Akadi

Akadi (pronounced ah-KAH-dee ), the Queen of Air, is the embodiment of the element of air and goddess of elemental air, speed, and flying creatures. As an immortal being of freedom and travel, she teaches that her followers should move as much as possible from place to place and from activity to activity. Technically however, Akadi is not a true goddess but a primordial, a member of an elemental race once in competition with the gods before they were driven away to Abeir. As one of the few primordials who did not war with the gods, Akadi remained in power on Toril.

Worshipers
Akadi, like all the elemental primordials, with the exception for Kossuth, has a very small following. Being a greater power, she does not care much for her group of followers, and will usually require a fitting sacrifice. One example could be the burning of incense that is carried to her on the winds, a necessary action before she will recognize her followers. Appeals to Akadi may still affect or change the winds, such as producing a strong current of air or create a bout of rain, but will not bring about or end more severe storms, which lie within the portfolio of Talos, or if out at sea, Umberlee.

Traveling across the extensive lands of Faerûn, listening to the howl of the many winds, spreading the word of Akadi's glory, and spontaneously choosing to act upon the interests of the moment are the most common of the activities that the followers of Akadi take part in. Also, sometimes clerics of Akadi become absorbed in something called a 'life experiment', an absolute goal of either a useful or personal manner. For example, one cleric may be devoted to raising sleeker and faster hawks or running hounds, another may try and deduce how orcs accommodate to powerful windstorms, or perhaps a cleric with a more unique attitude may try and deduce a design for artificial wings on cats.

Before dawn, clerics of Akadi pray for their divine spells so they are able to chant their incantations on the morning winds. The Church of Akadi does not have many official holidays, and there is only one holy day of the order, which is Midsummer. Worshipers accumulate in the Shaar, at the ruins of Blaskaltar, where the first shrine to Akadi was ever constructed. The ancient shrine itself was lost to many years of erosion by wind and rain. The chant of heroes of their faith is spoken, while new names are added to the list of who died during the past year.

Orders
The followings of Akadi are often divided into small sects, and these sects vary in the manner in which they spread her dogma, though similar in their practices.
 * The Whisper : This sect works quietly, trying to discretely bring about change.
 * The Roar : This group dedicated to Akadi are those who openly preach the Lady of Air's dogma.
 * The Azure Guard : This elite guard of a dozen female air genasi fighters serve as Akadi's proxies on the Elemental Plane of Air.

Worship in Zakhara
On the continent of Zakhara, Akadi is called one of the cold gods of the elments. As those are seen as uncaring for human affairs, they are considered opposed to the Land of Fate's pervasive culture of Enlightenment. Only a few Zakharans are willing to worship a cold god in order to gain power.

Relationships
Akadi has no strong alliances, but at times she is associated with other gods involved with the element of air, such as Aerdrie Faenya and Shaundakul. She is strongly opposed to Grumbar, the elemental god of earth, with his hard and unchanging ways, whom her limited clergy opposes wherever possible.

Akadi has many allies, including Quorlinn and Syranita, but she is enemies with Grumbar, a fellow greater power. The archomental Yan-C-Bin wants to challenge her power, but in truth Akadi has no superiors among aerial beings.

Teylas (an aspect of Akadi) is god of sky and storms for the Horde.

Although a primordial and not a god, Akadi acquired a fey aspect, and under the name Aerdrie Faenya has functioned as an active member of the Seldarine for millennia uncounted.

History
Prior to the Spellplague, Akadi was considered one of the four elemental deities, a god who remains unchanged by history and the passage of time. As it turned out, the four elemental deities were actually all primordials.

Advanced Dungeons & Dragons 1st edition (1977-1988)
Ed Greenwood initially used Misha, one of Moorcock's Elemental gods as found in the original Deities & Demigods, as the elemental lord of air for his home Dungeons & Dragons campaign set in the Forgotten Realms. As Greenwood indicated in his article "Down-to-earth Divinity" in Dragon #54 (October 1981), Moorcock's elemental gods "may later be replaced in [his] universe by "official" AD&D beings as these are published". Akadi first appeared in the original Manual of the Planes (1987), and was featured as one of the elemental lords for the Forgotten Realms in the Forgotten Realms Campaign Set's "Cyclopedia of the Realms" booklet (1987).

Advanced Dungeons & Dragons 2nd edition (1989-1999)
Akadi was described in the hardback Forgotten Realms Adventures (1990), the revised Forgotten Realms Campaign Setting (1993) in the "Running the Realms" booklet, and Faiths & Avatars (1996).

Dungeons & Dragons 3rd edition (2000-2007)
Akadi appears as one of the major deities of the Forgotten Realms setting again, in Forgotten Realms Campaign Setting (2001), the Deities web enhancement, and is further detailed in Faiths and Pantheons (2002).

Dungeons & Dragons 4th edition (2008-Present)
Akadi appears in the fourth edition as a primordial, not a god.