The Gods of the Clan (Ancient Tuana: [/ˈcɾʲɛdʲəvˠ diː tʲɾʲiː/])

The Faith of the Divine Tribe

The Heirs of the Gods

"To the Her Most Illustrious Empress, Living Divine and Broodmother of Kashar, Whose Name Under the Stars is Eternal, May Her Fire Never Wane,
It is at your humble service that I, Holfr Sturlursson, have undertaken the most perilous journey across the Ghastly Expanse in order to offer a report on these most mysterious peoples who call themselves "An Tuana". It is my wish that this correspondence falls into your glorious hands with for humble purpose to provide an overview on the faith and beliefs of these future subjects, that they may be ruled efficiently, and quelled should the need arise..."

- An Encyclopedia of the Northern Folk and Tribes, Holfr Sturlursson.

Overview:

The Faith of the Divine Three is the belief that the three great restorationists of mankind (the Patron, the Gatekeeper & the Vigil) were in fact 'heirs to the Old Gods', the waning and deceased faith of An Edel. The disappearance and fading of the Courts of Aedelwynn left many elvish kingdoms in disarray and terror, and in their place the Clanndom of An Tuana arose. Its arrival was both helmed and foretold by the appearence of three divine brothers - living Gods, mortals with the souls of Deities - who walked the soil of Aedelwynn along their faithful to guide, instruct, and protect the budding civilization of mankind as their ancient masters and caretakers fell into civil war and perpetual hatred.

The Knot is the unified belief in all seven Gods of Mankind who protect An Tuana from the ancient forces that dwell within Aedelwynn. Whilst historically distant, each of the Gods are regarded as siblings, and according to their prophets and witnesses wished to be regarded as such, often announcing the arrival of their sibling decades before their birth. The concept of 'heir of the Gods' is a universal understanding that the Era of Elves and their Courts are now long gone (though it said remnants are supposedly still present within Lachlanna), and in their stead stands the Three who extend their protection to whoever accepts their rule.

Mythology & Lore

Of the Birth of Aedelwynn, Our Home:

"It is often said, by the ancient sages and the ministers of the Faith, that when the world was barely born, the Sky and the Sea tore each other asunder. Blood and gore seeped from one another's flesh, and dropped unto the world. And each droplet that bathed in the oceans below birthed creatures yet unfathomable to one's mind and comprehension. However, the blood that had stained the waters turned to scabs, and the scabs turned into earthen soil. And the earth formed, and was gifted a heart, which beat with the slow rhythm of the drums. Life was thus born, and with it the death of all things.
And it is told that soon after, in the distant horizon, the sun rose across the star spangled firmanent and set to let its sister Moon take its place during the darker hours of the night, that the monsters and beasts that dwell in fell places be forever revealed and that they forever shun the light. And amidst this raging war of Sky and Seas, of existence and learning and birthing, a land came to be. At the uttermost peak of our Realm, closest to the gilded veils of northern lights was shed a single tear, that froze and scabbed and became an island which spanned as large as the breadth of a thousand giants.
This land of tundras, ice and frigid winds; this earth of harsh soil, roiling torrents of glacial waters that mingle into the turbulent waves of the ebon ocean; this land spiked and spined with myriads of mountains and steep cragland spears was born, and cried its name to all who would dwell upon its surface... and its name was Aedelwynn, the Mother's Tear, the Frozen Star. It is a beautiful land, vast and empty in places, yet gorging with life both horrific and magnificent in others. Once, An Edel occupied its surface. They rose towered cities to reach the skies, shifted the flow of rivers to suit their people, bolstered their woodlands and livened the dark sidhe that dwelled within.
Their kingdoms spanned the land, their powers unrivalled and unmatched. And yet, they are no more. Their ruins left empty, their velvet robes and furious visages are gone, though they have taken their hatred and bloodshed with them, their haunted halls and pristine palaces remain crumbled, sullied and left to dwell in silence. And those Otherfolk that have not faded away have rejoined their fell brethren deep within the woodlands, shunning the truth of the Protectors; they have run away from An Tuana's uprising in the wake of the Fading, and now Aedelwynn has returned to its children though it is very much different in the hands of men."

Divine Origins

The Founding:

Ever since mankind's existence, and enslavement by An Edel, multiple prophets and augurs have followed one another, speaking of the death of The Courts of Aedelwynn, and the fading of the Elves. This is one of the key reasons for mankind's mistreatment, as the prayers of An Edel's faithful dwindled in number, and were left unanswered. In fear of the truth, the elves retaliated against their servants, who would lie in waiting and torment for the arrival of 'the Heirs of the Gods'. Deities who would walk the earth, and show a better path to mankind than the brutality and shackles of their masters. Saviours often appeared, but none would truly make any effect, nor would they leave a mark for long. Thus, when a slaver beheld Saint Llyw's divinity, and relinquished her hold over the young God, rumours ran wild and were taken as a sign that An Tuana's time had come.

