Churches and Sects

Duodecadeism - Church of A'a - The Pleasure Seekers of Gira 

The Church of Day and Night -  The Trine of Hearth, Home and Happiness - Journeymen 

Church of the Mother - Temple of the Cup - Order of Mystery and Magic 

The Stormbringers of Alos - Order of the Fist and Shield - Scythe Bearers - The Wild Runners  

Temple of the Water Dancer- Church of Creation 

Duodecadeism

This is the common belief in Amb. All other churches and sects are a sub-branch of duodecadeism. Basically, Duodecadeism means Twelve Gods. Everyone in Amb believes in all twelve Gods, just some follow branches that devote themselves to one or two or a specific belief revolving around those Gods. If a follower of A'a was confronted with Sosen, they would not act with irreverence because it was 'their God'. All the Gods are their God, they just have a kinship with their chosen God or Church.

Belief in the Gods does not make one Good or Evil. The Gods themselves have no alignment or sex and simply are. When they appear on Amb through an Avatar or directly, they generally appear in a form that people can understand. Some Gods have forms they like more than others. For example, Aviva prefers to appear as a brightly clad child with bright curly hair. Gira likes to appear as a seductive good-looking person in the latest fashions with highly styled hair and bright, sensual make-up. Decaturn often appears as a pregnant woman or a large jovial man. Alos often appears as a warrior dressed in shining plate mail and wielding a huge hammer.

The Gods don't have any set rules or guidelines for people to follow. They like it when people do certain things, but they don't expect them to. There is no law of the Gods, no specific morals they have set down and no way of worship. They Gods have given people free will and free thought and they expect them to use it to find their own beliefs and way of living. This is illustrated through the act of rebirth and reincarnation. People have lessons to learn in life. No one knows what all the lessons are, but it is believed that a soul must experience many things so when it reaches its final life, it is full and can be broken into more souls.

Most people in Amb don't devote themselves to a specific church, but rather practice some strain of Duodecadeism. There are many churches and sects within Amb and the most common span all over the world. The Churches have practices, but the general beliefs don't set any specifically down.

Church of A'a

The Church of A'a worships A'a as the first God, the Creator God and head of all other Gods. This is one of the oldest Churches in Amb. The founding of the church is unclear, but it has several books which they teach and follow from over the years- most of whom have been written by various Pricipi Rebs (the head of the Church) over the years. The main book is called The Book of Primary Creation.

The priests of this church are called Rebi (singular is just Reb). There are several levels of the Rebi, the top of the Church being Pricipi Reb. Below the Pricipi Reb are twelve Arki Reb. Then below them are the Hemi Rebi. Finally, there are simply the Rebi which consist of members of the Church and the disciples of the Church. The Rebi of the Church of A'a wear grey robes with a simple white sash woven in a pattern of circles. You can tell what level they are of by the color of their hem: Pricipi Reb has a white hem, Arki Rebi have green hems, Hemi Rebi have blue hems and everyone else has plain grey hems that match the color of the robe.

Most of those who devote to the Church of A'a serve in one of the many Churches throughout the world. The churches tend to be rather grand buildings with a singular spire that reaches upward and it topped with a perfect sphere. There is usually at least one Church of A'a in a major city, sometimes more than one can be found there.

The Pleasure Seekers of Gira

The Pleasure Seekers of Gira devote themselves to passion, lust and pleasure. They are sensual people who promote the pleasures that can be found in life. They are about enjoyment and harmony between people through mutual enjoyment. The Pleasure Seekers of Gira can be found all over the world in Churches and wandering. Devotees of this Church are usually skilled Attendants.

The Churches of the Pleasure Seekers are lush buildings, decorated with fancy art, comfortable furniture and beautiful people. There is one large room where people congregate to enjoy entertainment of all kinds, delicate and rich foods and companionship. Off of the main room, there are several small rooms where people find the pleasures of the flesh with the Pleasure Seekers.

It is common practice for the attendants of the Pleasure Seekers to sit out on the steps of their churches topless, to entice people into the Church. They wear colorful, fashionable clothing, wraps and hairstyles. Most wear sensual make-up as well. Everything about them is fashionable and lusty. They believe that Pleasure and Enjoyment can make you live longer, more full lives. So, they spread their beliefs through action, making sure people enjoy their lives.

