There are two constants in life, Death and Tithing.
– Sir Jordan Albright, Folk Civil Steward of Beodhen and Verine
The Coin of the Realm
Perennia serves the folk civil as a means to garner acknowledgment from the Gods. All the lands of Circadia belong to the Gods, but in order for the folk civil (layfolk) to steward that land, Perennia is used (in large amounts) to procure the recognition of the Church, called the High Sanction.
Those that have obtained the High Sanction are also said to take on “The Noble Cause,” and are collectively known as Nobility. Nobles function as stewards of the Pantheon’s property and, for taking on that responsibility, have access to the Realm’s educational institutions, social networks, and other means to improve their stations in life.
Tithing as Cultural Rite
Culturally, maintaining stewardship revolves around Tithing. At a minimum, both the Devout and layfolk of stature are expected to contribute a significant portion of their Perennial wealth back to the church. This functions, roughly, as both acknowledging the Pantheon directly and seeking the approval of the Gods. It is also generally believed that Tithing Perennia can, upon occasion, empower a God who has suffered injury or hardship.
Perennia appears in the world when the Gods are pleased. Gods act individually of one another, and, for example, Beodhen may grant his followers Perennia even when T’Zyri disapproved of their deeds.
Perennia is not limited to merely the Devout and/or Nobles, however. The aforementioned maxim applies from the lowliest folk civil all the way to the High Priests. When the Gods are pleased, Perennia appears to those that pleased them.
The Nobles, who may be Devout or folk civil, occupy a unique position.
The Precarity of Rank
Within Circadia, Nobles exist in a somewhat precarious space. While they are afforded many privileges based on their station, they are nonetheless expected to maintain the goodness of the larger Realm and the common folk civil within it. Even the wealthiest of Circadian Nobles are expected to attend to the general well-being of those around them–of course, some may offer only the bare minimum, but these Nobles rarely stay in power for particularly long (by Mortal standards). A particularly gruesome anecdote details the consequences of those Nobles who fail to act in service to the Realm’s people.
The Fall of D’Esnyde
The D’Esnyde family were a group of particularly reviled Verine followers. They had long been wealthy but gained significant landholdings through the Blood War.
After the War, though they swore (lip)service to Beodhen and Nepheris, it was known that their main worship rested at the feet of the Fallen Goddess. Long loyal to the Goddess, they had amassed a considerable fortune–both tangible and intangible–which they sat upon greedily. However, despite the D’Esnyde family’s wealth, the villages around them suffered hardship nearing starvation. Worse yet, the D’Esnyde family enacted a punitive tax on the common folk civil and, should the folk civil fail to pay the tax, refused them access to services. This became much more severe during the outbreak of a plague: the D’Esnyde family refused to buoy the surrounding areas’ meager medical facilities, and many died without access to care.
When word got round of this, the D’Esnyde family were visited by the High Priests of both Beodhen and Nepheris. They were chastised by both Priests, and many thought that they would be stripped of their wealth and Noble status. However, at least initially, nothing happened.
Fortune and Feathers
The proverbial tides changed come Starshine. As they did every year, the D’Esnyde family put on a great feast–afterall, King’s Day and Starshine generally occur during the same winter days. No one knows exactly what happened, but when the servants awoke in the morning, they found every member of the D’Esnyde family dead–horrifically so. The corpses were bloody and raw, the eyes, lips, and tongues seemingly ripped out and secreted away. Thousands of bloody white feathers littered the estate, and the once beautiful grounds were spattered with gore.
Most assume this was the doing of Steramestei’s Devout: those who served in the villages may have called upon their Goddess’s Blessing. However, some assume Steramestei herself had grown impatient with the arrogance and audacity of the obscenely wealthy and, as is her way, acted accordingly.
Tithing at Highgate Barracks
Tithing is an in-game practice that has an out-of-game mechanic. The mechanic is below, and out-of game descriptions are written in italics.
At Highgate, Perennia are gathered in collection horns, collectively known as the Cornucopia. Devout are expected to contribute often and profusely. Each of the Cornucopia is designated to a specific God. Both the Pantheon and Fallen Gods are represented.
Perennia props are plastic gems of multiple sizes and colors. The Cornucopia are represented by buffalo-horn drinking horns which will be placed in various places throughout the tavern. The different Cornucopia will be marked with the symbols of different Gods. To place Perennia into a Cornucopia is to make a Tithe to the God with whom that Cornucopia is associated.
By the end of a High Holiday weekend, the Pantheon Gods must be both elevated and, it is generally recommended, equal in their standing. The saying goes: if the Cups fail to runneth over it is because the Devout are lacking in commitment.
Likewise, Devout that beseech the Gods for assistance, but neglect the tithing cups, are likely to draw the Pantheon’s ire. A miserly Devout that still asks for Blessing is likely to find a message of “You find no favor here.”
Procuring Favor
Outside of Tithing, there are other ways Perennia can be used to secure the favor of the Gods. By investing Perennia in physical locations, the Devout are able to better that location’s magical capabilities. Across Highgate Barracks and greater Gods Road are locations that could benefit from such investiture. Some of these locations benefit the Devout directly, while others are have no tangible reward for the Devout, but instead support restoration efforts. Others might seem like “vanity projects,” but perhaps serve to bolster the morale of the populous, or even cast patron gods in more positive lights.
A list of available locations will be posted in-game.
Zealot Larp 