Almadorian Pantheon

The Almadorian Pantheon was a religion primarily practiced in the Kingdom of Almador. Presently, it's a minority religion in the Aurlûnor Velande, with only 300 or more people publicly admitting to adhering to the religion, mostly underground or hidden, while 1,140 public worshippers of the Cult of Lynari function on the isle of Necua. It is the oldest continuing Elven religion in the world.
The Almadorian Pantheon was heavily persecuted by the rise of Twin Dragon. It was likely purged due to its followers not believing in Sareariel Lelya-Earcala's divinity. Although many followers did eventually convert to Twin Dragon, some remained resistant, resulting in the Red Canal Incident, which saw the death of hundreds of Almadorian Pantheon and Twin Dragon worshippers, including the High Priest. Multiple attempts at keeping the religion alive were made, and many followers remained stubborn in Sachómar, were they created an "Almadorian Enclave". This was eventually destroyed in the year 247ACA as part of the enforcement of state religion, following Valiel Lenwa's revolt, due to the amount of damage free religion had caused the nation.
Presently, the Almadorian Pantheon (with the exception of the cult of Lynari) is classified as an extremist group. Although attacks from Pantheon members are extremely rare, many of their attacks were reported to be unorganized and seem to only target temples at present. No actual attempts by the Pantheon were made on the Velereth's life since the year 247ACA. It is likely that temples are hidden underneath the city of Lhûmar and Sachómar.
== Beliefs and Philosophy ==
=== Creation Myth ===
Born from a previous cycle, the Divine Phoenix known as Orzen, God of Light, rose with a thunderous roar to re-create the cycle anew. With it, the Phoenix would dissolve itself, with its streams of blood forming the many stars in the sky, its feathers and beak creating the many worlds that inhabit the stars cycling it, and the nails forming asteroids.
The creation of the world, which was known to the Almadorians as "Celana", was filled with life by the divine Galariel, who became known as the mother goddess of the world, residing on the world of her creations. However, she would run into a problem. Much of her plants and attempts at creating life would not come to be, and she would feel heartbroken whenever she watched them die. One day, the sea goddess, Lynari, would arrive at the plane, crashlanding into the world together with a series of meteorites that would become known as thalassite (or "prismarine" in modern tongues), bringing forth water to the world, and formed the very clouds and storms that would benefit Galariel. Massive trees grew, with many plants and animals roaming around from Galariel's desperation into figuring out what was wrong. When she noticed this strange new liquid that would actually benefit her animals, she took the liberty to meet Lynari, and together, the two quickly bonded, and continued working together to make Celana a thriving, living, and breathing, world.
Millennia later, the arrival of a third divine being, known as Nixaden, (who was in fact Orzen's dragon sister, a being of darkness) would crash into the world with a massive explosion, causing the entire world to experience a massive tidal wave that wiped out over 75% of life, and caused a chain of events such as volcanic eruptions and earthquakes. This chaos would awaken Galariel and Lynari, who banished Nixaden to the deepest parts of the world, encasing them in a material known as caldorium, later known as "bedrock", to punish her for the destruction of all the life that they had destroyed. This realm would later become known as "Nixamor", or "Home of Darkness" The chaotic energy they had released into the world would have irreversible effects on the world. Subsequently, she was later worshipped as the goddess of chaos and misfortune, fusing with normally neutral beings to make them into beings of chaos who intend to do evil deeds. 
The weeps of Galariel, and the consoling by Lynari, would bring forth one of the many sons of Orzen. Known as Xalos, the Phoenix God of Time and Kings. He would heed the cries, flapping his divine wings, and reversed the collateral damage that was impacted by Nixaden. However, he was only able to bring back very few beings, such as mammals and smaller reptiles, nothing like the natural beauty that was created by the two goddesses millions of years ago. What made matters worse was the world was freezing, likely due to the many damages of Nixaden, and though her containment was suitable for now, Xalos warned that she would be able to break out within the next two million years. Not wanting to make the same mistake again, the three would cooperate. Galariel would wed both Xalos and Lynari, and together, they created a being that one day would come to combat if Nixaden attacked. This being became known as the elves. 
