Avalon is a world made up of 'realms', a convenient tag for the symbolic or metaphorical building blocks of the land, a complex blend of which constitute an individual location. Just as in a world like Earth, a planet sometimes termed 'The Real World' your environment is made up of myriad molecules bonded together in groups (some large enough to be visible, like a table or a tree; others not so) - in Avalon there are no such impersonal phenomena but instead realms serving a similar function.
It is possible for a mortal to live his Avalon life entirely without reference to the fundamental transendental realities, focussing instead on 'a sword is just a sword, a tree just a tree, a city market simply what it is; nothing more'. The only problem with such an approach is another of the features of Avalon that is different to the Earth, representing and embodying these realms and wielding preternatural immortal powers and a living intellect: the Gods. So, though one may ignore the philosophies of Avalon's creation and its ongoing existence, it is more difficult to deny; for the Gods are ever-present, often assertive reminders of greater powers at work than mortal man alone.
It may be worth reading HELP CREATION if you are curious about the Song of Creation that brought this Avalon world into being and the origins of the Gods populating the pantheon, these representatives and eternal defenders of the realm-song from which the continent was born. HELP DEITIES gives you an insight into the existence and freeform purpose of the gods, and HELP PATRONS moves to the practical, providing you with a ever-updated list of individual gods. From this list it is possible to begin exploration of an individual deity's role, realm representations, purpose and personality. Patronage is an uniquely significant part of most Avalonian's daily life - often a defining one - while friendship with a divinity can be incredibly advantageous, making an enemy of one is always an error of judgment often leading to bloodshed, loss of life; or worse.
The land has between thirty and forty primary realms, reflecting the diverse make-up of the Song of Creation (and therefore the Avalon world). Primary realms tend to be dominated by an individual god, though not all are actively embodied, and often contain innumerable sub-realms. It is not always clear whether a realm is primary or a sub-realm, though the distinction is irrelevant to a mortal when interacting with a god since the deity's chosen title is to be respected regardless. As an example, however, Maedhros is known as the Hunter: god of the hunt. The 'hunt' is a sub-realm of primary realm Forests. Maedhros is the dominant deity in the Forests realm but elects to be called 'the Hunter'. His power in the land is not affected by choosing to emphasise a sub-realm over the primary.
All interactions a mortal is likely to become embroiled in, such as a conflict between opposing gods for control of a particular location's realm-song, will be represented often as a clash of realms. Whenever this is the case, the primary realm name are used. Indeed, Avalon's Song of Creation and its countless locations are constituted solely of realm-song from the primary realms. Perhaps of greater moment is the division of these realms into two types: elemental and conceptual. The elemental realms, like fire, air, earth and sea tend towards powers more cataclysmic and direct; they are often focussed on easily identified locations or centered on specific location groups (e.g. a volcano for the fire-realm). The conceptual realms, like time, wisdom and magic tend towards the more pervasive, existing across the whole of Avalon but in smaller concentration; more locations, less percentage share of the total realm-song blend in each.
Type HELP REALMS for an up-to-date list of all realms, alongside their dominant god (if there is one). The realm-song spread controlled by an individual deity represents a major facet of their existence and accumulating power in the land - each individual strain of realm-song contributing to a potentiality building on the Divine Plane, a potentiality the commanding god can use to earth-shattering effect in the world of mortal man. Conflict between deities though not an everyday occurrence tends to centre around battles for acquisition of a location's realm-song, piece by piece, to bolster future power accumulation and thereby make the acquiring deity more powerful year on year than the divinity whose realm-song was taken.
Mortals play a key role, often, in conflicts between deities since their piety, their proselytising, their triumphs and devotions... these are some of the numerous contributions a mortal can make to a deity's effective power; either accumulating for future use or actively involved in the fantastical battleground of realm-song. Few more noble successes exist in a mortal's life than to have been a pivotal player in the defence of a patron's realm-song against another god's avarice. Look elsewhere in this section for more details about what you can do, why you might consider doing it, the consequences and the risks etc. The priesthoods are a strong force in the land, like cities and guilds though often more passionate and single-mindedly devoted, wielding as they do their own professional powers and - to varying degrees - some of the might of the patron deity. See HELP PRIESTHOOD for more detailed rundown of a god's divine order, followers, the distinction of priesthood and responsibilities it brings.
