Religion

**Religion** in the World of Parvolon refers to a number of social practices that revere certain *supernatural beings*, such as deities, extraplanar creatures, souls and spirits, and rarely the Force of Chaos. Subjects of worship may also include natural creatures like dragons, who may appear godlike in contrast to people or might be seen as physical manifestations of the supernatural. The presence of higher powers in the known world makes religion an important component of the World of Parvolon.

To understand certain supernatural beings, see the articles on Deities, the Seraphon, and The Force of Chaos.

## Overview

### What is Religion in Parvolon?

Religion in the World of Parvolon is slightly different from that our world because of the undeniable existence of supernatural beings. Atheists and theists alike in the real world get hung up on the problem of *unfalsifiability* - claims of powers beyond the world are impossible to test. Deities and other higher powers in Parvolon make their existence more explicit, as they more actively interfere in the lives of people and are the source of power for Clerics, Paladins, and Warlocks. Reasonable adventurers would have little reason to doubt the existence of divine power, and most likely because they have someone in their party using divine magic to save them from being clobbered from a dragon.

However, multiple religions still exist in the world. This is because these powers are being viewed through the eyes of mortals, who do not (and likely never will) understand the true nature of these beings. A character's religion reflects their society's views of these beings, and conflict between religion is more about specifics than broad strokes. The core ideas of every religion in the world are a lot more similar than in ours.

### Common Features

**Multiple supernatural beings exist, and there are different kinds of supernatural beings.** This is a fact that is fairly evident to adventurers, as they may encounter multiple divine casters who use power from different beings. These beings often have different, or even conflicting, standards for worshippers to receive their power, hence why there must be more than one.

**The world long ago was shrouded in darkness, and warriors came from the sky to banish monsters.** This is less of a theological idea but rather a historical one. The Great Freeze, an event that nearly levelled the world around 10,000 years ago, is a very distant memory that has been passed down to almost every culture in the world. An overwhelming amount of stories feature radiant magical creatures (the Seraphon) appearing in the world to fight and seal away amorphous, dark beasts (the Archchaos).

**There are twenty deities in the world.** This is a newer idea that was given to mortals through the *Icosarian Revelation* - a prophecy that held too much correct information about the world for its nature as divine knowledge to be disputed. The prophecy, given to Yohan the Great, an Evolvi cleric from the city of Icosar, inspired him to begin a conquest of the Greater Straits that founded the largest nation that would ever exist in the region.

**There is an evil being that exists outside of the world and wants to reduce it back to darkness.** This being is the Force of Chaos, which is viewed as an antagonist to the deities, who want to build an ordered world. The categorization of "evil" varies some, as it is understood as the source of arcane magic by some but others attribute the power to something else.

**All things that think have a soul that exists separate from the world.** The existence of the soul is a fact that was revealed a long time ago, but proof of its existence is a recent and much more obscure idea. True Necromancers and the creators of the Warforged were the earliest people to understand this idea, but they likely discovered this by accident and have chosen to keep quiet on their work.

**Souls are reincarnated, put into different bodies over time.** This is a piece of knowledge that is less agreed upon but true about the world. Reincarnation is the mode of afterlife in Parvolon, but it may take flavors similar to a Paradise or an Underworld if an individual is reincarnated into a different plane. How exactly this works is far beyond the understanding of any mortal, past or present.

## Playing a Religious Character

This section provides a brief explanation of how to add religion to your character in Parvolon.

**1. What religion does your character belong to?** This is generally dependent on where your character's home is, as your character's religion will usually be closely tied with their culture. From the religions list in the bottom section, you should most likely pick a religion that belongs to the region you have spent the most time in, or the place of your childhood.

**2. Choose a deity that you want to be your patron.** Most people in Parvolon recognize the existence of many deities, but only actively worship one. This deity is your protector, the one you trust to help you in life. The deities can be worshipped by folks of many kinds, but some deities are patrons of a certain background of people. Your character may be more inclined to worship a deity that aligns with their profession or circumstance of life, but this may not be the case.

