List of Ways of Darkness Religions

This is the list of religions within the Ways of Darkness RPG module. For a general information on how religions works in the World of Artograch, read RPG:Religion.

Church of Titanius


The Church of Titanius is a monotheistic religion originating in the Kingdom of Froturn, whose followers make up the majority in Froturn, Etrand, Etrancoast and Artaburro. Followed by over seven million people, it is the largest religion on the continent of Artograch. Titanists worship a god named Titanius, the God of Light, believing him to be the only deity who actually exists (considering every other one to be an impostor), all-powerful, omnipotent, guiding his faithful via prophets, heroes, revealed scriptres and historical events. The religion’s main holy scripture is the Book of Visions, but several other, later books have became part of the canon as well.

The Titanist religion is organized through the Church of Titanius, which is headed by the Hierophant, its relations with secular authorities guided by the Yanus Protocol. Not all self-proclaimed Titanius-worshippers are part of the Church of Titanius - several self-proclaimed believers disagree with official church doctrines, which leads to them being branded as heretics and persecuted by the Inquisition accordingly, with the most famous heretical community being the Order of the Eternal Crystal Flower.

Virtues: Altruism, Dogmatism, Heliolatry, Patriarchy, Proselytism

Hierarchy of sins

 * 1) Sinful or selfish thoughts (e.g. lusting after someone, but not acting upon it)
 * Rationale: Sinful thoughts don’t always lead to sinful acts, but the thinker must reflect upon themselves and clear their mind before it is too late.
 * 1) Minor selfish acts
 * Rationale: Self-centeredness is the path to darkness
 * 1) Adultery
 * Rationale: Mingling in flesh with someone else’s spouse is a violation of the trust your own spouse has for you, and an act of offense against the person whose spouse you are sleeping with.
 * 1) Theft
 * Rationale: Titanius does not permit stealing the fruits of someone else’s hard labour.
 * 1) Lawlessness, promotion of anarchy, physical assault or intentional property damage
 * Rationale: Render onto the king what rightfully belongs to him, unless he seeks to undermine the faith. Titanius is a god of law and order, and has no need for petty anarchists.
 * 1) Murder, planned or not
 * Rationale: Destroying what Titanius has created without a proper cause - such as self-defense - is an insult to Titanius.
 * 1) Sodomy, homosexuality
 * Rationale: Titanius separated the sexes for a reason. Sodomites - especially female sodomites - undermine the fabric of Titanist society.
 * 1) Torture, mutilation, rape
 * Rationale: To cause such pain that even death would be a relief, is a sin even greater than murder itself.
 * 1) Undermining the faith, helping enemies of the faith
 * Rationale: How can you call yourself a Titanist, if you actively collaborate with those who seek to undermine your religion?
 * 1) Outright apostasy
 * Rationale: Titanius is thy god, and thou shall have no other god before him. To reject Titanius is to reject life.

Cult of Nature


The Cult of Nature is the religion of the Wood Elves, although not every single Wood Elf is its follower, and people of any race can follow this religion, however druids must follow this religion. Altrough the faith itself doesn’t have any unity or clergy, it unites a state through religion: Kingdom of Dragoc (country of wood elves). Although the laws and government of the kingdom is theocratic, the country has freedom of religion, because the Wood Elves’ religion promotes freedom of faith.

The creation myth of this religion is rather short, and it spreads through oral tradition rather than written documents. According to the legend, the proto-elves were the children of Selenna and Goronnion the proto-elves lived together with their gods (Goronnion and Selenna) on the Island of Eternal Life, but one day, they started to grow arrogant and forget about their gods, starting to exploit and destroy the treasure which is given to them and the Island of Eternal Life. Selenna and Goronnion couldn’t bear it anymore, so they expelled the Proto-Elves, and then destroyed the Island of Eternal Life. However, some of the descedants of the proto-elves, incidentally the wood elven druids returned to the loving arms of Selenna and Goronnion, and helped the wood elves to see the correct way.

The followers of this religion believe in two gods.

