Ceremony

Ceremony has a number of applications in the religious organization, depending on the level of the cleric. 

The effect of a ceremony spell does not leave behind an aura of magic, although in some cases an aura of Good or Evil might be present (and thus detectable). The specific ceremony spells can vary from religion to religion, but usually encompass these:

Each of these varieties of the ceremony spell requires a cleric of the indicated level or a higher one, with additional restrictions as described below. For all ceremony spells except anathematize (see below), no saving throw is called for, since the recipient is either inanimate or presumed to be willing to be affected by the magic; any version of the spell except for anathematize will simply fail if it is cast on a person who (for some reason) is unwilling to receive the benefit.

Briefly, the ceremonies listed do the following things:

Coming of age is a limited form of bless spell which is cast upon a young man (and in some cultures a young woman) at some point relatively early in life, often the age of 12. A young person who receives this spell gets a +1 bonus to any single saving throw, which can be taken at any time after the coming of age ceremony is completed. In some cultures, the coming of age ceremony has a symbolic significance, such that an adolescent must receive this blessing before he or she can enjoy the rights and privileges of adulthood.

Burial magically protects a corpse, and bestows it with the blessing of the religious organization. The body is shielded for one week as if by a protection from evil spell, and anyone trying to disinter the corpse within that time must make a saving throw versus spell or stop and flee in fear for one turn.

Marriage has no tangible after-effect (i.e., it does not guarantee happiness or harmony), but it usually carries a moral or legal significance, not dissimilar in nature to the various rites of marriage which are performed in our real world.

Dedication allows the recipient of the spell to be taken into the ranks of the casting cleric's religion, making that person a sanctioned worshiper of the cleric's deity. The effect of a dedication is permanent, unless the worshiper demonstrates a desire to change allegiance to a different deity. In such a case, the earlier dedication can be overridden by a new dedication cast by a cleric of a higher level than the one who performed the previous dedication.

The rite of investiture must be performed on any aspiring cleric before that character can achieve the status of a first-level cleric.

Consecrate item must be performed on any object to be placed on an altar or in some other location within a religious edifice. To prevent it from losing its potency, holy (or unholy) water must be kept in a properly consecrated container.

Ordination must be performed on a cleric before the character can become the priest of a congregation or assume similar sorts of duties, and even an adventuring cleric must be ordained before he or she can gain followers and establish a following or other sort of group. In all cases, the cleric performing the ordination must be of higher level than the recipient; this ceremony is often conducted as part of the training a cleric receives in order to advance from second to third level.

Special vows can be received by a would-be cavalier or paladin before that character embarks upon a career in the desired profession. The effects of this spell persist for as long as it takes the character to accumulate enough experience points to rise to the upper limit of his or her current level. The special vows can then be renewed as part of the character's training between levels, or at any time during advancement through the next higher level. A cavalier or paladin who has received special vows is immune to the effects of bestow curse spells (but not cursed items) for as long as the special vows remain in effect. Additionally, this ceremony renders the subject more susceptible (-4 on saving throw) to any quest spell cast upon him or her by a cleric of the same alignment as the caster of the special vows.

Consecrate ground should be performed upon an area before any holy (unholy) structure is built on the site. A religious edifice constructed on ground that has not been consecrated will slowly but irrevocably fall into a state of disrepair and has a 1% chance per year, cumulative, of actually collapsing as a result of this oversight. This spell must be cast before the area in question is altered in any way (e.g., landscaping) and before any construction materials are brought to the site; it will have no effect if it is done as an afterthought. Consecrate ground can also be used on a plot of land destined for use as a graveyard, and in such a case the graveyard itself automatically turns undead each round with the same effectiveness as a 3rd-level cleric. Or, if the consecration of a would-be graveyard is performed by an Evil cleric, any undead creatures occupying the area are treated as if they were being protected and controlled by an Evil cleric of 3rd level.

Anathematize is a form of excommunication by means of which the offender is literally branded on the cheek, forehead, arm, or hand with a symbol, sigil, or sign that identifies the subject (to those who understand the symbol) as someone who has committed a serious offense in the eyes of his or her deity. An unwilling subject of this spell is allowed a saving throw versus spell, at -4, to escape its effects. If the recipient is not truly deserving of the telling brand, the spell fails when cast. A successful atonement causes the brand to fade, and possibly vanish. If the offending actions were caused magically or by some other external force, the brand utterly disappears. If the offending actions were natural, the brand cannot be completely removed.

