Keep of the Silver Flame

The priests of the Silver Flame have always sought to spread their faith, and when word reached Thrane of the new city taking shape across the Thunder Sea, the cardinals were quick to send ministers and templars to the shattered land. A wave of Thrane immigrants helped establish the keep now found in the Temple district. Keeper Tzandra had a vision of a ministry that would bring the Flame to the drow and the giants and a bastion that would hold back any darkness that might threaten the city.

Reality fell far short of the dream. Stormreach was founded by pirates and smugglers, and the priests of the Silver Flame received a cold welcome. Missionaries sent to spread the word to the dark elves rarely returned, and by the time King Thalin of Thrane died, only a single minister and a handful of acolytes were left at the keep. This proved to be another turning point for the Silver Flame in Stormreach. After long debate, they rejected the Keeper’s decision to assume control of Thrane. Both church and crown had roles to play, the priests explained, and it was a mistake for one to supplant the other; it would only lead the church away from its true purpose.

The Council of Cardinals was infuriated by this rebellion, but with the Last War in full swing, the Thranes couldn’t afford to send new forces to this distant post. Instead, the city was formally severed from Flamekeep. To this day, the keep receives no support from Thrane, and the faithful are warned to beware the words of these heretic priests. Now that the war is over, some believe that Flamekeep should reclaim the keep. However, the people of Embers stand behind their minister, and Keeper Jaela Daran is more willing to accept diversity than her predecessors had been; for the moment, Stormreach has been left on its own.

As a result, the Silver Flame has little power in Stormreach. Three priests serve at the keep: Minister Jirian Zayne (NG male half-elf adept 4/expert 3), Acolyte Myla Flamesworn (NG female human adept 1/expert 4), and Templar Guin Silverblood (LG male human expert 3/warrior 3), a master archer who trains members of the congregation in the use of the longbow. The keep is a sanctuary for the faithful of the Flame, and the priests of the temple are glad to work with traveling paladins or clerics. But they learned long ago that they lack the strength to fight the darkness within or below Stormreach, and they save their spells to protect those in true need of sanctuary.

Opposition to the theocracy is only one of the heretical beliefs found in Stormreach. A number of the people who helped establish Embers came to pursue their unconventional traditions without fear of persecution. Others have adapted their faith over the course of generations in Stormreach and exposure to legends of the past.

He only speaks of it to his most trusted parishioners, but Guin Silverblood practices the traditions of an ancient serpent cult, passed down to Guin’s father by a feathered yuan-ti. Although the values are similar to those of the modern church, this faith teaches that the Silver Flame was kindled by the sacrifice of the couatls in the dawn times; Tira Miron and the Keeper of the Flame are stewards who bring the light of the Flame to humans too limited to see the ancient force on their own. Guin has served as an intermediary for the shulassakar yuan-ti in the past, and this could serve as the basis for an adventure.

When the city of Stormreach was founded in 802 YK, the Church of the Silver Flame sent templars and flamebearers to the distant city to protect the new settlers and spread the faith. They had lofty dreams of bringing the drow and the remnants of the giants into the fold, but reality fell short. The people of Stormreach didn’t welcome the arrival of the Church in their city, and those that ventured into the jungle to speak to the drow, or the giants rarely returned.

The Church had only a token force in the city when Thrane became a theocracy, a decision that did not sit well with the faithful in Stormreach. The priests rejected Keeper Serrain’s decision to accept control of Thrane, they argued that such an action would entangle the Church’s mission in politics. The government and the church both had roles to play, and one organisation could not hope to do both. (This viewpoint was also held by the Knights of Thrane that remained in Stormreach, who remain loyal to the Thranish royal family.)

The Church in Stormreach formally separated from Flamekeep. They do not receive resources from Thrane. There are some among the ministry who believe that Thrane should dedicate forces to reclaiming Stormreach, but Keeper Jaela Daran is far more tolerant of diversity within the faith than her predecessors. The faithful within Stormreach also stand by their priests, who are vocally in opposition of the theocracy.

Today, the Church of Embers, named for the district it is in, is maintained by only three priests: Minister Jirian Zayne (male half-elf flamebearer, he/him), Flamebearer Myla Flamesworn (female human flamebearer, she/her) and Knight-Diligent Guin Silverblood (male human oathsworn templar, he/him). These three see to the needs of the faithful in Stormreach, but they lack the strength or the numbers to really fulfil their mission of holding back the darkness, and they know it.

Minister Jirian Zayne acts as leader of the Church of Embers, and he has not only come to accept the variations in belief that the people of Stormreach have but has fostered it. He strongly believes that the diversity of thought makes the Church stronger, and he goes out of his way to ensure the wellbeing of all of those under his care. He is often frustrated by the Church of Embers’ lack of resources, but he is hardline in his stance that the Church should not have taken power from the monarchy of Thrane.

Knight-Diligent Guin Silverblood has beliefs that would be considered unorthodox by the mainline church in Thrane but doesn’t stand out among the Embers. He follows the traditions of an old serpent cult, passed down to his family by a shulassakar. The Church of Embers teaches that the Silver Flame was created during the Age of Demons by the sacrifice of the couatl, and that Tira Miron’s own sacrifice allowed her to bring the message of the couatl to the masses. The Embers do not worship the Silver Flame directly, but instead pay homage to the couatl that formed it.

Source: Sarhain's Guide to the Silver Flame