{"id":960,"date":"2026-08-13T17:16:37","date_gmt":"2026-08-13T21:16:37","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/vermillionworks.com\/knell\/?page_id=960"},"modified":"2026-09-30T23:51:39","modified_gmt":"2026-10-01T03:51:39","slug":"religion","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"http:\/\/vermillionworks.com\/knell\/religion\/","title":{"rendered":"Religion"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Religion<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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This is all VERY much a work in progress. Absolutely anything here, lore or terminology, is subject to change<\/strong><\/em>, and more may be added!<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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While there are multiple beliefs and religions in the world of Knell, one of the most prominent religions, and the one we’ll be focusing on the most in the story, is the belief in the All God<\/strong>. There are also variations of this religion as well.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It’s focused heavily around energies and unity of energy, even God himself being a vast energy that’s one with everything, and also goes beyond it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As a result, love and community is very important to a God-sworn (err, supposedly), and so is appreciating nature. Choosing to be a good person results in pure energy and a blissful afterlife, while embracing a life of evil results in dark energy, which God rejects, resulting in damnation of the spirit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n


The All God mythology<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

This is the story of creation based on the All God religion. Whether it’s true for those in the world of Knell or not, is up to the reader to decide, I suppose.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The All God is said to be a vast entity of light that came into being, bringing the cosmos and time with him. This universe was moved by him in such a way that he could have an ideal planet for his perfect creation: the humans. At the time this planet was just one continent, and it was a land of beauty and endless bounty. The immortal humans there knew only joy and pleasure with the aid of the miracles God granted them control over.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, evil eventually took the hearts of his creation as they would not be satisfied even with the paradise they were given. They sought not only powers akin to their cosmic creator, but to go beyond him. They abused their magic in the attempt to defy him and those loyal to him, and as a result brought death to the world by annihilating their fellow man and ruining the land with their magic fire and storms. They had willfully turned their paradise into perdition.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

God’s own energy was tainted by this evil, and with a newfound anger and sorrow that was previously unknown to him, he initiated the Fragmentation<\/strong>. This split up the continent, altered the planet’s workings, and changed his human creation forever. They were to not only live limited, mortal lives, but the majority would have no magic, and must rely instead on each other and the very planet they disrespected, which was also now more prone to blight and desolation. Even the universe itself was turned to chaos and no longer worked in their favor. It could one day bring destruction or a sudden end to them through it’s unpredictable workings.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There would also be humans born with power over death and ruin, who if let loose upon the world, would serve as yet another reminder of God’s former fury and the evil mankind had brought upon themselves.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

During the Fragmentation, a part of the original Eden was left intact and closed off, guarded by powerful unknown forces and reserved strictly for God’s followers who remained loyal to him until the end. While some are said to have kept immortality, even many of God’s Chosen were affected by the taint of dark energy. They too experience death, but never let themselves forget their blessings of their surrounding paradise, and teach their children much the same. It’s not possible for a death mystic to be born on Eden’s soil, nor must one be allowed to taint it with it’s visit, lest Eden completely collapse to dark energy as well.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

God mostly separated himself from his creation to allow his own energy to reach something of it’s original purity, but he could not completely sever his connection to the cosmos without putting an end to everything. His clarity restored, he allows life and time to go on, but sees now that his physical creations are too limited to be truly perfect, and thus too prone to corruption. So he leaves the physical’s inevitable demise to chance while awaiting the unlimited spirits that will result.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The descendants of the Chosen and the Exiled can now only hope to be made perfect by being reunited with God’s pure energy, the eternal Heavens, after death. Those who embrace evil, however, will be denied, left alone in the void with only their dark energy to torment them eternally.

