Witches Patrons

Witches of different covens honor different patrons.

Liber Mysterium
The Netbook of Witches and Warlocks  
By Timothy S. Brannan and The Netbook of Witches and Warlocks Team

Often these Witches Patrons are the God and Goddess, but in some cases only the Goddess may be honored, or the God in one of their many guises. It is the patron that is main influence in the witch’s life. It is the patron the witch serves and it is through the patron that the witch gains her power. The witch knows that she is only the vessel of the patron’s power, but she is also the physical manifestation of the patrons in this realm. This way, the Witches Patrons do not need to directly act in the world, They can use their witches for this.

Witches Patrons – The Goddess

Witches see all Goddesses as an aspect of the divine, one Goddess is not more powerful than another. To the witch the Goddess is the same whether she called Artemis,Hecate, Kali or Inanna. The name or method of worshipping the Goddess is not as important as the role the witch fills for the Goddess. Because of this belief the witch may be of any alignment, she can even differ in alignment from her Goddess.

So it is not unbelievable that a Chaotic Good witch could worship Kali, a Chaotic Evil Goddess. This witch might be worshipping the creative power of Kali, or her aspects as an earth mother, or even the vengeful slayer of demons. A witch will not see this as a contradiction. The Goddess is also seen as the overriding female principle, a divine child, mother and crone.

Witches Patrons – The God

The Horned God or the Black Man is the Goddess’ male counterpart. He, however, is not worshipped directly but His name is used in the rituals and He is equally as important. The Horned God is not a devil or a demon, but something much older. He corresponds to Cernunnos, the Leader of the Wild Hunt for druids. He is also known as Osiris, Apollo, Shiva or Damuz.

He is the lord of life, death and the underworld. Being the God of the Sun to the Goddess of the Moon as he alternates with her in ruling over life and death. With her he cooperates in continuing the cycle of life, death and rebirth, or reincarnation. His own life is said to be circular. The Horned God is born at the winter solstice, marries with the Goddess at Beltane (May 1), and dies at Samhain. His death represents a sacrifice to life.

Witches Patrons – Name of the Goddess

The Goddess is known by many names, but each is but an aspect of the true goddess. What follows is a listing of Goddesses from Earth’s mythologies. In each case a possible or likely alignment is included as well as areas of domains for clerics and witch coven spells. Descriptions of that Goddess’ coven might also be included.

Artemis

• Astartë
• Athena
• Bast
• Brigit
• Cardea
• Cerridwen
• Danu
• Demeter
• Diana
• Eir
• Gaea
• Hathor
• Hecate
• Hel
• Hestia
• Holda
• Inanna
• Isis
• Kali
• Lilith
• Lovitar
• Mabd
• Morrígan
• Rhiannon
• Tiamat

Tlazolteol

Aztec witches who worship Tlazolteol, the Goddess of vice, are often tantric or malefic witches. They spend a great amount of time on their appearance and try to look as desirable as possible. Once they have someone alone they will attempt to corrupt or kill them. Most prefer to corrupt others. Bards speak of a particularly successful witch of Tlazolteol who had been in the bedrooms of many of a particular country’s politicians. Single handedly she had nearly toppled the government through jealousy and deceit.

Tlazoteol is also seen as a necessary evil. She takes in filth and sin so it may be disposed of. It is this aspect that she is most often worshipped and served by her witches. Confessing ones sins to her or to her witches, one would be purified of those sins. Mothers in childbirth often called on her aid. Her witches, learned in all manners sexual, are also skilled midwives and nursemaids, after all birth is a natural consequence of sex. Her witches are believed to be adulterous and women born under her sign (The Ocelot) were believed to become her witches.

She is seen as lustful maiden, mother or priestess and crone, devourer of youth, depending on her mood. She is always depicted nude in all of her aspects, as the Mother she is seen having just given birth. She wears a gold and turquoise necklace and her temples are andorned with gold bells. Of note she is also sometimes depicted as wearing a conical “witch’s” hat.

Alignment: CE or CN

Areas of Influence: Chaos, Feritilty, Trickery, Vice

Name of the God

It is no secret that much of witchcraft is Goddess focused, there is though a God as well. Though he might get a secondary placement in some Traditions and ignored altogether in others, He is to most witches equally important.

Listed here are various Gods. Included in each listing are a description of that God, likely alignments and Domains as well as the Goddess they are consort to.

• Apollo
• Cernunnos
• Dagdha
• Dionysius
• Osiris

Witches Patrons – Other Patrons

Witches are not limited in the patrons they may seek. While most witches will have some form of the Goddess and God (or just Goddess) as their patron, others can choose other paths. Powerful spirits, local gods or even demonic patrons are not unknown.

Witches Patrons – Spirits

Voodoo witches work with the Loa, or spirits. Animistic witces or shamans may invoke the spirits of nature, animals or plants. Family witches often call upon the spirits of departed family members and ancestors to aid them in times of great need.

Spirits may come in a variety of shapes sizes and power. Some, like the voodoo Loa can be as powerful as gods in their own right. Family and ancestral spirits might be comparatively week, except under certain circumstances. Nature spirits have power proportional to the aspect of nature they represent. As with the Goddesses and Gods, GM are encouraged to use whatever spirits make sense for their world.

Witches Patrons – Demons, Devils, and Fiends

While not gods, the foul things that reside in the infernal planes are powerful and immortal, and they wish to control this realm as well as their own. To this end, demons, devils and other fiends try to attract the young and entice them to become their followers. The fiends look for consorts and worshipers among the humans. Some humans seek out the beings from the Lower Planes for power over their brethren.

Devils are most likely to have worshippers among the short-lived mortal races; the belief being their lives are short and they have to gain power quickly. Demons tend to attract non-human or even some humanoid types. Not due to any perceptions of power, demons tend to be more alien in terms that the humanoid races can understand.

While there are those that do worship and serve these creatures that are witches, most are just common people who wish to rise up from their lot in life and see the power of evil as a shortcut. To make matters more confusing, warlocks actively seek demonic patrons for their powers and some diabolic and demonic cultists call themselves “witches” even when they have nothing to do with witchcraft.

To add to the witch’s misery when a new religion moves into an area they often demonize the indigenous and pagan beliefs. So a Goddess worshiped by witches for thousands of years might suddenly become a demon or devil in the eyes of the new religion, as was the case with the Goddess Astartë and the devil Astaroth.