The Druidic Sects

Druidic Sects
Ashbound: Claw or fang strung from a leather cord, or a skeleton of a fire-ravaged tree Children of Winter: Gnawed femur Gatekeepers: Stylized dragon's head or the constellation of Bahamut Greensingers: Green leaf-shaped brooch with a thirteen-pointed star superimposed on it Wardens of the Woods: Stylized pine tree or a bracken fern
Pantheon	Eberron
Portfolio	Nature and its aspects
Domains	None
Worshippers	Druids, rangers, barbarians, inhabitants of Eldeen Reaches

While druids in Eberron do sometimes worship The Sovereign Host or The Dark Six, most of the druids are part of the various sects that are based in the Eldeen Reaches, though there are other, minor when compared to the Eldeen sects, sects and traditions everywhere else. Most sects have very different ideas and philosophies, but they agree that undead and aberrations must be destroyed, and respect each other, to an extent. Side note, not all members, that is active worshippers, are druids, some are rangers, barbarians, and other classes.

The sects

Ashbound

The Ashbound are the fanatical, "Fuck Civilization!"-type druids, rejecting the Wardens notion of Balance, and believing that anything unnatural (what constitutes unnatural is a matter of debate) and arcane magic are terrible things that need to be destroyed in order to preserve nature’s purity. They're fairly small, around 1,700 members, and largely operate as scattered groups in Eldeen. Unsuprisingly, most local goverments in Eldeen treat them as criminals and other nations see them as dangerous, with Aundair branding them as a terrorist organization.

Children of Winter

The Children of Winter are the apocalyptic druids. They believe in the survival of the fittest, and the cycle of life and death, and that the cycle has been thrown in disorder by civilization, and that they must now seek remedy this by spreading disease, death, and decay. The apocalyptic part comes from their belief that a cleansing of all life on Eberron is coming, and a new beginning after that, and some believe that the Mourning was the first step of this cleansing, so they must now hurry things along, whilst others are trying to stop the cleansing from happening whilst using the same methods. They are even smaller in numbers than the Ashbound, 1,100 members, existing as independant packs. No nation likes them, treating them as terrorists, except for Droaam whose rulers are interested in the implications of their beliefs.

Gatekeepers

Gatekeepers are the oldest sect, having been founded by the dragon Vvaraak in order to protect the world from the oncoming invasion from Xoriat. They largely concern themselves with protecting Eberron from stuff like aberrations and other things that are inimical to life, especially anything related to the Daelkyr. They study the planes for oncoming incursions, keep the planar seals from disappearing, and hunt down aberrations. The smallest of the sects, mostly orcs and half-orcs and dropping steadily every year. As a side-effect of this, they've forgotten most of Vvaraak's teachings and the principles of their seals and rituals. While about half of the residents of the Shadow marshes follow their general belief system, only a small portion of them are Gatekeepers proper. This let's them operate relatively openly in the Shadow marshes.

Greensingers

The least druidic of the sects and kinda the opposite of the Gatekeepers, believing that the planes are also a part of the natural world, though that belief might came from the fact that they are mainly located in Thelanis. They see the world for what it could be, rather that what it is as most sects do, a magical place that becomes more magical around them. They're largely comprised of elves and half-elves and hang around the fey court in Thelanis. They act independantly as "do-what-you-want" is the main rule of the sect.

Wardens of the Woods

The largest of the sects and the most popular. They are the "Balance of Nature and Civilization"-type druids. Their teachings came from Oalian, an awakened greatpine that guards the Eldeen Reaches, and is its current ruler. They trained the secessionist militias of Eldeen and fought with them against Aundair and they have placed druid councilors in every village to help them in keeping the balance and honoring nature, along with. The largest sect with 20,000 members, or 1-in-50 of Eldeens total population.

Other sects

Outside Eldeen Reaches, there are numerous other sects that are not quite as well-known as the ones above. Some of these are:

• Dragonspeakers of Seren follow variants of the Gatekeepers and Wardens sects teachings.
• Followers of the Broken Path are warforged druids living in the Mournland, healing it whilst learning about their own relationship to nature through it.
• Guardians of Rushemé are the druids of Xen'Drik, worshipping the spirit of the land, living in harmony with nature, tending the restless spirits, recording the rise and fall of the unwise, and defeating any enemies of the land.
• Mask Weavers are the druids of the Talenta Plains, acting as intermediaries between the dead and the living by helping others craft their signature masks, animal tenders, healers, recordkeepers, storytellers, and diplomats between the tribes.
• Moonspeakers are Shifter druids who keep track of the movements of the 12 moons, believing them in having great effects on the lifes their kind.
• Shadows of the Forest guard the deep parts of the King's Forest in Breland, taking care of dangerous beasts, but also loggers and legitimate hunters. They have an affinity to Displacer Beasts, and are guided by, what they claim to be, whispers of the wild.
• Siyal Marrain (Horse Watchers) are druids of the Valenar elves, preserving the bloodline of elven horses, and helping match horses with riders.