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Religious terminology<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The All God<\/strong>
Often simply referred to as “God”. A being of divine energy said to be one with everything in the universe, while also extending beyond it. Seen as a benign entity that rejects dark energy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Godlings<\/strong>
The divine arch mystics that reside within Eden, said to be the most powerful humans in the world, so powerful that they’re considered to be in close union with God himself, and possibly immortal. There are stories of how they used to make journeys to the exiled lands of Brenen to grant miracles, but it has been so long since they’ve received a visit from them that many wonder if they ever actually did.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Chosen<\/strong>
A name for all of those residing within the forbidden land of Eden. Many suspect they’re all mystics of some level, or perhaps there are some non-powered people of bloodlines still considered blessed, but it’s not truly known for certain.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Exiled<\/strong>
The religious term for those residing in Brenen, who are supposed descendants of those who defied God. Those who believe in the All God religion see their entire “lowly” existence as a punishment, and are thankful for whatever mystics they are blessed to have and keep.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Fold<\/strong>
Those at the “top” of the All God clergy are something of a mysterious group, but they’re said to be one of the few who still keep in regular contact with those of Eden. They are rumored to whisk away any mystic said to have been born with godlike levels of power within Brenen.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Aevum<\/strong>
The interconnected light of all essences and souls that only mystics can see when they focus with their glowing, magical eyes. It’s seen by many as a realm all it’s own with strong ties to God and his luminous servants. It’s considered a place in-between temporal existence and ethereal eternity, akin to an astral plane.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Fragmentation<\/strong>
When immortal humans were made mortal, magic was taken from all but a few, and the single continent of the world was split apart, Eden itself becoming a smaller, forbidden land.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Heavens AKA Eternity<\/strong>
The final destination of the spirit, becoming one with the God energy in a blissful, ascended existence incomprehensible to a human still in their physical state.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hell AKA Oblivion<\/strong>
The final destination of the wicked, when a spirit is denied union with the All God. Separated from all forms of energy and sent into a void realm, the damned individual ends up in a state of spiritual torment, trapped in a maddening, fractured existence. Some believe the solitary energy eventually vanishes, others think their perdition is eternal. Many also believe that practitioners of death magic are automatically doomed to this afterlife.

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Religious places<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hallows & Churches<\/strong>
While some believe in solitary spirituality, there are many congregations of the All God. They try to have many of their gatherings outdoors as honoring and protecting nature is a big part of their beliefs. These areas are called “Hallows” and are often decorated with flowers, fruit trees, gardens, crystals, ribbons, and jewels. When the weather doesn’t permit outdoor gatherings, they’ll use churches instead that are usually built near or in the hallows.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Wayside chapel-shrines<\/strong>
These are found in random places all over the Viridian and Brenen as a whole, there for anyone who wishes to stop and pray. They sometimes include offerings from passersby or a small fountain.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sanctuary<\/strong>
Even though it’s run by keepers and clerics, sanctuaries actually serve as more of a hospital, asylum, and temporary shelter than a place of worship. Anyone may enter, however they are sparse and often only found in larger cities. Smaller towns tend to rely on independent healers, magical or otherwise.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Seminary of Miracles<\/strong>
Exclusive boarding schools for mystics that are run by believers in the All God religion. They also sometimes take in mystic children who were left without guardians, especially if they have considerable power, though their position in the school may vary. Many students graduate and leave at 17, but the seminary also serves as a training ground for young adults who wish to become keepers, but doing so isn’t a requirement. Non-powered people can also train to become a keeper, but only certain types (see below). There are only two of these massive schools in the entire continent of Brenen. They do not accept necromancers as they are against the religion, and only offer private, temporary tutoring to keep their power under control and inactive, as teaching anything else is unacceptable to them. There are also non religious mystic schools of far smaller scale that are a bit more common and less strict.

