Purdue Fantasy Club

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====== Empani ======

//"Knowledge is how we define reality. The Mind makes us who we are"//

They say that information is key. Knowledge is power. Knowing is half the battle. This rhetoric perfectly sums up the existence of Empani. Empani is the god of knowledge, in its purest form. The collection of information is a sacred task for one who chooses to worship Empani. Their priests work vigilantly to document anything they come across, as anything and everything can be studied and learned from.

On Jaern, Empani is quite new. Reborn as the re-fusion of the gods [[gods:tarus|Tarus]] and [[gods:vormaxia|Vormaxia]], Empani is still making a name for himself on the plane. Thankfully, she has absorbed most of the worshippers of the gods she came from. Cahyali serves as part of their origin. There, Empani was initially split into his two distinct aspects, and there he was reforged. Their influence is continuing to spread across the rest of the planes, as the knowledge of their fusion spreads as well.

===== Aspects =====
There are three aspects Empani may choose. The first is Empani in their truest form. The second is a more masculine figure known for keeping secrets and safeguarding knowledge. The third is a more feminine figure known for spreading knowledge and innovating new knowledge.

==== Empani, Knowledge Supreme ====
This aspect of Empani is the central aspect representing knowledge as a whole. They believe in the preservation and use of knowledge above all else. His mind is said to follow only logic, rather than succumbing to emotion. Every once in a while, she will make a sarcastic or sardonic comment, though these are rare and only happen in the brief moments of relaxation Empani allows themself.

They are commonly seen in dark red robes with a wide brimmed pointy hat resembling a bird. Some believe his sense of fashion is what inspired the common look for mages and scholars. Golden runes line the hems and seams of her robes, and they are almost never seen without a book containing his divine symbol that contains a corpus of all her knowledge. They also have a mechanical monocle to help him read small print.

==== Tarus, The Divine Archivist ====
[[gods:tarus|Tarus]] is the aspect of Empani who represents the Path of Secrets. He’s been a part of the history of Jearn and Cahyali for years, for better or for worse on the former. On Jearn he had long been known as simply the grand archivist of the gods. Though a more accurate description would be that he controlled knowledge on Jearn, with his priests often hiding away knowledge deemed dangerous, often overstepping their bounds. This led to a couple of Tarusian dark ages. Meanwhile, over on Cahyali, Tarus was a scribe and was often associated with rebuilding as Thothites (as they were called on Cahyali) often aided in the rebuilding after a disaster due to their archived knowledge.

Tarus is never one to overstate himself, flashiness is a young man’s game and he is much, much older. Often he doesn’t appear with a flourish, just suddenly being in the area, no one noticing his arrival. His clothing is often colored in shades of brown and yellow and his accessories almost always serve a practical purpose. A headband with quills to write with, a charm with a vial of ink, or wings that unfurl into sheets of paper upon which writings and images can appear. He’s not one to speak directly, preferring to give hints and allow someone to come to their own conclusion. Though exceptions have been known.

==== Vormaxia, Mistress of the Mind ====
Also commonly known as Kira, the aspect of Empani known as [[gods:vormaxia|Vormaxia]] represents the Path of Truth, She has interacted with Cahyali for centuries. Meanwhile, her appearance on Jaern is much more recent. In the year 2528, following the Age of Reckoning and the Jalera Incident, an adventurer known as Kira, as well as fellow adventurer Cronk and a third unknown man revealed themselves to be mortal avatars for the gods Vormaxia, Zepherin, and Almar respectively. This was so that the three deities could surpass the Jaernian Godpact that existed at the time, disallowing outside deities from staking a claim on Jaern. Through this loophole involving the avatars being Jaernian natives, the three were allowed to ascend.

Vormaxia changes shape and appearance often. Being a representation of the mind, her forms are impermanent and always changing. However, she is usually seen as one of the humanoid races wearing robes of blue and gold and round glasses. She’s also taken a liking to her hair shorter, with the color matching her robes. Compared to Tarus and Empani, she’s very loose and informal in both speech and mannerisms. She’s still quite close to Zepherin, Almar, and Mishra, despite their extreme differences in domains.

