Day of the Golden Masks

The day of the golden masks is a day where the dead are allowed by Goldenveil to return to the Material Plane provided their bodies still exist, are inside a temple of Goldenveil (or a place sanctified by a cleric of Goldenveil) and wear a golden burial mask. The dead only remain for a day but if they wish they can leave sooner. During their time in the world of the living, the returned spirits have no way to use powers like spells because their masks bind them, and their creature type is undead. As per the goddess's will, the masks cannot be destroyed and cannot be removed during that day. The golden mask each spirit has on that day also magically becomes an exact likeness of their face. Once the spirits return to their bodies, they rise up and join the living one final time.

For that reason most people put Goldenveil's golden burial masks on their dead and place the bodies in Goldenveil's temples. The temples also offer services to anyone that wants a spell to be cast in order to preserve and/or shield their dead from decay, and many people take up on the temples' service either with gold or in exchange for some service to the temple.

The spirits can interact with the environment around them as if they are alive since they inhabit their old bodies, but should they break Goldenveil's rules for that day the mask will return them to Sheol the moment a rule is broken. The day of the golden masks is an important day for all in Aldmeer that partake in this celebration because many can see their loved ones that have died, or they get to rectify their relationships with the dead and have closure.

The day of the golden masks is celebrated four times a year, during each solstice and each equinox. Everyone that died between the last day of the golden masks and the current one can be returned by the goddess if they so wish it. That is so as many souls as possible can have a chance to say goodbye to the ones they left behind and for the living to make peace with death. However, this is the only chance; the day of the golden masks is only for the return of those souls that died during the aforementioned time period. Due to the dates this day comes, it falls near the celebrations of each of the Sisters of the Seasonal Cycle since each of them is celebrated during the first day of the first month of a season.

Of course, the dead that return during the day of the golden masks are immune to any spell or effect that can bring back the dead. Once the day passes, the spirits cross over to Sheol once more, this time for eternity, and the bodies they inhabited become lifeless once again.