AndrewTech

 

On 5/10/2024 at 5:14 PM, Nozgoth said:

I think we also need to bring back more common forms of villainy. We need burglars, murderers, drug dealers, bandits, etc. I would love to start up a group involved in this sort of thing, so if you are interested, hit my discord: priestofworms

 

Unfortunately I feel that the problem here is that people are afraid of the OOC reputational damage that can come along with having characters that do these things, or fear losing characters they invest in a lot to do them.

 

For instance, if you're someone who likes to play murderers or kidnappers, people will start to become skeptical of your activities OOCly. And trying to start up a banditry group tends to cause NLs to schizo over the threat of civil unrest or brand them as unconstructive PvPers. There's a stigma that if you are going to be a "bandit" or a normie villain, you're in it for the clicks and not the story. I think that's why nobody but perceived "goons" do that sort of RP anymore, and it's unfortunate for the server's narrative because you HAVE to have identifiable evil to have conflict. Likewise, you have to have conflict to have RP.

 

And if you get a lair to consolidate good IRP group within outside of a nation's control, you'll likely face a coalition of 3-4 nations trying to tear down months of work almost immediately. Not talking about dark CAs here but like, this would happen to just your average Skyrim bandit or thieves guild sorta organizations even if they were to manifest.

 

It used to be easier when we didn't all know each other, but LotC is becoming more and more tightly knit over time. If good villainy RP is to return, RP has to be decoupled from OOC. The server also has to be treated less like a political simulator and more like a dynamic, colorful canvas with a variety of different things going on rather than slice of life or cosmic spooky stuff.

https://www.lordofthecraft.net/forums/topic/236722-water-evocation-ta-dixie_serenade/

 

Hi, doing this one via distance learning / OOC oversight. 2/3

https://www.lordofthecraft.net/forums/topic/236722-water-evocation-ta-dixie_serenade/

 

First student for this persona, 1/3

MC Name:

         Dixie_Serenade

 

Character's Name:

         Taliya

 

Character's Age:

         160ish

 

Character's Race:

         High Elf

 

Link to your accepted MA:

         https://www.lordofthecraft.net/forums/topic/223177-water-evocation-ma-dixie_serenade/?tab=comments#comment-1965341

 

What magic(s) will you be teaching?

         Water Evocation

 

Describe this magic or a creature as a whole:

         

The art of water evocation is centered around the drawing of the element of water water, and by extension ice, from the Void. Once summoned, it can be morphed into almost any form and can be used to cast a variety of different spells to suit a variety of situations. Ranging from combat to more mundane purposes, from crowd control to putting out fires, it is a versatile magic that is good for defensive, offensive, and utilitarian purposes alike. Spells include the use of water to form powerful knock back waves, the creation of ice spikes to impale one's enemies, the formation of shields to protect one's self as well as domes to protect one's allies and the expulsion of streams of water or water balls to knock back enemies or put out flames.

 

Are there different sections or subsections of magic? Can those be elaborated upon?

         

There really aren't any different sections or subsections within Water Evocation, but there is a significant distinction between casting water and ice. Water is a more basic material that is fluidic in nature and created with greater ease by a water evocationist and is used for more utilitarian and artistic purposes, whereas ice is more of an offensive / defensive tool. However, there are no formal "sections" or "subsections" of the water evocation magic.

 

Can you give an example of a casting emote, of a spell of your choice?

         

[!] Taliya would take a deep breath as she extends her hands, closing her eyes as she pushed all peripheral thoughts out of her mind. She began to concentrate.

 

[!] A few moments passed before Tailya finally opened her eyes. Glimmering with a violet aura, swirls of water would begin to orbit around her outstretched fingers. The stream slowly grew with each passing moment and would soon swirl around the entirety of her arms.

 

[!] With this, Tailya would level her hands, a sizable stream of water bursting out from them as she casted forth a stream with the intensity of a fire hose! Crashing into a burning stall nearby, the water would begin to do its work.

 

Can you give an example of a teaching-emote (interacting with another) of a spell of your choice?

         

[!] Taliya took a seat by Chambery's riverside, crossing her legs as she stared out at the current beyond.

 

[!] "I want you to look at the river," She instructed her student as they took a seat next to her, nodding toward the river. "Watch how the ripples of the current sway, how they move...- Water is a curious thing. Nothing else in the world moves quite as freely as a liquid does. To understand the art of water evocation, you must first understand what water is."

 

[!] Holding out her hand with her palm facing upward, Taliya gently closed her eyes as she continued. "Water is an essential element in the livelihood of all living things. Without it, almost everything in this world would die. Consider how a swim the ocean might feel on a hot, summer day. How might the water would move around you? How might the waves turn and toss in the ocean? How might the current of this very river flow? How would those droplets feel against your clothing, or your skin?"

[!] At long last, she opened her eyes as they glow with a faint cyan hue. A small stream of water would begin to come into being, hovering just above the palm of her hand as it began to grow in size.

[!] "Now. I want you to remove your boots, and dip your toes into the waters of the pond," The sorceress requested, offering her student a faint smile. She had already connected her to the Void some years before. "Then, I want you to connect to the void and try to imagine a bit of water forming in your hand. Think about all it's properties. How it moves, how it soaks into any given surface, how free and unconstrained it is- And then, bring it into existence through the power of your imagination!"

 

Say your student powergames during or after teaching, how do you reprimand that?

         

If they powergame during a lesson, I will simply alert them that such is powergaming. If it's a minor case, I'll simply tell them how they should've OOCly last the spell through either DMs, discord, or LOOC chat. And if it's a major case, I will instruct them to void their emote and try again as per my recommended guidelines.

 

Should they powergame outside of a lesson, I will message them on discord and tell my student about what they did wrong. I'll warn them that doing so might place me in jeopardy as their teacher, and that their MA might get revoked due to the mistake. I'll make them promise not to do so again. And should they continue to powergame, I will message a fellow lore oriented ST about the matter and possibly even consider dropping the student if they do not RP the magic properly.

 

Do you have a magic(s) you are dropping due to this app? If so, link it:

         N/A

 

Do you agree to keep the ST updated on the status of your magic app?:

         Yes.

 

Have you applied to teach this magic on this character before, and had it denied? If so, link the app.

         No.

Hi, I'll be teaching this through OOC oversight. You can wipe my current students on my TA, 1/3

 

 

While I appreciate what the Tech Team's trying to do here, I feel that a lot of these suggestions simply abandon roleplay in favor of mechanics. For instance,

 

== === == === ==

 

1.) Skills Plugin - In my experience, all that Nexus and Vortex did was hamper one's ability to pick up a character and start roleplaying them. Cooking, harvesting, lumberjacking, and farming skills all have the potential to gatekeep people from picking up characters centered around these skills IRPly from doing so. A player on a roleplaying server should not have to grind for hundreds of hours to be able to do these things adeptly. Then again, they can also be good for the server economy so I'm not entirely opposed to this.

 

Additionally, other skills could be widely abused in bad faith. For instance, while a thievery skill sounds nice on paper, realistically speaking it's more likely to just be used by PvP goons and little for constructive roleplay. It's also more likely to discourage roleplayers who want to do constructive roleplay as a thief from picking the profession up in the first place.

 

2.) Alchemy Plugin / Magic Plugin - These actually sound great. I wouldn't mind an Alchemy Plugin with like, pre-set potion items and descriptions to ensure that herbs are actually being used and allow for ingredient management.

 

In regards to a Magic Plugin, I would welcome this greatly but I'd honestly just like to see an array of particle effects extended to magic users and CAs with IRP access to them. I think it's almost criminal that you have to pay like $1000 USD to get access to these visual effects. Something that makes it easier to visibly portray roleplaying as a magic wielder would be quite worthwhile. I don't care so much about mechanics though, as I believe the server's already slipped too far into caring about mechanics as it is. It's my fear that many magic users would abuse a mechanical addition and neglect doing actual magic roleplay beyond the lessons necessary to gain it.

 

Either way, I'd suggest having some sort of whitelisting apparatus for these plugins that is maintained by the ST.

 

3.) Medical Plugin - Absolutely not, since 99% of medical roleplay is done purely IRP with player signed items and general botany. I see very little purpose in a "medical plugin" being applied to roleplay, unless it were a PvP only apparatus meant to supplement combat encounters. Then I'd think it would be fine, so long as it isn't forced to be used as a result of CRP or roleplay based wounds.

 

4.) Wonkbot - Dunno what this is but wonks are mega based, 11/10 approve?

 

5.)More Camps / Tent Variants - Absolutely, I love this plugin. The more options for these the better!

 

== === == === ==

 

In short, I'd just urge the Tech Team to be mindful of designing plugins which encourage and supplement roleplay rather than aim to replace it. I feel there's a balance between the two and more mechanical features would help to achieve that, just please don't overdo it by removing the need to roleplay for certain avenues.

 

P.S: Can you guys PLEASE get rid of the annoying cool down timer for persona renaming, or lower the perk for waiving it to the Coal, Iron, or even Gold VIP level? Or like, reduce it from something like 8 hours to 1? It's existence only hampers roleplay and makes players miserable. Forcing people to pay $100 USD to Tythus LTD simply to be able to change their persona name without waiting 8 hours, something often done to prevent metagaming or reflect RP, is kinda unfair...

Yes I'll be teaching this thru OOC oversight. 1/3, my other students are inactive or dead IRP and should be removed

2 hours ago, marimbamonk said:

Specifically, if LotC were to be adapted into a show on Netflix for example, what would you need to see included in that adaptation for you to confidently say, "Yep, these guys actually respected the source material!" What, for you, if it was changed or not included, would ruin a LotC adaptation for you?

 

I expect a lot of joke replies to this but I'm honestly curious. I've been working on an LotC D&D Campaign Setting and I could use some other perspectives on what is really important to the fiber of the server, but also what things could be open for change.

 

I think there's a lot of very compelling personal narratives that could be drawn from the server's history for such a thing, and a lot of untold stories that often get buried by the focus on nation politics that the server as a whole has. But in terms of shows at a macroscopic level, I think I'd personally like to see one of three things be portrayed in an LotC Netflix adaptation. Either:

 

1.) A detailed depiction of the Undead antagonist event line that was so prominent during Aegis,

 

2.) A GoT / Witcher style miniseries that takes place in late Asulon and early Anthos during the reign of Emperor Godfrey, including the unification wars and the war between the Teutonic Order and the Flays, or

 

3.) A show with multiple seasons that follows a particular family or individual set during the period immediately before, during, and after W2E during Arcas.