Due to Nixaden's taint in the world, some of these elves unknowingly became mixed together with the draconic influence that entered into their streams. This strange mutation would create the Celestial Elves, which, rather than being regarded as abominations, were actually praised by Xalos, Galariel, and Lynari as the perfect counterbalance to Nixaden and her cohort. Millions of years later, advancements of these people came to a halt, and Nixaden was able to break out of her bedrock shell, and with her own chaotic creations, she caused devastation among the elves. A grand battle came about, where the elves, Xalos, Galariel and Lynari would fight on one side, while Nixaden and her creations would fight on the other. 
Although Nixaden was defeated and sent back to Nixamor, the battle was so devastating, it caused a mass exodus from their homeland of Akan'nash. The irreversible damage caused by the wars caused whatever remained of the Celestial Elves to flee eastward. Others, such as the nomadic Dune Elves, would also migrate away from the region. This is where the Elven Migrations theory would stem from. Those who died in the war, such as Minsen, Ivari and Hocar, would ascend to godhood as a reward for their sacrifice in creative ways to assist their peoples. Minsen would become known as the patron goddess of Artisans and Architecture for her creations of the wondrous fortresses, and creations of multiple lost technologies that helped defend the people. She also provided recreational items to help keep morale high. Ivari became the God of Warfare and Tactics, and created what became known as "Bardonian Tactics" by modern tongue. His tactics included blotting out the arrows of Nixaden's horde of archers and ballistae with bamboo, and utilizing a simple berry bush to become a weapon of war, slowing and painfully prickling the enemy with poisonous thorns. Hocar became the God of Literature and Knowledge, for introducing stone tablets, paper, and recordkeeping, to the other divines and generals, who preferred using it over using dirt and a stick to plan and walls with rocks to keep track of things. 
Following the wars ending, Nixaden was banished from world to an unknown plane, and Galariel would disappear, never to be seen or heard from by anyone. As a result, Lynari withdrew from the world, and decided to reside on the moon, which became known as Lya. Xalos would continue, however, to reign over the worlds, and guided the three's chosen people to the shore of what would become Ardol. From there, the rest would be history. 
== Traditions ==
== Astronomy ==
== Deities and Divine Figures ==
The Almadorian Pantheon features multiple divines that are usually categorized into three, the Creator of the Universe, which is Orzen alone, the Three Creators, which are Xalos, Galariel and Lynari (although Nixaden is classified as one of the creators, she is regarded as an evil goddess) and the three ascended, Minsen, Ivari and Hocar. It's possible that more gods that were gifted immortality and divinity from the three creators, but the lack of scriptures, and the fact that the modern Almadorian Pantheon goes along with this formula, makes it impossible to determine, although it is hinted that there is indeed more, though, they are more or less secluded or disguising themselves as mortals to hide attention. Persecution of the faith has also made it difficult to access information.
Common depictions of the divines are portrayed in a more elvenoid form, besides Orzen, as they felt the divines were more relatable to the mortals who were created from them. Their motifs are reminiscent of their forms.
=== Orzen ===
Regarded as the source of all life in the universe, Orzen is the only divine that is considered to be truly "dead", but at the same time, not dead. All around, the universe is surrounded by his presence, and that every present god has his blood, and his gift of both creation and destruction. Orzen is the father of Xalos, though, it is said that Orzen's ability to reverse time and other impressive powers are far more powerful. However, Orzen is described as so powerful, it is often hard to tell if he is doing an action, due to the speed perspective being that of the course of millions of years, if not, eons. It is due to this power, that many speculate, that the end of the universe, is Orzen receding everything back to breath, and once more, start the cycle anew. However, some Orzen cultists argue, that the death of the universe, is when Orzen's presence is no longer felt, and the sky dims of any light, so dark, that even Nixaden fears it.
