Tuesday, June 23, 2020

Saints and Heroes of Dunador, and their Cults

Okay, so Last Time In Dunador it was about auguries and sacrifices. This time it's patron saints and heroes.  The saints and shrines concept and rules come from here:

For clarity, a "patron saint" is from the heliopapist religion and is, like, Saint Christopher or something. "Heroes" are the pagan equivalent, like worshiping Achilles or Asclepius. Functionally, they're the same thing. You could probably also go for a genius loci (protector spirit of a place), but that would probably necessitate staying in one place so I'm not going to do entries for any off the hop.

You can dedicate yourself to a saint or hero without becoming a full member of their cult, and you can freely change which saint or hero you're dedicated to (though your fellow adherents might be a bit miffed, especially if you were a regular donor to the shrine). You can become a proper member of the cult, though that is a somewhat more involved process.

Also I should clarify that herein I'm using cult in the old sense, a set of practices related to the worship of a specific divinity, rather than the modern pejorative sense. Don't worry, Dunador still has its fair share of that kind of cult, too.

To recap the rules:

If you dedicate yourself to a patron saint or hero by worshiping and sacrificing at their shrine, and live by their strictures, you gain access to a floating spell you can cast 1/day. Multiple party members can share in the dedication, but you only gain one casting of the spell. These spells are always 1st level (or equivalent). If the spellcasting modifier is needed, it is equal to the number of PCs in the party present who are dedicated to the shrine.

You can increase the number of times a spell can be cast in a day by making additional sacrifices at the shrine. These sacrifices cost 25gp * your level * each additional spell level gained (max of 4). The bonus spell levels last for one day. You can combine bonus spell levels to cast the spell at a higher level.

Shrine of Saint Spurius

Patron saint of healers, barbers, sheep-shearing, lost children, and florists.
Shrine: A statue of a lamb-headed man carrying a shepherd's crook and decorated with flowers
Cult: Saint Spurius is especially popular in rural areas where healers are rare, or in urban areas where healing and medicine are expensive. Particularly devout followers wear a sprig of local flower in their hair at all times.

Spell: Cure Wounds

Strictures of Saint Spurius: 
You must always give aid to children and the young.
Trust not the untrimmed and unkempt.
Carry flowers with you as you would carry the Saint.

A Favourite Prayer to Saint Spurius:
Gentle Spurius, guide our path to health as you would guide a child to its mother. Grant us your blessing, that we might forever bloom in your light.

Shrine of Saint Killhart


Patron saint of hounds, infants, heroic sacrifice, the falsely accused. She's a dog.
Shrine: A grave mound surrounded sheep or cattle bones.
Cult: New or expectant parents, rangers and soldiers, hound-keepers, convicts. The faithful wear a dried paw, usually from a beloved pet, or pawprint tattoo.

Spell: Heroism

Strictures of Saint Killhart
Defend the defenceless
Do your duty, even if it leads to your end
Take joy in the chase

A Favourite Prayer to Saint Killhart:
Faithful Killhart, guardian of souls, your humble servant calls to you. Grant me courage so I may do what is needed of me. I beg this of you as your faithful child, o eternal guardian. Empower me with your divine warmth.

Shrine of Hildegard the Fox

Hildegard was a minor queen who lived in the chaotic time between the fall of the old Empire and the founding of Dunador. Her realm was small, and poor, but she was cunning and staved off all conquerors with cunning and guile until she won a promise that her realm would never be invaded while her family ruled. After her death, her son married into the founding house of Dunador and united the two kingdoms. Hildegard is revered as a trickster, a hero for the underdog and overlooked.
Shrine: A menhir, hung with carved masks of many faces.
Cult: Hildegard is worshiped by thieves, actors, the poor and oppressed, and those facing impossible challenges. The cult of Hildegard dis often discouraged or even suppressed for its association with criminals and rebels. Each local cult has its own signs of recognition it shares only with the trusted.

Spell: Marble Madness: Your pockets are full of marbles, and will refill every round.

Strictures of Theobald: 
Where wolves fear, foxes dare
The boot that steps on a neck is a foot planted in the grave
Violence stains, cleverness lasts

A Favourite Prayer to Theobald:
We are not now that strength which in old days
Moved earth and heaven; that which we are, we are;
One equal temper of heroic hearts,
Made weak by time and fate, but strong in will
To strive, to seek, to find, and not to yield

Shrine of Notos

The south-wind that blows from the desert. When he is gentle, he scatters the flowers and pollinates the fruit trees. When he is angry, he brings lashing winds of sand from the heart of the desert to destroy crops. Notos dates from the Old Empire, and continues to be venerated throughout southern Dunador.
Shrine: A log or tree, hung with bits of wood and stone with long hole bored through them to sing when the south-wind blows.
Cult: Farmers, traders, bee-keepers, explorers, guides. Whenever going indoors or underground, the faithful always bow to the south to ask Notos to welcome them back when they return.

Spell: Gust of Wind

Strictures of Notos:
Go gently when you can, harshly when you must.
Go where you will. Let nothing stop you, not even the mountain.
Be formless, shapeless, without a centre to attack.

A Favourite Prayer to Notos:
Rather than prayers spoken aloud, worshipers of Notos call on him by rattling windchimes and using bullroarers.

2 comments:

  1. Lovely stuff! I especially like your take on the strictures. I was never quite satisfied with them, but writing them as thematic principles rather than strict rules works a lot better!

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    1. Thanks! It's a lot of fun coming up with these. The format is great to build off of.

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