The Cathedral of the Silver Flame, or the Grand Cathedral, is a self-sufficient temple the size of a small city[note 1] where the Church of the Silver Flame is headquartered.[1][2][3]
History[]
The Cathedral of Flamekeep began as a small temple or stone castle, built around the site where Tira Miron plunged her sword Kloinjer through the coiling couatl and the Shadow in the Flame, binding the fiend and ending the Year of Blood and Fire in the month of Olarune of 299 YK.[2][3]
Description[]
The Chamber of the Flame within the interior of the Grand Cathedral.
The Grand Cathedral is visible from all corners of the city of Flamekeep. The Cathedral rests at the highest point in the city, and its alabaster walls are decorated with various gargoyles,[note 2] icons, and angelic depictions. It has numerous flying buttresses and stained-glass windows along the exterior. The interior is black marble with silver inlaid patterns. Thousands can fit in the nave, the central part of the church meant to house congregants.[3]
A map of the Cathedral of the Silver Flame after suffering battle damage to the structure.
The Chamber of the Flame is a vast room deep within the structure with a mosaic-tiled floor and a pillar of silver light. This is where the Keeper of the Flame communes with the Voice of the Flame.[3][4] This pillar of silver fire is a manifestation of the Silver Flame, not the source of power itself.[2] Pilgrims consider the Chamber to be a holy site where the Purified make pilgrimages in hopes of hearing the Voice of the Silver Flame.[5] Tira's sword Kloinjer is said to be buried nearly to the hilt within the chasm beneath the site, keeping all three entities bound for all time.[6]
Directly above the Chamber of the Flame, a great fire burns atop the Cathedral 24 hours a day, 336 days a year. This light means that those in the surrounding neighborhoods never experience true darkness. The flame is never allowed to gutter or sputter out, and gives the illusion of the Silver Flame rising into the night sky itself. The fire normally burns silver, but burns a deep blue when a Keeper passes to symbolize mourning until a new Keeper is announced by the Diet of Cardinals.[1]
In the cloisters below, high-ranking priests live and work. The offices of the Council of Cardinals, templar garrison, and Keeper of the Flame's personal residence are all in the lower levels of the church.[3] The church contains sanctuaries, libraries, and gardens that would allow for the hundreds of inhabitants to maintain a good quality of life for several months if ever cut off from the outside world.[1]
The Cathedral connects to the castle of Thalingard through a gray stone causeway.[4]
Inhabitants[]
The Council of Cardinals is headquartered within the cathedral, and garrisons of divine warriors also dwell there.[3]
Jaela Daran rarely leaves the Cathedral of the Flame. When she does, she has elaborate precautions for her own protection.[7] Jaela is always accompanied in the Cathedral by her dragonhound pet and guardian, Skaravojen.[4]
The Grand Cathedral contains artisans, soldiers, and many priests within its walls.[1]
The most prestigious seminary within the Church of the Silver Flame, the Psalm of the Flame Seminary or the "Great Seminary," is found within the walls of the Cathedral.[8]
Rumors & Legends[]
Deep below the modern cathedral, in a secret level unknown even to the Keeper of the Silver Flame and the Council of Cardinals, Tira Miron's former companion Prefect Samyr Kes leads the secret organization known as Miron's Tears from his hidden library.[9]
Appendix[]
Notes[]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Rising from the Last War calls the Grand Cathedral "the size of a small city," while Faiths of Eberron calls the cathedral a "town-sized castle." This entry reflects the latest description of the Cathedral being city-sized. However, there is no real contradiction here, depending on the definition of 'town' and 'castle'.
- ↑ Whether these are mundane grotesques, monstrous gargoyles, or wingwyrds is unclear.
References[]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 Jennifer Clarke Wilkes, Ari Marmell, & C.A. Suleiman (2006). Faiths of Eberron. (Wizards of the Coast), pp. 67–68. ISBN 0-7869-3934-6.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Keith Baker, Jeremy Crawford, & James Wyatt (2019). Eberron: Rising from the Last War. (Wizards of the Coast), p. 144. ISBN 0786966890.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 James Wyatt and Keith Baker (2009). Eberron Campaign Guide. (Wizards of the Coast), pp. 103–104. ISBN 0-7869-5099-4.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 Bill Slavicsek, David Noonan, and Christopher Perkins (2005). Five Nations. (Wizards of the Coast), p. 147. ISBN 0-7869-3690-8.
- ↑ Keith Baker, Bill Slavicsek, & James Wyatt (2004). Eberron Campaign Setting. (Wizards of the Coast), p. 209. ISBN 0-7869-3274-0.
- ↑ Keith Baker, Bill Slavicsek, & James Wyatt (2004). Eberron Campaign Setting. (Wizards of the Coast), p. 206. ISBN 0-7869-3274-0.
- ↑ Bill Slavicsek, David Noonan, and Christopher Perkins (2005). Five Nations. (Wizards of the Coast), p. 138. ISBN 0-7869-3690-8.
- ↑ Jennifer Clarke Wilkes, Ari Marmell, & C.A. Suleiman (2006). Faiths of Eberron. (Wizards of the Coast), p. 58. ISBN 0-7869-3934-6.
- ↑ Keith Baker (November 2012). “Eye on Eberron: Miron's Tears” (PDF). In Steve Winter ed. Dragon #417 (Wizards of the Coast), p. 30.