Throughout Mythea, festivals mark the passing of the seasons, honor the gods, celebrate community, and preserve ancient traditions. While each kingdom observes these holidays differently, most are recognized throughout the continent.
Many adventurers discover opportunities, mysteries, competitions, and unexpected encounters during these celebrations.
Honors: Vorathys and Vespera
Season: Early Spring
The most widely celebrated festival in Mythea.
The Dance Eternal commemorates the meeting of Vorathys and Vespera and the beginning of creation itself.
Music, dancing, feasting, and public celebrations fill cities and villages alike.
Masks are commonly worn.
Many people exchange gifts anonymously.
New romances often begin during the festival.
Old grudges are traditionally set aside.
The holiday celebrates possibility, desire, and new beginnings.
Honors: Vespera
Season: Mid-Summer
Candles and lanterns are lit throughout the night.
Participants write their deepest hopes, dreams, or desires upon ribbons and tie them to trees, bridges, or sacred monuments.
The faithful believe Vespera hears every wish spoken sincerely.
Many proposals, confessions, and life-changing decisions occur during this festival.
Honors: Vorathys
Season: Early Autumn
A celebration of freedom, exploration, and self-discovery.
Travelers are welcomed freely.
Roadside feasts are common.
Many young adults begin journeys or apprenticeships during this holiday.
The faithful believe no one should spend the Day of the Open Road exactly where they began it.
Honors: Aureth
Season: Mid-Winter
A holiday celebrating leadership, service, and civic responsibility.
Public officials often spend the day performing charitable works.
Communities gather to recognize local heroes, veterans, teachers, and public servants.
Many rulers deliver speeches and renew oaths to their people.
Honors: The Velvet King
Season: Mid-Winter Eve
A controversial celebration often held in secret.
Masquerades, lavish banquets, and displays of wealth dominate the festivities.
Many nobles use the occasion to flaunt status and influence.
Officially condemned in some regions, the holiday remains surprisingly popular.
Honors: Seleneva
Season: Early Spring
Families and friends gather to celebrate important relationships.
Marriages are especially common during this time.
Silver ribbons are exchanged as symbols of trust and affection.
Communities often resolve disputes before the festival begins.
The holiday emphasizes reconciliation and connection.
Honors: The Thorn Bride
Season: Late Autumn
A mysterious festival involving masks and hidden identities.
Stories of tragic romances and cautionary tales are performed publicly.
The holiday serves as both entertainment and warning.
Participants are encouraged to reflect upon unhealthy attachments and jealousies.
Honors: Thalorien
Season: First Day of Spring
One of the oldest celebrations in Mythea.
Trees are planted.
Gardens are blessed.
Farmers prepare fields for planting.
Many communities host fairs, markets, and competitions centered around craftsmanship and agriculture.
Bloomtide represents renewal and growth.
Honors: The Red Harvest
Season: Harvest Season
A massive celebration of abundance.
Feasting, drinking, music, games, and contests continue for several days.
Most communities view the holiday as harmless fun.
Priests of Thalorien often remind participants to celebrate responsibly.
Not everyone listens.
Honors: Varric
Season: Early Summer
Markets expand dramatically during this holiday.
Merchants exchange symbolic gifts and conduct ceremonial trades.
Debts are often forgiven or renegotiated.
New businesses frequently launch during the festival.
The holiday celebrates prosperity through cooperation.
Honors: The Hollow Purse
Season: Late Summer
A controversial observance recognized primarily among merchants and financiers.
Participants review their fortunes and holdings.
Though intended as a cautionary reminder against greed, many instead use it as an opportunity to boast about wealth.
Honors: Elysir
Season: During the Year's Largest Meteor Shower
Scholars, astronomers, inventors, and students gather to celebrate discovery.
Public lectures, debates, and exhibitions are common.
Many educational institutions hold open events for the public.
The festival celebrates curiosity and learning.
Honors: The Veiled Depth
Season: New Moon Closest to Winter
A strange holiday observed differently across Mythea.
Storytellers share mysteries.
Riddles are exchanged.
Secrets are confessed anonymously.
Many people spend the evening exploring forgotten ruins or researching family histories.
Some claim unusual discoveries occur during this night.
Honors: Khaldur
Season: Mid-Autumn
Massive bonfires and forge-fires burn throughout the night.
Artisans display their finest works.
Apprentices often present masterworks in hopes of advancing their standing.
The holiday celebrates craftsmanship, perseverance, and mastery.
Honors: The Ashen Hand
Season: Final Day of the Year
The quietest holiday in Mythea.
People remember those who have passed away.
Old grievances are often forgiven.
Communities reflect upon what was lost during the previous year.
The festival teaches that endings give meaning to beginnings.
At midnight, ashes from ceremonial fires are scattered to the wind, symbolizing acceptance of change.
Though festivals vary across cultures, most Mytheans believe the year moves through an eternal cycle:
Desire leads to action.
Action creates achievement.
Achievement invites temptation.
Temptation brings consequence.
Consequence teaches wisdom.
Wisdom inspires new desires.
Thus the Dance Eternal continues.
And with it, the people of Mythea celebrate another year beneath the stars.