TUATHA DE DANANN

PANTHEONS

Tuatha Dé Danann

"That was the most handsome and delightful company, the fairest of form, the"
"most distinguished in their equipment and apparel, and their skill in music"
"and playing, the most gifted in mind and temperament that ever came to"
"Ireland. That too was the company that was bravest and inspired most horror"
"and fear and dread, for the Tuatha De excelled all the peoples of the world in"
"their proficiency in every art."
— The First Battle of Mag Tuired

COSMOLOGY

The cosmology of the Tuatha Dé Danaan is a complex and interwoven one. The interactions between the World, Underworld and Overworld have often been confused in the passing down of mythological and folkloric sources, to say nothing of the kind of conceptual drift that happens over generations.

When the Children of Danu originally came to the World and settled in the land of Eire, they left behind their otherworldly paradise, Tír na nÓg and its four great cities, bringing with them the lesser divinities that would one day come to be called the aes sídhe. Eventually, though, the races of men came to Eire with weapons of cold iron, and the Tuatha were impressed with their mettle, their beauty and their love of the Green Isle. They ceded Eire to the Milesians and gave them the land itself while they maintained dominance over what lay beneath it — partially as a means of defending these fragile men from the depredations of the wicked Crom Cruach, the White Worm that lay beneath the ground.

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TIR NA MARBH (CELTIC Underworld)

AKA: The Cold Lands, Summer’s End

The lands of the Irish dead are a place of autumnal beauty. Mist lies heavily on the ground, occasionally rising up to create fantastic silhouettes in the dying light. The lands themselves seem to vary in climate and season. In some places, it is a deep autumn, with fiery leaves on every branch and the smell of a nearly-ready harvest in the air. In others, it is deep winter, where the wind howls and carries a razor sleet.

But the lands of the Irish dead were not always this way. In truth, Tír na Marbh is not even the proper, ancient name for this place. Rather, Tír na Marbh occupies a portion of the greater realm known as Annwyn, the home of the Welsh dead.

The Secret History of the Underworld

Once, the Irish dead traveled to Mag Mell, the Plain of Joy. Here they lived out their afterlives in peace and prosperity, wanting for nothing. Of course, there was one difficulty — when the fomorians were driven from Eire by the Tuatha, the twisted get of Balor and Cethlenn fled to the Underworld, seeking to follow their creators as best as they might.

Of course, to the dead who dwelt here, the presence of these fomorians was simply the natural order of things. Those spirits who had been warriors in life knew that their defense of their tribe did not end in death.

Indeed, it became more important, for no one could die in Mag Mell. The slavery to and torments of the twisted fomorians could conceivably continue for all of eternity, and that idea was utterly anathema to the freedom-loving dead of the Plain of Joy.

Then, something changed.

The fomorians were not idle in their time in Mag Mell. They were themselves denied the benefits of Mag Mell’s immortality, and they were not fools: For each of them that died, there was one less fomorian, so every death was calculated and precise. The Tuatha never really noticed what was going on, noting only that the ghosts of the dead fought the fomorians. If the dead noticed that every one of the fomorians who died did so with a joyful gleam in his eyes and strange markings on his skin, they likely passed it off as simply another mad trait of the twisted monsters who were the enemies of their Gods.

In time, though, this great ritual sacrifice was completed, and something gave. A great wintery storm came over Mag Mell, and the dead were terrified, for their Plain of Joy was always on the cusp between spring and summer. When this storm passed, Cethlenn (the mother of fomorians) stood on the Plain of Joy, and the dead were nowhere to be found.

In very short order, things changed. The ritual of the fomorians managed the impossible: It unmoored Mag Mell from the Underworld, cracking the prison of the Titans just enough to allow Cethlenn to escape. Mag Mell itself, cast free, latched onto the pull of the World, becoming one of the first of the terrae incognitae. The dead were swept away by the great wintery storm that accompanied that transformation and cast into the Void.

In a panic, the Tuatha called up their allies. While the Morrigan and the other Tuatha associated with the dead traveled into the Void to rescue as many of the Irish ghosts as they could, Danu approached the king of the Welsh afterlife, Gwyn ap Nudd. With her traveled Gwyn ap Nudd’s father, Nuada. For nine days and nine nights they spoke behind closed doors in Annwn, the Welsh Underworld; when the doors opened, part of Annwn had already transformed, creating a sanctuary for the Irish dead at Gwyn ap Nudd’s command. Once their dead were safely ensconced in this portion of Annwn, which came to be called Tír na Marbh by the ghosts of the Irish tribes, the Tuatha turned their full might and fury to Cethlenn and her get.