The news from Whitespire came as a shock, when at last Rhosyn had heard of it. Indeed, the sickly woman had to sit down in the courtyard of her monastery, entirely speechless as the gravity of this news weighed deeply on her.

 

She recalled that day at the Temple of Saint Juli'el near the Aldtree, when she had with Ser Gerard had discussed how the simpler things in life brought one closer to the faith. And she recalled his insistence that a cross be added to that tree, a request that she had honored. He had gained respect from her on that day, as they rode around surveying the ruins of the ancient Godwinites in Aaun and she imparted some of the local folklore unto him.

 

Her thoughts drifted to when she was but a girl, and Gerard guarded the lands of Lemon Hill. She remembered the lemon cakes, and how they made her ever so happy as a child. Was it he that had made them? They were either his or Ser Halston's, she couldn't recall. Only that he and the other Judites worked so hard in those first years, regularly reporting to Antonius's office where she watched them tender their reports and engage in vital work for the Church.

 

But more than all of that, she recalled the last conversation that they had face to face, and her features turned even paler. They had quarreled over an error that Father Sakuraba had made in the interpretation of her orders. A bureaucratic miscommunication of all things, for Rhosyn was a stickler for the institutional rules and protocols she had set in place within her diocese. Thereafter, Rhosyn had sent a letter to Gerard to clear it all up properly, away from the hassle at the Temple of Saint King Caius...

 

...She hoped, prayed, that he had read her letter. That he knew that she was not still cross with him. That Gerard knew that even though they disagreed on some things, she did respect him as an honorable agent among the swords of the Faith who wanted to bolster Candondom's trust in his Order. An honest man, who dreamt of returning to those simpler things in life which he loved, not unlike herself.

 

Tears welled up in Rhosyn's eyes as she realized that they would never have that conversation, that she would never be able to offer her hand in friendship unto him to pursue a new beginning. It would have made him very happy to learn of what she had planned in the lands he held such concern for, to resolve the worries that he had held. Surely he had read that letter?

 

Regardless, she cried, and then prayed for the longest time for soul of the fallen holy knight. She prayed for his wife and child, which she knew he had left behind. And she prayed that Exalted Owyn's flame guide him, in his final journey unto the Seven Skies.

Hi, I'll be teaching this magic through OOC oversight. 2/3

CONSECRATIO

PRATOREM

 

 

 

 

THE SANCTIFICATION OF THE

TEMPLE OF SAINT JULIA

 

11th of Sigismund's End, 1970

 

 

 

To the Diocese of Casica,

 

It is my great honor to announce, at long last, the completion of the Temple of Saint Juli’el in the Valley of Memories. The architectural expertise of the honorable Count of Azor, and the kind donations that have been made to the Society of Saint Julia over the years, have made what has been a long-standing dream for our diocese a reality.

 

This outdoor temple, constructed in the Owynist style, shall commemorate the guidance of the Mother of Humanity unto the Petrans during the exodus from Almaris and the subsequent reclamation of these lands from the abominable Shuul. We hope that it will safeguard the Stone of Saint Emma and the entirety of the area surrounding Mount Catrinne. Furthermore, being rumored in local folklore to have originated as a blessed sapling from the Garden of Gamesh, we seek to preserve, protect, and reclaim the Aldtree and the land surrounding it as a holy site for the Canonist faith.

 

The consecration of the Temple is to transpire the month of Horen’s Calling at the beginning of the year 1971. This ceremony is to be officiated by myself, Rhosyn Cardinal Casica, and our Archbishop, His Eminence Frantzisko Cardinal Albarosa. All citizens of the Commonwealth are heartily invited and all faithful Canonists in good standing with the diocese are welcome to attend.

 

May God’s blessings be upon you, and may the holy light of His flame illuminate your hearts!

 

 

Signed,

 

RHOSYN CARDINAL CASICA

Bishop of Casica, Prelate of the Priesthood

 

FRANTZISKO CARDINAL ALBAROSA

Archbishop of Albarosa, Vice Chancellor of the Church of the Canon

 

 

Discord: andrewtech101

MC Name: Dixie_Serenade

Skin: Cherry Wine Gown

Bid: 250

Discord: andrewtech101

IGN: Dixie_Serenade

Skin: Cherry Wine Gown

Bid: 230

DISCORD: AndrewTech101

IGN: Dixie_Serenade

SKIN TITLE: Cherry Wine Gown

BID: 100

 

 

DISCORD: AndrewTech101

IGN: Dixie_Serenade

SKIN TITLE: Honey Mead Gown

BID: 50

ON THE LEGEND OF THE

COVENANT OF CASICA

 

 

An Overview of Petran Folklore on the Valley of Casica

9th of Harren's Folly, 1969

 

By

Elizabeth Brae

Former President of the Northern Geographical Society

 

NORTHERN GEOGRAPHICAL ACADEMIC PRESS

 

 

 

 

TABLE OF CONTENTS

I.) Foreword

II.) Dame Catherine of Furnestock

III.) The Petran Civil War

IV.) The Legend of Saint Julia’s Promise

V.) The Aldtree

VI.) Conclusion

 

 

 

 

I.) FOREWORD

 

When I first came to the Commonwealth of the Petra, these lands were still reeling from a devastating civil war. So great was the bloodshed of the Petran Civil War that only a handful of citizens remained. My band of adventurers and scholars came to a realm faced with destitution, though we were enticed by the confident promise of its sovereign that a “promised land” lay on the horizon.

 

I distinctly recall the sense of purpose that the Archduchess had when she led us unto these lands. When I first met her in San Luciano, she seemed doubtful that there would even be a tomorrow. Only after her meeting with Dame Catherine, and her departure, did she seem more confident in the endeavor. Upon our arrival, it seemed as though she knew where she was going. It was as though she knew where we would settle in the end.

 

Being a renowned hermit, I tend to go years without interacting with those citizens that live beyond the riverside town of Chambery. Thus, it surprised me to learn that the veneration of Saint Julia has grown among the Petran common folk since we first arrived here. Upon learning this, I sought to investigate.

 

Thanks to the efforts of Father Sakuraba’s initial mission prior to the establishment of the Society of Saint Julia, many of these records managed to survive the horrific arson of St. Edmond’s Abbey and Furnestock Hall during the Aevos Coalition War. They have been critical to the conducting of my own studies through the use of the scrolls, journals, and records preserved within the local monastery regarding an era of Petran history which I have come to refer to as the “Old Commonwealth.” 

 

The traditional veneration of Saint Emma and Saint Edmond within the Commonwealth is already well known. However, it is not widely known as to why Saint Julia, or “Juli’el” as she is referred to by those of the the Owynist Rite of the Canonist faith, has become such a venerated figure and risen to such prominence as another patron saint of the Petran people within the last generation or so. Since my retirement as President of the Northern Geographical Society, I have striven to piece these disparate sources together into a formal report on that which the Petrans have come to refer to as the “Covenant of Casica.”

 

I must stress that the following study is an overview of both the historical records and oral folk traditions of the Petran people. The legend of the Covenant of Casica is just that, a folk legend, and I make no claim as to the truthfulness of its assertions. While much of this report is grounded in fact and I have sought to cite my sources wherever possible, there are sections which recount the religious folklore and tall tales of the peoples which inhabit these lands. These I cannot attest to the veracity of, namely the validity of Dame Catherine’s visions, but I feel it important to document, on paper, the legend of the Covenant of Casica for posterity regardless.

 

 

 

 

II.) DAME CATHERINE OF FURNESTOCK

 

To understand the legend of the Covenant of Casica, we must first come to understand the life of Dame Catherine of Furnestock, the first Chancellor of the Commonwealth and a founding mother unto it.

 

Before the fall of the Holy Orenian Empire, Princess Catherine, Duchess of Westmark, served as Vice Chancellor under the Penton Ministry. Although she was Princess Imperial and eldest daughter to the Emperor, it was not until the later years of the war that she became involved in the affairs of state. It was her work as an artist, scientist, doctor, philosopher, monster hunter, and poet which had distinguished her beforehand. Only with some reluctance did she accept Henry Penton’s offer to serve in this role, which she claimed to have only done out of duty.

 

In a letter found among the Petran Crown Jewels that was penned to the Margravine of Archisdorf, she wrote the following:

 

“It is often that I ponder how heavy the Crown that my father wears must be. Alas, heavier still does that golden chain of the Chancellor’s office weigh down upon Sir Henry! I would not wish it upon my worst enemy, though even now I fear that I may have to bear it soon enough.”

 

For Catherine, that day never came, as the outbreak of the Brother’s War had necessitated her exile to the furthest reaches of the Cragenmarch. Having lived during that time, I myself fled to my husband’s lands of the Lordship of Du Loc following the dissolution of the Empire. Many historians believe that the decapitation of both the Imperial Crown and the Penton Ministry had left her with little other choice. Being senior in age to her brothers, Catherine’s popularity among the Orenian common folk had led many to believe that she should become the rightful Empress upon her father’s passing. As she was legally third in line to the imperial throne and the sole remaining official of the chancellery regardless, many Petran scholars believe that she feared her brothers Peter and Frederick might both strive to capture her and force her to endorse their claims to further their legitimacy.

 

After the conclusion of the Brother’s War, Catherine returned to what was proclaimed to be the Reformed Kingdom of Oren. Having not raised a sword against either of her brothers during the war, nor sworn any oaths to them, she tirelessly advocated for reconciliation between the Balianese and those Orenians who remained behind. 

 

This, she believed, was her holy mission. For many years later, she would claim to have been visited by Saint Julia in a vision during her brother’s penance walk. She would further claim that the Mother of Humanity had beseeched her to “reunite her family” through the reunification of the Novellen lines, both of the Reformed Kingdom and of the Kingdom of Balian.

