The Raptoran Pantheon
REALM: Planes of Cordance / Pangaea / Flock’s Nest
KEY MYTHS: The defining tale told by raptoran elders is the origin of their race, the Myth of the Boar and the Wings.
In the time when nights were still young, Tuilviel Glithien—the Queen of Air and Night—soared alone, watched only by the moon. Jealous of her freedom in the skies, Lolth spun a shadowy plan. Shaping herself into a great black boar with eyes like embers, she charged through the underbrush. As she tore up the earth with her tusks, she hoped to tempt the Queen of Air and Night into pursuit, steal her wings, and then bind her to the ground forever.
Tuilviel fell for the trick and gave chase, thrilled by the prospect of a worthy hunt. Over hills and hollows she swooped, but deeper into tangled bramble ran the monstrous boar, until the magical thorns snagged Tuilviel’s feathers and pinned her earthbound. At that moment, the boar-Lolth struck, but Tuilviel’s spirit would not break. She tore herself free, leaping skyward, her ripped wings beating back the brambles. The Queen rained stars and drops of shimmering blood upon the soil as she escaped, her talons still gripping the boar. Where the blood and stars had fallen, the earth gave birth to the first raptorans—creatures free to rule the twilight. But because her own wings had been damaged, her children would not be able to fly.
Realising that the boar was no ordinary swine, Tuilviel carried her foe to the edge of the world and flung her into a chasm where only the shadows dare to dwell. The boar fell and fell, ending up in the Demonweb Pits, where Lolth still seethes to this day, And that is why raptorans and drow share an ancient enmity.
HISTORY: The raptoran powers didn’t always live in Pangaea, you know. They used to dwell on the Plane of Air, nesting on earthmotes and revelling in the Labyrinthine Winds of the plane. That was until the wicked air archomental Yan-C-Bin swooped in, calling in a favour so ancient the raptorans had almost forgotten about it. You see, despite having beautiful wings, the raptorans were unable to fly. Seeing the beauty and grace of birds, they longed to be able to join them. So it came to pass that the raptoran powers made a pact with the air elementals—for the power of flight they would promise one favour. The air elementals taught them magic to mend their wings, showed them how to fly, and gave the powers their own territory in the Plane of Air. All was well for 1001 years, for air elementals have short memories and forgot all about the bargain they made.
That was until Yan-C-Bin, the prince of evil air elementals, learned of the pact his people had forgotten. Some say the tale was whispered to him by a treacherous raptoran in return for even more power. Others reckon it was tortured out of a raptoran elder captured by the wicked archomental. Either way, once C-Bin learned the air elementals were owed a favour, and realising that the raptoran race was already vulnerable and on the decline, his vindictive streak took over. He made great show of inviting Tuilviel Glithien to a grand aerial masquerade in Deep Air, but neglected to tell her that the other guests were his evil archomental friends and that she would be the entertainment for his horrible allies.
In front of the other archomentals, Yan-C-Bin called in the ancient favour owed to the air elementals. He demanded that the raptorans would give him their realm on Air and never flutter their wings in the plane again. The choice was stark—leave the plane altogether or surrender the ability to fly. Presented with this impossible choice, Tuilviel Glithien was forced to choose without being able to consult her fellow powers. Obviously, she could not take away the power of flight from her children, for it had become the defining characteristic of the race. So exile it was. Yan-C-Bin laughed, and the magic of the pact cast the raportan powers from Air forever, and into the only plane that would accept them—Pangaea, the plane of extinction.
CHARACTER: Fly free, respect your community, be at one with the natural world. The powers of the raptorans reflect the values of raptoran society at large. Not for them the trappings of technology—these gods treasure their connectedness with the elemental and the natural. Living in such a primal place as Pangaea brings with it challenges, but raptorans believe in clan above all, and by banding together and sharing a realm—Flock’s Nest—the raptoran powers exist in harmony with the plane.
