The Watchers at Dusk

Type: Religious Order
Alignment: Lawful Neutral (public perception)
Primary Deity: Moradin (not an exclusive faith to Moradin)
Headquarters: Various small shrines in Leilon and surrounding mining towns
Symbols: A lantern with a single flame against a horizon line
Motto: “Keep the light until the night has passed.”

Overview

The Watchers at Dusk are a quiet, steadfast sect of Moradin’s faithful known for their dedication to both honest work and safe rest. Though their numbers are small, they are respected among miners, smiths, and travelers for their protective blessings and steadfast endurance. The Watchers hold that the world is shaped as much in its quiet hours as at the forge, and that every night passed in safety is a victory worth honoring.

Beliefs & Teachings

• Dusk is Sacred: The moment when day turns to night is a time for reflection and vigilance. The Watchers believe this is when the soul is most open to both creation and corruption.
• Work Well, Rest Well: As Moradin shapes the world with hammer and anvil, so must mortals shape their own days with honest labor and restorative rest.
• The Ever-Burning Vigil: A lantern lit at dusk is a ward against wandering dreams and ill omens.
• Recent scholarship suggests the Watchers were never meant to seal the Echoing Gate completely. Their rites maintained a cycle of containment, renewed every few centuries. With their extinction, the pattern broke—and the seal began to fail long before the first beacon was relit.

Rites & Practices

The Anvil’s Toll – At dawn and dusk, Watchers strike a block of metal three times, blessing the day’s work or its end.
Offering of the Deep Flame – Lighting a brazier and giving thanks for the spark of creation.
The Restful Palm – A nightly prayer for safe dreams, hand over heart.
The Forging of Chains – Decorative chains are made during festivals to symbolize unity and resilience.
The Vigil at the Last Light – On the longest night of the year, members keep a lantern burning until dawn as a sign of perseverance.
The Song of the Deep Hammer – A slow, resonant work-song sung at communal gatherings, honoring the forge and its labors.

Reputation & Perception

To most folk, the Watchers at Dusk are a harmless, even comforting presence. Miners and sailors in Leilon often seek their blessings before dangerous work. The sect’s members rarely speak of themselves or seek converts; they prefer to live by example, letting their steady presence speak for their faith.

Rumors persist of armored Watchers who travel abroad, defending distant lands from unseen dangers, but these stories are often dismissed as bardic fancy.