Atlantic:Avatarian Faith Compendium

The Creation

Before time there were only chaos. Then it happened... the Birth.

The Lord was born as cosmos from chaos, and came with order and peace. The world he created from his own being, but because chaos was the founder of everything, it was enslaved in the world of Sosaria.

With time the Lord grew weary of the everlasting cycle of the earth, and he created the Sun. He created it from his own heart, so that his love would always shine down on earth. He then created five beings to care take the earth. They were Hydros, archangel of the sea and caretaker of the waters of the earth; Pyros, archangel of the fires of earth and caretaker of the volcanoes and the burning fire of everything; Stratos, archangel of the winds and weather and caretaker of the cycle of life; Lythos, archangel of the earth and caretaker of the dead and buried. And last, Lucius, archangel of Light and the world. He was to protect the world from all evil and to be the leader of the archangels. He was the wisest and most clever of them, and the diamond of the Lord. The Lord had in him enslaved the feelings of truth, love and courage.

In time, the Lord grew weary and wanted more. He created the first beings to inhabit earth. They were the Sosarians. He created two different sorts - A male and a female. Over time, the Lord, came to love the spontaneous acts of the Sosarians, and liked them even more than Lucius. This did not fall in Lucius' taste, and so he plotted out an elaborate plan to defile the Sosarians. With tears running down his face he yelled at the Lord:

"I will no longer serve you! For I am TIRED of your meaningless words and empty promises! Your love for me as expired, and you love your precious animals more! So now I will leave you and I hope you remember! THAT EVEN WHY YOU CREATED US FIRST! YOU LOVED THEM MORE!"

With these words he fled into the wilderness and hid in the shadows. He was gone for many thousands of years, and in this time, the Sosarians evolved and became two different races. The Humans and the Elves. The inhabited the world as brothers and sisters, and were united under the guidance of the Lord. One day they were visited by a new species. The Dwarves. They came out from the woods with the looks of the animals called apes. The Dwarves inherited a love for the mountains and the shadows, which they had lived under for so many years. They began building cities in the mountains, and dug deep into the world. They created many pretty things, and they were proud of them. A thing the Lord did not take a liking too. One day the Dwarves' greed had gone too far. They had dug to the very depths of earth and had come to a realm unknown to them. Down there they found creatures never seen before, but they had a very good resemblance to the elves. It was the Abyss, that they had found, the kingdom of Lucius. When the creatures of the depths saw the Dwarves they were frightened, and told their master. Lucius was enraged that someone frightened his beloved beings, so he taught his minions to create weapons and armour of the metals of earth. The Dwarves, quick to learn, used the same skills to create their own, but without any use. The minions of Lucius were strong and many. The Dwarves were killed and their cities were burned. Only a few survived and lived on to tell about how to create weapons to the elves and humans.

In that way the first war of the world began. The minions of Lucius spread across the land and destroyed the cities and towns that the elves and humans had created. When the truth met the light, Lucius had captured many elves and defiled them into forms before unknown. There were two. Orcs and Drow. The Orcs were strong and fierce and were brutal in their ways, while the Drow were evil and cunning and used poison and wicked magic as their weapon. Because the Humans saw that it was the Elves that had been defiled and not them, they halted their alliance with them, and fled from the war, leaving the elves alone. Because the Orcs and Drow were created from elves, they inherited a hatred to them, and so they began an onslaught of the elves. It would have been a disaster if the Lord had not stepped in. With a mighty rage he gave the archangels order to let loose their powers, and so the world erupted into chaos. It rained constantly and the wind smashed houses and pulled up trees. The volcanoes erupted and burned everything in their path, and earthquakes constantly made the earth form great chasms and many died.

When the storms settled and peace came back, many elves, Orcs and Drow had been killed. The Drow, cunning as they were, had pulled back into the depths of the world and closed the doors and had placed the Orcs outside. The humans were the only winners. They had been spared and now came to take over the world, and such it happened that the humans came to rule the world, while the elves were scattered and in many places sought refuge in the forests.

The Orcs fled into the mountains and built forts, and some hid in caves ready to attack any trespassers. The Lord was not finished yet, though. With his almighty power he pulled Lucius from the depths of earth, and gave him his punishment:

"You are not worthy of this world! And I can see that my beings were not strong enough to withstand your petty manipulations! But instead of freeing you from your obligation to serve me, I will give you a new position! From now on you will be known to the world as The Guardian. Your realm, the Abyss, shall be a place where the dead will be cleansed from their sins, before they will come to my holy kingdom! For only those that can withstand your manipulation will be worthy of my kingdom of heaven! Your realm shall not be accessible from earth, and so your creatures cannot dwell in it, but are forced to live forever on the world, that you have held them from! Your beloved minions must now face an existence without your guidance and without your malicious actions!"

And thus he ripped the Abyss from the earth and placed it beyond reach, on a plane only accessible to those dead. The Guardian was sent there to be the caretaker of this realm, and to test the souls who arrived. If he subdued them, he would get to keep them there, in hell where he could use them for nothing, but if not, that soul and ten other souls would be ripped from the abyss and cleansed by the waters of The Holy Kingdom of Heaven, and leave the Guardian there alone. In darkness, where he belonged.

And thus was the world of Sosaria created with the planes of the Abyss and the Kingdom of Heaven.

The Troubled Times

This is the story of the age of troubles. From when the Dwarves discovered the Abyss to the peace descended upon Sosaria after the Great Rage.

It all began in a long forgotten dwarven stronghold near the current city of Britain. They dug with their greed for gold and thus they created a hole into a realm unknown to them. It was dark and cold but built with the hand of a master. First they were startled by the looks of this great and magnificent underground realm. They sent in a patrol to secure the borders of this new realm, but were met with the frightened beings that were orcs and drow. These deformed creatures looked with awe upon the newcomers, but were frightened and called for their master.