 

In a private letter to Johanes van Aert, which was kindly tendered to me in Aaun by the former Duke of Adria himself, she wrote:

 

“When I was a young woman, I accompanied my brother, Frederick, on his penance quest to seek redemption. I wished to see if he was truly earnest in his remorse for what he did to poor Peter and his family... During our last month out in the wilderness, we had spent the night in a cabin as we prepared to return to Vienne. It was there that we were visited by the strangest occurrence that has ever graced my eyes.

 

As we prepared to leave, before us stood Exalted Owyn and Saint Juli'el in what I believe to be the most miraculous of visions. Their likenesses were exactly as depicted on the disparate shrines scattered throughout Almaris, a farfolk man and a woman with a midnight complexion.

 

Exalted Owyn spoke to my brother, telling him of the need for heartlander unity. He explained to us that his holy flame was flickering, and that humanity must be reunited. Without intervention, he said, that flame would die. Likewise, Saint Juli'el beseeched me to bring my family together as one, a matter which I doubt you would have any interest in but which I endeavored to do through the union of my Archduchess and Constanz of Balian.”

 

Though she never shared this revelation until the end of her life for fear of ridicule, this philosophy can be seen reflected in her pro-unity poetry, such as the sentiments on display in The Tapestry is Never Unwoven (1869) and in her philosophical writings regarding the Phoenix Cycle (1880). I cannot attest to the veracity of her claim, or what Catherine of Furnestock may have seen, but it does seem as though whatever transpired shook a known woman of science to her very core.

 

This was not to be though, for the Acre Rebellion and the collapse of the Reformed Kingdom had once again sent her into exile. It was in this exile that she was to remain until the Count of Temesch, Paul Salvian, contacted her to offer her sanctuary within his lands.

 

It was together that Paul Salvian, Regent of the Commonwealth, and the newly knighted Dame Catherine would fashion a knightly republic out of the former mardonlands held by their mutual relative, Princess Maude. Their accomplishments can be found in the chronicles of the Riverbook (1928), which I shan’t discuss in detail. Suffice it to say that being a reluctant Chancellor, the intellectual-turned-politician chose to retire shortly before the events which led to the dissolution of the Harvest Confederacy. 

 

 

 

 

III.) THE PETRAN CIVIL WAR

 

Following the passing of the newly anointed Archduke Paul I, Catherine would once again be called out of retirement to serve as Regent to his young daughter, Renilde. Through the loyal guidance of Sir Thomas of Balamena, Dame Catherine cemented a union between Renilde of the Petra and Prince Constantine of Balian. While outwardly done for political reasons, she would later write the following in a letter to Father Blackwater found within the Monastery of St. Juli’el’s clerical archives during the Petran Civil War:

 

“How elated I was, that our disparate bloodlines would finally be reconciled! That the descendants of my father’s subjects might be brought closer together, and that I might do the bidding of the Mother of Humanity in the process. Perhaps at last, the Phoenix Cycle might be ended and we might seek to build upon the ruins of the past rather than relapse into an endless cycle of destruction.”

 

This was not to be, however, as the uncovering of an affair between the Archduchess Renilde and Prince Marius of Haense would spark a chain of events that would lead to the Archduke-Consort, Prince Constantine of Balian, taking up arms against the archducal coronet during the Petran Civil War. Having been a denizen of Haense during that time following the abandonment of Du Loc, I heard many heated words about the conflict at the time but did not myself witness it.

 

Wrought with despair, Catherine deplored the idea of witnessing the unfolding of a third bloody civil war within the heartlands in less than sixty years. At the urging of Petra’s most preeminent priest, Father Blackwater, and an unknown elven figure, she intervened in an attempt to negotiate an accord between the two sides and preserve what she saw to be Julia’s peace. She argued that any conflict between Renilde’s loyalists and Constance’s retainers would result in devastation so great that it would inevitably end in the Commonwealth’s utter destruction. Though Dame Catherine’s intervention was a promising endeavor that at first yielded many fruits, the attempt at compromise eventually failed following Prince Constance’s withdrawal from the accord at the eleventh hour, a scene which was recorded for posterity by Paul Montalt (1909).

 

Having suffered a physical blow during the chaos which followed, Dame Catherine thereafter became a reclusive hermit. Naught was seen of her for the next decade as she retreated to the Phoenixspire, and the Commonwealth entered a period of severe decline and impoverishment. Although Renilde eventually won the Petran Civil War, her victory was utterly pyrrhic in nature. So weakened was the state of Petra during this time that it lacked any sort of ability to defend itself against the bandits which roamed the countryside throughout the war’s aftermath, not to mention the sizable Mori horde at their doorstep.

 

Many Petrans surmise that the former chancellor had resigned herself to Petra’s fate, awaiting God’s calling to the Seven Skies as that which she and Paul Salvian had worked so hard to build continued to rapidly deteriorate.

 

 

 

 

IV.) THE LEGEND OF SAINT JULIA’S PROMISE

 

It was in the last months of the Commonwealth that Dame Catherine claimed toward the end of her life to have been revisited by Saint Julia, or Juli’el as she referred to her, in a vision. However, this is where the historical record has thus far eluded me and continues to elude my investigation. This is therefore a matter which I have relied heavily on oral tradition, eyewitness accounts, and local folklore to recount.

 

While the details regarding this vision are scarce, she did impart a few of them unto the Archduchess and her chancellor. Thus, I was able to interview both the elderly Queen-Emeritus, Renilde of the Petra, and former chancellor Sir Laurens Halcourt about the matter.

 

The former had the most to say. Having learned of my project, she reached out to me for an interview regarding the content of her meeting with Dame Catherine in the waning days of the descendants’ time on Aevos:

 

“When Dame Catherine came to me in San Luciano, I was shocked to see that she had left her castle! I was, of course, relieved at first that she would be joining the survivors. But she emphasized that she did not intend to stay, thrusting a map into my hands along with a sketch of a rather odd looking tree.

 

She told me that she had received a vision from Saint Julia…- Juli’el, as she referred to her. One which had followed on the heels of something she had seen in her youth!

 

Cat claimed that she had been told by Julia- Again, of all people, that we would be offered redemption as a people, through reclaiming one of God’s great wonders from the pagans and beasts which inhabited Aevos. That we were to drive them from a tree blessed by the saints, a sapling born of the waters of Gamesh that had been planted by the sons of Saint Godwin, and that we would become its stewards!

 

In return for doing so, the old Dame claimed that Julia would deliver unto us the Valley of Casica and all the bountiful blessings which were to come along with it. Here, we would find a home. And it was here that we would be given a chance at a new beginning, to move past our mistakes... My mistakes.

 

But Catherine, the messenger, wasn’t allowed to go. She claimed that she would have to return to Valfleur, to stay behind with a small band of warriors and fight the Mori invaders in Julia’s name. This, she claimed, was to atone for her failure to reunite her family, in the same manner as Owyn atoned for the kinslaying of Harren. But by doing so, the Covenant would be sealed, and the mistakes of the past would be forgiven.”

 

When she had finished imparting these words, the Queen-Emeritus departed to retrieve something from the Petran Crown Jewels. Upon returning, she offered up a beautiful drawn sketch to me, one which bore an uncanny resemblance to the Petran Aldtree, or the “Memory Tree” as it is colloquially known. She claimed that it was drawn by Dame Catherine, a renowned artist, in the aftermath of her vision and was given unto her along with a simplistic map denoting landmarks across Aevos that would lead then unto the promised valley. I have since had the former stenciled to include in my report:

 

 

Upon speaking to Sir Laurens, a man whose family the Petran monarchy has incidentally quarreled with in the recent past and has since emigrated to Hyspia, he surprisingly affirmed what the Queen-Emeritus had told me. He too mentioned the very sketch that had been shown to me, adding:

 

“Oh, av. I remember. Of course, as I’m sure you recall, we were all very sad when Dame Catherine made the decision to remain behind. I admittedly thought that Renilde was crazy at the time, chasing after a tree that had been marked on a map by a very possibly senile old woman! And yet, it seems to have served its purpose...”

 

With these two former leaders having been interviewed, I next chose to interview some of the peasants which live in the countryside to the east of Vallagne. This myth has spread throughout the rural commonfolk like wildfire, although you’ll hardly hear it among the multicultural metropolis by the riverbank.

 

I happened upon one such fellow by the name of Pap Douglas, a nomadic shepherd from the Mardonlands who described the Covenant of Casica in detail:

 

“The Aldtree? Why, it’s been o’er there since the time of me grandpappy, Pappy Douglas, told alluvus young sprouts ‘bout it: Julia’s promise! So long as the cross hangs proud and ‘igh in our church, the meadows will ne’er fail to givvus the blessed crop we feast ‘pon. Mistakes ‘ave been made, av, but s’long as we love our fella’ brother, and break bread, not bone, then we’ll do right by God and be all the gooder for it.”

 

Another fellow whom I encountered, this one a farmer by the name of Kettle Weller from Solland, also added:

 

“Sure, th’ shepherds are all high an’ mighty about ‘ow green their bloody meadows are… But th’ vineyards o’ Solland are really somethin’ to boast about! Blessed be th’ Lord fer all th’ many great harvest we’ve had o’er the years. I remember m’ pop takin’ me up to tha’ beautiful tree and tellin’ me all ‘bout it being a sign of Saint Julia’s promise, an’ about how his pops fought wi’ the loyalists durin’ the Civil War. An’ he told me about the famines o’ Valfleur, and ‘ow they were ne’er to be repeated again so long as we remain true t’ God and dunnae forget th’ mistakes o’ our forefathers.”

 

It therefore seems as though the tree's supposedly blessed nature is viewed by some among the local peasantry as having contributed to the prosperity of the meadowlands. However, I do myself believe this to be more the superstition of the local peasantry rather than anything else. The geography of Mount Catrine seems more likely to be of encouragement to the abundant rainfall within the valley rather than any supernatural force.

 

 

 

 

V.) THE ALDTREE

 

One of the great mysteries and controversies of the Casican meadows is that of the Aldtree, or “Memory Tree,” the massive trunk of which towers over the peaceful valley of Casica. It is further known for the magical pool which encircles the tree. This pool is so renowned because, upon dipping one’s self into it, all the memories of one’s life may be recalled clearly to mind.

