So I was recently thinking about having a small culture in my fantasy game of people who worship a powerful creature of...

So I was recently thinking about having a small culture in my fantasy game of people who worship a powerful creature of some kind as a protector diety. I'm trying to brainstorm ideas for what sorts of creature it would be; the two conditions are that it was to be a physical entity and that it's powerful enough to deter invaders (assume low-fantasy armies). The obvious option feels like dragons but I'd love to hear what sorts of other ideas Veeky Forums can come up with.

Also might as well be a general thread for cults and such.

A Wendigo that rembembers that he was once human too and part of this community. He enleashes his hungers on the enemies of his community.

Is it necessary for people worshipping it? Otherwise I would advise using a mercenary giant that worked for the kingdom for two centuries already.

Dire Crocodiles.

I liked the idea of there being a cult around it, makes the relationship between the creature and the community more interesting than simply pragmatic exchange

I like this idea, maybe during peacetime they sacrifice people by tying them to trees out in the woods, or they send soldiers on raids to capture people from surrounding lands

I remember that there was a Tomb King that tolerated some humans to live on his kingdom and they worshiped him as their living ancestor.

A frost sprite that can call up blizzards to drive enemies away.

A really big worm that legend claims can be induced to pupate by song.

>ratsinthewall
A slumbering godling has slept for millenia until a tribe of people entered his cave. A gifted mind began to commune with it. It showed them truth and wonders beyond their understanding. They honoured it by following its teaching and giving it souls to feed on.
After centuries on feeding off smaller souls it is able to move again and it crushed enemies of its community. It is not strong enough to call its siblings from the stars yet but one day it will.

>Wendigo
>was once human

There are different interpretations and this interpretation of the Wendigo goes so: The Wendigo is a evil spirit that possesses human that have eaten human flesh, but the Wendigo spirit is not sentient, it is hunger incarnate. Two minds, one body.

read a book

This is one of my go-to audiobooks to fall asleep to. The Willows is probably the A.B. story I've fallen asleep to the most though.

Rip off Spice and wolf
They have giant shapeshifting immortal animals, whom often are worshipped by pagans

The "Creature" is actually an enormous sentient fungus that lives spread throughout the entire area its worshipers inhabit. It sprouts magic mushrooms for the cult to gather and imbibe; it communes with the intoxicated in this manner as it can communicate directly through smell but only those tripping on it can actually understand it. The Big Wigs of the cult just have mycelium growing directly in their inner sanctums that they lick when they want to skip the ritual and get right to talking to their god.

The Fungus God receives ritual sacrifices of animals, crops, and if it's a villain then obviously people. In return it protects the people from monsters and outsiders and benefits their crop yields. It also occasionally sprouts up special mushrooms for the cult to collect that give increased strength and speed if eaten at the cost of making you temporarily bugnuts insane.

The song has been forgotten and the sages, bards, and mages of the culture are obsessed with finding it out. Maybe even some of the most beautiful music / magic could have been completely scrapped just because it wasn't what they needed. Actually, I might use this eventually.

A huge white stag with 9 eyes. Countless beasts appear alongside it, ranging from rabid wolves to flocks of frenzied ravens, and slaughter its foes.

why not something simple like a unicorn?

I like having options

>deifying something that won't let you fuck
Suspension of disbelief blown.

what about having sex goes against a unicorn's dogma (horsema)?

The powerful deity is actually a wizard of oz mystifying backwards peasants with simple illusion magic. He is simply paying the tribute the peasants offer to the king to avoid invasion and enjoying his fame and power.