Lucius arrived and slew the dwarven patrol and then he taught the arts of war to his minions. Weapons were made armours crafted and strategies were created. The dwarves looked from their hidings and quickly began to imitate the doings of Orcs and Drow and thus creating their own arms and armour. When the minions of Lucius burst through the hole to the upper realm of Sosaria, the dwarves were taken by surprise. The strong and fierce orcs cut through the ranks of the sturdy but inexperienced dwarves and the drow snuck up behind the dwarven generals and took them out with great skill.

The first dwarven fortress was destroyed in a week and the battle cry of the Orcs sounded over the valleys at the foot of the mountain. Here the elves and the humans lived together, but at the cry of the orcs and the sight of fleeing dwarves, they panicked. A few managed to question the dwarves but the first raid by the orcs and drow was fatal. Thousands of humans and elves were slaughtered and they fled south and east.

Years passed with more and more raids, the problem for the drow and orcs were the sunlight that they hated, for it was the love of the Lord, and they despised him. Over time the humans and elves learned the secrets of war too, and created good armour and weapons. The humans, with their quick learning, created glorious strategies that the elves and their bravery followed. Rank upon rank they stood quietly and looked at the coming storm of the orcs, and when the shields bashed together the cries of pain and misery awoke in the hearts of men and elves.

The human generals created new cities and the war gave them many new skills such as medicine and healing. But the alliance fell at last... The human scouts reported that the Orcs and Drow were much alike elves. The Drow especially. The Orcs had the pointy ears and the height of the Elves, while the Drow looked a lot like them in the face. The deception was found. In the years before the war their had been numerous disappearings. It had been Lucius' doing, they could see now.

With a rage the humans left the camp and went south where they founded Trinsic, the first city. Trin'Isi-Callion was its original name, meaning: "The Only Light". The elves put up strong ranks but were beaten by the constant swarm of orcs and drow. And just as the humans prepared the last defense the Lord spoke to his arch-angels: "This has enraged me! Let the earth tremble and burn! Let the skies roar and thunder! Let the seas become one with the land and let the filth be washed away!"

And so Pyros let the volcanoes of the earth erupt and the ground began to burn. Lythos shook the earth with his mighty hands. Stratos made the wind blow up trees and lightning destroy houses and Hydros let great tidal waves engulf the world.

The humans had received warning, and had built many ships. A fleet of 100,000 ships said the stories. Many were destroyed, but most survived the Great Rage. Of the Orcs and Drow nobody know how they survived, but some of them did, and they fled back into the darkness of the world, and then the Lord ripped the Abyss away and punished Lucius.

The Age Legends

After the Great Rage peace descended upon Sosaria once again. Few elves had survived the Great Rage, and had sought refuge in the forests, when the humans returned from the seas. They were afraid of the Humans now, who were so many and still had hope. The first city, Trinsic, was rebuilt and soon other establishments around Sosaria erupted. The main land of the Humans was Britannia. A piece of land that was very rich. This was the chosen land, the Lord said, here my eyes will rest. And so the people of Britannia found themselves lucky to be the chosen people of the Lord.

In the Age of Legends many great wonders happened. It was here that the great cities of Britain, Trinsic and Vesper grew. Great seaports that traded with other lands. It was in these time, that ships sailed from Britannia and to Ilshenar, the Tokuno Islands and other places of Sosaria. Trade grew and prosperity blossomed. Civilization. In time the people of Sosaria came to think of themselves as the lords of the world, and there were wars between humans. It was in these years that the city-states ruled the land, and no one claimed to own Britannia for himself.

From unknown a stranger to all arrived. Lord British. He came and became the king of the city he renamed Britain. actually the name "Britannia" was first used when he united all the city-states of the realm to one great alliance of equals.

In the last years of the Age of Legends the young Mondain came to power and used the Ruby of Immortality to attack Britannia, but he was thwarted by lord British and disappeared, presumed dead. This ended the Age of Legends, for Mondain was not dead...

The Defiling

After the Age of Legends the now proclaimed king of all of Britannia, Lord British, settled down and began working on his prospering realm. But from the dark Mondain had changed the Ruby of Immorality into a dark gem. He enslaved Sosaria and orcs, drow, trolls, ogres and other creatures erupted from the earth. At first it was only simple raids that the soldiers of Britannia took care of, but soon it was too great a match for the people. The trade with the empires of Ilshenar and the Tokuno Islands stopped and after seven generations the knowledge of them had almost faded away. The times were dark and the people cried out for help.

The generals of Britannia had created a front-line in the deep forest and just south of Trinsic at the swamps. Here there were many of the wandering beasts, but they also raided inside the "safe" area. Villages were burnt and people killed.

After a council with the generals and advisers a patrol of the best soldiers were sent into the depths of the north and south to locate the source of this evil. While this happened, murder and riot erupted in Britannia. The once great kingdom had been scorched by evil. The patrols discovered the keep of Mondain and learned what he had done, but their attempt to storm the fortress was in vain, and they almost didn't make it back to report. With the new knowledge Lord British went into his own room and began to pray to the Lord.

The Lord heard his prayer and decided to take action against the villain...

The Awakening

The Lord searched the heart of every man in Sosaria, and the one he would use. The name of this stranger is unknown, and where he came from too, but he arrived in Britain without any knowledge of who he was, but he knew that he had a mission. The Stranger wandered the land when he learnt about Mondain. In visions the Lord visited him and gave him more and more information and the Stranger became more and more sure of his mission.

One day he found himself before the fortress of Mondain, and he walked in. There he fought Mondain and Shattered the Gem of Immortality. The world had been freed. The armies to the north and south won great victories and sent the evils on retreat. The militias cleansed the countryside of the many troll and ogre tribes, but because the gem had not released Sosaria, evil continued to endure, and the trolls and ogres were there to stay.