The Pleasure Seekers hold numerous festivals throughout the year, each one celebrating a different kind of enjoyment. Angenue Day is a popular festival where the Pleasure Seekers distribute candies, pastries and honey milk to people in the city. It is sometimes refered to as the Festival of Sweets. Savorie is a festival that celebrates food- also known as the Festival of Savories. People flock from all around to sell, eat and enjoy food during the festival. Prizes are given for the best dishes and people spend several days gorging themselves on the finest cuisine in the area. Fleshing is another popular festival that the Pleasure Seekers throw. It celebrates the body with dancing, acrobatics, competitions of strength and sex. It is a celebration of the joy of being alive and having a body to enjoy. It is tradition to compete in the competitions of agility and strength naked and oiled up to accentuate the beauty of the body.

The Head of the Pleasure Seekers of Gira is called 'Majesty' in mocking. They generally wear fine jewelry and the most modern of clothing. However, it is difficult to tell the head apart from the others.

The Church of Day and Night

The Church of Day and Night is dedicated to Minol and the duality of life. It celebrates the day and the night as a metaphor for the good and evil within everyone. Those of this church understand that life is about duality and opposites and nothing is truly black or white.

Priests of this church wear robes of black and white with a simple grey sash. They are called Brother or Sister and have no rankings within their church. Their temples tend to be medium sized, simple buildings with the crest of the Sun and Moon on the doors and windows.

This Church is all about finding balance. They preach that you can find good things even in the bad and bad things even in the good. They also preach that mortals are unable to judge either of these things because they do not have the complete picture of what is going on. They have one major holy day in this church called Equilibrium. On this day, people try to balance out their lives, making sure the old is balanced with the new, the good with the bad and the past with the future.

The Trine of Hearth, Home and Happiness

The Trine of Hearth and Home worship Decaturn, Suteja and Aviva. Decaturn is represented as the Mother, Suteja as the Father and Aviva as the Child. They believe in the strength of family, fertility, marriage and the home. When placed together as a family unit, the Trine teaches the lessons of raising a family.

The Trine often performs common weddings, sending priests out to say the blessing over them. People who are looking to start a family often go to a priest of the Trine and ask for their blessing so they can conceive. They also bless children to have long, prosperous lives.

All priests of the Trine get married and have families. Both men and women can be priests of the Trine. They follow the teachings of Aris Avi- one of the Ageless who wrote about the holy Trine of the Family. They follow the works penned down in her book, The Teachings of Hearth, Home and Happiness. Priests of the Trine wear tan robes with striped sashes of green and white. They also bear the symbols of the three Gods of the Trine.

Aris Avi is the first Blessed Mother of the Trine. Since then, the leader of the Trine has been called the Blessed Mother or Blessed Father. Usually, it is the person who has the most children and grandchildren- but it can also be the one who has contributed the most to the spreading of Marriage and Happiness. The Trine holds the festival of Children's Week.

Journeymen

The Journeymen are wandering priests of Arin and Suteja. They preach about free trade, commerce, law and traveling. They believe that people are brought together through the exchanging of goods- including culture and ideas. The Journeymen are responsible for most of the folk songs from different regions traveling from one place to another.

The Journeymen were founded by Sender Vesper Lars, who was a merchant who traveled from place to place. In his book, he describes how he was visited by both Suteja and Arin in his travels and how they both told him to keep spreading the exchange of culture through the world along with his goods.

The Journeymen wear blue tunics and green pants and can be found traveling from one place to another on foot, by boat and by caravan. They are traders of ideas and arts as well as goods. It is tradition that Journeymen stay free at inns if they have a song or a story to share with the people there.

Church of the Mother

The Church of the Mother is an offshoot of the Trine. They worship just Decaturn as a mother figure for her fertility, childbearing and care of the home. The Church of the Mother is widespread through the world among women especially. About 70% of all Mother Worshippers are women.

Mother Worshippers follow just the mother aspect of the Trine, embracing femininity, fertility and motherhood. They believe that the care of the home is the domain of the woman of the house. Many Mother Worshippers are also midwives, aiding in the delivery of children- especially in small town and villages throughout the world. It is tradition to have a Mother Worshipper at the birth of any child and to have the woman stay until a soul has accepted the child and it is given its name.

Churches of Mother are usually small with statue of a pregnant Decaturn holding a large basket full of fruit or wheat. This symbolizes both the mother as a provider and also as a progenitor. Mother Worshippers usually wear red robes with a white sash to symbolize the female nature.