For centuries they fought. The Tuatha, though mighty, were hard pressed to match Cethlenn’s fury. Her children were seemingly innumerable, and Mag Mell’s connections to the World meant that the Tuatha and their aes sídhe army had to direct their focus on stopping the fomorians from entering the World as well as trying to destroy them utterly.

Finally, Cethlenn was defeated and bound once more, along with the greater host of her children. She left a gift for those who defeated her, however.

Once the gods realized that they had no idea how to reverse the Titanic magics and shift Mag Mell back to the Underworld, the seeds of Cethlenn’s corruption took hold, and those gods who saw the Plain of Joy — now vibrant and uplifting to mortal life — were seized with the desire to claim it for their own. Battles broke out between the Tuatha, the Welsh gods and even the Aesir Gods who saw these lands. Seelie warred with Unseelie aes sídhe over its possession as well, and all might have ended in tragedy were it not for Manannán mac Lir’s calm head and wisdom. He bade the gods on the field of battle to pluck the maggots from their brains. To their surprise, they found just that squirming about in their heads.

Manannán promised to hold Mag Mell for all the gods who had any kind of claim to that land, swearing that any of them might take it. He bade Danu to bind him by a geas to that effect, and she did so, proud of his wisdom and clarity.

Over time, Tír na Marbh has grown into a strange, dark reflection of Tír na nÓg. Like the great Overworld realm of the Tuatha, the lands of the dead can be divided into four parts, with a single great royal palace in the center. In the case of Tír na Marbh, the Veiled Court (the seat of the Unseelie aes sídhe) sits in the center, surrounded by the four areas, each of which is home to three of the Tribes of the Dead.

The Veiled Court

The Veiled Court is a great Irish dun-style keep crafted of black stone and open to the elements. The walls are manned by the sluagh sídhe, the shadowy ghosts of the dead claimed by the Unseelie as their servants. In the center of the court sits the Samhain Seat, a great blackthorn tree that has twisted and shaped itself into the rough approximation of a throne. In this tree, ravens perch eternally and watch what goes on there on behalf of their mistress, the Morrigan, who claims this seat as her own.

Her seneschal is an Unseelie aes sídhe of great power called the Queen of Air and Darkness. Though the Queen of Air and Darkness was once the bean sídhe responsible for keening the deaths of the Irish royal family, that line has long since died out as a cogent entity, and she wears a long black mourning veil for all eternity.

All spirits that come to Tír na Marbh come first to the Veiled Court, whose scholars and heralds declare the destination of those dead into one of the Twelve Tribes of the Dead.

The Twelve Tribes of the Dead

All spirits that come to these lands appear first in the Veiled Court and are then sent to one of the Tribes. The four lands have no names, by compact with Gwyn ap Nudd — he will not tolerate the Irish dead laying claim to Annwn.

Each of the lands has three tribes: a tribe of the Mad, a tribe of the Ancient Dead and a tribe of the Modern Dead. The tribes of the Mad are all made up of ghosts that once resided in Mag Mell and are among those retrieved from the Void. All of them have been driven inexorably insane, and they are terrible, savage creatures who eat the ghostly flesh of anyone they catch, painting themselves in the pale fluids they render from those unfortunates souls.

The tribes of the Ancient Dead are made up of the ghosts of those who died before the coming of Christianity to Ireland, but after the establishment of Tír na Marbh. These men and women are the most like the tribes of ancient Ireland and are careful to welcome visitors appropriately, often going out of their way to save them from the hunting parties of the Mad and guide them to their final destinations. Their bards sing ancient songs long forgotten in the World, and their druids are wise in the ways of the dead.

The final tribes are made of up those Irish who died after the time of Padraig (St. Patrick), who brought Christianity to the isle. These tribes are often the smallest of the tribes, for the Virtues of the Tuatha were not the Virtues of the White Christ. Rare was the man or woman that embodied those Virtues and reverence of the Tuatha sufficiently to come here after death. Still, the population of these tribes is made up of people who refused to adhere to Christianity. These people either carried forth a family tradition strongly wrapped up in reverence of Ireland itself and the various spirits of that land or perhaps venerated one or more of the Irish saints — many of which were simply new names for old Tuatha Dé Danaan — more than was technically appropriate.

Passages to Tír na Marbh

Passage into Tír na Marbh is a difficult thing to accomplish most of the time. The following methods are used to pass into the lands of the Irish dead.