The Stranger was proclaimed an Avatar. The Lord had descended into him with his spirit, and given him the power to defeat Mondain, and now it was not over. The Avatar spoke with Lord British about a new system that would guide the people of Britannia. The Virtues. Lord British agreed that it was a good system and immediately began constructing the shrines in the world. The Avatar went to every city and taught the people the virtues, but because of the different mind of the people of Britannia, they all found one virtue that they liked very much.

Thus the Virtues became a new set of rules for the people of Britannia, and the realm prospered once again.

In time the Virtues became just a symbol. Not a faith entirely. Each city had found its virtue and followed it like it was the only. Slowly people began loosing the faith and the zeal faded.

But the Virtues are never forgotten entirely...

The Basic Beliefs

The Avatarian Church believes that there is one god. The Higher Being or The Lord. He is above names and can only be titled as The Creator, The Father, The Lord or The Higher Being.

Another part of the belief is the Arch-Angels. There are four of them, one for each element of Sosaria, and they are his servants.

The Virtues are the guidelines that the mortal men must live by in order to be worthy of the holy kingdom.

Avatarians believe that it is sinful to stray from the virtues The more you sin in life the longer you will have to walk in the Abyss when you die. And the longer you stay in the Abyss the more likely you are to fall to the manipulations of the Guardian. Therefore it is important that mortal men learn as much they can during their life, so that they are able to see through the lies of the Guardian. If they follow the Guardian in the Abyss they are lost.

Walking the Abyss is like being burnt and frozen in same time. It is many would not be able to stand for long in life, but they are immortal in the Abyss. Therefore the manipulations of the Guardian that he will take away the pains are very tempting, but it will just lead to certain damnation. We must stay true and show the Lord the last great sign of faith, by feeling pain in his name and patiently waiting. Many of monks have trained the art of meditation, believing that this will help in the Abyss to forget the pains. It is not possible for anyone other than the Lord or his Avatar to be pure in the virtues, and that is why many see the error that it is impossible to combine all the Virtues at the same time. There is a key, but we will first discover it when we die and come to the kingdom of heaven. The Avatar knew it, but the living men will not.

The Avatarian belief can therefore simply be said this way:

• Believe in the One God. • Follow the virtues (the eight virtues) • Know the Guardian's lies

The Virtues are the eight virtues of Honor, Valor, Honesty, Justice, Sacrifice, Compassion, Spirituality and Humility.

Individual Membership

In "The Avatarian Church" we have a thing we call an individual cross-guild community (ICC). Simply put it means that individuals form a community across their guilds. It doesn't matter what guild they are part of, what they will be a part of is the Avatarian community. A bandit from the Crimson Claw could be part of it, as well as a citizen from one of the Trinsic guilds.

If your character joins the Avatarian community he will receive a special token that will be the sign of his faith. The token must be bought for 400 gp In-game of the church. When this has happened he will be registered in the church that is nearest to him, and he will receive news from this church and dates of events and masses.

Joining individually with characters is important to The Avatarian Church, because it creates a vast and special community unlike any seen before in UO. Here we are talking people from all sorts of guilds with many personalities, but one thing binds them together: They are Avatarians. As a non-church member (those not being clergy or order), you will be known under a rank in the church. When you start out you will be a Layman. As a Layman you will have to come to church, pay tithe and be active in the events that come. Known Laymen may receive a special rank as Informant or Tax Collector for the church.

It is a secret how you will be promoted from Layman to Church Cousin. What we will say is that it is a good idea to be active and show that you are willing to tithe. Church Cousins will be invited to special parties by the Bishop or even the Patriarch, where they will have the chance to mingle themselves with all the high-born and influential people in the church. Known Church Cousins may receive a special rank as a Dean or Church Trader.

You can be promoted once again by being even more active and show a great deal of interest in the church, this new rank is Church Brother. Church Brothers are known faces in more than just their own church. They have talked personally with the Patriarch and have been thanked for their interest in church matters, and their glorious help of course. Church Brothers will have the privilege of being able to lend church funds for what they might need them for. They may also get an escort of Templars, if they have business that require the help of armed defenders. Church Brothers may receive the special rank as Deacon or Ordinator.

When Church Brothers have shown them worthy of their rank and even more, and have been helping promoting the church, they might be promoted even further. To Church Official. Officials are people who have some sort of command in the church they are bound to. They may receive specials ranks as High Ordinator or Councilor. Church Officials are the highest ranking non-church members.

Guild Membership

The Avatarian Church attempts to create an ICC (Individual Cross-guild Community), but they also attempt to create a RGC (Religion-based Guild Community). Simply as it says, we try to put guilds into a community based on them having the same main religion. This is not saying we want to take control of the guilds and create peace on order. During the middle ages the countries were at war too, even though they had the same religion! The Avatarian Church will also have it's disputes over who to have as Patriarch, just as there have been many conflicts over who to have as pope during the middle ages and before. Joining with a guild means that:

•The Guild will create a Church Faction

or

•The Guild obligates itself to participate in special church events IC this means: The major part of the guild members will be Avatarians, and the guild will either create it's own Church Faction (Build a church, recruit new church people, hold masses). The first choice is mostly a choice for bigger guilds, maybe focused on a city like Yew or Cove, while the second is mainly for guilds wanting to be part of the Avatarian Church and receive special benefits. ________________________________________ Creating a church faction means that the guild master must find someone who wants to be bishop in this new church, hopefully also one who can be a seneschal. Then there are a few steps to go through:

1.The new bishop must first play with another guild

- This means that he must be part of his own guild, but wander around at another church performing tasks and studying to become a bishop IC.

2.A church must be built

- The High Church Office will provide the new church with additional 60,000 crowns for building the church.

