Umbra

Shadowed god of crime and conspiracy Umbra is the night and shadow that obscures unjust deeds. She plants the seeds of ill intent, and feeds silver-tongued lies to her chosen few to further their goals.

Origin
The Underdark-dwelling Elves known as Drow were already worshiping the Umbra when they were discovered. Due to the hostile relationship between Drow and surface folk not much is known about how worship of the Umbra began. Its spread on the surface is believed to have begun when a group of Drow fled to the surface and founded a successful guild of thieves, though due to the secretive nature of such organizations not much is known about this group either. The Umbra convinced The Prime that she was just the distillation of night and obscurity. However, The Prime soon discovered The Umbra's true nature, that she was also deception and betrayal. But by then it was too late, The Umbra had already embedded her influence deep within the hearts of men. As punishment The Prime struck her name from all of existence, but The Umbra managed to hide it in the deepest darkest crevices of the Underdark where it would begin to spread.

Worship
The Umbra’s most zealous worshippers are by far the Drow. Not much is known about how they worship the Spider Queen, but it is believed to involve the sacrifice of sapient lives.

For her followers on the surface, worship usually consists of a prayer before and after a theft or assassination. More devout followers may leave carvings of her symbol at the scene of their crime. Certain thievery circles worship Umbra like a cult, emulating the legends surrounding the guild that allegedly brought Umbra worship to the surface. Politicians and people of influence may also be accused of worshipping Umbra, and using her guidance to subtly steer events in their favor.

Eight is a sacred number in Umbra worship. The Eight Edicts of Umbra are a set of vague commandments that encourage subtle treachery for personal gain. All worship is expected to be conducted in secret, both because of the taboo nature of the worship and because Umbra loves all things hidden. New members are only inducted if it directly benefits the person inducting them.

The Eight Edicts

 * 1) Be loyal to Umbra, then thyself, and none more
 * 2) Ensnare all in mendacity
 * 3) All your wants are yours, capture them
 * 4) Shroud your intentions
 * 5) Always give credit, never take it
 * 6) Always take meed, never share it
 * 7) There are no allies, only assets and obstacles
 * 8) Keep your path cleared

Admonished Adoration
While worship of Umbra isn’t illegal in and of itself, open worship of the Queen of Thieves understandably raises suspicion from guards and townsfolk. If a valuable item goes missing in the middle of the night, a suspected Umbra worshiper is the most likely to be blamed for it. Due to this, and to the fact that Umbra simply loves all things secretive, Umbra worship is very carefully hidden. It isn’t a stretch to say half of all suspected Umbra worshippers are ordinary townsfolk who have been paid off by true worshippers to turn suspicion away from themselves, although this could be just what Umbra worshippers want the public to think.

Boon: Vampirism
Worshippers of Umbra that are especially talented schemers and manipulators may be blessed with the Nightmother’s gift of vampirism. This transforms the devotee’s body thoroughly and comes with a list of powerful abilities and deadly weaknesses. The weaknesses vary from vampire to vampire but the most consistent and famous weakness is sunlight, vampires must spend the rest of their indefinitely long lives in shadow. These vampires live by stealing the life force of others, and often turn their victims into undead thralls. Vampires are also soulless, so any hesitation or empathy they used to have is taken from them. The ample weaknesses of vampires are a test from Umbra. The easiest way to defeat a vampire is to trap it in a situation where its weaknesses can be exploited, but anyone who could fall for such a ploy is unworthy of Umbra’s gift.

Bane: Godbeast: Drider
Followers of Umbra that earn her ire, possibly by turning their sect over to the authorities or by trying to deceive Umbra herself, will find their body horribly deformed. These unfortunate creatures are transformed into a twisted mixture of themselves and a humongous spider. They will always have their lower halves replaced with an engorged thorax and abdomen of a spider, they may also have rash-like patches of chitin along their skin, multiple eyes, mandibles, and any other number of disfigurements. The unnatural physiology of Driders causes a lifetime of discomfort, as well as a ravenous appetite. Additionally, the massive and unwieldy form prevents the accursed from utilizing the aptitude for stealth that they likely spend their entire life developing as a follower of Umbra. The name for these abominations is simply a mixture of “Drow” and “Spider”. Driders are named after Drow because most Umbra worshippers are Drow, therefore most Driders are Drow, but any who worship the Goddess of Shadow run the risk of contracting this curse regardless of race.

Enemies:
The Valor- As an evil god, Umbra is at odds with all the righteous gods but none more so than The Valor. As the distillation of justice and courage he is diametrically opposed to Umbra and her dishonorable antics. This opposition is reflected in their symbology, whereas Valor is represented with a sun Umbra is associated with the night and represented with a blackened sun. Umbra also conducts all her business in shadowy corners and the cover of night, out of The Valor’s reach.

Others:
The Roué- Both Roué and Umbra are gods that enjoy trickery and interfering with the lives of mortals with no concern for the consequences. Several myths tell of the gods attempting to outwit each other, using their followers as game pieces and the Nexus as a board. They maintain a friendly rivalry for the most part, and Roué doesn’t mind Umbra’s unrighteous actions. However, Umbra does view Roué as somewhat careless and simpleminded, and Roué in turn thinks she is too serious.

The Ictus- The Ictus heavily disparages The Umbra’s use of sneaking and trickery, similar to The Valor. Ictus and Umbra also have similar views on the concept of owning property, which is to say they both believe they have the right to own all property. While the gods are generally at each other’s throats, they have been known to ally with each other in times of great desperation.