The Midgard Worldbook already details a score of saints dedicated to the war god Mavros, but the other deities have their share of saints as well. Saints of Midgard uncovers some of these holy personages, including information on their origins, followers, blessings and miracles, and the relics attributed to them.
Saint Authketill, the Twice Slain
Origins. One of the most perplexing and enigmatic saints to have walked the lands of Midgard is St. Authketill, the Twice Slain. An aasimar of indeterminate heritage but who claimed to be the grandson of Loki, Authketill was an adventurer and thief who traveled up and down the Nieder Straits looking for trouble. A charismatic individual with little in the way of common sense, Authketill constantly sought all manner of riches to live a free and easy life and frequently fell into trouble.
While Authketill’s life was of no real consequence, his death, subsequent resurrection by Loki, and death by precisely the same means transformed him from a simple scoundrel into one of the Lord of Deception’s most prominent saints. Though his deaths have never been in dispute by Loki’s faithful, the nature of Authketill’s twin demises are very much in contention and run the gamut of him being twice petrified by a coven of medusas in the Roatgard Forest to him being twice devoured by a vent linnorm off the coast of the Isle of Loki to him being twice peppered full of arrows by angry berserkers in Wolfheim.
After he died the second time, Authketill was transformed into a divine servant of Loki, taking the form of a two-headed creature similar to an angel of judgment (see Tome of Beasts 2), one of its heads laughing mirthfully while the other remains silent and covered in wounds. In this form, Authketill is said to roam the Northlands, saving some of Loki’s worshippers from certain death only to condemn others to terrible destruction.
Followers. As with Loki himself, Authketill has few followers, primarily bandits, thieves, scoundrels, and mercenaries hoping to avoid an early grave. Some monstrous humanoids, like goblins and orcs, also venerate Authketill, but the number of non-humanoid monsters who venerate him is small.
Authketill is sometimes seen as patron saint of chaotic, illegitimate, or evil aasimar. However, this is not an official title bestowed on Authketill by Loki’s clergy, even if they actually cared about such matters. Still, less virtuous aasimar see Authketill as a kindred spirit and call upon his name when faced with an apparently inescapable death or other dire predicament.
Followers of Authketill sometimes carry a golden coin with two heads, symbolizing the aasimar’s twin deaths. These coins can be found in treasure hordes or on the bodies of the deceased and are worth as much as 20 gp each.
Blessings and Miracles. Authketill’s blessings are rarely given, but when they are, they take the form of a sudden windfall of coins and gems, often from a seemingly random source.
The two miracles Authketill is known for are his resurrection at the hands of Loki and, somewhat ironically, that he managed to die the same way twice on entirely separate occasions. That Authketill’s deaths are even counted as miracles makes no sense to those outside of Loki’s clergy, but few things about the God of Mischief and his servants make much sense to begin with.
Holy Relic
The relics of the saints are items of renown and power, vitally important to those of the same faith and zealously sought after and guarded.
DAGGER OF THE TWICE-BLOODED
Weapon (dagger), legendary (requires attunement)
The only surviving piece of equipment left by Authketill when he perished the second time was his dagger, a slightly curved blade of tarnished steel with a grip covered in green and brown snakeskin. The blade has been found and lost more times than can be counted, and its current whereabouts are unknown. It is said that the blade appears to those in need but that it is also cursed, and while it may guarantee one’s escape from danger, it inevitably leads to one’s death if not disposed of.
You gain a +2 on attack and damage rolls made with this magic weapon.
While you are holding the dagger, you gain advantage on your attack rolls against any creature you successfully struck with it in the previous round. If you are a rogue or some other class with the sneak attack ability, you also deal an extra 1d6 damage with your sneak attacks against the same target.
As an action, you can call upon the power of the dagger to cast the spells alter self, misty step, and nest of infernal vipers (see Deep Magic), each once per day. You regain the use of these spells at midnight.
Curse. The dagger is cursed. Attuning to the dagger curses you until you have a remove curse spell or similar magic cast upon you. While you are cursed by the dagger, you have disadvantage on saving throws and ability checks when you have less than half your total hit points. This curse functions whether you are using the dagger in combat or not.