The Growth:

As the divine siblings walked the soil of Aedelwynn, and were slain, their followers and closest companions walked with them. On the time of their death, each sibling foretold the birth of the next, and with them the arrival of another saviour who would inch mankind towards freedom. Yet with the chains of subjugation cast aside, the god-children feared in their wisdom that rampage and savagery would prevail over honour and prosperity.
Thus it was decided, even before the womb, that each saint would instruct An Tuana in the ways of the clanndom. The Tiller would develop kindness, mercy, and understanding. The Seamstress would guide the mourning through their grief, and grant sailors the gifts of the sea. The Gatekeeper would instruct brotherhood, honour and fate. The Stargazer would bequeath others with the curiosity to question and search answers within the stars. The Charioteer would bring protection and might to those who deserved it. The Smith would show the fallen how to restore that which had been trampled. The Vigil would grow societies, foster the meek, and enact Laws by which all clansmen might be judged.
As the years passed, and their lives bloomed and withered, the Knot understood the complexities of man, and came to add to these notions virtues, vices, and duties, so that An Tuana might survive on its own and comprehend their purpose as protectors and caretakers of the lands that had now become theirs. From then, many of the brotherhoods and warbands and sects that claimed the Divine Sept as their patrons would follow the ceremonies and ways shown to them by their teachers, or replicate moments of their lives and interpret sigils extracted from their deeds. These became the rites and rituals of the Knot, fashioning days of celebration, important rites of passage in one's life, and methods by which to live by.

Cosmological Views

Gods of Civilization & Protectors of the Land:

It is well understood by the faithful of the Knot that the World, and Aedelwynn, were not created by the Divine Sept. Instead they have earned stewardship over it, much like a prince inherits a kingdom from his father. They have reclaimed what was once theirs by right, and returned the land of Aedelwynn to An Tuana. As such, they are protectors and wardens of the Clan, as well as defenders of the Land they now rule over. This does not give them domain over the mountains, the oceans, the skies and the woods, but more so the people and their needs and whims. Wherever the faithful of the Divine Sept go, however, the Knot's influences goes with them. Instead, they are Gods of Law, Gods of Labout, Gods of Warriors and Kings and Farmers. They do away with the wilderness, and bring forwards the light of civilization, of strong stone walls and stores of grain, of right, and might, and power beyond measure that no woodlands nor sea can best.
Despite being deities of civilization and philosophy, the Gods of Men do have control over the Land they protect. For instance: Saint Llyw was gifted power over the sun, and may bequeath it unto whomever he favours. It is he who monitors the careful rising and setting of dawn and dusk. Saint Emrys was gifted domain over the darkness and shadows of the grave, a corpselight that would defend the souls of the dead against the horrors of the afterlife, and the dangers of undeath.

The Godsmoot:

Every sibling has their own domain, but when the Knot must meet they do so on a mythical hill within Aedelwynn. There sits a circle of paved stone, on top of which are placed seven thrones. Each throne depicts the Power of each sibling, whilst a dais on which the past, present and future of Aedelwynn lies at the center of the circle of stone like a map. Here, at the Godsmoot, the Knot deliberates the fate of men and women and children; they pass judgement and decide what follows for the sake of their people.

"Sept shall be as One."

Founding Date

1263 FE

Type

Religious, Pantheon

Alternative Names

"Pantheon of Men", "The Knot"

Demonym

"The Divine Sept", "The Living Gods", "Lords", "Saints"

Permeated Organizations

• The Clanndom of Aedelwynn.

Deities

• Saint Brigidh the Smith
• Saint Diarmaid, the Vigilant
• Saint Emrys, the Warder
• Saint Llyw the Tiller
• Saint Morwenn, the Seamstress
• Saint Rhys, the Stargazer
• Saint Tristan the Charioteer

Divines

• Saint Diarmaid, the Vigilant
• Saint Emrys, the Warder

Location

Godsmoot, the Divine Hills

Notable Members

• Saint Emrys, the Warder
• Saint Llyw the Tiller

Related Ethnicities

• An Tuana Clanna

Divine Alignments:

LG	NG	CG
LN	TN	CN
LE	NE	CE

Divine Domains:

• Emrys : Blood, Death, Grave
• Diarmaid : Knowledge, Law, Order
• Llyw : Life, Light, Tempest
• Tristan : War, Peace, Tempest
• Brigidh : Light, Forge, War
• Rhys : Arcana, Peace, Twilight
• Morwenn : Death, Tempest, Nature
• All Seven : Protection, War

Credit goes to: Austin Wintory & Stoic Studio