Beyond the Wall and Other Adventures - Barley, the monastery and the gods

 

The small monastery of St Vilberie* lies 2 miles south of the village of Barley. 

The monks of St Vilberie wear simple robes of green and deep red with hoods of white, they are not allowed to wear other colours. They must spend at least one hour per day in quiet (silent) contemplation and prayer.

Shunning all worldly goods and viewing money (beyond the bare minimum needed to live on) as a sin, the monks lead a simple , basic and sometimes harsh life, their main activities are growing crops and fruit, in particular cider apples from which they produce their renowned ciders.

The monastery is known not only for its cider but also its hospitality, being open to travellers and journeymen, making no distinction between the rich and the poor, those in need or those just wishing to sample the cider, the monks are welcoming to all who travel there, they ask for no payment to stay there but a small donation to St Vilberie is expected upon departure.

There is also an Infirmary at the monastery where sick and injured are tended, many a weary wounded adventurer has been healed by the monks of St Vilberie.

There are many gods worshipped throughout the lands, six major gods and many minor gods.

The monastery is dedicated to St Vilberie, in reality he is a minor god not a saint, he is the god of fruits, fruit wines and drinks, in particular apples, pears, ciders & perry. Few outside of the monastery and the manor of Barley will have heard of St Vilberie, even less will bother to worship him except perhaps when partaking in a glass of cider or two.

The six major gods are

• Samhchare, god of secrets, inspiration, and hidden things
• Glanhad, god of new beginnings, fire, and cleansing
• Aotrem, god of healing, suffering and light
• Ordughr, god of order, war and conquest
• Cagailt, god of oaths, pride, and the hearth
• Bais, god of agriculture, death and underworld.

note :  the playbook for the devout acolyte offers the above six gods but without being named, so it seemed sensible to simple use these six gods and name them than try to create my own.

There are many lesser and minor gods dedicated to everything you can think of and somethings you can't. Most monasteries are dedicated to lesser gods although they are usually called Saints, and these 'saints' will be allied to or offshoots from one of the major gods. The larger cities and towns may well have small churches and temples dedicated to a minor gods as well as large churches or cathedrals devoted to one of the major gods and it is not unheard of for some churches being used to worship more than one god. Most churches though are there to worship one of the six major gods.

The Church at Barley is dedicated to Bais, god of agriculture but services and prayers are offered to Cagailt and during the harvest, St Vilberie as well.

*  Vilberie is a variety of French Apple used to make Cider.