The Sect of Eshost

Alignment: any non-evil

Introduction

The sect is by far the oldest in Arthea, and pre-dates even the modern sect movement. Its earliest beginnings are lost in the mists of pre-Disaster time. Even the elf maiden Seldaha Eshost herself did not know the true beginnings of the sect which took her name, originally it was known as The Mystics who appear to have been an elfish and Celtic sect. The Mystics taught magic to all the free people in the Celtic community where they were based, and were run at the highest levels by elves.

For many years before the disaster, the group taught all forms of magic. It was not until after the disaster that the weakening in the power of magic lead to the sect specialising in those schools which were known to be Seldaha's most favoured. It was thought that most of the legend of Seldaha was lost to time but recently several references to the story were found in an old, deep dungeon in northern Caldonacia, and her story is now far better known.

History and the Story of Seldaha Eshost

Seldaha Eshost was a low-born half-elf, who struggled with prejudices among her own people. She had an aptitude for magic, however, and pursued her knowledge in both human and elf societies. Eventually she married to a questing Knight, a human named Sir Sigram, who became a paladin of some repute. Sir Sigram had been charged with the task of defeating an evil mage, Brendon Darkmoot. Much of the story of Darkmoot is still unknown; it is believed he played political games with rulers and feudal chiefs in the nation where he lived until he was finally banished from the region for his evil scheming. He returned with power, and challenged the kings of the day in open warfare, and Sigram and his knights were asked to deal with the invasion.

Darkmoot was more cunning than Sigram had expected, and was using his craft and his cunning alongside some military might to conquer the lands. Sigram's men were bold and courageous, however, and found the military power Darkmoot had assembled to be an easy opponent, this army did not hold back Sigram's men long enough for Darkmoot to use his magic.

After the military defeat, Darkmoot changed his approach to conquest. He could not match Sigram and his knights on the field of combat and so decided to try and cause as much mayhem as he could. He used spies freely, and sent several to capture Sigram's wife. She was brought back to his newly-constructed mountain stronghold, much to the annoyance of Sigram. It was clear to the Paladin that the stronghold could not be assaulted by a huge force of arms, its location had been chosen well, and its walls were thick. Instead, Sigram went with just a handful of his best knights to challenge the power of Darkmoot head-on. The fight was bitter; several of Sigrams loyal companions died in the fighting, but finally Sigram rescued his wife and captured Darkmoot, who was brought out to face trial. As a sorceress, Seldaha contributed to the fighting, and was instrumental in the capture of Darkmoot, who had underestimated his elfish prisoner. Sigram's surviving companions gave an account of her suffering when she was found and of her substantial involvement in the capture of their prisoner.

The Mystics were an elfish sect, and wanted to honour Seldaha for her huge contribution to the peace of the nation. Because of her race, however, she could not take charge of the sect; instead they appointed her as their honorary Queen. Darkmoot, meanwhile, was not finished; he escaped his captors far too easily before his trial took place, and so Sigram was sent out to capture him once again.

Darkmoot retired to his deepest stronghold, and Sigram and Seldaha journeyed there together to face him. They won through the dark dungeon, which was overrun with fell creatures and undead of all kinds. Seldaha faced Darkmoot alone in a magical combat which she only just lost, and which nearly ended in her death. The fight weakened Darkmoot enough for Sigram to face him in a weaponless tussle, which the knight eventually won, and which saw the death of Darkmoot.

It is unknown what further adventures Seldaha and Sigram encountered, there are no more surviving texts covering their stories.

The validity of this story cannot be assured; some of it was passed down as the legends held by the sect, while others parts were inscribed upon ancient parchments using an archaic language form. Yet all these sources date to before the disaster, and include the names of places which do not exist in Arthea today. The parchments which embellish the story are kept in Caldonacia, near to where they were found.

Teachings of the Sect

The sect tries to instil in its members a responsibility for the magic they wield. There is no glory in using magic for someone's benefit if it is against their will. An irresponsible attitude will never aid the peasants to accept magic as a useful and necessary power. Magic is a power provided by the universe, and to use it is to shape the very substance of all worlds and all dimensions. To use the power irresponsibly is to commit a sin against that power, and to use the power for personal gain, through fear, through ignorance, or through hatred is to try and turn the power of the universe against itself. The universe will not withstand such misuse before either a backlash is felt or it breaks beyond repair. The Great Disaster was the first clear warning that the misuse of magic is affecting the fabric of reality, thus misuse of the power must be denied to all who wield magic.