Orzen is often depicted as a proud phoenix who screeches to the sky, wings extruding out, with flames often accompanying below. Orzen's flame is regarded as sacred, and is observed as a harmless flame when touched, and impossible to extinguish. The flame glows lighter than a regular mortal flame from wood, and petrudes no carbon monoxide, or anything toxic. Despite the ban on Almadoric worship following the Red Canal Incident, the Temple to Galariel in the Imperial Province would not see the concealment of the flame touched. The large flame of Orzen would be regarded as "a sacred flame that is the same flame our Celestial Matron was seen petruding from upon descent.", and would remain the last object within the former temple.
=== Xalos ===
Xalos is the sun god of time and kings, and is seen as either the son of, or a descendent of Orzen. His realm is that of the Sun, which is named "Sula", and is the husband of both Galariel and Lynari. He is highly praised and worshipped by many people due to his noble attitude, and seemingly flawless acts of benevolence, and brings the fires of order against his enemies. He is affiliated with light, and during war time, fire and metal. 
One legend records Maxion to have been visited by Xalos, where he was said to have been given a vision, in which he was destined to become a conquer that would expand from the western shores of Alma, all the way across the entirety of what was known back then as the "Marilla Sea", conquering most of the known world. But what Maxion did not know, was the outcome of his conquests after his death, in which Xalos mentioned vaguely, "Once you have died, your children and descendants will rule wisely for ten-thousand years, but eventually, fall to the one who will bring chaos, and disorder, destroying everything you had accomplished. Only after that, will another rise, and reclaim your name once more.". This ominous message would also portray Xalos with a man who has foresight and is able to see both in to past, present and future. Another legend states that he is partially responsible for the inception of the future Velereth, Sareariel Lelya-Earcala, but in the form of a Dawouic-style Celestial Dragon, rather than his usual phoenix form. A third legend also even states that Xalos was on the side of the Twin Dragon worshippers during the Red Canal Incident of 243ACA, and despite the banning of all faiths besides Twin Dragon, including the Almadoric Pantheon, Xalos agreed with the motion, and was said to have withdrawn from all mortal affairs from then on out. Many Almadoric cults today, as a result, believe he had abandoned those who were faithful to the Pantheon, leaving many to worship Nixaden or the ascended ones, creating a schism within the Pantheon. Those loyal to Xalos today, are often found as Sen worshippers of the Twin Dragon faith.
In many depictions, Xalos is portrayed as an man who looks very similar to a Celestial Elf before their Nixadenic taint transformed their features. He often is portrayed without clothing, and holding a sundial on his palm, representing time, and a scepter representing a king. He is often referred to as the "Naked King" by many within the Velande, while in the Pantheon's spheres, he is called "The Father of all Nixadeniborn", the name of the modern day Lhûren. Following the Red Canal Incident, many former cultists to him portray him as a manipulator, stating that he is "no less, the same as his sister, but shows it in a different fashion".
=== Galariel ===
Also known as "Mother Nature", Galariel is the creator of life on the world of Celana, and is the wife of both Xalos and Lynari, and is the birther of the Lhûren people (or Nixadeniborn). She is the second most popularly worshipped figure, as she was responsible for creating almost everything in terms of life on the world, such as elves, humans, cats, dogs, trees, goblins and other floras and faunas. Although she is regarded as life's creator, stories show that at first, she was ignorant to the fact that she couldn't create life without water, and prior to Lynari's arrival, life she created, died due to the lack of it. This leads many to believe that Galariel was a simple-minded divine, who had a passion for creation, but lacked intelligence, in which, she would gradually learn overtime. Presently, Galariel is regarded as an old, wise motherly figure who cares much about the natural order of things, though, is not shy to violence, and will assist to defend whoever may be harmed.