The Powers of the Raptoran Pantheon
| NAME | PORTFOLIO | PRONOUNS | ALIGNMENT | POWER LEVEL |
| Duthila | Autumn, hunting, and abundance | She/Her | N | Lesser |
| Kithin | Winter, the dead and dying, barrenness and paucity | He/Him | N | Lesser |
| Lliendil | Weather, rain, storms, sun, wind, change, and trickery | He/Him | CN | Intermediate |
| Nilthina | Summer, warmth and lore | He/Him | N | Lesser |
| Tuilviel Glithein | Moon, stars, night birds, raptorans | She/Her | CG | Greater |
| Ventila | Spring, fertility, growth, and love | She/Her | N | Lesser |
Duthila
The Lady of Abundance. N Lesser power of Autumn, hunting, and abundance [She/Her]
REALM: Planes of Cordance / Pangaea / Flock’s Nest / Autumn’s Abundance
The Lady of Abundance is a brown-skinned raptoran with flame-red feathers that evoke the changing leaves and vibrant colours of the autumn season. Dressed in a long-sleeved tunic and trousers of golden hue, adorned not with jewels but with symbols of dried fruit, grain, and game—Duthila understands that true beauty lies in sustenance and survival.
Her philosophy teaches balance, preparedness, and the sacred act of transition. She teaches that abundance is not merely possessing a lot, but understanding how to preserve what you do have, and carry only what you need.
Duthila is most venerated by those raptorans who enjoy a nomadic lifestyle. She oversees physical journeys and life transitions: not only over the autumn harvest but also over the maturity of young raptorans who embark on the Walk of the Four Winds. Her followers believe that every journey—whether across the sky or into adulthood—requires careful preparation, and the wisdom to know how to travel light. Her clerics are diplomats, expedition leaders, and food preservers, managing caches hidden in hollow trees and negotiating territorial disputes with neighboring flocks.
Edicts: Help in the harvest; prepare for every journey; travel light
Anathema: Own more than you can carry; take more than your share; waste food
Her symbol is an apple with a branch with three apples on it, her domains are Nature and Peace, and her favoured weapon is a scythe.
Kithin
The Father of Snows. N Lesser power of Winter, the dead and dying, barrenness and paucity [He/Him]
REALM: Planes of Cordance / Pangaea / Flock’s Nest / Winter’s Stillness
The Father of Snows is an elderly male raptoran with white skin and gray feathers. His wings are banded with frosty white and he wears heavy furs, for he embodies the harshest seasons and the warmth needed to survive them. Unlike winter powers of other pantheons, who appear might threatening or malevolent, Kithin’s aged appearance belies his wisdom, and the natural completion of life’s journey. As the god of winter, death, and the dying, Kithin holds dominion over scarcity and barrenness, not out of cruelty but of necessity.
Kithin’s philosophy emphasises acceptance, silence, and the sacred duty of tending to both the living and the dead during the harshest season. This emphasis on quietude reflects the muffled stillness of snowfall and the contemplative nature of confronting mortality. What makes Kithin unique among winter deities is his dual role as both guardian against the cold and psychopomp for the worthy—he personally flies down to the Prime to collect the souls of particularly wise raptorans and escorts them to their just rewards in Flock’s Nest. As well as their funerary duties, his clerics are practical survivalists, managing winter food supplies, preparing communal meals, maintaining life-sustaining fires, and conducting the annual Snowbinding ritual in which raptorans allow snow to nearly cover them and sleep beneath it for a night, symbolically embracing death to emerge renewed. The most devout of Kithin’s followers also battle undead and even journey to the Lower Planes to rescue lost raptoran souls, showing that the Father of Snows is a protector of the natural cycle of death, not an advocate for its perversion.
Edicts: Tend the communal fires; Prepare the dead with dignity and conduct proper funerary rites; Preserve food and resources carefully
Anathema: Create or tolerate undead; Speak unnecessarily or break the sacred silence during prayers or funerals; Allow the unprepared to face winter without warning
His symbol is a simple snowflake on a gold coin, his domains are Grave, Nature, and Twilight, and his favoured weapon is a spear.
Lliendil
The Lord of Clouds; Stormfather. CN Intermediate power of weather, rain, storms, sun, wind, change, and trickery [He/Him]
REALM: Planes of Cordance / Pangaea / Flock’s Nest / the Clouds
The Lord of the Clouds manifests as a male raptoran with blue-black skin, eyes that crackle with electricity, and electric-blue feathers banded with white. He typically wears black breeches, a leather jerkin, and a halo of restless lightning energy surrounding him. Some cutters claim to have seen him joyously riding the gale-force winds during the worst storms, but he’s a power of gentle skies and nurturing rain as well as violent tempests. Unlike the other raptoran powers who oversee precise seasons, Lliendil is capricious and unpredictable, changeable and mercurial like the weather itself.
Lliendil’s philosophy celebrates chaotic freedom, and the transformative power of disruption—though his followers must deal with the reality that their power might just as easily hinder as help them. His clergy begins their training by charting weather patterns and performing daily propitiation, never knowing if their efforts will earn the god’s favour or invite his pranks—sudden destructive storms, twisted prayers, and thwarted plans seem like games to him.