Tombs and Funerary Architecture: The funerary barrows of Ireland provide access to Tír na Marbh. A creature of sufficient Legend that enters into one of these barrows at night and spends a point of Legend finds himself in one of the subterranean caverns beneath the Veiled Court, welcomed by one of the sluagh sídhe.

Natural Features: Ireland is criss-crossed with sídhe, the strangely round “hollow hills” that Irish folklore warns are the abode of fairies. Created by the Fir Bolg, these hills do not register as hollow to any mortal methods of examination, nor can their doorways be found. But to creatures of Legend, these mounds reveal their secrets to those who know what to look for.

These sídhe are more than simply hollow mounds, however: They are the passages into the Otherworld. From Samhain to Beltaine (approximately the first of November to the first of May), when the Unseelie are given power in the World, a sídhe acts as a means of entering the Underworld. However, from Beltaine to Samhain, when the Seelie are given power in the World, a sídhe acts as an Axis Mundi into the Overworld of Tír na nÓg (see below for more details). Regardless of where a given sídhe would take one, however, they only function during the nighttime hours or during dawn and dusk.

Rituals: The funerary rites of ancient Ireland are not truly known any longer, having been replaced utterly by Christian rites. Such rituals must be researched, as detailed on p. 144 of Scion: Demigod.

Times: The veil is parted between the World and Tír na Marbh on Samhain night, the night of October 31st. It remains easy to pass between the worlds from that night until November 2nd, during the nighttime only.

Tír na nÓg

The great lands of Tír na nÓg act as the Overworld for the Tuatha Dé Danaan. At the center of this land is the Eternal Orchard, the grove that acts as the court for the aes sídhe of the Seelie. This great apple orchard sits on a mist-surrounded island in the middle of a great body of water, from which four rivers flow in the cardinal directions.

These rivers gradually widen as they flow outward, eventually opening so much that their edges meet and completely surround the whole of Tír na nÓg in a great body of clockwise-flowing water.

At their widest, these rivers have a massive island in the middle of their flow, at the very edges of this Overworld. On these islands sit the four Noble Cities of Tír na nÓg: Falias the Great sits in the River of the Boar to the north, Gorias the Shining is surrounded by the River of the Hawk to the east, Finias the Glorious sits in the River of the Stag in the south, and Murias the Rich is in the River of the Salmon in the west.

Though the Gods maintain their halls within the great cities, the cities themselves — populated by the aes sídhe and the servants of the greater Tuatha — are watched over by ancient druids chosen from the wisest of the aes sídhe priest-savants. Even the Tuatha do not know as much about the cities as these druids, and they often serve as advisors and friends for the Tuatha that make their homes in these cities.

Falias the Great

Falias the Great is a city of ice-green spires touched by frost. White ravens fly among the snapping banners, and the only light that touches it comes from the pale twilight stars above. Dawn in Falias is heralded by the brilliant display of an aurora in the sky.

The druid Morfessa is the regent of Falias. He is an ancient, bearded aes sídhe clad in robes of a brilliant white color that reflect the hues in the world around him. A raven sits on his shoulder, perfectly white in color with pale-green eyes, and the two often whisper to one another. He wears a diadem of pale silver on his brow set with a gemstone that is the Morning Star.

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Gorias the Shining

Gorias the Shining sits in the east, a city of tall opalescent towers touched with gold accents. In Gorias can be found all the colors of the dawn — sweet dusky gold, the shimmering of rose and ghostly violets. Gorias’ natural lighting is veiled and misty, the light of the early morning, and beautiful gold hawks are everywhere.

The druid-smith Esras acts as Regent to the city, though one wouldn’t know it to look at him. He is an older aes sídhe, with a close-cropped beard and head of hair that are both salt and peppered, with small singed spots from his work at the forge. His forge overlooks the square where the Silent Hero stands. He wears a simple woolen kilt and a leather apron appropriate to his work.

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Finias the Glorious

Finias the Glorious sits in the south. Its tall elegant towers of silver, brass and white marble are illuminated all hours of the days and night by the white-hot fires of the summer sun. The night in Finias is short, and the horizon on all sides is touched with a deep red glow, as though great flames burnt just over the hills, waiting to spring up at a moment’s notice.

The fair-haired druid-poet Uscias acts as Regent for Finias. He is a veritable priest of the imbas, and those who come near him cannot help but feel their own creative urges rise. He is a fair, youthful looking aes sídhe, with long blonde-white hair and a smooth face. He wears brilliant colors, and a torc of bronze and silver to denote his status in the city.

