Lebensbaum Cathedral (laybins-bough-m)

"Walking through the doors, the sheer expanse of the nave fills one with the sense that yes, this is a temple to giants, True Giants."

-- An Afallonian travelers journal

Originally the pet project of an Afallonian overseer, the large manor that is now The Lebensbaum Cathedral has seen much history, and following the liberation of Magnum Opus was turned into a home for the faithful and the divine, a purpose that still stands to this day.

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Purpose / Function

The purpose of the Cathedral is to honor the True Giants, much like all buildings of its kind. Luckily for them, the size of the space means they can house moderately sized shrines for all of the primary deities, even the more esoteric ones, and even have some general rooms of observance and prayer for travelers of other faiths. This doesn't even mention the large study, classrooms, boarding rooms for those who need sanctuary, and the large dining room where the church staff hosts events.

Alterations

The building that is now the cathedral used to be a Lord's manor, constructed in 754 EE when the land was squarely under the rule of Afallon. While the Lord of the territory at the time, Eirian Doeth, was a proud Afallonian scholar, he had become infatuated with the "exotic" and "rustic" Seat culture. He had his large manor constructed with stone in their architectural stylings wishing "To hold the divine wisdom of the oases in the natural beauty of the beast's nature."
Needless to say, the "beasts" didn't take too kindly to it, and it wasn't hard for them to oust him when the Exile's Din began in earnest. Once the dust had settled, it was decided that the local faithful would convert the manor into a cathedral in order to worship and honor the gods that many felt guided them to victory and independence.
It didn't take long to turn the manor into a proper cathedral, especially with the aid of magic, but many aspects of the design remain, including the large outer wall, making the church one of the only walled locations in Wind.

Architecture

The main walls and support for the building are made entirely of stone, a combination of local quarried stone and specialized stone imported from Afallon during the time of its creation. The roof's framework is stone as well, very carefully placed and laid, but the filling sections are reinforced lumber, and most of the interior floors and walls are made of wood as well.
After the reclamation of the building, many of the walls on the ground floor and basement floor were knocked out, with their load-bearing replacements made with stone as well. Local druids and stonemasons came together to ensure the durability of the preexisting stone framework and refurbish what needed to be done.

Defenses

The original manor had six towers that contained a few rooms of their own but mostly served as archer towers as well as watchtowers for the citizens, as while Wind kept its status as a neutral space of merchantry, many "enlisted" workers still lived there, and even then the Lord wished to keep his presence known.
In the modern day, those towers were greatly shortened post-renovation, but are still tall enough to be defensive posts when necessary.
The greatest defense for the cathedral, aside from its nature as a stone structure, is the wall outside it that blocks it off from all but the eastward direction making it the only real walled structure in the city.

Tourism

The cathedral gets quite a lot of tourism, even compared with the rest of Wind. Not only do many traveling mechanics come to pray for safety, success, inspiration, and whatnot, but the church often opens its doors to those who need sanctuary outside of the local inns.
It also gets visited by many people who adore the architecture, as its grooved walls, communal style ground floor, and incorporation of large light sources ring to classic Magnian style architectures, which was Eirian's intent.
Many learned folks, especially from Afallon, also take quick stops to the cathedral, as they maintained much of Zinedine's book collection, which was rather extensive.
Not everyone looks upon the church with favor, however, as many people see its high walls as off-putting and against the local aesthetic and virtues, as well as being a reminder of an oppressor's goals.

Founding Date

754 EE (constructed)/818 EE (converted)

Alternative Names

The Stone Manor, Windbreaker, Eyesore

Type

Cathedral / Great temple

Parent Location

Wind

Owner

Bishop Heulwen Schulze

Ruling/Owning Rank

Bishop {True Giants}

Owning Organization

The True Giants Faith