Thirtieth High Priest- Hordain Daerdal

Religious event

With the death of Thonus Malnir and the destruction of the Church, Hordain Daerdal was elected to the position of High Priest.

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  Daerdal's inauguration was unsurprisingly odd. The Church was nothing but a massive crater, thousands had been killed in the blast, and the city of Serrano was in shock. The major priests of the Six Dragons felt it was best to continue with the proceedings of the Church despite these problematic times, but with a deeper vetting process than had been used over the past millennium and a half. Magic took a stronger hold through the process. This was not unheard of in the religious realm whatsoever, but was certainly a first in making the decision for the High Priest. Despite these changes, 1038 and 1039 did not have a High Priest in office. It took nearly a total of four years to create this new process and put it into practice.   The new process began the same- each sect would bring forth their choice for High Priest. However they came to that decision was up to the individual sects. Their vetting processes could be as superficial or deep as they preferred. However, once the six were chosen the vetting took a much more tumultuous turn. The first step was a question-and-answer with the Major Priests of the sects. These questions could be anything from history of the Church and questions about the High Priest's plans and aspirations to questions about positions on certain topics and issues. This was all done under an incredibly powerful Zone of Truth spell. The second step was a search of the person's mind, a grueling and potentially painful process where through magic that was kept away from the general public the Major Priests probed through the person's personal thoughts, secrets, desires...   This was done to ensure that the past would not be repeated. There were many who disagreed with this sort of "torture" to be certain a High Priest would be good. Many believed that this was excessive and that laying out a person bare was cruel. Nonetheless this process continued and it was determined that among all six, Daerdal was to be the thirtieth High Priest.   Daerdal created the "Four Trials", a list of things that needed to be done in the religious realm to bring about stability and peace between the sects. These were as follows:   1. Inclusion- there was not to be a sectioned Church, but one inclusive Church with one main altar. Daerdal believed that by separating the sects at the High Priest level the sects were destined to stay separated down to its smallest part. 2. Reconstruction- rebuilding the Church would take time, money, and manpower to complete and it was to be done equally among the sects. Daerdal felt that without a central location for believers around the world to congregate and see as a pinnacle then the whole religion would fall. Further, he felt that rebuilding would be in rebellion to his predecessor's desires- for instability and violence. 3. Focus- the sects would no longer only concern themselves with personal matters, but would constantly strive to help their neighbor, ignoring to what sect they belonged. Daerdal felt the largest problem facing the Church was isolation of the sects and paranoia among each about what the other may be plotting. He pushed even further to forgive the Safies as they could not be held responsible for one individual. 4. Outreach- once and only once the sects worked together peacefully would they turn to seeking out new followers. New followers were free to come of their own accord, but the sects would do no outreach whatsoever until they could solve their own problems internally.   Daerdal's Four Trials were met with general praise, however some sects disagreed on the basis that their denomination strongly believed in helping the self before helping the other, a belief they felt was violated in the Four Trials. Nonetheless, all sects agreed to the terms and began to set aside monies for the Reconstruction.   The Church would not be completed for another 160 years but the reconstruction went smoothly the entire time. The new design for the Church was submitted by a sixteen-year-old apprentice of a local architect. The girl was not associated with any religion, but desired to take part in the challenge. Her design contained flowing sides, one large circular main room with a pointed dome atop and six smaller alcoves around the perimeter. This main room was pierced by a great hall that began on the south and continued through to the north. The entrance on the south had two large, twisting bell towers on either side. Each tower contained nearly fifty bells each, creating a chorus of musical tones that could be played, unlike the two bells of the original Church.   Daerdal was seen as a wonderful High Priest. He was in the right place at the right time and was exactly what Serrano needed at the time. He was a priest who kept a calm demeanor at all times, was fair, forgiving, and loving to anyone who ever saw him. Daerdal unfortunately died during his tenure. His funeral was attended by nearly seven thousand people from all over the world.