Church of Ioun

The Church of Ioun has never been extremely popular in the greater part of Rhonnos. However, it was never really forced to go underground or hide itself like many did during the Dark Crusade.

Ioun, the Goddess of Knowledge and Skill, is a favorite of wizards and scholars. Many of her temples double as libraries or repositories of information.





Church Structure


The Church of Ioun is only partially centralized. For years, they maintained a presence in Nerath City, but over time, moved into many cities, fearful that all the knowledge concentrated in the center of Nerath would be misused.

Most major cities came to have a temple of Ioun, the greatest of which was built in Krysskralt. But there were few outside of the metropoli of Rhonnos, and soon enough, the clergy of Ioun were regarded as secretive and dangerous. This disturbed many, as Ioun's nemesis, Vecna, was the patron of secrets and hidden knowledge.

Iounists attempted to reach out and build smaller temples in the wilderness, including what became known as the Ghost Repository in the Northern Plains. This worked to a point, but after time, some of the more isolated temples were sacked and destroyed, or infiltrated and corrupted.

It was then that the Grey Knights were formed. They were a small military force, usually versed in both swords and spells, and served to protect the Church of Ioun in all places.

To better coordinate the Grey Knights, the temple in Lioq was chosen as the focal point of Iounist power. A council of the clergy gathered and determined the best way to run the church. First among the council was called Farseer, and all other members of the council were Seers. After some fluctuation, the council became static at 7 members. Once a year, each temple outside of Lioq sends a delegate to Lioq and brings them to date on any problems or changes that are foreseen.



Holy Days


Iounists observe only 2 holy days. The first is in late winter, when Iounists gather as much lumber as they can to create the parchment they write on. The second is in high summer, when the days are longest, in honor of the light illuminating everything and destroying the shadows.





Exarchs


<p style="margin-bottom: 0in">Athearsauriv: A mithril dragon who serves Ioun. She often takes a hand in visions and prophecy.

<p style="margin-bottom: 0in; text-decoration: none">Damagon: A once-human who ascended to become a demi-god. He emphasizes new knowledge and the discovery through one's own actions.