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Deities and Demigods in PTU; Non-Pokemon Deities in the Pokemon World
Topic Started: Jan 19 2017, 10:35 AM (728 Views)
Dr.Webster
Poke Paleontologist
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The Blessed and the Damned has provided us with a slew of ideas on how to run a pokemon campaign while using certain species, like the Sinnoh Legendaries, as deities that the people worship. Heck, we even might have some more stories of the Tapus as deities with the Alolan update! However, with what I've learned with real world human cultures and their religions, almost every deity has been anthropomorphized to fit the human image and to make us feel closer to these supernatural beings. I can understand why the pokemon world does not do this as the legendaries, like Arceus and Groudon, already have powers beyond human comprehension and it would be rare for them to imagine any humanoid gods that would compare to these things. But, what if they were able to have religions where humanoid gods and goddesses could compare with these powerful creatures along with the fact that some of them can take a humanoid form? What if they could be used to help spread the philosophy of the relationship between humans and pokemon by having these supernatural beings work together to make the world all mortals know?

For this topic, I want to take some real world deities and demigods and provide my thoughts on how they can fit in the world of Pokemon. Where I want to start is the Polynesian deities. Why? Well, with the end of 2016, we were hit with a Polynesia-palooza with the release of Sun and Moon Versions and Walt Disney's Moana. These deities could be good to have in the Alola Region or any homebrewed region that is based on the scattered islands of the Pacific Ocean. I wont cover every deitiy they have as there are many islands with their own gods and spirits and instead just go for the ones that stand out for me.

Poli'ahu

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The Hawaiian goddess that lives on the world's tallest mountain (if measured from the seafloor) can be made into a higher or lower deity that watches over Alola's tallest mountain, Mount Lanakila. Poli'ahu is one of four snow goddesses in Hawaiian lore and is an enemy to Pele, goddess of volcanoes and fire. She is said to physically reside somewhere on the mountain, hidden away from her rival and is the cause of all the snow on the summit. Though, many of her powers control the elements of ice, she is also revered as a goddess of compassion. Much of Alolan folklore tell of hunting parties and explorers who end up lost in the mountain during a blizzard, just to run into her before she guides them to safety. However, do not let her kind and calm manner fool you. She is still a goddess and can make things turn sour for you, if you anger her. There were a few cases where she had fallen in love with mortal men, but one of then was already betrothed to a princess in another island. Heartbroken, she cursed the pair to freeze to death.

Compared to humans, Poli'ahu's interaction with pokemon is much different. She is often more compassionate toward them than humans. So compassionate, that she would even appear in the form of a pokemon herself, while intereacting with them. There are a number of different species she could take the form of and all of them are ice-type. In the ancient times, her most common forms were either a Froslass or a Jynx. However, for a while the Alolan people believed that she took on a new form with the introduction of Vulpix and Ninetales to the region. It was later revealed that the pokemon was actually just a new regional variant as more of them were discovered, but that didn't stop them from making new stories. One is that the Alolan Vulpix and Ninetales are actually transformed from Poli'ahu's power. When they were lost on Mount Lanakila in the snow, the goddess was at first indifferent to the creatures for their fire-type status, making them closer to her enemy, Pele. But, she could not help but feel pity for them when leaving her domain became impossible and their fires grew weaker. She came to them in the form of a Ninetales with snow-white hair and blue eyes to guide them to a cave, where they could find shelter. There, she was able to speak with them and learned that they were driven into the mountain by many of the pokemon in the lands below. They came up to the mountain, because there was nowhere else to go. Through her compassion, Poli'ahu used her powers to change them in her image and allowed them to live with her on the mountain.

Domains: Ice, Snow, Sky, Mountains, Beauty, Compassion

Avatars: Poli'ahu tends to take on the form of beautiful young girls and women. Many of which look like native Alolan women with snowy white hair and sky blue eyes. As a pokemon, she takes the form of many ice-types, but Froslass, Jynx, and the Alolan Ninetales are her favorite ones. All her forms have a kind and patient nature and they are affectionate and motherly to anyone who is unfortunate or an adept at the Charm skill. The Alolans believe it is an honor to meet any of these forms and it is a sign that good luck is sure to come.

