Halikvar

The two sects of Halikvar have similar but noticeably different structures. Any priest above the rank of laypriest must be able to cast at least some magic.   Dakavari Structure:

• The Sanakoa or Archdruid is the leader of the faith. The most powerful druid/alkoa of the Sylvarchs, the Sanakoa is considered the inheritor of Lily's will and power. They lead the Circle of Heavens, manage Master Alkoa appointments, and handle temple hierarchy. They are elected for life, but candidates must be equal in magical strength.
• The Red Empress is a hereditary position, selected as the direct heir of Lily of Red. They typically rule a state - currently The Empire of Severesh . They manage the political aspect of the temples, lead the kingdoms of the faithful, and generally act as the grand executive of Halikvar.
• The Nine Sylvarchs man the Circle of Heavens, the supreme administrative and magical body. The most powerful and revered of the Su-Alkoa are selected as Sylvarchs, and they advise the Sanakoa and Red Empress.
• Elder Alkoa/Su-Alkoa are regional leaders selected by the Sanakoa. They are your average high authority, managing all sorts of local business and generally acting as the princelings of the temple. There are 90 Su-Alkoa positions, though some are lobbying for more.
• Vicars are assistants to Su-Alkoa who act as their lieutenants and representatives. In large regions, they can basically be lesser Su-Alkoa in their own right.
• Master Alkoa are local heads, managing cities, temple clusters, and the like. These are your on-the-ground elites who teach Alkoa, help local people, all that.
• Alkoa are your basic priestly unit. Druids, preachers, and judges, they are the basic form of Halikvar authority and the foot-soldiers of the temple.
• Laypriests are non-magician priests who lack any form of divine authority. They are any form of temple employee who lacks any kind of temple investment, from cleaners to shrinekeepers to book-copiers. Some can be vital, but few are ever likely to be promoted into the official superstructure.

The Asivari temple is a lot like the one above, but way less centralized. There are no Vicars, no Empresses, no Sylvarchs, no Sanakoa. Instead, a loose federation of Su-Alkoa are the leaders, each attached to a Holy Shrine. There are currently 36 mainland-Samvaran Asivari Su-Alkoa, who meet every year to discuss affairs but mostly keep to their own religious realms. There are also the Eastern Asivari in Izekra, that have their own meeting across the sea.

Halikvar was born in truly ancient disagreement dating back to 1100 DE: do restrictions on how Alkoa live apply to everyone or only those of holy calling? Garlands of Red, a major leader and Alkoa of the Dawara Clan (the family of Lily of Red), argued strongly for the latter. In 1050 DE, the disagreement had escalated dramatically and conflict with surrounding Akada groups had intensified. The Halikvar tribes left for the East, seeking a new land they could preach and practice in peace. The Halikvar migration took them across the continent, through deserts and mountains, to Eastern Samvara. Upon reaching their new land, the Halikvar groups created a volume or written/oral tradition known as the Kifa or body of law. The first Halikvar city was made in 800 DE in modern day Kiami, but the tribes mostly spread outwards, expanding over more and more land in small communities. These communities began to drift apart in custom and practice, sowing the seeds of the future schism.   Seeing the lack of unity and focus, the pan-garlandian movement of the Eastern coast began in 25 ME. It envisioned a centralized authority and peacekeeping body, to dictate the law and intervene in cases of tyranny. These scholars began collecting writings of great priests and traditions from around the region to add to the Kifa, creating the additional Book of Sajafa (body of heritage). These priests rarely ventured inland though, and the more isolated regions of Halikvar remained apart from this group and developed their own communities and networks. The early empires of Kiami from 100 to 570 ME further entrenched the pan-Garlandians as an Eastern body centered around a direct Lilian Bloodline. Silently, the East and West splintered into what would be known as Dakavar and Asivar traditions.   From 150 ME to 350 ME, Lily began to get more directly involved in administration, actively selecting the red empress and helping weed out dissent. She also began to pivot away from isolation and sustainability towards industry and evangelism, to compete with the rapidly spreading specter of Ishkibism far to the East. This burst in evangelism generated conflict and war, which perpetually lurked around the edges of the territory. In 950, the old empire of Kiami was demoted from Dakavari leadership when the early kingdom of Severesh was able to seize and integrate key members of the royal family and usurp the Red Empress title from Kiami. Severesh, having always been somewhat more militaristic and shaped foundationally by these wars of evangelism, was a perfect vehicle for Lily's ambitions. But the community had become fully fragmented, as Western Halikvari had formed their own traditions and priestly structures in the 600s.   In 1150, the Halikvari wars had settled and Lily was ready for action: to launch a grand invasion of the East. The growing differences and conflict between East and West Halikvari religious structures led to inefficiency and infighting, leading to an 1180 intervention by Lily to try and mend the schism. The compromise of 1180 allowed each group to retain their local quirks and structures as long as they cooperated under Lily- and for centuries, they did. In 1200, they negotiated peace with the Arvean princes for military access and strategic ports to continue their grand war into Izekra proper. From 1200 to 1700 their invasions struck as far as the Holy City of Kenahai, provoking a united Desmian alliance to repulse them. But these invasions were expensive, difficult, and continually failed to go further than raid the Desmian heartlands. Naval innovations allowing for crossing into Lusaya and Northwest Desmia was too little too late, as the war effort was already fracturing and mired in centuries of defeat.   The last thoughts of Eastward invasion were put to rest by the religious wars of 1700, which unleashed centuries of pent-up rivalry and frustration between West and East. These brutal wars have distracted Halikvar Sanakoas for much of recent history, leading to Halikvar's slow shrinking in the South as the faith of Sumoxa rapidly converted less-integrated realms. Such was the conflict that Lily lost control of Halikvar effectively during this time, with priests secretly seeking out other Lunar Gods for a tactical advantage. When the haze of holy war at last lifted and Lily returned to control in 1945, Halikvar was once again divided in two. And more division seems inevitable, as the Eastern Izekran territories have drifted further and further from their Western "leaders".

