Category:Church of Zhakata

From Mistipedia
(Redirected from Church of Zhakata)
Jump to navigationJump to search

Zhakata is a false god that was dreamed up by Yagno Petrovna. His religion, as it is, is the state religion and dominates the barren island of terror known as G'Henna.

Doctrine

Zhakata has two forms: the Provider or Devourer; benevolent or evil, respectively. Before the Grand Conjunction and Petrovna's foolish attempt to summon Zhakata, he took either form as Petrovna saw fit. After the summoning episode -- which actually brought forth a demon who ravaged the land before being defeated -- Zhakata has permanently been labeled by his faithful as the Devourer.[1] All food and surplus goes to Zhakata first (in reality, his false clergy) in the ritual of "Zhakata's Taking", and after that, any food left over gets handed back to the starving populace as "Zhakata's Dole". Zhakata demands that at least one family member starve to death to prove their faith. The victim of this religious act has his skull removed from the body, opened, and then dried out to be transformed into a grotesque "guesting cup" that Zhakata adherents offer to guests.[2]

Organization

The Inquisition is the branch of the priesthood tasked with enforcing the Law of Zhakata.[1]

The soldiers who serve the Church are known as The Swords of Zhakata.[3]

The Truth

Zhakata does not exist. Even the powerful demon that Petrovna summoned informed him of this. After this encounter, Petrovna's faith was shaken even more; he declared that Zhakata existed only as "the Devourer" and anyone who worships "the Provider" aspect are heretics to be killed.[1]

All spells granted to either side of Zhakata's faith are granted by the Dark Powers.[4] A priest of Zhakata who ends up in the Prime Material Plane will have no magical powers whatsoever. Then again, this hypothesis could only be tested and confirmed by a priest of Zhakata who escaped the Land of Mists and then returned to it to share the results of the experiment. In different terms, the DC for a Knowledge Check that reveals this information is going to be high. For a parallel situation, see The Lawgiver and particularly the Church of the Lawgiver as Bane is in fact dead, but the only evidence of this that has emerged was when the walls of Ravenloft collapsed during the Grand Conjunction.

References

Data from the Ravenloft Catalogue

Ravenloft Third Edition
Circle of Darkness

Ravenloft Third Edition - p54

Ravenloft Third Edition - p54

Ravenloft Third Edition - pp53-54,167-168
Domains of Dread - pp85-88
Circle of Darkness - Throughout
Ravenloft Campaign Setting:Domains and Denizens - pp38-39
Realm of Terror - p70,110

The Devourer
The Provider