Pathfinder Deities - Nocticula
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 21 ก.ค. 2024
- Nocticula, the Redeemer Queen, is the goddess of the redeemed and the persecuted. She wasn't always so benign, however, having begun her existance as the demon lord of assassins and seduction. The story of her ascension is a perfect example of Paizo's great character writing for their gods.
00:00 Intro
0:55 Rundown
6:52 History and Legends
16:08 Relationships
21:20 Player Information
26:20 GM Ideas and Inspiration
31:19 Outro
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Disclaimer: This video is not affiliated with Paizo in any way. I do not own any of the artwork or intellectual property presented in this video. Paizo has created incredible lore and art for Pathfinder over the years, and I am including as much of it as I can for the purposes of education and commentary. See the Fair Use Copyright Notice on my channel description. - เกม
This was a fun part of WOTR. A crazy elf girl go up to her and be like "why dont you be good? What's stopping you?" And nocticula was like "ya what's stoping me?"
If I was gonna pick a Pathfinder deity to worship, it's her
And so would James jacobs
Indeed. :3 There's a reason two of my players are playing worshipers of her. :3 Well, partly because one of the players played through my WOTR campaign and saw her ascend via her previous character, but because she's just a greatly written character that showed demons do not have be just these burning flames of hatred, anger, and vice. Same with Arueshalae for that matter.
One other interesting thing about how/when Nocticula changed alignment and ascended is that there were likely time travel shenanigans involved. The Player's Guide for Return of the Runelords lists the Cult of the Redeemer Queen as a particular appropriate religion for PCs to follow in that Adventure Path; if at least one of them does, they catch Nocticula's attention while traveling back in time to before Earthfall and that interaction is noted as at least partially being her inspiration to become something more. Even if none of the PCs are a follower of the Redeemer Queen, they do meet someone who is earlier in the campaign; in that case, the PCs simply bringing that knowledge back in time could potentially be used to provided the same inspiration
I really like Nocticula. She goes well with my favorite Golarion deity, The Black Butterfly. They both revere the quiet of the night in their own ways.
I also see some interesting contrasts between Nocticula and another new deity, Arazni. Their journeys to godhood are mirror images of each other in many ways, and their beliefs are likewise mirrored. Both are outcasts from the society they started in, but they treat that title very differently.
Absolutely awesome Video. Thank you. You know, you do well every time. Nocticula, Arazni, Shelyn, Calistria, Pharasma...you do a wonderful job, don't sidestep Queerness, and give me a lot to work with. Good job. So might you do an updates video on covered Deities after Divine Mysteries?
Yes, I plan to do a Divine Mysteries video early in 2025. That will cover all the updates to lore surrounding the deities I've already discussed.
Nocticula sounds like she'd fit right in with the Cosmic Caravan
She absolutely would. If Tsukiyo ever stepped down as the representative of the moon in that pantheon, I have no doubt that Nocticula would fill that spot.
She's in the very similar Path of the Heavens, representing the darkness between everything else, but in a not-Elder God way.
Oh i love her. Changeling resentment witch whose main thought on resentment is against those that punch down has another person to consider. Also im so happy you are doing the Queen next. There is so much fun lore there i want to learn
Researching for the Queen Abrogail video was a ton of fun. I learned a lot of lore I would have otherwise never known.
Another excellent and informative video. Thanks
You are a good content creator. You give your own spin on things. Make your own pantheons and show the viewers how you would use what you are talking about and ideas for GM’s and players
I hope if there are goblin gods in the future or the four god Barghest. I wish one day to see that content
I'll for sure do a video on Hadregash, the strongest of the Goblin Hero-Gods in the future. Paizo has done a solid write-up on him, so I'll have plenty to work with.
Very very cool. I truly appreciate the work.
Thanks! Glad you enjoy it!
I liked her in WoTR game. Didn't know that she ascended further, I thought that the Ember questline end was "a joke" :D
Honestly I could see Nocticula just straight up joining the Prismatic Rey rather than a whole new pantheon
I am very much in favor of an addition to the divine polycule.
She does have redemption as a concern in common with Sarenrae. She's almost like a Prismatic Ray unto herself!
Deja-vu... I remember watching this video prior to the Red Mantis, but this is clearly a new video.
Am I going crazy? 😵💫
You must've had a run-in with Sivanah, goddess of illusions.
@@Podfinder lol, or Yog-Sothoth.
I will say, I did notice a couple of differences with the opening and closing of this video, compared to the quote "original" video I had seen.
Mostly, you never mentioned the Grey Maidens or this new Queen character that you say you'll be tackling in the next video.
Other than that, the rest of the video was how I remembered the "original." For a moment, I thought that you just remade this deep-dive and deleted the original.
@@Drahjan_BeginDownload huh. Weird. Did you, by chance, watch Sir Vertigo's video on Nocticula? It's about the same length and covers a lot of the same lore just in a different way.
