Andalish Cosmology

The earth (Andalis) and sky (Idavoll) have always been and always will be. Just like giants and gods always have been and always will be. Life will change but these always will be.The Andals were created during the war of the Giants when they fought the old gods. During that time, much of the land was changed as each side tried to kill the other. The Giants had driven back the old gods to the gates of Idavoll and we're beating down the doors. The chaos was so great that no one noticed the great cracks had begun to form in the earth. Only a very clever Eoten named Shor saw and he realized that if the Sky were to fall then it would crush the Giants.Acting quickly he braced his back against the heavens and strained with all his might to keep it from falling.

The battle raged on and the Giants took Idavoll and the old gods fled, but the damage was done and Shor was left to hold the sky until he died. The strain was so great that he sweat large drops that fell to the earth and became the first Andals, because they were from the earth. His bones still hold up the halls of Idavoll to this day.

Andalish worship is very foreign to the Free Cities and Raider ideology as it remains very tribal, even to this day. Where Raiders understand their polytheistic outlook on creation, they incorporate religious ceremony in almost every aspect of life, constantly pouring over tomes and trying to more closely emulate their deities, Andals almost take it for granted. They have an attitude of "yes, I know it's there, but it's not bothering me at the moment so why should should I care?". On top of that, they are seen as backward by Free Cities standards on account of their never really picking a side when it comes to matters of faith, as long as it's Andalish gods we're talking about.

This is only compounded by the fact that their gods don't happen to be the the most powerful beings out there, just one of the group and, at one point in their lore, were entirely replaced with an entirely new set.

That's not to say that Andals are not a religious people, they just don't see a point in making a big deal about it most of the time. As such while each god has multiple strands of belief, there doesn't seem to be much friction between competing clergy for total dominance.

Andals have few holy days but make time each week for devotions around a central meeting place, which varies by sect. Additional sacrifices above that are made to select gods on certain occasions. The most notable of which is when Andals go to war or on the eve or finish of a great battle where they sacrifice to each god in turn. To the Morrigan for a good death should it come, to Sigmar for victory, to Moritasgus for quick recovery with minimal pain, and finally to Cassandra so that she won't get involved either way.

In many cases clergy of one god will pay devotions to another Andalish god with no stigma.

Hero worship is fairly common, with relics having a central role, often having certain artifacts passed down from generation to generation until it becomes useless, in which case it's reforged. Most often of these are armor and weapons.

Mythical figures appear through Andalish legends and many serve a more central role in the stories than their gods, such as Black Agatha or Yaga Baba, which are consulted by heroes as often as the heroes seek divine aide.

The Andals remain a most pragmatic people at their heart and while they do not fear change, for that is the way of the world, they tend to shy away from it. Don’t fix something that isn’t broken could be considered a mantra of their culture.

They also take guest rites and duty to one’s family very seriously and it’s seen as any man’s foremost duty to see that those are observed. When a guest eats your salt and bread, it is seen as an unspoken god oath of protection between the two parties, and any man that breaks it is cursed. The same goes for kinslayers.

"The earth owes you nothing"

"The ant and crow councils with it's own kind"

Unlike other cultures, Andals take a more pan-theistic approach to worship, as such not many follow one god over the other, let alone one faction within that temple. Few outside the clergy are anointed. The factions are there for cleric players to develop as they see fit for roleplaying purposes.

 

The Crokyrka

Followers of the Morrigan (often referred to as Crows, because of their crow feather cloaks they wear when officiating) are generally split into two camps. The first is called the Crokyrka (literally translated; Crow church) which is more common in the more rural and eastern parts of the Young Kingdoms. The focus of this faction is that the Morrigan is one goddess with 3 distinct aspects. This is seen as the more traditional view of the goddess.

The Crokyrka is more tribal in its beliefs and remain adamant that the Morrigan's primary role is the oversight of life and death. As such they see dispensing justice as a secondary job for them. The first being making sure the dead stay dead.

While they get along fairly well with the priests of the tribunal, it tends to be a matter of keeping their distance from each other. The Crokyrka are viewed as country bumpkins and it wouldn't be far from the truth.

The Tribunal of the Morrigan

The second type of Crow that worships the Morrigan are called Wardens or Arbiters. They see the Morrigan as a triple goddess made of the goddesses Morrigan, Badb, and Anannis. Each has a distinctive role within the triad.

Worship of the one-in-three goddess is most popular with the more populated cities and amongst the ruling class.

Temples to the Tribunal are set up in close fashion to Raider temples, with a permanent structure and a full time staff of priests and priestesses, often a set of 3 priests or priestesses run the temple, with a myriad of acolytes underneath them.

These buildings serve as a center of law giving, with the local ruler at least being advised by the presiding triad if not just sitting in court in the temple (or having the tribunal do it for him)

The other Andalish faiths criticize the tribunal as departing from the traditional way so that it's worshipers can be more accepted by Free City and Raider culture.

