A Brief Overview of Mystaran Mystical Orders
by Christopher CherringtonMany of the ancient beliefs of the monastic orders of mysticism can be based from 2 families of thought, Mythraism and Cypricism. The latter being the most popular in Eastern trains of thought, both in Ochalea, and on the Isle of Dawn. Before the fall of the Ancient Empire of Alphatia, they had conquered the nearby civilisation of the Cypric peoples. For many years the Cypric peoples were not allowed to bear arms, nor did they show any aptitude for magic. A philosophic race of people, they turned inward on their beliefs and created the first monastic orders of mystics. These orders learned the use of turning normal everyday items into deadly weapons, and advanced orders actually turned their bodies into lethal weapons. Many of the first orders disguised themselves as clerical centres and as they advanced in thought, many of these first orders did gain immortal or outer being sponsorship. At the fall of Ancient Alphatia, many of the Cypric orders of mysticism settled in Ochalea. Here the orders advanced in peaceful clerical orders, and boast a huge variety of fighting styles, techniques, and unique weapon masteries. The orders influenced by the outer beings rapidly diminished, as the unique properties inherent to Mystara severed the ties of mysticism with the outer beings. The only orders of these types that survived usually will have a dark secret hidden well from the prying eyes of outsiders. The Mystics of Thothia, with their spider worship are one such group that mixed well with the Thothian populace and nobility. The Mythraism branch of mysticism has 3 major sub-groups. All seem to stem out from the Sindhi branch. The fighting orders of mystics in Sind tend to belief in thousands of separate incarnations of the immortals, and as such will have many such orders tending to each of the incarnations' train of thought. The eastern branch of this belief has only survived in Ethengarian lore as spirit worship and the spirit world; but it can also be assumed that much of the original beliefs could have been brought over by humanoid raids on earlier Ethengarians and brought westward to Sind, where spirit worship advanced into immortal incarnations. While early contact with Sindhi travellers and Traladaran merchants brought over a form of wrestling that endured with the Thyatian tradition of gladiatorial combat. Although in Thyatis, only a very few of the core beliefs of Sindhi Mysticism exists, and many new and modern philosophies abound, especially with a recent influx of Cypric/Ochalean core values of weapon combat. Most modern day Thyatian Mystics will align to one core thought and not mix in the beliefs of spirits, immortals, or incarnations.