3.A detachment of Templars will arrive

- When the church has been built a detachment of 1 Templar Overseer, 4 Templar Brothers / Initiates (And squires) and 2 priests will arrive. The Templars will be the armed forces and the priests will be the spiritual guides, until the church has enough members on it's own

4.2 Church Sentinels and 1 Initiate must be recruited

- Within 1 month at least 2 Church Sentinels and 1 Initiate must be recruited for the church

5.The Initiate must reach Priest

- Before the detachment can leave the Initiate must reach Priest rank

6.The Fund raising

- Within 2 months the church must pay a tribute of 70,000 crowns to the High Church Office

7.Acceptance

- When all of this has been done the High Church Office will accept the new church and it will receive some of the benefits. ________________________________________

Obligating your church means you join the Avatarian community as a guild, or organization that has it's main religion as Avatarian. Being part of the community gives you special benefits but there are a few steps to go through:

1.Binding to a church faction

- The guild must first find the nearest church and then bind themselves to it

2.Guild mass

- The guild must have a day where many of their members show up at a mass and tithe so that the bishop can see that they are interested.

3.Choosing of Church Official

- One member from the guild will be promoted to Church Official (OOC) and will be the spokesman of the guild (remember it is not sure that the church IC knows that it is an organization that the Church Official has behind him)

4.Tithing

- The guild must scrape together 10,000 crowns that will be handed to the Bishop by the Church Official.

5.2 Church Brothers

- After the tithing the guild may choose two members who will be promoted to Church Brother (OOC) to strengthen the bond

6.Acceptance

- When all of these things have happened the guild will be accepted as an Avatarian guild (OOC) ________________________________________

The benefits are many and can help you a great deal. There are OOC benefits and IC benefits here they are listed:

•(OOC) Using the church in plots [Faction / Obligated] - The Avatarian Church likes plots and quests, and we would like to give our full help to anyone making plots that require assistance. This means that we will help with characters, money, graphic, texts anything you'd like.

•(IC) Escorts [Obligated] - The obligated guilds may use their Church Official to gain an armed squad of Templars to help them in a certain case. The Official must argument for why he needs them, but they will most likely be accepted because of his position

•(IC) Calling Holy Vengeance [Faction] - Faction churches may call upon a Holy Vengeance upon a sworn enemy (a person or guild) and the whole Avatarian community will know if this. Many in the community will like to work to climb the ladders, and will most likely seek the enemy out. The enemy of the faction church becomes an enemy of the whole community.

•(IC) Influence [Obligated] - The obligated guilds may use their Church Official and their two Church Brothers to gain a certain amount of influence within the church matters for a short span of time, choosing a new heading for the church. If they'd like information on something, or want to make sure that a rival disappears, they can use their influence to, maybe, make the church take action.

Templar Ranks and Advancement

The Order – Ranks

I.Templar Preceptor (1):Heads the Templars as the one with absolute authority. May command all. He heads all the Templar Factions.

II.Templar Seneschal (1 for each city):Advisor of the Preceptor and Deputy when he is not there. May command all. He heads a simple Templar Faction or is adviser of the preceptor in his main faction.

III.Templar Overseer (4 for each city):(The Officers of the Templars. May command Templars, Squires and Sentinels

IV.Templar Brother:The bulk of the Templars. Trusted members. May command their squire.

V.Templar Initiate:After having served as squire he is now a Templar, but has no squires himself. May command none without authority

VI.Squire to xxxx:Having proved themselves pious sentinels are initiated in the order as squires and must serve their master.

VII.Church Sentinels:Starters and the new joined members. Must prove themselves pious before a Templar may choose them as his squire. They will not be promoted until a Templar chooses them.

________________________________________

I. I. Church Sentinel:

Church Sentinel- The Sentinels must protect the church at all times. The church also needs resources for armour, weapons and bandages, the Sentinels can receive a special certificate that allows them to travel to a certain city to buy supplies. They should also make sure the forests are safe and not being harassed by creatures of evil.

In order to receive a promotion as a church sentinel one must have:

•Done the Pilgrimage of the Eight Graces and written a report about it •Attended to at least 3 training sessions

When these things are fulfilled the Sentinel is eligible as a squire. The promotion happens during the time when a Templar needs a new squire. The Sentinels line up and the Templar(s) pick their new squire(s). The Church Sentinel must then go through the Squire Ritual:

"I hereby vow to live in obedience to my masters. I will follow their orders like were it the orders of the lord. I vow to live in chastity, to lay down my lust for the flesh and stay clean in order to better communicate with the lord. I vow to live in poverty, to reject the mortal lust for riches and give away to those who need it. I receive this sword in honour of my masters, who have a last chosen me as worthy of the path. I promise to take care of it and instead of thinking who to kill, think about who to spare. This is only an instrument to be used against the enemies of the church, and do I use it otherwise, I will be fallen from grace. Deus Vult!"

II Church Squire

Squires – The squires must help the Templar they are assigned to and must make sure he has what he needs. They must also continue to train their fighting skills as well as learn the lore and history of the Church.

In order to receive a promotion as a squire one must have:

•Done the Pilgrimage of the Eight Tests and written a report about it •Attended to at least 5 training sessions lead by his master and written a report about each •Attended to at least 4 history classes and written one report

When these things are fulfilled the Squire is eligible as a Templar Initiate. Though here is when the OOC thing happens. It is the call of the master to decide whether a player as absorbed the necessary skills in combat and knowledge of the Avatarian Faith to be able to argument for his faith IC. He should also ensure that the Squire has been completely obedient. The promotion happens in a special mass where the Squire is sworn into duty by doing the Templar Ritual. Only Templar Initiates and above, and the Archdeacon and Bishop may be at this ritual.

"From this moment on, I swear to uphold the laws that are set by my order, and to follow them blindly as were they the rules of life. I keep my vows of obedience, chastity and poverty, and will strive to promote the order and do good. I will choose only the worthy as my squires and I will protect these as I want them to protect me. I thank thee, my lord, for giving me the opportunity to serve you like this. I wish I may stay here and fight for you as long as you want, and if you do not find me worthy of heaven, do smite me and burn me forever in eternal hell. I am yours. Deus Vult!"

