The Purpose of Churches in Agorath

Houses of Memory, Mercy, and Mortal Hope

When the Grandis Deus departed and the Deus Mori began, the world became a place where miracles no longer flowed freely. Yet faith did not vanish—it changed.
The great temples and small roadside shrines that now dot Agorath serve not as places to worship distant gods, but as anchors of the divine that once was.

Churches are not political centers.
They are sanctuaries — literal and spiritual.

Primary Roles

1. Healing the Body

Church clerics and ordained healers maintain ancient rites passed down from the Divine Era.
While they cannot conjure effortless miracles, they can:

  • Treat wounds with sacred herbcraft and sanctified water

  • Perform rituals that accelerate natural recovery

  • Use relic-bound prayers to mend broken limbs or organs

  • Restore those on the edge of death to stability

Healing here is gentle, slow, and real — not flashy.

“Pain is proof you still live. Recovery is proof you still hope.”

2. Reviving the Recently Fallen

If a person has died within three days, churches may attempt a Rite of Return.

This is not guaranteed.

It requires:

  • A name spoken by someone who loved them

  • A body mostly intact

  • A willing soul

If the soul declines—
the ritual fades in silence.

Resurrection is treated with reverence, sorrow, and gratitude.
It is not common, cheap, or casual.

3. Relieving Curses & Corruption

Demons, lingering god-magic, and the influence of the Turris Seclusa often mark souls.

Churches maintain the old counter-rites, able to:

  • Cleanse minor curses completely

  • Suppress major curses temporarily

  • Extract demonic influence through multi-day purification

For players, this means:

  • Curses are obstacles, not sentences.

  • Churches are relief, not solutions.

Cleansing corruption always comes with memory, pain, or vision — the corruption leaves, but it leaves traces.

What Churches Cannot Do

  • They cannot resurrect those dead longer than three days.

  • They cannot undo pact magic.

  • They cannot remove Demonlord blessings or marks.

  • They cannot restore someone whose soul has been claimed.

These things are beyond mortal faith.

Atmosphere & Tone

Churches are quiet.
Warm candles.
Soft chanting.
Stone sanctuaries lit by stained glass depicting a world that used to be.

They are not places of glory — but reminders that life is still worth protecting.

When players arrive, describe calm relief —
not awe.