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Murias the Rich

The regal city of Murias the Rich stands in the west. Its towers are crafted of a deep blue stone, with accents of silver-shot white marble Twilight reigns in Murias, and the lingering light of dusk is found here. Murias is also called the Sunken City, for it appears as though its streets are under deep water. In truth, though, Murias is a city with streets of water, and the aes sídhe who dwell here pole through its streets in sleek, swan-like white boats.

The healer Senias acts as Regent-druid of Murias. A gentle, bearded aes sídhe with hair the color of chestnut, he dresses in simple dark green robes, with a simple torc of bronze and mother-of-pearl his only ornamentation.

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The Eternal Orchard

In the center of Tír na nÓg, acting as the wellspring from which the waters of the Otherworld flow, is the Eternal Orchard. A massive grove of apple and oak trees, the Eternal Orchard is home to the aes sídhe of the Seelie Court. In its center on a small hill grows a pair of massive trees, one oak and one apple. These two trees have twisted together like a pair of lovers and grown into the shape of a throne. Though this is traditionally called the Throne of Brigid, it is offered to any of the Tuatha Dé Danaan who visit here. At the foot of the throne sits a great well, which any of the Tuatha might use to command a view of anyplace in Tír na nÓg.

The Herald of Spring and Summer acts as the regent for the Eternal Orchard in the absence of any of the Tuatha. He is an ancient aes sídhe, a godling in his own right, though not one that has ever traveled to the World. He is incredibly fair to gaze on, and his bright singing voice is the pride of the Eternal Orchard.

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Axis Mundi: The Sídhe

The hollow hills of the Good Neighbors, the sídhe are the Worldly reflections of the hills upon which both the Eternal Orchard and the Veiled Court are built. There is a season for each, though — from Samhain to Beltaine, a sídhe acts as a passage into the Underworld, because the World is given over to the Unseelie to rule in the dark half of the year. From Beltaine to Samhain, however, the same hollow hill serves as passage to Tír na nÓg, granting passage to those who know how to find such things — or are led there by others — to the Land of Youth.

These hills are cunningly constructed by the Fir Bolg, who use their affinity with earth to create luxurious halls that are bigger within than without. Each of these sídhe are given to a lord of the aes sídhe and his vassals to use as their home while they are within the World. More importantly, though, anyone entering the doorway at night may spend a point of Legend to travel to the Underworld (if it is between the first of November and the first of May) or to the Overworld (if it is between the first of May and the first of November). This is, of course, assuming that the individual in question has the potency to do so, as detailed in Scion: Demigod and Scion: God.

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The Hallows of Ireland as Axes Mundi

The four great treasures that the Tuatha Dé Danaan brought to Ireland with them from the Four Great Cities are more than simply tokens or pieces of regalia. They are, in a very real way, part of those four great cities. Each of these Relics is also a miniature Axis Mundi tied not to Tír na nÓg as a whole, but to the city from which it was taken: the Lia Fáil is from Falias, the Spear Luin is from Gorias, the Claíomh Solais is from Finias and the Undry Cauldron is from Murias.

Any god or other creature of appropriate Legend capable of using an Axis Mundi may utilize one of these items. By placing it upon the ground and spending a point of Legend, they are transported to the appropriate city in question. The one so wielding that Relic may choose to take the Relic with him, in which case he must return via one of the normal sídhe Axes Mundi of Tír na nÓg. He may also leave the Relic in the World, which will allow him to travel from his destination city back to the World where his Relic is. Of course, doing so means leaving the Relic behind in the World, always a decision of some careful consideration.

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AENGUS -- God of youth, love and poetic inspiration

Aliases: Aengus Og, Mac Ind Og, Mac Og

Background: Aengus is the most beautiful of the Tuatha. His long blond hair, vibrant blue eyes and delicately sculpted features are enough to make men and women alike swoon in envy and desire. He has the lithe frame of a fencer or gymnast, rather than the heavily-muscled form of his father, the Dagda. Aengus is the God of youth, love and poetic inspiration, and he delights in embodying the first and spreading the other two as far and wide as possible.

Aengus is better known for feats of manipulation than deeds in battle. He was able to trick his father into giving him the Brú na Bóinne, the Dagda’s own home, through a play on words. He is associated with birds, especially swans, and the birds that used to circle his head in a rapturous delight at the sight of his beauty have transformed today into the rows of Xs that lovers write to each other at the end of their letters.

In modern life, Aengus can be found wherever he has the greatest chance to inspire love or to prove his wits. He has been the host of a highly-rated daytime talk show and a sex therapist, a high-stakes gambler and a persuasive lawyer.

