Leira (deity)

Overview

Leira is the goddess of deception and illusion, and the patroness of illusionists and liars. She has never been actively malicious or a trickster but is rather seen as being an enigmatic, quiet, and retiring deity. She is credited with inventing Ruathlek, the language of illusionists and the spoken tongue of Nimbral.

Leira has worn many masks over the ages, and more than once has been thought to be dead or to be another deity altogether. The latest occasion was when she was thought to have been murdered by Cyric, the Prince of Lies, just after the Avatar Crisis on Toril, when she was betrayed by her long-term ally, Mask, the god of thieves.

Description

Leira's true appearance is unknown, as she typically appears in whatever form would appeal the most to those she was interacting with, meaning that most forms that she is known to have assumed are those of incredibly beautiful women or heroic, handsome men. Leira seems to prefer appearing in feminine forms when convenient, and the most commonly recurring form is that of a very tall, very thin woman, with long, smoke-coloured hair, large glistening black eyes, and robes that exude mist.

Holy symbol

Leira's symbol is a downward pointing triangular plaque of swirling gray mists.

Celestial symbol

Leira is associated with the moon Selûne (known as Leira by its inhabitants).

Favored weapon

None. Leira prefers to avoid hand-to-hand combat, relying instead on her magic.

Realm

In the Great Wheel cosmology, Leira resides within her planar realm, known as the Courts of Illusion, which is located on the Ever-Changing Chaos of Limbo.

Worship

Leira does not appear to have a great following, though this is difficult to confirm because those who favor her are unlikely to admit to this. She is typically worshipped by illusionists, who pray to her to aid them in their illusions, and con artists, for whom she is a kind of champion. Most common people pray to her when they hope to keep something secret, or placate her with a prayer before making an important decision when they fear being deceived. Some folk perform a swirling motion with a finger behind their backs when telling a lie as a way of beseeching her for aid.

In Spelljammer

Leira is considered a native deity of Realmspace. Her greatest concentration of worshippers in Realmspace is among the inhabitants of Selûne, the moon of Toril. The priests of Leira lose access to their spells when travelling through the Flow, and are unable to recover mid-to-high level spells until they return to Realmspace.