 

The adoration of the Aldtree by the Petrans is not something that is widely shared throughout the heartlands of man. Some outsiders beyond the Commonwealth have claimed that since it was a pagan symbol for generations, and because many druids have gone out of their way to incidentally venerate and protect the tree, it should be burned or otherwise destroyed so as to discourage pagan worship. Others believe that the supernatural properties of the pool which surrounds it must be instilled by a horror that lurks beneath!

 

However, Dame Catherine’s claim and Petran folklore regarding the legend of the Covenant of Casican may offer another explanation, as might the archeological record which our Society has already sought to document in the Kingdom of Aaun on the heels of our excavation of the Warren of Crown and Compass (1943) and the subsequent discovery of the Mer-King’s Crown.

 

To the east of the valley of Casica, the Aaunic Crownlands are host to a wide array of ruins. Scholars from the Northern Geographical Society and the Kingdom of Aaun alike have found ample evidence to suggest that they were first erected by the ancient Godwinites, who themselves migrated to ancient Aevos from the lands of Aegis. The presence of these ruins do admittedly correlate with Dame Catherine’s claim that the Aldtree could, in actuality, have been planted by these ancient Godwinites. Thus, it is possible that it may indeed be descended from the flora which filled the Garden of Gamesh in which Horen received the Scroll of Virtue. 

 

Thus, to the Petran people, the Aldtree’s strange properties are far from fundamentally unnatural. They instead believe them to be miraculous in nature, with the tree itself being a relic from the time of Exalted Horen. They further believe that the pool which surrounds it has been blessed by Saint Julia so that the people of the valley might not forget who they are, or where they came from. Additionally, they reason that if this tree is indeed of a miraculous nature, blessed by God and the saints, then it must be protected and preserved as a sign of the covenant that Saint Julia made with Dame Catherine.

 

It is further worth noting that Sir Laurens also mentioned the early skirmishes against a beastly menace of an unholy nature known as “the Shuul'' during our interview. The Archduchess’s son, Prince Paul of the Petra (1939), documented the onset of these skirmishes which he was dispatched by the Throne of Garmont to quell. Already held in high esteem by the Petran people and doubtless being aware of the Covenant's legend, the Riverguard and knights of the Commonwealth took to the sword against the beastly menace that had nested near the Aldtree. Those Frankish tribesmen which had not already been expelled by the Minitzers were also barred from the region in the following years, slowly fading into the chronicles of history. Since then, the region has been quietly treated as a nature reserve, with future plans to build Canonist shrines and temples in the area. Many proponents of the Covenant legend point to these conflicts as further affirming the supposed prophecy.

 

Of course, these claims are not something which I can myself attest to the veracity of. It is, of course, impossible to discern the Aldtree’s true origins. It would therefore be my recommendation that further inquiries and studies be made into the history and nature of the Aldtree. Regardless, this is what the people of the meadowlands believe, and it is a belief which I believe should be properly articulated and documented.

 

 

 

 

VI.) CONCLUSION

 

In writing this study, I hope to provide further insight into the folk legend of the Covenant of Casica for those who live within and beyond the Commonwealth. While admittedly fond of the notions it presents, I myself do not claim to speak to the truthfulness of this mythology. Furthermore, I do not claim to represent the beliefs of the greater Northern Geographical Society beyond myself on the matter, though I have published this hybrid of an anthropological and character study through the kindly use of its press.

 

And yet, as with all legends, there is likely at least the slightest bit of underlying truth. Regardless of whether or not it is, this legend provides hope and optimism to the descendants of the heartlandic peoples that have settled the area. I have felt it to be my duty as a scholar to put pen to paper and record this folklore for all posterity.

 

I offer this study as a final thank you to the Queen-Emeritus, for I suspect that this shall likely be the last scholastic work that I will pen before my passing. Should this be so, then I would thank the kind Petrans for their patronage unto our Flagship Museum and the town of Chambery for so many years. I am grateful for their support in protecting and preserving one of the great wonders of the world, and for enabling the organization which I once presided over to dream once more of expanding internationally.

 

May the people of these lands find the prosperity that they so desire, and may the legend of the Covenant of Casica and Saint Julia's promise offer them hope for the future.

CENSUS
ECCLESIASTICUS

 

 

AN OFFICIAL CENSUS OF THE

CANONIST PRIESTHOOD

 

8th of Godfrey's Triumph, 1966

 

 

ISSUED BY

RHOSYN CARDINAL CASICA

Prelate of the Priesthood

 

 

TO ALL PRIESTS OF THE HOLY MOTHER CHURCH,

 

May God’s blessings be upon you!

 

By the order of the Curia, we have deemed it fit and just to issue a Census Ecclesiasticus that is to be held within the ranks of the priesthood. This census shall provide valuable insight into both the future High Pontiff Caius I and to the Curia itself regarding the Church’s demographics as well as the health of our many dioceses. Furthermore, it shall also assist us in preparing and affirming a voter roll of the Church’s active and present clergy for the upcoming Synod.

 

Please find a form attached to this missive. We request that you fill it out and tender it to the Office of the Prelate of the Priesthood at the soonest possible convenience.

 

Thank you, and may God bless.

 

 

[!]

Copies of the missive would be delivered to cathedrals, churches, and monasteries throughout the seven dioceses of Canondom. Response forms to be filled out by clergymen of the Church would be delivered alongside them:

 

 

LUX IN TENEBRIS

 

 

 

A SERMON

Given in the Ruins of St. Edmond’s Abbey

1965

 

 

There comes a time when we all must face the darkness of the night.

 

Although that darkness comes in many different forms, it is nonetheless something that we have all had to face. Be it a journey down an unlit road, the death of a loved one, or an ongoing struggle within one’s very soul, we have all struggled at one point or another with the grim realities of our world.

 

Today, a very real and tangible darkness lurks in the crevices of Canondom. Liches, the cursed, necromancers, the undead, and vampires abound every which way. The worst of these is the vile Gashadokuro, a foul creature that has already inflicted endless pain and suffering. 

 

Each day, they grow more restless. Every day, they seek to further their schemes against the realms of Man. And now, the Vicar of God has fallen at the hands of the Undine, the penultimate atrocity in a string of ghoulish tragedies engineered by the Deceiver and his minions. Although the wrechful creature which committed this vile act has been slain in righteous vengeance, and may God's divine agent Raguel be praised for it, the problem remains.

 

Many have come to lose hope as the world bleeds. I speak of this bleeding quite literally, for these past decades of war have taken countless lives from their loved ones. Yet this bleeding is also spiritual, and it brings me great sorrow to admit that the humanity that we have inherited from our fathers is now but a shadow of its former self.

 

The realms of man have reeled from a sickness of the heart which has festered for the longest time. Many have been loath to diagnose it, while others have simply swept it under the rug. We have lost our confidence, as a people. We have lost our pride, as a race. We have lost the ambition to better ourselves. We have lost our way.

 

Today, we find ourselves completely and utterly divided. Even before the time of Exalted Godfrey, humanity was never so splintered as we now find ourselves. We have blamed each other for our troubles, and we have not risen to the challenge as our forefathers did.

 

We bicker about love, and we bicker about war. We bicker about the Exalted and the Saints. We bicker about the direction of mankind and yet have done nothing to correct our flagrantly wayward path. And we bicker about who is our friend and who is our foe. Indeed, it might be said that we bicker about everything under the sun. 

 

In doing so, we have neglected our common enemy, those creatures which lurk in the night. But what is worse is that we have neglected the darkness which has consumed our own very hearts.

 

Like a traveler lost on a moonless night, we have lost ourselves. And yet, despite it all, there is still hope. For within every heart, there is a light. A flame, which all the virtuous carry within them.

 

In the Scroll of Virtue, Exalted Owyn says,

 

 

“Verily, brother, the Lord GOD is the wisest GOD, and he knows all things, in darkness, in light, in the din of the market, in the silence of the mind.” -Gospel 3:16

 

 

This, of course, means that God is omniscient and knows all things. But I believe that this passage is also a warning that in these trying times, we must not succumb to our ignorance. We must not be quick to make new enemies where they did not once exist.

 

Verily, I tell you the truth, the Deceiver delights when we are wayward. He rejoices when the faithful are at odds. He loves when that flame which resides within every heart is snuffled by our own hands.

 

But in darkness, there is always a light. And we must never forget that each of the Exalted sought to bring humanity together, in common purpose. Within each human soul is a candle that burns, with the potential to be stoked and fostered into a torch.

 

And when brought together as one, that light can never be undone.

 

Let our common purpose be the repulsion of this ignorance. Let Canondom join together to dispel the great storm which has overcome us. Let us set aside our differences and unite to drive away the enemy at our gates, that which is truly foul.

 

Help your brothers where you can, and do not be afraid of the dark. For together, we are strong. United, we are powerful. But divided, we shall fall. This is what Exalted Godfrey understood so well, and it is what we must understand now as we rise to face the challenge before us.

 

May the light of our Lord guide us, be it found in the fire of our hearths or in the stars of the night sky. And may he lead us to victory over the darkness, that humanity might not be lost unto us.

 

 

Written and Delivered by

Rhosyn Cardinal Casica

"That poor lad must bear such a burden upon his shoulders. I hope this enables him to able to find his peace," An old sorceress remarked as she heard rumors of this.

I think I agree with most everything you've said here. Honestly, I believe that staff should start by 1.) publishing activity data again and 2.) enforcing activity checks to try to get this problem of overbloat under control.

 

I also think it might be healthy to distinguish different types of nations as well though. For instance, all nations, no matter their size, are currently considered to be "realms." Last map, settlements existed as well, which were traditionally very easy to create but didn't enjoy the same privileges as a nation.

 

To correct this problem of overbloat, I would propose the return of settlements. Settlement status should theoretically be as easy to get as a realm in the current application process. However, settlements should only be allowed to hold a single tile under this classification. To incentivize remaining a settlement, I would suggest dropping upkeep to 100 minas for their tile.

 

A separate application for nations, or realms if you really wanted to keep the name, should be implemented to be able to have a multi-tile nation. If you grow to the point that you can afford bringing on vassals or buying more land, then it should be easy to compete in a more rigorous applicatory environment and pay more maintenence dues.

