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Player > Setting > Deities > Desna
Starfinder Core Rulebook p.484
CG goddess of dreams, luck, stars, travelers
Centers of Worship: Absalom Station, Castrovel, Idari, Triaxus
Symbol: A butterfly with stars, suns, and moons on its wings
Aloof and impulsive, Desna delights in daring, mystery,
and spontaneity, especially as expressed through travel
for its own sake. Her detachment stems not from arrogance
but from confidence in her own abilities and her desire to be
unburdened by troubles. She is a collection of contrasts—a
traveler who cares nothing for her destination, a carefree
creature of instinct haunted by a past stretching back eons,
and a peaceful deity forced to battle with old enemies,
eternally young despite the weight of ages and stars upon her.
Some may believe Desna to be flighty, frivolous, and easily
distracted, but she also has a cold side born of battle, loss,
and tragedy.
Desna communicates with her followers through dreams,
encouraging them to believe in themselves, indulge their
desires, experience all they can, express their inner strengths,
and trust instinct as a guide. As the goddess of luck, she believes
that fortune favors the bold and knows that there’s always a
chance of success, just as she knows that dreams can become
nightmares. Desna watches over dreamers and travelers of all
kinds, and she teaches that it’s better to ask forgiveness than
permission and that a split-second decision is often required to
seize a unique opportunity.
Those who worship Desna don’t go out of their way to pick
fights and would rather walk away from the possibility of a
physical conflict if possible. However, if they have no other
choice or if leaving would mean innocents would get hurt, they
try to end the battle quickly, using nonlethal methods when
appropriate but otherwise not holding back.
Despite existing for eons, Desna and her faith have changed
little since the pre-Gap era. She has a palace within the star
Cynosure, a location said to be equidistant from all systems
that worship the Song of the Spheres. Many of Desna’s faithful
carry a starknife, whose shape has long been associated with
the goddess. Adventurers, explorers, navigators, spacers,
and more than a few members of the Starfinder Society (see
page 479) worship Desna, as do mystics, seers, and solarians.
Gamblers and thieves pray to Desna for luck, and few travelers
board ships bound for distant stars without at least whispering
a prayer to the Song of the Spheres. The Desnan church has
little organization, and though shrines to Desna can be found
in almost any place visited by space travelers, she has few
fully staffed temples of size. Most commercial starships have
a small chapel or shrine to Desna for their passengers’ use, and
many private vessels carry a small idol or image of Desna or
her symbol.
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