Drakh, Shepherd of the Starroots
"The roots stretch beyond the world, and still we walk them."
Alignment: Neutral Good
Divine Domains: Nature, Travel, Shadows, Exodus, Cosmic Wilderness
Current Status: God of the Shadow Realm’s Neutral Domain; Warden of Wayfarers
Symbols: A twisting root cradling a distant star; a walking staff sprouting stars instead of leaves
Titles: The Starroot Shepherd, Walker Between Shadows, The Last Pilgrim, Warden of the Lost
Summary
Drakh is the Neutral Good god of nature, cosmic exodus, and refuge, dwelling within the Shadow Realm’s Neutral domain. Once a mortal druid of astonishing insight, Drakh ascended during the catastrophic collapse that ended the previous age and ushered in the Age of Ruby. As reality fractured and gods turned on one another, Drakh did not fight for power—he chose to lead a pilgrimage across stars and shadows, gathering mortals, demihumans, and forgotten creatures alike. Through strange pathways and godless planes, he carried them toward survival, guided by nature’s unerring rhythm.
Drakh is revered not only as a god of nature and cosmic refuge, but also as the undisputed master of teleportation magic across Kol and the Shadow Realms. Unlike arcane gods who manipulate space through force or symbols, Drakh moves through the universe the way roots move through soil—quietly, inevitably, and with deep purpose. His mastery over leyline travel, shadow-stepping, feyway folding, and planar gliding is unparalleled, and his followers say he can walk from one dying world to the next without ever leaving the forest floor. The Star-Rooted Pilgrimage itself was a divine act of continuous teleportation, woven not through portals, but through natural truth. To pray to Drakh for travel is to ask the world to bend for mercy’s sake, not convenience—and when he answers, the lost always arrive exactly where they were meant to go.
Drakh’s presence in the divine order is quiet yet undeniable. He is the god of those who walk away, of those who refuse to bow to tyranny or panic in collapse. Though he rules within the Neutral portion of the Shadow Realm, he remains untouched by politics and divine warfare. His domain is one of restoration, movement, and shelter—a great forest where stars grow from branches, where twilight paths lead to safety, and where the memory of catastrophe becomes a sacred story.
Marriage to Sissy Ontario
Drakh is eternally bound by love and spirit to Sissy Ontario, a fellow druid and his divine consort. Once mortals together, they became myth through action, not conquest. Sissy, known in mortal stories as "The Green Moon", traveled beside Drakh during the final days of the old world, acting as guardian of the young and the wounded while Drakh carved paths through dying realms. Their love is sacred—a union not forged in temples, but in silent starlit groves where countless refugees prayed for mercy and found it.
Together, they rule The Glade of Arrival, a divine sanctuary at the heart of Drakh’s realm. Here, every survivor from the Exodus still echoes in song, in dream, or in forest. Sissy Ontario is often depicted beside Drakh as the glowing crescent above his staff, or as the vine that coils gently around his shadow. Their bond remains a symbol of hope, partnership, and endurance, and their marriage is venerated by druids and wanderers across Kol.
Grod and Drakh: The Oldest Friendship
Long before the stars were mapped and the realms shattered into divine dominions, Grod and Drakh walked the world as mortals—a humble orc and druid wandering the deep forests and forgotten glades of a world on the brink of collapse. Grod, wild-hearted and bold, was a protector of hearths and harvests. Drakh, gentle and thoughtful, was a seeker of paths no one else dared walk. They met in a moss-covered valley during a rainstorm that lasted thirteen days, and neither of them has ever truly walked alone since.
While their temperaments diverged—Grod’s laughter loud and reckless, Drakh’s silence deep and knowing—their values aligned perfectly. Both sought to shield the vulnerable, both revered the sacredness of wild things, and both distrusted empire, hierarchy, and those who hoarded power. As gods began to clash and the end of the Citrinitas Age loomed, it was Grod who first swore to follow Drakh’s path through the exodus, even if it led beyond the stars. He kept that vow—and in doing so, became one of the few gods whose worship survived unchanged into the Age of Ruby.
