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Sathia
The Sky Duchess (planar avoral guardinal companion [she/her] / NG)
Portfolio: Patron of sculptors and painters, elevation through perspective
Realm: Elysium / Thalasia / The Bower Beguiling
Sathia, the Sky Duchess, is an avoral guardinal paragon and a radiant embodiment of freedom, vigilance, and artistic inspiration. She’s tall and lithe, with purple-blue feathers speckled with green, and piercing golden eyes. Her beak is long and curved like a hummingbird, and her tongue even more so. Small birds often flutter around her in reverence, drawn to her graceful presence and aura of benevolent beauty. As the voice of the avorals and a patron of painters and sculptors, Sathia’s qualities are precision and attention to detail—little escapes her keen eyes. This allows her to see peril from great distances, but also inspires those she’s taken under her wing to find beauty even in the smallest elements of creation.
Sathia’s unique philosophy of goodness revolves around elevation through perspective—both literally and metaphorically. She teaches that by rising above fear, doubt, or narrow thinking, one can gain clarity and insight into life’s challenges. Just as she soars above Elysium to watch over its peaceful plains, she encourages cutters to broaden their horizons in order to find creative solutions to adversity. Sathia believes in the transformative power of art as a means of expressing one’s truth; she often serves as a muse to mortal artists and bards, guiding their hands toward works that inspire hope and courage. When not she’s patrolling Elysium’s skies, the infinite expanse of the Elemental Air—Sathia is an ally of the archomental Chan—or travelling abroad with the other members of Talisid’s Companions, Sathia creates masterful paintings and sculptures that capture the sublime beauty of Elysium. Her works depict the multiverse with startling clarity, encouraging viewers to appreciate its infinite potential for goodness. Among her most celebrated creations is The Eternal Horizon, a massive mural that adorns her celestial nesting hall the Bower Beguiling, which depicts sunset over the infinite expanse of Thalasia in breathtaking detail. The piece shifts subtly with the passage of time, its colours and patterns mirroring the moods of the plane itself. Another of her masterpieces, Wings of Grace, is a series of intricate wood sculptures carved from celestial trees, each representing a different bird in flight, so delicate that their sculpted feathers move with the wind.
Source: Book of Exalted Deeds [3e] p141-142; Dragon Magazine #353 p47; Jon Winter-Holt