Post by Zillah on May 12, 2016 10:10:57 GMT -6
Life at a caern is not an idyllic retreat. There is work to be done in all seasons. Fields must be tended so both Garou and Kin can eat and still satisfy the tax collector on his visit IF the Caern is close enough to humanity to worry about such things.). Shelters and barns must be kept clean and in repair. (A lived in Caern is still a sacred place, and the spirits to not look kindly on filth and Squalor.) Wood must be cut and split for cook and for winter Warmth. And in addition to all those daily rituals of survival, the Garou must also be prepared to defend their caerns against fell Wyrm Creatures and sometimes even their own kind.
The Spiritual health of the caern is also requires constant tending. Good relations with the spirits in the local Umbra are vital to their Caern's survival/ Those spirits might be called upon to denfed the Case of a direct assault, but more importantly, spirits who are friendly to the caern report the building of enemy forces or a subt1e corruption of their own accord.The werewolves must also stay on the good side of the spirit world if they wish to advance in Garou society. It is the denizens of the Umbra who acknowledge and validate a Garou’s renown and who teach the Gifts appropriate to a werewolfs rank and station.
The heart of a caern is often a busy place in both worlds. Novices practicing their meditation will be sorely tested as spirits flicker and soar along currents of energy on one side of the thin curtain of the Gauntlet, while cubsrun to fetch ritual implements andritemasters dance and chant on the other. A werewolf must prove her talent and skill to the elder Theurges before she will be allowed to conduct rites at the caem’s heart. The risks involved - to the caern and to the inept leader of the rite - are too great.
Most importantly, the Garou at a caern must contribute their own spiritual energy to maintain the bonds between themselves and the totem, and those between the totem and the caern. This donation is commonly made during the revel that follows the monthly moot, when an Engling is hunted with great ceremony and sacrificed for its gift of Gnosis. A werewolf may give of himself whenever he feels moved to give, however channeling his energies to the caem through song, drumming or some other artistic endeavor.
What are the rewards for this constant toil? The least of the rewards is the honor that comes to a Garou who tends a caern. Garou without a caem to call home, anruth, are looked on with suspicion unless the caerns they once hailed from, or those they lately visited, speak well of them. The greatest reward is the power of the caern itself - pure Gaian energy transformed by the nature of the caern and channeled through the totem. This power is accessed using the Rite of the Opened Caern. As great as the Mother’s bounty is, there are limits to the power that can be drawn through a caern. The caern can be opened once between one moonrise and the next without risk; pulling more energy through the caerneach night risks damage to its spiritual structure. The risks are greater for small caerns than for large, powerful ones, but even so, caerns are not tapped repeatedly except in times of great danger - especially not in the darkness of a moonless night. In the cautionary tales related from mentor to young Theurge, the best result is that the caern simply closes itself and must regain its energy. The worst result is a caem that is permanently lessened after a night of wild battles - or worse, because of the ineptitude of a Master of the Rite.
The Spiritual health of the caern is also requires constant tending. Good relations with the spirits in the local Umbra are vital to their Caern's survival/ Those spirits might be called upon to denfed the Case of a direct assault, but more importantly, spirits who are friendly to the caern report the building of enemy forces or a subt1e corruption of their own accord.The werewolves must also stay on the good side of the spirit world if they wish to advance in Garou society. It is the denizens of the Umbra who acknowledge and validate a Garou’s renown and who teach the Gifts appropriate to a werewolfs rank and station.
The heart of a caern is often a busy place in both worlds. Novices practicing their meditation will be sorely tested as spirits flicker and soar along currents of energy on one side of the thin curtain of the Gauntlet, while cubsrun to fetch ritual implements andritemasters dance and chant on the other. A werewolf must prove her talent and skill to the elder Theurges before she will be allowed to conduct rites at the caem’s heart. The risks involved - to the caern and to the inept leader of the rite - are too great.
Most importantly, the Garou at a caern must contribute their own spiritual energy to maintain the bonds between themselves and the totem, and those between the totem and the caern. This donation is commonly made during the revel that follows the monthly moot, when an Engling is hunted with great ceremony and sacrificed for its gift of Gnosis. A werewolf may give of himself whenever he feels moved to give, however channeling his energies to the caem through song, drumming or some other artistic endeavor.
What are the rewards for this constant toil? The least of the rewards is the honor that comes to a Garou who tends a caern. Garou without a caem to call home, anruth, are looked on with suspicion unless the caerns they once hailed from, or those they lately visited, speak well of them. The greatest reward is the power of the caern itself - pure Gaian energy transformed by the nature of the caern and channeled through the totem. This power is accessed using the Rite of the Opened Caern. As great as the Mother’s bounty is, there are limits to the power that can be drawn through a caern. The caern can be opened once between one moonrise and the next without risk; pulling more energy through the caerneach night risks damage to its spiritual structure. The risks are greater for small caerns than for large, powerful ones, but even so, caerns are not tapped repeatedly except in times of great danger - especially not in the darkness of a moonless night. In the cautionary tales related from mentor to young Theurge, the best result is that the caern simply closes itself and must regain its energy. The worst result is a caem that is permanently lessened after a night of wild battles - or worse, because of the ineptitude of a Master of the Rite.