Theros

Contents

• Mythic Odysseys of Theros​
• Gods​
• Demigods​
• Piety​
• History​
• Places​
• Realms​
• Poleis​
• Other Places​
• Myths​
• Races​
• Monsters​
• Links​

Mythic Odysseys of Theros

Theros is a Greek-themed campaign setting originally featured in Magic: the Gathering, but adopted as an official D&D campaign setting in June 2020 with the hardcover book Mythic Odysseys of Theros. The word "theros" is derived from the Greek word for "summer. The setting has a general theme of heroes vs. monsters, with city-states (Polis) based on Athens, Sparta, and Themiscira.

Mythic Odysseys of Theros​

Mythic Odysseys of Theros' lead writer was James Wyatt. The maps were done by Dyson Logos. The book's release date is June 2nd, 2020. The official product description reads as follows:

Clash with the gods of Theros in this campaign sourcebook for the world’s greatest roleplaying game.

The world’s most popular roleplaying game meets the world’s most popular trading card game in this campaign sourcebook, detailing the Magic: The Gathering world of Theros for use in Dungeons & Dragons.

Legends walk the lands of Theros, a realm shaped by deities and the deeds of heroes. From the temples of omen-speaking oracles to the five realms of the Underworld, the champions of the gods vie for immortal favor and a place among the world’s living myths.

Choose a supernatural gift that sets you on the path of destiny, align yourself with one of Theros’s fifteen gods, then carve a tale of odysseys and ordeals across the domains of mortals, gods, and the dead.

What legends will you challenge—mighty heroes, inevitable prophecies, or titans imprisoned by the gods? Where will destiny and immortal schemes lead you? And what tales will you leave behind, celebrated in the pantheon of myths and writ among the eternal stars?

• Receive a supernatural gift from the gods, a set of special traits that mark your character for greatness.
• Select one of the new races for your character—such mythic peoples as the leonin or a satyr.
• New subclasses include the Bard’s College of Eloquence, masters of oratory; and the Paladin’s Oath of Glory, an affirmation of destiny laid out for you by divine providence.
• Encounter mythic monsters, creatures whose power and renown are such that their names are truly living myths. More than simply legendary, these creatures have abilities that will create a challenge fit for the gods.
• Wield god-weapons, signature items of the gods that allow your character to stand apart from other heroes. These can be a gift from your deity or perhaps you boldly stole it from them in a bid for ultimate power.

Gods​

Alternate Cover

There are 15 deities in the Theros setting, who reside in Nyx. The gods are able to take on different forms and walk among mortals. The gods also wield mythical artifacts and weapons. Of these fifteen gods, five are considered to be major gods:

• Heliod, God of the Sun (wields the Spear of Heliod)
• Thassa, God of the Sea (wields the Bident of Thassa)
• Erebos, God of the Dead (wields the Whip of Erebos)
• Purphoros, God of the Forge (wields the Hammer of Purphoros)
• Nylea, God of the Hunt (wields the Bow of Nylea)

The ten minor gods are:

• Athreos, God of Passage
• Ephara, God of the Polis
• Iroas, God of Victory
• Karametra, God of Harvests
• Keranos, God of Storms
• Kruphix, God of Horizons
• Mogis, God of Slaughter
• Pharika, God of Affliction
• Phenax, God of Deception
• Klothys, God of Destiny

Plus other former gods or divinities of lesser rank:

• Xenagos, God of Revels (the satyr who ascended to godhood and was slain by Elspeth, champion of Heliod)
• Cacophony, God of Cities (slain by Ephara, God of the Polis)
• Kestia, the Cultivator (a nymph charged by the gods to oversee the cultivation of fertile fields, crop growth, and irrigation)

Demigods​

Demigods are the offspring of a god and a mortal, or a mortal raised to divine rank. There are five known demigods.

• Anax, king of Akros. Legendary warrior and tactician.
• Callaphe the Mariner, an analog of Odysseus.
• Daxos, a soldier and oracle.
• Reneta, legendary warrior, Nylea's champion.
• Tymaret, the Murder King, an undead warrior.

Piety​

The Piety system from the Dungeon Master's Guide has been expanded. Each character also gains a boon from their god, separate to Backgrounds. Examples include having the mind of a sphinx so that your thoughts cannot be read, or being an oracle which gives the DM opportunity to include adventure hooks. James Wyatt describes the boons as "a straight power-up, but not a huge power-up". He also notes that Piety "includes all sorts of rewards and restrictions for characters who choose to devote themselves to a god and track their piety.”

