Merkaine, Lady of Fire (summer)

Steel Realms
Merkaine – Elemental Consort of Fire (mur-kane) – The Bringer of Fire; The divine Wyld Entity principal of natural world cycles and forces of physical manifestation; the cleansing, cycling, healing, and restorative nature of fire, warmth, blood and associated symbols, concepts, and metaphors.

The modern age is heavily defined by the clash of faiths in the “Affray of Darkness and Light” in which the entity plays a secondary part (mostly guided by Gaia).

Role: The Bringer of the Fire; Secondary foe of those who wish only to conquer and destroy and/or corrupt nature

>General Motto: “Without warmth there is no life.“

They are an entity that reflects the powers of Conviction through Essence. They are part of the pantheon of The Wyld Faith. They are a seasonal manifestation of the Grey Feather Calendar.

Lady of Fire

She is known as the female (life giving) manifestation of the helpful outcomes with her associated element; There is an associated male (destructive) manifestation. This Great Numinous Spirit which has manifested through the will of living Helca and is directed by Gaia in most things. While this ‘goddess’ has not affirmed participation in The Godspeak Accord of the realms, she generally follows the stance of Gaia. She has been known to manifest to fight against undead and those who would kill sacred beasts, places, and environmental manifestations under their protection without thought or bias to Light, Dark, Grey, or even Green foundations. She is considered by related elemental creatures to be the supreme arbitor of their behavior within the shere of Helca itself, and can summon and bind several of the associated elementals with ease. It is well known that the powers of Merkaine and Aerna work best to fight against the cold death of the Fangedfrost.

Fire Branded Lily Healing: The clergy of Merkaine seeks Lily Healing items because it warms a person, and this reflects the aspect of the faith directly. They are able to enhance the effects of the potions, philters, and elixirs. Those drinking them cannot be raised as undead within the next 3 days.

Aspects Known/Common Associations

Major Aspects: The fire that cleanses, life giving warmth, the drying of the drenched, transforming of habitat, the travelers friend, the closer of wounds, the kindler of passion.; These are common knowledge; Other aspects/symbols/emblems may vary by specific sect/cult or institution.

Minor Aspects:

Symbolized Role(s) and Value(s):

Emblem:

Sacred Observances: (These are reflected in the faith’s General Liturgy.)

  • Sacred Events: [Sacrosanct festivals and milestone celebrations] >
  • Sacred Places: [Sacrosanct locations and Pilgrimage sites] >
  • Sacred Dates/Days: [Sacrosanct times of the year, recurring days of celebration or rest] >
  • Sacred Times: [Sacrosanct period of a day, week, month, season, or year in a cycle] >
  • Sacred Life: [Sacrosanct plants, animals, monsters, and entities] >
  • Sacred Forms: [Sacrosanct colors, shapes, material (minerals, fabric, etc. )] >
  • Sacred Works: [Sacrosanct documents, books, jobs/activities] >
  • Sacred Items: [Sacrosanct utensils, tools, machines, clothes, armaments] >
    • Sacred Armor/Defenses:
    • Sacred Weapon/Offenses:

Pilgrimages and Sacred Places/Places:

Followers of the Faith

Favored Followers: Druids and those who venerate the Wyld Faith are the primary adherents.

For for information on Roleplaying a character of faith, see the Divine Follower guidelines.

Expectations & Obligations: Good Standing in relation to their faith’s tenets reflected in Liturgical Observations tenets. Nominally, the Tenets of the General Liturgy are followed by the Laity of Congregations and those of higher Grace and the few Institutional Ranks alike.

Belief Made Manifest – Beyond the General Litany

Manifestation and Favor

Connexion Range = Varies (enhanced through the Rite of Offering) > Conviction Limits = None; Elan Building is allowed (if used).

Favored Avatar: A strikingly beautiful, swaying woman in deep red, orange and golden coverings of all fabrics. Her skin is golden, with palms, tongue and soles of black ash. Curly red hair that spills out in all directions, her feet leave burn marks and smoke trails in her footprints.

Minions and Servants

Armaments of the Faithful

Typical Elemental Divine Weapons; More powerful Magic/Mystic items are typically Singularly Bound if not Institutionally Bound.

Offerings:

  • Average:
  • Major:
  • Extraordinary:

Rites of the Faith

Orders, Sects, Cults

Flickering Flame

The Flickering Flame,also known as the Order of Depelia (named after its first adherent Sister Depelia in CY 6710) is an order who follows Merkaine’s playful side, whimsical side – reflecting both chaos of flame, but a lighter side. They play to the kinder aspects of the Merkaine followers… their focus on story, fun, passion, and humor.

Motto/Saying: “‘Tis but a trick of the light!”

Hearth Fire Guardians

Inactive; Order Disbanded around CY 7200; The guardians were originally said to be women warriors, women of the north who had lost their families to the undead scourge of the Lich Lords. Over time, it grew and changed – widowers were allowed in, and eventually it became an unrecognized martial order. It had several shrines on the front lines of Kaald, and even sent a squad to the wall at Northgate Garrison. Gardia Delruk, the mother-matron of the order hunted down Kralloc the Red – a killer of priests in the north. His half demonic heart was ripped from his chest and cast into the flames, cursed. Rumor said it would not stop beating, and so she took it to a smithy and had it beaten until it no longer pumped. The blood was used to quench a suit of scale armor, imbuing it with magical properties – and so the rid-tinged scale armor became the symbol of the order for a thousand years. During this time, the “lady” who Kralloc served was hunted to extinction. This lady being a blue skinned hag, who kidnapped young women and bred them with her demon lover. The half demons were tracked over hundreds of years to their mothers lair, where the entire order converged. Half the order was wiped out, but the last of the priest killing soldiers, the hag, and her demon lover were all killed. The order was able to make several more scale suits, quenched in demons blood. Unfortunately the suits proved to be a curse. The ghost of Yallodocious the hag hunted down the wearers of the armor over the next 400 years, driving the order out of the north until the ghost was supposedly laid to rest in CY 7043 at great cost. All suits were destroyed after that, when their vulnerability to the hag’s mate was exposed. The guardians were then only a sacred band operating out of Northgate Garrison, in service to Merkaine. Without its northern support, the last of them left the wall in CY 7200. It is unknown what the fate of them was exactly, but one of their Lt’s was named Azrudur who was seen in north Umbak. He was supposedly killed by the Silver Talent knights and the last of the sacred hearth armor was taken. Rumors persist of the Umbakains attempt to wear it, placing it upon pages and squires and eventually discarding the last suit into a river in southern Dunstrand – somewhere in Bar-Innis during a foray whilst following “bandits”.

Motto/Saying: “The fire in the blood is my shield in the dark of night.”

Hearth Fire Armor

Scale Mail armor (and coif) that is tinged red. The scale have burnt red edges on them – making them look menacing.

D20 Hearth Fire Armor
Demon Armor; Scale Mail (not plate). The armor has a Resilience of 3 and absorbs 1 damage per dice of flame damage from any damage done to the wearer as long as a living person is wearing it. The wearer can spend 1 point to be able to see in any form of darkness (magical or not) for a round, as a Reaction. It also allows the wearer of the coif to sense demons when within 100m – including number and general power (HD).
Incarna Core Hearth Fire Armor

Realm's Aptitude Powers: Divine, Occult, and Psychic