Sun Wukong
Monkey
Nature
Trickery
Alternate: Freedom, magic, protection, travel
Sun Wukong (Sūn Wù Kōng; pronounced swen wu-kong),5 the Monkey King, is the Tian Xia god of trickery, nature, and drunkenness.42
Appearance
Sun Wukong is depicted as a monkey. He was originally a stone monkey statue that was brought to life and he has retained that appearance. When he travels abroad across the Universe, he usually appears instead in the guise of a drunken martial artist.4
Religious symbol
Sun Wukong's religious symbol is a depiction of his original form, a stone monkey statue with a long tail that encircles him.4
History
Originally a stone statue, Sun Wukong was given life and eventually declared himself the Monkey King. That was not enough for him, so he went before Qi Zhong, god of magic, hoping to glean the secret of immortality. Qi Zhong would not part with this secret,2 but taught Sun Wukong many other techniques.4
Sun Wukong then became a student of Irori, where he learned magic, martial arts, cloud leaping, and shapeshifting, but the Monkey King's rebellious nature led to Irori dismissing him and forbidding him from revealing that he had been a disciple.2
The Monkey King then set off on adventures, slaying demons and stealing sacred fruits until drawing the attention of the rest of the deities. They tried but failed to rein in his chaotic impulses, culminating in Sun Wukong accidentally setting fire to the celestial orchards, and Shizuru ordered Sun Wukong's death to restore order.2 Undeterred, the ambitious Monkey King then sneaked into Pharasma's Boneyard and erased his name from her records, granting himself immortality in the process.42
Worshipers
The Monkey King is worshiped throughout Tian Xia. He loves traveling the Universe in the guise of a drunken human martial artist, where the hedonistic god picks fights with the powerful on behalf of the weak, woos the beautiful, and drowns himself in potent alcohol.42 His worship is most common in the Forest of Spirits, the city of Goka, Hwanggot, Kwanlai, Minata, and the Successor State of Quain.4
He attracts martial artists, rogues, and ne'er-do-wells to his faith, particularly those who value resourcefulness and loyalty, tolerance, heroics for the unfortunate, and subverting laws and authority.2
Items
Sun Wukong wields a legendary bo staff known as the Staff of Sun Wukong or Ruyi Bang.6
References
- ↑ “Appendix” in Gods & Magic, 132–133. Paizo Inc., 2020 .
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 2.6 2.7 “Religion” in Tian Xia World Guide, 42. Paizo Inc., 2024 .
- ↑ “Appendix” in Gods & Magic, 132. Paizo Inc., 2020 .
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 4.5 4.6 4.7 “Life in the Dragon Empires” in Dragon Empires Gazetteer, 63. Paizo Inc., 2011 .
- ↑ “Religion” in Tian Xia World Guide, 21. Paizo Inc., 2024 .
- ↑ Tian Xia Character Guide, 131. Paizo Inc., 2024 .
External links
- Monkey King (real-world deity) on Wikipedia
- Journey to the West (real-world story) on Wikipedia
- Sun Wukong
- Major deities
- Tian Xia deities
- Chaotic neutral deities
- Animal domain deities
- Chaos domain deities
- Liberation domain deities
- Travel domain deities
- Trickery domain deities
- Deception subdomain deities
- Exploration subdomain deities
- Freedom subdomain deities
- Protean subdomain deities
- Revolution subdomain deities
- Thievery subdomain deities
- Indulgence domain deities (2E)
- Might domain deities (2E)
- Nature domain deities (2E)
- Trickery domain deities (2E)
- Freedom domain deities (2E)
- Magic domain deities (2E)
- Protection domain deities (2E)
- Travel domain deities (2E)