Yzma



Not every god is born on Nohren’s surface. Long, long ago, when the planet was cooling and nothing could be relied on from one day to the next, many moons tried to settle above the newborn planet’s ash-choked sky. Some of these were simply inert stones, but at least two have gone down in history as being full-blown magical gods, and at least one has managed to make a permanent home of Nohren’s night.

Her name is Yzma, and she is a god with two bodies. The first is a body dotted with craters and coated in fine dust, reflecting yellow light and regulating the tides. The second body is a golden-skinned fairy, spun out of magic as if it were so much spider’s silk, with large wings, short ears that rise up into sharp points, and curves so subtle that they’re only just shy of not being there at all. It was this body that caught the eye of the ancient moth who came to be known as Prophet Fuzz, who historically fell madly in love with her and inadvertently created the entire race of Actia moth-folk when she responded to his feelings in kind. When she wished to speak to him, the gift of God’s Eyes was extended not only to him but to all luna moths who roamed the thinly forested flatlands south of Highforest.

Yzma is notoriously subject to an exaggerated set of needs, even compared to other gods. All gods are jealous and seek worship, but only Yzma has ever struck a contender clean out of the sky to prevent competition. She is infamously protective of the Actia and relishes in the fact that they rely on her for longer lives and sustenance, and is not above flying into rages when something distracts from her presence in the night sky.

Despite her territorial nature and historical brutality, Yzma is arguably one of the most compassionate and sincere gods, putting the interests of Nohren ahead of her own needs regularly and always making a conscious effort to curb the tide of dangerous magic with some of her own. Yellow Magic is the force of change, and as such things tend to change under the full moon. If that means occasionally a would-be warlock’s magic stylus turns into lead and falls on his toes mid-spell, then so be it. A tiny and welcome diversion from simply sweeping across the night sky, if you ask her.

At the end of the day, Yzma is a necessary part of Nohren, and has earned a fair share of the self-satisfaction and pride she radiates. She might be fickle and occasionally unstable, but that’s all just part of being a moon and being a god. Looking after her people by night, lighting the way and making herself the center of attention since time immemorial is simply what it means to have succeeded as a magical deity.