 

By reclassifying all of these one-tile states as settlements, nation overbloat will diminish, and new nations will be disincentivized from forming outright.

I remember back in the prehistoric era when there were only like, five or six racial nations. But they weren't boring like you'd think they would be. Rather, almost all of these nations had vassals or settlements within them of some sort that each interacted with one another to contribute to the narrative. Rebellions happened yeah, but they created roleplay, and it was so hard to wage a successful one due to so many active groups being within these large nation-states.

 

All these different groups interacted together and created stories together, because they were in the same roleplaying ecosystem. It's easier to remain in your own little ecosystem, but contributing to a wider one bring more fun and satisfaction.

 

Now we don't have any "big" nations with diversity like this anymore. Instead, we have 24 smaller states, at least 12 of which would have been settlements under a larger nation like Oren (gone) or Malinor (gone) or Urguan (severely depleted). Coincidentally, roleplay quality has also gone down the tubes because groups don't interact with each other, leaving slice of life RP or PvP activities to be the only alternatives. Both of which are poor replacements for dynamic, narrative driven roleplay empowered by interesting characters.

 

16 hours ago, Reckless Banzai Screamer said:

There's some great things in being a vassal and having your group being apart of a community greater than itself and the world building you can accomplish with it, something folks seem to lack appreciation for. It's way more comfy being a vassal with your homies.

 

I 100% agree with this. You don't have to be an NL to enjoy roleplaying with your friends. In fact, I'd argue that the "townie" mindset the server tends to have is very harmful. It can often be a lot more impactful and memorable to do something on a smaller scale within a nation as a guild, or an organization, or a small vassal that fulfills a niche while still being able to roleplay in a nation capital and benefit from high activity levels and recruitment opportunities for their own projects...

 

7 hours ago, Ibn Khaldun said:

If you are sincerely interested in trying to roll a snowball into an avalanche & introduce a substantive & lasting culture or polity, playing as a vassal ensures you have a source of active players to interact with and let members of your culture/polity develop characters vis-a-vis interactions with said larger pool of active players (the nation you are a vassal under).

 

...Which brings me to this. Being part of another nation isn't shameful. In fact, it can be symbiotic and mutually beneficial to your group and theirs! And if your group ends up being absorbed into that nation, it really isn't a big deal so long as they're having fun and creating compelling narratives. We play on this server to make stories and have fun with our friends, at least in theory, and geopolitical roleplay should be only one aspect of that.

 

Also, these many nations would probably do a lot better if they weren't all inactive square-like megacities. For the love of all that's good, if you're a small nation PLEASE make a build for a small nation. Don't build Johannesburg when you have a group of 12 players, build a village or town!

 

TLDR: Too many nations, nation bloat bad. Reject mega-kingdom, return to vassal village or guild!

 

 

MC Name: Dixie_Serenade

 

Discord: AndrewTech101

 

Image: 

 

Description of Image: A sketch drawn in roleplay as a gift from the Queen of Petra to my character and her mentor. Will hang framed in her office IRP as a keepsake.

 

Dimensions: 1x1

MC Name:

         Dixie_Serenade

 

Character's Name:

         Rhosyn

 

Character's Age:

         29

 

What feat(s) will you be learning?

         Alchemy

 

Teacher's MC Name:

         AlexMagus

 

Teacher's RP Name:

         Sister Catherine

 

Do you agree to keep Story updated on the status of your feat app?:

         Yes.

 

Have you applied for this feat on this character before, and had it denied? If so, link the app:

         No.

 

Are you aware that if this feat is shelved, it will be unavailable to use?

         Yes.

 

STUDIUM DUX

ECCLESIASTICAE

 

 

AN ACOLYTE’S GUIDE TO THE PRIESTHOOD AND

STUDYING FOR EXAMINATIONS

 

10th of Harren's Folly, 1957

 

 

AUTHORED BY

RHOSYN CARDINAL CASICA

Prelate of the Priesthood

 

 

I.) INTRODUCTION

 

Greetings, acolyte! If you are reading this, then you’ve probably either an interest in, or have already decided to, dedicate yourself to joining the priesthood of the Holy Mother Church.

 

The path which lays ahead of you is a blessed one. Being ordained to the Priesthood of Owyn to perform our holy sacraments is one of the greatest honors to be had within Canondom. As an ordained priest, you will one day become a guardian of the very soul of humanity in the same tradition as that of Evaristus and Clement. However, you will first have to prove that you possess a thorough understanding of the Holy Scrolls, Canon Law, and theology before you receive the sacrament of ordination. In recent years, this has been done through administering a rigorous test to gauge the knowledge of candidates for the priesthood and affirm their qualifications therein.

 

This can often be an overwhelming process to those who are unfamiliar with the Mother Church’s many institutions. Therefore, in order to better educate acolytes and the public at large about the Church and our faith as a whole, I have decided to publish this study guide for the purpose of providing a clearly defined path to entering the Church and studying for the priesthood examination that you will eventually have to take to join our ranks.

 

While this pamphlet is not meant to be a replacement for a thorough education beneath an experienced clergyman in any way, it is nonetheless a useful resource for any acolyte wishing to learn more about the essentials of our faith.

 

 

II.) THE HOLY SCROLLS

 

If you haven’t already had a chance to properly read them, the Holy Scrolls are an obvious first place to start. Any priest of the Church of the Canon must have a robust understanding not only of what the Holy Scrolls are, but of what each of the Exalted imparted unto humanity as well.

 

These scriptures make up the foundation of our faith and are critical to an acolyte's education. Furthermore, they should be thoroughly discussed with your mentor, as different rites hold differing beliefs. While you needn’t memorize these writings, it is important that you understand what is said within them so that you can minister to your parishioners to a high degree and cite examples from the scriptures to offer guidance to your respective flocks.

 

You should always have a copy of the Scrolls on hand to recite passages and refer to for guidance when ministering to your parish or engaging in missionary work. These are the most important pieces of literature to know, and the ones to which you will most often be referring to throughout your interactions with the laity.

 

 

 

III.) THE CATECHISM

 

The next most critical document to understanding the Faith is the Catechism, which explains the many doctrines and beliefs of a good Canonist. While it has primarily been designed to educate the laity, it is all the more critical that the average clergyman understand these core tenets of our faith.

 

Although the Catechism does not answer all questions about the faith, it does provide answers and guidance regarding its most basic and important tenets. It is a good place for any acolyte to begin their studies due to how it articulately explains the faith. The Catechism should also be kept close to hand by a priest to administer to laity throughout one’s parish or for use in the field as a missionary.

 

 

 

IV.) DOGMA AND PRINCIPLES OF THE CHURCH

 

Beyond the catechism, the Dogma and Principles of the Church can greatly enhance the clerical studies of any prospective acolyte. It is an especially important document that can help acolytes to understand the philosophical underpinnings of our faith. Some of the most important of these include defining the Holy Light of the Godhead and many of the other conceptual definitions that are referred to in theological discourse.

 

 

 

V.) CANON LAW

 

The Codex Iurius Canonici, or Canon Law, constitutes the ecclesiastical legal code of the Church of the Canon. This legal codex defines the responsibilities and duties of various members of the clergy including monastics, priests, bishops, archbishops, cardinals, and even the High Pontiff. It is also the instrument by which the Curia is formally organized.

 

Additionally, Canon Law outlines our tenets of morality within the faith. It provides definitions for various sins and elaborates upon how the Church views various types of magic. As the previous documents provide a foundation for the faith’s theological underpinnings, so too does the Canon Law outline the legal underpinnings of our faith.

 

It is very important that prospective clergy have a sound understanding of Canon Law in conducting their spiritual duties, though they need not know it by memory.

 

 

 

VI.) BEHAVIOR & CONDUCT

 

A priest must always remember that he, or she, is often seen as the most recognizable and approachable representative of the Church within their parish. Even the actions of a traveling cleric may affect the Church’s reputation in either a negative or positive manner. As an ordained member of the priesthood, you must always remember that you are one of God’s ambassadors.

 

It is important to remember that a cleric has three penultimate duties, all of which must be balanced and fulfilled. Their first duty is to God and to the teachings that he has handed down in the form of the Scrolls. Their second is to the High Pontiff and to the ecclesiastical leaders of their local dioceses, the anointed representatives of our Lord and their immediate superiors. Finally, their third is to the spiritual well-being and safety of the flock that they minister to, which God and his representatives have tasked them with attending to and caring for as their shepherd.

 

While this is not a formal part of the examination for the priesthood, it is nonetheless critical that a priest be able to demonstrate both integrity and piety throughout their lives. Failure to demonstrate this integrity during your time as an acolyte, or as a priest thereafter, may be grounds for punishment or dismissal.

 

 

VII.) CONCLUSION

 

While this Study Guide is by no means a comprehensive manual on how to be a good priest, I nonetheless pray that it will serve to inspire and assist prospective acolytes of all rites and traditions within the Church in their studies.

 

Furthermore, it my hope that this “roadmap” of sorts will help those who are interested in a career with the Church and in serving God to get started in the profession. While the process of becoming a priest can certainly seem daunting at times, the Third Sky awaits those who spend a pious life in God’s service.

 

Should any questions be had about the examination or the process of ordainment, I would encourage readers to direct their questions to the Office of the Prelate of the Clergy for further guidance. Those who wish to take the test should also contact them at their leisure.

Before an altar within the ruins of an arsoned Church, a young priest wept relentlessly as she prayed for her mentor's soul throughout the night.

ON THE MONOTHEISM OF OLD MALINOR

 

 

Luis Francesc Jacint-Almeida i Martin 

NORTHERN GEOGRAPHICAL ACADEMIC PRESS

 

8th of Sigismund's End

1951 IC | 155 SA

 

I.) INTRODUCTION AND BACKGROUND

Dear reader,

 

It is widely accepted that the elves of today are a multiconfessional group, with religious affiliation predominantly divided along ethnic lines. These denominations have become irreversibly entrenched, consequent to multiple generations of instability, interethnic conflict and sectarian violence. Below I have provided a cursory overview of these religious groups, listed by prevalence:

 

●       Aspectism is the animistic faith of the wood elves, focusing on the ritual worship of the Wild Gods, the eponymous ‘aspects’ of Cernunnos and Cerridwen. The foundation of Aspectism is the sacredness of the balance of nature, and the religion’s precepts are evangelized by druids, of which there are uncountably numerous sects, known as ‘circles’.

