khalasa is one
of the most notorious of the Ilah. A god of justice, vengeance and redemption, he was begged by
worshipers in times long past to enact their just revenge or to grant them the wisdom to do so
themselves; his oracular pronouncements forecasted whether their attempts were destined to be
successful in redressing wrongs done to them or doomed to failure if their cause was not truly
righteous. As the final authority of the all-important justice of the desert peoples, Dhu Khalasa’s
shrine, centered around a gleaming quartz-white stone, was considered so important that it was
occasionally referred to as the Kaaba of the South before its destruction with the coming of Islam.

Dhu Khalasa doesn’t visit the World much; he finds that the rampant misbehavior of humanity is
too distracting, and with the escape of the Titans he has very little time to go about punishing
evildoers for comparatively petty sins. A restless anil focused individual with no tolerance or
patience for mistakes or delays, he spends the majority of his time traveling in the realms of the
gods instead, occasionally serving as a representative of his pantheon to visit other deities and
apprise them of the goings-on in Sharay. When he is at home in the Overworld, he spends very little
time in one place, and while many of the Ilah caravan together through Rhel Jeydh, Dhu Khalasa
almost always strides on alone, his deep-set eyes flashing with purpose, his quick tread determined
and focused.

The other gods of his pantheon don’t precisely dislike Dhu Khalasa, but they do tend to avoid him.
It’s not that his personality puts them off so much, though he can lx* dauntingly intense about his
duties as the god of justice; rather, their discomfort comes from the lingering spectre of a long-ago
prophecy concerning his cult. The prophets and oracles of the ancient Arab world -including mighty
1 lubal himself - suffered an almost universal vision at the exact moment that the Kaaba of the
South was destroyed by Muhammad’s followers, claiming that if Dhu Khalasa were ever to be
worshiped again as he was during the heights of his power, the very world itself would suddenly
end. The vision was indistinct, however, about what “ending” meant; Hubal and the other lesser
oracles saw only a sudden vision of an endless white void, and even their extensive knowledge of
the future has not been able to fully grasp what such an event might entail.

Many of the Ilah believe that this prophesied end of the world must be the triumph of Whedh and
combination of everything into one whole (though, of course, others admit that they really don’t
know what it means), and as a result Dhu Khalasa has something of an uncomfortable relationship
with the rest of his pantheon. They don’t dislike him, but the mere fact of his existence is a constant
reminder that there may be little time left; he has agreed, at the request of the council of four, to
remain out of the World unless there is no other alternative and to avoid creating any Scions to
spread his name, hut such measures can only help for so long when the pantheon itself is becoming
more active every day. To further complicate matters, his enduring popularity has already caused his
cult to resurge in the World several times, worshiping him actively as recently as the nineteenth
century; it is theorized that these new cults worshiping him have failed to fulfill the prophecy
because they do not have his ancient ansab, the gleaming White Stone of the Kaaba of the South,
but the fact that they continue to crop up despite the general decline in the worship of the Ilah is
deeply troubling for many of the gods.
Of course, Dhu Khalasa is one of the Ilah and they would never move against him, but it remains a
notable fact that every time one of his cults resurfaces, it generally dies a swift and violent death.
Such tragedies can of course be blamed on monotheistic extremists and the generally violent
climate of the modem Middle East, but there’s no denying that they are convenient for a pantheon
that has a vested interest in keeping his worship suppressed. The White Stone remains lost to
humanity, and the Ilah prefer that it stays that way as long as possible.

Personally, Dhu Khalasa doesn't believe that his worship is going to bring about some sort of
calamity; such a thing would definitely not be just, and he sees no reason that the respect of mortals
for the ideals of honor, justice and righteous vengeance should cause some kind of worldwide
disaster. He is mildly resentful of the unspoken assumption by some that his cults must be in some
way aiding Allah, to whom he is firmly opposed, hut for the moment he accepts the pantheon's
rulings and stays out of the limelight as much as possible, preferring to adhere to the decrees of the
Four Lords than to be an agitator among his already almost overwhelmed people. Should he ever
truly suspect that the Ilah are intentionally killing off or suppressing mortals, however, his ingrained
instinct toward vengeful justice might cause him to throw off those restrictions and return to his
worshipers. He knows, of course, exactly where the White Stone is - its his own ansab, after all -
and could easily retrieve it from the foundations of the ancient mosque that used it as building
material.

