Skerrit

Skerrit was the god of the centaurs and satyrs who venerated neutrality. The Forest Walker was the hunter and protector of the sylvan lands, watching over the woodland communities and always aspiring to maintain the natural balance.

Description
Skerrit's avatar was a strong, long male centaur with chestnut-brown hair. He was garbed in a chainmail that changed its color according to the deity's whims.

Manifestations
To his clerics, Skerrit manifested himself as forest creatures that behaved unusually during the customary mock hunts that his priests participated in. The centaur god could temporarily possess forest creatures and plants to perform his will.

Personality
Skerrit was a benevolent, compassionate, and merciful deity, but nevertheless a strong and skilled hunter and protector. He maintained the equilibrium in the forests, allowing all forest creatures to fulfill their natural roles; he fed the hunted and granted the hunters their prey.

Powers
Skerrit's avatars had access to druidic divine magics and could polymorph self into any natural forest beast. He was capable of dashing thrice as fast as he normally could, but had to rest about twice as long as he ran afterwards.

Possessions
Skerrit's avatars were each armed with an enchanted golden +3 spear and a powerful enchanted +3 longbow with magical arrows.

Divine Realm
In the Great Wheel cosmology, Skerrit's realm was the part of the Happy Hunting Grounds. In the World Tree cosmology, Skerrit's divine realm, Skerrit's Glade, was a part of the House of Nature.

The Glade consisted of a series of interconnected grasslands, meadows, and glades where Skerrit was served by spirits of centaurs and satyrs. The realm was nestled amid the temperate forests in the foothills of Krigala's peaks. It was defined by secluded pastures, communal close-knit relationship, and respect for the balance of nature, a utopian existence for centaurs. Skerrit's peaceful realm was protected by the deity himself and often was visited by Fionnghuala, the deity of the swanmays, Emmantiensien of the treants, and Eachthighern, the protector of unicorns and pegasi.

Activities
Skerrit was known to dispatch his avatars to aid centaurs threatened by servants of evil gods. The woodland deity's avatars sometimes acted as spies, patrolling the edges of his worshipers' woods and warning fey and centaurs of incoming danger, though he seldomly involved his avatars in open conflicts.

Relationships
Since most beings were wise enough to avoid the areas around deep sylven forests, the peaceful and seclusive centaurs were suited to occupying these outer reaches. As such, Skerrit worked with the sylvan deities as the guardian of these borderlands, and in turn they provided the centaurs with faerie gifts and magic to defend their homes when needed. Skerrit was a part of the Outer Circle of the Seelie Court, among the gods who did not primarily revere Queen Titania of the Feywild. Skerrit was a close ally of Caoimhin, the demigod of killmoulis, and often dispatched his avatar to accompany and defend the demigod's weaker avatar.

Rillifane Rallathil, the elven deity of the woodlands, had the friendliest relationship with Skerrit among his fellow Seldarine gods, though Solonor Thelandira, a fellow god of hunt, was known to ally with him as well.

The centaur deity was on the best of terms with the Beast Lords, even though they clearly felt that the Lord of the Herds was calling their realm his home only temporarily.

Worshipers
In general, centaurs who desired to devote themselves to a higher calling became druids rather than clerics, but the rare few who did almost always worshiped Skerrit. Skerrit was generally not worshiped by the centaurs of Faerûn as they often paid little heed to the gods, and those who did typically venerated Silvanus or one of the elven nature gods. The centaurs of Evermeet were an exception to this however, as they openly worshiped the sylvan protector god. His cult of worship was closely allied with the worship of the Seldarine.

Skerrit's clergy often took on leadership roles in their communities and passed their mantles to their sons and — occasionally — daughters. Priests of Skerrit used their divine magics to offer protection to hunters who set out against dangerous monsters or enemies of the community, accompanied scouts who sought new home territory for the tribes, and presided over ritualistic dances and mock hunts dedicated to Skerrit.

Similarly to centaurs, satyrs hosted ceremonies dedicated to Hunter in the Green monthly, illuminated by the full-moon and blazing campfires. Many satyr communities, sometimes up to a dozen groups, assembled in secluded groves to participate in mock hunts, wrestling contests, and retellings of Skerrit's hunting legends followed by a feast. The winners of these ritualistic contests were granted the title of Hunters and proudly held them unto the following month's gathering. Unlike centaurs, satyrs did not have clerics of Skerrit.

Skerrit's worshipers who cast the divine spell - weapon of the deity, summoned a magical +2 flaming shortspear to wield in battle.

Outside of Toril, Skerrit was worshiped by centaurs of Oerth.

Temples of Skerrit
The city of Drelagara of Evermeet had a small shrine to Skerrit.

History
Some sages believed that Skerrit was born out of a universe of pure thought that birthed some of the earliest deities. Object and concepts existed in that universe in their pure form and Skerrit, the first centaur, was created when two pure thought-forms melded together. Skerrit, in turn, created centaurs in his image.

Notable Worshipers

 * Tanglemane: a centaur from Vilhon Reach and an ally of Arvin, the mond-mage, circa 1373 DR.

Appearances

 * Novels
 * Viper's Kiss
 * Viper's Kiss