Church of Kelesta

Roleplaying Notes

Followers of Kelesta believe that all serve fate, in failure and in success. They carefully consider and meditate on a choice before making it, and judge not the fate of another.

Mythology & Lore

Legendary Items and Weapons of Kelesta

The Staff of Fate

Held by the Dragonmind, it is uncertain how many charges the staff has before it breaks and one of the Knights of the Scaled Fist must Quest for it again. Reference: Staff of Fate

Tenets of Faith

The Duties of the Clerics of Kelesta

• The Dragonmind is expected to commune with Kelesta and direct the Church of the All-Mother according to the demands of fate.
• High and Low Priests are expected to maintain the daily, weekly, and monthly rites
• High and Low Paladins are expected to assist in those rites when at their home Church, but are also expected to go out into the world on Quest at least once a year.
• Threadspinners have no official duty, save what the Dragonmind directs them to.

Clerics of Kelesta embody the ideals of being truly neutral - they will provide healing services to anyone who comes to give offerings to the All-Mother.
Clerics and Paladins, when home, maintain an almost monastic style of life, their daily, weekly, and monthly prayers devoted to attempting to understand the wishes of their Goddess.
While true of both sides, there is an expectation to go into the world on Quest at least once a year. This is predominantly held by the Order of the Scaled Fist, the Paladins of Kelesta, but it is not unheard of for one of the All-Mother’s Clerics to do so as well.

Forbidden to Kelesta

There is a strange, arcane, and almost unknowable set of expectations about when Fate must be left to its own and when intervention is required. Followers of Kelesta are expected to meditate on such decisions before involving themselves, which can occasionally be troublesome when unexpected fights break out.

Sacred to Kelesta

• Giving oneself over to Fate
• Withholding oneself from a situation to allow Fate to resolve
• Intervening to make sure Fate resolves.

Typical Offerings

A common offering for the Church of the All-Mother is a sacrificial farm animal, such as a chicken, goat, pig, etc. - the entrails are used to read the fate of the person offering the sacrifice.
In specific, the eyes of a sacrificed animal are often considered a special offering and is a common ritual component for Clerics of Kelesta.

Worship

Major Areas of Worship

Almost every single country and major city has a temple to the All-Mother.
Smaller towns and villages might have a High or Low Cleric in attendance, or there might be ‘pastoral rounds’ from the nearby city.

Holidays

The Church of the All-Mother is tied heavily to the turning of the year, and so begins and ends each month with a holy celebration at the continued weaving of Fate, with lesser celebrations at the beginning and ending of each week, and each day.

Common Sayings and Blessings

• “All serve the looms of fate in time” - a general catch-all phrase that could be anything from ‘this sucks keep going to get through it’ to ‘well that ended poorly’ to ‘that went amazing!’
• “Flip a coin and find out” - what started as a passphrase for the Threadspinners, this phrase has quickly become a Terranon version of “FAFO”

Priesthood

Head of the Church

The Most High, the great Dragonmind, Laraleia Carsandoral, an elven Cleric.
The Central Temple to Kelesta, The House of Black and White is located in the Capitol of Avalon, Ilsenaira.

Church Organization

• High Priests, called Dragoneyes (those typically with higher Cleric Levels)
• Low Priests, called Dragonwings (those typically with lower levels of Cleric training)
• High Paladins, called Dragonclaws (those typically with high Paladin levels)
• Low Paladins, called Talons (typically with low Paladin levels)
• Unknown to most, there is a secret ‘arm’ of the church, called Threadspinners, which is comprised of anyone with arcane magic (Bards, Sorcerers, Wizards), which reports directly to the Dragonmind.
• Acolytes, those with no character level, who serve the day to day work or work under High or Low Priests and Paladins as assigned

Oaths: Watchers

Clothing

Lower Priests and Paladins tend to wear a balanced set of white and black
Upper Priests and Paladins add an indigo sash or trim.

Membership

Service to Kelesta has no barrier, save being willing to work one’s way up from an Acolyte. All serve the loom of fate in their time.

Typical Followers

The Church of the All-Mother accepts everyone, but there is an overlarge representation of dragonborn present in the church, despite the elven leadership.

Political Influence & Intrigue

Interaction with Society

Kelesta is also a goddess of truth, so her church maintains a number of courts across many nations. Some prefer to use the courts of Barasios, however, since the Church of Kelesta is known for strict judgment and truth.

Ceremonies

• The Church predominantly handles things with “beginnings” and “endings”, such as ceremonies for births and deaths, but also new years ceremonies and so on.
• Newborn children are almost always brought to a church of Kelesta, to have their names officially recorded and a blessing placed upon them.
• It is not uncommon to seek a blessing from a Cleric before a new adventure, a new business, etc., or to honor the ending of one.

Sects

The Order of the Scaled Fist, a militant order of Paladins.

Type

Religious, Organised Religion

Leader

Laraleia Carsandoral

Divines

• Kelesta, Goddess of Fate

Controlled Territories

• The House of Black and White

Notable Members

• Laraleia Carsandoral

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Religions of Terranon