Rachel - Hero Guide

Character info, Review, Recommendations, Tips, etc

The Order of the Holy Citadel claims to embody the “still-living will” of the Goddess of Light over Aurelica and dispense her boons to the rest of humanity. In their retelling, the Goddess never fell to earth during the War in Heaven, but remains present to guide and protect her pious followers.

Although the Holy Order shares the same roots with the Halo of Dawn, the two organizations have long since parted ways due to what the former considers the Halo of Dawn’s “unorthodox” embrace of powers outside the pure Light. One of the first steps of the first Archcleric of the Holy Citadel, Vane, was to declare any so-called “alternative guidance” and belief except in the Goddess herself an “anathema” to be wiped out. Vane’s chance to obtain religious purity came quickly enough when the two groups splintered.

As Vane’s Holy Citadel had come from the Goddess of Light, so too did he insist his clerics must unshackle themselves from any other power. The power of the Light must be enough; if it wasn’t, then it must be amplified by arcane ritual. Thus, the Holy Citadel organized great assemblies of clerics to magnify Aurelica’s Light element. However, as the rituals grew and magnified the strength of the Light, so too the Dark followed – particularly within the hearts of humankind. Of course, this was known only to the highest members of the Order – and then hoped against rather than Openly admitted.

Time has whittled away at the Holy Citadel’s once-mighty edifice, today officially run by the kind-hearted and devoted Archcleric Rachel. She has only started to suspect the truth of her Order’s terrible choices throughout history and her role as a figurehead to its cynical factions. Nevertheless, Rachel is determined to replace the Order’s fervent propaganda and indoctrination machine with concrete actions to protect the land on behalf of the Light. She has also begun to realize the ill-effects of the Order’s rituals to augment the power of the Light, and would see the practice investigated and halted. For this reason, whatever true power of the Goddess resides in Aurelica can surely be said to reside by her side.

Archcleric Rachel may represent little more than a figurehead to the most powerful factional rivals – Edicris of the old guard conservatives and Urion of the pro-imperialists. Each seeks to use Rachel’s popularity to advance their own ends. On the other hand, Rachel has wisdom far more remarkable than her years and the courage to stick to her convictions in both the Light and her own sense of right and wrong above such petty squabbles. Indeed, her objective is nothing less than reforming the entire Order from within.