III. Templar Initiate:

Templar Initiates – An initiate is a Templar that has just been promoted. He must now show that he is worthy to be a Templar before he will be given a squire. He must cleanse the world of evils and show how pious he is.

In order to receive a promotion as a Templar Initiate one must have:

•Done the Pilgrimage of Luna and written a report about it •Done the Pilgrimage of Trinsic and written a report about it •Done the Pilgrimage of Deceit and written a report about it •Completed at least 6 church missions and written a report on each. •Written at least 2 reports on events •Lead 2 hunts with proper authorization and written a report about each

When these things are fulfilled the Templar Initiate is eligible as a Templar Brother. To be promoted the Templar Initiate must first be asked by the Seneschal or Preceptor if he feels ready to bear the title of Templar Brother. If the Templar Initiate feels ready he will be placed before the court of Templar Overseers, who will then interrogate him in the history of the Avatar and make him argument for the virtues. If they feel he is worthy he will be put before the bishop who will then name him Templar Brother of the Avatarian Templar Order.

IV.Templar Brother

Templar Brothers – The trusted members of the order and those that will carry out the missions. The Templar Brothers must train their squire and ensure that their equipment is in perfect condition. They must also go amongst the people and ensure that they know the church is present, and they must go on missions to other churches or crusades.

In order to receive a promotion as a Brother one must have:

• Done the Pilgrimage of Devotion and written a report about it •Trained at least 3 Squires to Templar Initiate • Attended to at least 2 crusades and succeeded in them •Lead 6 hunts with proper authorization and written a report about each

When these things are fulfilled the Templar is eligible as Templar Overseer. A promotion will only happen if there is a space for a Templar Overseer. Templar Overseers will stay in that title for 3 months, then they will be granted the special title: Senior Templar Brother. The Templar Brother must be asked by the Preceptor to take the role as an Overseer. When this happens the rest of the Overseers will interrogate him and make sure he knows enough to be an Overseer. The promotion happens during a special ceremony where the Templar Brother is sworn to duty as a Templar Overseer.

V. Templar Overseer

Templar Overseers – The Overseers are the commanding Templars. They have the authorization to give orders to any Templar, squire or initiate at all times. They have a number of different assignments including establishing hunts, giving authorization to build shrines, interrogate accused peasants, training the sentinels or doing the Seneschals or Preceptors bidding.

Templar Overseers are promoted in a different way than the other ranks. Here they are chosen from their OOC activity and how much they do to promote the church and keep it active. Of course there will have to be some IC reason that they are promoted and that's fine. Normally they will, after 4 months, be given the title as Senior Templar Brother. They have the same obligations and rights as the Templar Brothers, but they have earned more respect and will not be the first to do the hard work. Senior Templar Brothers are also eligible as Templar Overseers, again, but it is preferred that they maybe instead take on new ways like becoming a witch hunter, or maybe stepping down from the Templar Order and join the Priest order as an Inquisitor.

The promotion happens during a special ceremony where all church members are present. The Templar Overseer is then sworn to duty as a Seneschal during the Seneschal Ritual:

"Before thee Lord, I kneel today, to swear a holy oath, to lead your brave servants in war, and to accompany our Master in battle as his right hand, and be his protector at all times. I will faithfully fulfill this holy privilege and forever be grateful for your mercy. May the enemies of your great church fall before my sword and word, and may the heathens kneel before this only faith, and be cleansed so that they may experience love and harmony in the after. May the world become a better place for every heathen converted and every heretic killed. May none stand against your church! The future be thy will. Deus Vult!"

The Overseer is now given a blessing by the bishop and will arise as Templar Seneschal.

VI.Templar Seneschal:

Templar Seneschal - As Templar Seneschal you are part of the OOC church council and has to do some OOC work. You will still act as commanding officer in the guild but will have OOC tasks like developing missions, plots and correcting errors. It also falls to you to ensure that everyone follows the rules and correct them if they cross the line. As Seneschal I believe you know what to do IC.

To be raised to Templar Preceptor as a Templar Seneschal means that a new leader of the church must be elected. The player behind the old Preceptor might not have the time or lust to play anymore, and thus a new leader will be appointed. It is important that the Seneschal at all times has to do with everything the Preceptor does, so that he will be ready to take the lead, should the preceptor step back. It is important that the Seneschal is open for ideas and has a good imagination and can invent events and church missions to keep the church active. He should also have good contacts with other guild masters or persons in other guilds, and should be a known person in the RP community. If this is all fulfilled the Templar Overseers, along with the preceptor stepping down, will choose if the Seneschal is ready to take the role as leader of the church. It will be important that there is no doubt, so that the church continues it's existence, no matter the leader. If there is no new preceptor needed after 3 months the Seneschal will become a Senior Templar Brother to make sure that everyone has the chance to be the Seneschal. It is important to note that also Senior Templar Brothers, who have been the Seneschal, are eligible as the preceptor, but the first choice will always be the Seneschal in office.

The promotion IC happens during a ceremony where the bishop blesses the Seneschal and the Seneschal performs the ritual of the preceptor:

"Your will is mine lord! I gratefully take this title upon me. The title no one should be worthy to bear! I swear to lead these brave men, that have chosen you as their lord, into war to spare those that shall be spared and kill those that shall be killed. The blood of heretics will be spilled on the earth be they against your will! For thee, my lord, I accept the holy privilege of being your instrument of war, and I will make sure, that every heathen I come across, will be converted in peace, and be he against it, I will burn the confession into his flesh! So that he may lie in his cell and speak it, until he knows it! Your will be mine! Deus Vult!"

VII. Templar Preceptor:

Templar Preceptor- What is there to say? As Preceptor you lead the church and must do some OOC work. You have a great deal of things to live up to, not just making missions and plots, but also organizing events like masses or feasts.

