On the topic of the gods

In the north, it is very cold and living through each day is not certain. Tribes of two hundred or fewer people live in a small area and in each tribe there may be only a few elders of more than fifty years of age. The people each need to do multiple tasks and there is no room in such a small community for people dedicated solely to being spiritual advisors. Yet all of the gods are present in our daily lives and they all are due their respects. Each god, in turn, is responsible for their aspects and reverence is paid to each in due course. Sacrifices are made when the portents dictate and on specific holy days to each of the gods.

When a child is born the tribe praises Gaia and the elders call for a great celebration of life. When that same child grows to be a warrior she will call to Brazen to bless her shield and spear, Valos to ensure that she fights with justice and Enax to help her follow the orders she is given. Before she goes to battle she participates in a ritual to appease Glomm so that she may be free from corruption while in the field. Should she later fall in battle her companions will call to Agaura to see that her pain is not suffered in vain and to Galladel to see that she is judged fairly should she not survive her wounds. Upon returning home, perhaps too injured to fight as a warrior anymore, she is welcomed home with celebrations dedicated to Andorra. As she becomes an elder her wisdom is guided by Chronicler. As she dies, hopefully of old age, her body is consecrated with prayers to Glamachis to see that her soul is protected and her body remains peaceful in its death. At all times, a prayer to Malyc can be said to keep his mayhem at bay or to ensure it is visited only upon her enemies. This is how the gods are revered in the north.

Since coming to Travance I have learned quite a bit about the culture and methods of practicing religion here. You separate the gods into light, dark and neutral and so you separate yourselves into multiple tribes. This weakens you. It takes away your fundamental ability to operate as a tribe and one group or the other is in constant disharmony with one or more of the gods. Fiona is out now. Miranda will be out soon. There is no longer room for the luxury of a light or dark pantheon. There is no god that is neutral in this fight for our existence. I suggest that we come together as one people, one tribe, one church with all the gods working side by side. That we honor each of the gods for what they do and that we do not dishonor any gods with internal fighting.

I urge you to write down any grievances you may have and gather with your neighbors. Take these grievances to the fire and cast them in. Let the smoke that rises take your burdens away. Dance and sing and celebrate what we have in common. We are one tribe. We are Travance. And together we will win this fight.

You got some mighty strange ways there, mate. I ain't one to walk around calling folks "heretic," but where I come from, man calls out to Glomm, he gets some weird looks. Followed by a mace to the mouth.

We don't hold with following the dark gods in the Highlands, and I dare you to call me and mine "weak" to my face.

You can take your honor for the dark gods and shove it. I got no honor for them.

You got some right kind ideas about how folks can work together. Good on ye for thinking such a thing is a thing what can happen. But the dark don't be caring. And know what? Neither be I.

You wait til the dark ones take from you with a laugh and a smile, then you tell me how we be all just one tribe and one church.

This ain't the north. And I ain't seen much folk think like you when I been up there either. Might be just you and yours be foolish enough to be thinking like that. Either way, don't be calling no dark names round me, less you be wanting to call them through broken teeth.

-Bran

As one who worships no god but respects all, I can say that from what I've been told in my travels, Bran is speaking more of the truth than you, Gunnar. I mean no disrespect to anybody, but I've never heard of Agaura being sparing in her delivering of suffering, nor of Malyc being one to make deals with about who is to be caused mayhem. It's just not how it is.

However, I can agree that unity must be had when it comes to dealing with the threat at hand. The powers of all of the gods and all of Travance are necessary to ensure our existence. What happens beyond the threat of the Null is the choice of those who are not I, and may you all be looked upon favorably by your gods in the end; however, if we cannot unify to fight our unmakers, then your endeavors to serve your gods will have been in vain, and you will have dishonored them and committed egregious acts against them to let their world be unmade.

-Haz Polzin

You don't speak for any of us.
Servant or slave.
You only see the small sheep.
You learn with bias.
We are far more human than you think.
Take a moment to learn like Gunnar.
Then make your assumptions.

K. Vantas






_____________

I ask that you all use calm. I have seen what Gunner says in the bedouin lands we must be free to serve any god that comes and has need. I understand the anger and hatred, I was most guilty of that with regards towards Miranda, perhaps I still am.

However we do need to work together in what i have seen many followers of the dark gods step up and do amazing things, save the town and save me. Perhaps I have waited to long for this story but I was pulled from Malagon by an Aguarran. When no one else would or could save me, one was willing to risk his life and bring me back from my torture, corruption, and eventual turn to undead. I remain greatful to him. Never would i say you are evil I will wait for a hero to save me.

Like it or not there is a need for balance perhaps it is time for each man and woman to be judged on their own actions rather then who they pray to when the kneel needing help

Bran - Thank you for your words, they prove my point exactly.

Haz - Bran does speak the truth but his truth and my truth are still both true.

But I can see that my words may need some clarification so that they may be fully understood. Please forgive my writing and my word choices, this is not my preferred way of relaying my story.

I have chosen Gaia as my patron god. She guides me and protects me and in turn I try to guide and protect others. I have traveled through many lands with her guidance giving of my role as a medicine man. Medicine men in my tribe do more than just heal bodies and minds, they heal communities. Travance, as a community, has a wound that has existed for many years.

In my tribe, the elders are the spirit guides. Each has a patron just as I have Gaia as mine. However the tribe is small, so not all gods have elders who have chosen them as a patron. So what are we to do in such a time when a sacrifice is demanded by a god and we have no elder dedicated to that god? The elders choose someone of the tribe to stand in for a day. They will dress as a bear or a snake or a wolf and they will take on this role for the ceremony for the good of the tribe. They will act in this role out of respect for the god even though that god is not their patron because the tribe needs them to. The tribe thanks them for this act. The tribe does not stone them or hurl insults at them.

Every god is owed respect in its own time. To disrespect the gods is to call their attention to you.

When I was a boy there was a calf that was born deformed. It was unable to stand as its legs were all twisted. The elders declared that Glomm had marked this calf for himself. The calf was sacrificed under the new moon and its body burned so that Glomm might be appeased. Were that to happen here I imagine that the town would adopt this calf as their mascot, build splints for its legs, use magics to make it fly or anything to avoid acknowledging that Glomm was hungry and wanted some steak. It is no wonder then that the dark gods continue to turn their eyes on Travance. They are hungry and you have not appeased them.