afroakuma's Planar And Other Oddities Questions Thread VIII

[afroakuma]

Or . . .

Perhaps it was Vecna's plan all along.

It wasn't. We have his internal monologue from his defeat in Sigil. He's still livid about that and considers it a massive humiliation.

What does having Destiny in a god’s portfolio entail? What aspects of existence does that put the god in charge of? How does it shape events? Are there any examples I could look into?

Destiny is a pretty rare portfolio - it's about purpose, ambition, decision, the seeking and finding of personal attainment. The desire for and finding of direction in life - a need to do more. Destiny is distinct from fate, a more common portfolio (though still uncommon) which has to do with final and irrevocable outcomes, often of a negative bent but not always. "Fate" is inescapable, cosmic, and unchanged by mortal agency. "Destiny" is the product of mortal agency charting a course for the rest of their life. Gods of destiny may be patrons of great movers and shakers - heroes and villains both, potentially; they may see and hint at the futures that may be, opening doors and lighting the roads that a mortal can walk. They are often impassive guides who provide inspiration or choices and then sit back to see what will come of it.

I know that Araushnee was the goddess of Elven Destiny, but I don't quite know how her fall affected the Destiny of Elvenkind.

Araushnee's fall disconnected her from the elven race, to the detriment of all elves born without her original influence, for without her touch the elves lack meaningful direction. They are reactive, not active, and their struggle to feel purpose and seek direction in life rather than falling into something for reactive reasons not only stunts their progress as a society and as individuals (think of how old elves are when they often begin their adventuring careers, compared to human peers) but also limits their future potential and reduces their birth rate. Elves quite simply lack the feeling that they need to find a path forward in life; they believe it will come to them or it won't, and in the meantime they will while away the years. In a philosophical sense, elves lack a meaningful will to live life - not to say they have a death wish, but rather that they struggle to want to make things be a certain way, carve a path for themselves. Individual elves still have some sense of this and can be driven by a deep enough emotional need, but it's as though someone took a brick out of Maslow's pyramid and the race collectively shrugged about it.

To put it simply, elves as a race have no direction that isn't reactive or complacent. That's what they lost to Lolth.