Editing Yutow (section)

==Theology==
Yutow was originally a demigod or [[archfey]] who was guardian of the original tribal people of Valachan's forests and the animals of the forest, served by legions of [[fey]] servitors. When a race called the Vaasi began invading his forest and putting the natives to the slaughter, Yutow was desperate to help his people, but could not think of a way to do so. It was the wisest of the animals, the panther, who told him how he could stop the battles, and Yutow gave up his life to merge Vaasi and natives together into a single new people, with the strengths of both. Now dead, he departed the forest to dream upon the moon, using clerics, fey, and animal spirits to watch over his children and guide them. Of these spirits, the panther spirits are the most favored, and mortals who bear their bloodline are to be respected (which neatly allows Kharkov to disguise his loyal [[therianthrope|werepanther]] secret police as something holy).

Yutow's religion is monotheistic - or at least at that weird midpoint between monotheism and henotheism that you see in Catholic Christanity. Yutow is considered the only god, and the ultimate source of all magical power, as only he has authority over life and death. However, he has many fey and animal spirit servitors, and these are also worthy of respect. Other deities are either misinterpretations of Yutow caused by the "unhealthily" sedentary and educated lifestyle of non-Valachani, or else are spirit trickery. Needless to say, Yutow's faith rather irks worshippers of [[Ezra]] and [[The Lawgiver]], whose religions likewise claim that their god of choice is the only true god and other gods are falsehoods.

One of the more blatant absurdities of Yutow's theology is that the Valachani fear and loathe [[wizard]]s and other arcanists, deriding their powers as "unnatural"... whilst at the same time claiming that they receive these powers ''from'' the fey and nature spirits who serve Yutow!