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Keepers<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Spiritual leaders akin to priests (with an extra fondness for nature and gardening) who serve in the name of the All God, but there are different keepers for different jobs. They all were apprenticed at some point and often keep some contact with sanctuaries and fellow keepers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Keeper of the Light:<\/strong> A life mystic that tends to the ailing or injured in the All God’s name. Many live in a sanctuary with several other healer clerics (who have very little to no power). They wear light silver-blue robes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Keeper of the Word: <\/strong>Preacher of a congregation who also give solace to those mentally or spiritually in need. Usually non-powered, they tend to live in a small home near their Hallows and church. They wear green robes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Keeper of Miracles:<\/strong> Head mystic teachers at the Seminary of Miracles. They teach their students how to control their powers while also teaching them about the All God. Though they may teach lessons about controlling multiple types of magic, they wear robes based on their magic affinity as to better direct students to specialists that fit their needs. For example, a fire specialist may wear orange, a life specialist may wear magenta, a water specialist may wear blue, etc.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Keeper of the Dead: <\/strong>Living near or within a cemetery, they act as funeral directors and counselors to mourners, and are always non-powered. No, not even a necromancer can be a Keeper of the Dead as death magic goes against the religion, though they are sometimes tolerated as a death keeper’s undertaker. They live the most somber and quiet existence of all keepers. They wear gray robes (black garb is for the undertakers).
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Other religious positions<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Clerics<\/strong>
Essentially nurses of varying rank and who may or may not have some magical ability, they tend to the ailing and injured and assist Keepers of the Light within Sanctuaries.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Templars<\/strong>
A widespread force of guards that contain both mystics and non-powered members, and are known to be armed with both hand weapons and rifles. They act as a sort of police, upholding the laws of Brenen, and though they have no real contact with those of Eden and very little with the Fold, they claim to defend and protect in their name. Many smaller towns are without templar patrols and generally see to defending themselves, either completely by their own means or with the help of a small, town-appointed watch, but any town can summon the templars from elsewhere by letter. Whether they will heed the call is up in the air though as they tend to keep their focus on areas with larger populations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Paladins<\/strong>
High-ranking templars. Their orders tend to override all others.

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Religious ceremonies<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Cleansing<\/strong>
A popular ceremony. It’s similar to baptism as it involves going into a body of water to cleanse the spirit of “sin” or bad energies via submersion, however cleansing is often done multiple times a year, and the intention varies. Sometimes, they do it for better health of the body, other times it’s to cleanse their spirit of a wrong doing. Occasionally they will pour a special elixir in the water beforehand, enchanted by a Keeper to encourage improved health, and other times they get special elixirs from the cathedrals of larger cities that claim it’s enchanted by Eden’s godlings, and is meant for better cleansing of the spirit (though some have doubts about it’s origin).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Anointment<\/strong>
More akin to baptism than the cleansing ceremony as it’s done only one time and once again before death (though at death is not required if it was done once already). A newborn or new member of ther faith are anointed with oil on the forehead as a show of fealty to the All God. As a result, members are often called “God-sworn<\/strong>” or “Anointed<\/strong>“.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Prayer Tree<\/strong>
A tree that’s usually near a church that people hang ribbons or beads on while making a wish or prayer, or to honor a loved one.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Rejuvenation<\/strong>
A holiday held on the eve of a new year (which is actually in the early spring in this world) that’s about ending the year with joy, and beginning the new one with renewed contentment and hope. Some God-sworn dress in white the morning of for prayers and a Cleansing ceremony, but the rest of the day is spent in your most vibrant colors. Gifts are exchanged with loved ones, and then there’s feasting, music, and entertainment that can go all night, though only some adults stay up as ending the year with joy is more important than seeing the wee hours of the new year. Some spend the final hours quietly contemplating new year’s plans. Sort of Christmas and New Year’s combined.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Religion This is all VERY much a work in progress. Absolutely anything here, lore or terminology, is subject to change, and more may be added! While there are multiple beliefs and religions in the world of Knell, one of the[…]↓ Read the rest of this entry…<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/vermillionworks.com\/knell\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/960"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/vermillionworks.com\/knell\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/vermillionworks.com\/knell\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/vermillionworks.com\/knell\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/vermillionworks.com\/knell\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=960"}],"version-history":[{"count":17,"href":"http:\/\/vermillionworks.com\/knell\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/960\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1075,"href":"http:\/\/vermillionworks.com\/knell\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/960\/revisions\/1075"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/vermillionworks.com\/knell\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=960"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}