The components for the various ceremony spells vary from religion to religion, but the material component always involves the use of the cleric's holy symbol in one way or another. Standard costs for the casting of these spells are as follows: coming of age, 5-15 sp; burial, 5-50 gp; marriage, 1-20 gp; dedication, 1-10 sp (or sometimes free); investiture, 1-100 gp (or sometimes free); item consecration, usually free; ordination, usually free put possibly as much as 200 gp; special vows, 1-100 gp (or sometimes free); consecrate ground, 100-600 gp depending on the size of the area to be affected and the level of the cleric performing the spell; and anathematize is always performed at no charge, since the casting of this spell is always deemed to be in the best interests of the cleric's religion.

The druidic ceremony spell is similar to the clerical spell of the same name. 

It has a number of applications within the hierarchy of druids. The effect of a ceremony spell does not leave behind an aura of magic, although a know alignment spell or similar magic might reveal the force of true neutrality involved in the magic.

Druidic ceremonies include the following, which can be cast by a druid of the indicated or lower level:

The characteristics of the various types of druidic ceremony spells are as follows:

Coming of age is performed upon young people in druidic societies, usually when they reach the age of 14, and is symbolic of the young man's or young woman's entrance into adulthood. Effects of the spell are the same as for the clerical version (+1 bonus to a single saving throw); see the cleric text for other details.

Rest eternal is cast upon the body of a deceased being, by means of which the soul/spirit of the creature is hastened in its journey to its final resting place. The spells raise dead and resurrection will not restore life to a character who has been the object of this spell, although a wish spell would serve that purpose.

Marriage is essentially identical to the clerical ceremony of the same name.

Dedication allows the recipient of the spell to be taken into the ranks of the druid's followers/worshipers, provided that the character is true Neutral in alignment. A recipient of this spell is charged, as are druids, with the responsibility to preserve and protect nature and the balance of forces in the world. In other respects it is similar to the clerical ceremony of the same name.

Investiture is a rite that must be performed upon a character before he or she can become an Aspirant (1st-level druid). It conveys no other benefit.

Initiation imbues the druid with the shape-changing and immunity to woodland charm powers that become available to the character upon attaining 7th level. This ceremony must be performed upon a druid immediately after he or she begins to advance upward through the 7th level of experience; if cast earlier than this, it will not work, and the druid will not have the benefit of the above-mentioned special powers until receiving initiation. Usually a druid must seek out another druid of 7th or higher level to perform the rite, but in unusual cases a druid may cast it upon himselt or herself.

Special vows is a ceremony that operates in the same fashion as the clerical rite of the same name. It does not work upon paladins, but will function upon cavaliers of any alignment.

Hallowed ground is cast by the druid on his or her permanent grove. This ceremony ensorcels the trees of the grove so that they will never be affected by disease or other natural disasters. The ground remains hallowed for as long as the druid maintains this grove as his or her permanent base.

Cast out is a form of excommunication or punishment that can be performed by a druid upon someone who has committed sacrilege upon the natural environment or in some other way violated the principles and standards of druidism. Its effects may be lessened at a later date by the casting of a reversed version of this ceremony, either by the same druid or another one of at least as high a level as the original caster, but the casting out can never be completely neutralized except by a Hierophant Druid of any level. A character who has been cast out exudes a powerful negative aura, causing any natural creature encountered to react negatively to the character. This includes all normal (non-magical) animals, monsters native to the woodlands, domesticated beasts such as horses and dogs, and all druids and their followers.

Casting out is a very powerful form of punishment, and can only be performed by a druid who has received permission from his or her Archdruid to do so. Similarly, an Archdruid must get permission from the Great Druid, and the Great Druid from the Grand Druid. The Grand Druid does not need to obtain permission, but his or her actions may be reversed by a Hierophant Druid at any time.

This ceremony is usually only used on occasions where the severity of an offense warrants such extreme punishment; a druid who asks for and is denied permission to perform it, or one who later has his or her actions offset by another druid, may be subject to punishment by higher-ranking members of the hierarchy. An intended recipient of this ceremony who is unwilling receives a saving throw versus spell, at -4, to negate its effects.

The components of a ceremony spell always include mistletoe, and the rite (of any sort) must be performed in a druid grove or some other natural, healthy patch of forest. Such ceremonies are normally conducted at either dawn or dusk, the times when night and day are in balance.