Vakosh

Vakosh is the mighty, proud god of war, fury, blood lust, natural disasters, wild animals and curses as well as martial order and obedience.

Folk-lore of both main peoples in Altankora, the Kuhn and the Uliuli, both believe that the earth of Altankora is an extension of the body of their god; the stone is his bones, lava is his blood and the tender earth is his flesh.

Moanapohaku
Moanapohaku is a dark, dense and incredibly strong type of stone found only in Altankora and the surrounding waters.

Moanapohaku is said to be clots from the wounds of battles with other gods, mainly Sothaal and sometimes Nasni.

It is the sacred stone of all people of Altankora, the dark stones often forming or being set into carvings for rituals or wood for sacred drums. It is, above all, regarded with great awe for it's sharpness, hardness and ability to draw blood without much effort.

Iconography
Blood, fire, ash and soot are all symbols of Vakosh, harking to natural disasters and anger. Animal bones and skulls are also icons. Birds of prey and horses being Vakosh's favourite animals, their lives are never taken as a sacrifice. To kill someone's horse is a great dishonour and insult upon they who keep it.

Honouring Vakosh
There are differing opinions between the two tribes, the Kuhn and the Uliuli, about how to best honour Vakosh.

The Uliuli would argue that the only way to honour Vakosh is with your way of life. For them, obedience and martial order extends to even the act of choosing when to kill and when to not. Martial order and obedience naturally controls the fury, fire and anger - often interpreted as 'passion' by the Uliuli.

The Kuhn beg to differ and believe Vakosh a diety who needs constant pleasing and honouring, accruing sacrifices and participating in clan battles just for his name. Ritual burning of warriors pre-battle, even just with the mountain path, is mandatory.

Vakosh and Sothaal
Sothaal and Vakosh have regularly been at odds with each other. They have a disagreement every century or so, but never has there been a bigger disagreement than that of the summer months of 2230c.

One morning, the sky remained black as night and the earth began to shake. The quake lasted around 11 minutes and Sothaal was most displeased. Sothaal descended upon the closest beach to the epicenter and looked out to sea. Vakosh had sent a tidal wave.

Vakosh, when finally approached by Sothaal, was not repentant. Instead, he continued to fight with both Nasni and the Child God, Wyk, who had seemingly stirred the trouble up in the first place.

When Sothaal pressed for an apology, Vakosh refused, citing Nasni and Wyk as the causes, them having blindfolded his eyes and tied his limbs together as he was sleeping, teased him relentlessly. Nasni shook her head, refusing any part in the teasing, referring to Wyk as the culprit. It is unclear as to what happened next, but an argument again broke out between all parties. Sothaal sent Nasni home, the trickster Wyk having fled. He remained to speak to Vakosh.

The argument between the two raged across the sea, mighty storms rocking the coastline, grounding ships and halting trade. It was a week before Sothaal returned, ultimately satisfied with the recompense paid by Vakosh.

Vakosh and Nasni
Vakosh and Nasni have never quite seen eye to eye. Vakosh believes the souls of the departed in battle should fall under his jurisdiction where as Nasni rebukes him, telling him they are still dead and must come to her.

Vakosh, therefor, has had trouble controlling his anger when it comes to Nasni. He often goes against her out of spite, even going so far as to cause avalanches in Thulm, wiping out whole clans of devout followers.