Origins
The Maze Makers serve as Lorath's religious and scholarly authority. Originating from the former ruling priestly class of the followers of Boash. Their exile on the island of Lorassyon would give birth to the modern incarnation of the order. The priest's original focus was to preserve ancient texts and historical documents. Over time their monastery expanded its studies to the ancient Mazes of Lorath, native plant life, and became especially fascinated with mathematics. As the Maze Makers rejoined the broader Lorathi society, their ranks expanded to include all those that showed potential in scholarly pursuits.
Grand Master
The Grand Master is a relatively modern position for the ancient order. Replacing the role of high priest/priestess as the governing body of the order. The Grand Masters role is to keep the peace and bridge the gap between religious and scholarly circles. Beyond their role as peacekeeper, the Grand Master also choses how the order distributes its funding. Allowing them to direct the path of the Maze Makers.
Branches of the Order
Makers
The Makers are devoted to Scholarship, often negating the religious roots of the order. From its ranks come the city's engineers, architects, and doctors. Mathematics is held sacred by the Makers, with all young initiates required to master it before becoming full members. Individual projects are encouraged and failure is not to be feared but learned from. The branch's stoic analytical nature makes them somewhat feared by the general public. Especially with rumors of the Makers medical experiments on both living and dead subjects.
The Orthodoxy
The Orthodoxy has remained rooted in the faith preserving the orders founding traditions. From this branch come the city's artists, musicians, and priests. Young initiates must memorize and recite important texts related to each God of the Pantheon. This branch judges its members by their knowledge of history, and their skill in public speaking. Debates are held at all hours of the day to sharpen each other's skills. At night concerts and sermons are performed before peers so that members may provide advice and offer edits. The Orthodoxy has a generally positive view from the Lorathi public as almost every member comes across as friendly and charismatic. However foreigners may find them over-bearing as they hope to out debate their cultural traditions and religion.
Gardeners
The Gardeners are the esoteric branch of the Maze Makers. While their actions are not hidden, the reason behind them is largely unknown. The Gardeners devote themselves to preserving the city's gardens, mazes, and the sacred Doriath forest. The free labor is appreciated by the Lorathi government and the citizens enjoy the public gardens their initiates maintain. The group's obsession with the Ancient Lorassyon Maze is not well understood. The Gardeners always seem to imitate the Mazes outline using plant life such as flowers and hedges to replicate the ancient wonders towering stone walls. Their fellow Maze Makers assume it is the continuation of some ancient religion but even they seem to have little knowledge on this branch. The Gardeners guard their secrets by leaving no written record, information being passed down solely by word of mouth.
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