Elric the stalwart, God of duty

Duty is the first virtue. Everything stands and falls on it. A man (or woman) is nothing without its duty. Duty defines your being. Your purpose.

Given the highly religious background of Bryten citizens, it comes as no surprise that every monarch that is to rule must be blessed by Elric and must swear an oath to bind him forever to serve the country. Almost any aspect of power can only be accessed by binding yourself with an oath.

Unlike most cultures, oaths are taken more to the spirit, and hence, people will look at you with disdain if you bend the words too much.

Order of truth

Roule have tried to win Elric’s heart by flattery and dishonesty. But Elric saw through her ruse. A mere scheme to gain power and influence. It was there, when Elric realised the simple truth – lie is never better than truth.

Speaking lies is betraying your integrity. It is better to be frank and straightforward, rather than slimy dodgy and indirect. There is no ‘white lie’. If one lies once, he will try to do it again. And again. Should you be caught lying, you will lose people’s trust. Forever. Interestingly, it is often the case people would rather admit they are wrong rather than to be accused of lying. Incompetence is forgivable. Malevolence - not so much.

Order of justice

As Elric supervises all deals and pacts, it naturally falls to him to decide whether they were broken. He was there when you made the deal. He knows the circumstances. He knows the circumstances. For better or worse.

Judicial power in Bryten is completely controlled by clergy and the Church. Only the priests of Elric are permitted to be judges, and any participants to any case is (by law) required to swear oath to Elric.

Domains & Symbol

Symbol is shield or crest, usually with lion on it.

Val the brave, God of courage

Many consider overcoming the difficulties, the challenges as bravery. They mistake the skill and prowess for courage and strength of the spirit.

But for Brytens, courage means facing your fears. And accepting your duties. And consequences.

Val is Wigbert’s brother. Val himself was not strong, but he remained with his brother. At all times. Where the morale was low, Val was the one to raise their spirits. He was the one to give Wigbert the strength to resist the temptations of Roule.

It is also no coincidence we have words nowadays like valour and valiant. They are all derived from this very god.

Order of responsibility

Many people evade responsibility. They dodge it, wherever possible. But facing your duties. Accepting them and honouring them – that takes courage. This applies to punishments as well. Despite the fact Brytens frown upon the criminals and thieves, prisoners, those sentenced to death or other types of people under punishment are treated with great honour in most circumstances. Those who died by the axe of an executioner receive proper funeral rites.

There is an old tradition, during war times on the eve of battle, Bryten bard and priest sing each son twice – once for Brytens who fall tomorrow and once for the enemies who will fall. Equally, after the battle, they bury all dead they can find – ally or not.

Order of fears

In the much similar way to Elves, Bryten believe that true courage can only be seen in the face of fears. Having no fears is not bravery. Being afraid is not cowardice.

Heroic death

For Brytens, heroic death is the one where you die for a noble cause. For an Oath or fulfilling your duties. Dying in battle if you are soldier, taking an arrow for those under your custody, or simply sacrificing yourself for the weaker ones.

Domains & Symbol

Symbol is a glass shard or a mirror.

Wigbert the mighty, God of strength

Rather than physical strength, Wigbert values tenacity and perseverance. The strength of your resolve. In return, he shall bestow on you the blessing of physical strength. That is the story at least.

While Elric was the first who saw through the Roule’s machinations, Wigbert was the first to resist her temptations. But he kept his resolve and ultimately, this led to Roule’s downfall.

The slight oddity of Wigbert is that usually, priests and paladins devote themselves to a single order, which is not the case for Wigbert. The line here is a bit blurry and often you find paladins devoted to multiple orders.

Order of strength

Physical strength is only a part. But it IS part, nonetheless. Many soldiers pray to Wigbert to grant them strength and endurance on the battlefield. But you need to have a strong spirit to earn this blessing.

Bryten paladins and knights have developed a complex set of rituals that test the limits of your resolve and strength of the spirit to earn favour of Wigbert. Many would call this “intense exercises”, but Bryten view it in more religious manner. You better not disturb them.

Royal navy

When it comes to warfare, Bryten infantry is not the best one out there. However, their navy is. Their supremacy over the water is unquestioned. While their ships are not the fastest (that achievement belongs to Galician fleet), but Bryten dreadnoughts can decimate the entire fleets and their imposing presence is sometimes enough to cause the enemy forces to flee entirely.

