Three Powers Behind The Gods

 

These are things within mortal ken worshipped oft as gods. Rather than the inscrutable mind-warping unrealities of the darkness-beyond-stars, these are Three powers which exist in nature itself and respond to prayers - sometimes in the guise of gods, and always with the fickle randomness that religion often brings. To say they are older than humans is partially correct - for really, they are a part of Life itself. Perhaps they are kin to the Outer gods and Old Ones, but their proximity to us sets them apart, I think.
They are neither Good Nor Evil, Lawful Nor Chaotic - they are above such things.

Worship these like gods, if you dare. They shall grant power in bargain, as gods often do. 

The Prey

Or: The Hivemind, The Stampede, The Runaway, The Moon, The Hunt, The Sacrifice, The Trickster/Liar/Thief

The Prey is the body behind the mask of the Trickster gods in your world. It is the legs that Run, the all-consuming need to Flee, the panic of stillness that truly Hides. The Prey is often the gentle mouse. So too can it be the wildebeaste or elephante stampeding in storm, or a hoard of locusts.  It is the march of ants and school of fish. It is the thing invoked in the Wilde Hunt - for what is there to Hunt without Prey? It is the first game caught in an open season, and every single small chattering wing and tooth in the wood. To pray to it, simply contemplate all the ways in which you could be killed. You will hear its answers soon enough, for It is the thing in all animals (man and elf, included) that screams to RUN and Hide.

MORTAL GODS WHOSE FACE IT WEARS: Tricksters, Harvest, Moon, Thieves, Insects, Messengers, Travel, Nature, Storms, Darkness

MIRACLES IT MAY OR MAY NOT GRANT: Spells to Hide and avoid detection, Spells to move quickly and escape containment, Spells to observe one's surroundings in the present

Example Bonus Spells: 1. Pass Without Trace 2. Invisibility 3. Assume Animal form 4. Freedom of movement 5. Commune with Nature 6. Pass Tree

Source

The Unbroken

Or: The Foremost, The Dragon, The Monarch, The Sun, The Sword, The Strong, The Proud, The Hero

The Unbroken is the light of the warm sun. It is the muscles of the "heroic demigod". It is the mightiest of Lions and the fox that taunts the hound. It is the uneaten zebra who breaks the lions jaw. It is the holiest stag in the woods, hunted by all kings and never once caught. It is the mighty beaver, who dams the river. To pray to it, steel your eyes, clench your fist, and swing into the face of danger. 

MORTAL GODS WHOSE FACE IT WEARS: Rulers, Strength, Sun, War, Fire, Music, Celebration, Valor, Vengeance, Dragons, Fortifications, Community, Luck

MIRACLES IT MAY OR MAY NOT GRANT: Spells to Harm, Spells to grant physical boons, Spells to summon forth structures

Source

The Past-In-Stone

Or: The Thing-In-Ice, The Mother-In-Tar, The Book, The Stars, The Instinct, The Teacher

Frozen in stone and time are the things of the past. The Ancestors chosen by calamity to dwell below us in eternal slumber, their bones preserved in stony armor against decay. The Past-In-Stone is the Parent, that which teaches The Prey how to run and The Unbroken how to fight. It is the ghostly teacher who instructs the Spider how to weave and the Bird how to build. It is the ancient struggle preserved in Ice and Tar, and the ferocity of the Mother Bear. To pray to it, listen to your feral instinct, heed not the social contract of Man, and you, too, will feel its commands in your own bones.

MORTAL GODS WHOSE FACE IT WEARS: Knowledge, Love,  Water and Ice, Death,  Wisdom, Dinosaurs, Snakes, Poisons, Madness, Forge

MIRACLES IT MAY OR MAY NOT GRANT: Spells to heal and preserve, Spells to know the past, Spells to consult and raise the dead

Source