**3. Check your deity's mandates and your religious practices.** Some deities may only offer divine aid to someone who follows a set of values that align with their own. If you don't follow these principles, you may be rejected by your deity and lose any divine power granted to you. Your religion may also have certain cultural ideas that make you a believer in a religion rather than a mythology. For example, the Orcish religions of *Yoteska* and *Corundi* disagree on how to resolve conflict; Yotescans believe that strength is a virtuous trait and are broadly pro-war, where Corundians see violence as a corrupting force and that war not done in self-defense is always unjust.

## Religions in the World

Note: There are some religions on the list that are listed as folk religions and others as world religions.

**Folk religions** are generally limited to a certain culture or people, and conversion to a folk religion is an uncommon practice. If you are born a member of the society, you become a member of the religion. In Parvolon, most folk religions place an importance on nature and an ancient way of life.

**World religions** are not limited to one culture and as a result have many more followers, and these usually practice conversion. These religions are much more likely to strong central institutions, and they can be intertwined with a society's government. These religions also tend to have multiple sects, as they are often large enough to develop division within their followers about ideas.

### Kipara

See full article: Kipara

**Kipara** or **Kiparism** is the dominant religion in the Elven world and one of the oldest continuously practiced faiths in Parvolon. It is a world religion practiced in Masura and the Pasdalles with the core ideas of preventing the influence of Corruption on the body and a promotion of magic. The religion is divided into five schools based on location, and followers worship a patron deity that they choose based on the one practiced in their community or the one that aligns with their worldly path.

For a list of the deities as well as a more detailed description, see the full article.

### Ifari Wisdom

**Ifari Wisdom** is a folk religion practiced by some Ifari people of the Empire of Elves. The religion has multiple names, and may be referred to by some as just the Ifari religion. At a time in the past, it was dominant in Ifari culture. However, the practice has been a victim of assimilation by imperial power over history. Ethnic Ifari people have migrated quite far because of conflicts like Masuran imperialism, the Northern Wars, and most recently Adravin raiding. Accordingly, many people who used to practice this religion were killed, converted, or had to abandon their culture to survive.

Followers of Ifari Wisdom believe in the idea of the *Great Promise* - that the Ifari people will eventually be able to return to their homeland and live without persecution. This is an idea that dates back millenia, but became common in Ifari culture after the Emperors that ruled Masura during the Northern Wars chose not to return reconquered Ifari land to the Realm of Ifar. A change in the religion began in the Modern Period, with some prophets claiming that the Great Promise would be fulfilled soon, as one thousand years had passed since Ifar's loss of sovereignty equal to Masura.

Many also believe in supernatural beings called *Ishi*. What these creatures are is up for debate; they are sometimes described as the wandering spirits of ancestors, but other sources describe them like superpowered elves that are like nymphs. The *Ishi* are not strictly good or evil, and have the sole mission of protecting the wilderness. Some believe that certain Elves are turned into *Ishi* by the gods to protect nature from a threat, and some Ifari have sought to learn the powers of the *Ishi* to aid their people.

### Corundi

See main article: Corundi

**Corundi** is a world religion originating with the Land of the Three Princes in antiquity. No sovereign state professes Corundi as its dominant religion, but it remains widely practiced religion by Orcs and Evolvi in the Orcish subcontinent. Corundi as a faith centers around the core ideas of nonviolence and universal tolerance, leading to it being very diverse in membership. Religious Corundians (*Corundians* are both a religious and ethnic group) have historically been victims of persecution in some Orcish nations as a result of standing contrary to the militarism common in Orcish society and at times refusing conscription for wars deemed unjust.

The Corundi faith is divided into four schools, each with differing interpretations of their core text. The *Qarasai* school is the most divergent from the rest of the religion, as under some circumstances the sect advocates violence as resistance to persecution. However, this has landed the school with criticism from other theological schools, and a few members see this sect as separate from Corundi as a whole.

For a list of the deities as well as a more detailed description, see the full article.