The Oaran Church

**The Oaran Church**
 Sigil
 Members

## The Goddess of Innovation and Trade

Oara values the traits of humility, critical thinking, and fairness in her devout. She is sometimes called The Great Slow Match because in the great stories she often waits for extended periods of time before taking great, world-shaking actions all at once like a slow match finally contacting a pile of black powder (which, fittingly, her followers invented).

Historically she is most widely remembered for...

* creating the Durdtfolk, Etu, and Aasimar
* being the goddess who blessed her people with knowledge of The Sacred Fire, a kind of power they could direct in pathways enabling rudimentary machines to be created.
* mapping the material plane with theoretical trade routes in partnership with the Kavorrite dragons
* commanding the Durdt folk to create physical trade routes crossing the material plane and later abandoning them for reasons unknown

Her holy city of Cila was on the now-fallen floating peak of Xinir and her holy city Tumbleweb still stands, though it has now largely turned from her in the face of her abandonment.

## Cornerstones

Oaran’s express their devotion to the tenets of their goddess in many ways. They are guided by four tenets, called the “cornerstones.”

### Cornerstone 1: To create is to ascend.

Every new idea you have reveals the divine nature within you, and the act of developing a thought into a concept which you can defend against skepticism is the act of purifying yourself and your demi-creation. It is the first cornerstone that is being observed in the labyrinthine temples, where supplicants enter with an idea and take the intentional journey through the labyrinth to explore the idea from many metaphorical angles even as they approach their goddess from many physical angles. If, at the conclusion of this journey, the new idea has developed into a defendable concept that improves upon what already exists or brings something new into being, supplicants lay their idea on the altar of their goddess in whatever way is practical, sometimes drawing diagrams in the ashes atop the altar, sometimes leaving scrolls, sometimes merely praying over the bare altar. If upon reaching the altar a supplicant finds his or her idea does not satisfy the demand of improving upon what exists or bringing something new into being, he or she instead falls to their knees begging the forgiveness of their goddess and begging for her wisdom to inspire their thinking.

### Cornerstone 2: All that exists is valuable. All that has value should be respected.

Oaran’s interpret this in two ways: First, in a literal sense, Oaran’s dismiss nothing as being worthless. From the smallest stone to the greatest castle, from the smallest insect to the largest dragon, Oaran’s believe all things are valuable. To dismiss the worth of something, to treat a creature unjustly or disrespect a building by littering or in any other way demonstrate that you don’t value something is greatly offensive to Oarans, and they’re very vocal about it.

The second interpretation relates to trade. Oaran’s believe firmly that this tenet indicates they should find the fair value price of an item and not pay a dime less - or more. This makes them ferocious hagglers if they disagree with the value a salesperson might put on an item they wish to purchase, but makes them excellent mediators in large negotiations. Many kings and rulers will at least pretend to worship Oara in the hopes of getting an Oaran appraiser to judge their gifts and help them interpret the actions of other nations. It also makes Oarans incredibly trustworthy employers who will always pay fair value for work even at great cost to themselves.

It is this second cornerstone that is being observed at the so called “scale stations,” where Oaran appraisers oversee exchanges of goods and services as well as the drawing up of official documents and contracts. The appraiser gives glory to Oara by steering the less educated to the true and fair values, while the participants show their devotion by trusting Oara’s blessed to guide them to the true value of an object. Exchanges made at a scale station are holy affairs and often traveling merchants will make their first sales at a scale station in hopes that Oara will bless the rest of their trade in that city.

### Cornerstone 3: Ideas can only become innovations in communities.

Until your peers have had a chance to challenge your concept, it cannot be called an innovation. This is why Oarans walk the labyrinth alone but work in communal fabrication facilities and gather in large rooms to debate ideas. The act of challenging a concept is a holy rite, and the act of defending it equally divine. This ritual teaches Oarans humility, critical thinking, and that ultimately innovation belongs to Oara and the world, not to any single creature.

Worship of this form takes place in large “collaboration facilities,” which followers generally shorten to Labs.

Labs will always include lots of raw and refined materials, tools, and instruments made freely available in a wide open workspace full of many large tables that facilitate collaboration. All labs also include a floor with a sound-isolated challenge room. A large table and freely available drinks as well as a full floor-to-ceiling scratchboard on one wall create a comfortable environment to refine concepts among other worshippers.

