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THE WINTER'S GRASP

[attr="class","locbody"]The Winter’s Grasp concerns a group of religious cultists and fanatics who live in the far north in uncharted lands who believe in the Lady of Hoarfrost. Although they originally came from a much larger order and had sects which spanned the world, the far north remains the last stronghold of their faith and people. They believe in the Old Gods, and in particular venerate a singular Goddess who they believe slumbers in the world beyond the Veil and must be reawakened by their activities.[break][break]

They are not tolerant of other faiths as a whole, although some sects promote the hijacking of other faiths to spread the word of the Lady whilst others may promote different paths to the same goal; this is not however the general consensus. Most sects of the Winter’s Grasp believe in sacrificial offerings of human lives.[break][break]

As of now, there are three main sects - the Khatagins of the Greymoor Isles, the Borjigins of the Edge of the World and the Solvievs in the Silent Forest. Each sect is led by a High Priest witch with a mythical familiar, said to be envoys of the Goddess and Her will. They may have other minor priests, which can be human or witch, but will each have their own chosen acolyte to replace them upon their death and lead their sect.
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The Lady has many epithets to reflect her many natures such as the Lady of Hoarfrost, the Frost Maiden, the Mother and the Lady of Brightmoon to name a few. As each sect is free to pursue their own knowledge and understanding of the Lady, they differ on Her personality. Whilst one sect may highlight the savagery of bitter northern winters as Her true nature, cold and unforgiving with a sadistic glee; others may turn to Her as a protective figure who shields her followers from the worst of the winter’s chill. [break][break]

Whilst all sects believe that all interpretations are correct, they generally will worship the Lady under a certain epithet. Through the various sects and epithets, it is believed that they may begin to wholly understand the Goddess in all her complexities so that she may return to the waking world as whole, instead of fragmented and missing aspects to make her weaker.[break][break]

However, they all agree on her beginnings and purpose, as well as the goals of the cult as a whole. Through prayer, sacrifice and evangelism, they are to prepare for the Lady’s return when she will tear down the Veil that splits the world of the Gods from the mortal world. The Cult believe that an eternal winter will descend upon the world as the Lady exacts her power, allowing her faithful to ascend to higher forms that do not feel cold nor hunger nor exhaustion whilst the non-believers will perish as the long night sets in. [break][break]

The sects also agree on the reason for the Lady’s dreaming, known as the Dream of the Blue Veil. Such a state was inflicted upon all the Gods by a traitor, the Black Sun, who saw the destruction that the Gods had wrought upon the world without knowing it, and chose to seal Himself and his family to create an age where humanity was free to carve their own paths.[break][break]

Such a time existed, but witches did not exist in that time, cut off from the divine that gifted them magic. People suffered through hardships, until the Black Sun saw what he had done and asked his sister, the Brightmoon, for her help. Together, they create the Order of the Sun and Moon, using witches as their prophets and preachers to help humanity in return for their sacrifices and prayers.[break][break]

What happened to the Black Sun is debated amongst sects. Some argue that the Black Sun became greedy and seeked to murder the Brightmoon to create a world controlled by him. Others argued that the Black Sun was a more heroic figure who died tragically to place all the Old Gods into a slumber, ensuring that the first to wake would be his beloved sister. But, the cult does not venerate the Black Sun anymore - to do so would be to betray the Lady.[break][break]

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The cult has a very loose structure, allowing each individual sect to choose how they worship the Lady. However, the cult is ruled by the High Conclave - in which each sect’s High Priest has a seat at the table to discuss how to progress forward as a whole. They meet at each solstice, where they may discuss developments, aid, prophecies and teachings as well as discuss their successors that have been brought with them to the Council, known as Acolytes.[break][break]

Both High Priests and their acolytes are chosen by their familiars. People who manifest mythical familiars in the sects tend to manifest eldritch beings which are known as Messengers. Through their familiars, it’s believed that they may commune with the Lady more effectively through dreams and visions. In addition, Messengers will guide their witches to perform the will of the Lady.[break][break]

When the acolyte reaches age, they are sent to complete a pilgrimage. This involves leaving the safety of their home and venturing out in the world to complete a task such as acquiring an artifact, aiding another sect with an issue. As of now, Mel Khatagin and Temulin Borjigin have both been sent on their pilgrimages by Leucosia Khatagin and Khasar Borjigin respectively and have ended up in Delphi, looking for traces of the Lost City and establishing a new sect in Delphi.[break][break]

Humans are generally valued less than witches, as the cult believes that manifesting a familiar shows a connection to the world beyond the Veil, and hence a stronger connection with the Goddess. Witches who manifest “ordinary” familiars take on non-religious and often protective roles, whilst those lucky enough to manifest a Messenger are taken by the High Priest to be raised to become an Acolyte. A High Priest might train multiple acolytes, but usually only one will manifest per generation per sect.[break][break]

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The Cult places great emphasis on open declarations of faith, such as large gatherings of worship. Most sects will have a place of worship, typically with one or more relics of Frost, said to have been created by the Lady when she still walked the world, in prominent display. Service contents will range from sect to sect, from somber prayer to singing and dancing and wine.[break][break]

The cult also places a great emphasis on the Moon, taking white and silver as holy colours. Important rituals will often be carried out on nights of the full moon; especially burials and sacrifices. New moons are seen as unlucky days. As many witches are starcallers from the sects, the stars have also been adopted. [break][break]

In particular, there is an emphasis on using “pure silver” as tools for rituals, stemming from an old practice of mixing gold and silver to represent both brother and sister and wishing to move away from that. Holy scriptures are often sealed with silver, and High Priests and acolytes will carry around silver knives with them. Silver talismans are a common gift, and clothes often have silver designs sewn into them. [break][break]

Sacrifice is a common ritual activity. Whilst some sects will kidnap people for use in their rituals, others will groom sacrifices from a young age to be slaughtered as sacrificial lambs. Elaborate circles are drawn for sacrifices, with the tribute having sigils drawn onto their skin to ensure that they are received by the Goddess. However, the newest sect in Delphi does not publicly condone any sacrifices, nor even mention it.[break][break]

Typical ceremonial wear is long, following white robes. Holy figures are encouraged to grow long hair and dye it stark white. During rituals, they are often known to mask their faces to better play the role of the Goddess. These masks are universally silver in colour, covering the eyes. [break][break]