Temple of the Cup

The Temple of the Cup is dedicated to Sosen. They believe in the spread of civilization. They embrace the arts and the six pillars of civilization that were given to mortals by the deity Sosen. Their goal is to spread these pillars of civilization to the 'lesser' races as well as the nomadic wanderers of the lands. It is because of the Temple of the Cup that most of the population of the world lives in cities and embrace the pillars of civilization.

The priests of the Temple of the Cup are called the Cup Clerics. They have a strict system of ranking and ascension through the ranks that only those who have become Cup Clerics know about. This is not to keep the knowledge from other people, but rather, it is so complicated and orderly, that most people outside of the clergy of the Temple don't really care.

The Cup Clerics wear pale purple tunics with white or grey pants. Their churches are usually grand buildings with three arches, each one held up by two pillars that represent the six pillars of civilization: Architecture and Engineering, Song and Entertainment, Farming and Herding, War, Government and Law, and finally Medicine and Healing.

Order of Mystery and Magic

The Order of Mystery and Magic is popular among mages, sorcerers and those who wish to explore the mysteries of life, the universe and everything. Those of the Order worship both Shan and Kar. They see both as the keepers of hidden knowledge, magic and control the veil between this world and others. Kar holds the threads of magic and fate and Shan holds onto the mysteries of life and the soul.

The Order is one of the oldest in Amb, founded soon after the Second Dark around the border between Arascon and what was then the wilds of the south. It grew up in the City of Lilurline and migrated around the world quickly as mages joined and spread through the world. Those who seek greater knowledge join the Order. As such, the Order guards what it learns with a tight fist, doling out small portions of its knowledge only to those it deems worthy of obtaining it. Their churches double as massive libraries and stores of information. They usually have one library open to the public that it used for the spreading of general knowledge and a private, hidden library that is used to store the secret information of their Order.

Their organizational structure is semi secret. It is known that the Head of the Order of Mystery and Magic is called the Gate Keeper and that it is this person who guards the Ruby Gate in Whitegrove. The Current Gate Keeper recently died- High Sorcerer Emilio. Those of the order are inducted by showing their desire to learn, their knowledge and their wit. They advance through the ranks by showing their understanding of the knowledge they have learned. When they advance, more of the secret knowledge of the order is made available to them.

The Stormbringers

The Stormbringers are people who act as oracles in the cities away from the Three Sisters. As servants of Alos, they study the art of reading signs in the clouds, smoke and entrails of those who die in battle. The Stormbringers are an order that generally have small temples on the edge of cities as some of the smaller towns are hesitant to trust those who can perform divination of any kind.

Stormbringers are said to be people who see a vision of Alos telling them to join the Order either in a dream or in a vision. They are seen as the chosen of Alos. They have been called Stormbringers because they often forecast the weather or misfortune- both bring storms.

The Stormbringers are common in Gildensol and Rosedese and revered as prophets. However, in Arascon, they are frowned upon because of the countries relationship with the Three Holy Sisters and their superstition warning them against divination. The head of the Stormbringers is called the Prime Seer and generally, this is the most skilled diviner in the order. The rest of the people in the order are called Diviners or Seers and they wear loose fitting clothing of white and gold. Their temples are usually small and located on the edge of cities and towns.

Order of the Fist and Shield

The Order of the Fist and Shield are generally warrior priests who follow Alos and Aviva, however, there have been those in the order who are known to follow Arin or Kar as well. They are adventurers who travel the world searching for monsters to slay, adventures to explore and deeds to perform. They go out of their way to protect the weak from peril and often act as bodyguards to those who go on long journeys and are unskilled in battle. They travel the world preaching their message of honor, tradition and strength through the Gods.

This is an old order and has a strict system of honor, rules and daily exercises. They follow five basic principals :

• • Protect those who cannot fight for themselves. You should die before letting harm come to someone who cannot defend themselves. Come back holding your shield above your head in victory, or with your head upon your shield.

  • Always aid your Brothers and Sisters of the Shield. Defend, protect and lift up each other.

  • True Strength has no ego. Speak not of your deeds, let your deeds speak for you.

  • With strength of heart and will of soul, no battle is truly lost- even in death.

  • Lend your arm and shield to any who asks it of you, but start no fight. Seek the fight but do not start it.

One usually knows a Brother or Sister of the Shield by the shield they bear and the fact that often they do not use weapons. Their shield has the image of a spiral overlaid with a bolt of lightning piercing the center. Many great heroes have been Siblings of the Shield. They have no churches or temples, but instead they run training grounds, dojos and fight clubs. Their fight clubs run daily fights for practice and sport. You can often find many of the Shield gathered in these places, training or doing their daily exercises. They have two leaders: the Mother of the Shield and the Father of the Fist.