Raptorans understand Lliendil’s apparent cruelty not as malice but as the natural expression of an untamable force. They don’t seek to control him, but to respect and accommodate his capricious nature. His clerics are assigned to rebuilding efforts after weather damage and teaching young raptorans how to ride dangerous winds. Most unusually, Lliendil’s followers construct their shrine-temples in the most exposed locations where they’re the first to be destroyed by storms. It’s a calculated offering meant to placate the god’s destructive impulses, and perhaps redirect them away from the flock’s homes. The annual Stormcalling ritual epitomizes this philosophy—by explicitly begging for a fierce spring storm, raptorans hope that Lliendil will satisfy his hunger for destruction early in the season, leaving summer safe for travel and harvest.
Edicts: Ride the storm with courage and celebrate the wild power of nature; Rebuild what is destroyed by weather; Propitiate the Stormfather with daily prayers and offerings
Anathema: Cower from the wind or rain or attempt to control it; Curse or blame Lliendil when storms bring hardship; Build permanent structures that presume to be storm-proof
His symbol is a white raptoran with spread out arms and wings, closed legs, and in front of a black, stormy cloud, his domains are Tempest and Trickery, and his favoured weapon is a heavy flail.
Nilthina
The Lord of Warm Winds. N Lesser power of Summer, warmth and lore [He/Him]
REALM: Planes of Cordance / Pangaea / Flock’s Nest / Summer’s Beginning
Nilthina appears as a handsome, bare-chested male raptoran with bronzed skin and feathers of the purest gold. He radiates the warmth and vitality of summer, and is sometimes said to appear in the night sky during the warmest months, tossing the stars back and forth playfully while his song floats on the breeze.
He’s a power who finds joy in creation and celebration rather than struggle or sacrifice. Unlike the austere Father of Snows or the fickle Stormfather, Nilthina celebrates abundance without scarcity, growth without hardship, and the fullness of life at its peak. His youthful vigour and musical nature mark him as the raptoran god of plenty, maturation, and the flourishing of both nature and culture—for summer is when young raptorans mature into adults and the flock gathers to share stories and songs.
Nilthina’s philosophy celebrates generosity, growth, and the sharing of knowledge and tradition within the community. He’s the power of the physical harvest of summer but more importantly, the spiritual and cultural fruits of the season too—the teaching of history, the composition of songs, and the refinement of martial skill. He presides over the transmission of raptoran identity from one generation to the next through storytelling and music, making him a patron of ancestral memories and cultural continuity. His clerics manage the meat harvest and preserve food through drying and salting. They also serve as teachers and warriors, training younger raptorans in combat techniques, how to hunt, and in advanced flight manoeuvres. His followers pray facing the sun and always invoke abundance in their petitions, whether requesting aid or giving thanks.
Edicts: Share the bounty of the hunt; Teach the young the songs, stories, and martial skills of the raptorans; Celebrate the abundance of summer
Anathema: Allow knowledge or songs to be forgotten; Refuse aid to allies in their time of need; Turn away those seeking friendship and alliance
His symbol is a handful of berries, his domains are Knowledge, Light, and Nature, and his favoured weapon is a scimitar.
Tuilviel Glithein
The Queen of Air and Night; Lady of the Silent Wings. CG Greater power of Moon, stars, night birds, hunting, raptorans [She/Her]
REALM: Planes of Cordance / Pangaea / Flock’s Nest / Mother Tree
Tuilviel Glithien typically appears as a beautiful female raptoran of unknowable age (and frankly it’s rude of you to even ask, cutter!), with snowy-white feathers atop her head like a crown of moonlight. Her skin glows with a white radiance, while she wears a flowing black gown sprinkled with diamonds like a sky full of tiny stars. Her enormous white wings reflect every shade of the setting sun. As the creator of the raptoran race and their eternal guardian, Tuilviel transcends the role of a typical creator power; she is both a distant patron and an intimate protector, watching over all things which occur at the night, as soon as the stars appear.
Tuilviel’s philosophy is based on sacred freedom, divine protection, and the inviolable bond between family and community. As patron of both the hunt and of the family, she holds jurisdiction over a significant portion of raptoran daily life, guiding not only the rules that govern the pursuit of prey, but also the bonds of kinship that define her flock. Because all raptorans are descended from her blood, every raptoran feels a debt of gratitude for her sacrifice. All prayers to powers in the raptoran pantheon begin with an acknowledgement of Tuilviel Glithien, regardless of which deity is being specifically invoked, cementing her primacy in their faith—perhaps this is why she’s the only greater power in the family.