The Scions of Aengus are always beautiful and in the peak of health. The can be found in any profession where beauty and a silver tongue are in high demand – as attorneys, salesmen, models, actors and politicians. While they are better negotiators than warriors, more than one Scion of Aengus has ended a fight by talking rings around a less clever foe until more physically powerful allies could arrive.

Provinces: Animal (Birds), Enech, Epic Appearance, Epic Charisma, Epic Manipulation, Health

Dominions: BEASTS, Enech, [[]], [[]], [[]], & [[]]

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BRIGID -- Goddess to smiths, healers and poets

Aliases: Brid, Bríg, Brigantia, Breo Saighead

Background: Brigid not only fills the roles of maiden, mother and crone, but she is also the patron Goddess to smiths, healers and poets. Worshipped for centuries at the holy well in Kildare by a group of women who tended her perpetual flame, Brigid is associated with both water and fire – and not just the element of fire, but imbas (the “fire of inspiration”) that is the life-blood of musicians, poets and storytellers. Brigid is a tall, beautiful woman with hair as red as flames, eyes as gray as smoke and a scattering of freckles across her fair skin. She is stronger than she appears, untiring in the smithy and in battle.

These days, Brigid appears as a doctor, an edgy poet at poetry slams, a worker in a steel mill, a creative-writing teacher helping gifted students and a vet’s assistant. She loves positions where she can inspire people in what they do, whether that might be writing the Great American Novel or simply overseeing the Detroit foundry furnaces for the latest batch of automobile parts.

Brigid’s Scions are usually creative, charismatic, healthy people with an interest in the arts or healing. They tend to be calm, compassionate and good with their hands, with steady nerves and unwavering dedication. Her children serve equally as doctors or sculptors, nurses or musicians, paramedics or poets.

Provinces: Animal (Swan), Enech, Epic Stamina, Epic Strength, Fire, Health, Water

Dominions: FIRE, BEASTS (SWAN), [[]], [[]], HEALING, & WATER

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THE DAGDA

Aliases: The Good God, Eochaid Ollathir, Ruadh Rofhess

Background: Son of Danu, the Dagda is known for his prodigious appetites for food, sex and battle. He had numerous lovers and wives, including the Morrigan. He also fathered Aengus with Boann, Nuada’s wife. The Dagda served as king of the Tuatha after Lugh for eighty years. It was during his reign that the Tuatha faced some of their fiercest battles with the fomorians.

The Dagda owns a number of magical treasures, including a harp that directs the order of a battle, a cauldron that can feed an army and a club that can kill nine men with a single stroke. The Dagda is a warrior, first and foremost, and has been battling the Titans and their spawn for centuries. He firmly believes that his ways are the best, and if you disagree, he will tell you exactly why you are wrong, whether you are a man or a God.

The Dagda spends a great deal of time in the mortal world these days, spreading his seed and fathering more Scions. Disguised as a mortal, he is as at home in a professional boxing ring as he is tending pigs on a farm. He has been a senator, an Olympic weightlifting champion and a biker either willing to drink you under the table or mop the floor with you. No matter where he goes, he makes friends and enemies in equal measure.

Scions of the Dagda are as larger than life as their father. They are big drinkers, big eaters, big brawlers and big lovers, and their friends rarely have any complaints. Some who favor the Dagda’s guardian tendencies work as police officers and firemen. Others become athletes – usually wrestlers, weightlifters and boxers. Those who inherit his charisma are drawn to more social professions – actors, politicians and salesmen gifted enough to sell steak to a vegetarian

Provinces: Animal (Pigs), Enech, Epic Charisma, Epic Stamina, Epic Strength, Guardian, War

Dominions: [[]], [[]], [[]], [[]], [[]], & [[]]

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DANU -- Mother of the Dagda, Dian Cécht and Nuada

Aliases: Ana, Anu, Dana, Danand

Background: There would be no Tuatha Dé Danaan without Danu. Danu is the mother of the Dagda, Dian Cécht and Nuada, and through them she is the original ancestress of all the Tuatha. As one of the earliest Irish Goddesses, she is associated with the primal waters of creation and the fertile earth of Ireland. She is considered the most powerful guardian of Ireland, and all creatures that live there are under her protection. Most often seen as a beautiful, if somewhat distant, woman with light blond hair and sky blue eyes. There is nothing that happens within her country’s borders that escapes her attention, and no torment suffered by her people is endured without her resilience and guidance.

Danu is seldom seen in the mortal world these days. When she is, it is almost always as a mother figure of some sort – nurse, midwife, nanny, teacher. From time to time, she will take on the role of gardener or veterinarian, but this is rare. She never takes on any role that requires her to cause harm. Her gentle nature abhors violence, and she would rather shield someone under her care from danger by taking attacks meant for them upon herself.

