Symbol of Sehanine from the Player's Handbook.
Sehanine is an unaligned deity in the core pantheon, introduced to 4th edition in the Player's Handbook. She is sometimes known as the Moonbow[Dr386:68] or as Sehanine Moonbow.[MotP:90] God of the moon and autumn, Sehanine is the patron of trickery and illusions, and also the god of love, who sends shadows to cloak lovers' trysts. She has close ties to Corellon and Melora and is a favorite deity among elves and halflings. Scouts and thieves ask for her blessing on their work.[PH:22] Her teachings are simple:
- Follow your goals and seek your own destiny.[PH:22]
- Keep to the shadows, avoiding the blazing light of zealous good and the utter darkness of evil.[PH:22]
- Seek new horizons and new experiences, and let nothing tie you down.[PH:22]
History[]
Before the Dawn War, Sehanine, Corellon and Lolth (who were, at the time, only gods of the fey) were the leaders of the fey pantheon,[TPA:37] known as the Triune Harmony[Dr393:35] or Blessed Three. The Blessed Three loved each other, but Lolth was jealous of Corellon's adoration for Sehanine. Lolth beguiled an eladrin knight and wove a glamour to make him look like Corellon. Sehanine believed the knight was Corellon and conceived a child, an archfey, who became the Lady of the White Well when Corellon doomed her to remain at the pool where she had been conceived until the day when she might give her heart freely to another. Sehanine cared for the Lady until the Dawn War took her away from the Feywild.[Dr393:36]
Orcs claim that it was Sehanine who distracted Gruumsh in his battle against Corellon, leading to Gruumsh losing his eye, but other sources dispute this.[Dr394:36]
The Blessed Three did not travel the astral dominions in the days before the Dawn War, remaining insulated in the Feywild. Although they had started construction of the realm Arvandor in the Astral Sea, it was originally intended to be pleasurable retreat for them, not their home. As a result, they were late to learn of the Dawn War. Lolth saw this as an opportunity and attempted to kill one of her fellow gods, usually believed to be Corellon, but Sehanine intervened, saving Corellon's life. The fey pantheon was effectively destroyed. This led to a war in the Feywild (fought simultaneously to the Dawn War) between Lolth's followers (including the drow) and the followers of Corellon and Sehanine (including the eladrin and the elves). This war ended when Lolth fled with her people into the Underdark.[TPA:37]
At the same time as fighting the war in the Feywild, Corellon and Sehanine (and Lolth) fought in the Dawn War against the primordials. In this period, they learned that mortals other than the fey were deserving of their love and attention as well. In exploring the the mortal world beyond the Feywild, they expanded their domains, becoming universal deities instead of just gods of the fey.
During the Dawn War, Sehanine helped Melora to create the halflings, and the race was adopted by Avandra. Sehanine, Melora, Avandra and Corellon became good friends. Exalted of Melora and Avandra, who do not have dominions of their own, are welcomed by Sehanine and Corellon at Arvandor. These four gods are commonly known as the Four Free Gods, due to their actions at the creation of Carceri, the Red Prison, which cemented their alliance. Rather than help reinforce the walls of Carceri to imprison the abominations flowing from within, Corellon and Sehanine sacrificed a portion of Arvandor. Since then, abominations attempting to escape Carceri have landed inside Arvandor instead of in the wider Astral Sea, and they are hunted by the Four Free Gods and their exalted as part of the Glorious Hunt.[TPA:37,38]
After the gods had won the war against the primordials, they fought amongst themselves for dominion over various aspects of the natural world. Sehanine sided with Khala, Zehir and Corellon against Pelor and his allies, until Avandra offered compromises in the form of day-night cycles and the seasons.[DP:92] Later, during the War of Winter, Sehanine intervened alongside Pelor to protect the ancient compromises of night and day from being overthrown by Khala, the god of winter.[DP:67]
Lore[]
Sehanine dwells in Arvandor, the Verdant Isles, in the Astral Sea. However, she is frequently absent, preferring to walk in moonlight in the mortal world,[MotP:90] as well as wandering the whole cosmos.[DMG:160] She opposes Asmodeus and Zehir.[DP:18]
Sehanine is the bride of Corellon[Dr393:37], and also one of the Seldarine, the fellowship of brothers and sisters of the woods, which comprises Corellon, Sehanine and other gods and exarchs who dwell in the dominion of Arvandor. The Seldarine are revered by elves and eladrin.[DP:51]
In the Feywild, Sehanine is the most prevalent patron among witches, who refer to her simply as the Goddess.[HotF:86] The firbolgs worship Sehanine as one of the Three Fates. Sehanine is the Maiden, alongside Melora (the Mother) and the Raven Queen (the Crone).[HotF:123] The Temple of the Lady in the eladrin city of Astrazalian is dedicated to Sehanine,[MotP:41] as is the Moonsong Temple in Fallcrest.[DMG:198,203]
Sehanine's worshipers see her blessings in the moon's phases. The full moon shields the faithful from harm. A bladelike crescent bodes well for their attacks. And a dark moon presents opportunities to take what you will.[DP:116] Other omens sent by Sehanine are as follows:
- Blue moon (good omen, marks an auspicious event);
- Red moon (bad omen, heralds bloodshed);
- Dead tree with a single gold leaf (good omen, encourages hope);
- Shadows moving on their own (bad omen, heralds betrayal);
- A person who briefly casts no shadow (bad omen, marks a bringer of misfortune);
- An archer's arrow turns to silver (good omen, marks a bringer of justice);
- A candle's flame glows with silvery light during prayer (good omen, marks a heard prayer).[Dr386:68]
Priests of Sehanine oversee and are called upon for marriages (especially secret ones), naming ceremonies, archery contests, and harvest festivals.[Dr386:68] Wearing silver jewelry at night pleases Sehanine.[DP:143] Any bow, but especially shortbows, are her favored weapon, while crossbows is frowned upon by her followers as Lolth's weapons. In addition any sword or dagger with a curved blade like daggers, kukris, scimitars, falchions, and kopeshes are common in the hands of Sehanine’s followers, because they are reminiscent of a crescent moon.[Dr386:69] She also has interests in the domains of arcana, mainly in potent illusions,[DP:108] and freedom.[DP:112]
Forgotten Realms[]
In the Forgotten Realms setting, Sehanine Moonbow is one of the fey aspects (along with Henali Cenalil) of Selûne.