Her clerics begin their careers by taking nightly solo journeys to scout their homelands for intruders. Later they might learn to lead hunting expeditions, chart stars, or interpret astronomical phenomena. The annual Flight of the Lady ritual, in which all capable raptorans soar skyward at midnight then glide gently to the ground, planting one of her sacred feathers as a marker wherever they land, transforms the entire flock for one night into a tribute to their creator.
Some cutters believe that Tuilviel Glithien is the ruler of Pangaea itself. She’s certainly one of the mightiest powers on the plane. But the fact is, she’s not interested in conquest, she cares for her people first, and the environment they live in second.
Her symbol is an owl flying in front of the moon, her domains are Nature and Twilight, and her favoured weapons are foot spikes.
Edicts: Protect nocturnal creatures; Do not permit others to claim dominion over darkness; Hunt with honour and skill; Foster family bonds and defend your flock from all threats
Anathema: Betray your flock for personal gain; Harm nocturnal birds or creatures; Cease to fly or surrender your freedom to the sky
Proxies: Of all the raptoran powers, only Tuilviel maintains proxies. The mwendiiar (raptoran cleric proxies of Tuilviel / CG) is a group of five raptoran high-up priests whose only purpose is to call the other raptoran powers together for a meeting.
Ventila
The Lady of Spring. N Lesser power of Spring, fertility, growth, and love [She/Her]
REALM: Planes of Cordance / Pangaea / Flock’s Nest / Autumn’s Abundance
The Lady of Spring prefers to appear as a raptoran maiden with golden skin and green feathers, to signify the fresh vitality of new life and renewal. She wears a tunic and trousers of green leather trimmed with the soft hues of dawn and embroidered with spring flowers. She wears a flower crown too to celebrate the growing season. Unlike the aged wisdom of Kithin or the timeless grace of Tuilviel, Ventila radiates youthful energy and possibility—she is the goddess of first flights, first loves, and first plantings. She embodies the biological renewal of the season and the emotional and spiritual awakening that comes with spring’s arrival.
Ventila’s philosophy emphasizes fertility, growth, healing, and the sacred act of nurturing new life in all its forms. As the raptoran fertility goddess, she’s venerated by new eggmothers and midwives, but her blessings extend beyond that to encompass the fertility of land and animals, the healing of wounded earth, and the restoration of balance after the dormancy of winter.
Ventila is vehemently opposed to artificiality—her followers hunt down and slay creatures that live without truly being alive, such as undead and constructs, seeing them as perversions of the natural cycle that spring represents. Her clerics examine plant life for disease and injury, teach young raptorans to fish and gather food, and arrange matches between age-mates to form new pairs. When clerics are accepted into her priesthood, they plant trees near cliff dwellings as reminder of their commitment. The annual spring festival at which couples plight their troth and the feast preceding a young raptoran’s departure on the Walk of the Four Winds both fall under Ventila’s domain.
Edicts: Nurture new life in all forms—tend growing things, support fledgelings; Restore lands damaged by disaster or war; Celebrate the bonds of love and kinship
Anathema: Permit undead or constructs to persist; Knowingly damage fertile ground or allow lands to remain barren; Stand in the way of true love
Her symbol is an egg, her domains are Life, Nature, and Peace, and her favoured weapon is a quarterstaff.
Canonical Source: Races of the Wild [3e] p77-80
Source: SGreen and Jon Winter-Holt. Canonwatch: The raptorans are a playable ancestry from the 3e Races of the Wild book; think elves, with wings. They didn’t really catch on and were never ported to 5e rules (although there’s a homebrew version here). This got me thinking about where player character races go to die off, and it fit rather nicely with SGreen’s idea to place them in Pangaea with other relics of the past. The Lolth and Air Elemental lore is canonical, from Races of the Wild. I added the Yan-C-Bin element to make the backstory of the race a little more tragic/interesting and help to explain why they aren’t in the Plane of Air. The powers and rituals mentioned are all from Races of the Wild. Please note that the Queen of Air and Night (Tuilviel) is NOT the same being as the Queen of Air and Darkness—the latter is the malevolent archfey who rules the Unseelie Court. You definitely don’t want to get those two mixed up on your party invitation list!