About: Su Piggaro’s Cathedral

How do you build a city? One block at a time, one brick at a time, one life at a time, one death at a time, one day at a time, one spring, one summer, one autumn, one winter. Year after year. You build a city with a million fibres woven with thoughts of electricity.

Thoughts build things.

Now how about that?

Without thought, nothing happens.

The blessing (curse) of consciousness spawns a powerful thought: meaning. What is the meaning of existence? From there, thinkers (powerful and weak) conjure/discover/whatever their gods. Althanas has lots of gods, like most realms of living thought do.

And so, the most famous city in the known world must surely have an equally famous monument and place of worship for those gods? Su Piggaro’s Cathedral.

Where is Su Piggaro’s Cathedral?

The cathedral grows up out of a hillock at the southern tip of the city. If anybody was to bother investigating, they’d find that the structure’s position held some sort of celestial significance—i.e the stars in the night sky influenced the building on the ground. But, it wasn’t all esoteric, anybody could appreciate the sun rising through the front stained glass and setting through the rear stained glass. It was a neat trick, a real light show!

The builders knew: sun + colourful glass = magical feelings of devotion in the congregation.

What Does Su Piggaro’s Cathedral Look Like?

Su Piggaro’s jagged spires faded in the dreary Radasanthian fog; the grey slate roof riles were a fitting companion for the city’s everyday drizzle. Designed with arches, eaves, and overhangs, the religious megalith haunted congregations; that grim aesthetic occupied worshipers with the uneasy call of the grave. Gargoyles, each more ugly than the last, leered at the outside world’s invisible demons.

Companion to the gargoyles, were the cathedral’s resident crows. Imaginative types believed the crows protected the holy grounds. As long as the black-feathered squawkers held loyal with their noisy vigil, then the ancient building would be protected and would never fall.

Inside the oak doors and stained glass windows, the building was no less grandiose. The footfall clicks echoed through the cavernous interior and across the solemn pews and central pulpit.

What Religion is Su Piggaro’s Cathedral Dedicated To?

Bigotry’s a terrible thing—nobody wants to be treated like garbage because of their race or their religion, do they? Well, Radasanth isn’t “too bad”. Although, really, it’s like any other city in that you’ll encounter xenophobia in the public houses, or you might be confronted with a racist or two cheering venom at the Citadel, but in general, religious freedom is fairly well respected at least.

It wasn’t always that way. To be specific, when Su Piggaro’s Cathedral was first constructed, it was for the exclusive use of the Thayne. Followers of that creed are, of course, still numerous and welcome at the cathedral. In fact, renowned Paladin, Lorenor Valkoren, can often be found at the cathedral studying the religion’s ancient codex.

In modern times, though, the cathedral has become a universal home for spiritual devotion. Enemies or not, the sanctuary of the cathedral is respected by all. Worshipers of the Salvaran Ethereal Sway pray along side the Raiaeran Evlish Pantheon.

One of the most famous locations within the Su Piggaro Cathedral grounds is the Court of Many Shrines. Positioned around the circular court are shrines to gods from religions major and minor.

Monks of Su Piggaro’s Cathedral

The cathedral is considered a sanctuary. Its status as a sanctuary is not protected by any spell bound into the building itself. Nevertheless, an acceptance that blood should not be spilt on Piggaro’s sacred ground is well respected in Radasanthian society.

Respect is powerful, but not as powerful as the Piggarite Monks who protect the cathedral. Piggarites are former Ai’bron monks who converted due to their objections regarding the wanton violence of the Citadel.

Rejecting the Ai’bron order is not common and comes with certain consequences. In the Citadel, the Ai’bron are practically all powerful. When leaving the Ai’bron to become a Piggarite, a monk’s power is significantly diminished. Despite being weaker, though, Piggarites remain strong enough to protect the Piggaro cathedral.

The Catacombs, Sewers and Secrets of Su Piggaro’s Cathedral

As haunting as the cathedral’s architecture might be, it falls behind the morbid truth of what lies beneath.

Under the Cathedral of Su Piggaro is a seemingly endless network of tunnels which are lined with the bones of thousands upon thousands of Radasanth’s citizens. Those are Piggaro’s catacombs.

While, the cathedral is paired with a cemetery, only a select few are honoured with a burial there. The rest of Radasanth’s poor bastards end up in the tunnels, unmarked.

Intertwined with the catacombs are the cathedral’s broad sewers. Their over-sized breadth came as a design choice: the channels of shit and piss can also be used to secretly navigate the city. The sewers connect to just about anywhere in Radasanth.

That isn’t the only secret the cathedral holds, though. In addition to the underground tunnels, there are many hidden doors leading to secret rooms. These spots have been used for hiding in times of violent strife.

Who Was Su Piggaro?

Who was Su Piggaro?—gosh, it’s a great question. And the historians at the university talk about it incessantly. The dour opinion of the peer reviewed learned is that Su Piggaro probably never existed. Or, maybe there was a guy (they say) that maybe, kinda, mighta been who the legend of Su Piggaro was built upon.

But, if you pick out a born and raised Radasanthian and ask them who Su Piggaro was, then you’ll find out for sure. According to most, Piggaro was one of the founders of the earliest settlements near where Radasanth is today. So, that puts Piggaro older (much older) than the hero Radasanth—that’s right, the fella the city itself is named after.

Piggaro was born in the mountains, near the source of the Niema River. After receiving a vision instructing him, the young Piggaro followed the river all the way to its estuary. It was there that he was (supposedly) told to found a village.

In modern times, Su Piggaro is considered as a sort of spiritual patron for the city. Proud citizens wear his symbol around their necks.