Primus

Primus is the embodiment of law without regard for good or evil. His titles include The One and The Prime. He exists as the absolute ruler of The Clockwork Nirvana of Mechanus and the race of mechanical beings known as modrons. He grants his clerics the domain of Knowledge.

Primus was virtually unknown on the prime material plane except as a curiosity by certain scholars until his role as the primordial being of law was discovered. Since then, he has become a deity revered by artisans, sages, and soldiers.

Discovery
Primus was the first of the primordial beings identified by the Consensus among the gods of the planes. The archmage Twinby Hex led a team into Mechanus where he encountered the modrons. After petitioning each layer of their complex bureaucracy, he finally learned about and was granted a hearing with Primus after just seventeen years. After meeting with Primus, Hex was taught hidden lore of the planes and the other primordials which he brought back and eventually led to the adoption of the Consensus. It is unknown whether Hex's eventual discovery was originally planned by Primus or not, but it is appropriate that discovery of the embodiment of law and knowledge would help bring order to the sprawling pantheons that had dominated the lore and mythos of the past.

Avatars
Primus's main aspect remains permanently ensconced in the Modron Cathedral at the center of Regulus, his realm on Mechanus. Among the modron he is only known about or recognized by his four immediate subordinates, the secundi modrons. His other aspects in theory include all other Lawful Neutral deities including Azuth, Savras, Wee Jas, and Aureon. Saint Cuthbert of the Cudgel is also rumored to have once been a mortal who became possessed by Primus and ascended to godhood.

Appearance
Primus's avatar appears as a gigantic, metallic humanoid rising from a pool of energy. Its hands are obscured: the right one swathed in bright, rainbow hues reaches into a portal to Celestia, while the left cloaked in inky, swirling clouds exerts power into Baator. On the prime material plane he has been known to appear as an androgynous humanoid clothed in white.

Powers
Primus's avatars typically have complete knowledge of everything around them. They see through all manner of magical and mundane obfuscation and deceit and are permanently under the affect of a spell of True Seeing. This knowledge usually gives him automatic initiative and puts him at advantage in any challenge where knowledge can be a factor. Most magic is completely ineffective against them and they are permanently under the affect of a spell of Antimagic Field yet are still able to cast spells within and outside that field. They also have a number of levels in Cleric with the Knowledge Domain and Wizard in the School of Divination.

His main avatar is aware of the entire plane of Mechanus and has archived more knowledge from most other planes than even their denizens have. Despite his incredible power, it is rumored that he has been killed before. When this happens, the secundus modrons will usually choose among themselves randomly to be promoted to become the next avatar of Primus.

Worship
Primus does not command his followers directly but passes edicts down through a strict chain of command starting with twentieth level clerics who command those of nineteenth level and so on. Followers are directed to pray at the first minute of the first hour of each day and to meet together in front or near their local city hall at the first hour of the first day of each week. Members discuss how they can make their society more orderly and mathematically elegant. Meetings observe carefully followed rules of order. Only members may make motions and vote, but visitors are invited to observe quietly. Meetings are presided over by the highest level cleric and minutes are taken by the next highest.

Iconography
Primus's holy symbol is a circle with eight radiating lines and dot inside, the same as the plane of Mechanus. His followers do not usually create icons of his avatars but instead often represent him abstractly through various mathematical equations, the most popular being the number 0.9 with a vinculum or line overhead indicating a repeating digit:

Clerics and followers
His clerics favor wearing white coats and carry pocket watches which they use as a spellcasting focus. His followers set themselves apart by their commitment to orderliness of dress and action. Clerics are typically chosen at a young age from students at private boarding schools. Those who answer the invitation must spend three years at a monastery where they become clerics, monks, or paladins.

Dogma and practices
Above all, believers in The Prime insist on consistent behavior. They strive to wake, wash, dine, and rest at appointed times and places when possible. They keep their surroundings clean and tidy and make sure to organize their environment before beginning any kind of work.

Festivals and holy days
New Year's Day is the holiest day for followers of Primus. They spend the weeks leading up to this day cleaning their homes and the public places of their town to prepare for a parade. The New Year's parade begins at noon on the first day of the year with children leading followed by workers, then craftsmen, then men of property, and finally government officials. Clerics typically watch and organize from the sidelines.