Danu’s Scions are quiet, calm, keen-eyed and patient. Their strength is more often expressed through acts of endurance than violence. Though they can and will fight when they absolutely must (usually to protect innocents), they prefer to follow their patron’s example and refrain from physical fights. Whether running a shelter for battered women, serving as an advocate for abused children, protesting the senseless slaughter of dolphins in tuna nets or working with environmental scientists to cleanse polluted soil of industrial toxins, the Scions of Danu are among the gentlest of the Tuatha.

Provinces: Enech, Epic Perception, Epic Stamina, Earth, Fertility, Guardian, Water

Dominions: [[]], [[]], [[]], [[]], [[]], & [[]]

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DIAN CÉCHT -- God of Healing

Aliases: None known

Background: God of healing, son of the Dagda and grandfather of Lugh, Dian Cécht is best known for his creation of a silver hand for Nuada. The silver hand worked every bit as well as the original, but because the Tuatha could not have a king who was physically imperfect, Dian Cécht’s son Miach and his daughter Airmed (other members of the Tuatha with great healing abilities) worked seven years to grow Nuada a new hand of flesh. This so incensed Dian Cécht that he killed his own son and scattered a profuse amount of healing herbs over the four corners of the World.

Dian Cécht usually appears as an older man in his fifties, with long white hair held back by a headband and a neatly-trimmed white beard and mustache. Unlike some of the great warriors among the Tuatha, he is not exceptionally muscular but has the greatest hand-eye dexterity among his companions. His skill with crafting and metalwork can be seen in the silver hand he created for Nuada, and although his skill with medicinal herbs is not as great as his daughter’s, he still knows which ones can be eaten, which can be used to heal and which are poisonous.

Dian Cécht does not visit the mortal world as often as some of the rest of the Tuatha. He still broods over his son’s death and knows his temper has not cooled since the ancient days. When he spends time there, he is almost always to be found in a hospital, clinic or medical corporation designing new prosthetics for amputees. Whether he works as an E.R. doctor, an oncologist, a virologist or a burn specialist, he labors tirelessly to eradicate pain, disease and suffering wherever he finds it. He is one of the few members of the Tuatha with little skill in the arts of war.

The Scions of Dian Cécht are almost exclusively found among the medical fields. Nurses, doctors, paramedics, orderlies and developers of new drugs are all counted among his children. They tend to be driven and devoted people, all too aware of the damage done to fragile mortals by the titanspawn they fight and ready in a pinch to provide what help they can to their more martial brethren

Provinces: Enech, Epic Dexterity, Epic Intelligence, Epic Perception, Health, Magic, Water

Dominions: [[]], [[]], [[]], [[]], [[]], & [[]]

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LUGH -- God of Versatility

Aliases: Lámhfhada, Samhildánach, Lonnbeimnech

Background: The grandson of Dian Cécht, greatgrandson of the Dagda and fostered by Manannán mac Lír, Lugh is the patron God of versatility. Although the Tuatha contain many Gods, only the greatest were admitted to the highest levels that ruled over Ireland. Lugh came to the door of King Nuada’s hall and was told he could not join them unless he showed perfection in some skill. A warrior, a harper, a smith, a poet, a historian, a sorcerer and a craftsman, Lugh demonstrated each of these talents, only to be told that the King’s hall already contained Gods who could each do these things. Lugh asked whether any of these Gods could do all of them and was granted membership. A tall, leanly-muscled man, Lugh is precise in his actions and as swift-witted as he is quick-footed. He is also one of the most charming and handsome of the Tuatha, with a short halo of dark auburn curls and green eyes that are usually full of cheer. Only in battle do they turn dark with steely resolve. Like some others among the Tuatha, Lugh is half-fomorian: his mother was Ethniu, daughter of the fomorian king Balor, and his father was Cian, one of the sons of Dian Cécht.

In modern times, Lugh has appeared as a musician, a soldier, a history professor, an author and a creator of fine jewelry. Even people who meet him briefly don’t forget him, and he makes friends with ease.

Lugh’s Scions tend to have worked a wide array of jobs during their lives and can draw on a large number of skills picked up at different times. They also tend to be charming, athletic and travel a lot. His best-known Scion was Cúchulainn, probably the most famous hero ever to come out of Ireland. Lugh gave Cúchulainn the battle-frenzy known as the ríastrad (pp. 18-20), which made him nearly unbeatable in battle. Unfortunately, it also made it impossible for Cúchulainn to tell friend from foe. Since that time, Lugh has taught the warp-spasm to others among the Tuatha, and they in turn may teach it to their Scions.