The universe began when the cosmic seed of creation thought on what was good. As creation was good, and it was the soul of goodness, it created all. To do this, it created three pairs of three: three forms to rule and teach true goodness, three forms of absolute creation, and three semi-mortal avatars on the material planes to connect and be on with their own creations. Three endless days and ages began, each a phase of creation:   First came the Age Primeval: three races were made to rule the world and be in perfect harmony - Solars, Prisms, and Dryads. Two of these three quickly slipped from harmony. Solars were too detached from the world to do good, Prisms were too materially obsessed, but dryads reached the perfect center of harmony intended by Halcyon.   Then came the Age of Blood: a time of disaster, where Halcyon created races that required the harmony Prisms and Solars had lost. These animalistic races would be fierce and brave, demonstrating courage and struggle. The legendary Sabava which ate only fruits and insects, the vicious lions that ate only flesh, and the humans that ate both. The Sabava refused to defy Halcyon, for which the other two hunted them- and the Sabavas tore themselves in half to run different ways. One half became Vespers, the other Pearl Pangolins.   To create wonder and feed virtuous curiosity, Halcyon made the Age Arcane. Three magical races were made: Kobolds, Octopeople, and The Empty. Kobolds destroy life and create magic, Octopeople collect magic from below, and Empty give magic and destroy themselves. Why did Halcyon not intervene? Because in the truest world, no peoples betrayed their purpose. For there are many worlds spun from the same thread, which echo out from the heart of creation. We live in a middling world - a world that knows of goodness and is warmed by its light, but is not infused with goodness. We can sometimes find inspiration in the whispers of better worlds, but it is only when the truest world absorbs the others at the end of the world.   These will be combined and formed together into true existence when Gods fight in doomsday- the legendary Atezar, when all lies and evil will be imprisoned in the eternal pit and all worlds shall be lit by eternal truth.   The selkies were not an intentional creation of Halcyon, but something made by mortals. In the early days, when the first families and clans wandered the planet, there was one unusual human named Aider. Aider was a scoundrel who grew jealous of the powers of the Arcane races and sought to master them as well. They gathered their people together and lied to them, claiming that it was the will of Halcyon to steal the amassed arcane treasures of the aquatic races from down below. While his tribe distracted them, Aider stole deep into the sea and took as much power as he could- accidentally unleashing the creatures that had been slumbering there.   Aider hid the stolen power in the belly of a seal, which he then skinned to claim for his own. He became the first selkie, and the beasts he unleashed became leviathans. Aider's theft is why Selkies are considered a race of the sea, not land of heavens- and why selkies can use druidic magic without moral restrictions (mood druidism). Aider and his descendants were cursed in their power, never feeling truly at home away from the sea.   Our world was close to drifting ever further from the light of good, when the first incarnation of Halcyon was born mortal. The world was ruled by Prism tyrants who twisted the words of the Gods and slowly killed the planet's ecosystem with their greed and want. In the countryside, starving packs of feral humans chased and devoured anything they could. The greatest human, a hero named Desmater, and the greatest lion, Esvan, tore each other apart and devoured one another as the dryads and spirits tried to intervene. Humans won the ensuing war, leaving only the smallest and least intelligent of feline-kind alive. It was this war that destroyed the glades of Evinara, a beautiful land to the distant South where the bees were kind and the waters sustained all who walked in them. The keepers of these glades were the Dawara, children of the ageless dryad Dalima the Kind, who had entered a state of such peace as to be in contact with Halcyon. The Dawara were forced Northward, to the great kingdoms of Samvara.   In the rich lands of Samvara, a tyrant known as Amater the Stone-fist was the most dangerous and twisted of them all: a slaver and conqueror who subjugated all races alike. His forge was like a volcano, his palace larger than mountains, his armies shackled in brass engraved with his name. Lily of Red was born to the Dawara, who were seeking a new homeland in the rivers of fair Empria. The riverlands, abundant and holy as they were, were under attack by Amater's cruel forces. The many peaceful tribes that had congregated in the thousands (even millions) were slaughtered for sport and cruelly enslaved to work in the deep mines below Amater's volcanic forge. Lily was the first to combine Halcyon's bravery, wisdom, and cunning- and she used miracles and tricks alike to keep her people and the riverlands safe. As she waged her impossible war, she was visited by Halcyon-Dinisha in the form of a massive spectral dryad.   