The sect teaches these sentiments to all outsiders using their facilities as well as to their own students. Their aim is to prevent another disaster. The sect does not willingly sell its facilities, it is a private sect, but knows that to refuse their use to some sects could cause their own members to be turned away from other sects when they require support or training.

Seldaha's most favoured school of magic was that of Enchantment. She is known to have been half-elfish, and was named as an enchantress in the text describing part of her legend. She was also widely versed in the schools of Transmutation and Summoning; both are which are taught, to a very small extent by her sect.

As the legend does not tell what happened to Seldaha and Sigram after their exploit with Brendon Darkmoot, there is nothing that will alter the sect's belief that Seldaha will one day return to her sect to claim her rightful position of Queen. If she was a true elf then she could certainly have survived to this day, and many half-elves have been long lived too.

Symbols

The sect normally uses the symbol of the head and torso of an elf female, with her eyes closed and her arms folded across her breast, resting one hand on each shoulder.

Membership

n its beginnings the sect was wholly made up of elf magic users, but as time went on these restrictions became relaxed. Even in Seldaha's day, humans and gnomes were already members of the sect, although there were strict rules preventing anyone other than elves filling positions of responsibility. These days there are no such restrictions. The sect has changed considerably; elves care little for it, and it is run now by human wizards.

The sect's outlook is neutral-good, and membership is open to all non-evil alignments. Membership costs are as follows: regular membership 150gp per year, associate membership (from 5th level) 200gp per year, master membership (from 10th level) 200gp per year.

Additional Spells

Level 2

Bluelight (Summoning)

The casting of this spell creates a bold of blue light which springs from the caster and strikes any visible target. If the victim fails their saving throw, they take 1d4 points of damage and are blinded for 1d4 rounds. If the saving throw is made, the bolt has no effect (it misses them), although it may well frighten creatures of animal intelligence or lower. The material component is a small piece of blue glass.

Level 3

Deepdream (Enchantment) Reversible

By using this spell, the caster can bring a vision to the recipient in the form of a dream. The vision may last anything from a few seconds to several minutes. If the recipient makes their saving throw, then the dream is experienced but there is no recollection of it after waking. The vision is prophetic in nature, and will usually relate to some future event in the life of the recipient. The reverse of the spell works in the same manner, but instils a bad vision or nightmare into the recipient. The material component is a small piece of wool or cotton, which has been carried by the spell recipient for one whole day.

Level 6

Seldaha's Magic Ring (Conjuration)

This spell, when combined with other Wizard spells, can be used to recreate the effects of most magical rings. The material component for the spell is a golden ring of at least 250gp value, which is placed onto a finger as the spell is cast. Once casting is complete, then a further spell must be immediately cast into the ring, the effects of which are stored for later use. Any required material components are used up at this stage. A spell stored in the ring can be activated as a free action, and can be controlled as though the spell had just been cast by the mage. Once the spell power has been released, the ring disappears. The ring, once worn, works in a similar way to the other magical rings. No more than one ring (of any magical type) can be worn on one hand. If the gold ring is removed from the finger, then its magical power is lost, and the ring disappears. No more than one spell can be stored in the ring, and the magic cannot be held securely for the long term - each week there is a 5% chance that the magic held in the ring will dissipate on its own and the ring disappear.

Level 7

Recurring Dream (Enchantment) Reversible

This spell can be used to create a recurring dream or nightmare in a similar way to Deepdream (above). The vision or nightmare recurs night after night until a saving throw is made. For the first night, however, there is no save, and so the dream will always be experienced and remembered at least once. Once save is allowed each night after the first, until it is passed, whereupon the dreams or nightmares cease. The material component is a piece of fur or silk that the recipient has carried or worn for at least two days.

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ArtheaWiki: The Sect of Eshost (last edited 2013-09-15 19:38:36 by DanielStevenson)

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