Templar Special Classes

There are certain specialties to the Order like Witch hunters, Crusaders, Sentinel Overseers, Senior Templar Brother. They are special titles that will or will not be added to your guild title, depends on what you are, they will not be gone through step by step.

Witch hunter - Witch hunters are Templar Brothers that travel the world to find the necromancers and witches that are against the Avatarian Church. They are fearsome and cold personalities seeking evil and wishing to destroy it. They can appear very harsh and without compassion to many, but their love lies with the Lord and those that follow him.

•Will get a <WH> added to his title (ex. Templar Brother <WH>) •Must be of Templar Brother rank •Must pass the witch-hunter trial (secret)

Crusader - The Crusaders are Templar Brothers that pick up their swords to cleanse a specific area of evil men. Most commonly used as PvP. The crusaders must be three Templar Brothers in order to get the authorization for the Crusade, and them must argue why they should be sent where they want to go.

•Will get a <CR> added to his title (ex. Templar Brother <CR>) •Must be of Templar Brother rank •Must place his arguments before the Overseer council Sentinel Overseer - The Sentinel Overseer is the one chosen to be the trainer of Sentinels. He will lead the training sessions for the Sentinels, where they will be taught how to fight disciplined and with great skill. It is a title that will be given in turn to all Templar Brothers, and also Templar Overseers. He will be a Sentinel Overseer for one week and may command all sentinels during that week.

•Will get a <SO> added to his title (ex. Templar Brother <SO>) •Must be of Templar Brother rank •Must be accepted for the task by the Overseer council Senior Templar Brother - Those Templar Overseers that after 3 months are not raised to Seneschal will receive the title Senior Templar Brother. Templar Brothers that have been Templar Brothers in 6 months without a promotion to Templar Overseer will also be given the title, and Templar Seneschals that after 3 months have not been promoted to Preceptor will also be given the title. Senior Templar Brothers have the privilege of command. They may order the Sentinels and Squire around. Templar Brothers and Templar Initiates must regard the Seniors as superiors and must call them "Milord" instead of "Brother".

•Will get a <SEN> added to his title (ex. Templar Brother <SEN>) •Must be a Templar Brother not promoted in 6 months or an Overseer or Seneschal not promoted in 3 months •Must be accepted as a Senior Templar Brother by the Preceptor.

Templar Tasks

Escort duty: To protect the ones superior to you. As a Sentinel it means everyone, as a squire it means protecting your own master.

Area patrol: Sometimes it will be necessary to go on a patrol in the nearby forest or countryside. There will always be trolls, ogres or other foul beings waiting to attack an unprotected traveler. We must seek these foes and destroy them! If anything happens it will need to be put in a report.

Training sessions: Sentinels and Squires must attend to training sessions to become experts at fighting. The Order is a fighting force and so it is important that every members knows how to swing a sword. Sentinels train in groups with a Templar who has been given the title of Sentinel Overseer [SO], while a squire is trained by his master. Sentinels must be recorded by the SO in order to noted for the session, a squire must write a report on every training session he has with his master.

Pilgrimage of the Eight Graces: In order to become a squire the sentinels must have done the pilgrimage of the Eight Graces. They must visit every of the eight shrines in Britannia (not Ilshenar) and must have at least two pictures from each shrine. One with the shrine and themselves, one with them reciting the line that are appropriate to the shrine.

History classes: The squires must attend to the history lessons of the monks and priests (only church members may come). During the classes they must take notes and when they have been through eight classes they must write a report on it. This is a must to become a Templar Initiate.

Pilgrimage of the Eight Tests: A squire must do a pilgrimage to every shrine in Ilshenar and secure the surrounding area. He must then pray before the ankh and write a report of the pilgrimage with a sketch from each shrine. This is required for a promotion.

Pilgrimage of Luna: A Templar Initiate must do three pilgrimages before he can become a Templar Brother. The Pilgrimage of Luna is a pilgrimage to the city of light. Luna. The initiate must visit the city and walk around the city before venturing out and engaging the creatures of the wild. He must stay in Luna for 2 days and write a report on the trip when he gets home with at least 5 sketches.

Pilgrimage of Trinsic: A Templar Initiate must travel to Trinsic and visit the holy city and see it situation. Bordered by the heretic Kaldorians they are clearly in need of help. He must also stay there for two days at least, and MUST have an audience with the Duke and tell him that the Avatarian Church blessed him for his rule over Trinsic and may his reign prosper. When the initiate returns he must write a report on the trip. During the trip he must not fight with anyone, not even in self defense.

Pilgrimage of Deceit: A Templar Initiate must travel to the cold island in the north and visit the dungeon there. He must then venture in and fight the beasts of the dungeon. He must have a shrine crate with him and build a shrine within the dungeon and hold it for as long as possible. Then he must find a way home. He will be sent there by a portal but must find a way home for himself.

Pilgrimage of Devotion: A pilgrimage that is necessary at the beginning when the Templar Brother receives his rank. He must venture to the four corners of the world and build a shrine in each place. In the Deep Forest of Yew he must venture to the jail and build a shrine outside. In the swamp south of Trinsic he must fight the lizard men and build a shrine. On the cold island of the north he must build a shrine, and last on the fiery island where the dungeon of Hythloth is to the southeast. He must write a report about his pilgrimage.

Training the sentinels: The Templar Brothers will take turns in receiving the title Sentinel Overseer [SO] and as the Sentinel Overseer the Templar will have to train the sentinels by finding creatures that will require teamwork for them to best, or train them in the use of swordplay against each other.

Training the squire: The Templar Brother must ensure that his squire will be trained properly and knows how to defend himself. He must find the creatures that his squire has trouble besting and make him fight them until he does not have trouble with it anymore. He must also teach his squire to be quiet, obedient and chaste, as well as lecturing him in history and things of philosophical value.

