Cantor

*"I raise my voice in song to raise the spirits of our faithful and the energy of our god."*

## Advanced

(ToS) Cantors are talented singers who have devoted themselves to performing in temple choirs and during rituals. Cantors are responsible for leading choirs during services as well as for instructing individual choristers. Some cantors are also skilled musicians and write new hymns in praise of their Gods. As well as singing hymns, many cantors are skilled at performing incantations and rhythmic chanting that aids priests in performing divine rituals, and for the most potent of rituals a high priest may request the presence of many cantors. The common symbol of office for a cantor is a short staff used to strike the ground (or out of tune choristers, if necessary) to keep tune with the music when leading a choir. A skilful cantor can easily enhance the reputation of a temple and its priests.

### Secondary Profile

**Skills:** Academic Knowledge (Theology), Charm, Common Knowledge (any one), Perception, Performer (Musician), Performer (Singer), Read/Write, Speak Language (any two)

**Talents:** Incantation (see sidebar)

**Trappings:** Chorister’s Robe, Hymn Book, Staff

### **Career Entries**

Anointed Priest, Entertainer, High Priest, Initiate, Minstrel, Monk, Priest

### **Career Exits**

Catechist, Entertainer, Initiate, Priest, Minstrel, Zealot

## In Memoria

Geheimnisnacht is upon us, glory be it to Morr, the Great Raven. Eckhardt von Rach raised grey eyes to the night sky, thankful for the full moons that graced the Night of Mystery. This, his first holy night as cantor for the Shrouded Garden of Morr, would be the first time his newest hymn, “Raven’s Ode,” would be performed.

*May the Lord of Dreams and Portents accept this meager offering of words and song to herald the coming of a great soul to his keeping as God of the Dead. On this night, we bury Lord Varrakhen, and this ode is in his honor and yours, milord.*

His heavy chorister’s robes staved off the autumn chill, though his thrown-back hood could not protect his tonsured head from it. Eckhardt felt the breeze swirl about him as he stood on the last step of the dais, looking up at the choir he’d assembled from the surrounding villages.

*A motley bunch at best, and young, but their voices suit my needs. They need not fully understand the glory of Morr – they need only carry a tune and let it travel to him. My faith and my piety shall be enough for all of us.*

The seven priests behind him entered Morr’s Litany, the final funerary prayer intoned among the high priest and the six priests bearing the coffin. The funeral attendants were properly silent, in respect for the dead

man in front of them and the ruler of the underworld around them, his garden of tombs nestled within this forest clearing.

Eckhardt listened closely, remembering the long-ago studies that burned the Walk of the Dead and its cadences into his head. He remembered its path from services he performed, always treading exactly 116 steps from the start of the litany to the dead man’s final rest.

As the four priests lowered the coffin into its tomb, the high priest finished Morr’s Litany. Eckhardt raised his hands and as Accolo closed his prayer book, soprano voices filled the air around them, followed by the altos and basses with each their canons in turn.

*The power our voices can summon, may it be put to grander purpose than merely a noble’s requiem. May this hymn grant holy power to a Dream, not just a Death.*

Eckhardt let his own baritone voice join the chorus, his cantor’s staff ringing off the grey marble to punctuate his hymn’s refrains. In honor of the deceased and his dreams.

## New Talent: Incantation

**Description:** Your hymn singing and chanting helps to focus divine energies, aiding in magical rituals. You can assist a divine spellcaster perform ritual magic, and if you pass a Performer (Singer) Test and remain singing throughout the ritual, one spellcaster gains a +1 bonus to his Casting Roll. A number of people with this talent may assist in this manner equal to the number of spellcasters participating in the ritual.