Church of the Lawgiver
Doctrine
Domination
Domains
Bindings, Death, Evil, Law, Scrutiny
SPECULATION on political situation
The Church of the Lawgiver has a far tighter grip on affairs that matter to it in Nova Vaasa than Prince Othmar Bolshnik imagines. And it is willing to bolster his authority precisely to the extent that the result is a strengthening of its own position. The leaders of the Church would be threatened by the reincarnation of Sainted Prince Gorkyn. What they see in Othmar is rather a whelp that can be made into a reliable watchdog with sufficient time and sufficient bones.
The situation of the Church in Hazlan is far more complex and far less satisfying. The reception of the Lawgiver's message among the Hazlani could hardly have gone better. Rich and poor, slaver and slave, Mulan and Rashemani all found a great deal in the doctrine to take to heart. And perhaps the satraps appointed by Hazlik to govern in his sted benefitted from it most of all. But bloodless success left the Church in the extraordinarily uncomfortable position of blessing the authority of an individual that it finds contemptible in nigh every respect. Worse, just as Hazlik madly tore up the law in his land forbidding the practice by others of arcane magic in his land, he could wake up tomorrow and ban religion. Sainted Prince Gorkyn could be trusted to make the most of such an invitation to invasion. Othmar Bolshnik might well ignore it as a distraction from his scheming with lawless rabble or, worse, might well be defeated in Hazlan and overthrown at home. So the Church of the Lawgiver counts the days until death claims the aged and despised wizard, all too well aware that such powerful individuals rarely go easily or quickly.
Hierarchy
The Church of the Lawgiver is led by a Himmelsk Naeve (Divine Fist)
One Pave for Nova Vaasa and one Pave for Hazlan serve the 'Himmelsk Naeve
One Aerkebiskop per region for a total of four in Hazlan, and likewise four in Nova Vaasa, serves the respective Pave.
One Biskop per dommerserves an Aerkebiskop.
One Kontor presides over each fane, leading the actual rites of worship.
The present hierarchy:
Himmelsk Naeve Pieter Jergaar, male, Clr16, Kantora
Pave Lod Ragnaar, Pave of Nova Vaasa, male, Clr13, Bergovitsa
Aerkebiskop Bearnt Chekiv, male, Clr7, Arbora
Aerkebiskop Mathias Bolshnik, male, ?, Kantora
Pave Stavroz Vatsisk, Pave of Hazlan, male, Clr12, Toyalis
Aerkebiskop Melkior Vadnais, male, Clr8, Sly-Var
Aerkebiskop Verzin Lols, male, Clr10, Toyalis
Recently retired or deceased hierarchs:
Pave Haakon Aramsen, male, Clr15, LE, Toyalis
Note: Haakon Aramsen is 'tentatively' being listed as being dead. He is described as being the leader of the Hazlani Church of the Lawgiver (Ravenloft Gazetteer Volume I, p53). But Pave Stavroz Vatsisk is described as being the Pave of Hazlan not once but twice: first in Authority Figures insert for Toyalis (Ravenloft Gazetteer Volume I, p60); and second several years later in the Hierarchy and Terminology section for the Church of the Lawgiver (Ravenloft Gazetteer Volume V, p127).
This was an editoral error: See http://www.fraternityofshadows.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=6847.
Its resolution is being discussed in the above thread."
Orders
Kunduktørs (“Guardians”) are a monastic order who tend to the dead, take vows of silence, and study the nature of death in the search for understanding of universal and eternal law. Hazlani Kunduktørs spawned the heresy that the Great Upheaval marked the destruction of the Lawgiver, draining the faith and its rites of life.
Gudkædes ("God-chains") are the marshal order sworn to the defence of the Church and the destruction of its enemies. They are not quite the force that they once were, for want of occasion to exercise their strength.
Jernspørgsmålers ("Iron Inquisitors") are the fire fighters of the church, extinguishing the lives of heretics and traitors. They creep into every corner of the institution, often donning the cloth of their prey.
Didakti ("Teachers") are the fire inspectors of the church, ever seeking and testing flaws and weaknesses of character or of reasoning that could be the fuel or the spark of heresy or treason. They work closely with the Jernspørgsmålers, but are far more given to pondering the descent into, and nature of, iniquity.
Orders have their own internal hierarchy and are answerable only to the Pave of their land and the Himmelsk Naeve himself.
Members of the orders
Johan Bolshnik, Jernspørgsmåler ("Iron Inquisitor"), male, Clr3/Rog1, Kantora
Heresies
- The Great Upheaval marked the destruction of The Lawgiver, draining the Iron Faith and its rites of life. This heresy was spawned among Hazlani Kunduktørs ("Guardians"). The breadth of its acceptance among this order is unknown, but undoubtably continues to be under investigation by Jernspørgsmålers ("Iron Inquisitors") and Didakti ("Teachers").
Heretics
Lukas Duremke, male, Clr6, Arbora
Rites, Ceremonies, Holy Days
Spells are prayed for at highnoon, in the full-light of day, that the Lawgiver might see and weigh all.
Services are held nightly, after the working day has ended, with twice weekly attendance being expected at a minimum.
During the Day of Penance, on the first day of the New Year, the faithful are expected to undertake an accounting of their failings of the past year and prepare themselves to make a better showing in the year to come.
During the Celebration of the Reemergence, which recalls the end of the Great Upheaval and is held in August upon the first full moon, the Lawgiver is thanked for his return and his success in restoring to the world its proper order.
Seats of Authority
The Black Citadel-Fane in Kantora wherefrom the Himmelsk Naeve rules his charges across the known word.
The Crimson Citadel-Fane in Bergovista wherefrom the Pave of Nova Vaasa rules the in that under the thumb of the Himmelsk Naeve back in Kantora.
The Iron Citadel-Fane outside of Toyalys wherefrom the Pave of Hazlan rules the faith in that land under the direction of the Himmelsk Naeve back in Nova Vaasa.
Data from the Ravenloft Catalogue
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Ravenloft Third Edition |
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Ravenloft Third Edition - p52 | |
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Ravenloft Third Edition - p54 | |
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Secrets of the Dread Realms - p46 | |
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The Iron Tyrant |