(More to come later.)
Edited by Dr.Webster, Jan 20 2017, 02:46 PM.
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Dr.Webster
Poke Paleontologist
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Pele

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From the bowels of the planet itself, comes one of the most dangerous and yet most important deities in the old Polynesian religions, Pele, the goddess of fire. Pele, unlike Poli'ahu, is cruel, spiteful, jealous, boastful, and is prone to vengeance. She is the mistress of fire, lightning, wind, and volcanoes, which she used to create many islands across the ocean. She has even used these powerful forces to battle her enemies and exact revenge on those that offend her.

In the Alola Region, Pele has demanded that her followers give her respect by calling her "Madam Pele" or "Tapu Pele". The reason for the "Tapu" name is that she wants to be put that the level as the four Tapu deities that protect the islands as he envies the fact that they are worshiped and praised more than her. Some Alolans believe that, because of her jealousy, the volcano of Akala Island has increased activity and shows signs that it could erupt soon. They also say that the reason she doesn't make it erupt sooner is because she is entertained by Trail Captain Kiawe's dances, along with his troupe of Marowak. This could explain why he set the trail above the volcano's crater, despite the danger of being up there. Kiawe has explained to interviewers that he is very familiar with the goddess and that his ancestors have created and performed dances in her honor for generations.

She is Poli'ahu's greatest rival and the reason for that happened over the first time they met. Pele saw some goddesses sandshrew sliding in the fields below the mountain summits. Hating to be left out, she decided to join in their merriment. So, she disguised herself as a young woman and approached one of the goddesses, Poli'ahu, to challenge her to a round of the sport. Being a goddess of ice Poli'ahu was already better skilled at the game, which infuriated Pele. In her rage, she caused the tallest mountain on the island to erupt, sending lava everywhere and threatening the lives of all who inhabit it. Poli'ahu was able to save the island by taking her cloak of snow dropping it over the raging flows of lava. The ice froze the lava, thwarting Pele's revenge and causing her to retreat to the lower mountains. In the end, the volcano went extinct and all that remains to this day is the frozen mountain of Lanakila. Ever since then, Pele has declaired Poli'ahu her enemy and will one day have her vengeance.

When it comes to how she is with pokemon, for most types, she sees herself as being above them in the heirarchy and really hates the kind of worship some of them get instead of her. One would think that a lot of her respect would go to fire-types as they harness her element and often find her domain to be habitable, but she only sees them as servants or messengers to be used. The type of pokemon she really (and I mean really) loves are ground-types. It began when she was at war with her older sister, Namaka, goddess of the sea. While the two clashed waves and fireballs, the commotion awakened a Groudon on a nearby island. The pokemon used its power to raise the land and its extreme heat pushed the sea goddess away. Pele, seeing this, was instantly enamored by the creature and treated the beast as her equal and her only true friend.

Ever since, she became obsessed with ground-types of all shapes and sizes. She enjoyed the fact that they could join her in various activities, like digging open lava tubes in her volcanoes, making slopes and hills to direct the flow of lava to expand her islands, and even creating earthquakes on human villages that disrespect her. One species of pokemon that really is a help to her in these activities is Dugtrio, which she finds to be adorable as they dig through her hair, which makes up a lot of the lava fields. Legend has it that the reason for Diglett and Dugtrio's Alolan form was from playing around with Pele, so much that her hair stuck to their heads. In fact, geologists that have examined the Alolan Dugtrio's hair have found that its made of some of the same minerals found in hair-like volcanic crystals, called "Pele's Hair".

It is actually very easy for tourists to incur the wrath of this Pele. Making her jealous for attention and glory is one thing, but taking away what she considers property is a whole other can of worms! Every rock and creation from her lava is claimed by her. If you steal it by taking it from the Alola Region, she will curse you with bad luck. Tourists who took lava rocks, Pele's Hair, and sand from this location, soon send them back to Alola through the mail.

Domains: Fire, Lightning, Wind, Volcanoes, Ground, Revenge

Avatars: Pele's avatars are always high class girls and women with fiery tempers and sharp tongues. Sometimes she will even take the form of an haggard old woman that travels along the road. People or trainers that offer her a ride will be awarded good luck for the rest of the year. Regardless of the form, they all have similarities and in their anger and they just go "gah-gah" over anything with Groudon, Diglett, and Dugtrio.
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