Grove of Foxes

The Grove of Foxes is a secret society of artists of all kinds and was founded some time after the War of Life and Strife. They have one goal in mind and that goal is the preservation of historically significant pieces of art and literature. Such pieces including a painting done by Edeline Dian that depicts the tragedy of the war against Jolene Canterbury and her undead minions, songs from noble bards of times long past, and books on all manner of things; both fictional and non-fictional. One such book being Zakina Kociak's "Undead of the Realms".   These works are stored in secured vaults and all members are expected to aid in protecting these works for future generations. While they aim to preserve knowledge and history through artistic means, they'll accept other art so long as it's deemed significant to society in some way, whether that simply be through popularity or intriguing subject matter.   The members are not fond of outsiders and as such, the only way to be brought into their community is through invitation. They do their best to support up and coming artists throughout many major cities, both out of their love of the arts and for the growth such projects bring to society. Despite the many famous artists that live within Caelsimil and Teme-Rasadar, the Grove of Foxes is a fairly small operation due to the high standards they set forth for potential recruits.   While a majority of their members are artists of some kind, they have brought historical scholars into their ranks to aid in identifying unknown works of art and for record keeping purposes. They have hidden lodges in some large cities, one being located in Florence. One entryway into this lodge lies within Chasing Tales, which is owned and operated by a member of their group.

Culture

The group pushes for members to retain their individuality as the idea of falling in line with each other's beliefs will lead to the decay of their imagination. Such a bane could cause artistic blocks and without art, some aspects of society may fall stagnant. They encourage everyone to think for themselves and act according to what they believe or feel, even if it may offend another member.

Public Agenda

The preservation of history and knowledge through the arts. The Grove of Foxes also owns and maintains several public libraries, filling them with their personal, eclectic collections of books. They generally put out books that teach life skills, such as basic survival tips and cooking, but also include guides on magic, bestiaries, botanical compendiums, and other topics that may be important to adventurers. The aim is to share knowledge that will assist someone in their day-to-day life, regardless of what their profession is.

History

After the War of Life and Strife, many significant works of art were lost in the chaos and ruin. Native works that depicted the Old Caelsimilian Gods, almanacs, reports on the landscape that could have helped the pilgrims settle in easier, bright paintings that were celebrated; it was destroyed when the Oracle of Bones marched into Caelsimil. The destruction led to a "dark ages" in the artistic sphere of a growing society, so when important works were rediscovered, a group of pilgrims banded together in order to preserve them.   While these pilgrims would keep the art locked up and away from any potential harm, life in modern Caelsimil's infancy was difficult. There was no time for the arts when there was farming to be done, but as life fell quiet, the people of Caelsimil were allowed to settle down. The people responsible for safeguarding those old works of art would go on to raise a generation of artists and masons, and their families went on to officially form the Grove of Foxes.
Type
Secret, Brotherhood
Alternative Names
The Court of Quills
The Lorekeepers

Character flag image: by Frankie Valentine

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