===== Origins =====
Many millennia ago, before recorded history, it is said that the aspects of Empani were split, divided in two. One aspect became Tarus, the Divine Archivist and a keeper of secrets, while the other became Vormaxia, Mistress of the Mind and seeker of truth.

The only known group of people (at this time) to have worshiped Empani were the members of an ancient civilization under the modern Pthoran city of Arkhivgrad. These people were known as the Voprosh. During the Stormwing Calamity their civilization collapsed but it was not lost, for before fleeing they sealed two individuals in stone. Released on Led 29th in the year 2558, these two are living records of this forgotten civilization.

In the year 2558, Empress Katerina Zimina of Pthora joined with two beings, Surt and Accidia, to try and cut off the gods from Cahyali and kill the two aspects of knowledge. A great battle ensued in Menghormati, on Ulos, where an attempt to burn all the city's knowledge forced Tarus and Vormaxia to appear just as Zimina attacked the godwheel. In order to reconnect with their divine plane, Tarus and Vormaxia were re-merged into Empani.

===== Domain =====
Empani is the god of knowledge and the mind. This involves both the preservation of old knowledge and the discovery of new knowledge. Because of this, Empani’s priests tend to lead the world in innovation and documentation.

===== Structure of the Priesthood =====
==== Requirements ====
Empani and their followers respect knowledge above all else. So much so that the training to become an Empanian involves vast amounts of rigorous study. In order to become a priest of Empani, one must demonstrate that knowledge is deeply important to oneself. A base priest of Empani must have an INT of at least 14. Rather than receiving two additional languages at rank 6, the priest receives two of their starting languages at rank 7.

==== Apprenticeship ====
Apprenticeship in the priesthood is more similar to schooling than a common apprenticeship for other priesthoods. Apprenticeship commonly lasts approximately five or six years.

An apprentice first chooses to follow either the Path of Secrets or the Path of Truth. Following this, an apprentice is free to choose the curriculum they desire to specialize in. This commonly includes taking a series of rigorous classes to obtain field experience and train the mind to properly absorb and retain knowledge. Once the priests mentoring an apprentice feel the apprentice is ready, they are moved on to the initiation stage.

==== Initiation ====
In order to become a full priest of Empani, an initiate must take four exams. One covers history and politics, another covers language and literature, a third covers science and mathematics, and the last covers the arcane. 

An initiate is expected to receive full marks on one exam of their choosing, and 80% on the others. If this is not accomplished, they continue their classes and may retake the exam two weeks later.

A fast-tracked version of the initiation process is provided primarily for adventurers or priests of other deities. This process skips the more common, lengthy apprenticeship. However, one must receive special permission from the head of the temple to take one of the exams.

==== Duties ====
Priests of Empani serve knowledge itself. As such, their duties revolve around its discovery, preservation, and collection. The exact nature of this comes in many forms. Many choose to work in archives, combing through endless tomes and scrolls, validating their contents, and copying them for distribution among other archives. Some choose to work on restoration of old or damaged works in the library. Others choose to leave the comforts of archives in favor of finding new knowledge, usually stored in old books or in the memories of people with odd experiences. Some seek new knowledge through experimentation and innovation, seeking to unlock the secrets of the universe. It is not uncommon for priests of Empani to provide donations to educational institutions.

==== Organization ====
The Path of Secrets and the Path of Truth have very different methods of organization within their temples.

The Path of Secrets is much more strictly organized. Temples following this path are headed by a Librarian, determined to be the most knowledgeable priest at the temple. They have a cabinet of six archivists called The Eldest Circle. The members of the circle each lead a department within a temple or archive. The departments are further divided into Research Sects, who make up the primary body of the priesthood.

