Hello,
One thing that I have noticed when reading the various books is that the churches of the various deities, particularly the lawful ones, do not seem to be that organized. They are organized around a few temples, but I see little of actual large scale organized religions.
So that being said, I thought I would look at the various deities or at least the lawful ones and see what might make sense for them.
Abadar: The religion of Abadar, from what I have read about they are designed to act independent from one another. I would imagine that in various countries and regions, the heads of the most powerful temples have meetings to help set religious policy of the region.
Asmodeus: I see the church of Asmodeus rather strongly hirearchal and organized. You have equelivelents to bishops and local priests, monastic orders and so on IMo. IMO I would imagine that there is a I see the relation between the government of Cheliax and the Church following the idea of Caesaropapism. Meaning that the head of the Church of Asmodeus is picked by the government of Cheliax.
Iomedae: I see the church of Iomedae being rather organized as well. Almost like a good counter-point to the church of Asmodeus in terms of how organized it is.
Torag: Torag's church is a bit more idependent but I imagine that within the dwarven holds, that it it is far more organized, with the head priest of that city/hold being a very prestigious and powerful position.
There are three I am not quite sure of, that being Irori, Erastil, and Zon-Kuthon. I am wondering what others think of my ideas? and if anyone has any alternative takes on the structures of the churches.
According to Faiths of Purity, Iomedae's church is organized in circles. Each one has a 'First Sword Knight' who has several 'Second Sword Knights' working under him/her who commands a 'Second Circle' and so on.
But it does seem that there's no pope of Iomedae, per se. Unless I'm reading things wrong. I guess she's got so many crusades and causes that she's got to give them SOME flexibility
Now Torag actually does have a head honcho priest, 'The High Defender' (Based in Highhelm) is kind of like the 5 star general of the faith. Exactly how much the authority is used, I'm not sure.
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According to the article on Irori, every person has their own path to enlightenment, so generally each temple or monastery has its own traditions and sets its own rules. The master of said temple or monastery would have the most authority, but have no authority over, say, a roving monk.
As Erastil is primarily a deity of rural communities and simplicity, there's no overarching hierarchy. Each temple probably doesn't have more than one or two actual priests there, and they likely either take on the role of a village elder or adviser to the village elder, but when another follower of Erastil shows up, they treat each other as equals.
Ridge is correct about the circle organization of Iomedae's church, but I believe there's only one First Sword Knight that acts as a sort of Pope-like figure, with the circles organized beneath him/her. I could be wrong about this, but it makes sense to me since Iomedae's church seems like the one with the strongest Catholic trappings.
I like the idea of Asmodeus' church being so intertwined that the government has a say in its affairs. It sets up interesting conflicts as House Thrune IS at odds with the church on several key points. The Asmodean church preaches submission to Hell and treats devils as emissaries of their god's will, to be treated with the utmost respect. House Thrune callously binds and controls them, using them as slaves and power sources, something the Church strenuously objects to. It's also notable that the various Hellknight orders aren't actually subserviant to Hell either. Rather, they seek to emulate it, and part of the entrance exam is slaying a powerful devil in single combat. They're not about serving Hell, but using its methods while mastering their own will so they don't succumb to malice like devils do.
Gee vyshan, sounds like you've found a G sourcebook that you can write! I'm sure you'll sell a few bazillion and retire by Labor day if you get it to JJ real fast...NOT! Though I'd likely buy it...
since I will be working on a game set in Cheliax, I am looking for titles for priests for the asmodean church as well as the church of Iomadae. These are the two churches that I plan to have a major role in the game, so various titles to use would be good if any has ideas.
-vyshan
Contributor
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since I will be working on a game set in Cheliax, I am looking for titles for priests for the asmodean church as well as the church of Iomadae. These are the two churches that I plan to have a major role in the game, so various titles to use would be good if any has ideas.
-vyshan
There's the titles of the Spanish Inquisition: calificador (spy/censor, examiner) = Latin Qualificator, alguacil (bailiff/torturer), from Arabic, al-wazir, = Vizier, fiscal (prosecutor) = Fiscalius, notario (notary, scribe) (Notarius in Latin), and commisarios (commissaries, members of allied orders). There are also Predicadores (Predicatores) - preachers.
Do these sound suitably malevolent?