Sehanine
Sehanine’s worship is widespread in Nerath, and she receives casual adherence from many throughout the eight cities. Truly devoted followers, however, are rare; navigating the Lunar Lady’s byzantine cults are nebulous arrangements of faithful in various walks of life who rarely know the full extent of her workings. To most, Sehanine’s followers are often considered even more hedonistic than her consort Corellon’s, summarily dismissed. To those with greater knowledge or experience, her cults are feared and respected as wielders of rumor and shadow just as capable of bringing down opponents as the swords and spells of any other god’s servants.
A public face as courtesans and counselors obfuscates adherents’ similarly valued roles as spies, thieves and illusionists. Often, single followers will occupy multiple of these facades, taking on whatever tasks their Mistress deems necessary. For the common folk, followers of Sehanine are a source of charity and entertainment, garnering her temples widespread popular support. While the nobility also avails themselves of Sehanine’s diversions, they are cautious to manage the temples as a valuable resource that can likewise be turned against them. The Lady of Arvandor’s followers cultivate a studied neutrality in such affairs, maintaining careful series of interwoven debt and obligation to protect their own interests.
Temples operate as sites of the large public worship ceremony during each full moon, a celebration of the proclaimed height of Sehanine’s power which often involves no small manner of music, drink and sex. Conversely, true adherents meet in secret for the more somber ceremony during the new moon, when Sehanine is said to have hidden her face as she conducts business not even her many allies may know. Sehanine’s temples operate largely independent of one another, though some maintain stronger alliances than others for various reasons, from proximity to theological descendance. Likewise, her followers often broker strong associations with the faithful of her many paramours, with Corellon, Melora, and Avandra being most common. Little known to most, some of the oldest temples to Sehanine, in Aethrennar, maintain connections to Lolth’s peoples, considering them still part of the larger elduar community. That these connections provide even greater information-gathering opportunities is considered merely a corollary benefit.
Divine empowered followers of Sehanine are only rarely adventurers in the traditional sense, largely avoiding the guilds and their focus on the Changing wilds. Despite some of her associations, Sehanine is largely a goddess of civilization, and the interests of her clergy reflect this. Nonetheless, some few clerics, paladin, invokers and avengers of the Lady of Arvandor operate as adventurers, maintaining valuable connections for their temples. Likewise, some illusionists, rogues, assassins and rangers are member of Sehanine’s cults, conducting missions similar to her more directly called clergy. Many adventurers, of course, enjoy the benefits of Sehanine’s temples, which are considered highly desirable accommodations when available. The information such widely traveled casual worshipers offer is often much more valuable than whatever donations may be asked.