History​

Here are some of the major events in Theros' history.

• Reign of the Archons. Long ago a tyrannical archon empire ruled Theros, dominating with a leonine army. That empire fell, and archons these days resent that fact, often waging war on cities.
• Sealing of the Titans. Later there was a war between gods and titans. The gods won, and the titans were sealed in the underworld. Clothys, the god of fate, agreed to guard them.
• Fall of Xenagos. A satyr named Xenagos desired to ascend to godhood. He attacked cities with monstrous armies, and managed to ascend during a minotaur siege. He was taken down by a group of heroes.
• War of the Gods. A war between the gods caused the underworld to open. The titans escaped.

Places​

Realms​

The setting is divided into three realms:

• Nyx. The sky, dream realm, where the gods live.
• The Underworld. Where the dead go; governed by Erebos. Divided into regions, including Phylias ("a wretched and tedious realm of the uninspired"); Ilysia ("a protected realm, tranquil and vibrant"); and Tizerus, outside Erebos' palace.
• The Mortal Realm.

Five rivers, known as The Rivers That Ring the World, divide Theros and the Underworld.

Meletis

Poleis​

The mortal realm features city states ('Poleis', singular 'Polis'). Three notable ones are:

• Meletis. An analog of Athens. A place of learning, magic and progress.
• Akros. An analog of Sparta. A warrior culture in the mountains.
• Setessa. An analog of Themiscira (the home of Wonder Woman). A city with themes of nature and family.

There are other poleis, such as the coastal Arixmethes (which Helios destroyed), Olantis (cast into the sea), the necropolises of Asphdel and Odunos, Iretis, and the minotaur polis Skophos.

Other Places​

• Siren Sea. Borders Meletis; home to the tritons. Location of the Isles of Enchantment, populated by nymphs and monsters.
• Nessian Wilds. Home to centaurs, snakes, beasts, and hydras.
• Nistos Forest. Borders Setessa and the Chaparral.
• The Chaparral. Forest. Contains Skola Valley, an enchanted valley home to satrys.
• Oreskos. Main land of the leonine, ruled by Brimaz the Leonin King. Tethmos is the main leonin settlement.

Myths​

There are many myths portrayed in Theros M:tG cards. These are often based on Greek mythology. Some examples are below.

• Akroan Horse (Trojan Horse)
• Chained to the Rocks (Prometheus)
• Rescue from the Underworld (Orpheus & Eurydice)
• Labyrinth Champion (Theseus)

Races​

Meletis

Theros includes the following PC races:

• Minotaurs
• Centaurs
• Merfolk (tritons from Volo's Guide to Everything). Two-legged tritons can breath air for days.
• Satyrs ("party animals with good Dexterity and Charisma, they have a headbutt attack, they're fast, they're fey, they resist magic and they have the musical instrument proficiency and persuasion" - James Wyatt)
• Leonin ("a different, stronger cat person, not just a tabaxi!" - James Wyatt). Disgraced outcasts. Come from Oreskos, ruled by Brimaz the Leonin King.

Monsters​

Monsters are Greek-themed, often with revised D&D lore to match Greek origins. These include cats, centaurs, gorgons, merfolk, minotaurs, satyrs, spirits, zombies, archons, basilisks, chimeras, cyclopes, demons, dragons, giants, hags, harpies, hounds, hydras, krakens, lamias, manticores, pegasi, phoenixes, sphinxes, and sirens.

Theros includes mythic threats, which are a step up from legendary creatures. James Wyatt describes them as: "The idea behind the mythic threats is the boss fight in a computer game. This kind of monster is going to be the centerpiece of a combat encounter that goes on for longer than a couple rounds. Their abilities will be even beyond what a legendary creature does,”

One example monster is Arasta of the Endless Web, which is "a horrible spider monster from the latest Theros MTG set. After you’ve been fighting her for a while, all of the little baby spiders that are clinging to her abdomen come off and start fighting you as well. You have to deal with them before you can finish the job so it’s like two encounters in one.”

Links​

• WotC's official product page
• Dragon+ Issue 30
• Magic: the Gathering Theros web page

 

[Morrus]

Start of the wiki page. Feel free to help, add, or correct!

 

[Morrus]

Updated with a ton of info! This looks like a decent broad overview of the setting now.

 

[gyor]

The Demigods of Theros are beings with partial or lesser divine status, such as a minor deity, the offspring of a god and a mortal, or a mortal raised to divine rank.