Scythe Bearers

The Scythe Bearers are worshiper of life and abundance. They follow a combination Decaturn and Arin in the belief of abundance. They are called Scythe Bearers because they wield scythes to cut wheat, grains, millet and other crops. They aid people in this task. Most cities and villages have at least one Ark of the Scythe Bearers within it. They provide food for the poor and teach farming and fishing techniques to those in the city. They often run their own farm and are known for always having an abundant crop or fish run.

The Scythe Bearers will give food and shelter to any who ask for it and always give half of their crop to the local poor or those who have had a bad harvest. They provide bread, dried fish and cereals free of charge to the poor. You can find their Arks all over the world ensuring that no one has to go hungry. They have several festivals and holy days throughout the year, most of them happening at the beginning and end of harvesting. These days are marked with names like Festival of Apples, Festival of Wheat, and Festival of Honey. These festivals always revolve around food, games and feasting.

Scythe bearers are known for the crop scythes and sickles they carry and the broad brimmed hats they wear made from straw or grass. They usually wear simple clothing that allows them to work easily. They wear scarves of green and blue to symbolize the land and the sea.

The Wild Runners

The Wild Runners are followers of Vermi. They often live in the forests or the wilds and commune with nature and the animals. They value their personal freedom above all else. Often called hermits, the Wild Runners often act as guides through the wilds if people should find themselves in their territory.

Wild Runners protect their territories from harm, often preventing people from hunting on them or harvesting from the trees and plants within it. They mark their territory using a pile of stones with a fallen branch stuck in them so people know they are entering the territory of a Runner and the wildlife within it is protected.

Wild Runners use and wear nothing that is made by killing an animal. They also do not eat the flesh of animals eating only vegetation, roots, fruit and legumes. Often, they wield bows with stone arrowheads or stone blades.

Temple of the Water Dancer

The Temple of the Water Dancer worships Arin. They preach about beauty, emotion and passion. The Water Dancers preach through their dance, showing great emotion through their movements rather than their words. While they do speak, their name is derived from the water dances they perform.

A water dance is performs in a shallow pool of water that usually comes up only to the dancers ankles. They dance through the water, causing ripples to form in patterns on the surface. They also arc droplets of water out of the pool. These dances are beautiful and passionate- often performed in silence rather than to music so people can hear the motion of the water. A skilled Water Dancer can use the motion of the water to create music and rhythm.

The Temple of the Water Dancers holds three festivals throughout the year. The first is called the Bonne where they perform many dances praising beauty. People in cities nearby usually travel to the closest Temple to see these dances and leave trinkets for the dancers. The Second Festival is the Seaven. On this day, the Dancers travel to the cities bearing gifts from the sea that they give to people. The cities usually greet them with a large festival already underway. The final Festival is the Heartstrings where they counsel people on love, hate, anger, happiness and other emotions. People come to them and usually Dancers travel to the cities as well.

Water Dancers wear loose, flowing clothing of brilliant blues and whites. They often wear their hair in long braids that are strung with dried seaweed and shells. Their Temples have a water dance pool in the center of the building with stadium seating around it. The sides of the building are open to the air, giving people a view of what lays around. Most Water Dancer Temples are located on the beach overlooking the ocean rather than inland.

Church of Creation

The Church of Creation is dedicated to both A'a and Sosen. They preach the art of creation and invention through the legends of A'a and Sosen giving those things to the world. Priests of this church are often inventors, artists or mages. It is the Church of creation that encourages those who have retired into the Whitefall of their life to create something for the world to remember them by. This is a common worldwide practice.

The Priests of the Church of Creation are led within their individual Church by their Arch Priest. Everyone beneath the Arch priest of that Church is simply a Priest (or priestess). There is no central ruling structure for this Church, but it is known that they keep in contact with one another.

The Church of Creation holds many festivals throughout the year. The main festival they hold is called Firelight. This is the day that Sosen and A'a created fire and light. On this day people make large bonfires and dance from Firelight Eve until the dawn of the two suns. There are also several minor holidays, but they usually revolve around whatever good is a common export or craft within the city where the Church is located.

Priests of Creation wear yellow robes with a white belt. They hang a crest of a cup with a sphere in it around their neck. Their churches are large with mechanisms, inventions and art work all over it. They usually have mechanical doors and automatic water pumps and other inventions. They are located in every major city and in many smaller cities as well.