Blessed Crafting
A dwarven ritual to enchant an item once every 103 years.
Execution
Once every 103 years the Church of Moradin conducts this ritual to invoke Moradin's blessing during the crafting process. The ritual takes place in one of the five Forges of Attuned Energy, with a different forge used each time. The forges are tied to different elemental planes so the one used is the one with the most powerful element at the time of the ritual. There used to be 6 forges, but one was destroyed during the first years of darkness to avoid giving the demons a way in to Khezdur.
Out of all the dwarven crafters in the world, one is chosen who is deemed the most worthy. This may be down to their skill or faith, or through them having performed a significant service for crown or church. Being chosen guarantees a dwarf's name will go down in history, both for being chosen and because they will have the opporunity to create a truely wondrous item. While armour and weapon smiths have been chosen on many occasions (dwarves being a practical people after all), there have also been cases when potters, weavers, or jewellery makers have been chosen.
Once a crafter has been chosen (usually a year in advance) the clerics of Moradin will begin preparing the forge for the ritual. Each forge is designed to have a central space for crafting, along with a ritual circle and positions for the clerics who will be participating. The central area has thinks like a chimney permanently installed, but other structures and tools will be brought in (or if necessary build on site). The chosen crafter will have the final say on the setup as they will have to work in the space. The crafter will need to decide what they are going to make and what materials will be required. These materials will be supplied by The Magrannor, and given the significance of this ritual it is considered bad form to request anything less than the best.
Crafters selected for the ritual frequently spend a large amount of time practicing their skills in the lead up to the ritual, but a week before the main ritual begins they are obliged to down tools and join the Voices in the Hall of Echoes where they will undergo rituals of cleansing and purification. While the crafter is being cleansed, clerics will be begining their part of the ritual in the forge. Blessing are called down on the crafters tools, and spells cast to reinforce the connection to the elemental plane. Once crafter and workspace are prepared the main ritual can begin.
The main part of the ritual can lack the pomp and ceremony that charcterise equally important rituals for other races, as it is little more than the crafter creating what is likely to be their greatest work. The crafter enters the chamber to the chants of clerics stationed around the room and begins to work. The crafter will be continue working for as long as it takes to complete their creation. They are sustained in this by the spells of the clerics and copious amounts of Thodin's Mead. The clerics take turns casting spells and maintaining the chants, with a typical shift lasting four hours.
Crafters typically describe feeling a sense of inspiration and that if seems as though their level of skill is elevated while in the center of the forge. The items they create are centainly of an even higher quality they would usually create, and this leads many of them to hang up their tools permanently after completing the ritual, as they know they will never reach similar heights again.
Once the item is created the crafter will usually collapse from exhaustion and the clerics will offer one final prayer to Moradin to bring the ritual to a close. The item is taken by the clerics and stored in the Hall of Echoes until a suitable owner is found. Sometimes Moradin provides a very clear message about who should receive it, on other occasions the item has been presented to The Magrannor, or kept by the clerics until it is needed.
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