@@Podfinder Did I?
Hmm.... my watch history says that I did, so perhaps that was the video I remember watching. But... something still feels off.
Must be a glitch somewhere in my memory, probably nothing too serious.
This is hard lore for me to swallow for a few reasons.
Firstly... I did not know drow were being retconned out of the setting, as I had been out of the loop and your video series was one way I was reacquainting myself with the news of the setting. This really hurts a particular storyline that my fiance and I have constructed, and drow lore in PF with the demon worship and fleshcraft especially was deliciously dark. I would have much preferred them reimagined. After some research, I now know this is because of the OGL but... dammit.
Secondly, I'm not too terribly fond of her holy symbol. It feels shallow, just her hair and her lips slapped awkwardly onto a moon. It doesn't truly speak to what she's about.
Thirdly, the distress at her portfolio stepping on the toes of some of the other goddesses and the likelihood of her replacing one of them. Of the three, Shelyn is the one I could stomach most, but only just, and losing either Desna or Sarenrae, both of whom I have very strong attachments to with characters that worship them, breeds some resentment towards Nocticula.
Finally, the mythology behind her ascension feels weak. I understand the self-reflection to change is nigh impossible for an outsider, but Baskrakal is an entire extraplanar city in the Maelstrom that is full of outsiders who did just that and none of them are rewarded with exceptional power. Worse, it feels unearned. Nocticula feels bad for being bad, but where is the sacrifice? All the evil she committed, all she built, still exists. There should be some act of sacrifice for atonement. Had she destroyed her old domain, an act that would have actually damaged the fundament of the Outer Rifts with tangible consequence, a denouncement of everything she previously stood for and strove to achieve in the name of turning over a new leaf while also absorbing the quintessence of all the demon lords she killed in a glorious, climactic moment that solidified that she had, in truth, been serving a greater good in her own way? That feels *earned*.
As it stands, I'm wary of Nocticula and where she is headed. I am sorry for being so negative, as your video is wonderfully informative, but I cannot help how empty the subject matter makes me feel.
I was also sorry to see the Drow go. For my part, they are still canon at my table, just hidden even deeper in the darklands.
I actually agree with you on her holy symbol. It's by far my least favorite of the ones I've shown in my videos. I would have preferred an evolution of her Demonic rune.
As far as the Prismatic Ray is concerned, I don't see Nocticula actually replacing any of the three. Especially now that we got confirmation of who dies in the upcoming War of Immortals. I think Nocticula will simply become a close friend to the trio. I could also see Nocticula bridging the gap between Shelyn and Findeladlara, the elven deity of art.
Thanks for the detailed comment. I love hearing from people who really connect to the game world.
@@Podfinder It's always great when a creator responds to earnest feedback. I was nervous this was going to be seen as an attack on the setting, but you understood the heart of what I was saying. Thank you for your commisseration and candor. Keep up the good work!
She didn't become a goddess because she stopped being evil, she stopped being evil because she became a goddess. She had steadily been gaining power from destroying other demon lords, and that power as a side effect allowed her more free will.
This part is personal interpretation, but I feel like performing one big act against evil would undercut her redemption. Destruction of evil is not itself good, it's just less potential evil happening in the future. It also means whatever was destroyed will never have a chance for redemption. But mostly I don't think grand gestures are redemption, they're just quick gratification. Redemption is an ongoing process of choosing to do what's right and mending what wrongs you can.
Do you think Nocticula will eventually become a "good" aligned deity? She definitely seems to be on the path.
I could see it, for sure. I'd say she's currently on the path toward goodness, but there are plenty of ways she could remain neutral.
Oh god the way you pronounced Socothbenoth Is waaay different how I say it. Also can you point to a circle whenever you show the world map when you say the kingdoms/cities name? Luckily I know 90% of the cities now but its cool for people who are new.
Thanks for the suggestion about cities. I'll see what I can do about that. And, let me be clear, I am not a master of pronunciation. I probably got Socothbenoth wrong. Just wait until I need to pronounce Kostchtchie in an upcoming video. That one's a doozy.
@Podfinder Oh my god, I can't even spell kostchtchie. I cannot even imagine how to say it hahahah.
I just have everything settled about Socothbenoth because I'm eventually planning on doing a player cult around him in Alkenstar, eventually managed a casino and so much more.
Can you please do a video on Ragathiel, please?
I'd love to do a Ragathiel video. He's one of my top 5 deities in all of Pathfinder. The issue I have is that there isn't as much information available about him as the deities I usually over. A video on him would have to be shorter. Are you interested in something like that? If there's enough interest, I'm definitely open to exploring shorter content.
@@Podfinder Maybe Ragathiel and Vildeis together, since they're closely associated and equally underdeveloped?
@@autumndidact6148 I really like that idea. And they both appear in the Knights of Lastwall book. Hmm... I'll have to noodle on this and see if I can work out a script structure I'm happy with.
@@PodfinderYeah.