The 3rd Age: Era of Peace
After thousands of years of divine warfare between the pantheons, it seemed there would be no end in sight. However, the rise of
The Holy Kings brought a worldwide call for peace that even the gods could not refuse. Over a series of years of stressful armistice, the conditions and agreements for peace were drawn up. The final document came to be known as
The Benevolence Accord, considered the most important document in history.
The New Law
The principal purpose of The Benevolence Accord was to not only secure an immediate peace, but to ensure that it lasted indefinitely by way of a new set of unified laws that not only mortals but the gods themselves would be bound by. Willful violation of the accord by one Pantheon would be met with the combined might of the remaining three unified against them, ensuring their destruction. This understanding of aligned interests and assured destruction on violation served as the foundation of the accord.
As a sign of good standing and trust, each pantheon was to gift an artifact of critical significance to another pantheon, and they in turn until each nation held an object from another. The item received was to be revered and protected as if it were there own, and wanton disregard for it might be seen as a violation of the accord itself, at the discretion of the other pantheons and The Holy Kings.
The Divine Laws
The Gods were given two direct laws in the Accord:
The highest of all in every house shall lead the house in wisdom and peace.
No house shall strike against another house
The Mortal Laws
The mortals were given four laws in the Accord:
No family of mortals shall deny the rights and presence of the divine
No family of mortals shall deny their brethren the love of the divine
Every family shall maintain a foundation of faith
The great temples shall foster the safety of their family and their neighbors
The Commands of the Accord
Alongside the 6 laws, a series of provisions were laid out and each pantheon had to work alongside The Holy Kings to fulfill their obligations:
- The four remaining continents would be designated as The Holy Lands, with each Pantheon having their own primary domain.
- Each Holy Land would establish a Prectorate force to guide and protect their people.
- Each Pantheon would create a ruling body for their family, one head with 3 adjutants to guide them.
- A new calendar would be created to mark the new age, evenly divded across the 16 leading gods and 4 pantheons.
As the truths of the Benevolence Accord were spread throughout the world, there were some who refused to give up on the ways of war, viewed the Gods as traitors for agreeing to peace, or even began to question their divinity when it was mortals that enacted peace at last. The first of The Mortal Laws commanded that all the Gods be recognized rightfully as they were, and this growing resentment ran counter to it. Eventually those who rebelled against the Gods or refused to believe in them were violently driven out of society and branded as
The Denounced.
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