B20 Church of Pelor

This graceful tall, airy, building proudly stands over the village as beacon of good and Righteousness. The very stones of white alabaster glow with a soft light that can be seen from anywhere in the city. Each side of the building boasts large high arched windows that are placed so the sun shines into most of the rooms throughout the day. Stepping inside you smell fresh pine and see bright polished floors and walls. The rooms feature open, sunny visages of the buildings and walls of Verbobonc. The halls and rooms are kept scrupulously clean. Many pilgrims of Pelor who stop here to rest before continuing on their journey across the realm. Many devout travelers can be found in the central gardens where they relax and plan for their future journeys and exploits. The entrance foyer opens into a large open domed sun drenched worship hall with focused channels of pure sunlight setting the altar of Pelor aglow. Across the dome an encompassing myriad of scenes painted across the entire dome of the old faith's The Summer Tree with Pelor as the central figure.

A Beacon of Light and Goodness

The Church of Pelor in Verbobonc is more than a neighborhood temple: it is the chief city seat of Pelor’s faith in the Viscounty, a place where pilgrims, commoners, and nobles come seeking healing, mercy, and moral clarity. Its alabaster shell glows softly even at dusk, making it a literal and figurative beacon for the good-hearted of Verbobonc.

Bishop Charles Evertide governs from here: a measured, compassionate prelate known less for miraculous fire than for the quiet, unshakable warmth of his presence. He advises Viscount Wilfrick, mediates between rival churches, and serves as one of the most trusted moral voices in the city.

History and Background

The Church of Pelor has been a spiritual cornerstone in Verbobonc for centuries, deeply intertwined with the city's development and the well-being of its people.

• Foundational Role: Established to serve as a spiritual guide and refuge, the church has long been a place where pilgrims and travelers find solace and strength.
• Evolution: Over the years, the church has adapted to the needs of Verbobonc's citizens, continuously expanding its services and outreach programs.

Exterior & Grounds

The Alabaster Shell

• Architecture: A tall, airy basilica of white alabaster, buttressed and windowed so that sunlight pours into nearly every room from dawn to dusk. At night, lanterns behind stained glass bathe the surrounding streets in soft gold. B20 Church of Pelor
• Dome & Windows: A great crystal dome crowns the central nave, ringed with murals of Pelor’s saints. Long, arched windows depict the Summer Tree myth—Obad-Hai’s cycle of death and rebirth with Pelor as the one who cuts him down and buries him in Beory’s embrace.

Temple Gardens

Behind the main hall stretches a walled garden open to the faithful and the poor:

• Cobbled paths winding between flowerbeds and fruit trees, every spray impeccably tended.
• Fountains and bird-basins where sparrows and doves bathe; a stone-edged pond holds large golden fish that watch visitors with comical solemnity. B20 Church of Pelor
• Benches shaded by carved sun-disks, where pilgrims plan their roads and locals take quiet counsel with junior priests.

The gardens double as a triage and refuge during crises: tents can be raised here in times of plague, fire, or war.

Interior

The Grand Nave & Altar of Pelor

The entrance foyer opens into a vast, domed worship hall:

• Polished stone floors reflect the concentrated shafts of sunlight that fall from the crystal ceiling, converging upon a stout white marble altar. B20 Church of Pelor
• The altar is almost austere—only the sun-face sigil of Pelor, a cluster of crystal globes burning with steady radiance, and a few carefully placed offerings. The simplicity is deliberate: this space is for reverence, not display.
• Incense and lamp-oil hang faintly in the air, but the room is kept spotless, every brass fitting gleaming. This is where Bishop Evertide celebrates major feasts, leads interfaith processions, and gives sermons that can move hardened mercenaries to quiet tears.

Bishop’s Office – The Pastoral Hearth

Off a side cloister lies the Bishop’s study:

• A compact room with a cheerful hearth, a sturdy oaken desk, and shelves heavy with tomes of Pelor, Rao, Zodal, and other good-aligned faiths.
• On the blotter rest a half-finished sermon, an inkwell, and a ledger of donations and relief funds. Evertide’s office is functional rather than opulent—more war-room of mercy than palace.
• This is where he receives delegations, troubled commoners, and (rarely) adventurers seeking counsel on matters of conscience rather than coin.

Hospitium & Dining Hall

Attached wings house:

• Pilgrim dormitories offering free bed-space for the devout and low-cost lodging for anyone in need.
• A simple refectory where soup and bread are served at minimal cost—no one is turned away hungry if the larders can stand it.

Healers and lay-brothers move constantly between nave, gardens, and halls, making the church feel lived-in, not museum-quiet.

Politics with Lords of Verbobonc and the Viscount

The Church of Pelor maintains a complex relationship with the secular leaders of Verbobonc, balancing spiritual authority with political diplomacy:

• Liaison Functions: Acts as a moral and ethical advisor to the Viscount and local lords, influencing governance with the teachings of Pelor.
• Support and Influence: The church's support is often sought in civic matters, from social welfare programs to legislative counsel.

