---
title: cosmology
created: Tue, 26 Jul 2022 20:32:23 -0600
updated: Tue, 26 Jul 2022 20:32:23 -0600
public: yes
---
## Cosmology

In a fantasy setting where there objectively are deities who walk the earth and interact with humans, "atheism" is sometimes erroneously used to signify an indifference to the gods. This is more accurately called "transtheism":

> Transtheism refers to a system of thought or religious philosophy that is neither theistic nor atheistic, but is beyond them. ... [A system] is theistic in the limited sense that gods exist but are irrelevant as they are transcended by ... a system that is not non-theistic, but in which the gods are not the highest spiritual instance.
>
> <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transtheism>

That is, gods are sufficiently powerful enough to mold the earth and shape the destiny of man, but are no different from man in that they are fallible, flawed, and able to die.

They may be greatest power, but are not necessarily the highest spiritual or moral authority. Nor are they endlessly enduring or lasting.

THE TRINE:

- **Neddas** -- Wise god of sages and starlight. Androgynous, clad in purple robes, depicted with a golden third eye in the middle of their forehead. They are often shown stoically bestowing gifts upon the inhabitants of Basmentaria [1].

- **Nullar** -- God of time and tides. A bespectacled male figure with a golden third eye on his forehead. He is dressed in a dapper vest and bow tie, and is adorned with small cogs and gears. He is depicted looking up at the stars from a mechanical contraption he is working on [1].

- **Liandt** -- Goddess of war and flame. A primal, elemental deity, she is depicted as a fiery warrior with a golden third eye. The relief shows her on the battlefield during the Artifice wars. The wars which reduced Ginnarak to the wastes of cinder and ash that they are today. The wars which drained Liandt's divine energies so thoroughly that she fell into a deep sleep and has been absent from the mortal realms ever since [1].

[1] [episode 00010](#00010)
