Greensingers

Nearly all Greensingers are elves or half-elves, with a scattering of humans. They are habitués of Thelanis, if not natives of that plane, spending more time among the fey court than in the material world. Although some learn the sect’s ways on Eberron, most go to Thelanis and return as emissaries and defenders of the fey. Those with elf blood are most closely attuned to the wild freedom embodied by the sect, but anyone who chafes at the strictures imposed by civilization, or even the limitations of another druid sect, is a candidate for the Greensingers.

Unlike the other Eldeen sects, most members of the Greensingers are druids, with rangers making up virtually all the rest. The sect contains a smattering of spirit shamans as well. “Lay” membership does not exist: Greensingers are magical beings who are all spellcasters of some sort (or at least hold the potential). Quite a few have some levels in an arcane spellcasting class, usually sorcerer.

Greensingers dwell only within the Twilight Demesne and Thelanis, although they might travel to other realms. When they send an ambassador to Eberron, the meeting occurs within the Towering Wood. Communication with far-off nations is through magical means (facilitated by Gatekeepers and the Siberys observatories) or messages carried by emissaries of those lands. It is possible the Greensingers would emerge into the world if a sufficiently great threat demanded it, but so far nothing has met that criterion (whatever it might be).

There is no official costume for the Greensingers; that would be anathema to their fierce individualism and wild nature. They present themselves as the spirit takes them, and might change their appearance many times, even in quick succession. Some adopt outlandish garb of bright colors and unusual materials; some are clad in leaves; some wear the richest robes and drape themselves with jewelry; some are as naked as the twilight sky of Thelanis. They do not care if they shock the sensibilities of “mundanes,” for only the great dance matters.

What motivates the Greensingers as a group, let alone each member, is a mystery to all who are not part of the sect. Indeed, the sheer chaos of the faction is inimical to establishing an overriding philosophy. The Greensingers do have one shared ideal, however, which they reveal only to those who are fit to enter their rarefied circle.

The great purpose of the Greensingers is this: All the planes of existence are part of nature, and all should be made manifest. Unlike every other druid sect, they have no horror of outsiders, considering them to be as natural as earthly creatures. If a thing exists, they say, it was meant to exist. Even such universally reviled monstrosities as daelkyr and undead creatures are obviously intended to be. And existence itself is the highest authority to the Greensingers.

They also seek more connections between Thelanis and all the other planes, not just Eberron. They are most active when another plane becomes coterminous with Eberron, trying to anchor a portion of its essence to the material world even after its orbit takes it away. They also study the movements of the outer planes with respect to one another, and the effects of their being coterminous with and distant from other planes. Few are more expert on planar matters than the Greensingers.

The sect is generally reclusive, with no formal organization, and its members never go in search of new recruits. Those enraptured by the rhythms of the great dance of life eventually make their own way to the Twilight Demesne. Sooner or later, the walls between the planes grow thin, and they step into the Faerie Court. They might never return, content to spend the endless evenings in revelry while centuries pass on Eberron. Only a very few are interested in becoming official agents of the fey, and only a few of those become Greensingers.

Simply being attracted to the Faerie Court is not sufficient for membership, nor even is spending time in Thelanis’s revels. Not even expressing admiration for and devotion to the fey qualifies someone. There must be an ineffable spark, something of the unearthly, within a petitioner’s psyche. Those who have such a spark recognize it in others, and they actively encourage such people to visit Thelanis in the hope of bringing them to the sect. They expose the potential recruits to the concept of planar solidarity, showing them Thelanis’s manifest zones and watching their reactions carefully. Candidates who accept this wider view of reality are approached for membership; those who are too narrow-minded remain as guests of Thelanis but never learn the inner mysteries of the Greensingers.

There is none. The Greensingers are fiercely independent, and no one voice directs the sect’s policies. Major decisions are undertaken by the entire group, and every voice has equal weight, whether that of the rawest initiate or a respected elder druid.

The sect does not even operate in circles as others do. Each member does as he wishes, furthering the overall ambition of the Greensingers in his own way. Even if the purpose is not readily discernible, his actions are not questioned. The only exception is behavior that obviously threatens Thelanis, such as allying with the Puritan sect of the Silver Flame (who believe that fey are abominations not far down the scale from fiends). Even then, the Greensingers are more likely to call an emergency meeting to question the transgressor’s intention than take immediate, radical action.