○       Nemiisaeism is the forbidden worship of Nemiisae, the ‘third Aspect’ and a spider goddess, by the otherworldly Mori’quessir. This deity is considered a demon by mainline Aspectists and her followers are largely shunned as cultists who practice blood sacrifice. 

●       Maehr’sae Hiylun’ehya is the nontheistic philosophy of the high elves, centering around the teachings of the ancient prophetess Larihei, with an emphasis on the acquisition of knowledge and the preservation of racial purity. With no particular reverence for any personified high power, this religion has no clergy, with its propagation entrusted to secular teachers and scientists.

○       Ivarilism is a schismatic movement within the Maehr’sae Hiylun’ehya with a greater focus on martial prowess than cleanliness of lineage, adhering to the instructions of Ivarielle Ibarellen. It was primarily practiced in the fallen states of Celian’or and Talar’nor.

 

●       Ancestorism is an ill-defined, general term referring to multiple separate religions practiced by different dark elven ethnoreligious groups, among which the primary linkage is worship or veneration of legendary, ancestral figures.

○       Maehr is the worship of the full pantheon of ancestral dark elves, presided over by the chief gods of Velulaei and Uradras, with each patron ancestor personifying a different domain. This confession is presently adhered to by the Nor-Velythi, the sole dark elven ethnoreligious group with a sovereign state.

○       Shamanism is a foreign orcish tradition, popularized among the dark elves over centuries via a syncretization between Krugmari spirits and elven ancestral souls. Some limited evidence suggests it originates from dark elven slaves resident in Krugmar.

○       Kervira is the exclusive worship of Luara, a moon spirit. Adherents of Kervira consider Renelia, Velulaei’s daughter, to be a prophet. The sacred text of Kervira, the Tir’sae Renelia’onn (common: Law of Renelia) is one of the few extant writings codifying an Ancestorist religion.

 

○       Kheltiruai is the ritual veneration of the triumvirate of Khel, Koltira and Velulaei, who are considered to be living gods rather than ancestral spirits.

○       Azulism is a mysterious philosophy first propagated by Azul, Velulaei’s cursed son, and is generally thought to be extinct.

 

Over the course of my latest research, I have endeavored to chart the history of these developments and formalize an anthropological summary, from the human perspective, of the manifold philosophical movements of the people of Malin.

 

That greater work remains unfinished. However, it has given rise to several secondary questions. Firstly, what predated these traditions, and secondly, how can they be traced back to the historical era of old Malinor, when all elven races stood united under one sovereign realm and a relatively unified system of government?
 

 

 

 

II.) THE FOUR BROTHERS

Though it is most commonly attributed to human confessions (owing largely to the Church of the Canon’s veneration of Horen as the First Prophet), the tale of the Four Brothers is a creation story present in different forms across all four descendant civilizations. The original excerpt describing the Four Brothers and their travails is embedded within the Writings of the Wandering Wizard^[1], the eponymous author being more commonly known as Availer. This is the oldest extant text known to any scholar and a critically important primary source for the primordial history of Aegis, the first realm. This work would later be incorporated into the Church of the Canon’s catechism by way of the Scroll of Gospel^[2], inadvertently leading to its widespread, erroneous identification as a uniquely ‘human’ creation story, despite its original applicability across the mortal races.

 

Significantly, Availer’s chronicle centers around 'the One and Only [...], the merciful Creator of the Seven Skies', who was 'all-knowing', omnipotent^[3] and created the first mortal being by '[blowing] his own breath of existence into [a] hollow shell'. This ‘first mortal being’ - and his later female companion - were the parents of the Four Brothers, of which the eldest was indisputably Malin, followed by Krug, Horen and Urguan. Availer’s histories - at the time of old Malinor central to all descendant races and widely accepted as unimpeachable - clearly pave the way for the development of a set of monotheistic traditions, revolving around the worship of the 'merciful Creator of the Seven Skies'. However, this is evidently not the situation at time of writing. Despite the pan-racial framing of the creation story, of the major confessions only those practiced by humans generally hold the Creator (i.e. God) as the central object of their theology.

 

My first contention is that the elves of old Malinor adhered to a monotheistic faith, as proselytized by Availer, and that mass conversions away from this religion occurred (comparatively recently by historical standards) in the last four centuries. My second argument is that these elven monotheists may still exist in some capacity, potentially as a distinct ethnoreligious group from their kin, given their race’s recorded tendency towards sectarian division.

 

 

 

 

III.) AVAILER AND THE CLOUD TEMPLE

The Wandering Wizard’s inestimable repute within the descendant realms, including amongst the elves of old Malinor, should not be understated. Availer was ‘revered by all who stood in the light’^[4], using his abilities in the mystic arts to protect the mortals of Aegis, who he considered God’s foremost creations. His common name originates as a contraction of the Ancient Elven ‘av’ailer’, directly translating to his sobriquet of ‘wandering wizard’. The significance of this relates to the use of the honorific ‘ailer’ rather than the insulting ‘iler’ to refer to a wizard^[5] - such was his esteem amongst Malin’s progeny that Availer was elevated into a new category above other sorcerers, whose kind were generally not tolerated amongst the elves of antiquity. In the setting of the Holy Princedom of Malinor, the Wandering Wizard offered trusted counsel to High Prince Native^[6], imparting unto him the original law of the elves^[7], and it was generally believed that his true nature (thought to be supernatural) was secreted in the libraries of the city of Laurelin^[8]. By some interpretations, Availer even arranged Native’s union with Soriuss, procuring the elfess’ hand in marriage on the High Prince’s behalf^[9].

 

What is less often discussed about the Wandering Wizard is his zeal in proselytizing a monotheistic belief in the Creator, who he alternately dubbed ‘the Great God of Aegis’ or simply ‘God’ in the shorthand. When a poorly-known dwarven hierophant named Rasun attempted to convert the Urguanites to an alternate pantheon, the Wandering Wizard furiously warned the following^[10]:

 

 

 

“All the people who do not follow the Great God of Aegis shall be branded heretics and a crusade led by the Great Cloud Temple of Aegis shall begin to cleanse the land of your heresy, who are you to create new religions and new gods? When the merciful God gave you life and freedom! Be wary heretics, you do not want the powerful temple [sic] an enemy of your people!”

 

Availer chastising the Rasunites, c. 1300s.

 

 

 

 

With this condemnation, the Rasunite movement ended before it began. This anecdote offers some useful context as to the Wandering Wizard’s strength of belief and how he perceived the worship of other deities amongst the descendants. However, far from considering him a fanatic relegated to the fringes of society, historical evidence suggests that the elves of Malinor perceived Availer as a wise, prophet-like figure, identifying with his teachings.

 

Availer’s castigation of the Rasunites also illustrates the contemporary role of the Cloud Temple of Aegis and its monastic devotees. The Wandering Wizard’s polemic implies that not only was the ancient Cloud Temple dedicated to directly worshiping the Creator (the ‘one God’ mentioned in his monotheistic instruction), but that the Monks were committed to preserving this religion’s integrity by force of arms. This represents a significant departure from any modern understanding of the Cloud Temple as neutral, universal healers focused mainly on non-denominational charity, instead depicting them as militaristic enforcers of the faith. Moreover, the prospect of a crusade against religious nonconformists suggests that the Cloud Temple had the requisite sway among the descendant nations to call them to battle for this purpose - a task that would be laughable without some degree of monotheistic consensus and a doctrinal alignment towards Availer’s teachings.

 

Consequently, the Wandering Wizard’s well-documented later conflict with the Ascended, the clergy of Aeriel, can be interpreted through a different lens. Theologians of most traditions generally consider Aeriel to be an Aengul, and therefore, a servant of the Creator (as far as he is acknowledged in these traditions). However, it is similarly accepted that the Ascended worshiped Aeriel as a god. In his journal, Availer paints a highly unflattering picture of the Ascended, accusing them of ignoring his counsel and retreating from the world to study the mystics of their patron^[11]. While the Wandering Wizard considered that the Ascended’s charge was to protect the descendant realms from the mischiefs of the Deceiver - and was evidently willing to temporarily tolerate their religious disagreements for this cause’s expediency - it is apparent he grew to believe that they had become indolent and enthralled in esoteric practices^[12]. Availer’s indifference towards Aeriel and avowed hostility towards the worship of other deities (including the Creator’s own Aenguls) further contextualizes his prophet-like role among the descendant nations of Aegis, suggesting that his monotheistic beliefs were widespread in realms like Malinor, where he retained outsized influence.

 

 

 

 

IV.) LISSAR’S RECONSTRUCTION

Recovering the Ancient Tongue of the Elves, the seminal work of Aerin Lissar and the primary source today for the Ancient Elven language^[13], further illuminates this position from a linguistic perspective. First published circa IC 1319 at the time of the Holy Princedom of Malinor under the rule of High Prince Native, this text was the result of decades of contemporary archaeological research on the tongue spoken by Malin and his immediate companions. It is worth noting that Availer’s religious writings consider Ancient Elven (as spoken by Malin) as the first language formulated by the mortal descendants^[14], though there exists a reasonable argument that Lissar’s academic reconstruction may contain certain dialectal variations from its precursor. In any case, it is Lissar’s Ancient Elven that is largely adhered to by the elves of today.

 

Of particular significance is Lissar’s explanation for the Ancient Elven word for ‘sky’, that being ‘(a)caele’. With a plural suffix affixed, this word becomes ‘caelan’, which translates directly to ‘skies’ and indirectly, in Lissar’s view, to 'the Seven Skies, and with that, God'. Additionally, the author makes reference to the honorific prefix of ‘a-’, without which the word becomes 'disrespectful or insulting'. Lissar also mentions the phrase ‘Acaelan ahereh naean'leh’ (Common: Skies [God] favor you) as a common expression in Ancient Elven at the time of the Holy Princedom, likely cognatic with the modern human ‘God bless’ or ‘God speed’.