Goods and Services

The Church of Pelor offers a wide array of services, both spiritual and practical, to its congregation and the wider community:

• Accommodations: Provides free lodging for the faithful and nominal charge lodging for the needy.
• Healing Services: Offers sunlit healing services, including free treatments for minor wounds and discounted services for more severe conditions.
• Nutritional Support: Operates a dining hall that serves basic sustenance at minimal cost to ensure no one goes hungry.
• Spiritual and Navigational Guidance: Maintains a collection of maps and offers information to aid travelers in their journeys.

Church Office

The clergy’s office within the church is a hub of administrative and spiritual activity:

A fire blazes merrily within the compact hearth of the clergy’s office within the staid, well-kept church. At its center lies a desk with a blotter, upon which a half-finished sermon lies next to an inkwell and quill. Next to the blotter, a copy of the order’s holy book rests by a ledger tracking donations and expenses flowing through the church’s coffers. Though not outwardly extravagant, the furniture is of sturdy construction, its dark wood polished carefully with oil to maintain its finish. Tomes line the shelves built into the wall behind the desk, several of which are books of other orders and faiths.

• Setup: Equipped with a desk, holy books, a ledger for donations, and a fireplace, the office is the administrative heart of the church.
• Library: Houses religious texts and writings from various faiths, reflecting the church’s commitment to comprehensive spiritual knowledge.

Temple Gardens

The gardens of the Church of Pelor are a serene escape for meditation and relaxation:

Cobbled paths lined with fountains and statuary wind their way through lush garden beds brimming with blooming flowers and verdant shrubbery. Painstakingly maintained, the gardens present an idllyic image with not a blade of grass out of place. Birds gather in the trees, whistling pleasantly and diving into stone water basins strewn throughout the area. A pond, meticulously lined with flat stones, contains several large, golden-scaled fish, which eye passersby with an almost human-like cunning.

• Design: Features cobbled paths, fountains, statues, and meticulously arranged flora that create a tranquil environment for contemplation.
• Wildlife and Water Features: Includes bird-friendly trees and a fish pond, enhancing the garden’s natural beauty and appeal.

Altar of Pelor

The central worship hall of the Church of Pelor is designed to focus and amplify the divine light of Pelor:

The room smells heavily of incense and oil, and smoke hangs in a curtain about the room. The altar itself is a stout, spartan structure of white marble, adorned with the fiery holy symbol of Pelor, a cluster of crystal globes shine with brilliant light, a stick of incense, and little else. But each item is placed with care and thoughtfulness, and the room itself is meticulously clean and sparse. This is a place of worship, of reverence. The wall and ceiling high above is pure crystal glass which focuses the suns light onto the altar bathing it in Pelor's divine glory.

• Construction: The altar, made of stout white marble, is minimally adorned, focusing all attention on the sacred symbols of Pelor.
• Divine Light: The crystal glass dome and walls concentrate sunlight onto the altar, symbolizing Pelor’s blessing and presence.

Hooks for the Temple of Elemental Evil / Noble Ambitions Campaign

1. The Lantern Against the Temple

Whispers of undead stirrings, blighted fields, and cult symbols reach the Bishop from refugees and merchants on the Velverdyva. Evertide believes something old and foul is waking near Nulb, but lacks proof. If the PCs bring him signs—from Emridy Meadows graves, Nulb, or the Temple ruins—he becomes a powerful spiritual ally and advocate in council debates.

2. The Pelorian Inquisitors

A small cadre of Inquisitors of Pelor passes through Verbobonc en route to investigate rumors of necromancy in the countryside. Evertide quietly suggests the party accompany or “keep an eye on” them, knowing zealots can do harm along with good. This can drag the PCs straight into conflict with hidden Temple cells.

3. Mercy vs. Retribution

As the city grows tense—between St. Cuthbert’s cudgels, Trithereon’s radicals, and frightened nobles—Evertide may ask the party to choose: stand with him in advocating mercy and measured justice, or side with harsher voices calling for purges and crusades. Their stance will echo throughout later scenes in Noble Ambitions.

4. A Quiet Audience

If the heroes become notable in Verbobonc, they may be summoned to a private audience in the sunlit nave. Evertide asks them not for blind allegiance, but for honesty:

• What have you seen in Nulb?
• What is truly happening near the old Temple?
• Are you willing to bear light into that shadow, knowing it may cost you everything?

Their answers may determine whether the Church of Pelor stands behind them when the Temple of Elemental Evil rises again.

The Summer Tree with Pelor as the central figure

Each spring, Obad-Hai is born and grows into an eager and daring boy. At the threshold of summer, Ehlonna comes to him and guides him to manhood. In the summer, Obad-Hai becomes the Stag King and leads the Wild Hunt. His strength withers in the autumn until he is the Shalm. At the last breath of the year, Nerull comes and slays him with a single stroke and hangs the corpse from the Summer Tree for seven days, at the end of which Pelor cuts him down and buries him so that he is in the embrace of his mother, Beory . Ehlonna comes to the grave and waters it with her tears. From that grave sprouts a sapling that gives forth a single fruit. The fruit ripens, falls to the ground, and splits open to reveal the boy – Obad-Hai – beginning the circle anew.