Athena

One day Zeus developed a terrible headache. To relieve it, Hephaestus used his axe to split the mighty god’s head open. Out came Athena, full grown and fully armed. She quickly became Zeus’ favorite daughter, and is the goddess of noble combat, architecture, sculpture, spinning, weaving, horses, oxen, olives, prudence, and wise counsel. As a warrior goddess she is the protectress of Athens, but she is no less skilled in the arts of peace, inventing the potter’s wheel, teaching men to tame horses, and helping them build the great ship Argo. In her true form, Athena is a helmeted, statuesque woman of great beauty.

Athena is a chaste warrior who resists any attempts on her honor with force. Even seeing Athena without her clothes will be punished by blindness. She is the protectress of Athens, and will always send her avatar to help if that metropolis is threatened. Omens from Athena are usually delivered by owls.

In Latium and the eastern Obsidian Mountains, Athena is worshiped under the name Minerva.

Note: Athena originally appeared in this form in Legends & Lore for the AD&D game from TSR. Her use here is for the purposes of providing context for the campaign only.