Nameless Shrine
Please note the events conveyed in this story are largely speculation and myth. Indeed all collected myth and hearsay is here presented for the best benefit of those who would seek to understand that which cannot be understood. In truth even the most esteemed soothsayer would have only partial knowledge of the event recounted below…
Example of map fragments which may indicate a ruin in the jungle which may be The Nameless Shrine or a related building from that era
In the depths of tangled jungles ‘some ways’ off from Maltano, in times now lost, a potent faith was born.
Said to be rooted in the power of ‘leylines’ this sect, started by an unknown and unknowable hero, did away with magic and instead discovered fantastic gifts of the mind. In time the growing power of their displays drew hundreds deep into the jungles, leading to the growth of tiny settlements well beyond any normal society. Their faith was said to be strong enough to keep the worst of the woods at bay, and against all odds and common sense, the Shrine, grew, and even prospered.
To further advance their already expanded mental state, the priests found, were gifted or otherwise discovered a potent drug which they called ‘The Fume’, said to be from exposure to the very heart of ‘ley essence’ imbibing this component in a ritual granted fantastic visions of wild gods walking among us and indeed left the mind altered. Insanity was not a tolerated concept, teachings were to shed normality, shed the way of the world and walk as a babe into the truth of nature and the ultimate power within.
Yet such aggressive advancement, such potent embrace of the Mystic arts could surely not last, and indeed, at the height of a most powerful ritual, the very earth became as glass and they stared through the depths into an unknowable eye.
Blink.
All was shattered. The ground heaved a quaked, and a massive fissure split the ritual chamber, as a violent shaking rippled across the jungle, the ritual chamber filled with Fume, and not a one who survived said ever a knowable word again. And yet. A great truth they had seen, perhaps the great truth. A fraction of a fraction fled the sundered tangle, and were said to have been the hands who laid the first foundations of a new Temple and the first stone in a massive wall which would eventually become the secretive town of Maltano.
Various Maps and impressions
Please note the maps presented below are combined from several ancient accounts, as well as other known maps of the time. In truth this Shrine has long been lost to the woods, and was by many accounts said to have been left in ruins after ‘a great quaking’. speculation and myth. Indeed all collected myth and hearsay is here presented for the best benefit of those who would seek to understand that which cannot be understood. The author can in no way be held accountable for any inaccuracies held on these maps and impressions.
Recreated shrine appearance
Possible Shrine appearance
Shrine Plan
Upper Shrine rooms
- Mortician
- Acolytes Chambers
- Preprayeration
- Priest entryway
- Priest Chambers
- Raised Dias
- Decal and ritual pool
- Alter
- Amphitheatre
- Acolyte Study Wing
- Goods entry galley and events hall
- Hospice & catering
- Administration & Catering
- Attendee entry and social hall
- Reflection Wing
- Bell Tower
Upper Shrine Detail
- Mortician
• Preparation for funerals and burials - Acolytes Chambers
• Multilevel living quarters for those studying at the Shrine - Preprayeration
• Blessing and pre-ritual chamber used before ceremonies or gatherings. Also serves as a study or reflection area. - Priest entryway
• Priests and High Priest entry way for ceremonies or gatherings. - Priest Chambers
• Ground level devoted to High Priest Chambers, with upper levels containing housing chambers for senior priests. - Raised Dias
• All the better for proclamations, features a prominent relief depicting divinity near incarnate. - Decal and ritual pool
• Pool used for several rituals most often induction. - Alter
• Alter for prayer where many have basked in the power of the divine, cried for help, received guidance, or given commune with the hero-founder of the shrine - Amphitheatre
• Congregation gathers here and files down to pray, dance or chant before the alter. - Acolyte Study Wing
• When not in use for ceremony, this area serves as a study for young acolytes and sages devoted to furthering their faith and mastering rites. - Goods entry galley and events hall
• Catering, hospice or other less usual goods come through here. May also serve as an impressive double door entry or exit for grand ceremonies or festivities. - Hospice
• Lay house for the sick - Administration & Catering
• Clerics and cooks share this space for planning and delivering meals. - Attendee entry and social hall
• Richly adorned entry way which serves as a social area before or after ceremonies or gatherings. Is also used as a dining hall for those who live at the Shrine. - Reflection Wing
• A space for those taken to direct contemplation by priests. - Bell Tower
• A proudly cast bell which calls to those near and far.
Lower Shrine Map & Key
Lower Shrine Rooms
- Mortician cold store
- Lower ceremony chamber
- Arch-priest basement
- Hall of Tribute
- Secret & secured entry
- Records Chamber
- Library
- Clerks office
- Treasury
- Arch Priest Hidden entry
- Ritual Chamber
Full Detail Lower Shrine Map
Lower Shrine Detail
- Mortician cold store
• Implements, liquids, general supplies and anything that needs to be kept cold for an extended period, or out of ‘the way’. - Lower ceremony chamber
• A large chamber whose entry way is a large concealed swivel stair beneath ritual pool above. - Arch-priest basement
• Personal extended chambers of the High Priest - Hall of Tribute
• A hall honouring former High Priests and the fallen founder of the shrine, said to be an unknown hero, here lie the remains and faceless effigy. - Secret & secured entry
• Morticians secret entry also serves as storage for things that really need to be kept out of sight. - Records Chamber
• Highly fragile, ancient, sacred, dangerous, or otherwise restricted text - Library
• Histories, lore and religious text and prose - Clerks office
• Financial and administrative records - Treasury
• Strongroom for collected wealth of the Shrine, believed to have been lost/left in the aftermath of the quake. - Arch Priest Hidden entry passage
• A dank and cut stone tunnel ending in a large chamber. - Ritual Chamber
• Thrumming with power this ‘too clean’ stone cavern is featureless but for an extensive and beguiling series of potent ritual circles, some gilded by gold or electrum, that seem to ooze a deep chill.
An example of collabration
In the interests of displaying collaboration which is something that we find rather appealing please find digital versions of the Original Upper and Lower Shrine concepts which may make for cleaner more reusable maps. These were produced in collaboration with a different concept artist from our community.
Effigy to the unknown fallen hero, may they lie ever undisturbed.
A note on usage, and a word to potential DMs
Some names and detail are intentionally left open to ensure a clean fit into any setting, however it is also intended as a part of the CollabSetting being built by DungeoneersGuild Community, the reference to Maltano is a town on the setting whose concept can be found here: https://steemit.com/tabletop-rpg/@digitalpnut/maltano
If it was not clear enough (and it may not have been) the priests of this Shrine are intended to be steeped in the Mystic and Psionic arts, they have forgone all connection to 'magics' in order to begin the arduous path to attain this state.
Not entirely sure which is the latest playtest material but please feel free to refer to this link for additional context: https://media.wizards.com/2017/dnd/downloads/UAMystic3.pdf
Parts of the map such as the ritual circle, the bell tower, and decal on the front of the temple have been left indisctinct as it is intended that the DM flavour and adapt certain features to better fit within the context of their campaign.
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