Crusade: Before going on a crusade the Templar must ensure that he has the blessing of the lord and ask him in a prayer. Then he must find at least two other Templars that are willing to undertake such a venture. Then he must ask the bishop if he may undertake the venture. The bishop must ask the preceptor if the Templars are well enough fighters and then he will grant them permission to seek support with the Templar Overseers. The Overseers will not grant the permission by the knowledge of the fighting skills of the Templars but their wits and their intelligence. The Templars taking the crusade must be interrogated and must argument for their wish of going on the crusade. If the Overseers find them worthy permission is granted and they will received the cloth cross to paste on their surcoat [CR].

Then they must send out a squire to survey the area and find the source of evil that they have vowed to undertake. After two days have passed they may make the first attack. Find the Drow and attack them after saying: "You are accused of being Drow and having performed acts of heresy and witchcraft against the people of Britannia. How do you plead?" When they have received the answer, they will be judged "Guilty!" and then they may be attacked. After the first attack they do not need to accuse them anymore, but may attack them on sight. They will have to make at least five attacks, and should they fail and be knocked every time they must return to their church. The crusade must be going for at least 20 days, and then they may return. When they return they must write an additional report on their works and how it fared.

Witch-hunting: When a Templar wishes to find the necromancers and the witches of the land he must ask permission of the preceptor and the bishop. Then he will be granted the sign of the witch hunter, [WH], and may commence the work. He may now travel to anywhere without asking permission first, and he must interrogate people if they have heard of anyone using necromancy. If they find any they must write a report to the bishop and the preceptor stating the name of the necromancer and the things he is accused of. When the Bishop and the Preceptor has granted permission, the witch hunter may begin the hunt. When the necromancer is felled he must be chained and taken to the church where an inquisitor will interrogate him and try to cleanse him. The witch hunter must then write a report on the hunt and if the cleansing worked.

Gathering money: The church needs money to run, and therefore the Overseers must establish hunts to certain dungeons to try and raise funds for the church.

Diplomatic meetings: The church needs to be political active, and therefore the templars must travel to different Order factions and find out how it fares, and if any help can be provided with the problems that are at hand.

Building missions: The Overseers must also be able to find things to the templars to do. Missions, tasks, duties. It falls to the overseers to develop a great deal of tasks so that the church continues to work.

Introduction to the Clergy

The Clergy – Introduction

The Clergy consists of monks and priests. They are the spiritual guides who study ancient time but also have a good knowledge of the magical arts. They preach peace and tolerance, and shy away from the use of weapons. The priest are used much as diplomats to settle disputes between the city-states, and to promote the religion in all corners of the world. They are headed by the Patriarch, who is the absolute ruler of the Church. A spiritual head who knows his ways. Priests are among the most respected people in Britannia, and not many would dare openly to accuse them, for they have the Order to support them.

Most priests have a very peaceful nature, but there are personalities who seem harsh and want to scare the belief into other people, but also many compassionate priests, who want only peace to further their religion.

"The way to salvation is not only the ways of the Templars. If you help in bringing the religion to all the unknowing, you shall recieve a great gift and blessing from the lord," - From "Salvation from Within"

Clergy Ranks

The Clergy - The Ranks

Patriarch (1):The absolute ruler over the members of the church. Chosen by the bishops he has the final word in all cases. Has control over the Preceptor.

Bishop (1 per city):The leader of the faction. Has absolute authority. May command the Seneschal of his faction in rare cases.

Archdeacon (1 per city)The Archdeacon serves as the assistant of the bishop and his deputy. He also administrates the church funds.

Priest:The priests are those preaching the words of the lord and the ones taking on assignments as converting people and preaching the words to heathens. They are also diplomats.

Monk:Monks are caretakers of the church and those managing the sick. They do tasks as collecting funds for the church and the sick in other cities.

Initiate:The initiates have just joined the church and are ready to read books and study the words of the lord. Their work is to travel the world learning about people and writing reports of the religions of other cities

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Initiate – An initiate is new to the order and must be quick to learn the ways of the lord. They are bound to their church and may not leave without permission from the Archdeacon or the bishop. They will have tasks as writing books, reading books but also doing a pilgrimage to the eight shrines.

To be promoted as an initiate one must have:

• Done the Pilgrimage of the Eight Graces and written a report about it •Written a book over a given subject and been noted for it •Attended to at least 1 Tax collection and written a report about it

When these things are fulfilled the Initiate is eligible as a Monk. The promotion happens during a ceremony where the initiate will receive his robe and go through the Ritual of the Monk.

"To thee Lord, I give my heart and my thoughts. My every step in life will be guided by your wisdom and not without thought of your teachings. I swear to uphold the truth. I swear to always love and I swear to always be brave enough to protect my faith. I hereby vow to live in chastity, obedience and poverty until the end of my days. Deus Vult!"

Monk – The monks are working men that are wise and have knowledge of the ways of the lord and the world. They have many tasks such as taking care of the church but also delivering food or messages to other churches around the world. To be promoted as a monk one must have:

•Done the Pilgrimage of the Four Preachings and written a report about it •Lectured the Church Sentinels in history at least twice and written a report on the subject. •Have knowledge enough of magic to perform the Greater Healing spell and the Arch Cure spell.

When these things are fulfilled the Monk is eligible as Priest. The promotion happens during a ceremony where the monk will receive his priest robe and go through the Priesthood Ritual.

"I will always fight to teach the lessons of you my lord, to other than those bowing before you. I will always strive to seek the truth in the virtues and your teachings, and I will always be at your mercy. I swear to help the sick and heal the wounded, as will as teach the younger of your words, so that they may see the same light as me. Deus Vult!" The bishop or archdeacon will then hand the priest his new robe and bless him.

Priest – Priests are the knowledgeable members of the church. They are well educated and have the proper authorization to command the initiates and monks about. They have many small tasks but also bigger ones as holding mass or staying in other cities for longer time.

