The West is a land of diverse beliefs and dogmas. It is clearly dominated by two brother religions, Orthodoxy and Amdatism, the former being the wellspring from which the latter sprung. Despite this domination, old religions survive and new faiths arrive from far northern Thule, the deep deserts of the south, and the vast sea of grass that is the bridge to the Unknowable East.
Table of Contents
The Origin of the God King
Karth, The First, God King of man and Lord of Creation was taught everything he knew by the Ocean, his mother. With this knowledge he invented speech and founded the home of the Elders.
One day, while fishing in the Tranquil Sea, the south wind capsized his boat and in his anger he cursed the wind, damning it to bring fire to the dry land, breaking its spirit. Fearful that a man should have such power, Heaven summoned Karth to appear in his court.
His mother the Ocean knew that if Karth would ascend to the court of heaven he would stay, leaving her alone. So, before he left, she wrapped him in robes of morning and warned him to eat not from the table of Heaven. To do so would be his end.
Upon arriving at Heaven’s court, Karth was greeted by the Gatekeeper, the Everdying One. When the Everdying One asked Karth why he was in mourning, Karth replied that he was saddened by the Gatekeeper’s plight. This pleased the Everdying One, who brought the gentle nature of Karth to the attention of Heaven.
It was Karth’s gentle nature that changed his status from condemned man to honored guest. As such, Heaven laid forth a feast in his honor, offering him the finest food and drink. Karth politely declined the food. When asked why he would not eat from the feast in his honor, Karth spoke of his mother’s warning.
With this the court broke into laughter, for the feast was the food and water of eternal life. Heaven declared that Karth had forfeited his chance at immortality and all his children would suffer the same. And so, with the laughter of the Court of Heaven trailing him, Karth descended to the earth. The first place on which he trod he founded the first city, Imrak, Heart of Man, the Holy City.
The Assassination of the God King
The conspirators never met in the open, but they assembled a few at a time in each others’ homes. There were many proposals and discussions, as might be expected when plotting the death of a king, let alone a god. Some suggested that they should make the attempt as he was going along the Sacred Way, which he did each morning to see his people. Another idea was for it to be done at the coronation of his infant son and heir, during which he would cross the Bridge of Doves and be trapped between two sets of men. But the majority opinion favored killing him while he moderated the great Synod, where he would be by himself since only the Shriven Ones would be admitted, and where the many conspirators could hide their daggers beneath their robes. This plan won the day.
The Imortal Guard grew alarmed at certain rumors and tried to stop him going to the Synod, as did his physicians, for he was suffering from occasional dizziness. His daughter, She of Air and Light, especially, who was frightened by some visions in her dreams, clung to him and said that she would not let him go out that day. But Albin, one of the conspirators who had long been a firm friend, came up and said, ‘What is this, oh Lord of Creation? Are you a man to pay attention to a woman’s dreams and the idle gossip of mere mortals, and to insult the Synod of the Shriven by not going out, although it has honored you and has been specially summoned by you? Listen to me as I have always given you sound council and cast aside the foolishness of all these people, and come. The Synod has been in session waiting for you since early this morning.’ This swayed God-King and he left to attend.
Before he entered the chamber, the Immortal Guard brought forth the victims for him to make what was to be his last sacrifice. The omens were unfavorable. After this unsuccessful sacrifice, the Immortal Guard made their own sacrifices, to see if anything more propitious might appear. In the end they said that they could not clearly see the divine intent of the God-King’s forebears, for there was some malignant spirit hidden in the victims. The Lord of Creation was annoyed and abandoned divination till sunset, though the Immortal Guard continued to seek answers.
Those of the murderers present were delighted at all this, though those still loyal asked him to put off the Synod for that day because of what the Immortal Guard had said, and he agreed to do this. But Albin had some attendants go forth, calling him and saying that the Synod was full. Then Albin approached him again and said, ‘Come, oh Master of this Earth, pay no attention to the babblings of these men, and do not postpone what our God-King and his mighty power has seen fit to arrange. Make your own courage your favorable omen.’ He convinced the God King with these words and led him to the Synod in silence.
