Religion in the Western Lands

In the Western Lands there are many who worship the spirits of Nature. Each spirit can grant only a limited number of spells or effects (usually only one or two), and a Druid will be able to call upon many such spirits. This religion is followed mostly by "savage" or "tribal" cultures. A few barbarian clans may have Druids among their numbers. In game terms, Druids are treated as Clerics, but instead of the normal weapon and armor restrictions, a Druid is allowed to use any one-handed melee weapon as well as slings and shortbows. However, a Druid may not wear any sort of metal armor. In place of holy symbols, Druids use "focuses" carved from wood, and often have one focus for each spirit or type of spirit to be called upon. An experienced Druid will have such focuses on a cord around his neck or waist. Most Druids are male, but a few tribes do have female Druids. If desired, the GM may choose to use Druids: A Basic Fantasy Supplement found on the Basic Fantasy RPG website, www.basicfantasy.org, in place of these brief notes.

Before the arrival of the Urdish colonists, most of the more civilized people in the Western Lands worshiped one or another of several pantheons of gods. Faced with discrimination (and worse) from the colonists, these various religions joined together, and the combination of all those pantheons became the Hundred Gods. Because of this, the various gods' domains overlap more than a little bit. Whatever anyone's personal convictions are, there is probably a god that fits them perfectly. Priests of the Hundred are treated as normal Clerics. Such a priest will generally a silver disc engraved around the edge with at least twelve runes or symbols of gods to whom they are devoted.

The Church of Tah is a monotheistic church, which came to the Western Lands along with the Urdish colonists. When the Empire of Urd fell and Thalus Dane declared himself Emperor, High Priest Zamos in the city of Beth declared himself the new Patriarch. After a period of unrest and chaos, Zamos was able to solidify his control. The so-called Bethite Church claims to follow a set of orderly and generally virtuous beliefs... but it is obvious to any outside observer that this is just not so. Many Bethite Priests take bribes in return for granting special blessings and dispensations, and despite vows of celibacy are well known for their orgies and other, darker pursuits. These priests are also well known for the large quantities of gold, silver, and precious stones they adorn themselves and their temples with. Of course, not all Bethite priests are bad; possibly less than one in ten are so corrupted. But those who are tend to be among the hierarchy. Every Bethite priest must have his holy symbol, or a blessed object bearing the symbol as a mark, in order to call on the power of his god Tah. Such items are virtually always made of gold, or at least plated with it. The Bethite holy symbol is a circle, bisected by a vertical bar that extends below the circle to form a stem or handle. The Bethite church never accepts women as priests.

The Reformed Church of Tah arose in the other former Urdish colonies in response to the increasing corruption within the Bethite sect. Each former colony, as well as other centers of civilization where the Reformers have established missions, has its own hierarchy of priests. All are sworn to celibacy and poverty, and their oaths are carefully monitored in almost all cases by the local Hierarchs. Because of their missionary zeal, it is common to see a Reformer priest at large, wearing his plain robes, simple rope belt, sandals, and wooden holy symbol. The Reformer holy symbol is identical to the Bethite symbol, but is always carved in wood. Like the Bethites, a Reformer must have a proper holy symbol in hand to call upon Tah. Unlike the Bethites, the Reformers do accept women as well as men as priests, though very few women attain the position of Hierarch.

Some Clerics worship evil powers. Among the Druids and the Priests of the Hundred, evil Clerics are uncommon but not unheard of, and such Clerics follow the same rules and restrictions as described above. They may perform human sacrifice, employ undead monsters, and perform other atrocities, but always within the rituals of their faith; they believe causing suffering or death for any personal reason (such as sadistic pleasure) is disrespectful to the evil gods or spirits. The believers in Tah (aka Tahists) believe that only Tah is truly a god. Their beliefs include a being, usually called Shaitah or Mephistus, who was once a servant of Tah but turned to evil. Shaitah's goal is to tempt mortals away from belief in Tah; thus, Tahists believe that Druids and followers of the Hundred Gods have been deceived by Shaitah, and they try particularly hard to convert them. But there are those heretical Clerics, sometimes former followers of Tah, who have turned to the worship of Shaitah. They claim (heretically, according to the Churches of Tah) that Shaitah is a god, coequal with Tah, and they wish to help Shaitah win the eternal battle. It is the Game Master's decision whether or not to allow players to play evil Clerics, but in general this is not recommended.