The Elk Riders
The Elk Riders were a secretive but powerful organization that existed prior to the Blight who were the self appointed guardians of the natural order of the world of Cairne. While their numbers remained fairly small, they were largely regarded as some of the most powerful people in the world due to their ties with forces and entities that no one else had access to according to the recorded records of their order. Their power was rumored to only be limited by the borders of Cairne's natural reality itself, and that by drawing directly from this, they could alter the very fabric of the world in the pursuit of defending it against threats and dangers that sought to do harm to it, and to unbalance the flow of life and death.
Structure
- Archdderwydd - The highest-ranking Druid who presided over the order and had the most extensive knowledge of Druidic lore, philosophy, and magic.
- Druids/Ban Drui - The next level down from the Archdruid, they were responsible for the spiritual and magical needs of the community. They were highly respected and were often consulted on important matters such as legal disputes, medical issues, and agricultural practices.
- Bards - The poets, musicians, and storytellers of the Druidic order. They were responsible for preserving the oral traditions and history of the community, as well as entertaining and educating the people.
- Ovates - The healers and diviners of the Druidic order. They had a deep understanding of the natural world and used herbs, plants, and other natural remedies to heal the sick. They were also responsible for divination, prophecy, and the interpretation of dreams.
Culture
The Elk Riders were extremely secretive about the methods and manner in which they practiced their way of life and spiritual pursuits. While they accepted no god directly as a prime source of worship or power, they respected and honored all of them to some degree, though they claimed their power came from the world itself, and that Cairne was alive and aware, and honored their requests for intervention and power as a matter of symbiotic harmony. As an almost exclusively human order, they generally saw other species as creatures of the world that needed to be protected and educated, but they believed that only the members of the first people, who they believed themselves to be, were worthy of a position among their ranks.
Public Agenda
The preservation and protection of all aspects of the Natural world and the intentional maintenance of the balance of life and death.
Assets
The Elk Riders order was believed to have never number over than a hundred or so souls, and their guarded ways and secretive nature makes this nearly impossible to confirm, however, all of their worldly possessions were sacrificed upon entering the ranks of the order, and all things needed from that point on were expected to be gathered and collected as they believed their needs would be met by the world which they had promised themselves to.
History
The inception of the order, much like the rest of their story, is masked in a great deal of secrets and in some cases even intentional misdirection. It is believed the order was started by either a member of one of the early tribes of humans or perhaps even influenced by an outworld source, such as the Fae who frequented Cairne during those times. Their initial formation and years of growth were benevolent and beneficial to the human settlements that they frequented, bringing news and entertainment, healing and instruction, and even defending them from aspects of the world which they did not understand by teaching them how to watch for the signs of the changing of weather and the seasons, and teaching them new and more resourceful ways to farm and gather foods. It was not until years after the Becht rise to power that they began to involve themselves in the political dealings of that Empire, asserting their role as advisors with the intention of assuring that the needs of the world would be placed high in the ranks of the Empire's priorities in order to honor the world, the Empire's pact with the Elk Riders who supported them in their early years, and to ensure sustainability and respect was given to the lands surrounding their expanding territory.
Disbandment
Following the betrayal and failure of Fontelle Graz that led to the Blight, the remaining members of the order were scattered and fractures, splintering off into several smaller groups with weak leadership and lacking true direction or support. The majority of these were absorbed by the warring factions in the civil wars that followed while the remaining few that held out, attempting to maintain their initial purpose and focus, are believed to have died as the world they held dear slowly began to wither and die around them.
Religion
The order believed firmly that the world itself was a sentient entity, and that by communing with the natural world one could hear the voice of Cairne and communicate with it as an intermediary of the world of man and interpret the needs of the world entity. While they honored all of the other gods, and even celebrated their holy days as a group, they still revered the world itself above all, viewing it as the last aspect of pure, primordial divinity that remained in the universe following the destruction of Vrokhanna .
DISBANDED/DISSOLVED
"Neart na dúlra, cothroime na cothromaithe" (Strength of nature, balance of harmony)
1042 AR - 7 PR
Type
Religious, Druidic Circle
Demonym
Druids, Ban Drui
Leader
Location
Notable Members
Related Species
Comments