Labs will sometimes include a large library that includes a whole shelf of blank books for new concepts and ideas to be added to. They will sometimes include a floor where fabricated concepts and prototypes can be stored in large cabinets to later be brought to the challenge room. They will sometimes include a labyrinth on an upper floor (to minimize sound and distractions). They will also sometimes include living quarters for pilgrims who may be traveling to take a strong idea to be challenged in other cities.

### Ranks/Roles of the Oaran Church

**All Creatures** may show worship to Oara in the hopes that she may bless them temporarily or protect them from harm. She is a fair goddess who will measure their offerings and return blessings of equal value, when she is pleased; though when angered or distracted by her own ideas she may not respond at all.

**Followers** are simply any creatures who have chosen to honor Oara with their lifestyles by developing and exemplifying her favored traits of humility, critical thinking, and fairness. They can do anything they like with their lives so long as they choose to pay tribute.

**The Favored** are those Oara has called out of their devotion to display service at a local temple, or else those she blesses with particularly impactful ideas to wisely bring into the world. An appraiser working at a scale station, the mentor residing at a Lab and supervising the workshop, and a business leader who disrupts the world economy with a new idea are all examples of Oara’s favored.

**The Favored**
intelligence buff so long as the devout
regularly prove they’re using it in her
labyrinths.
long to deliver a new idea (this time is
unique to the person and even the
person’s situation. In all things, Oara is
fair and just and takes the circumstances
of the favored into account), she will
punish them with a -2 intelligence buff to
teach them humility and reliance upon
her for ideas. When the favored either
delivers a new idea or has repented
sufficiently in the labyrinth without one,
Oara will remove this debuff, but may
make the favored work a bit before
restoring her intelligence buff.

**The Chosen** are those to whom Oara gives a single idea that will shake the very foundations of the world. Oara only chooses a one or two creatures each eon to bless with supernatural ideation. These creatures can recognize Oara’s avatar (if she deigns to appoint one). It was one of Oara’s chosen who taught the world to harness the power of the wind in the year 10,100. Once they have seen their ideas through, Oara’s chosen often become school headmasters, librarians, adventurers - they are hooked on ideas, information, and innovation and seek it where they can.

**The Chosen**
and enjoy the gift of a +6 to their intelligence.
This gift is given freely and cannot be lost
- however, if it is used to violate the three
cornerstones, Oara’s justice will (fairly) be far
swifter and more terrible. In addition to their
intelligence buff, Oara’s chosen can fully rest in
only half the time it takes a normal creature of
their race to rest. The extra time is made available
to them for meditation to refine the idea they’ve
been blessed with.
must walk, for the good of the world but
also for their own preservation. The
endeavors of one of Oara’s chosen will
fail supernaturally if they do not align with
the will of their goddess, and the more
often the chosen departs from her will,
the more painful the failures will be, up to
and including the deaths of those they
love or the destruction of entire cities and
villages.

**The Avatars** are those whom Oara has deputized to act with her authority on the material plane. For all intents and purposes, they are Oara. Each of her Avatars is blessed with a facsimile of Oara’s power within them, giving them the ability to perform Oara’s will while she focuses her attention elsewhere. Lerodith, the scientist who in the year 10300 taught the Etu how to bottle The Sacred Fire, was an avatar of Oara. Shrub, the Durdtfolk who established the city of Tumbleweb in the year 10600 and established the great tunneling commission 100 years later was another.

**The Avatars**
power (though it is finite). These avatars
therefore act in the absence of their
goddess to continue her will, and get to
exercise their critical thinking, humility,
and fairness in ways that grace the world.
They can do far greater things than
typical magic users (divine or arcane).
with something specific in the will of the
goddess, and is compelled to act it out.
Oara’s power in them will not allow them
to disobey direct orders.

Oara’s power in the avatars is finite. If
they do not regularly commune with Oara
through a special ritual unique from those
of the lower ranking members of the faith,
their power will dwindle and eventually
extinguish, and with it their incredible
wisdom. If they do not reconnect with
their goddess in time, these avatars
wither and dissipate as Oara’s essence
seeks to return to her power and rejoins
her in the outer planes.