As I write this, I am sitting in a metal tube several miles above the surface of the Earth. No matter how many times I do this, I still find it amazing. I know all the physics involved, but that still doesn’t make it any less a wonder of the potential we can achieve when we put our brightest minds and the most daring among us together. There needs to be a deity to just that thing. Frankly, I can think of no one better than Daedalus.
For those of you not familiar with Greek mythology, Daedalus strapped on a pair of wings made from feathers and wax and flew to escape the tower he was imprisoned in. While the story is a celebration of innovation and daring, it is also a cautionary tale as well, as his son Icarus flew too close to the sun, causing the wax to melt and he fell back to Earth.
With all that in mind, what would a religion based on such a deity look like?
Daedalus
Chaotic Good Hero-Deity of Artificial Flight, Daring, and Ingenuity
Followers of Daedalus believe in understanding the natural world and look to create mechanical ways to emulate them. Chief among these inspirations is the ability to fly like a bird, run as fast as a horse, and haul as much as an elephant, however, this is hardly an exhaustive list. Also among Daedalus’ followers are those daring enough to try such inventions and see if they work.
Daedalus has a strong following among gnomes. Even those of their kind that do not worship him still respect him and will offer up a quick prayer before trying a new invention out. Other races with a sizable following for the hero-deity include humans, dwarves, goblins, hobgoblins, kobolds. The goblinoid and kobold followers go hand in hand as the hobgoblins create the new invention and the goblins and kobolds are more than willing to try. Kobold inventors may be less successful, but they still try hard.
The holy symbol of Daedalus is a pair of feathery wings. Followers are hardly commanded to but still frequently keep a feather on them somewhere. Most often this is in the hair or in a hat, but followers of Daedalus are an individualistic lot and feathers can be found anywhere and in any quantity on the faithful.
While followers of Daedalus are stereotypically the friend that is up for anything (the crazier, the better), they also heed their deity’s warning for they do not want to end up like the son of the deity before ascending to godhood. Proficiency with mechanical tool sets are taught among the faithful and they check the working of anything the device they are not familiar with, both to see how it works as well as to make sure they feel it is safe.
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Jon Brazer Enterprises 