BlackengorgeSagaThe world is a scattered mess of wilds and ruins. The fragments of civilisation and order that persist today are quiet echoes of the nations that flourished in ages past. From her throne in Celestia, the goddess Erathis commands her devoted to piece together these fragments and forge anew powerful mortal kingdoms. With The Islands bursting with ingenuity, inventions and ordered civilisation it is time to reclaim the lands that were lost.
Erathis is the goddess of civilisation, inventions and law. Rulers, judges, pioneers and devoted citizens
worship her, and her temples are present in all of the cities on The Islands. In some ways, the goddess
Erathis serves as the patron deity of mortal-kind. All other gods hold to their different ambitions,
plots, schemes, and designs, but only Erathis represents mortal creatures overall, specifically the
greatest achievement of mortals — civilisation. Erathis stands as the patron of empire,
civilisation and cooperation. Dwarves strongly favour Moradin, elves associate most with Corellon and
Sehanine. Humans, and to a lesser extent halflings, have come to associate closely with Erathis.
She is known best at the “Keeper of Laws” although for a long time she had been known as the “Silent Watcher”. Only since the Year of the Empty Hand (896) has the voice of the church been heard extolling the necessity to reclaim the Old Continent. Her symbol is that of a ear of wheat, representing the spread of farming and civilisation across the lands. On machinery and contraptions built in her name a half-cog is sometimes etched in their frames to denote her pleasure.
Her constellation of the Hand of Judgement sits just below that of her consort Pelor in the heavens.
Realm
She is said to dwell within the Astral Sea in Hestavar, the Bright City. The cosmopolitan heaven of Hestavar
is the most beautiful, richest, and civilised city on the plane, and this light-drenched oasis can feel
familiar and downright cosy in contrast to the weird void of the Astral Sea that surrounds it. Its grand
architecture and gem-paved streets shine brightly upon the stone settings of its lagoon's islands
and earthmotes. Its gardens and parks are both lush and manicured, retaining their verdant beauty. Within
these gardens stands the golden palace of “Aurosion” and it is here Erathis lives with
Pelor, the sun god, who it is implied she is in a relationship with. The two are known
as “the King and Queen of Light”.
The palace of “Aurosion” is also known as “The Fortress of the Sun”, or even “Light's Blessing” is a beacon of light and civilisation in the centre of Hestavar, It is said that the sun there warms the hearts of the good and illuminates the secret acts of evil.
Relationships
Though it is only implied with the moniker of “the King and Queen of Light”, Erathis and Pelor may or may not have a relationship between them. Through scripture and believed action it is thought that Pelor approves of Erathis' mission to further civilisation, and he is always depicted on her right hand side, an artistic interpretation of Pelor being her husband.
As the goddess of civilisation, she is the antithesis of Melora, the embodiment of wilderness.
Along with Pelor, the god Ioun dwells in Hestavar, in the halls of Kerith-Ald, where the greatest academic minds of the planes ponder the mysteries of the universe. Erathis and Ioun have little to do with each other with the exception of ensuring that civilisation runs its tempered and lawful course with the written laws, judgements, and charters required, which Ioun's servants readily help provide.
Dogma
Tenets of the Faith
Work with others to achieve your goals. Cooperation serves as the core principle of the faith. Without cooperation and compromise, nothing is possible. With cooperation and compromise, all things become possible. The church of Erathis encourages people to find ways to work towards common goals, rather than focusing on their differences.
Tame the wilderness to make it fit for habitation. Land and resources exist to be developed. In the ancient days, millenia before the Great Retreat, mortals lived in cruel conditions, barely surviving amidst vast expanses of wilderness. The only way for mortal races to grow and thrive is to convert uninhabitable zones into regions for cities, towns, farms, and orchards.
Defend the light of civilisation against the encroaching darkness and the tide of barbarism. There will always be creatures and entities seeking to destroy civilisation or undo its accomplishments. These might be internal threats of radicals and anarchists within society, or could even be giants, bloodthirsty orc hordes, and savage beasts from legend all ready to trample the light of civilisation. Should they succeed, mortal-kind will slip into a dark age of unrelenting cruelty and barbarism. Clerics of Erathis must do everything possible to forestall such an occurrence.
Seek out new ideas, new inventions, new lands to inhabit, new wilderness to conquer. New knowledge and information are superior to simple wealth. The faith of Erathis does everything possible to motivate individuals to learn, experience, and discover. Civilisation thrives on expansion and growth, not the status quo.
Build machines, build cities, build empires. With all the fruits offered by civilisation, mortals should do what they can to make use of their knowledge and abilities. Clerics of Erathis strive to help people build, repair, and maintain the structures of towns and cities.
Scriptures
Codex of the Five-Fold Law. This massive book has grown and evolved over time to keep pace with new understanding of laws, customs, traditions, and technology. While the holy texts of most faiths change but rarely, The Codex undergoes improvements and updates on a regular basis. Although this work represents the church's canon, neither the book nor the words are necessarily “holy”. The Codex contains wisdom distilled from the teachings of Erathis, but nothing in the book is considered sacrosanct or unchanging. The book could be considered analogous to a law book — more of a technical manual than a book of absolutes.
Worshippers
The Church of Erathis is widespread and influential across The Islands, although it does not possess as much influence as the church of Pelor enjoys. In a number of ways, the Church of Erathis is one of the most unusual and atypical of all faiths, with many differences from other religions. Indeed, her church is likely the most pragmatic of any.
