The Crystalline Orthodox is a religion dedicated to the worship of the Mothercrystals in Final Fantasy XVI. Though once prevalent across Valisthea, in modern day it is only practiced as the state religion in the Iron Kingdom on the remote isles west of the continent of Storm. The orthodoxy's priesthood hold the most power over the kingdom, though the nation also has a royal family; among the priests, the Patriarch is the most powerful of all. The current high priest and Patriarch is Imreann, and the current seat of power for the church is Drake's Breath, the Mothercrystal on the volcanic Mount Drustanus.
The Crystalline Orthodox church was established in the year of the realm 220.[1]
Beliefs[]
Believers of the Crystalline Orthodox worship the Mothercrystals as deities, believing that channeling aether to perform magic in any way is a sin and that Bearers and Dominants are abominations. The high priest performs human sacrifice to their deity, Drake's Breath, with the justification of "cleansing" those soiled by aether.
As one of the oldest still-practiced religions in Valisthea, the Crystalline Orthodox appears to derive some of its dogma from the ancient Circle of Malius faith, which communed with their god, Ultima, with the now-fallen Dzemekys Mothercrystal. Unknown to Valistheans, the Mothercrystals' hearts are, in fact, deities, being forms of the some of the members of the Ultima collective. Human sacrifice to the crystals also hearkens to the crystals' true purpose of siphoning aether to send to Origin for the final leg of Ultima's masterplan.
Citations[]
- ↑ Final Fantasy XVI Ultimania, Timeline