Sheela Peryroyl
| Game background | |
|---|---|
| Title(s) | Green Sister, the Wise, the Watchful Mother |
| Home plane | Concordant Domain of the Outlands |
| Power level | Intermediate |
| Alignment | Neutral (Neutral Good tendencies) |
| Portfolio | Nature, agriculture, weather |
| Domains | Air, Charm, Plant (also Halfling in Forgotten Realms) |
| Superior | Yondalla |
| Design details | |
In many campaign settings for the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game, Sheela Peryroyl is the halfling deity of Nature, Agriculture, and Weather. Her symbol is the daisy. Her sacred animal is the butterfly.
As with all halfling deities, Sheela Peryroyl has countless alternative local names.
In many campaign settings, the halfling pantheon of gods consists of the leader Yondalla, as well as Arvoreen, Brandobaris, Cyrrollalee, Sheela Peryroyl, and Urogalan.
Publication history
Sheela Peryroyl was first detailed in Roger E. Moore's article "The Halfling Point of View," in Dragon #59 (TSR, 1982).[1] In Dragon #92 (December 1984), Gary Gygax indicated this as one of the deities legal for the Greyhawk setting.[2] She also appeared in the original Unearthed Arcana (1985).[3]
Sheela Peryroyl was detailed in the book Monster Mythology (1992), including details about his priesthood.[4] The deity's role among her followers was expanded in The Complete Book of Gnomes & Halflings (1993).[5] Her role in the cosmology of the Planescape campaign setting was described in On Hallowed Ground (1996).[6] She received a very detailed description for her role in the Forgotten Realms in Demihuman Deities (1998).[7] She is described as one of the good deities that celestials can serve in the supplement Warriors of Heaven (1999).[8]
Sheela Peryroyl's role in the Forgotten Realms is revisited in Faiths and Pantheons (2002).[9] She was detailed again in Races of the Wild (2005).[10]
Description
Sheela is distant and somewhat aloof by the standards of halfling deities, being patron of the balance between work and play, both toil in the fields and celebration afterwards. She plays no favorites in the tension between pleasure and woe.
Sheela is generally depicted as a pretty halfling maiden with brightly colored wildflowers woven in her hair. She is quiet, though her face is smiling and her eyes are dancing. She may also be depicted as laughing. Her singing causes flowers to bloom, trees to bud, and seeds to sprout, and living plants grow and flower wherever her feet have touched the earth. She brings good weather when she is pleased, but may also summon droughts or floods if she is angry.
Relationships
Sheela is allied with all of the halfling pantheon, which includes Yondalla, Arvoreen, Brandobaris, Cyrrollalee, and Charmalaine, but is closest to Urogalan, the grim Lord of the Earth. Other allies include Aerdrie Faenya, Baervan Wildwanderer, Hanali Celanil, Rillifane Rallathil, Segojan Earthcaller, and various Animal Lords. All nonevil nature deities value the cool, level-headed mind of Sheela Peryroyl, making her the perfect mediator when tensions rise up between them (presumedly including the rivalry between Ehlonna and Obad-Hai, or the enmity between Obad-Hai and Phyton). Among mortals, even some non-halflings honor Sheela Peryroyl before entering an important negotiation.
Sheela strongly opposes those gods she sees as corruptions of the natural order, including Urdlen and presumedly including Karaan.
In some communities, Yondalla, Sheela Peryroyl, and Cyrrollalee are seen as aspects of a single goddess.
Realm
Sheela's realm of Flowering Hill can be found in the Outlands. It consists of a single orchard and a wide farm, where the souls of those who worshiped her in life learn how to appease nature and their bellies at the same time.
Dogma
Sheela teaches of the balance between the wild and the tame, the feral and the tended, and decrees that it is necessary to preserve the wilds to balance cultivated land. She is not opposed to changing natural landscapes, but believes this must happen through slow adaptation rather than crudely introducing upheaval to the land.
Worshipers
Of the halfling gods, Sheela is most loved after Yondalla herself. Sheela is worshiped by bards, druids, farmers, gardeners, halflings, and rangers.
Clergy
Sheela's clerics and druids, who are known as the Green Children (Green Daughters and Green Sons), wear green robes. Novices to the priesthood are known as Seedlings. Green Children pray for spells at dawn. Their favored weapon is the sickle. They oversee disputes, sanctify marriages, heal blights, and protect their communities from beasts. They also ensure their communities treat the wilderness with respect.
Temples
Sheela's temples are open-roofed affairs constructed of stone and soil, with curtains of vines and arrangements of rocks and living plants. Animals roam freely among them, and there are patches of wildflowers, gardens, and weeds.
Holy days
Sheela's holy festivals, known as Gatherings, are held when Luna is full. Gatherings are both religious festivals and communal feasts.
Other major festivals include the Seeding, which is celebrated during Planting, and the High Harvest, which is of course celebrated during Harvester.
Rituals
During Gatherings, all members of the community are expected to bring seeds and produce from the most recent harvest. The site of the Gatherings changes every month, moving from community to community, in order to strengthen the bonds between neighbors. Halflings pray to Sheela during courtships, weddings, and galas.
During Seeding, a priest of Sheela Peryroyl dispenses seeds stored in the local temple to the farmers of the community while giving praise to the goddess. During High Harvest, offerings of seeds are made to the temple to be stored until the following year.
References
- ↑ Moore, Roger E. "The Halfling Point of View." Dragon #59 (TSR, March 1982)
- ↑ Gygax, Gary (December 1984). "From the Sorcerer's Scroll: Clerics live by other rules". Dragon (Lake Geneva WI: TSR) (92): 22.]
- ↑ Gygax, Gary. Unearthed Arcana (TSR, 1985)
- ↑ Sargent, Carl. Monster Mythology (TSR, 1992)
- ↑ Niles, Douglas. The Complete Book of Gnomes & Halflings. Lake Geneva, WI: TSR, 1993
- ↑ McComb, Colin. On Hallowed Ground (TSR, 1996)
- ↑ Boyd, Eric L. Demihuman Deities (TSR, 1998)
- ↑ Perkins, Christopher. Warriors of Heaven (TSR, 1999)
- ↑ Boyd, Eric L, and Erik Mona. Faiths and Pantheons (Wizards of the Coast, 2002).
- ↑ Williams, Skip. Races of the Wild, Renton, WA: Wizards of the Coast, 2005
Additional reading
- Conforti, Steven, ed. Living Greyhawk Official Listing of Deities for Use in the Campaign, version 2.0. Renton, WA: Wizards of the Coast, 2005. Available online:
- Dragon magazine #171 - "Defenders of the Hearth"
- Living Greyhawk Journal no. 3 - "Gods of Oerth"