The five known Demigods are:

• Anax
• Callaphe
• Daxos
• Renata
• Tymaret

 

[gyor]

• The Underworld: A subterranean realm beneath the "Rivers That Ring The World", where the dead eventually ends up and dwell. It is governed by the god Erebos, cast into the place by a frightened and paranoid Heliod after his birth. Although the Underworld is dark, it is ironically not connected to Nyx, as it lacks the night as much as it lacks the Sun. The dead in Theros dwell in Underworld regions based on the lives they lead; known regions are Phylias, a wretched and tedious realm of the uninspired; Ilysia, a protected realm, tranquil and vibrant; and Tizerus, outside the palace of Erebos.

The underworld's 5 realms were mentioned as being in this book, so I thought this was worth a mention.

 

[gyor]

Oreskos
Oreskos is the central domain of the leonin. It lies in a rocky river valley in a remote region of Theros. It is ruled by Brimaz, the Leonin King.

• Tethmos is the primary leonin den, high in the mountains.

The Leonin's have their own city, but they don't call it a Polis, they call it a Den.

 

[thorgrit]

Another useful link would be mtgwiki's page on the subject:

Theros (plane)

Theros is a plane where the Theros block and other Theros sets take place. It is similar to Hellenic Greece. The name may be from the Ancient Greek word θέρος (théros), meaning summer. The name may also be a portmanteau of the words "the" and "heroes", considering the heavy emphasis on Heroes on...

mtg.gamepedia.com

For those less familiar with the Magic: the Gathering lore, some useful information to keep in mind if you're scouring the web for story tidbits of Theros:

The original cards were released in three sets over nine months from 2013-2014. These three sets (Theros, Born of the Gods, Journey into Nyx) form the Theros block. In the link above, this tells the story of the rise and fall of Xenegos.

There was another set of cards released this year, January 2020, called Theros Beyond Death, that added more backstory to the world (which may or may not have some sticklers pointing out potential retcons), and continued the story with another chapter.

So if you find information created before 2020, it may not include or be slow to include information from the most recent storyline. One example: in the original Theros block, Minotaurs were considered mindless monsters, barely sapient, pawns of the God of Slaughter. Revealed in Theros Beyond Death, humans were unaware that while some minotaurs were attacking their cities, there were other civilizations, including an entire Polis of them. Some sources still point to the "barely sapient" part.

I'm actually surprised minotaurs might be included as a playable option. Even updated to be 'civilized', they don't seem to be the type to be heroic enough to be considered a core option for protagonists in the setting. Especially when they're already statted up elsewhere.

 

[gyor]

Another useful link would be mtgwiki's page on the subject:

Theros (plane)

Theros is a plane where the Theros block and other Theros sets take place. It is similar to Hellenic Greece. The name may be from the Ancient Greek word θέρος (théros), meaning summer. The name may also be a portmanteau of the words "the" and "heroes", considering the heavy emphasis on Heroes on...

mtg.gamepedia.com

For those less familiar with the Magic: the Gathering lore, some useful information to keep in mind if you're scouring the web for story tidbits of Theros:

The original cards were released in three sets over nine months from 2013-2014. These three sets (Theros, Born of the Gods, Journey into Nyx) form the Theros block. In the link above, this tells the story of the rise and fall of Xenegos.

There was another set of cards released this year, January 2020, called Theros Beyond Death, that added more backstory to the world (which may or may not have some sticklers pointing out potential retcons), and continued the story with another chapter.

So if you find information created before 2020, it may not include or be slow to include information from the most recent storyline. One example: in the original Theros block, Minotaurs were considered mindless monsters, barely sapient, pawns of the God of Slaughter. Revealed in Theros Beyond Death, humans were unaware that while some minotaurs were attacking their cities, there were other civilizations, including an entire Polis of them. Some sources still point to the "barely sapient" part.

I'm actually surprised minotaurs might be included as a playable option. Even updated to be 'civilized', they don't seem to be the type to be heroic enough to be considered a core option for protagonists in the setting. Especially when they're already statted up elsewhere.

I'm convinced the change to Minotaurs is entirely because of Mythic Odysesseys of Theros, so Minotaurs would make sense as being playable, even if dark in general culture like Drow.

 

[robus]

To those adding content in comments, the first post is an editable wiki page. When people visit the wiki page they won't see your comments, so please add your content to the first post (if applicable)