 

These linguistic elements establish that the elves of Malinor had a clear conception of the same monotheistic God deified by Availer, identifying this Creator specifically with the ‘[Seven] Skies’ referenced in his writings. However, what role specifically this relationship with God played in their civilization and how it diverged into the elven polytheism of the present day both warrant further investigation. Given their endonymous use of the word ‘Acaelan’, I will tentatively refer to the practice of elven monotheism in old Malinor as Acaelanism and its adherents as Acaelanites.

 

 

 

 

V.) THE MOOT OF 1314

The greater portion of elven records covering the period between Malin and the last days of the Holy Princedom of Malinor were lost with the burning of the Great Library of Laurelin. However, enough sources remain to piece together a vague history of the Druidic Order and their embrace of the dual aspects of Cerridwen and Cernunnos.

 

The first written reference to Cerridwen and Cernunnos occurred around IC 1314, in a summons by Archdruid Petyr calling his coreligionists to a conclave, or ‘moot’^[15]. The ostensible purpose of this moot was to discuss the dreams which had plagued all senior members of the Druidic Order. The meeting’s outcome was that the Order would subsequently adopt the sole worship of the Aspects, who had been divinely ‘revealed’ to the hierophants through their visions. This established the Aspects as the primary deities within the druidic tradition, laying the foundations for a form of proto-Aspectism birthed in the context of Aegis’ cataclysmic final century.

 

However, prior to the Moot of 1314, Cerridwen and Cernunnos had never once been mentioned in druidic theology - much less considered gods in their own right. Far from being worshiped since time immemorial, the Aspects were new innovations, derived entirely from dreams. The themes which the Wild Gods would come to represent - chiefly the preservation of the balance and beauty of the natural world - had always been present within the druidic consciousness, but never personified as independent deities. This raises the question of what theistic beliefs were espoused in druidic teachings between the days of Malin and the Moot of 1314.

 

 

 

 

VI.) THE DRUIDIC ORDER AND THE HOLY PRINCEDOM

It may be useful to contextualize the role of the mainline druids in the Holy Princedom’s society. Initially, the Druidic Order served as priests, teachers and advisors within Malinor, and its members were predominantly of the elven race. They enjoyed high status and were revered throughout the realm as moral custodians and religious leaders, to the point where Lissar’s Ancient Elven lexicon describes the denigratory word ‘iler’ as applicable to any sorcerer ‘not a druid’, and therefore a ‘heretic’^[16]. However, after accumulating substantial temporal power, the Order grew increasingly corrupt and became highly unpopular amongst lay elves.

 

Some time following the Moot of 1314, the Druidic Order suffered a series of irreversibly damaging political scandals, with the High Prince permanently confiscating the council seats reserved for senior druids. Ebs Telrunya, an official of the Holy Princedom’s government at the time and a primary source for these events, writes of the Order’s headquarters being ‘a pit of filth and crime’, which was ‘all but sanctioned, and most certainly indulged in, by [Archdruids] Respiren and Dusk’^[17].

 

By IC 1344, relations between the Holy Princedom and the Order had become untenable, representing the final break of the mainline druids from elven political society. When Archdruid Arik attempted to publicly berate High Princess Sythra Duskwind over a minor dispute^[18], she simply declared:

 

 

 

“You spout insults and then attempt to make a case with [sic] 'caring' for the forests. [...] You lost your pull with Malinor when the [council] seat of your insane Archdruid was removed. I was there for that decision. [...] The order has become corrupt and misguided. You have no influence here - not until you can speak with reason. Long ago, the druids were advisers and caretakers. Now they speak with venom, insults, and threats. You will be treated as any other order who does the same.”

 

 

High Princess Sythra Duskwind, spoken at Normandor, c. 1344.

 

 

 

 

These events hastened the separation of the Druidic Order from the state of Malinor, with the majority of druids going into exile to establish their own semi-independent petty theocracies (also known as ‘circles’), which largely remains the case today. The consequence of this was a long tradition of de facto secularism within Malinor and its immediate successor states, with no organized faith or dedicated religious leaders until the Irrinites^[19] of the Principality of Laurelin formally codified modern Aspectism and established their own circle (inexplicably intertwined with that realm) in the early 1500s.

 

 

 

 

VII.) ACAELANISM’S DECLINE AND THE PARTITION OF MALINOR

Between the time of Malin and the Moot of 1314, the prevailing religion of the Holy Princedom of Malinor was a syncretic faith blending elven monotheism and pre-Aspectist proto-druidic traditions, and this philosophy can aptly be called Acaelanism. Historical evidence suggests that the Acaelanites primarily worshiped an omnipresent, omnipotent and omniscient God (as proselytized by Availer), believing that the natural world was attributable to this Creator, represented by the ‘[Seven] Skies’ in both a literal and otherworldly sense. The regard in which the elves of Aegis held Availer (and vice-versa) suggests that Malinor’s formal status as the ‘Holy’ Princedom was reflective of their theological role as the guardians of nature, interpreted as ‘God’s Creation’ in the temporal world.

 

The Moot of 1314 resulted in the Druidic Order adopting the veneration of Cerridwen and Cernunnos to the exclusion of the Creator, and when these religious leaders departed Malinor shortly thereafter, the remnants lacked the institutional knowledge or political will to revive Acaelanite practices in any organized form. The new generation of elves in Malinor following the Druidic Order’s self-imposed exile were generally raised in no particular tradition, with little to no instruction in confessions either Acaelanite or Aspectist. Though some limited evidence suggests that foreign religions such as the Temple of Tahariae were able to gain a minority foothold amongst certain elven communities, most elves of Malinor and its successor states adhered to secular practices until Artimec Camoryn’s revival of a codified Aspectism^[20] in the Laurelin of the 1500s^[21]. This ‘gap in learning’ was the first of multiple factors in Acaelanism’s decline.

 

Hitherto I have referred only to the broad classification of ‘elves’, with no distinction of ethnic group, on account of the Holy Princedom’s position as a unified, pan-elven realm. Firstly, at this time, the cultural differences between wood, high and dark elves were substantially less pronounced than they are today. Secondly, the precursors to modern wood elves unquestionably constituted the majority of Malinor’s population, and it was this group that held the most cultural and political influence in the realm. This illustrates the second contributing factor to the decline of Acaelanism - the creation of separate ethnoreligious identities amongst the high and dark elves, the entailing partition of the Holy Princedom and the death knell of elven unity.

 

The aforementioned ‘gap in learning’ in the last century of Malinor created a space for new confessions, specifically those founded on divergent groups virulently opposed to any conception of a single elven state. Having rediscovered the ancient teachings of Larihei and the Maehr’sae Hiylun’ehya, most high elves of Malinor emigrated en masse from the Holy Princedom to form their own ethnostate built on these nontheistic ideals. This polity, known as the Silver State of Haelun’or, had achieved functional independence from Malinor from around IC 1335^[22]. The small minority of high elves who rejected the Maehr’sae Hiylun’ehya and refused to emigrate became, in practice, culturally indistinguishable from the wood elven majority of Malinor, eventually fully assimilating.

 

A distinct dark elven nationalism developed much more incrementally over the ensuing period, with most dark elves remaining an ethnic minority within Malinor and its successor states. However, this was substantially preceded by the establishment of a proto-Ancestorist religion centered around the worship of Velulaei, which by IC 1380 (at the latest) had taken firm root amongst dark elves around the known world^[23]. While clearly present in Malinor, this proto-Ancestorism had little appeal to the wood elven majority of that state, who would continue in their largely secular practices. Records suggest that the first independent dark elven polity of the modern era, Darkhaven, was established^[24] outside of the Holy Princedom around IC 1394.

 

The stratification of Malin’s descendants into well-defined, separate ethnic groups eventually led to late-stage Malinor’s identification as a primarily wood elven state rather than a pan-elven one. The adoption of the Maehr’sae Hiylun’ehya and proto-Ancestorist philosophies amongst the high and dark elves respectively led to the full elimination of Acaelanite practices amongst these groups. No such national religious movements would occur amongst the wood elves until much later. Political division allowed for the brutal partition of the Holy Princedom in the 1400s, with its manifold successors (for example, the Principality of Laurelin) typically exclusively wood elven in their cultural character. Acaelanism was further diminished by the irreligious climate of the wood elven states, culminating in the Irrinites under Camoryn formally putting the matter of elven monotheism to rest with their embrace of a codified, polytheistic Aspectism in IC 1559^[25].

 

 

(High Prince Native, depicted with a stylized representation of the Mother Tree of Laurelin.)

 

 

Many elves educated prior to the Moot of 1314 continued to express their faith in Acaelan in their written testimony. In an account of the world a century prior, High Prince Native (himself a former druid) makes reference to the Creator regarding Aegis as ‘the land that birthed His creations’ and subsequently granting the descendants the boon of ‘soulstones’^[26]. Moreover, following his abdication from the office of High Prince, Native spent fifty years ordained as a monk of the Cloud Temple^[27], an organization established under an avowedly monotheistic tradition. Conversely, Telrunya^[28] (who likely possessed some Acaelanite beliefs in his time as an administrator of old Malinor) describes the Creator in detached, purely academic terms by IC 1532^[29], suggesting that many others converted away or otherwise distanced themselves from monotheism over the centuries. Despite this, Telrunya’s writings are replete with Acaelanite motifs, such as his thematic focus on the ‘Skies’ (Ancient Elven: Acaelan), perhaps reflective of ingrained practices unaltered by his shift to de facto agnosticism later in life.

 

 

 

 

VIII.) ACAELANITE TRADITIONS AND PRACTICES

Though this provides the necessary context as to the historical decline of Acaelanism, it does not offer enough insight as to its practices and traditions. Given the great proportion of records lost with the burning of the Great Library of Laurelin, any scholarship to this effect must be caveated on the basis of hypothesis, predominantly reliant on extrapolation from the few primary sources that remain.

 

In contrast to Horen’s preeminent role in Canonism, Malin is barely mentioned in most modern elven traditions. For example, in the setting of the Maehr’sae Hiylun’ehya, he is little more than a teacher (and subsequent rival) of Larihei. Likewise, most dark elf faiths hold Malin to be solely the father of Velulaei, playing no other role in their ancestor worship than as her sire. Wood elven Aspectist teachings focus on Malin’s role as a prophet of the Aspects, a proposition for which there exists no documentary evidence authored any time prior to Camoryn’s revivalist movement^[30]. Indeed, contemporary accounts from Availer reflect that Malin adhered to the worship of the Creator, as did his brothers.