Daughters of Winter (Witches)

Cassandra is the goddess of winter, night and nature. Because of her spheres of control her cult is frowned on for the most part as being somewhat savage but that frown is quickly turned aside in times of strife as she is also primarily seen as a goddess of wisdom and fortune.

Her priesthood is only women and is very secretive about recruiting practices. In fact, witches are secretive about everything and rarely associate with outsiders. They are usually consulted as augers for natural disasters and ways to appease the gods.

Witch garb varies by coven but they are singularly visibly marked with a bat, which symbolizes the ability to navigate in the dark. The use of ceremonial mask is also fairly common with a strong tendency for moon symbolism to appear.

Daughters of Winter do not get along with other foreign religions and openly reject and fight against outlander influences. This has lead to an underground terrorist movements seeking to overthrow non-Andalish kings over Andalish states. While their targets try to root them out, no sensible Andal wants to fight against a goddess that can bring about eternal winter.

Sigmar's Faithful

Sigmar and Sigmar’s faith remains an interesting subject of discussion of those that have time to devote to such matters. Sigmar is believed to be the father of all warriors and heroes. He is also seen as the personification of all outside forces that mean destruction of the Andal nations, thus symbolized by his animal, the dragon, the ancient enemies of the giants.

Sigmar’s faithful take the surname of Heldenhammer and they’re often tattooed with some mark of their office, chosen by them during their anointing of blood, or birth into the clothe. The most common are a dragon on the heel, the twin comet of his order on their cheek, or a hammer across their chest, most often with the head protecting the heart.

As a god of war and vengeance, you can imagine that the Faithful are a more militant group of individuals and you would be right. While kings and lords make use of their ranks, the Faithful are notorious for jumping on any chance to fight and often lead small scale raids against other forces without the consent of any ruler. This has lead to some diplomatic tension, and while most Andals have come to accept this as a risk of everyday life, other cultures do not look too kindly on these vigilantes. As such the Faithful’s power and influence has waned in the recent centuries excepting in Bloodrun, where their power is as entangled as it ever has been.

Even so, way-shrines to Sigmar remain a popular places to visit when going to war or seeking the god’s vengeance for real or imagined slights.

The Walkers in the Night

An offshoot of the Faithful, a certain sect of religious extremists have taken the god’s vengeance into their own hands. Legendary in their ability, there is little to nothing know about this shadow organization but that it sometimes heed the prayers of vengeance.

There are many stories of their deeds and they are seen as the hand of Sigmar and accepted like a force of nature, much in the same way a bad stroke of fortune or a really bad storm is viewed.

Order of the Moritasgus (Moritasgian)

Going to a house of healing in any of the Young Kingdoms is like playing Russian Roulette with half the chambers loaded. That’s because the fanatics of Moritasgus have a very unique approach to their job. If they don’t know how to heal something, the most practical way to get the job done is to break the problem in a way you can fix it. Surprisingly, this has lead to some great discoveries in the fields of chiropractic medicine and the mending of bones and surgery of all kinds, much to the chagrin of the recipients.

And Divine healing is as much a gamble as the more zealous clerics will deliver the cure via the business end of their holy symbol, a mace, often spiked for effect.

Moritasgus is also seen as having some privileges over the earth and farmers often seek his favor at spring planting for a bounteous harvest. He is also the patron of the Radagasts, wood seers and shapeshifters.

While not a vengeful god, as Andalish gods go, he does have power over plagues and they are often seen as heralds of his displeasure, especially, it is told, if he thinks his houses of healings are not being visited with a much regularity as he thinks they should be.

Ruin

There is one Andalish god that is avoided at all costs: Ruin. Ruin represents that total destruction of Creation and all that is in it. He’s followers seek to further his dark will by bringing the end of all things.

While other gods may fight and bicker, each wanting the other’s to leave or die so they can reign supreme, they don’t want to destroy Creation and everything in it, which sets Ruin apart even from other gods that are considered classically ‘evil’ in their intentions.

Ruin was said to have been born from the corpse an old god, the last remaining aspect of what was. Some say he is an old god, changed and twisted in the madness of whatever happened to the rest of them. He is often depicted as a pillar of black smoke with many masks floating in the void that vomits dragons and snakes, or as a finely dressed nobleman with an oddly still face.

Followers of the Faceless Butcher keep themselves secret. They may even appear helpful and kind as generally they see their strategy as a long term one. They’re not interested in bringing down a single kingdom or race, they’re interested in destroying the Shor’s Bones.

The Master of Masks is sometimes related to the T’zolkin, the Free Cities’ calender-god, by the more xenophobic Andal as he is also see as the Lord of Dragons.

Ruin, in essence, represents everything that is not, or everything on either side of eternity. The Seeking Dark that was and will be.