If you missed my last article on Jorgungandr, you can find it here.
As we have seen me do a few times during our introductions to the old gods, I am grouping them together. Too much of human history has been lost to time and change or sometimes just flat gatekeeping. I say that to say that is why I sometimes have to group them together. I hope you don’t mind, but I thought it better than to ignore those gods.
Starting with Guan Yu, he is a revered war general from China. Guan Yu is also known by several other names, a few of which are ChangCheng, Guan Yunchang, Guan Di (or Guandi), and Guan Gong. He started as a mortal man who was elevated to a god through his exploits. I have seen quite a few mortals elevated to godhood, especially throughout Asia.
Guan Yu was born sometime in 160 CE and died in early 220, probably in January or February. He had three children, possibly four. Guan Xing was the oldest son and inherited the Marquis of Hanshou Village title. Guan Ping was also a son. Guan Feng is his daughter. Sun Quan, one of Guan Yu’s enemies, wanted to marry Guan Feng, but Guan Yu said no. It is also said he had another son, Guan Suo, but most people didn’t acknowledge him.
After fleeing from Xie Xiang, Guan Yu landed in Zhuojun, where he met Lui Bei. He declared his allegiance to and fought for Lui Bei, and after fighting against the Yellow Turban Rebellion, Lui Bei made Guan Yu and Zhang Fei generals in his army once Lui Bei became ruler of Shandong. Lui Bei was constantly at war with Cao Cao meaning Guan Yu fought Cao Cao’s armies a lot.
Guan Yu was at one point captured by Cao Cao. Rather than kill Guan Yu, Cao Cao used his battle strength and made him a general in his armies. Weirdly, Guan Yu served Cao Cao so well that Guan Yu was offered many riches to stay with him. Guan Yu only did his job to protect Lui Bei’s family when he fled and left them behind after his defeat. During the battle of Fancheng, Guan Yu died after winning the initial battle.
Next, we go on to He Bo, the white dragon god of water. He is also known as Feng Yi, Bing Yi, or Wu Yi, as well as Earl of the Yellow River. He is another mortal man who was deified after drowning in the Yellow River he now presides over. When He Bo drowned after he jumped in as a sacrifice, the Celestial Emperor took pity on him and imbued him with godhood. He Bo was credited with the Yellow River’s flooding and calming. He is seen as both benevolent and greedy, unpredictable, and, most importantly, destructive and deadly.
He Bo’s wife has been named as Luo Pin, meaning Lady of the River Luo, or Mi Fei. It is said that his sister is the moon goddess Chang’e meaning more than one member of his mortal family has been elevated. He had a chariot pulled through the sky in all directions by two dragons. In artwork and literature, he has also been shown to be a white dragon himself.
Unfortunately, this is a lot of what I can give you. As I said, much of our history, humankind in general, is lost to, well, history. What did you think of them? Have you played them in Smite? Let me know in the comments below. Until next time, have fun storming the castle!