The Synod rose in respect and when they saw him entering. Those who were to have part in the plot stood near him. Right next to him went the Patriarch Alhab, whose brother had been exiled by the God-King. Under pretext of a humble request on behalf of this brother, Alhab approached and grasped the mantle of his robes in obeisance. The God-King wanted to get up and use his hands, but was prevented by Alhab and grew annoyed.
That was the moment for the men to set to work. All quickly unsheathed their daggers and rushed at him. First Akim al-Kalaas struck him with the point of the blade on the left shoulder a little above the collar-bone. He had been aiming for that, but in the excitement he missed. The God-King rose to defend himself, and in the uproar Akim shouted out to his brother. The latter heard him and drove his sword into the ribs. After a moment, Jaffer al-Giss made a slash at his face, and Anwar al-Sifr pierced him in the side. While Jaffer was trying to strike him again he missed and struck Albin on the hand. Omar al-Farid also struck at the God-King and hit Radhad al-Din in the thigh.
Under the mass of wounds, he fell at the foot of the First’s statue. Everyone wanted to seem to have had some part in the murder. There was not one of them who failed to strike his body as it lay there, until he breathed his last.
With the death of the God-King, the conspirator’s moved fast against one another. Fighting broke out in the street and the city was soon in turmoil. In the coming months, Karth would splinter into a dozen factions, each claiming the title of God-King, leaving the Light of the West ripe for invasion by the savage Bravs of the Unknowable East.
Of the conspirators, only Albin would remain aloof. He, and a handful of followers, made their way through the primitive city-states of the Vors to the city of Tor. On the way, he had a vision, and upon his arrival, founded a new faith with a new covenant. Proclaimed Patriarch by the acclaim of the people there, he was the first to take the Seat of Grace and give praise to Almighty God in the name of the Orthodox Faith.
Amdatism
Amdatism is the great rival religion of Orthodoxy, dominating the faith, lives, and politics of the Holy Empire and Bravich. The Kale Kesis is both the leader of the church and the temporal ruler of the empire, giving the faith massive amounts of political influence and loyal parishioners.
The priestly caste that dominates the Holy Empire is divided into three segments, the bureaucracy, the Katil Brotherhood, and the Suals. The Kale Kesis is a lineal descendent of the Prophet, al-Amdati. He rules all three segments with the aid of the Yusek, the head of his slave soldiers, the Beygar, his primary advisor, and the Isler, the state treasurer.
Each province of the Holy Empire and the country of Bravich is ruled by a Kesis, who acts as both a spiritual leader and provincial governor. He works in conjunction with a Kale Sual, who commands the hounds of heresy to maintain order.
Below the Kesis are the various bureaucratic roles through which the priest caste controls the apparatus of state. This control is cemented by the Katil Brotherhood, who operates in the shadows, eliminating threats to the empire, be they foreign powers or domestic groups. They are so feared in the West for their cunning and ability to strike anywhere, that an entire supernatural mythology has been created by bards and scholars alike.
Orthodoxy
The Orthodox Church is perhaps the most wide spread and powerful religious force in the West. Through its two arms, the church proper and the Cup Knights, it exerts an incredible amount of influence on both the large issues concerning nations and the smaller issues that impact the daily lives of the believers.
The church is broken into three tiers, the Obispos who lead the church, the monks who act as temporal agents of the church, and the Sacerdotes who minister to the people. Overseeing these three branches is the Patriarca of Tor, who is elected for life, and often a rival to the Duque Primero for power and influence in the Vorian Empire.
Directly beneath the Patriarca is the Obispo Primero, a council of seven elders of the church. They are appointed by the Patriarca and act as his agents and advisors in all matters. They also convene the conclave on the event of the Patriarca’s death to elect his replacement.
The Primates govern Episcopal sees and manage all church activity within their region. Effectively, they rule a province that knows no national border. There are nine Primates in the church overseeing the Sees of Taratha, Jenka and Toloska, Oldaska, Omeron and Navaren, Eskar, Falkia, Lesser Voria, Greater Voria, and Zerem.
Each Episcopal see is made up of smaller diocese overseen by Metropolitana, Obispo, and Arzobispo. The Metropolitana oversee the diocese of an entire city, the Obispo a diocese of the size of a village or town, and the Arzobispo oversee an area ranging from a county to a province.
