Elven pantheon

The Elven Pantheon comprises four gods, four goddesses and the "Dread Wolf" Fen'Harel. The pantheoon is led by the twin gods Elgar'nan, god of fatherhood and vengeance, and Mythal, goddess of motherhood and justice. There are also references in elven mythology to another race of gods, called "The Forgotten Ones", the enemies of the elven pantheon, the gods of "terror and malice, spite and pestilence." It is said that Fen'Harel was the only one able to walk freely between the two groups, and they both thought of him as one of their own.

History
The elven pantheon was revered in the time of Arlathan, before the humans came, but their worship declined when the elves were enslaved by the Tevinter Imperium. However, the elves, led by Shartan, stood beside Andraste in her fight against the Imperium, and their reward was a new home in The Dales, where the worship of the elven pantheon could be revived.

When relations between humans and elves deteriorated, and the Chantry declared an Exalted March against the elves, they were once again driven from their homeland. Some elves accepted the Chantry's offer of safety as part of human society in one of the new elven Alienages. These City Elves, as they would come to be known, were required to renounce their faith in the elven gods and accept the Maker and Chantry doctrine in their place. Some elves, however, refused to give up their worship or their dream of their own homeland, and they became the Dalish.

Elgar'nan: God of Vengeance
(ell-GAR-nan)


 * One twin god of parentage and the law. He represents fatherhood and vengeance. Most elves will invoke Elgar'nan's name when they need to destroy something.

Mythal: the Great Protector
(mith-al)


 * The other half of the twin gods. She is the patron of motherhood and justice.

Andruil: Goddess of the Hunt
(AWN-drool)


 * Elven goddess of the hunt, creator of the Vir Tanadahl.

Dirthamen: Keeper of Secrets

 * The twin brother of Falon'Din, and the elven god of secrets; he tamed the ravens of Fear and Deceit.

Falon'Din: Friend of the Dead, the Guide
(fahl-awn-DEEN)


 * "Friend of the Dead," the elven God of Death and Fortune; it is he that guides the dead across the Beyond to their final rest.

Fen'Harel: The Dread Wolf
(fenn-hare-ELL)


 * Also known as "the Dread Wolf," bringer of nightmares. The trickster god of the old elven pantheon. Supposedly, he approached the gods of good and evil and proposed a truce. The gods of good would remove themselves to heaven, and the lords of evil would exile themselves to the abyss, and neither group would ever again enter the others' lands. By the time they realized the Dread Wolf's treachery, they had been sealed away in their respective realms, never again to interact with the mortal world. Those elves who travel the Beyond claim that Fen'Harel still roams the world of dreams, feasting upon the unwary as a glutton at his lunch, all the while keeping watch over the gods, lest they escape from their prisons . Statues of Fen'Harel are set aside from any Dalish camp and facing away, as a reminder that the Dalish must always be wary.

Ghilan'nain: Mother of the Halla



 * The goddess of the halla, the white deer-like creatures that the Dalish revere; she was once a mortal woman, highly favored by Andruil, who transformed her into the first halla after being tricked by a hunter who had blinded and bound her while seeking revenge for a curse put upon him.

June: God of the Craft

 * Elven god of crafts; it is he who taught the elves how to make bows, arrows, and knives.

Sylaise: the Hearthkeeper

 * Elven goddess of the hearth; she gave the elves fire, and taught them how to weave.

Vallaslin: Blood Writing


When a Dalish Elf comes of age, they are marked with intricate tattoos representing one of the elven gods. The tattooing is preceded by meditation on the gods and the ways of the Dalish, and by purifying the body and the skin.