Priesthood of Athena
Overview
Athena the Goddess of Handicraft,Wisdom and Strategy is a goddess of Law and Order, and is totally devoted to her Father Zeus.Homeric Hymns state she isL
"bright-eyed, inventive, unbending of heart, pure virgin, saviour of cities, courageous, Tritogeneia."
Holy Symbol
The Holy Symbol of Athena is the Owl. At 9th Level, the Goddess Athena will personally bestow a Gorgoneion (Greek: Γοργόνειον) Holy Symbol upon the Cleric, this device will allow the Cleric to select from a series of Medusa related spells.
Chronic Anachronism Control
Athena has designated the movement of the loom and loom-shuttle when weaving as her metronomic measure to aid in the support of maintaining time.The Priesthood of the Athena, the Athenai, a sisterhood devoted to her worship. is a Holy Order of Religion and Righteousness, with a strong hierarchy. Its Priesthood is enhanced with companies of Cavaliers and Paladins. They refer to themselves as the Athenai and it is rumored that they seek to create their own city somewhere on the continent.
Priesthood Requirements
Clerics mus be Lawful Good. As strategists the Athenai Priesthood requires an Intelligence of 14 or higher in order to progress above 7th level.
The Clerics of Athena are zealots and disdain other Clerics. They consider themselves to be only ones who can truly follow a God.
Druids: None
Some Half-Elven Clerics of Athena choose to be Fighter/Clerics - these are the only multiclass variants allowed within the church.
All Clerics of Athena feel the pressure of being in Atlantis, the land of Poseidon, and feel outraged about their circumstances. They are on a holy crusade to establish stronger Athenian presence. However the number of destroyed Athena Temples does show they are not succeeding.
The Priesthood will work AGAINST any efforts of Poseidon Clerics or organizations to further Poseidon's influence.
Skill Acquisition Requirements
The Clerics of Athena are a Religious Order more than an Organised Religion, as their focus is on transforming the world into a more Lawful Society. The followers of Athena in their study of battle strategy are taught Tactics,which they must take by 4th level, (From The Complete Gladiators Handbook P29) and Weakness Identification by 7th level. (From The Complete Gladiators Handbook P29)
The entire priesthood is focused on furthering the following of Athena. Each section of the Priesthood is organised into Holy Orders of Military or Religious focus.
Weaponry
The Priests of Athena learn to fight with the spear, and shield. They consider the spear to be the most effective of weapons. All other weapons are standard Clerical weaponry.Armour
The Athenai/Clerics of Athena use the best Shield and Armor combination that they can. They will prefer to use the best type of armor over the highest AC combination - even when magical varieties of lesser armor types are available.Spheres of Magic
The Clerics of Athena have the following spheres:
All
Animal (Minor)
Astral (Major)
Charm (Major)
Combat (Major)
Creation (Minor)
Divination (Major)
Elemental (Major)
Healing (Major)
Necromantic (Major)
Protection (Major)
Summoning (Major)
Extra Spells (Medusa Related Spells)
At 3rd Level a Cleric of Athena can select Gaze Reflection (Level 1) identical to the 1st Level Wizard Spell as one of their daily spells.
At 5th Level the Cleric of Athena and her Paladins, can cast Find Familiar(1st level Wizard Spell) as if they were a mage and will always gain a Lawful Good Owl of some type - these can range from barn owls, to long-eared owls, tawny owls or Northern saw-whet owl (1d4 to determine which). These Owls have excellent night vision which the Cleric can then gain.
Higher level Clerics can select Stone to Flesh (and its Reversed Flesh to Stone) as one of their 6th Level Spells as if they were a mage of the same level using their. Gorgoneion Holy Symbol.
Structure
Athenai adhere to a three level structure - said to duplicate parts of Zeus's priesthood.
- All priests below 9th level are Shields of Athena
- All priests of 9th level and above are Helms of Athena
- All Paladins are Spears of Athena
Culture
The Priesthood is highly militant and focused on achieving the goals of its Goddess. They are an elite group with an elitest mind=set who are highly disdainful of other Clerical Orders. They consider other religious groups to be 'playing at' devotion and this attitude is evident in dealing with all others except the Priesthood of Zeus.
Public Agenda
The Priesthood seek to show how strong they are as a military force in the areas that they operate and go to great extremes to showcase their wealth and power through the open display of high levels of quality equipment and mounts. They are driven to achieve a dominion for the Athenai somewhere on Atlantis.
Assets
The Athenai have at least five Holy Orders operating openly in Atlantis. These include:
The Shields - the Priesthood Order itself
The Greaves - An Order of Rangers who act as the military scout force and spy network.
The Spears - An Order of Paladins - focused on the furthering of the Athenai goals in Atlantis
The Helms - the Strategic Order of Paladins, Warriors, Rangers and Clerics.
The Gorgonai - an Order of Monks dedicated to Athena.
History
The Athenai are thought to have originated in another land and arrived centuries ago from the North in a series of fleets. They have since expanded their foothold dramatically in some areas.
Ut Sapientia Vincat (Wisdom to Win)
Founding Date
Unknown
Type
Religious, Holy Order
Alternative Names
Athena Pallas
Demonym
Athenai
Parent Organization
Location
Controlled Territories
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