Even now, though Grod rules within the Orc Empire and Drakh dwells in the Shadow Realm’s Neutral Domain, their friendship remains unshaken. When wayfarers invoke both of their names together—especially over a campfire or under a crescent moon—it’s said the world becomes just a little kinder, if only for a night. Among druids, there’s an old saying passed from circle to circle:
“No path is too long, if your oldest friend still walks beside you.”
The Star-Rooted Pilgrimage
During the apocalyptic collapse that ushered in the Age of Ruby, most gods fought, fled, or perished. Drakh and Sissy Ontario chose a different path. Recognizing that the cosmic lattice was collapsing, they followed the leyline rootways—ancient natural forces that extended beyond even the gods' understanding. With no world left to trust, they created a moving one: a pilgrimage woven through stars, shadows, and memory. Thousands followed them—mortals, fey, beastfolk, even aberrations who feared annihilation.
This journey, known in myth as the Star-Rooted Pilgrimage, lasted a thousand metaphorical years and only one divine heartbeat. When it ended, Drakh planted the survivors in safe places across Kol—hidden valleys, twilight shores, and caverns blessed with timeless seedlight. These seeds became the first cities and cultures of the Age of Ruby. Even now, entire civilizations trace their origin myths to “the green god of stars” who gave them a second chance.
Worship and Philosophy
Drakh is worshiped by druids, wayfarers, herbalists, refugees, and nomads, but he refuses organized religion. His followers form circles, not hierarchies. They build Starroot Waystations—sacred natural sanctuaries in dangerous places where the desperate can rest, eat, and heal. Offerings to Drakh are simple: a planted seed, a buried bone, a story left carved in wood. He teaches that all life is movement, and that no soul—mortal or divine—should ever be denied a path forward.
His doctrine is centered around mercy without passivity, movement without chaos, and hope without forgetting. He abhors conquest, tyranny, and stagnation—but he forgives failure, loss, and hesitation. His mantra, spoken at every waystation and whispered by the faithful, is:
“You were not too late. You are not too far. You are not alone.”
Drakh’s Church in the Age of Ruby
In the Age of Ruby, Drakh’s church is not a single organization but a constellation of spiritual circles, each honoring his teachings in their own way. These groups, called Wayrings or Pilgrim Circles, are spread across Kol—especially in regions touched by leyline anomalies, shadow crossings, or natural thresholds between planes. While many divine institutions became rigid or militarized in this age of slumbering gods and failing order, Drakh’s faith has remained fluid, merciful, and in constant motion.
His followers—druids, wanderers, shadow-guides, and even some fey and star-touched mortals—act as custodians of forgotten trails and keepers of hidden refuge. They do not conquer territory; they bless spaces and release them when needed. Many current civilizations, especially in the Abandoned Lands and old pilgrimage zones, still maintain sacred groves or moon-wood circles honoring the old routes walked by Drakh and Sissy Ontario. These serve as places of safety, healing, and celestial communion.
In times of great instability—especially during Deathdrinker incursions or Void-corruption outbreaks—Drakh’s Circles are often the first to respond, guiding refugees through impossible terrain or teleporting the injured to fey-protected sanctuaries. While they rarely intervene in war, they serve as cosmic medics, memory-bearers, and movement-scribes, protecting the soul of Kol itself. To many, they are quiet myth made flesh: the last ones to leave, the first ones to return.
Structure of Drakh’s Church
Drakh’s church is built around non-hierarchical rings rather than strict ranks. Each Circle is autonomous but spiritually linked through shared teachings, leyline rituals, and teleportation sanctums. Leadership flows based on experience, insight, and the will of the surrounding land rather than rigid appointment.
Circlekeepers are elder druids, fey, or changelings who have walked at least three Shadow Roads and returned with survivors or visions. They lead ceremonies, plant Starroot seeds, and oversee teleportation waystones.
Guides are traveling spiritual leaders—messengers, mapmakers, and mediators between planes. They are trusted to ferry the wounded, deliver cosmic omens, or navigate people through spiritual rebirth.