Provinces: Animal (Dog), Enech, Epic Charisma, Epic Dexterity, Epic Wits, Guardian, Health, Illusion, Magic, Sky, War

Abilities: Art, Athletics, Integrity, Melee, Occult, Thrown

Dominions: Enech, FINESSE, ALLURE, CORUSCATION, BEASTS, SKY, WAR, MAGIC, HEALING & GUARDIANSHIP

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MANANNÁN MAC LIR -- God of the Sea

Aliases: Mannan beg mac y Leir, Manandan mac Alloit

Background: Manannán was adopted into the Tuatha when the pantheon arrived in Ireland, but he comes from a much older pantheon whose name has been lost to history. He is the God of the sea and the ferryman that conducted the souls of the dead from the lands of the living to Tír na nÓg. Manannán is also known as a trickster God, whose pranks can be violent enough to cause harm but always teach a valuable lesson. He serves as foster father to Lugh and came to his aid when Lugh helped the rest of the Tuatha overthrow Bres, the corrupt half-fomorian king who ruled the Tuatha after Nuada. Manannán is also associated with horses and owns a magical steed named Enbarr that can cross water just as swiftly as it can race over land.

Manannán usually appears as a white-bearded, hoary old man, somewhat shorter than the rest of the Tuatha, with faded blue eyes and a wry smile. He is fond of seducing young women and has no compunctions whatsoever about taking on a younger, more handsome form to do so. He is an accomplished shape-changer and has been known to assume the form of a woman’s lover or husband in order to seduce her.

Manannán has taken to a variety of roles in modern times. As comedian or gigolo, funeral director or fisherman, card sharp or jockey, he is always found with a smirk on his lips, a twinkle in his eye and a spring in his step.

Manannán’s Scions are best known for their sense of humor and their quick wits. They come from all walks of life, but large numbers of them gravitate to professions involving the ocean or death. Navy personnel, oceanographers, merchant marines and underwater photographers are as likely as forensic pathologists, gravediggers, cemetery caretakers and even serial killers (who often end up choosing their victims from the ranks of those who serve titanspawn).

Provinces: Animal (Horses), Death, Enech, Epic Manipulation, Epic Wits, Illusion, Magic, Prophecy, Psychopomp, Water

Dominions: [[]], [[]], [[]], [[]], [[]], & [[]]

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THE MORRIGAN -- Goddess of Battle

Aliases: Morrígu, Nemain, Mor-Ríoghain, Babd, Macha, Phantom Queen, the Washer at the Ford

Background: No one who looks upon the face of the Morrigan comes away unchanged by it. Feared even by her fellow Tuatha, her dreadful reputation in battle is legendary. She appears most often as a lean, gray hag with iron strength and a wiry frame, and if she is seen in battle, she is usually soaked from head to foot in the blood of her foes. There are no weapons the Morrigan is not expert with, though her favorites are spear and sword. She can be beautiful, too, as when she appeared to the hero Cúchulainn to try to seduce him before the Second Battle of Moy Tura. With black or red hair and flashing eyes, her enchanting figure in this guise is tied to her role as a fertility figure. She is associated with cattle, a common fertility symbol in Irish mythology, but more traditionally with ravens, crows and other corvids. She can take the form of a crow or raven and is often found flying over battlefields, surveying the damage and descending to feast on the bodies of the dead. Among the Tuatha, the Morrigan is considered their greatest seer, especially adept at predicting the outcomes of battles and the deaths of men in war.

The Morrigan can still be found on battlefields to this day, either as a soldier or as someone removing the dead bodies so they can be tagged, bagged and sent back home for burial. She has been known to appear as a martial arts instructor, a fortune-teller (inevitably seeing gloom and doom for those who come to have her read their cards or their palm), a dealer in blackmarket arms and an animal rehabilitator working with injured ravens, rooks and crows.

The Morrigan’s Scions are among the fiercest, toughest and cruelest members of their kind. Strong, cold and used to both physical and emotional punishment, they can take nearly everything that gets thrown at them and come back for more. Whether they are found in the Special Forces, a zoo’s avian exhibit office or at a mixed martial arts championship, there are very few Scions (or titanspawn, for that matter) who can best them when it comes to sheer power, determination and lack of mercy.