 

Unfortunately, the evidence for Malin’s role within the Acaelanite religion is highly inconsistent. Certain human sources from the Savoyard Kingdom of Oren^[31] imply that the wood elves worshiped Malin as a deity, a practice that could have naturally evolved from an Acaelanite interpretation of the First Elf as an incarnation of the Creator. However, this is undermined by the relatively nontheistic, pre-Camoryn state of wood elven civilization at the time of these sources, suggesting that this may have been propaganda in the context of wartime hostilities. Conversely, much older records refer to Malin with religious undertones, with High Prince Native frequently entreating him to ‘bless Aegis’^[32] in the valedictions^[33] of public statements. The same author dubs Malin as the ‘ancestor and deity’ of all elves in a separate account^[34].

 

Nevertheless, if Acaelanism is postulated to rest on Availer’s teachings, it remains very difficult to reconcile these foundations with any interpretation of Malin as an incarnation of the Creator. We have already touched upon the Wandering Wizard’s hostility to any doctrine resembling polytheism, making it unlikely that any religion proselytized by him directly worshiped Malin as a deity. From a linguistic perspective, Lissar understood the word ‘Malin’ to be a byword for ‘Father of the Elves’, while also directly translating to ‘king’ in the sense of an otherworldly sovereign^[35]. It is worth noting that subsequent temporal kings amongst the elves, across all ethnoreligious groups, distinguished themselves from this concept through use^[36] of either the label ‘Mortal King’^[37] or the more pedestrian ‘uthir’^38] (a sort of administrator who rules by decree), suggesting a deeply ingrained aversion to any practice that might symbolically supplant Malin’s role as the ‘[immortal] King’ resident in the heavens (i.e the Seven Skies). Tracing the origin of these long-held customs back to ancient Malinor - the last common ancestor of these diverse ethnoreligious groups - it appears that the Acaelanites interpreted Malin as both a sacred ancestor and prophet-ruler, achieving eternal life in the Skies by virtue of his favored role as first of the Four Brothers^[39] and therefore the first descendant worshiper of the Creator, known in their tongue as Acaelan.

 

Accordingly, as the foremost icon of the Father of the Elves, the sword of Malin^[40] (Ancient Elven: Sil Malin’leh) likely held a degree of symbolic significance to the Acaelanites. Long after the decline of any monotheistic tradition amongst the wood elves, Sil Malin’leh was used as a ceremonial idol in the rituals of those aligned with the cause of elven unity^[41]. Significantly, Sil Malin’leh was also one of the four ‘Golden Relics’ sought by the Ascended in the time of Availer^[42], and so the symbolism surrounding it also provides some commentary as to the role of Aenguls in Acaelanite theology. According to the historian Martin Benedict, Sil Malin’leh was bestowed upon Malin by the Aengul Gavrael (stated explicitly to be a servant of the Creator) in the context of the war against Iblees^[43]. The same relic would later be bequeathed to High Prince Native, the most prominent Acaelanite on record, in the final years of Malinor. Benedict’s account of Sil Malin’leh - a national myth widely accepted as factual by wood elves over successive centuries, regardless of creed - is heavily embedded with Acaelanite themes^[44], reflecting a residual monotheistic heritage well into the zenith of the polytheistic Aspectism. Consequently, it can be deduced that the Acaelanites of ancient Malinor held Aenguls to be messengers and agents of the Creator, in line with Availer’s instruction.

 

 

(A hypothesized Acaelanite standard^[45].)

 

 

The true nature of Availer presents another conundrum for any study of Acaelanite beliefs. Though there exist few reliable sources contemporary to the era of Malinor confirming it, in the time since, numerous theologians across multiple monotheistic confessions have come to the understanding that Availer was himself an Aengul^[46]. It seems a reasonable proposition that this was the Wandering Wizard’s ‘true nature’, secreted within the libraries of the Holy Princedom’s sacred Mother Tree^[47]. With this in mind, Acaelanite theology presumably considered Availer to be the foremost of the Aenguls, responsible for conveying the will of the Creator amidst the descendants. By extension, the Cloud Temple monks were likely perceived by the Acaelanites as quasi-clergy dedicated to the worship of the Creator, with providence over life and death through the allegorical mechanism of ‘soulstones’. Acaelanite sources attributing soulstones specifically as a blessing of the Creator^[48] suggests that their practices may have included some conception of reincarnation and attributed a doctrinal significance to these soulstones.

 

The initial role of the Druidic Order in Acaelanism clearly evolved over time. Given Native’s early training under the supervision of Archdruid Respiren, it is probable that the druids were initially monotheistic, charged with the preservation of harmony in the natural Creation (in line with Acaelanite beliefs) and consequently respected as teachers. Documentary evidence suggests that the Mother Tree of Laurelin, created from druidic magic, was of great spiritual significance to the elves of ancient Malinor^[49] and so was by extension considered sacred in Acaelanite teachings. We are able to infer from Telrunya’s account^[50] that after the Moot of 1314 and their later exile from Malinor, the mainline druids were considered apostates by the Acaelanites, for whom the Holy Princedom was central to their praxis.

 

Consequently, we can surmise a summary of the practices and traditions of Acaelanism as follows:

 

●       The monotheistic belief in the Creator, also known as God and rendered in Ancient Elven as Acaelan, an omnipresent, omnipotent and omniscient deity.

●       An identification of Acaelan with the ‘[Seven] Skies’, both in the otherworldly sense as the Creator’s heavenly realm and the literal sense of the natural, temporal world of His Creation.

●       An interpretation of Malin as Immortal King, Father of the Elves and Prophet, derived from his role as the first descendant worshiper of the Creator, with the Holy Princedom of Malinor considered his mortal successors. 

●       A belief in the Aenguls as messengers, agents and servants of the Creator, of which Availer was the foremost, a secret originally held in the Mother Tree of Laurelin and since revealed.

●       A reverence for the Mother Tree of Laurelin (since destroyed) and a view that the Druidic Order, formerly charged with preserving the harmony of Creation, abjured the Holy Princedom and the Creator.

●       The use of the Skies, Sil Malin’leh and soulstones as ritual symbols or theological motifs.

●       A relationship with the Cloud Temple of Aegis, with this organization playing a clerical role in the maintenance of monotheistic traditions.

●       Some conceptions of reincarnation, derived from the Cloud Temple’s teachings on the mythologized soulstones.

●       A religious significance attributed to the number ‘seven’, held in common with most human confessions and drawn from Availer’s testament relating to the Seven Skies.

 

 

 

 

IX.) MODERN ACAELANITES

I am highly circumspect as to concluding whether any Acaelanites continue to practice their ancient religion in the modern era. It remains possible that the proliferation of other traditions has functionally eliminated any monotheistic belief amongst the manifold elven ethnoreligious groups. However, if we are to hypothesize that Acaelanism has continued in some form, I will propose some circumstances in which this may have occurred.

 

If they exist at all, it is probable that modern Acaelanites are a tight-knit, endogamous ethnoreligious group, with their traditions continuously passed down over the generations since the time of the Holy Princedom. They may constitute a minority spread as diaspora across modern nation-states, and may have a history of persecution at the hands of polytheistic communities. While we cannot comment as to how Acaelanite practices and beliefs may have evolved since the time of Malinor, if they do continue, it is likely they have become increasingly secretive, esoteric and mystic, in line with the normal trajectory of minority religions unsupported by a formal nation-state.

 

Historically, the wood elves - being the core ethnic group of Malinor and holding privileged status amongst its ruling elite - had the least incentive to convert away from Acaelanism, and would presumably constitute the bulk of Acaelanites remaining today. High and dark elven groups, who embraced wholeheartedly their own national belief systems and do not tend to identify with the Holy Princedom, are far less likely to have kept Acaelanite practices alive. Widespread rumors suggest that the conservative Alderfolk^[51] were reluctant to embrace Camoryn’s codification of Aspectism in the 1500s, dismissing it as an Irrinite religious movement. The Alderfolk’s self-identification with the heritage of the Holy Princedom raises a tenuous proposition that they may have retained Acaelanism, however, it is just as likely that they were polytheistic or nontheistic.

 

 

(A Temple of Malin as depicted by the San’taliyna.)

 

 

Some additional consideration should be given to the teachings of San’taliyna^[52], a monotheistic revivalist movement amongst elves of the late 1700s. Historical sources describing San’taliyna display several Acaelanite themes, chief amongst them reference to the Creator, reincarnation and the harmony of the living world. However, scholars are generally uncertain whether San’taliyna represents a continuous, unbroken evolution of the Acaelanism of ancient Malinor or a reconversion movement birthed from the disillusionment of former Aspectists. Similarly, Acaelanism’s connection to the Malinist teachings of Valandos Elver’hilin and Minuvas Melphaestus^[53] remains unclear, though these confessions primarily worshiped Malin rather than the Creator. Finally, there is no substantial connection between the postulated Acaelanite traditions and various obscure ‘elven’ rites of Canonism, other than a distant common ancestor via Availer. The Acaelanism analyzed in this essay predates the Church of the Canon by centuries. Moreover, the latter organization’s doctrines are fundamentally reliant on humanity’s unique relationship with God^[54], and so unlikely to be appealing to elven monotheists.

 

 

 

 

X.) CONCLUSION

In this essay, I have established my contention that the religion of the elves of ancient Malinor was a monotheistic one, centered around the worship of the Creator and the instruction of Availer, while also containing several syncretic elements from both pre-Aspectist proto-druidism and the Cloud  Temple monks. I have charted the history of this religion, which I have called Acaelanism, and documented how it integrates with the other elven confessions, chiefly Aspectism. I have also speculated as to the continuation of Acaelanite practices into the modern era. Further research should be conducted as to what form these traditions take at the time of writing, if they have been continued at all, and whether an unbroken connection can be drawn between the dogmas of any modern elven ethnoreligious group and the heritage of the Acaelanites of the Holy Princedom of Malinor.

 

 

FOOTNOTES