Meanwhile, the Path of Truth is significantly looser in its organization. Commonly, a temple is led by a singular Organizer, occasionally called a Dean, who manages the heads of other research departments. They are free to have as many or as few assistants in this job as they wish. Of course, this is simply what is most common, not all-encompassing. A large number of temples and institutions led by the Path of Truth are run completely communally without a central power structure.

=== Advancement in the Priesthood ===
In the Path of Secrets, one may challenge a higher priest for their position via a competition of knowledge. The winner takes the position, with the winner usually being determined by the Librarian and The Eldest Circle. A similar process is undertaken if a Librarian or Eldest Circle member steps down or passes away. Any priest may apply to be part of the circle. Meanwhile, only a member of the circle may advance to Librarian.

In the Path of Truth, advancement is rarer, if at all possible. Some temples even lack an organization to advance through. Organizers typically serve for life, or until they choose to retire. In the event one dies or retires, the temple runs an election to choose their next Organizer. Any priest of the temple can run for the position. If an Organizer proves to be unfit for the position, the temple may run a vote to forcefully remove the Organizer from power, being replaced with a new election.

==== Dogma ====
Knowledge is the key to reaching enlightenment. Beyond this, knowledge and its spread can be used to improve the lives of others through making new innovations. As such, knowledge is one of the most sacred treasures in the world. Given that the mind stores knowledge, it is a most sacred tool that should be properly utilized.

==== Culture of the Priesthood ====
Priests of Empani all care deeply about two main things, knowledge and the power of the mind. As such, the priesthood is structured around both. Given the reverence for knowledge, many Empanians become researchers, scientists, historians, and so on. Others become librarians or archivists to assist in maintaining collected knowledge.

Other priests focus more on the power of the mind. These are usually philosophers, psychologists, ethicists, etc. A lot of these priests share reverence for Orus given his control of emotions and the fact that emotions come from and affect the mind. Given their reverence for the mind, many priests of Empani learn psionic abilities, as psionics as a form of magic stem from one’s mind. Some even say that Kira, the avatar of one of Empani’s aspects, used to be a psion while she still adventured.

Empanians are also great advocates for education. Even discounting the fact that many temples function similarly to universities that train acolytes much the same way, plenty of Empanians work in education as private tutors. Some fund efforts to create systems of public education in locations where there is none. This public education is intended to be completely secular, free from religion, though being funded by a religious institution does sometimes hamper that effort depending on the zeal of the priests.

Empanians have no true generalized appearance. Freedom of the mind also means freedom to choose how one expresses themself, and as such no strict dress code is enforced. Still, many can be perhaps identified by having an overabundance of books, paper, or quills on them at all times. The closest is research institutions requiring those in labs to wear protective equipment, but this depends on the work and only applicable to said specific case.

Given the importance placed on the mind, free will is very important to the priesthood. This is why mind control is usually frowned upon, as it denies one of their free will. Some priests tend to be extremely skeptical about the concepts of determinism and fate. A few have even posited theories that the world operates on random chance similar to dice rolls.

==== Holidays ====
The Apokrisis is celebrated by worshippers of Empani on Murh 2nd. It is the day Tarus and Vormaxia were remerged into Empani during the attack on Menghormati. The day is recognized both as a celebration of their recombination as well as a somber reminder of the knowledge that was lost that day.

The Refounding is celebrated by Jaernians on Napen 16th, as the day when the first Tarusian temple was opened following the disaster of Geheric. (The disaster involved a miscalculation of fuel requirements for a flying machine, causing the destruction of an island and the lives on it. After this, temples to Tarus were closed to the public.) The celebrations involve a feast and a series of exhibits by aspiring apprentices. The best of these exhibits are chosen by elder priests, which may serve as an official application to join the priesthood.

The Day of Ascension is a Jaernian celebration. Kild 16th was the day when the avatars of Vormaxia, Zepherin, and Almar revealed themselves and ascended to their new roles. The day is celebrated by hosting a small banquet at the temple, with a few words from the high priest. Occasionally a temple will hand out excellence awards to researchers who’ve made strides in advancement or to initiates who have excelled. Most of the night is left open for food and socialization.