After all, if the Ilah are perpetrating crimes in their pursuit of preventing his cult from rising again,
isn’t the best response to resurrect that cult and prove to them that it’s completely harmless?

Virtues: Endurance 4, Expression 2, Piety 3, Vengeance 5

Strength 7, Dexterity 7, Stamina 7;

Charisma 9, Manipulation 5, Appearance 5;
Perception 10, Intelligence 7, Wits 9

Academics 3, Animal Ken 2, Athletics 3, Awareness 5, Brawl 3, Command 5, Empathy 5, Fortitude

4, Integrity 5, Investigation 5, Larceny 3, Marksmanship 2, Medicine 2, Melee 3, Occult 3, Politics
4, Presence 5, Survival 3, Thrown 2

Supernatural Powers:

-Boons: Dhu Khalasa has all Boons from the Guardian, Justice and Hajj purviews up to level 10.

-Epic Attributes: Epic Strength 7 (all appropriate knacks), Epic Dexterity 7 (all appropriate knacks),
Epic Stamina 7 (all appropriate knacks), Epic Charisma 9 (all appropriate knacks), Epic
Manipulation 5 (Ifeprogramtning, Knowing Glance, Overt Order, Stench of Guilt, Takes One to
Know One), Epic Appearance 5 (Detail Variation, Doin' Fine, Game Face, Lasting Impression, My
Eyes Are Up Here), Epic Perception 10 (all appropriate knacks). Epic Intelligence 6 (Fight With
Your Head, Language Mastery, Multi-Tasking, Perfect Memory, Tactical Planning, Telepathy), Epic
Wits 9 (all appropriate knacks)

Join Battle: 14 + 37

Soak: 29B/25L/7A
Health Levels: -0x40/lncap

Dodge DV: 33
Willpower: 10
Legend: 11 ; Legend Points: 121

Isaf and Naila

Isaf and Naila were once two of the lesser gods of the Ilah, a husband and wife pair who used their
powers to grant good fortune to their followers and to take care of the landscape and make it softer
and gentler for those pilgrims passing through it. Though young by the standards of the gods, they
were fully dedicated to helping struggling humanity and were for a time the most fondly beloved
deities around the Kaaba. Unfortunately, like so many others, Isaf and Naila were early casualties of
the first war against the Titans; while attempting to defend their territory against encroaching
creatures from Whedh, they found themselves outgunned and attempted to escape via the Axes
Mundi of their ansabs. Unfortunately, the close proximity of the powers of unity, led by Allah
himself, caused their voluntary dive into the connecting spaces between worlds to arrest them there
rather than letting them reassert themselves in Sharay, and the two deities were fused permanently
with their ansabs.

Isaf and Naila, once vibrant young gods, literally are their ansabs now, hunks of rock with no power
or consciousness, their shapes and consistency the only reminders that they are the fused remnants
of something other than stone. Isaf s ansab is in the vague shape of a man, though weathered by
centuries half-buried under the desert sands, while Naila’s still hears the crude outline of the
goddess; both stones have a soft, spongy surface texture, almost like skin, though it never rots or
fades despite the effects of age and weather. The couple were initially kept at the Kaaba in honor of
their sacrifice, but in the ensuing centuries of neglect and new religions, they were separated and
lost. Naila’s stone was left to sink slowly into the desert sands until it has vanished completely from
view, just another unprepossessing rock lost to the dunes; Isaf s was repurposed as part of the thick
wall that surrounds the modem Kaaba, buried beneath mortar and other rocks, his origins
completely forgotten.

Though it is doubtful that even the most powerful of the Ilah could restore the lovers to themselves,
the ansabs are not totally without importance even now. Both are extraordinarily Legendary objects,
shining like beacons to those with Unlidded Eye spell; once per year, a traveler who discovers one
of them may touch it and pay a point of Willpower to suddenly regain Legend points equal to his
permanent Legend, buttressed by the ansab’s faint, unconscious memory of being one of the
immortal gods. It is normally impossible to communicate with Isaf and Naila, who do not have
individual personalities anymore, but those with the power to speak to inanimate objects might find
the stones startlingly coherent. They really have only one remaining desire: to be reunited with one
another, though whether that signals the lingering remainder of their long-ago romance or merely
the Whedh-inspired drive to combine themselves with others is difficult to tell.

