The Circle of Dawn
From Unofficial Handbook of the Virtue Universe
| The Circle of Dawn | |
| Founder: Dalantia and Vixen Valor | |
| Basics | |
| Side: | Heroic |
|---|---|
| Motto: | Have faith - the Dawn comes soon. |
| Leader(s): | Dalantia and Vixen Valor |
| Logo: | White sun, golden rays |
| Group Colours: | White and gold |
| Playerbase | |
| Levels: | All |
| Play style: | Exceedingly casual |
| Roleplay: | Yesplease |
| Timezone(s): | Can probably find someone just about anytime |
| Recruiting: | Not very much.. |
| Contact: | @Dalantia |
| No additional information available. | |
Contents |
Summary
The Circle of Dawn is a religious order devoted to the worship of a nameless female deity of passion and commitment. Based in a formerly abandoned island temple a fair distance from the coast of Paragon City, the Dawn (as it calls itself) is, on its best days, loosely organized and widely disparate in its beliefs, with only the thread of their deity keeping them tied together on their worst days.
History
The Dawn was formed quietly in late 2005, during a rather complex interpersonal squabble. In the end, Dalantia quietly proposed to Vixen Valor that they gather together those they viewed as close compatriots, and withdraw from the infighting, devoting themselves to their deity and their personal wars against evil. She agreed, and the Circle was quietly formed from those weary of the arguing.
Since then, the Circle has grown very slowly, mostly by choice, and held themselves aloof from most of what goes on in Paragon, instead pursuing their personal wars, as the group pledged to do.
Organization
The Circle has a fairly strict organizational hierarchy, though in practice, the amount of authority actually wielded is startlingly flexible.
The Dawncallers lead the Circle. Vixen Valor acts as the Priestess of the Dawn, the true head of the Circle, while Dalantia acts as the Guardian of the Dawn, the second in command. In practice, Dal and Vix, depending on mood and whim, tend to change true leadership fairly often, or allow the Circle to run itself, focusing on worship and modifying the Temple.
The Blessed are those who handle the Circle's business when the Dawncallers are not present. There are currently approximately twenty Blessed - some live within the Temple, tending to the quiet worship services offered by the Temple of Dawn. The Sworn are veteran Blessed, the potential Dawncallers of tomorrow, after rumors have begun that Dal and Vix wish to step down.
The Acolytes are those sincerely trusted by the Circle, and are permitted some significant leeway in their dealings, both with the Divine and the mundane. A step above the rank-and-file, they are fairly uncommon, as a significant amount of time spent as Initiate is required - and also required to provide for worship services within the Temple occasionally.
The Initiates are heroes relatively new to the worship and customs of the Circle, or those who choose to accept no rank or responsibility above that of the Initiate (read: none).
There are also Dawn Knights - unpowered humans that serve the Dawn for a variety of reasons, be it faith in their goddess, having nowhere else to go, or an ideal that sympathizes with that of the Dawn. Some eventually learn enough to ascend to the rank of Initiate and become a licensed super hero; others have remained Dawn Knights since the Circle's formation.
The Goddess
The figure at the center of the worship of the Dawn chooses not to reveal herself to those who choose not to follow her. Her name is unknown, even to those who worship her, as those who do tend to refer to her as simply "the goddess", or She Of Faithful Desire. Her general aspect tends to revolve around devotion within the context of a monogamous relationship - the sexuality of the relationship is irrelevant to her. Devotion is what is relevant, not actions, as displayed by her favoritism toward certain Blessed who have distinctly unrequited aspects to their chosen devoted.
She is known to imbue humans with her power, occasionally, as well; some Dawn Knights have been granted exceedingly limited powers by her hand (none significantly enough to actually qualify for full heroic licenses), and Dalantia was formerly one of her most trusted knights, before the failures in her service that caused her to corrupt his powers to mark him as failed.
The Temple
The Temple of Dawn is a small island relatively far from the coast of Rhode Island, that the Dawnites have co-opted to use as their own. The uppermost level, coinciding with the ruins of some sort of temple, is open to the public for worship, reflection, and contemplation. The level immediately below is the functional level, open to allied supergroups and members of Dawnite-led squads for use. The lower levels are kept closely locked and guarded.
The Circle of Twilight
In philosophical opposition, but organizational unity, to the Dawn is the Twilight. While the Dawn holds itself to a higher standard than most, with high ideals and beliefs and a firm code against killing, the Twilight does little of this - they have a penchant for being ruthless pragmatists, willing and capable of killing to further their personal wars against evil. At best, their relationship with the Dawn is adversarial - at worst, Dalantia and the Nightstars have engaged in outright fistfights in frustration.
The Twilight is a much smaller group than the Dawn, owing to its specialist and oppositional nature. The common thread between them and the Dawn lies in respect great enough to surpass even their disagreements, and an agreement on the matter of their deity. When they do not wish to use the Temple of Dawn for gatherings, they use Chris Neal's apartment, jokingly dubbed the Temple of Twilight.
The Silver Wing and Sweet Cyanide serve as Nightstars to the Twilight, answering only to the Dawncallers.
