Cult of Orcus

A cult that was prominent in Bal-Morath after the exile of Halames.

History

The Cult of Orcus has been in existence for centuries, since long before the formation of the Empire. Its worship of the Demon Prince of Undeath, Orcus, marks it as not a true 'religion' (which, by definition, follows a deity) but it is not far from it in terms of wealth, political influence and numbers of followers.

Until the middle of the 1st Century the Cult was relatively quiet, practising its worship in relative secrecy but once the residents nation of Bal-Morath were transformed into Tieflings the Cult came out from the Shadows and proclaimed itself as the 'voice' of this new race, arguing strongly for its inclusion in the Empire even during the open conflict that existed in the early 2nd century. They even claimed to be the "Horns of Orcus" and vowed to 'butt-heads with the Empire in the name of all true Bal-Morathians'

The cult achieved an unprecedented amount of political power from 182 - 194 IC whilst it ruled Bal-Morath but once deposed it found itself unable to convert sufficient other races to its cause and rapidly sank back into obscurity.

Aims

The primary aims of the Cult are as follows:

1. To worship the Demon Prince, Orcus
2. To deliver unclaimed souls to Orcus such that his power in the Abyss grows
3. To make all of the lands of Oberon welcoming for Orcus and his demon hordes
4. To improve the mortal lives of all of its members
5. To ensure the continuation of the Cult

Rise in Bal-Morath

Eventually, in 177 IC Bal-Morath's king (Halames) was executed after a revolution and a Republic was formed but this was corrupted by the noble houses and dominated by the non-Tiefling House Sarris as the Empire was only willing to deal with Human representatives. The Cult seized upon this opportunity to reinvent themselves as a Pro-Tiefling 'nationalist' party representing the 'hard-working, ordinary Tieflings who deserved better than rule by an ultra-rich 'elite' Noble houses'.

By 182 IC the Cult had gained such influence (mostly through assassination, blackmail and liberal amounts of enchantments) that the people handed them power and the Cult began to 'rule' all of Bal-Morath. Once in power they, initially, convinced the populace that they were true to their word and appeared to exert political pressure on the Empire for more favourable trading and military deals. In fact, the Empire was deeply unhappy that a Cult had seized its newly acquired lands and conceded only the most minor of points. The Cult, wanting to avoid serious reprisal from the Empire until they'd established themselves fully actually presented very few demands and thus the state of affairs remained more or less the same. The Cult naturally heralded as "great victories for the Morathian people" which further consolidated their position.

Behind their mask of political idealism though the Cult quickly established 'martial law' within Bal-Morath, using an almost radicalised group to arrest dissenters but then to also imprison anyone merely suspected of harbouring 'thoughts against Bal-Morath'. All those arrested were sentenced to death but were actually being sacrificed to Orcus. Although may people quickly realised that the Cult did not have their best interests at heart the list of crimes that could result in the death penalty quickly expanded an everyone was encouraged to report any non-loyal family members or also be found guilty and executed. In this period many Noble houses isolated themselves further from the common people for fear of reprisal which actually increased the Cult's grip.

In 193 IC the Empire, having seen revenues from Bal-Morath fall drastically, and being unhappy with the Cult effectively establish a fascist state, decided to send the Army in to restore some level of calm. The Cult was incensed by this and formally declared 'war' by using the power obtained from years of sacrifices to summon a demon horde. The Imperial Army retreated and the ordinary people now could plainly see that they were all basically 'demon food'.

Then, on the 8th Tretibus 194, the Cult of Orcus was removed from power. On a single night every high-ranking cultist was either assassinated or simply vanished never to be seen again. The Imperial Army, aided by the Chancery quickly destroyed the demons roaming the west coast of Bal-Morath. The Army moved inland and quickly restored order, established a new Council and reopened negotiations with Noble houses to provide goods and services. Within two weeks the nation had a new, democratic, political structure and was well on its way to rebuilding itself.

Current Status within the Empire

The Cult still exists to this day and is still popular among Tieflings that have little grasp of history or who have become 'disenfranchised'. Although rarely publicised most towns have a few followers and they occasionally go 'door-to-door' to try to drum up more recruits. Since the Cult's rise to power in Bal-Morath they are watched closely by the Chancery but the Empire does not intend to ban them or restrict their worship.