Isaf and Naila were Legend 9 deities of fertility and good fortune at their deaths, but, being mostly
inanimate objects, they no longer have any capabilities to speak of.

Soak: 50B/40L/20A
Health Levels: -0x30/Incap

Nakrah, the Confessor

Nakrah was once one of the more frequently propitiated gods of the Ilah, though time and the
changes of the World have eroded his worship down to a mere memory in modern times. He is an
imposing figure, tall whether sitting or standing, with eyes that blaze white with insight and a
jeweled sword hung at his side to symbolize justice and retribution. As the god of confession,
justice and healing for those deserving few who come to him, Nakrah was called upon to hear the
confessions of those among the Arab tribes who had sinned, demanding that they publicly announce
their crimes before not only him but the entire community. Those with the fortitude of will to do so
in spite of the consequences won his favor, and many desperate families came before his southern
sanctuaries to give up their secrets in exchange for the chance to beg the god for healing and
renewal.

Of all the Ilah, Nakrah is one of those acclimating to the modem day with the most speed and
enthusiasm. In an age of tabloid journalism, internet blogging and television talkshows, he has
found that mankinds increased ability to communicate has made public confession easy and even
commonplace, and further that those confessions can be heard on a global scale. He is generally
delighted by the willingness of modern humanity to air its dirty laundry, an act that he still views as
a rite of purging and purification despite the fact that most performing it are unaware that the
tradition is so ancient. When not embroiled in aiding his pantheon in their struggles, Nakrah can
often be found in the World, choosing the most spectacular, heartfelt or determined public
confessors to receive his blessings in return. Many a peculiarly healthy radio caller or internet
journaler miraculously cured of cancer can be traced back to Nakrah's random acts of goodwill
among the people of a World he is beginning to consider tailored especially to honor him.

Of course, not every confession is worthy of Nakrah’s notice, but he is still always on the lookout
for people with strong enough personalities and morals to bare themselves before him and submit to
his rulings. Scions who wish to beg Nakrah for healing favor occasionally do so; he is unlikely to
respond to simple prayer unless the accompanying public confession is truly spectacular, but those
Scions who journey to the mins of his cult center in southern Yemen to confess their crimes may
especially attract his notice. Nakrah’s healing powers are formidable, and though like all the gods
his energy is precious and mostly bound up in the current difficulties in the Overworld, he almost
can't help but aid a Scion who truly confesses to something difficult and sordid with a
returning dose of just punishment and potent healing.

Virtues: Endurance 3, Expression 5, Piety 2, Vengeance 5

Strength 6, Dexterity 6, Stamina 7;

Charisma 8, Manipulation 8, Appearance 5;
Perception 10, Intelligence 6, Wits 10

Academics 2, Animal Ken 2, Athletics 3, Awareness 5, Brawl 2, Command 5, Empathy 5, Fortitude

3, Integrity 5, Investigation 5, Marksmanship 1, Medicine 5, Melee 4, Occult 2, Politics 3, Presence
3, Survival 3, Thrown 2

Supernatural Powers:

-Boons: Nakrah has all Boons from the 1 lealth, Justice and 1 lajj purviews up to level 9.

-Epic Attributes: Epic Strength 5 (Crushing Grip, Divine Rampage, Divine Wrath, Holy Rampage,
Shockwave), Epic Dexterity 5 (Cat’s Grace, Divine Balance, Perfect Partner, Photographic
Penmanship, Roll With It), Epic Stamina 6 (Damage Conversion, Divine Fortitude, Holy Fortitude,
Regeneration, Self-Healing, Solipsistic Well-Being, Tireless Worker), Epic Charisma 8 (all
appropriate knacks), Epic Manipulation 7 (all appropriate knacks), Epic Appearance 5 (Center of
Attention, Come Hither, Game Face, Meet Me Backstage, Perfect Actor), Epic Perception 9 (all
appropriate knacks), Epic Intelligence 6 (Blockade of Reason, Fight with Your Head, Instant
Translation, Know-It-All, Language Mastery, Perfect Memory), Epic Wits 9 (all appropriate
knacks)
Join Battle: 15 + 37

