Myths of Rodozem’s Creation vary widely among the colorful and diverse peoples of the Great Tree. What comes before Creation is a question mortals and even immortals have pondered since the very beginning. 

In this first scroll we delve into the very mystical and mythical birth of Rodozem and existence itself. All the Gods, Spirits and Forces hailed as the first entities to witness Rod's grandiose work and hear their ever unfolding song. These myths predate most creatures and as such are regarded at best as metaphors, an effort to understand the unknowable, and at worst - as beautiful and epic fairy tales carrying ancient wisdom. Rare are the few who tell these stories as a gospel of truth, of how the events actually unfolded, as such folly requires great hubris or fanatical faith.

Rod's Sacrifice

It is believed that once there was no world, only a sea of chaos within a boundless infinite - primordial elements and forces clashing ceaselessly in desolation and disorder; a swirling mass of everything, yet nothing - no balance, no harmony, no life. And then, in one eternal moment before time, elements and forces converged into one, like a dance without music, timeless yet flowing. Whether by destiny, chance or will, their primeval unity formed the very first life - an egg, one that would birth the Primordial Creator of reality, Rod. 

Born of the Sea of Chaos, Rod was a being beyond comprehension - the cosmic dreamer of existence and the eternal singer of life. Rod’s dream within the ovum gave them the vision of totality: the Primordial Creator dreamt of the need for change, the need to establish existence and beget life.

Rod’s will condensed into the First Word, which consumed their essence upon its utterance, and their shell sparked with the luminous life-giving explosion of the first world. The countless radiant pieces of their essence spread into space and burned brightly, becoming what we now call the stars. From their blazing cores, the gods of Rodozem were molded by the will of Rod, and to each they sacrificed an essence of themself, the ultimate gift - a soul. Rod’s incantation of life formed the first plane - Rodozem, where the Starborn awoke to witness the Dawn of Creation, inspired with purpose to nurture and safeguard this dream. This transcendent moment before time is referred to as Rod’s Sacrifice.

Or so it is said, sung, and supposed, for no one truly possesses knowledge of how the dawn of Creation unfolded, perhaps even the gods of Rodozem. While no one actively worships Rod today, it is undeniable that the Primordial Creator's dream is the very beginning of reality; or at least so believe the few that have uncovered this mystical entity’s origins.

“Rod is but a feeling perhaps only some gods hold. The truth of creation and their sacrifice is a mortal myth - the story that gave birth to all stories.”  Fragment of a mural decorating the walls of the ancient libraries of the Arcane Academy of Arkona.

The Song of Creation and the Stars

Rod’s act of creation is often described with various metaphors: a song, a word, a command, or simply magic. These are all valid expressions used by us mortals to try and name the nameless that is beyond our understanding. 

The Song of Creation is what most scholars call the act that sparked the beginning of all there is.They refer to it as the First Word - the first speech ever uttered by Rod, their divine command. Their grandiose incantation is absolute: it is what makes reality possible, why there is something rather than nothing, and what binds all elements and forces within Rodozem. What prevents the world from reverting back into the Sea of Chaos is the echo of Rod’s song, reverberated from the infinite luminous stars that fill the void between existence and non-existence. 

Just like Rod’s ceaseless song is the still-humming echo which binds reality, so the stars are the foundation and enduring aegis of Rodozem, holding back the ravening waves that ever seek to fade-out Creation. Burning brightly at the edges of existence, they carry within the primordial essence of life Rod spread across Rodozem.

Some tell the Story of the Song and Stars from a much more grounded, mortal perspective, where the Song of Creation is simply Rod’s will taking shape. It could be argued that this is the first and most powerful instance of magic - a necessary part of Creation, the glue that holds existence together. Other more radical believers go as far as claiming the Song of Creation is all there actually is, that there are no gods, spirits or forces, but simply different aspects of existence. And perhaps they’re not wrong, yet - the devil is always in the detail.