Archive Reports

   Among the Conclave of Six, the Seeker in Starlight is most closely tied to the land of Aeloryn. As goddess of nature, she is the least likely of the Six to be found in large settlements (with the exception of her home city of Tenoatl in the rainforests of Cobahkul,) and rarely formally addresses her followers. She seems to prefer to teach by example, leading her sacred hunts on journeys which can last for months and reach the far corners of the continent of Ocotia.

   Many of her worshipers revere the Seeker’s natural aspect, with those gifted in the magical arts practicing druidry or nature-aligned divine magics. Some, however, look to her role as the goddess of journeys, an aspect which is revered most often by travelers and explorers. Additionally, tales of those who revere the Seeker’s aspect of savagery and wild chaos speak of warriors who fly into primal rages, becoming avatars of the destructive force that lays beneath the beauty of nature.

   While several of the gods have demonstrated the ability to alter their appearance, the Seeker is the only member of the Conclave who has habitually appeared in animal forms – most commonly taking on the shape of a large black jaguar, though when in other regions she is known to assume the form of that area’s dominant predator. 

   When not in an animal form, the Seeker most often appears as a tall elven woman with skin of a color reminiscent of the bark of the Redwood forests found in parts of the Northern Wildlands and Othland. In whatever form she assumes, the Seeker is distinguishable by her sparkling silver-white eyes, said to hold the light of the stars from which she takes her title.

   The Seeker’s more minor aspects include, perhaps predictably, goddess of stars of the heavens which she, and her followers, use for navigation when journeying through unknown lands. Additionally, she is the goddess of rivers, whose journey from their source to the sea she ordained during the creation of Aeloryn. Many roads throughout our world are laid out following the course of rivers, in the belief that the Seeker is more inclined to bless journeys which are made at riverside. She is also sometimes revered as the goddess of sailors and the seas, as the tide is said to be an eternal journey of the ocean waters to and from the land. 

   While the Marshal’s prowess in combat is unmatched, the Seeker is said to be a fearsome presence on the battlefield, making use of her animal forms and more traditional weaponry with equal skill. Her favored weapons are the bows and spears common to hunters.

Faithfully Submitted,

Ledris Jand, High Curator of the Archives of Khedia

While there is an extensive body of scholarly work on the matter of the creation of Aeloryn, they are, in many cases, contradictory in their details. As this is a subject which the gods rarely address when they speak to their followers – owing, it is said, to the painful nature of reminiscing on a time at which they still had their names – some among the academic communities have, no doubt, taken it upon themselves to extrapolate details without evidence. For this reason, this report will contain only those accounts which have been documented as being given by the members of the Conclave themselves.

Some twenty-six hundred years past, the Divine Conclave sought a place to build themselves a home, a place away from the chaos of the outer realms. They traversed the borders between planes, arriving in the reality we know, where they set their minds to constructing that home. They called forth the shape of Aeloryn, forming it from the disparate materials of the heavens, and shaping it with the Marshal’s blade and the Caller’s magic. For a time, they lived in peaceful solitude, but with the world devoid of life, they grew restless.

They first attempted to simply create beings to share Aeloryn with them – but the world had been formed for gods, and mortal beings quickly perished, unable to survive the conditions. And so, the conclave wove the power of their divine names into the depths of Aeloryn, infusing the land itself with their essence to allow it to support mortal life. In doing this, they bound themselves to their new home and titles, for if they left, or reclaimed their original names, that power would leave with them.

The next beings the Conclave created were the Dragons – great winged beasts with magic of their own, servants to assist the gods in tending to the world. After this were the elves, who they granted long lives, and taught to summon lesser beings from across the planes to assist in the building of the mortal world. With these servants, the Conclave populated Aeloryn with the remainder of the races and creatures we now find commonplace. For some seven hundred years, they acted directly to shape mortal society, teaching us to create cities, and the many arcane arts and sciences we have enjoyed since. Their direct involvement ended, of course, shortly after the Dragon Rebellion – but that will be the subject of a report to follow.

On a further personal note, it has come to my attention that the conclusion of my previous report has been interpreted by some as maligning the Regent’s interest in these accounts. This could not be further from the truth, the Regent possesses a keen mind, honed by his Othandi education, and I would not dream of suggesting any interest of his were a base pursuit. I merely meant to observe that, unlike those members of the court who have time enough to spread such rumors, my time is perpetually kept occupied with the tasks of maintaining the archives.

Faithfully Submitted,

Ledris Jand, High Curator of the Archives of Khedia

The Divine Conclave, sometimes also referred to as the Conclave of Six, are as much a part of life in our world as the air we breathe. From the smallest shrine in foreign lands, to the grand home temples each god maintains in the nations which most revere them, to even the watchful glow of Marveshe, the celestial seat of the Conclave, which travels across our evening sky, we are surrounded by reminders of their grandeur.

While at least a general knowledge of the gods is commonplace in most of the civilized lands of Aeloryn, it is the purpose of these reports to summarize information without regard to how common it may be. What follows is a basic overview of each of the Divine Conclave’s member gods (of which, as their alternative title suggests, there are six,) including their major aspects.

• The Lord in Saffron Robes – The figurehead of the Conclave, first among equals. God of Rulership, Law, Subjugation, and Commerce. His home temple resides in the nation of Astil, far to the north. 
• The Lady with Crimson Eyes – The consort of the Lord. Goddess of Family, Community, Love, Jealousy, and Wrath. Her home temple sits in Sharhil, just east of Astil.
• The Marshal of the Gleaming Blade – The warlord of the Conclave. God of Battle, Glory, Conquest, and Violence. His home temple, of course, is here in the Regency of Khedia, at The Marshal’s Stand.
• The Caller to the Ways – The magus and architect of the Conclave. God of Magic, both as a means of Creation and of Destruction, as well as Knowledge and Logic. Their home temple is in the lands of Khedia’s northern neighbor, the Kingdom of Othland.
• The Seeker in Starlight – The hunter of the Conclave. Goddess of Nature, Savagery, Journeys, and the Chaos of the unbound wilds. Her home temple is deep in the rainforests of Cobahkul.
• That Which Walks in Silence – The most abstract and enigmatic of the Conclave, the Walker communicates with its followers only in dreams. God of Truth, Death, Secrets, Fate, and Freedom. While the precise location of its home temple has been lost to time, records suggest its ruins may lie somewhere within the Northern Wildlands. Expeditions to find it have proven ill-advised, given the concentration of the bestial races in the depths of that gods-forsaken place.

Further reports will give more detailed accounts of the gods of the Conclave, including their minor aspects, and their so-called dualistic nature, as well as other subjects of interest to the Regency. On a personal note, I can not help but wonder if my time might be better spent in higher pursuits, but I am, of course, the Regent’s humble servant.

Faithfully Submitted,

Ledris Jand, High Curator of the Archives of Khedia