Divine Dragon Scales

"The Mother's Soul in the heavens, the Mother's Body below our feet, our Mother's Heart within our hands, let them roar against evil!"

--Common prayer of exorcism within The Mother Dragons faith

Divine magic is something channeled through the body via the connective power of Faith. Many scientific minds of Edda find this idea preposterous, as every other type of casting involves drawing power from a direct connection or source, whereas something as seemingly flimsy as faith shouldn't be a proper connector.
But it is no secret that there are many gods over Edda, and many still weave their paths through the world at large. For The Mother Dragons faith, the world at large is exactly where their Gods (mostly Goddesses) lie, as their bodies became the world itself with their souls ascending to the divine place above them. Still, their faithful walk among their bodies, and their actions speak to and for the goddesses themselves. With such unwavering faith, so too must come a sturdy conduit to effectively channel the oft spurious power Faith provides.
Holy symbols of many varieties are used for such a purpose, and some of them even allow greater power rather than just being a conduit for it, such is the case for the Divine Dragon Scales. Modeled after the shed scales of their respective Mother Dragon's, the donning and use of these artifacts is not only proof of service already done, but gives greater potential for service to be done as well. Dipped in blessed gold and anointed with holy oil, they are a Mother Dragon Priests' symbol of highest authority.

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Mechanics & Inner Workings

After the associated gemstone has been cut and carved into the teardrop scale shape, the bottom and sides dipped in purified gold until cooled. After this, the gem itself is annointed with holy oil and polished until it shines, where it is then afixed to a golden loop to serve as handle, and the name of the owning priest is carved into the back usually with a short prayer as well.
This all provides it with divine energy, and moreover prevents it from losing divine energy when used or over time. The inscription of the name as well as the included handle also serves for a direct magical and literal connection with the wielder, improving the connection rate between their own magical system which delivers the power of faith, and that of the Divine Dragon Scale which serves as a conduit for that power.

Manufacturing process

The creation of Divine Dragon Scales usually comes down to two specific groups within the church, The Crafters of Topaz-Màthair, whose divine domain includes Jewelcrafting, and Embers of Rubaidh-Màthair who handles the various arts of creation in general. Usually, it is the Crafters who procure the gemstone and cut it down to the proper size, doing some initial annointed polishing. Then it is the Embers who cast it in gold and give it the final shines, as well as add any personal touches to it. The final act of fully blessing the holy symbol and assigning it to a priest falls to The Colors of Opal-Piuthar, who follow the goddess of Order and therefore handle much of the minutae of the faith.

History

The Mother-Dragons gave their bodies to enrich and empower the earth, and for their sacrifice their faithful will always work to serve their wishes. While their bodies became the world, their souls live on, and so too do they dole out divine power to their faithful.
It is said that their faithful who work the land that is their shed bodies leave the power of their faith within the land itself, which then produces the finest of shimmering gemstones in large clusters, brimming with their own power. Since ancient times, before Agartha was even a formal Kingdom, these gems have been found and used as the focal point for many a divine ritual or spell.
Once the art of fine craft and decoration began to be discovered among the people, they begun to construct amulets and symbols, smaller forms of the crystals, to empower both their daily lives and the power they wielded on a more reliable, personal scale. The art of crafting Divine Dragon Scales has existed since then, and each day more and more priests of the order find themselves worthy of this divine connection, bestowed upon them as proof of their station and their power among the mothers who watch over them.

Significance

The Divine Dragon Scales are meant to be reflections of the Mother Dragons in their astral state, and as such are potent channels for divine magic. A priest need only belief to work their magic, should they have the potential and education, but to wield a blessed symbol as well is to increase it's power further.

Item type

Religious / Ritualistic

Owning Organization

The Mother Dragons

Rarity

While they are not uncommon in the grand scheme of things, the creation, sale, and use of Divine Dragon Scales is heavily regulated, so you'll only see them on Priests of a high enough rank.

Weight

2 lbs on average

Dimensions

Designed to be palm sized

Base Price

1 gold/10 Silver ($100), free for qualified priests

Raw materials & Components

Various gemstones are used for the main scale, depending on the Mother Dragon they are meant to represent. Purified Gold and Annointed Oil are also of key use here, each materials that go through a five-fold process of cleansing and blessing before being put to use in any context, especially for the crafting of divine channels.