The goddess bestowed upon Lily druidic powers and great wisdom, saying "I do not act in this world, but I understand; I have seen the blessed point of your original heritage, where you come from now. This power I grant is not to fight in lesser skirmishes, but to defend goodness and win. Cease your lesser battles." When Lily asked if peace was what Halcyon desired, the goddess chided her "A desert is peaceful. Peace will make this a desert. No peace is simple, and this peace would be violent. No, your holy violence is peace instead. Now finish the war and bring order to the land; take in all who come to you; understand and live in harmony with the world, give and take. Build your harmonious land, but the disharmony of the world cannot be rectified by you alone." And so Lily built an army of every race, marching in harmony upon Amater's fortress. With her glorious magic she tore down his mountain-palace and forge, leaving pits where mountains stood. Nature returned where she walked, and the children of Amater knelt in deference to Halcyon. Halcyon descended once more to make with Lily the Covenants- the arrangements for each group to live in harmony. The underground monarchs could continue as long as they remained underground; the creatures of the sea would remain there and live in competition; all others would go to Lily's holy society. Those who failed to fit into those three Covenants would not see the fruits of paradise after death, as they would fall away from the divine spiritually.   Lily passed her holy wisdom along her sacred line of the Dawara clan. They were the stewards of the river valley and formed a great kingdom of justice and balance- but they shared their power with the other peoples of the river valley. The other great monarchs and leaders were unwilling to fully accept the rules decreed by Halcyon and instead left them for holy Alkoa alone. The Dawara kept their practices to themselves, but increasingly they attracted envy and hate. Prism lords who resented Lily besieged the tribe's lands while the other kingdoms turned their backs. The second avatar of Halcyon, Garlands of Red, was born to the sacred line to correct their failing practice- as some of the Dawara were beginning to become slack in their worship. Garlands of Red created a code for all to live by and brought it to the other clans, hoping to correct their wandering ways. Instead, the Dawara were betrayed from within and invaded by their fellow keepers of the Covenant. Garlands led the defense and won- but as he died, he prepared his line to lead the Dawara to a better land- a pristine land of gardens unsullied by the legacy of Amater.   Garlands did not die in truth, but instead drained his heart-sap into a vial, which he entrusted to his children for luck. Many adventures and trials were had along their grand journey eastward- savannahs, forests, deserts, and mountains all awaited them. Twice they settled only for Garlands to warn them of some hidden danger. Prism witches and humans twisted into monsters were slain, tricked, or otherwise defeated. In the end they finally made it: on the other side of the moon gate (a great stone mountain gate guarded by prisms) lay the land of peace. The Dawaran princess Anthuria broke open the vial of tree sap and became one with Garland to defeat the Prisms. Anthuria slew their leader and brought the mountain down, and was recognized as Halcyon come again. The peoples of the valley bowed to her as God made flesh, and a homeland was at last secured.   Trials still remained as other creatures, demons, and peoples sought to take their idyllic lands from them. The final prophet, Sarima, created the Second Moon as a way to defeat an approaching army without shedding a drop of blood- and it is her that made The Divine Contact and taught it to Solars as a gesture of peace. Sarima finally wrote down the teachings of the Dawara, so that they might never be lost to time.   Sarima made many prophecies, and through Lily made many more. The most influential and notable of these is that of the Atezar. The Atezar is a great cataclysmic series of events that are doomed to end the world as we know it and divide the holy from the profane. Halcyon will manifest as a final champion, tended to by three knights representing their three aspects of creation. These will gather the darkness- the very essence of what is far from God- and banish it forever into the eternal pits. "Paradise" is but a hallway leading to the gate of true heaven, which sits at the heart of every world. Only those who obey the pure law will get there quickly. All others will be forced to live many terrible lives along the way, to purge themselves of sin.