A Greensinger undertaking some sort of activity usually attracts others among the sect who have similar outlooks. So, for example, a druid who has begun to lay the groundwork for locating a Syrania manifest zone in the Towering Woods might be assisted by other spellcasters, both arcane and divine. Rangers who see the wisdom of this act gather to protect those who are engaged in it.

Contrary to the purpose of the Gatekeepers, the Greensingers welcome the opening of planar connections between the worlds. To them, the gates to Xoriat and even Dal Quor were meant to be, and expending effort keeping them closed is a waste. That is not to say that effort should be expended on opening them either—if they are a natural part of the world, they will open regardless of others’ actions.

Their fascination with discovering and creating manifest zones seems to be a contradiction to this idea, but to their way of thinking, it is not a contradiction. A manifest zone allows the attributes of another plane to mingle with this one, sharing its distinctive features without breaking the boundary. The strange and wondrous are irresistible to Greensingers, and magical locations attract them most of all.

All forms of existence, even if it is not technically “life,” are worthwhile to the Greensingers. They espouse no duty to destroy certain kinds of creatures. On the other hand, an individual member might embark on a campaign to eradicate, say, all the displacer beasts in an area. The reason might be to maintain ecological balance, to keep the creatures’ presence from interfering with magical energies needed to form a manifest zone, or to accomplish some other goal incomprehensible to most. Unless the group as a whole sees grave danger in such activities, it does not interfere. Each member performs his duties to existence as he sees fit.

The do-what-thou-wilt mentality of the Greensingers makes expulsion from the sect extremely difficult and unlikely. Even activities that seem inimical to the sect’s aims do not result in immediate retaliation. But if the group decides it has been wronged, there is no limit to the retribution it might take. Nature is cruel, as are enraged Greensingers. Mere death is not usually enough punishment. The offender might be “pinned to the sky” (trapped on the Astral Plane) or turned into a block of stone, then left for the elements to erode.

Someone who actively turns against the Greensingers never does so openly until he can make his escape to a likely refuge. The Greensingers’ talent for planar travel makes hiding from them a challenge, but serious renegades are surrounded by strong allies. The most infamous betrayer of the sect is Anthelnas ir’Phiarlan “the Pure,” who was converted to the Silver Flame in 820 YK and joined the Puritan crusade against lycanthropes, even laying waste to portions of the Towering Wood in his zealotry.

The Greensingers do not set quests for their members. The process of selection and initiation is rigorous enough that further proof of devotion is not necessary. Each member is expected to serve the sect’s interests according to his own nature. Occasionally the Faerie Court calls on a senior Greensinger to act as a go-between to one of the outside worlds. Such requests are not mandatory, but refusing incurs the displeasure of the fey.

Ritual is too formal an activity to capture the wild hearts of the Greensingers. Specific activities appeal to given followers—at least until something else takes their fancy— but no liturgy or prescription can ever apply to them.

Initiation

Initiation of a new Greensinger is not a formal process— nothing within the sect is—but requires that the entire organization meet at the heart of the Twilight Demesne. Given their small numbers (only a few hundred) and limited travels, calling such an assembly is relatively simple. All of the assembled are free to question the candidate and satisfy themselves as to her qualifications; this interrogation can be intense and might last for many hours. Finally the assembly votes. Only on unanimous consent does the candidate become a Greensinger.

Immediately on joining the sect, the new initiate undergoes the ritual of the timeless soul (Player’s Guide to Eberron 60) to enable her to pass between the planes easily.

Minor Rites

Greensinger rites, such as they are, express personal quirks. One member might plant reath vines (ECS 92) wherever she travels; another might sing continually. Such pursuits can end suddenly, to be replaced by the latest interest, but while the Greensinger is intent on them, she pursues them to the point of obsession.