Virtues: Shamanism, Syncretism, Egeletarianism

Hierarchy of sins

 * 1) Engaging in unfair hunt (e.g. deliberately hunting wounded animals, using poison, etc.), to hunt when it is not hunting season
 * Rationale: Goronnion’s creatures deserve a fair fight and a dignified death. There is no honour in an unfair hunt. The wild game is like a berry bush, it must be given time to re-grow after each harvest, lest they be extinguished.
 * 1) Taking the name of Selenna and Goronnion in vain, eating “heavy food” outside of a feast
 * Rationale: The names of the two deities are sacred, and thus are not to be uttered lightly. Additionally, feasting is a ritual to Selenna and Goronnion, eating meat is a display of homage to Goronnion - eating “heavy food” casually is to take the name of the divines in vain. When feeling hungry outside of a feast, eat “light food”.
 * 1) Cowardice (e.g. to turn down a duel), to condone tyranny and not liberate the oppressed when having an opportunity to do so
 * Rationale: To deny the beast within that Goronnion implanted in your heart is a sin - but so is to not help others discover this best. The creations of Selenna and Goronnion were born free, and thus, it is sinful to oppress them, and also sinful to condone this oppression.
 * 1) Oathbreaking, adultery
 * Rationale: To break an oath is to bring dishonour upon yourself, and a liar is caught faster than a limping dog. To mingle with someone else’s beloved is to break your oath to your beloved, and to violate the the one who loves the other.
 * 1) Theft from the Needy
 * Rationale: To steal from someone who needs it more than you, is shameful and sinful.
 * 1) Intentional pollution
 * Rationale: Selenna gave you a beautiful and bountiful nature full of game and sweet fruit - in return, she only asks that you respect it and abstain from destroying it.
 * 1) Holding slaves
 * Rationale: Selenna and Goronnion made everyone free. To put someone in chains is an insult against the creator who made them free.
 * 1) Murder, rape, torture, mutilation
 * Rationale: To extinguish someone’s tree of life without a proper cause - such as self-defense, defense of nature, liberating from tyranny, etc. - is to insult the creators
 * 1) To burn a forest
 * Rationale: The forest is home to spirits of the nature, to incarnations of Selenna and Goronnion, to wild game, to plants, and to the Wood Elves. To cause a forest fire is to spit on the image of Selenna and Goronnion.
 * 1) To create a desert
 * Rationale: A burned-down forest may recover over time, but when a lust green landscape is turned into a desolate wasteland, it can be known for sure, that the spirit of Selenna has been ejected from the land. To eject Selenna’s spirit from the land is the gravest of all sins.

Dark Elven Religion


The religion of the Dark Elves is just as new as the people associated with them. Despite being influenced by them, the religion is partially based off a rejection of Titanism and Naturalism and their dogmatism, instead embracing “the darkness” and “the void”, an abstract concept that transcends both libertarianism and authoritarianism.

Transcendence of traditional concepts is considered a very important part of the Dark Elven religion, allowing the religion and its practicioners to support seemingly contradicting viewpoints, such as libertarianism (sexual freedom, curiousity, innovation, artistic expression, deviance) and authoritarianism (strong central authority, slavery, hierarchial society) at the same time.

The Dark Elves worship two deities:


 * Braa’darh, the faceless: According to the legend, when the Dark Elves were expelled they couldn’t survive first, but then Braa’darh gave them mercy and let them survive for a price. No one has ever seen Braa’darh, but he is usually depicted with red eyes and a black smoke substituting for his “face”. The Dark Elves pay tribute and sacrifice to Braa’darh in forms of slave-sacrifice. He is considered the embodiment and incarnation of “the void”, an abstract yet central concept of the Dark Elven religion: “the void” is both freedom and slavery at the same time, life and death, wisdom and ignorance, creation and destruction.
 * Tohla, the guide: According to Dark Elven mythology, she is Braa’darh’s wife. The Dark Elves claim that Lloth has shown them the path to Darkness and embedded in them enough wisdom to reject the dogmatism and superstition of both Titanism and Naturalism, embracing “the void” instead. She is usually depicted as a beautiful woman.

Virtues: Occultism, Hemolatry, Syncretism

Hierarchy of sins

 * 1) Showing fear of the dark or the void
 * Rationale: You are a creature of the dark and of the void. You must embrace it - otherwise, Tohla has guided your ancestors in vain.
 * 1) Lacking pragmatism
 * Rationale: Braa’darh has authorized you to use every tool in the box. Do so.
 * 1) Rejecting an opportunity to learn
 * Rationale: The void wants you to absorb knowledge.
 * 1) Rejecting (carnal) pleasure
 * Rationale: Tohla showed you the way to freedom and pleasure - do not reject it.
 * 1) Neglecting to sacrifice, to honour Braa’darh and Tohla
 * Rationale: Braa’darh and Tohla expect regular tribute - in the form of ritual dances, ritual fires, sacrifices - in exchange for helping you through your earthly journey.
 * 1) Murder without a cause
 * Rationale: Murder without a valid cause - such as self-defense, revenge or liberation of your folk - is an affront to the void.
 * 1) Defilement of beauty
 * Rationale: All that is beautiful in this world was made in Tohla’s image - do not spit on her.
 * 1) Submitting to unworthy authority
 * Rationale: A race led by weaklings is doomed to failure and extinction.
 * 1) Disrespecting or assaulting priest or priestess of Darkness
 * Rationale: The heralds of Braa’darh and Tohla are to be respected.
 * 1) Betrayal of your kind
 * Rationale: A traitor to one’s own race is a traitor to Braa’darh and Tohla, and is damned according to them.

Human Paganism


Human Paganism was the main religion of the Humans before the establishment of the Kingdom of Etrand and the Etrandish annexation of the Kingdom of Hulra. Unlike the monotheistic Titanist religion and the dualistic Naturalist religion, Human Paganism was completely polytheistic, with a relatively large roster of deities to worship.