Anyone who values community, innovation, and law might take up her cause. Martial and arcane characters who value organisation and order are common examples. Common folk who do not specifically worship Erathis might nonetheless respect some of her teachings; worshippers of Bahamut and Moradin especially. Because of her emphasis on the importance of civilisation, Erathis clashes somewhat with the predilections of some of the populace who seek nature and the natural order of things.
Clergy
Erathis is worshipped in small ways all across The Islands. People commonly utter a brief prayer to the goddess when they enter a new city for the first time, and her temples frequently double as courthouses and meeting halls. For this reason, perhaps, the typical stereotype of the clergy of Erathis is that of a fussy, office-coddled old magistrate tutting at untidy desks and filing paperwork into the late hours. This stereotype is egregiously false. The champions of Erathis have been many — leaders, generals, and battle-scarred politicians, each a bastion of civilised might.
Duties of the Priesthood: Clerics of Erathis engage in education of individuals and groups, both in past events and in new discoveries. Her clerics actively assist in building schools, museums, and magnificent civic structures. Other clerics of Erathis work to advice nobles and other leaders in expanding cities, surveying the lands, and reclaiming barren areas. The majority of her clerics remain in one location, associated primarily with a specific congregation or temple. A number of Erathis sects, on the other hand, dedicate their efforts to traveling The Islands and helping people thrive and prosper. These clerics help write laws, provide engineering advice for construction, teach in schools, and offer insight to local rulers.
Limitations and Sacrifices: Priests of Erathis are expected to uphold and observe local laws. They are also charged with encouraging others to do likewise. It is considered a serious sin for one of her clerics to commit a crime or run afoul of authorities, even in situations where they do not agree with a specific law or regulation — laws must be respected and dealt with in a civilised fashion, not ignored on a whim. A cleric of Erathis also must tithe earnings, either to a local temple or a worthy local interest, offering time and talents as possible.
Druids
As the spread of civilisation leaves little room for most teachings and thoughts of druids, it is supposed that there are no druids that revere Erathis.
Paladins
There are no orders or specific societies of Paladins that are sanctioned by Erathis' faith. Those that choose the life of a paladin usually help guard the temples, courts of law and judiciary buildings across the land.
Servants
In a world of roads to travel and injustices to answer, anyone might be swayed by Erathis's teachings. A traveller who worships Erathis might be a city dweller from birth who seeks to uphold the law and spread civilisation's bounty to the far corners of The Islands. He or she might also be from a simpler homestead background, turning to Erathis for the comfort and protection of city walls.
Rituals
Many of the rituals involved in respect to Erathis are those of following the laws and mandates of civilisation, and are practiced every day by the leaders and judges of the common folk.
It is usual for the first stone of a new settlement being laid to be blessed with the short prayer of “Muse of Cities, Mother of Empires. We lay supplication to you with each capstone placed.”.
Places of Worship
Temples
As the goddess of civilisation, ceremonies dedicated to Erathis should, if at all possible, always take place within a proper temple. Although Erathis temples are rarely ornate or elaborate, they are often imposing and sometimes awe-inspiring structures. Her temples, especially the larger ones, are designed to reveal the true power of civilisation, accomplishment, and mastery of technology over nature.
“The Halls of Judgement” were built as the Tower Quarter in Deepingwald was extended in the Year of the Bloody Stone (775) and serve as the central temple of Erathis's faith as well as being the highest court in the land.
Holy Days
The Keeper of the Law only has one holy day through the year.
Civilisation's Dawn (Eleint 21): is celebrated on the autumnal equinox, and is the time for new laws to be passed and old ones to be rescinded. Courts are closed for the day to allow these new laws to come into effect before further judgements are made. It is considered especially favourable if the first stone of a new settlement is laid upon this day.
Relics
There are no known relics of Erathis; new inventions are been created all of the time.
Myths and Legends
The Game of Making. This is a veritable fever of invention and craftsmanship that is upheld by all divine servitors and petitioners of Erathis; by learning how to create everything that can be created, Erathis will master the current laws of creation, in order to codify and improve the final laws of creation. This is actually not as morally pure as it may sound; knowing everything means knowing things that others would consider quite dark. Poetry, oratory, watercolour, tea ceremony, combat magic, invention, siege work, dance, creating new rituals, creating new life — all these forms of creation are of utmost importance to Erathis' mission. As such, she often has to subcontract the Game of Making, holding experiments off of Hestavar and forming alliances with morally dubious sorts to understand this dark lore.
The Lattice of Heaven. The Lattice of Heaven was a planned, all-powerful astral connection that would have linked all the godly domains in the Astral Sea together into a single realm. It was destroyed while still incomplete in the beginning of the Dawn War, and its possibilities were lost forever. The destruction of the Lattice caused problems in the Astral Sea that still persist to the present age, like the misplacement of the souls of dead mortals. The gods Erathis, Moradin and, to a lesser extent, Corellon, were integral to the Lattice creation, and Erathis felt its destruction most keenly. Erathis had hoped that the communication and immediate transportation the Lattice would have allowed could have created a new type of community among the gods, turning what had resembled a widely scattered group of city-states into a single densely populated and integrated nation; as the god of civilisation, Erathis thought that she would play a major role in an integrated heaven, even if other deities hadn't fully realised the implications of the Lattice.
Signs and Portents
Erathis does not reveal her will or wishes through superstitious omens or signs. Her designs for mortal creatures are spelled out, in plain language, within the faith's holy book, the Codex of the Five-Fold Law. Erathis has no need for obscure symbols, vague visions, or confusing dreams. If her worshippers cannot discern her meaning, they have lost their way and thus do not deserve enlightenment.