Three into one is the holy mantra of Halikvar cosmology- one goddess into three architects, three races, and three prophets. The supreme goddess and form of the One is Halcyon, with the other three architects acting as emanations of her creation. The goddess is purely good and her will is moral order and law. The three aspects of Halcyon the ruler are

• Halcyon Mesha (Sun Song)
• Halcyon Sanadi (River-Weaver)
• Halcyon Dinisha (Punisher)

The three aspects of Halcyon the Creator are:

• Azerata the Wild Sea God aka The Masked One
• Shepara the Star-Shepherd aka The Hidden One
• Khobar the Earth Judge aka The Chimera

The three prophets of Halcyon are:

• Lily of Red, the Suazet-Sanakoa and Prime Form
• Garlands-Anthuria, The Law-Giver
• Sarima the Moon Prophet

An important aspect of Halikvari cosmology is that Halcyon DID make a perfect world, but emanations of potential flawed reality have drifted from that "truest" core. Free will and bad choices drift our world from truth, while good choices bring us closer. This is compared to astronomic discoveries of planetary orbit and is now taught as an "orbit of goodness". Evil is distance from goodness, not a force of its own. The afterlife is only the cosmic river to the true world- but only the greatest mortals will be able to promptly enter the perfect true world. Not all things, places, or people are equally close to truth and goodness. This is where "degrees" of goodness come in. There are ten "acceptable" ranks of good, each represented by a member of the Lunar Pantheon.

• The first rank is held by the Supreme Lily of Red
• The second, Wimbo Aizitu, is Good Intent
• The third, Hiku, is Good Mindedness
• The fourth, Orchid of Blue, is Good Law
• The fifth, Haru is Good Direction
• The sixth, Theia the Liberator is Good Action
• The seventh, Jade Atharzen is Good Obedience
• The eighth, Agamine the Lost, is Good Patience
• The ninth, Emesh, is Good Temper
• The tenth, Ishkibal, is Good Strength

The ranking of that Lunar God determines their trustworthiness compared to the others, their holiness, and the status of their Samvaran Horoscope sign   Life is the manifestation of obedience to a law of divine creative impulse, making obedience to Halcyon's law equivalent to life and growth. Religious laws are an echo of those universal laws. When the Kifa, or religious legal corpus, is implemented and followed, life flourishes. When the Kifa is ignored, life withers. This makes the implementation and enforcement of religious law a universal good as well as a matter of individual justice. Even if enforcing a law appears to benefit noone, the very fact that the laws of life were enforced bolsters the health and wellbeing of people and creatures around the world.