During the inception of the Aurlûnor Velande, one of Galariel's priestesses, Vinimanis would hear Galariel in her dreams, in which she states that Sareariel and her are one, and that her coming to the mortal plane is no coincidence. The exact exchange was unclear, but Vinimanis, stated that something major was going to happen to Sareariel. It is also believed that Vinimanis states that Galariel is infact, Sareariel in the mortal realm, and the two are one of the same, which explains the extremely similar names. The authenticity of these records are often up to debate, but many Twin Dragon worshippers take the side of Vinimanis' own accounts, rather than other eyewitnesses and sources. 
In many depictions, Galariel is portrayed as a female celestial elf with firey blue eyes and long hair. Much like Xalos and Lynari, she is portrayed naked, and is always portrayed as pregnant, which represents motherhood and fertility. She often is accompanied by a deer, and bares a wooden sword, which represents the weapon she used to fight Nixaden alongside her two wedded. Her temple in northern Lhûmar is often regarded as a holy site for the Almadorian Pantheon, but at the same time, a sacred location for the Twin Dragon faith, as it is where Vinimanis first spoke of Sareariel in her prophetic ramblings. Statues to Galariel were removed in 243ACA following the Red Canal Incident, where it lost it's co-temple status alongside the Celestial Matron but were restored in 935ACA under order of the Velereth, with the statues being fully repaired and repainted, and beacons relit, though the temple remained a ruin, and was largely cleared as an open-aired shrine.
=== Lynari ===
The goddess of Water, the Moon and the creation of all sea life, Lynari is the wife of both Galariel and Xalos, and is closely associated with Galariel. She is widely worshipped by fishermen, sailors and captains, due to her affinity to water. She is viewed as Galariel's closest and oldest friend who would later become her wife together with Xalos, and is said that without her, Galariel would of never created the Lhûren or anything else on Celana. She was actually the one who taught Galarial much of the wisdom that she knows today, and the two are often described as inseperatable, as without one, the other dies. Lynari would also seemingly become the goddess over storms and many of the weather patterns that are related to water and to wind, and even among rivers and anything that is a body of water, although believers truly think that eventually, all water recedes to the seas to restart the cycle anew.
In many depictions, Lynari is portrayed as a female celestial elf with her hair tied back behind her. Like Xalos and Galariel, she is portrayed naked, though unlike the other divines, Lynari is hermaphroditic, which implies the unity of both Xalos and her own seed to produce the Celestial Elves in their mythology, which represents the unity of the sun, land and sea. She often holds out a vase which she pours out of the cup that represents water pouring from the sky to the surface and the many lakes and rivers. Some depictions portray Lynari with more fish-like features such as fish scales along her body that mimics the celestial elven scales on their own body, as well as a fish-like draconic tail petruding from the back. Lynari's worship appeared to be the least disliked among the purging of Almadoric Worship, with Lynari temples being largely unvandalized as heavily as other temples were, possibly due to the Twin Dragon faith regarding hermaphrodic beings as sacred. Many statues that were vandalized avoided touching parts of the body on the statue to avoid invoking wrath from the divines of the Twin Dragon faith in this regard. As such, Lynari worshippers often register themselves as worshippers of Lyn at the temples that they continue to maintain, creating a syncretic Lynari-Twin Dragon cult. Her worship is the largest on the isle of Necua, and is home to one of the largest Almadoric Pantheon temples still standing.
=== Nixaden ===
Nixaden is officially the Goddess of Darkness and Death, but is often regarded as the Goddess of Chaos and Discord. Viewed as the complete opposite to Orzen, Nixaden is actually the sister of Orzen, and is actually his exact opposite, where he was born as a figure of light, and created the universe, while Nixaden was born as a figure of darkness, and is meant to end it once the universe exhausts. For some unknown reason, she would crash land into the world, and would subsequently kill most of the life that would be thriving within the world, causing a massive restart, and the rise of mammals. Due to her actions, she would be sealed away within the core of the world encased in pure caldorium, which would become her domain known as Nixamor or the "Home of Darkness". She would eventually expand this realm, and accepted banished beings that would come into her realm, and would plot for revenge against those for imprisoning her. She would eventually escape, causing a war between the divines and herself, only to be defeated again, and to be banished out of the world, and into the future. This realm would later become to known as "The End", in which she would proceed to do her duties, and end the universe as it has died. It is implied that she actually resides in a current incarnation of this world, though it is unknown where she is at present. Her energies however, remain in the world. It is said that she was responsible for mutating the Celestial Elves into becoming dragon-looking creatures, but rather than being shunned for it, they were praised for it, as it was the missing link into making them the "Chosen Race" to defend the world from all threats should the time rises.
