Gataur, the strong man of the earth. He is the god of earth, strength, community and craftsmanship. He is the father of all the gods. He impregnated Danu so she could give birth the the gods. Gataur created the Tellurians and the Gnomes , raising the first Gnome to become Ganinisum. He is credited with craeting the mountain ranges of Heimr and sometimes even considered the architect of Heimr. Gataur is usually considered a straight forward god, who does not make elaborate plans and usually just gets what he wants, either by strength or sheer determination.
Earth
Gataur is associated with the element Earth. Earth is considered the prime element of which material things are made, most obviously rock but also metals and even wood. This makes the element intimately linked to those craftsmen worshipping Gataur. It is also the element most mortals are intimately familiar with as nearly everywhere they go they will be walking on earth or one of the related substances.
Strength
The aspect of Strength is the aspect of Gataur most widely worshipped among the various mortals of Heimr. A soldier will pray for the strength to pierce his opponent's armour. A mother will pray for the strength to give - and survive - birth. A gambler will pray for strength to resist the temptation to continue gambling. Almost each moment of a mortal's life can be considered a tes of strength and thus worthy of a prayer to Gataur.
Craftmanship
Since Gataur is often considered to be the one who created most of Heimr, most craftsmen will worship Gataur when they are working on their craft. The smith creating a lawn fence, the carpenter creating a chair for the baker in return for bread and the fletcher creating arrows for the archers to fire at the enemy can all be considered worshippers of Gataur. More direct worship happens as well, there are priests who will create simple toys to hand out to children in name of Gataur.
Community
While community is a rather abstract thing to pray for, there is one race that will often do just that. Tellurians prefer to be in groups, thus they tend to pray for community when alone. Other races also have reason to pray for community, however. For example, members of a farming community that is experiencing a famine due to bad harvest can pray to keep their community together. In general, any form of worship related to creating or maintaining a group of people can be considered worship of Gataur's Community aspect.
Good versus Evil
Giving strength to others is a form of good worship of Gataur. Its opposite is taking someones strength, not by simply killing him but by, for example, forcing someone to eat only bread for weeks so he becomes weak. Craftsmanship on the other hand, is hard to give or take. Yet sometimes evil worshippers will try and destroy craftsmen and their work. Community, like strength, can be given and taken. To give someone community is to make him part of a group, a larger whole. Taking community means destroying the community, either by eliminating those keeping the community together or simply by mass destruction.
Symbols
Symbols of Gataur are mountains, raw gems or other objects of the earth. Strength is often symbolized by a strong rod of steel or an iron fist. Hammers, saws, knives, anvils and other tools are usually used as symbols of craftsmanship. A small anvil is a popular depiction of Gataur on shrines. For community, the most often used symbol is a tight clump of houses. Yet the tellurians also use interlinked hands as a symbol for community. Some nicknames of Gataur are "The Architect of the World", "The Father of All" and "The Shaper of Mountains". Gataur is often depicted as a mountain range with legs and arms, somewhat resembling a really ancient Tellurian.
Angels of Gataur
Gataur's angels, the Beastlings are large men with the heads of bulls, antilope, goats, sheep and other horned animals. They are protectors of mountain villages and other communities. They will use their strength to prevent avalanches, closer fissures and otherwise fight against earth-related natural disasters. Old and powerful beastlings are some of the best craftsmen on Heimr, surpassed only by those Beastlings more powerful or the gods themselves.
Daemons of Gataur
Earth elementals are the living embodiment of the element earth. Where Beastlings prevent natural disasters, Earth Elementals cause avalanches and collapse mines. Summoned earth elementals are often simple, single minded creatures performing a single task and then disappearing again. Yet the older and more powerful elementals exhibit cunning and intelligence, though they lack subtlety and will usually go for the most direct approach.
Mandate of Gataur
Apart from the General mandate of the gods Gataur has expressed the following wishes from her followers.
General Gataur
- Be strong
Good Gataur
- Build communities
Evil Gataur
- Suppress the weak
- Crush things under rocks