
Faction
Philosophy
"Life is a test. Everything
around us is designed to test us, forge us as if we were metal in the smelters,
a mighty sword being hammered by our actions and surrounded by the fires of the
multiverse. As we make decisions, we either dull the blade, or sharpen it beyond
the imaginations of anyone in the multiverse. We ascend or descend through the
ladder; in each life we move up or down it based on our decisions. Life is a
karmic cycle: were we a slug in the previous life, then a prime in this one?
Anyone can advance to the mantle of godhood, all that's required is the proper
outlook on things and the proper actions. The 'powers' now aren't so incredibly
special: they're just people like ourselves that have taken the right actions,
learned the right lessons, and ascended through the karmic wheel into their
current positions. Work hard, and you could be one, too."
"Singing
pounded me in the ocean waves.
Without sight, without hearing,
I perceived the radiance
And the music
Such was my Source,
The origin from which all lives spring."
- A poem from the faction's beginning
"All life springs forward from
The Source, and the ultimate goal of all is to reunite yourself with it. As you
grow higher and higher, you begin to feel the vibrations and the rhythm of The
Source as it beats within the heart of every living being. I can feel it now,
only faintly. I have heard that Factol Ambar can hear it pulsing through every
living thing... allowing him to determine exactly where everyone else is on the
circle of ascension. Someday, I hope to be worthy of ascending to join our
previous leaders within The Source."
Faction Overview
The Believers of the Source are
one of the most open-minded groups in Sigil towards the multiverse. They believe
that anyone can become a god, even if you were borne ugly, with a horrible
defacing scar, or if you're just plain nasty. There is divinity within us all.
They say that this divinity is called The Source, from which all life in
existence springs from and is endowed with the innate desire to return to it.
The only way to feel the Source, say the Godsmen, is to advance along the path
of existence, climbing higher and higher until one is almost on level with it.
To feel its energies coursing through your body, to feel on the level of its
power... this is what it is to be a deity. To assume the mantle of godhood is to
become as close to the Source as one possibly can while remaining an
individual... it's said that to ascend beyond the state of 'power' is to reach
union with The Source, thus beginning their cycle over again on the karmic
wheel.
In Sigil, the Believers of the
Source (or Godsmen, as they are often called) make their home in the Great
Foundry of Sigil, where they work to forge tools and other metal objects.
Weapons aren't the most common export of the Great Foundry, though many are
indeed made. Many namers in the faction see a sort of beauty in the forging the
steel, as though they are forging themselves. However, most of them stay away
from the Foundry and spread throughout Sigil, seeking to the be tested by the
circumstances that the multiverse throws at them in the Center of All. Fiends,
celestials, other factions... they see Sigil as the testing ground of the
multiverse. It is there that they will ascend the highest the quickest. It is
here, where allies are made and enemies discovered, where only the strong
survive and the weak are paved under... it is here that they thrive. The current
factol of the Believers of the Source is a kind hearted half-elf named Ambar
Vergrove. Once, he lived in the Outlands until a series of unfortunate tragedies
drove him to Sigil where he lives now. He is currently one of the least aloof of
the factols: nobody in the Great Foundry calls him by his last name, he's the
friendly Factol Ambar, always out and working with his followers, always guided
them ever-closer to the path of ascension.
Of course, what the Godsmen
aren't sure about is exactly what they're being tested for. Ultimate good?
Ultimate evil? Order, disorder? They're not sure as a group, and as such tend to
be almost as fragmented as the Sign of One. However, because they're not as
egocentric as the Signers, several of them believe in either helping others
along the ladder of ascension. The more evil among them believe that they're
there to stunt the progress of others to godhood. The majority of them, however,
give a smile towards anyone else on the ladder: they're on the wheel just like
the rest of them, and it's not good form to kick someone while they're on their
way to the top.
Faction Life
The Believers of the Source are a
rather loose group in their jobs: there are many paths to ascension. Some pick
one task and stick to it. Others make it a point to better themselves through
performing many tasks. Many serve as smiths within the Great Foundry itself,
smelting the metal as if it were their own path of ascendancy. Others better
themselves through physical means: becoming the strongest, the quickest, the
most durable, and whatnot. Others teach themselves a skill becoming a master at
it, whether it be pottery, silversmithing, or scribing. Still others dabble in
knowledge, writing sagely treatises on almost anything imaginable. These people
base themselves into mastership: if they gain enough knowledge at something,
surely they'll ascend. They usually gain this knowledge from apprenticeship and
study; in the end, they all believe the Source, rising higher and higher towards
their origins.
Allies
The Athar get along with the
Believers of the Source because of their shared beliefs that the powers aren't
so special. However, the Believers of the Source don't have the denunciatory
tone towards them: the 'powers' are part of the Source, another group of beings
dedicated to reunion with their creator, only a little further along. Some
attempt to emulate these beings through worship, but eventually most lose
interest: they don't truly believe in the tenets of their power, only in their
current position.
The Sign of One, with its center
of self, are great friends with the Believers of the Source and there is indeed
a great deal of overlap between the two factions. The Sign of One believes that
the multiverse is imagined by them, and the Believers of the Source believe that
the multiverse is created to test them. Vaguely similar ideas, which usually
means that the two factions don't quarrel so much.
The idea that the multiverse is a
ring appeals to the Fraternity of Order, and they understand the Godsmen's view.
However, they see the Godsmen randomly try to pick tests for themselves, while
they're missing the whole point that the tests should be catalogued so that a
distinct path to ascension can be laid out.
In general, the Believers of the
Source find themselves well-liked wherever they go because of their open
attitudes towards all people and races.
Enemies
The Bleak Cabal,
seeing no point to the multiverse, doesn't find themselves on good terms with a
faction that believes the whole multiverse to be a test for ascension. Of
course, this isn't physical violence (it's never physical violence), just a dead
loathing and resentment for another philosophy. Of course, the majority of the
faction really just doesn't care. |