Order of protection

Acquiring strength is one thing. Using it is another. It is honourable (and thus expected of you) to devote yourself to protecting the weaker. You should not strive to conquer the enemy, but rather to protect those who need it.

This is by far the most common order for paladins of Bryten, although you see some exceptions.

Order of perseverance

As mentioned before, physical strength is only a small part of something greater. The strength of your spirit, your resolve is what matters the most.

This order captures this idea – tenacity and resolve are core attributes of any knight who wishes to be knighted in this order. To push against the odds, to not give up. To not succumb to temptations.

Domains & Symbol

A silver sword (usually a miniature)  

Roule the treacherous, Goddess of lies

The concept of “White lie” is not well-accepted axiom in Bryten. Any lie, with whatever purpose is likely to cause damage. If nothing else, you cannot be sure. Also, if your conscience is clean, what point is there in obscuring the truth?

Lies are the tools of Roule, and she used such tactics to dissuade Wigbert from righteous path and to seduce Elric. But she failed – for she lied, and her intentions were impure. She failed because she relied on schemes and trickery rather than her heart.

Order of vengeance

Bryten recognize the vicious cycle of vengeance. They know it never ends. It is the curse of Roule bestowed on the rest as a final act of rage before she got exiled.

Revenge for sake of revenge will never end well, but Bryten do believe in justice. But rather then punishing the offender, they tend to opt for compensating the victim (if possible). But sometimes, carrots are not enough, so you need to bring the stick… Unfortunately, many see vengeance as a righteous rage – an act of justice. But that is only Roule blinding them with lies. She poisons their thirst for justice and malforms it into anger and rage.

Order of revolt

Refusing to stand with order means joining the chaos. Bryten know that well. And they bent their every effort to keep the Realm in relative peace. They supress revolts however they can – usually by just not giving people reasons to revolt…

And thus, people of Bryten see revolt and resistance as something that is evil, that is an agent of chaos. Something that is there to twist their order and peace into anarchy and war.

But the weak in spirit and feeble in mind follow Roule. They hope that the order will be broken. For that is their chance to start over – to be in equal footing with the righteous.

Order of schemes

Intention is what matters. And if your intentions are pure, so will be your actions. And therefore, you do not need spies or schemes. You do not need trickery and lies. You do not need to sway people away from Elric and his ways. But if your intentions are evil, no action can possibly make them right. And so, you lie. It is tempting to hide schemes and cowardice behind tactics and careful planning, but they are not the same. While great tacticians and strategists are appreciated in Bryten, there is still some moral code the armies have to abide by.

Domains & Symbol

A golden dagger (usually a miniature)

Aldith the forseeing, Goddess of peace

Peace and order are not the default state of the world. At least, not for Brytens. They recognize that these privileges are hard fought and need to be maintained. So, while during the times of war, people call upon Wigbert to give them strength, during peace they invoke Aldith – to maintain the peace and give them the resolve to keep it that way.

Aldith is the Elric’s wife, and together they strive for the peace. One cannot live without the other – there can be no peace without duties, and duties are meaningless if there will not be any peace.

Order of healing

While others think that time is the greatest healer, Bryten have or pessimistic approach. Everything deteriorates over time. You need to make an active effort to keep it maintained. Disease will not cure itself; ruins will not rebuild themselves; madness will not treat itself.

Thus, healing in some form is necessary and part of everyday life. Being a healer, and engineer or similar is a job for life. You will never be done, for it is a continuous process – keeping something healthy or stable. But you can revert enough damage to worry less for some time.

Order of wealth

While Bryten is not the wealthiest nation (that is probably a Galician deal), they do yield significant income, which usually comes from various deals and rents the Bryten accumulated back from its colonial era.

The wealth is a sign of peace. It is a sign that the efforts are directed towards acquiring rather than spending. Wealth, in Bryten, is a sign of good planning and a peaceful life. Wealth is considered a blessing from Aldith.

Domains & Symbol

A (white) silk ribbon (usually tied in a bow)

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See also:

Bryten kingdom - Pen is sometimes mightier than a sword. Certainly the case for Bryten.