Alexin’s Adherents–a loose association of churches and adherents devoted to Alexin, an ancient mage who has roamed the world for thousands of years; Alexin has never claimed to be a god, but he is tremendously powerful and, apparently, immortal; he is also known as The Oldest One and The Ancient One.

The Ancient Tiberian Gods–a large brood of legendary gods supposedly descended from the Sun and the Moon; the contemporary names for the months and the days of the year descend from these gods, even though the average peasant or laborer might only be able to name one or two of the gods.

Independent Congregations–people are endlessly inventive at creating stories that explain why the world is languishing in its current state, and on the borders and in the areas with weaker governments, they tend to flourish in small congregations. Most are decent curious people, but some of the charismatic cults are engaged in disturbing activities.

The Celdon Monks–a large group of monk-mages who, along with the rest of their people, are refugees from a homeland conquered long ago by the Tiberian Empire; their beliefs align with the Southern Church’s doctrine in most areas, but they remain a more martial people than most other adherents; they are old adversaries of the Stradagh.

The God of War–versions of some of the old Tiberian gods are worshipped by many people, especially those from more martial traditions and societies; many mercenaries, pirates, and soldiers pray to a god of war with a variety of names.

The Humanists–the groups of scholars and, mostly, former university students who primarily focus on human affairs and see people as both the causes of problems and the sources of solutions; strong emphasis on the use of reason; numerous among the faculties at the University of Khartras, the residents of Port Liberty, and the people of the Three Rivers; some also adhere, to a degree, with one or more religions, but they emphasize the need for a group of Brethren or Sentinels to keep humanity from descending toward evil; Duke Aidan quietly establishes the Watchers of the Republic, a group of no more than twenty trusted men and women, each commanding no more than nine trusted agents, for a total of 200 Watchers, based on these ideas, which, as Randolph often pointed out, probably descended from earlier beliefs in the Northern Church’s scriptures; the Watchers are outside the normal political structure of the Southern Republic, but they are tasked and sworn to protect it against all internal and external enemies.

Nature Spirits, or Elementals–all three large groups of nomads worship the Father, the Mother, and their children (the elementals and the spirits representing most creatures and plants on the planet), although each group differs on how much power it attributes to specific minor gods or spirits; as an odd instance of congruence, the indisputable existence of elemental powers causes both nomad shamans and some scholars at the University of Khartras to believe that the planet itself is a living being with a conscious identity; some variance exists across the groups in regards to their conceptions of the Father and Mother.

The Nomad Pantheon (Southern Nomads)–worship of the Great Father and the Mother; prayers and worship in the Hunter’s Dance; prayers to Animal Spirit Elders (The Old Bear; The White Wolf; and so on); believe that a World Tree links spirits to different plains/planes of existence (land of the gods, living, and dead; land of the foul and forsaken).

The Northern Church–original version of the monotheistic religion that replaced the Old Tiberian Empire’s pantheon of gods; arguably succumbed to reactionary corruption, but in real power terms, it lost the ability to enforce its will on the entire south; the Church’s patriarch hopes to parley its support of Emperor Marcus into enough power to bring the wayward brethren back under its control.

The One True Faith–the Stradagh apparently worship some sort of pantheon of gods led by a dominant male god; many facts about their beliefs are speculative because they are secretive and have hidden for centuries while they recovered from the damage they suffered during the fighting that resulted in the Collapse; their god is an angry, vengeful god, though, without a doubt, and one who cares about strength and total victory; some scraps of ancient texts refer to The Thunder God and Lady Pain.

The Southern Church–splintered from the Northern Church of the Creator during the Great Schism after the Collapse of the Tiberian Empire; stressed by competing factions of corrupt and reformist clergy; guided by Pontiff Amadei, leader of the reformers, during the events in The Winds of Change trilogy; worships the Creator as the Sons and Daughters or Brothers and Sisters of a global family of humans; the corpus of old religious scriptures supports a number of established beliefs and practices.

The Trickster Pantheon–a small group of traveling players that never adds new members and has lost some members over the centuries; like Alexin, its members are worshipped by an assortment of spiritually curious people as well as many minstrels and players spread thinly across the lands; led by Konrad, who is the second oldest mage known to survive in the northern regions of the world; he and Imboden, the leader of the Stradagh, inflicted terrible personal losses upon each other long ago; Konrad swore a vow to avoid killing, but if anyone cold make him break that vow, the person would be Imboden.

The Way of Peace–a pacifist group of believers who splintered from the Southern Church and merged with some of the farmers who believed that growing plants like grains and flowers is a much more interesting way to live than engaging in endless millennia of warfare; they basically get kicked around by most everyone, but they live in interludes of peace in the more tolerant kingdoms and villages.

Village Churches–The buildings double as storehouses, courthouses, prisons, and forts. The yard is a place for games, dances, and gossip.