Sylanthal

Sylanthal is a religious order which predates written history. The order is primarily focused on the overthrow of the gods, and claims to have been founded on the teachings of Herot. Individual adherents are called Syl.

## Beliefs

Syl believe that mankind was designed to rule over fate, and as such, hold ultimate power over the universe itself. They teach that the gods are interlopers, lesser spirits attempting to wrest control of creation away from its rightful stewards, and that mankind must free itself from them in order to claim its rightful place.

### The Gods

Sylanthal does not have a set list of gods, believing that all gods taught by other religions are real beings, whether or not they are actually the same beings under different names. The general teaching is that there are an array of spiritual beings meant to keep creation running smoothly under the direction of mankind, but that some few have convinced mankind to give them extraordinary power. This was done by amassing enough belief that collective fatebinding turned them into something resembling divinity. These beings then convinced mankind that the power of direct Fatebinding was outside their reach, thus preventing man from rising against them. This makes the gods the enemies and usurpers of mankind, beings who must be overthrown and prevented from further hindering the true purpose of mankind.

### Fate

The Syl believe that fate is a massive network of interconnected events and choices. They refer to fate as the Great Web and Herot as The Spider, maintaining this imagery in all their writings on the subject. In this system, fate as seen as connecting everything, to the extent that any given Fatebinder is potentially, with sufficient practice, functionally omnipotent. They also believe that it is the duty of all humans to become Fatebinders, and entry into any leadership positions in the order requires some visible degree of skill at Fatebinding. The exact nature of testing this skill is a closely guarded secret.

### Herot

All of the authority of Sylanthal derives directly from their claim that Herot founded their order and continues to guide it, to varying degrees, to this day. They believe that Herot made a wager with a god for control of all creation, and that they are tasked with one facet of his plan to defeat the gods and free mankind. The Syl teach that Herot, in this arrangement, became immortal, and still walks Khadaka.

## Leadership

While the general practices of the Sylanthal are visible and recorded throughout history, the actual hierarchy and system of leadership is largely secret. They claim to be led by Herot, though his direct influence seems to be sporadic over time. There are references to *The Seven* in some ancient documents that have been made public with or without the permission of the order, which seem to suggest that this is a body which sits at the highest levels of power over the order. Other references to rare, powerful leaders who achieved immortality like Herot have led some to suggest that these immortals are *The Seven*, while other researchers suggest that, if *The Seven* exists at all, it is a body of leaders which changes over time. Reports of spider imagery found on and near Vortex have led to suspicions that the order is based there. This belief is bolstered by the idea that the gods can neither see nor enter Tempest, which would make it an ideal location for the Sylanthal to conduct its business. However, with the shifting nature of the region, confirmation of any of these claims has never been established.

To date, none of these ideas have been acknowledged by the order.