In Etrand, the religion went underground after the unification by Corlagon, and gradually became virtually extinct over two centuries in all of Etrand but maybe a few obscure rural areas. After the Etrandish conquest of Hulra in the late 3rd century, paganism remained a rather strong and persistent part of the Etrancoasti/Hulran way of life for three more centuries, despite the harsh persecution by both the Etrandish and later native Etrancoasti authorities, finally losing ground to the Titanist faith only during the 7th century - it is estimated between 10% and 20% of Etrancoast’s population are still crypto-Pagans clinging to the old ways. (See Religion in Etrancoast.)

Hróthward / Rýthwardar
Called Hróthward in Etrandish, Rýthwardar in Etrancoasti, he’s the pagan God of Thunder, War and Honour. He was usually depicted as a tall, muscular, bald, clean-shaven man with scars on his face, lemon-yellow eyes, small aquiline nose, strong jaw, wearing a breastplate and swinging a sword of thunder. He is also desribed as an even-minded god who can always keep his cool, never lets his emotions get in the way of his judgement.

It is said that when the bravest warriors die, they have must have beer with Hróthward/Rýthwardar, and regularly do arm-wrestling with the god, lest they be considered unmanly and unfit for their place in the paradise. During wartime, unimportant prisoners are war - and sometimes chieftains too, for symbolic effect - are sacrificed for Hróthward/Rýthwardar, so that the tribe gets blessed by the god and makes sure that their war efforts are successful.

Virtues: Hemolatry, Aerolatry, Patriarchy

Orcish Religion


The Orcish Religion is a duotheistic religion, and the dominant religion of Brutang. The name is misleading, as it is not merely the ethnic religion of the Orcs, but is also practiced by Brutang’s Goblin and Ogre populations as well. Orcish and Goblin diaspora is divided in practice of the religion: freed ones tend to convert to local religions, while slaves attempt to practice the Orcish religion.

Adherents of the Orcish Religion believe that the world is divided in two: the physical reality that they live in is called Hra’zarít, the realm of Hra’zah, the Earth Mother, who creates life from dirt and water; where living things live, die and are reborn in an eternal circle, but the most valiant of warriors break free from this circle and enter Guzbogrít, the realm of Guzbog, the Sky Father, where they spend their afterlife fighting in an arena, drinking the finest of drinks, eating the finest of food and being fondled and pampered by the most beautiful of women.

In an effort to break out of Hra’zarít and ascend to earn the right to enter Guzbogrít, warriors are excepted to prove that they are worthy by waging war in bounds with the Orcish Warrior Code (waging war against the descendants of Thorm’fa’s enemies, never betraying allies, not showing weakness). Their belief is that the weak must fear the strong, but they also believe that the strong has a responsibility to follow the warrior code, and never be dishonourable: while displays of weakness are considered a sin, breaking one’s oath is considered an even worse sin.

Under the belief that the strong has the right to treat the weak the way they like, the religion permits and condones slavery and rape, and is the only religion in Artograch to condone incest. Nevertheless, oathbreaking and betrayal are considered among the worst sins in this religion - oaths and debts are taken very seriously. Saving someone’s life is supposed to be repaid by a “life debt”, an oath to sacrifice one’s life for the savior if there is an opportunity for that.

Another principle of the religion is that Hra’zah the Earth Mother and Guzbog the Sky Father are actively helping the Orcs, so long as they keep appeasing them, mostly with various rituals and sacrifices. Shamans communicate the will of these two divines, and also lead the ritual drumming, ritual fires and present the sacrifices - in case the sacrifice is a living being, it is the Shaman’s duty to perform the kill.

Virtues: Shamanism, Kraterocracy, Ancestor Worship

Hierarchy of sins

 * 1) Respecting the laws of the foreigners
 * Rationale: The outsiders and their silly civilization were created for you to plunder and rape, not to respect and admire. You are supposed to be raiding and raping them to avange what they have done to Thorm’Fa, not trading and peacefully coexisting with them.
 * 1) Showing weakness
 * Rationale: Hra’zat and Guzbog demand strength, not weakness
 * 1) Coveting a fellow tribesman’s wife
 * Rationale: Hra’zat expects you to find your own wife by your own merit.
 * 1) Cowardice
 * Rationale: Guzbog needs brave warriors in his realm, not craven cowards.
 * 1) Neglecting to honour Guzbog and Hra’zat by a sacrifice
 * Rationale: Guzbog and Hra’zat expect regular tribute - in the form of ritual dances, ritual fires, sacrifices - in exchange for helping you through your earthly journey.
 * 1) Stealing instead of fighting
 * Rationale: A true warrior fights for what he/she feels entitled to, and does not snatch it dishonorably. If you covet someone’s land, gold or wife, you must fight for your right to take it.
 * 1) Homosexuality
 * Rationale: Hra’zah separated the sexes for a reason. A man must plant his seeds inside a woman’s garden, and a woman must share her garden with a man, not a woman.
 * 1) Intentional Oathbreaking
 * Rationale: A true warrior always lives up to his words to the best of his abilities.
 * 1) Treason
 * Rationale: A true warrior does not betray his/her allies.
 * 1) Betrayal of your kind
 * Rationale: A traitor to one’s own race is a traitor to Hra’zah and Guzbog, and shall never enter Guzbog’s realm.