Deities of Exandria

The deities of Exandria comprise the Prime Deities, the Betrayer Gods, and a number of lesser deities or deities outside the standard pantheon. Each deity's power is enhanced by their worship; the greater the scale of the worship, the better they can spread their power and exercise control over their domains.

The Luxon
According to the Kryn Dynasty's creation stories, the Luxon was born during the initial creation of the universe and, rather than becoming a star, traveled the universe hoping to understand itself. It eventually found the then-lifeless planet of Exandria, bringing it life and bringing forth the Primordials. The Luxon wished to help the Primordials and in doing so to learn more about itself, but the Primordials instead fought each other. The Luxon was confused, but chose to split itself into many beacons and scatter itself across the world such that those that found it and bound themselves to these beacons would be bound in a cycle of reincarnation, through which they could learn enough to one day answer the Luxon's own questions about its purpose.

The Founding and Schism
The creation myth accepted by much of the rest of Exandria states that the pantheon came to the world of elemental chaos from elsewhere. The gods, then collectively known as the Protean Gods, arrived as formless and nameless young divinities. As they tamed the elemental chaos, shaped the world, and created its various peoples, these gods were given shape and names as their creations worshiped them. Though they were previously formless, it is believed each god had unique motivations and thoughts that were codified through this worship. To help these creations, the gods gave them divine magic and, later, metallic dragons as protection against various dangers.

At some point prior to the Schism, an entity known as Predathos came from beyond Exandria and killed Vordo and Ethedok. In its wake, it left behind a twisted version of life, and the gods were scared. The remaining gods worked with the Primordials to seal away Predathos in a prison, made from part of Exandria, which they used to create Ruidus. They then encased it in the lattice and sent it into space, but it remained as a satellite.

After a time, the Primordials grew angry and began to destroy the people the gods had created. Some of the gods, in response, wished to side with the Primordials, allow the world to be destroyed, and start again elsewhere, and became known as the Betrayer Gods. Others wished to save their creations and fight back the Primordials. This break between the gods became referred to as the Schism. Those who wished to remain with the people became known as the Prime Deities, who granted their creations arcane magic. The people of Exandria used this magic and the aid of the Prime Deities to fight back the Primordials and to banish the Betrayer Gods.

Ascension of the Raven Queen and the Calamity
The gift of arcane magic made the people of Exandria arrogant and many mages no longer believed in the power of the gods. Late into the Age of Arcanum, one wizard challenged the God of Death with a ritual she had developed, and successfully ascended to godhood to take his place as the Raven Queen. She is considered among the Prime Deities. Another, Vecna, attempted the same but was stopped by the forces of Pelor.

During this time, the Archmage Vespin Chloras broke open the prisons of the Betrayer Gods in pursuit of their power. The Betrayer Gods, after so much time imprisoned, no longer wished to destroy the world but rather to rule it absolutely. They established the city of Ghor Dranas and attacked the city of Vasselheim, setting off a catastrophic war known as the Calamity. For many years, both gods and mortals battled each other until finally the Betrayer Gods were again banished. The Prime Deities, having seen the destruction both the Betrayer Gods and they themselves had caused to the world, created the Divine Gate so that none of the pantheon could physically return to the Material Plane. The gods leaving the plane is known as the Divergence.

Vecna
Vecna survived as a lich for centuries, and with the aid of his faithful cultists, recreated the Raven Queen's ritual and ascended to godhood in 812 PD. He was banished by Vox Machina shortly after, but is considered among the Betrayer Gods.

The Pantheon of Exandria
The following deities are the Prime Deities and Betrayer Gods and are widely considered the "true gods" in terms of power and status. They are all sealed behind the Divine Gate.

Prime Deities
The Raven Queen's predecessor is presumed to have been considered one of the Prime Deities, given that the Betrayer Gods were, at the time of her ascension, unable to grant any powers. His name was lost at the moment of her ascension.

Destroyed deities
These gods were once part of the pantheon of Exandria but were destroyed before The Divergence.
 * Ethedok, the Endless Shadow, was consumed by Predathos during The Founding before The Schism.
 * Vordo, the Fateshaper, was consumed by Predathos shortly after Ethedok.
 * The Raven Queen's predecessor, the former god of death, was destroyed during the Age of Arcanum upon the Raven Queen's Ascension. He was one of the Prime Deities.

Lesser idols
Otherworldly beings had always existed and been able to lend some degree of power to mortals, but after the Divergence, while worship of the gods beyond the Divine Gate continued, with the Prime Deities and Betrayer Gods no longer on the material plane, beings of lesser but still immense power arose and gained some degree of divine power themselves.

Behind the scenes
Wizards of the Coast has trademarked the names of deities in D&D, as has Paizo for Pathfinder. For official campaign guides like Tal'Dorei Campaign Setting Reborn or the show The Legend of Vox Machina, they use epithets to refer to the deities, usually ones novel to Exandria. For example, in the Tal'Dorei campaign guides, the Raven Queen is called the "Matron of Ravens".