To be promoted as a priest one must have:

•Lead 6 masses and written a report about the subject of each. •Attended to at least 4 diplomatic travels and written a report about each •Been a field medic at least 3 times for the militia or the Templars •Been a missionary at least 2 times in his career •Written at least two books in his career

When these things are fulfilled the Priest is eligible as Archdeacon. If the post as Archdeacon is free the priest can get promoted, but if it is not, he must wait. When the post is free the priest must first be accepted by the bishop, then the other priests must also accept him as the new Archdeacon. When this has happened he will go through the Ritual of the Deaconate.

"Thou art my only light, Lord. My only faith and my only thought. To thee I give everything I have owned, and I pledge myself to serve for an even greater cause now than before. I will continue to serve as a rightful and pious member of the Church, and will oversee the newcomers and make sure they are well-fit. For I have only the thoughts of a better church in mind. Deus Vult!"

Arch Deacon – The archdeacon is the assistant of the bishop. As the archdeacon you will be part of the OOC church council and will have to work on church missions and plots. You will also have to ensure that everyone follows the rules and correct them if they cross the line. IC I think you know what to do as you will have pretty many people asking this and that all the time.

The promotion from Arch Deacon to Bishop is, like the Seneschal to Preceptor, very complicated. The acting bishop must step back due to lack of lust or will from the player of the bishop. It is important that the Arch Deacon has to do with everything that the Bishop does, so that he is able to take over, if the Bishop should step back. It is therefore a must that the player of the Arch Deacon has imagination and the lust to create new church missions and plots, and to lead the whole church IC. It is also important that he has the support of the other members of the church, as well as good contacts with other guild masters and persons in other guilds. Only then can he be promoted to Bishop.

If there is no need for a new Bishop after 4 months the Arch Deacon will be granted the special title as Cardinal. It is then his obligation to create church missions and plots, as well as act as the church in other RP cities. As a Cardinal it is important that the player spends much time in other cities promoting the church and being "political" active in that city. If there should be a need for a bishop and all of the pre-mentioned are in order, the Arch Deacon will go through the Ritual of the Croisier.

"I swear to be your unbreakable servant in this place and to lead your great church in war as in peace. I pledge myself to duties unheard of, and tasks to great for the common mind. My heart and soul is always with you, and I will continue to stay in office, until you call me home. Deus Vult!"

Bishop - As bishop you head a church faction IC and has a lot of things to do OOC. You will have to work on church missions and plots and will have to write new texts and books for the church, so that we create a church with a lot of meat on it. Else I think you know what to do. When a bishop is promoted to Patriarch it happens during a grand ceremony. OOC the bishops and arch deacons have voted for a new leader after having discussed it. Then they plan the ceremony and go through it. All the Cardinals, Bishops and Arch Deacons will stand lined up with the bishops at fore, cardinals behind and arch deacons last, and then the Preceptor will take the Sceptre of the Patriarch, and go to the man who has been chosen. Everyone must then bow to the new Patriarch, and then listen to his first speech.

Patriarch - As a the Patriarch you have the complete responsibility for the church. You must make sure that the database of members is up to date, you must answer questions, you must be good at making ideas come to life. The well-being of the church is your responsibility!

Clergy Tasks

The Clergy – Tasks

Writing a book: A member can choose to write his own book. It must be 10 pages long and if it is good he will be noted for it.

Pilgrimage of the Eight Graces: When the initiate has written the book and it has been accepted he is ready to travel to the eight shrines in Britannia to pray at them and to seek guidance from the lord. He must make a report on this travel as well as remember to find his own way there and back.

Assisting the missionary: When a missionary travels to another city to stay for two weeks he can choose to have an initiate with him. If so it is the job of the initiate to ensure that the missionary gets food water and anything else he asks for. It is important that the initiate learns well from the missionary. This task will give a promotion if the initiate has done the tasks before this. The initiate must write a report on the work that the missionary did.

Collecting church tax: The church will receive gifts from the peasants and the militia as they need money to exist in Britannia. Sometimes it will be the member that is sent to either the militia leader to ask for a contribution or the peasants.

Pilgrimage of the Four Preachings: As a monk one must preach the words of the lord other places than in Minoc. The pilgrimage of the four preachings is a trip to the cities of Trinsic, Cove, Yew and Vesper. In each town he must build a shrine from the shrine crates and recite the book: "Salvation from within". He must write a report of the pilgrimage when he comes home.

Lecturing: The church sentinels need to learn the history of the avatar and it is the monks that will teach them this in classes of history. They will need to study for it and to be good at giving the information to the eager sentinels.

Missionary: The monks and above can choose to become a missionary for two weeks. With the bishop's accept they will be given a certain city and must then hold at least 5 preachings on the street with people there. When the monk comes home he must write a report on it and how it fared. He must not return until the two weeks has expired.

Mass: Once in a while the priest will be chosen to hold the next mass. He will then have to find the theme and prepare for it and then hold it. When it is done he will have to make a report of how much tithe was given and what the reaction of the people was afterwards.

Study of magic: Monks and above must study the arts of magic to understand the fundamentals in the world and how it has all been built up.

Diplomatic travels: A priest can be issued to travel to another church and stay there for a longer period of time. Sometimes aiding the church in their tasks. He must then make a report of it with description of what he did.

Inquisitor: A priest can ask acceptance from the bishop to become an inquisitor. An inquisitor is the cleanser of evil, the spymaster of the church. He has the authorization to travel around the world to find evil, and he will have to work close together with any witch hunter there is. Every time he comes across a heretic the heretic must be caught by one of the Templars and then interrogated at the church cells. He must then write a report on the interrogation and if he succeeded in cleansing the heretic. The inquisitor will also have to investigate if there has been any heretic actions inside Minoc, and aid the churches elsewhere in their work.

Field medic: When the militia goes to war or an ally is in need of help in a battle, the bishop can issue a priest to go help heal the wounded and tend to those barely surviving. Also to make sure the dead gets a proper blessing before they are descended into the earth.