Entry 2491 - Festivals of Fecund Life

In a realm as violent as Doaden, the ability of humanity to sustain itself is a marvel. The constant spectre of mortality not only thins the weak but also claims those brave enough to confront the realm’s terrors head-on. Thus, the cycle of death and rebirth holds profound significance in the psyche of all denizens of our shattered world.

On the fringes of civilization, where ancient traditions outweigh the influence of Azerai’s Creed, death, rebirth, and their mirrored aspect in the cycle of the seasons form the core of most folk beliefs. Ostentatious festivals replete with decoration and dance usher in these transitions from birth and spring to winter and death. In times of such deprivation as we are in now, these festivals have taken a more sombre bent, for a displeased Harvest Spirit can spell death upon an isolated hamlet as surely as any rampaging Ettin or Werebeast.

It is little wonder that the superstitious folk of the Empire’s rural communities are so liable to fall to the thrall of dark and hungering entities of nature corrupted. The power and surety these beings offer in exchange for worship is difficult to refuse, especially when marked against the sternly paternalistic and abstract salvation offered in the Azerai Creed.

The pantheon of primal deities and otherworldly entities that exist within the folklore and the fog are as varied as they are dangerous. Perhaps most notable amongst them is Baphomet and her countless young. This capricious and ancient bloodline has long held ascendancy over the wild places, promising rampant growth in exchange for absolute obeisance from their subjects.