Manannan mac Lir
| "Lord of the Capes" | |
| Pantheon: | Celtic |
| AoC: | Oceans, sea creatures |
| Symbol: | A stylized fish |
| Home P/L/R: | the Outlands/Tir fo Thuinn |
As the sole power in Tir fo Thuinn, Manannan mac Lir is a god to be reckoned with. His undersea realm is full of petitioners who go about their daily lives much like air-breathers - with both obvious and subtle differences. For example, they herd fish instead of cattle or sheep, but a body also needs to know that they're callous when it comes to travellers who fall on hard times. Tir fo Thuinn's not far from Tir na Og, but it's not truly part of the rolling realm. Petitioners from the Land of Youth can't breathe the water in Manannan mac Lir's realm, and they die there just as permanently as if they'd left the Celtic dominion entirely.
Fact is, without mac Lir's say-so, nobody breathes the water of the Tir fo Thuinn. Sure, he might grant the ability to travel in his realm to any sod who asks nicely, but he'll take it back if he thinks it's being abused. He also has absolute control over spells and magical items that allow water-breathing, and he doesn't mind shutting them down, either.
Truth is, it's worth staying on mac Lir's good side. Tir fo Thuinn is truly a beautiful realm. Strewn with shells nd gleaming with aquamarine and turquoise, there's no part of this place that doesn't open up to a stunning undersea vista. Chant is Manannan mac Lir keeps strange monsters in eerie grottos to use as mounts; some say the creatures are his children. Whatever's down there, the caves are dark and gloomy, and the currents slam a body into the rough walls if he ain't careful. But no one's seen any mounts for a good long time, and it's thought they're just rumor and myth - but wise bloods know that within every myth is an element of truth.
Despite the fact that they're two sea gods from rival pantheons, mac Lir and Poseidon are moving towards relations that're less strained. They're not close cutters yet, but they've set aside their differences. Is one of them plotting treachery? Who knows? But berks who worship Poseidon'd better swim with care in Tir fo Thuinn, just in case.
Mac Lir's main proxies are Barin, and Barr-find. Barin's a tiefling whose skin is dappled like a zebra fish, and his job is to swim about the realm and instruct visitors who've lost their way. He has the limited power to revoke mac Lir's water-breathing gift, but only from those who've offended him or his sense of duty. Barr-Find is an incredibly ugly half-orc with a singing voice that's made Oghma himself feel a tinge of jealousy - chant is the patron of bards wants to lure the proxy away from mac Lir. With a single twitch of a harp string, Barr-Find can shatter weapons raised against him and summon undersea creatures to do his bidding.