Nixaden is often portrayed as a dragon-looking creature that can transform into an elven female with draconic features. Like her brother, and Xalos, Galariel and Lynari, she wears no clothing, but unlike them, parts of her body are black, with spikes protruding from some parts of them, and looks identical to Sareariel Lelya-Earcala due to this. She is often called the "Ender Dragon" by many foreigners due to her appearances in the texts, and her realm being regarded as "The End", which is fitting. The realm she previously resided in, is known today as Momaganon by Twin Dragon worshippers, or "The Nether", a inhospitable place in which everything opposite of light and positivity resides. Her worship is often shunned by the other Pantheon worshippers, although, there is texts and legends that actually portray Nixaden as a misunderstood being, and state that the actions she had done prior to being banished were by accident, and meant no actual harm to Galariel or Lynari. There is also more positive portrayals of her among the worshippers of Nixaden, which states that she was actually a savior trying to warn about how her brother was actually a manipulative being, and wanted to end the universe himself, which Nixaden wanted to have the universe live on forever, but the pleas were never heard, and thus, was banished from the lies and deceit that their later husband would have.
=== Minsen ===
Minsen is the goddess of Artisans and Architecture, and is the first mortal to achieve godhood as a result of the war against Nixaden. Minsen was regarded as a legendary artisan who created many amazing crafts and features such as hovels that would stand out among other buildings in the region, temples that would be the envy of many modern temples, and a mighty palace fitting for the ancient kings of Akan'nash. She would also help create comptractions that kept the morale of soldiers during the war up, so that they would not loose morale. 
Minsen is portrayed in a more romanticized version of what she actually looked like. Her hair is long and wavey, and much of her appearance was beautified, even though it was stated in records, that she was rough around the edges due to her laborous background. She often is seen with either an apron with varying tools on depending on the profession the person is, or the uniform of an architect when she is near megabuilds that require guidance. Her patronage was located in the city of Yi, in which her temple was converted into one to the Sages.
=== Ivari ===
Ivari is the god of Warfare and Tactics, and is possibly the true inventor of what people call and know today as "Bardonian Tactics". Ivari was stated to have been a legendary general who was not only a great warrior, but a great strategist and tactician as well. He was responsible for the ploy that had bamboo blot out the arrows of the Nixadenic forces, and bushes that would have many poisonous thorns to slow the enemy advance while firing arrows upon them.
Ivari is portrayed in a more romanticized version than what he actually looked like. His hair is a clean slightly shorter haired look, and his features, though being toned, are described as "feminine", due to paintings and surviving bits of tablets and pottery stating that he was actually a lot more feminine looking, than masculine. Some statues brawn him up more, and even added a beard, even though paintings stated that he never had a beard. He is usually seen in plated armor, and has a helmet near him, with a sword pointing up. His worship was large in Jingli among the Yi'yen.
=== Hocar ===
Hocar is the god of Literature and Knowledge, and is stated that he was the one who introduced the important inventions of the alphabet, literature, paper and writing materials to help communicate more. This advancement allowed battle tactics and plans to be better placed on papers and on to tablets, as well as recordkeeping to become entirely possible.
Hocar is portrayed in a more romanticized version than he actually looked. His hair is long, smooth and silky, and wears a scholarly robe, and complete with a long beard. He carries a scroll on many of his statues portraying him as a knowledgeable being, as well as a quill. His worship was often thought to have bought forth the ideal of the sages in the Twin Dragon faith.
Category:Aurlûnor
Category:Lore
Category:Religions
Category:Traveler's Era