Hykrael

The Dreamer, The Chained

Realms of Influence:

Dreams and Divination

Description:

Hykrael is a god of dreams, hidden messages and prophecy. His followers seek the meaning of their dreams and see hidden meanings in many everyday occurences. Hykrael has no distinct, clear form; his priests believe their dreams are just fragments of the unending dream of Hykrael himself and they continually seek to piece together their dreams into a coherent whole. Hykrael is worshipped by disparate and distant groups, from sailors and farmers who wish to see what the weather will bring, to merchants who want to preempt any changes in the market. His priesthood is intended to be very approachable, and very relaxed, yet passionate about their religion in a quiet, insistent way.

Sample Miracles:

Daydream
Seek wisdom in idle thought. Offers a glimpse of the future, giving the dreamer a hint about a quest they're on, or showing them if a nearby mobile will give a quest.

Omens
Display omens to others, showing them a glimpse of the unending dream.

Priesthood Restrictions:

Priests of Hykrael must act in a unified, coherent manner; they do not have their own dreams, viewing any dream or nightmare as a fragment of the dreams of their god. The implication of this unity is that they rarely work toward their own goals, instead preferring to work in small groups.

They are forbidden from falling asleep whilst inebriated, lest they lose track of a fragment of the unending dream. Additionally, they must sleep "with forethought," which means they always sleep with a weapon to hand, as they believe if it is nearby, it will follow them into their dream. To ensure this, many of the priests will have a small silver chain linking them to what they wish to carry into the unending dream.

Extra Lore:

Followers of the dreamer believe a good night of sleep is essential to viewing the unending dream well, and will often invest a disproportionate amount of their money in furnishing their bedroom appropriately. This is most apparent in the priesthood, who are loath to have their sleep interupted. As a result, the most secure room in a temple of Hykrael is the sleeping quarters. In pursuit of the perfect dream, thick, airtight stone doors have led to the deaths of several overeager priests, and as a result, the temples have strict rules regarding airholes in sleeping chambers.

The appearance of Hykrael is also unknown, as the priests believe they may only commune with him in dreams. To them, this means they see Hykrael how he views himself and his myriad appearances and forms are a topic of much discussion, as they are seen to offer insight into his desires and demands. Commonly, to avoid confusion within temples, Hykrael is portrayed as a figure in repose, a pillow under his head and a blanket over his body from the stomach down. His face is always left blank, with a net of silver chains wrapped around his head. Early attempts to portray Hykrael without the pillow and cover led to the statues being misidentified as "the tomb of some guy who no one could remember well enough to carve." This led the priesthood to alter the statues to make the matter more clear, though it took a full year to decide which kind of pillow was most appropriate and another six months to decide if they should maybe add pyjamas.