The Greensingers are one of the druidic sects of the Eldeen Reaches whose bards and bardic magic are an important part of its daily life. The Greensingers seek to live in harmony with the fey and to stand between Thelanis and Eberron. They celebrate story through song, and love to explore fey techniques of enchantment and illusion, making the College of Glamour a common path. Greensinger bards are charged to spread stories or search for new ones. It isn’t uncommon for an archfey patron to task Greensingers with toil in the mortal world. If your character hails from the Reaches, is your bond to the wild wood, the sect, or directly with the fey? Did you spend your childhood lost in Thelanis? Do you enjoy the chaos of the Fey, or truly believe that the Fey can make this mundane world a better place?

The sect is so isolated, and its goals so unfathomable, that most people are unaware of its existence. If its goal of planar mingling were better known, the likely result would be alarm. And should the group succeed in creating new planar accesses, the world would become aware of them soon enough.

Other than the nominal government of the Eldeen Reaches, which maintains contact with most of the druid sects, other nations know almost nothing of the Greensingers and their activities. On rare occasions, the Faerie Court has need of a messenger to travel to another realm, but this is more in the nature of a private consultation than a full diplomatic mission. Human governments receive the fey emissaries with a mixture of curiosity and apprehension; Aerenal elves (especially the ancestors) relish the intellectual exchange; what the dragons think, only they and the Greensingers know. Other governments of Eberron seem to hold little interest for the Faerie Court, but they do send emissaries to other planes from time to time.

The Greensingers do not pay attention to much outside the Twilight Demesne. Even cults dedicated to destroying their way of life mean little to them.

Specific Attitudes

The Wardens of the Wood: They seem harmless and pleasant enough. Many have stepped into Thelanis and found welcome in the court. They are perhaps too fond of iron, though.

The Ashbound: To them, Thelanis does not belong to the natural world. How strange. Are not all the planes of existence of necessity natural?

The Children of Winter: While their effort to enhance Mabar’s manifest zone is fascinating, their obsession with but a single facet of existence makes them weird and dangerous.

The Gatekeepers: They have the patience of the immortal folk, though their lives are short. But they do not understand the balance of all planes.

The Twilight Demesne is the eternal meeting place of the fey and the Greensingers on Eberron. It is as close to a temple as exists for the Greensinger sect. Here, two planes meet and mingle, their borders uncertain. It is a model for other planar joinings. The Greensingers spend most of their time here, when they are not exploring other planes and manifest zones. They travel freely to Thelanis to tell tales of their adventures there, and to hear wondrous lore in return

Although the magic of creating new manifest zones escapes the sect as a whole, individual explorers have accumulated lore of an ancient, mighty ritual perfected by the giants of Xen’ drik. Their studies suggest that the giants found a way to thin the walls between the worlds, and that their experiments led to the Quori invasion. Greensinger scholars are deeply divided on the matter of reopening such investigations. Some argue that creating manifest zones is not the same as opening portals, and agitate for making the attempt as soon as possible. Others resist the idea of forming artificial connections between the planes, especially if they should end up threatening the Twilight Demesne or Thelanis. (Like anyone else, the Greensingers can be self-contradictory when their own safety is at stake.)

Some Greensingers have taken it on themselves to attempt creation rituals. Those who agree follow their leaders to isolated regions, often in places where the planar barriers seem already thin (such as the Shadow Marches, the Mournland, and Xen’ drik). There they spend years experimenting with group magic to produce manifest zones.

Learning the true motivation of the Greensingers was difficult enough. Divining their attitudes toward death, souls, and the afterlife has been nearly impossible. On the one hand, they are fey and fey-touched. One common belief is that such creatures have no souls, being near-immortal spirits of nature. Their fascination with all the planes of existence seems to bear this out. They seem interested in them, not as destinations for the soul, but simply as other parts of the world.

But even if that is so, it does not explain the many elves and elvenkin who inhabit the Twilight Demesne. We have seen the resurrection of dead elves, so it would seem an independent soul of some kind exists, whether it travels to Dolurrh or elsewhere upon death. Perhaps entry into the Greensingers confers some sort of immortality, in exchange for anchoring the soul forever to its body? Does one, in effect, join the faerie folk by taking up the green?

Those of the Faerie Court do not discuss it.

The chaos that embodies the Greensinger sect does not lend itself to formal identification. However, when there is need to send an emissary to other lands, that messenger wears a brooch in the shape of a green leaf with a thirteen-pointed star superimposed upon it, representing the planes of existence.