Provinces: Animal (Corvids), Animal (Cattle), Chaos, Death, Enech, Epic Appearance, Epic Strength, Fertility, Prophecy, War

Dominions: [[]], [[]], [[]], [[]], [[]], & [[]]

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NUADA

Aliases: Airgetlám, Elcmar, Nechtan, Nodens, Nudd

Background: The first King of the Tuatha Dé Danaan, Nuada ruled even before the pantheon came to Ireland. Tall, powerful, charismatic and the finest warrior of his people, Nuada led the Tuatha against the Fir Bolg and the fomorians, and he lost a hand in a duel with Sreng, the fomorian champion. He had to step down as king due to a Tuatha taboo which stated that no man could be king who was physically imperfect. His hand was eventually replaced, first with one of silver by Dian Cécht and then with a flesh-and-blood hand regrown for him by Dian Cécht’s son Miach.

Nuada is tall, powerfully muscled and extremely handsome, the absolute ideal of a warrior-king of the Tuatha. He has long blond hair held back from his face with a ribbon and piercing green eyes that can see for miles. He is adept with every weapon and is considered the guardian of all Ireland. Nuada is the ultimate arbiter of justice in all cases brought before him, especially despising those who are cowardly, morally weak and cruel.

In modern times, Ireland has no king, and Nuada is more apt to be found in other venues where justice, leadership and warrior prowess are valued. He has been a prosecuting attorney and a judge, a police officer and a public defender, a politician and a soldier.

Nuada’s Scions are likely to follow his footsteps, and many favor the professions of law and law enforcement. They may be found among the members of the armed forces and police officers of many nations. Those of a more independent nature may end up running for public office with progressive platforms, teaching martial arts to disadvantaged people in crime-ridden neighborhoods, joining vigilante organizations that prevent crime in big-city subways or acting as bodyguards that protect women who brave the screaming picket lines at women’s health clinics.

Provinces: Enech, Epic Charisma, Epic Strength, Epic Perception, Guardian, Justice, War

Dominions: [[]], [[]], [[]], [[]], [[]], & [[]]

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OGMA

Aliases: Oghma, Ogmios

Background: The creator of the Ogham alphabet that bears his name, Ogma is considered the wisest of the Tuatha. He is the patron of all druids and guides those who devote their life to learning, especially in the fields of law, languages, poetry, art and the sciences. But his talents are not limited to peaceful study: Ogma is equally famed across Ireland for his intelligence and his prowess as a warrior. During ancient times, Ogma served Nuada as his champion and was so strong that he was capable of hurling a massive stone that required eighty oxen to move it. Only Lugh has ever equaled him at this feat.

The son of the Dagda and Danu, Ogma is tall, with hair like pale fire and blue eyes fierce as a hawk’s. Rather than the armor of warriors, he is traditionally seen wearing Druidic robes.

In modern times, Ogma can often be found at one university or another. He enjoys teaching history, literature, law and any number of languages, including Irish Gaelic. Though he has lost none of his skill as a warrior, he understands that entering a battle without a strategy is often futile. When he finally steps away from the books, however, he is a formidable foe to anyone he faces.

The Scions of Ogma are known for striking a balance between brains and brawn. They never rush blindly into a fight, but instead plan carefully and pay full attention to every advantage they can find. Those who eschew war for more intellectual paths are often among the finest minds of their generations, making new breakthroughs in archaeology, physics, chemistry, computers, linguistics and mathematics

Provinces: Enech, Epic Dexterity, Epic Intelligence, Epic Strength, Guardian, War

Dominions: [[]], [[]], [[]], [[]], [[]], & [[]]

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CELTIC TITANS

~ TITANS OF THE TUATHA DE DOMNANN

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Macushla -- Macushla is a phonetic English spelling of the Erse (Irish Gaelic) mo chuisle, literally “my pulse,” or translated more romantically, “my heartbeat, my sweetheart, darling.” The mo-, ma– in macushla, mo chuisle means “my”; cushla, chuisle “pulse, heartbeat, vein,” comes from an earlier Erse cuisle, of uncertain etymology, but most likely a borrowing of Latin pulsus “striking, beating, pulse.” Cuisle appears in another Irish idiom: a chuisle “my dear, darling,” in full, a chuisle mo chroí, literally, “pulse of my heart.” (The phrase Mother Machree “Mother dear” entered English in the first half of the 19th century.) The a is the Gaelic vocative particle, a particle used in direct address, and equivalent to English exclamation O. Chroí “heart” comes from Old Irish crid-, which closely resembles Welsh craidd, Latin cord-, Greek kard-, and Hittite karts, all meaning “heart.” Macushla entered English in the first half of the 19th century.