Tyrl , The Mountain Lord, Elder God of Wisdom, Winter, Mountains, Death, and Mines
Worship of the Mountain Lord begins in Richtcrag. Richtcrag is a land filled with a variety of different geographies, and one of them is Kupferhügel, a land of mountains, snow, and mining. As such, a god was bound to step up to help represent this land and all it held: harsh winters, rich mines, mountains, wisdom required to survive in the land, and the death that can come so easily in the land.
His worshipers are mainly peasants and common folk who work, live, or come from the land. However, priests and lairds of other lands often pray to him, looking for wisdom when in need or unsure of what would be the better decision or road to take.
His primary portfolio is that of Wisdom, Mountains, and Winter, but has some hold over Death and the treasures within the mountains themselves. With such a large and unusual array of realms in his control, Tyrl is an ancient and powerful member of Richtcrag’s pantheon.
Tyrl is a passive deity when it comes to his followers, usually rewarding them for patience and learning. When it comes to intervening in mortal affairs, he usually only directly intervenes in times of extreme danger while in the mountains.
The Mountain Lord is usually depicted as an old man with a long snow-white beard, his body muscular and scarred. He is often depicted wearing a rich stone-gray robe with a silver chain wrapped many times around his waist. Upon his head is a crown of gold with five gems, each a different color (ruby, emerald, diamond, jet, and white opal).
In one hand, he carries a tome which holds the wisdom of the lands with a quill of Grey, purple, and blue feathers. In the other, he holds a mace. While many debates what the tome represents, a popular theory is that it represents the truth of the world: what it holds and what it could become. Upon his shoulder sits a peregrine falcon, and falcons are often believed to be his messengers of warning and caution in the near future.
His image is often found in temples, libraries, and places of learning where his power is said to hold more sway. However, wealthier lairds and nobles often have effigies, statues, or stained-glass depictions put into their homes to help grant them the wisdom to lead their people.
Worship of Tyrl
Tyrl’s worshipers traditionally pray at dusk, praying and mentioning what they learned throughout their day. The prayers generally take around thirty minutes to perform and include offerings of incense, a blank scroll, and prayers of wisdom and knowledge-seeking.
For meditation, a person must find peace within, hold onto a scroll and begin their meditations, praying for the gift of mana to further bring wisdom to the people.
Rituals of Tyrl
•Offering of Wisdom: Once a year, a holy person of Tyrl must offer up one scroll or book to a place of learning. This scroll or book must contain the knowledge learned throughout the previous year on one subject of their choice. This is usually given at the winter solstice at night.
• Ritual of Sending: Upon the death of an individual, it is the duty of the priest to prepare the body for either burial or cremation. They are to place tokens of loved ones, weapons or items held in importance to the individual, and religious symbols. Before they are to be sent, the holy person is to meditate with the body in front of them, seeking any knowledge the spirit is willing to offer up before departing to the mana stream. Once the ritual is performed, they are to aid in the performance of the preferred ritual of death for that individual’s deity.