The Cup Knights are the sword arm of the church, operating as an independent army within the states where it has chapter houses. Recruiting from the minor nobility and younger sons of great house, they are partially supported by the donations of their recruits and partially by the church itself. They have been instrumental in the Vorian Empire’s wars with the Holy Empire, but have seen limited success in Sarl Country.
Raulicianism
Raulicianism is a religio-political sect founded in Zerem by the Sacerdote Raul Iago Drazza during the reign of Alejandro I Miguel Roja of the Vorian Empire. It was a response to the social freedom they were exposed to by Narrlachi raids into the region. The leaders of the movement called for a return to early Orthodoxy, rejecting the ecclesiastical hierarchy and the condemnation of the selling of religious services.
The movement has spread rather quickly, following the trade routes throughout the Vorian Empire and into the Great Khanate. In both these places, their dualistic belief in a world created by the Devil and heaven by God, is considered heresy by both Orthodoxy and Amdatism, but has found a home among the Narrlachi, who share a similar religious belief.
The Sky God
The Narrlachi worship the never ending sky and his wife, the fertile earth, from which all things spring. They symbolize the balance of life, which an upright human being must live to keep to maximize his personal wind horse power. The wind horse, the worshipers believe, is the human soul, and the stronger the soul, the greater the person. Those who truly maximize their wind horse power ascend to the heavens, while those who do not are reincarnated to a new form, depending upon how in balance their life was.
There is no organization to the Sky God religion. It respects those who claim power in the name of the Sky God and Earth Mother, but there is no hierarchy or scripture. There is just a generally agreed upon set of beliefs and holy holidays that have been transmitted orally for thousands of years.
The Cold Gods
According to the Norderins and Sarls, the Cold Gods rose up as men during mankind’s enslavement to the Jotun. They were the son of Wodan, the majordomo of the Jotun king, Skirn, and they led a general revolt that led to the destruction of the world spanning empire. Wodan’s sons, Vajir, Vojin, and Vijir then took on a quest to find the heart of the world giant, so that they may eat its flesh and attain godhood. This they did after a twelve-year journey, after which they returned, demanding the worship of their people. To this day, the Navari and Isoli still worship them as gods, while the Omeroni and Eskari fear them as ice bound demons.
The priests of the Cold Gods are the Galgarmr, a secret sect of shamans and wild sorcerers who live a semi-hermetic lifestyle. They commune with the gods, transmitting their messages to the clan holds, which they travel to on high holy days. In times of great strife, some even take on the mantle of sorcerer-warlords, leading hosts men into battle.
The War God
While the Sarls do believe in the Jotun and the Cold Gods, their mythology continues further. Their legends speak of a fourth brother, a half-brother named Sarl. It was he, they believe, who took the head of Skirn and led the brothers on to attain the heart of Nifmir. However, he was betrayed and stabbed through the heart by Wodan as he bit into Nifmir’s heart. The brothers left him for dead and returned to be worshiped by the Norderins.
However, Sarl, though dead, had also transformed into a god. He crawled his way out from the world giant’s heart and found his mother’s people, whom he taught the way of war. War was the way the dead god demanded to be worshiped, and so the Sarl people were born. They worship their dead god through the death and destruction of war.
There are no priests of the War God, no churches, and no idols in any conventional sense. His priests are each Sarl when they go to war. His churches are the battlefield were armies are laid to waste. His idols are the fields of bodies covered in ravens, vultures, and human scavengers.
The Way
The Rankian’s still follow the same religious tradition as their forebears when they ruled the many kingdoms of the West. It is a set of beliefs that are centered on compassion, moderation, and humility in the context of the relationship between humanity and the cosmos. They revere their ancestors, who they believe watch over them, and the singular God, who they believe judges all people upon their death.
During the age of Rankian kingdoms there was a caste of hereditary priests who ruled the people, much like the Kale Kesis rules the Empire today. With the destruction of these kingdoms, the priestly class was utterly destroyed. Since that time the religious order has been picked up by learned scholars who have studied the surviving fragments of scripture, building small shrines, and administering council to worshipers of the Way and the One God.