Trial of Divinity Tradition / Ritual in The Churning World | World Anvil
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Trial of Divinity

Those born of the gods are immediately marked for greatness. The women who bear them do so within a separate, hidden realm within the Churning World that only those with divine blood and the know-how can reach. There the impregnation process is done and the demigod is born. The mother is the only mortal to lay eyes on the faces of their children and the mothers never return to the Churning World.   It is also there the children of the gods are raised. Though the Tribunal has long been abolished the hidden city of the demigods remains a neutral zone where no demigod is permitted to cause violence. All respect this law as without it there would be no new demigods born and their kind would, in time, perish. The children are tutored by elder demigods who have forsaken their mundane affairs in the Churning World to focus on training the next generation of their kind.   Though little is known about the hidden city or how demigods are raised one ritual is well known; the Trial of Divinity. This occurs when the demigod reaches physical maturity and must prove themselves capable of serving their role as stewards of the Churning World.   The child is given a series of tests to prove that their education has stuck. Then they must prove they are proficient enough to wield a Rod of Rainbows, a basic divine tool, to create some work. Thus they demonstrate their knowledge of the physical and mental efforts needed to wield the gods’ powers, even if just in a simple form. Then they must showcase their physical aptitude in the form of staff sparring with their teacher. After this they are placed inside a special labyrinthine room and asked to navigate it and its many traps and riddles to prove their knowledge and skill.   Finally they must go on a hunt. The specific creature they must hunt varies depending on the season, but it is always a fierce predator that would be the match for a team of mortal hunters. The demigod must succeed in their hunt alone with only a weirdwood bow and twelve arrows. While on their hunt they are given a wooden mask to hide their face, which itself is a demonstration of their resolve and ability to maintain the basic secret of what a demigod looks like under their mask.   If they return successfully they are given their golden mask and their first name based on their manner of success. If they fail they must train for an extra year before attempting the trial. Often those who fail two or more times are given a less than heroic first name and are expected to do great deeds to earn a new name to be known by.   Then they are given their god-artifact and released into the wider world to do good in the name of the gods.

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