Lore: Elendism
Elendism is one of the main religions in Trinity; its name comes from the Quendi word for "star." The founding of Elendism can be traced back to prior to the days of the Age of Empires; specifically, it was founded by the Kiltians, and tradition holds that it was first practiced in the Kiltian city of Kegate, the so-called City of Bells.
A practitioner of Elendism is called an Elendist.
Overview
The practice of Elendism is intricately tied into the Force of Nature: specifically, when the Divine fashioned the True Gods, Gaia responded by creating a handful of children of her own, and cast them into the ribbons of energy that underlie reality. The expression of these entities came to be in the form of great constellations visible from the worlds triune, though it would not be until the Kiltians that these expressions were recognized. The primary term used to reference these individuals is as "Primals," indicating that they are representations of the primal elements from which reality is made.
Initially, the Kiltians only recognized eleven constellations; over the course of the Age of Empires, an additional nine constellations became recognized, and these sets are sometimes referred to as the elemental arcana and the fundamental arcana, the term arcana here used in more of the tarot sense than as a reference to magic. One of the major divisions in Elendist faith is the perception of the arcana: even in the modern era, an Orthodox Kiltian Elendist will mostly ignore the fundamental arcana, viewing them as lesser, while other, newer varieties of Elendism often give the two equal shrift.
Elendism is largely pantheistic in nature. Each of the elemental constellations are believed to hold sway over different times of the year, specifically when the sun is passing through that constellation; however, one of the constellations is not on the solar elliptical, and thus the sun does not pass through it: this constellation is often held to have a different overall role. This results in each of the elemental arcana constellations holding sway over 36 days of the year: the remaining 4 days are reserved for the solstices and equinoxes, and are used to honor the eleventh constellation.
The fundamental arcana are not on the solar elliptical, and thus are not believed to hold sway over any particular time of the year.
Each solstice and equinox occurs on the 4th day of the relevant feast week for that season (so the winter solstice happens on Needfest 4; spring equinox on Growfest 4; summer solstice on Richfest 4; and autumn equinox on Harvestfest 4). It may be useful to remember that the Trinity calendars are south hemisphere-centric.
Elemental Arcana
- Ark, Lady of Despair
- Atomos, Lord of the Pit
- Bahamut, Lord of the Prime
- Fenrir, Lord of the Moons
- Garuda, Lady of the Vortex
- Ifrit, Lord of the Inferno
- Leviathan, Lord of the Whorl
- Maduin, Lady of Hope
- Ramuh, Lord of Levin
- Shiva, Lady of Frost
- Titan, Lord of Crags
Fundamental Arcana
In Orthodox Kiltian Elendism, the fundamental arcana - when acknowledged at all - are referred to as "keepers," rather than "lord" or "lady," to indicate that they are perceived to be of lesser status.
- Bismarck, Lord of the Mists
- Catoblepas, Lord of the Eye
- Kirin, Lady of Names
- Lahabrea, Lady of the Crown
- Lich, Lady of Death
- Midgardsormr, Lord of Metal
- Odin, Lord of Battle
- Ozma, Lady of the Disarray
- Quetzacoatl, Lady of the Sands