Wanderseeds are initiates or lay followers. Their role is to observe, assist, and grow—carrying sacred items, learning Drakh’s teachings, and helping maintain waystations or enchanted forests.
Scribes of Root and Flame are rare, mystical archivists who remember the original path of the Starroot Exodus. They carry glowing bark-tablets and chant histories in the language of motion. Their words can bend paths and stabilize fractured space.
All members are equal in spiritual worth, and all roles are temporary—mirroring the belief that identity is fluid and movement is divine.
Ritual and Dogma
The Rite of the Last Footstep
This rite is performed before leaving a home, battlefield, or sacred place forever. A worshiper presses a bare foot into the soil, whispers a blessing of memory, and burns a sprig of shadow-herb. It’s believed the act ensures the place remembers kindness and that the person leaves no spiritual debt behind.
The Root-Star Bonding
Performed between lovers, companions, or survivors of shared trauma, this ritual binds two (or more) souls across distance. Participants wrap wrists with vine-thread and place a moon-kissed leaf between their hearts. When complete, they can sense one another through dreams and leyline echoes, no matter how far apart.
The Crossing of Unseen Roads
A teleportation ritual requiring silence, patience, and trust. The caster (usually a Guide) draws a starroot sigil on the ground and meditates until a subtle hum rises from the earth. Those who step into the circle are pulled through the “gentle fold” between shadows and stars, emerging safely at another sacred site of Drakh. All travelers must speak a truth they’ve never admitted before crossing.
Prayers of Drakh
“Whisper of the Grove”
“Let the grove remember me, even if I forget myself. Let the wind carry my name gently. Let the roots guide me when I am alone.”
Spoken when leaving a sacred place or starting a long journey, this prayer is carved into stones or whispered into trees.
“Call to the Shadowpath”
“Drakh of twilight, Sissy of stars—bend the road, widen the breath, hide the fleeing, and carry the broken.”
A group prayer offered when aiding refugees, fugitives, or lost souls through dangerous lands. It is often followed by quiet walking and hand-linked silence.
“Promise of Return”
“By step and starlight, I will find you. By scent and shadow, I will walk home. You will not be forgotten, even if the trail vanishes.”
A devotional used by wanderers departing from loved ones, believed to strengthen astral bonds and protect dreams.
Hymns of Drakh
“Beneath the Leaf and Star”
A calm, swaying melody sung during healing rituals or after safe arrivals. Its rhythm mimics slow footfalls.
“We walked through ash and skyless stone,
But still the star-roots led us home.
No gate too closed, no night too far,
Beneath the leaf, beneath the star.”
“The Path That Waits”
A quiet hymn used when preparing for teleportation or journeying through unknown paths.
“The path that waits is not asleep,
It bends for those who do not leap.
The hush between the lightning flash,
The place beyond the dream and ash.”
“Sissy’s Song”
An older, sacred lullaby about Sissy Ontario’s role in the Pilgrimage. Sung during births, deaths, or spiritual rebirth.
“She sang beneath a sky undone,
With roots that whispered, ‘come, don’t run.’
She held the world and breathed in green—
The moon herself, the forest queen.”
Sermons of the Circles
“To Walk is to Remember”
A foundational sermon teaching that the act of walking, especially through crisis, is a form of sacred memory. By moving, we honor our ancestors. By surviving, we plant the future. This sermon is told to refugees or those recovering from trauma.
“All Roads Return”
Preached during major teleportation rites, this sermon teaches that paths are not lost—only changed. Even roads erased by war or collapse can one day reopen. It affirms the idea that every separation has a reunion, even if it lies beyond one’s lifetime.
“You Were Not Too Late”
Delivered to those wracked by guilt or loss, this sermon affirms that arrival, however delayed, is sacred. It retells moments from the Star-Rooted Pilgrimage when last-minute survivors were saved by chance or instinct. It ends with the quiet mantra:
“You are here. That is enough. That is everything.”
