Rissinis
The Fisher King, (L)N lesser power of fishing, sailors and good weather [He/Him]
Pantheon: Pelinorian
Realm: Elemental Plane of Water / Core Water / Trawling Citadel
Symbol: A trident pointing downward-right
A son of mighty Tarmenel, the Pelinorian Power of the Sky, and Fianna, the Power of Tempered Judgement, Rissinis is still a lesser power. However, his worship is growing steadily, especially in the Elemental Plane of Water, and it has already grown beyond the traditional realms of the rest of his pantheon.
Part of the reason for this is the blood’s no-nonsense attitude. Rissinis doesn’t make complicated demands or dwell on moral teachings, being content with receiving regular offerings and prayers from his worshippers. It is likewise easy to become a priest of Rissinis, for he accepts cutters from all walks of life. Sometimes he even reaches out to a berk himself—many clerics in Rissinis’ clergy began serving him after being miraculously saved from a shipwreck. This doesn’t mean a sod should depend on the god for frequent gifts, mind. Rissinis teaches his followers to rely on their own skill first, and he dislikes wealthy land-lubbers who live at the expense of the simple hardworking folk of the sea. It is customary for travellers to offer gifts to Rissinis before voyage to ensure smooth sailing. They say that if the power is sufficiently angered, he might very well sink a ship or drown a town—Rissinis is known for his indifference to causing collateral damage.
In his realm of the Trawling Citadel, Rissinis takes the form of a simple man in a loincloth woven from seaweed. He allies himself with Osprem, Persana, Tefnut and other sea powers—however his relations with Istishia, Ben-Hadar, Water Lion and other more nature-focused powers are strained. Even though Rissinis doesn’t approve of overfishing and polluting the water, he and his followers still view the ocean as a resource to be exploited and subjugated by the civilised races. For a similar reason, Rissinis stays out of the ancient conflict between Elemental Good and Evil.
On land, Rissinis is worshipped by cutters whose lives depend on the sea—sailors and fishermen, and his priests often double as captains or navigators on ships. His shrines are built on the shore, even below the tide line so they flood during high tides. Sacrifices are performed by sending food or valuables adrift into the sea on tiny boats. Aside from his main deific duty of pacifying the stormy sea, Rissinis is also known for sending prophetic dreams, especially those that foretell the fate of travellers lost in the sea. Meanwhile on the Plane of Water, Rissinis is primarily revered by sea-kin and some tritons, but he’s also paid tribute to by a minority of sahuagin and koalinths. Peculiarly, some of the more intelligent adaro also turn to Rissinis, perhaps in hopes of gaining control over their weather-induced rage.
Proxy: Charyklia Sardeli (prime human cleric [she/her] / LN) was a human girl in a small coastal city-state that besieged by an invading army. When all hope seemed lost, Charyklia sacrificed herself to Rissinis by sailing on a tiny raft into the open ocean. She was prepared for death, but instead Rissinis noticed her devotion and swept her away to the Bottomless Deep. The city was saved—an enormous wave crushed the invaders, spared the city, and separated it from the mainland creating a defensible island. But in exchange for this boon, Charyklia had to stay in the Trawling Citadel and serve Rissinis as a proxy. Now a woman in her thirties, Charyklia still follows Rissinis with a same faith and fervour, and manages day-to-day life in his realm. When she is dispatched on a mission to another plane, she handpicks a crew of sailors to sail her magical ship, the Blue Visage. This marvellous brigantine can surround itself with an air envelope that lets it travel underwater, as well as skim across the surface of more traditional seas. The Visage can also travel between planes, sail the Seventh Sea and even shrink itself to a pocket-size model for easy carrying.
Source: Margarita. Canonwatch: Rissinis got a brief mention in the Imagine Magazine #26 p14.
Crunch
Rules for Rissinis’ faithful [PF2e]
- Edicts: Respect the power of the sea and its bounty, hone your sailing skills, conquer challenges presented by nature
- Anathema: Waste food or resources, take more than you can use, fail to pay tribute to Rissinis
- Divine Attribute: Strength or wisdom
- Divine Font: Harm or heal
- Divine Sanctification: None
- Divine Skill: Survival
- Favoured Weapon: Harpoon
- Domains: Air, luck, travel, water
- Cleric Spells: 1st: jump, 3rd: feet to fins, 5th: control water