Soak: 23B/20L/6A
Health Levels: -Ox25/Incap

Dodge DV: 21
Willpower: 7
Legend: 10 ; Legend Points: 100

Qaysha, Beloved of Destiny

Delicate, quick-footed Qaysha is seldom seen by the rest of his pantheon; the god of measurement,
time and the footsteps of destiny, he spends far more of his time in the World overseeing the
lifespans and small fates of humanity than he does in the Overworld. Considering that his presence
usually portends the end of something, most often someone’s life, the other gods are just as happy
that he doesn’t feel the need to follow them around too often.

Qaysha appears as a sweet-faced and sloe-eyed Arab youth, eternally fifteen with the slender
muscles of a runner from his years of errands and position as overseer of humanity. He is the special
assistant and most beloved son of his mother Manat, the goddess of fate, death and their places in
the universe, and does her bidding to support her in her many roles. While it is Manat’s pow'er that
truly separates life from death and destiny from chance, it is often Qaysha’s hand that carries out her
will or carries her enigmatic messages to their destinations. Wherever Manat goes in her official
capacity, Qaysha always accompanies her, and between them the two seem to share a wealth of the
most mysterious secrets of Fate and the inexorable march of time.

Though Qaysha is less close to his father Hubal, he also occasionally acts as a messenger for him,
carry ing his prophecies to those who are in dire need of his foresight anil wisdom. More often, the
gods use him as an intermediary and go-between when communicating with or investigating the
muqim, those lingering spirits of the dead that rest in the many graves and tomhs of ancient Arabia;
while the Arab ginls are for the most part content to let the dead lie dead, it is usually Qaysha they
go to when they have the infrequent need to find a particular spirit or learn the particulars of a
specific person’s fate (after all, they hardly want to bother Manat with such trifles). Since Qaysha
oversees the inevitable destined endings of everyone within the Ilah's territory, he possesses a
wealth of information about the disposition of the dead and the subtle workings of Fate, which he
has had ample time to observe in his many years of service.

Though Qaysha knows many secrets, he has learned well from his parents; he seldom reveals them
without good reason, and is especially tight-lipped about the fates of those who come specifically to
ask about them, attempting to learn the hidden outcome of their lives ahead of schedule.

Virtues: Endurance 5, Expression 2, Piety 4, Vengeance 3

Strength 7, Dexterity 9, Stamina 7;

Charisma 7, Manipulation 8, Appearance 7;
Perception 7, Intelligence 6, Wits 4

Academics 4, Animal Ken 2, Athletics 5, Awareness 4, Brawl 2, Command 2, Empathy 4, Fortitude

3, Integrity 4, Investigation 3, Larceny 2, Medicine 2, Occult 5, Politics 5, Presence 3, Stealth 4,
Survival 3, Thrown 1

Supernatural Powers:
-Boons: Qaysha has all Boons from the Death, Magic, Psychopomp and Hajj purviews up to level 8.

-Epic Attributes: Epic Strength 6 (Divine Bound, Holy Bound, Hurl to the Horizon, Knockback
Attack, Making It Look Easy, Mighty Heave), Epic Dexterity 8 (all appropriate knacks). Epic
Stamina 7 (all appropriate knacks), Epic Charisma 6 (Benefit of the Doubt, Boys Will Be Boys,
Charmer, Inspirational Figure, Instant Seminar, Paragon of Virtue), Epic Manipulation 8 (all
appropriate knacks), Epic Appearance 6 (Come Hither, Detail Variation, Lasting Impression, My
Eyes Are Up Here, Tailor Made, Undeniable Resemblance), Epic Perception 7 (all appropriate
knacks), Epic Intelligence 6 (Axiom, Cipher, Instant Translation, Language Mastery, Multi-Tasking,
Telepathy), Epic Wits 4 (Between the Ticks, Eternal Vigilance, Instant Investigator, Opening
Gambit)

Join Battle: 8 + 7

Soak: 29B/26L/7A
Health Levels: -Ox25/Incap

Dodge DV: 41
Willpower: 7
Legend: 9 ; Legend Points: 81