Ruined Temple of the Luxon

The temple is located on the road between Urzin and Jigow. The temple of The Luxon is a sacred place for the followers of the Light, who believe that the Luxon is the first and only god, and the source of all life and magic on Exandria. The temple once housed one of the Luxon beacons.

Developments

• The plans of High Priest Kalym Telaarin have been thwarted.
• He and most of his lackeys have been killed.
• Skywalker recovered an interesting bow in a hidden chamber in the catacombs, that seems to have the power to affect the undead.

Description

The temple itself is a large twelve-sided building with a domed roof and a central spire. The entrance is guarded by a stone archway carved with symbols of the Luxon.

Anyone who is not a follower of the Luxon passing between them must make a DC 11 Wisdom Save or be placed under the effects of a Bane spell, whilst they remain in the temple. A casting of Lesser Restoration, Remove Curse or the Bless spell on the cursed individual will remove it.

The interior is decorated with murals, statues, and tapestries depicting the history and teachings of the Luxon. The beacon was once kept in a sanctum at the heart of the temple, where only the high priest and the chosen ones were allowed to enter. That sanctum now lies empty but does contain a staircase leading down into the catacombs. Historically those catacombs would be where the dead were buried ready for consecution.
This process is explained on the murals and tapestries in the catacombs.

Message on the Upper Floor Murals

Long before the gods of Exandria came to shape this world, there was a time when a single Light came from the dark nothingness. Other lights came into being around them, settling as the stars in the cosmos. This one Light, however, resisted the force that beckoned them to burn like their star-fated brethren. This one Light wanted to understand what they were and chose to wander alone, choosing a different path. This choice led to endless stretches of lonely dark, the voices of the stars silent to the Light that walked away. Lonely, they wandered until they found a cold, dark rock: a world. The Light grew fond of this rock, seeing it as lonely as they were, and embraced it. They sparked a fire within, cracking the surface and giving fiery life to the cold world.
From within the fiery core, the Light began to watch the world change and turn, the chaos giving birth to the first souls: the Primordials. Amazed with their children, the Light wanted to guide them to learn of themselves, which in turn would help the Light discover their own purpose—but the children warred amongst themselves and killed one another, their souls born of the Light becoming lost to the dark beyond. Confused but determined, the Light decided that a time of learning was required, and that a cycle of trial and error must be enacted for their children of chaos to better themselves. Sacrificing a majority of their own essence, the Light created beacons of their own self, crystals of great power that enacted a cycle of rebirth for those who were bound to the Light.
This act exhausted the Light, and they fell into a deep slumber within the core of the world, awaiting a time where the children of their own mind would learn from life to life, through eons of struggle and self-reflection, until the knowledge had matured enough to reassemble them, awaken them, and the children could grant the answer to the question the Light had sought from the very beginning: what are they and what was their purpose?

Message on the Catacombs Murals

If a proven soul is ritualistically bound to a Luxon beacon, they can enter a process called the consecution: when a mortal bound to the Luxon dies within a hundred miles of a beacon, the beacon ensnares their soul from its intended afterlife and prepares it to be reborn in a new child within that same vicinity. When that child then matures into adolescence, they begin to recall subtle knowledge from their past life’s experiences, a process called anamnesis.
Through meditation with a guide, they can unlock the memories of their past lives and become a more complete being. When a soul has cycled enough to believe they are ready to greet the Luxon, they are called an Umavi, or “perfect soul,” and are revered within the Kryn society. Some beings that naturally reincarnate, such as the phoenix, are considered holy creatures that carry a shard of the Luxon within themselves.

Cultists

A cult of zealots now inhabits the catacombs below the temple. They are led by a drow named Kalym Telaarin, who claims to be a prophet of the Luxon. He believes that he has received a vision from the Light, telling him to recover the beacon and unleash its full potential. He thinks that this will bring about a new dawn for Xhorhas and the world, where the Luxon will reign supreme and all other gods will be cast into darkness.
He has gathered a loyal following of drow, goblins, bugbears, and other creatures who share his fanaticism. They have been preparing for months to perform a ritual that will locate the beacon.
The ritual involves sacrificing a number of souls to the beacon, as well as using rare and powerful components such as residuum, mithral, and dragon scales. With this mind they have captured a bunch of humanoids who are being held in the catacombs, ready to be sacrificed.
The ritual will take place on the night of a full moon. Kalym hopes that this will trigger a massive surge of dunamantic energy that will reveal the location of the lost Beacon to him.
The temple is well-defended by traps, guards, and wards. Anyone who tries to enter without permission or who opposes Kalym’s plan will be met with hostility and violence. The cultists are fanatical and willing to die for their cause.

RUINED STRUCTURE
Around 700 PD

Type

Temple / Church

Parent Location

Wastes of Xhorhas