Ethics are highly legalistic here. Murder is the highest crime, followed by any kind of violent assault. Attached to this is the blood taboo. Blood is a traditional marker of impurity (as evidenced by The Day of Blood and the nature of bloodspilling in slaughtering animals). Traditional Halikvari medicine states that blood carries illness and poison (hence why mosquitoes try to remove the blood of sick humans and animals) and that humans sweat blood when stressed or sick. Those who handle blood, such as butchers, are forced to perform public rituals to purify themselves before entering a temple. Butchers are also discouraged from slaughtering larger animals such as cows, which are considered signs of decadence (they take a lot of resources to keep and are primarily managed by non-dryads). Veganism is considered a purifying diet and non-meat diets are enforced several times throughout the year for believers. Related health problems are seen as signs of "blood addiction". Priestly approval is required for any business-related slaughter of animals for reasons not of self-defense or crop-protection.   Crimes of greed, crimes of vengeance, and crimes of cruelty are three categories that make crimes particularly heinous in Halikvari religious law. Legally, these are treated as Unholy Crimes that require greater (and public) punishment and require ritual purification of those involved.   As unto druids, so unto all. As druids are the ideal model for personal behavior under Halikvar, Halcyon's punishments to druids serve as a model for how punishment should be dolled out to violators of the holy creed. Public punishments act as a way to enact a feeling of satisfying public vengeance and catharsis, ironically. Torturous public executions and gruesome desecration of criminal bodies are public spectacles and moments of communal moral re-affirmation. Gallows of Halikvari settlements tend to be macabre at best- decorated with skulls, skins, dryad wood, and other ghastly trophies. Just as Halcyon leaves the mutated bodies of druids who violate the druidic code as nightmarish monuments, so do Halikvari places of justice and punishment become horrific monuments. The terror of these places is celebrated, to strike fear into the hearts of deviants, outsiders, and criminals.   These nightmarish spectacles are reserved in some times for just murder, with lesser crimes of unholy nature (crimes of cruelty, greed, or revenge) being equally public but less lethal (typically humiliation and themed karmic beatings). In times of stress or heightened public bloodlust, the gallows get hungrier- and it becomes easier to fall victim to the stage of public terror.   Magic use is the natural purpose of mortal life and unlocks the greatest potential in a person. Druidism in particular is a gift of Halcyon and should be cherished above all. Solar life magic is a similar gift of similar warmth and holiness intended to correct Solar distancing from the rest of the world. Bardism and Wizardry are intellectual gifts intended to sharpen the mind and the body, as is Dhampirism. Paladins of Lily are a glorious calling and revered as Druids as well. The only magic users that Halikvar is suspicious of are Hedge Magic users, sorcerers, and warlocks, who are all seen as "not having earned" their magic and greedily having stolen or inherited it.   Priesthood requires magic use, and aristocrats and landowners are encouraged into magical disciplines. Magic users (often paladins) are seen as preferred for the highest military positions and administrative positions.   The Samvaran Horoscope is important in Halikvar. Horoscopes are seen as influential for nature, as the lunar pantheon is critically important. Horoscopes are ranked along with the Lunar Pantheon, and seen as indicative of "how far from truth" you were born. Horoscopes do not define one's possibilities (one can overcome one's nature) but they do define one's tendencies and default.

Halikvari Alkoa Priests are notable for their green-and-red robes, and sometimes red-brown body paint. Alkoas train under a master Alkoa in classes of 3 to 9 at a time as initiates. Alkoan initiates wear brown-red plain robes. Alkoa priests take vows to only hold land jointly through the temple. They are free to have children, but they will not inherit unless they become spellcasting alkoa as well. Master Alkoa wear red robes trimmed with yellow and green and have the same vows.   Su-Alkoa wear purple-trimmed red robes and can hold land independently of a temple. This landholding is not hereditary, but is customarily kept in a parcel until their children's death in case one of their children becomes a Su-Alkoa as well.   Sylvarchs are similarly outfitted as Su-Alkoa, but often have large paper fans worn for ornamental or court-holding purposes.   The Sanakoa typically wears a robe of gold, red, and purple with large paper fans on their back like flowers and a large ornamental gold-and-ruby laurel.

There are two forms of official Halikvar sects, as well as a branch of unusual ancient sub-sects: Dakavar Halikvar, the Temple of the Holy Bloodline Halikvar, is the largest and most powerful of the Halikvari sects. Dakavar is defined by its international hierarchy of command, in which its two leaders are seen as shepherds for the international flock. This temple is favored by Lily and known for its fierce international evangelism. It also is unique in its hierarchical Canon, passed from Sanakoa to Sanakoa. This canon is the Safaja- the body of heritage- and includes curated writings of past Sanakoas. Lily of Red has absolute control of Dakavari doctrine and leadership.   Asivar Halikvar, The Temple of the Sacred Shrines Halikvar, is far more decentralized. In Asivar, sacred locations are seen as closer to truth and emanating truth- and the curators of those shrines are seen as the arbiters of local truth. In Asivari canon, truth is absolute but can be contradictory- true reality is not comprehend-able to our corrupt minds. As such, each shrine's local rituals and teachings is absolute law for the local area, and their combined volumes should be preserved together regardless of contradiction. While Lily has historically not been fond of the Asivar, potential defection to other Lunar Gods has forced her to accommodate.   The Lost Families or Bazivar, are ancient groups of Halikvar that ended up in remote locations other than the traditional Halikvari lands. These groups splintered off during the migration and have been found in many remote locations across Samvara. They often have unique theologies, and some have escaped even the Lunar Pantheon (as they lack knowledge of The Divine Contact )