Thir
“We are the children of three breaths—the wind of Siberys, the sigh of Eberron, the whisper of Khyber. Their voices are the sky, the stone, the storm within us. To know them is not to worship, but to remember.” —Archseer Vaerax the Prism, Speaker of the Pattern
In the marble canyons of Argonnessen, the air hums with ancient hymns not sung but thought—minds of dragons entwined in prayer that is calculation, meditation, and prophecy all at once. The faithful of Thir do not bow to gods; they seek to become them. For in the long arc of eternity, every scale, every breath, every act of creation brings the world one step closer to the next age—the age when the Three will rise anew, and the dragons who remember them will take their place among the stars.
Divine Origins
Before the rise of elves, giants, or the gods known to mortals, there were only the Three—Eberron, Khyber, and Siberys. From their conflict and union came all of creation, and from their shattered divine essence emerged the first true dragons. These dragons, born of the world’s bones and sky’s fire, inherited both the wisdom and the burden of the Progenitors. They saw in the stars, the stone, and the flow of magic a pattern of infinite meaning—what mortals now call the Draconic Prophecy.
From these revelations arose Thir, meaning Three in the tongue of dragons. It is both faith and philosophy—a cosmology describing not only the Progenitors’ work, but also the purpose of dragonkind within it. Thir teaches that existence itself is a divine recursion: the Three made the Dragon Gods, the Dragon Gods gave rise to the Sovereigns, and the Sovereigns, in time, sired new worlds and new peoples. The dragons of Argonnessen see themselves not as worshippers, but as apprentices in this vast cycle of becoming.
Tenets of Faith
- Honor the Three. All creation flows from Eberron, Khyber, and Siberys. To study the world is to study their living essence.
- Seek the Pattern. The Draconic Prophecy is the heartbeat of creation, the written will of the Progenitors. Its understanding is the highest form of prayer.
- Revere the Dragon Gods. Io and his kin are the exemplars of draconic perfection, guides upon the path toward ascension.
- Respect the Sovereigns. Though lesser beings to the dragons, they are the caretakers of mortal destiny and must not be dismissed.
- Embrace the Cycle. From Progenitor to god to Sovereign, and back again—divinity is not static but reborn through revelation.
Adherents to this religion believe that the Progenitor Dragons, Eberron, Siberys, and Khyber, were the forces responsible for the world's creation and its inhabitants, and the Draconic Prophecy's existence in the world is a reflection of the Progenitor's Dragon's plans for creation. However, while the Progenitors are powerful beings deserving of respect, Siberys is dead, and Eberron and Khyber are too powerful and great to hear prayers and worship.
Instead most dragons venerate the dragon gods, Io, Aasterinian, Astilabor, Bahamut, Chronepsis, Falazure, Garyx, Hlal, Lendys, Tamara, and Tiamat. Each god is represented by a constellation in the sky, and the gods are believed to reside in a place of existence beyond Eberron's standard planes, with the exception of Tiamat, who is imprisoned in Khyber. The dragon gods are only concerned with dragons, and lesser creatures such as humans and elves are the purview of Sovereigns.
The Sovereigns in Thir belief generally corresponds to the fifteen members Sovereign Host and the Dark Six. The first Sovereigns were believed to be dragons of great or ill renown who ascended to godhood during the Age of Demons. Followers of Thir believe that a dragon who comes to embody a fundamental concept in life will ascend to replace one of the Sovereigns in death, allowing the replaced Sovereign to ascend to the home of the dragon gods.
Believers of Thir also teach that this cyclical replacement and ascension of the Sovereigns also applies to the higher forms of divinity. Once the Draconic Prophecy has run its course, three new progenitors will be chosen from among the dragon gods, and the Sovereigns of this reality will become the dragon gods of the next reality.
Ethics
Thir teaches that morality is a reflection of cosmic order, not personal sentiment. The balance of Eberron’s living form, the hunger of Khyber’s shadow, and the sacrifice of Siberys’s light must all coexist. To act purely “good” or “evil” is irrelevant; to act in accordance with the Pattern is divine.
Thus, the faith of Thir produces both radiant protectors and terrible destroyers, each convinced they embody a necessary aspect of creation’s design. A dragon who studies destruction with the same devotion another studies mercy may still be righteous—so long as they fulfill their role within the Prophecy’s unfolding.
Worship
Worship within Thir is an act of study, meditation, and manifestation. Dragons do not kneel before their gods—they contemplate them. Offerings take the form of crafted wonders: gemstone runes representing Siberys’s scales, or molten sigils poured into volcanic caverns to honor Khyber’s depth.
The greatest gatherings occur beneath the stars, where constellations depicting the Dragon Gods burn brightest. Dragons chant ancient syllables that shape the constellations into living patterns, glimpsing the next lines of the Prophecy in the shimmering firmament. Prayer is often silent—an inward dialogue with the eternal flame of Siberys said to dwell in every dragon’s heart.
Holy Sites
There are several locations in Argonnessen that followers of Thir consider holy sites. The primary shrine of Thir is the Valley of the Three in the western region of the Thousand, where great idols of the draconic gods are arranged in a circle. The holy site is the primary place of worship for dragon priests of the Thousand, and many followers of Thir will make a pilgrimage to the site. Another holy site is the Face of Eberron, a massive stone dragon head three miles in length, on the southern shores of Argonnessen. The Face of Eberron is believed by the priests of Thir to be the head of Eberron herself, and is a gathering place for druids who follow Eberron.
Priesthood
The Voaranar, or Speakers of the Pattern, are the priests of Thir. Unlike mortal clergy, they do not preach dogma but interpret cosmic truth. Through centuries of meditation, stargazing, and study of the Prophecy, they record the shifting destinies of creation upon great obsidian tablets or in glowing runes that circle their sanctuaries. Each Voaranar serves one of the Dragon Gods—Bahamut the Just, Chronepsis the Silent, Tiamat the Bound, or another—but all acknowledge that the gods themselves are stepping stones upon a greater divine ascent.
There are no sermons among dragons, only convocations, where elder wyrms gather to debate the interpretation of celestial signs or seismic omens. To be silenced in such debate is the greatest humiliation; to enlighten another dragon, the highest act of worship.