This document contains material which, while not intended to have any real-world relevance, may prove disturbing if approached in the wrong frame of mind. Expressions from real-world religions used here are employed in a purely fictional context and no comment on any real-world religion is to be drawn from their use. In particular, this article in no way relates to the practices and beliefs of the late Anton LaVey.
Powers Template, a la Faiths & Avatars This file is copyrighted 1996 by TSR, Inc. All rights reserved.
The Dark Lord of Baator (The Adversary, the Dark One, the Wyrm, Great Beast That is Called Dragon, Master of the Ninth Hell, Lord of the Pit, Angel of the Bottomless Pit, Prince of Darkness, Father of Lies, Prince of this World, Destroyer of Kings, Bright Morning Star, Deceiver of Nations, Despoiler of Worlds, The Overlord)
Greater Power of Baator, LE
The Dark Lord is an astonishingly secretive character. Ruling the whole of the Nine Hells of Baator with an iron fist, he is a power of tremendous influence about whom next to nothing is known for certain. Indeed, the use of the male pronoun to discuss the Dark Lord is more a matter of custom among his clergy and by his opponents than any kind of indication of knowledge about the Dark One. He is often depicted as resembling a pit fiend, but when he has (rarely) manifested what seemed to be an avatar, the sight that was (briefly) seen was more like a huge shadow fiend. The Dark Lord has never been recorded as taking any direct action, except in religious texts that are usually interpreted allegorically.
It is persistently rumoured that the Dark Lord was once a Crown Archon, perhaps even a leader among them, who became obsessed with power (or jealous of a rival) and fell from Mount Celestia. The only people who know for sure are Triel, the Slug Archduke of Maladomini, and the Crowns. Neither are saying anything certain at the moment.
On the Prime world of Toril, the Dark Lord is most often associated with Gargauth the Outcast, Beherit, Astaroth and Tiamat (all mentioned in Powers and Pantheons). However, he's not considered Tiamat's superior these days as Tiamat is apparently not the ruler of the First Hell. In Zakhara, he is called Iblis, and is regarded as the enemy of the Enlightened.
The Dark Lord manifests no measurable avatar, instead exerting near-absolute power within Baator, and considerable force outside it. The author Willgan the Dogged imploded shortly after writing a treatise on the Lords of the Nine (Dragon #223), and in all probability this resulted from his declared intention to find out more about the Dark Lord. Reports of a huge earthquake preceding the destruction of the Dark Lord's enemies may hint at the power of any avatar he might employ.
Other Manifestations: The Dark Lord manifests himself in many ways. He has many tiefling and baatezu devotees, who do his fell bidding throughout the planes. As noted above, earthquakes sometimes herald his displeasure, and he also sends hurricanes, magical rains of fire and other catastrophes to celebrate great abuses of power.
The Church
The church of the Dark Lord is usually secretive, although in permissive societies it may come to more prominence. Temples to the Father of Lies are usually basically rectangular, with an apse at one end, or else round, with a huge pentagram on the floor. Sacrifices are offered on altars, and black candles are traditionally used for lighting. The favoured spot for temple construction is at the site of some terrible happening, such as a mass murder or the destruction of some good force. The priests of the Lords of the Nine are sometimes called Flamen.
Dogma: The faithful of the Prince of This World teach that the proponents of 'good' are weak-willed imbeciles who commit the ultimate hubris by trying to lord it over the strong thinkers (inevitably identified with the faithful themselves) and who impose unfair laws to prevent the true worship of the Dark One. They also teach that rebellion is a tool for the construction of a strong government, and that the gullible and the ambitious are valuable tools for the promotion of their own ends, namely the overthrow of existing 'good' governments and the instatement of their own agents. Ruthlessness is a virtue, and spying on others to be encouraged.
Day-to-Day Activities: The most important activity of the churches of Darkness are their Black Rites, performed usually the day before any mainstream holy day, or upon any dies nefastus (bank holiday). These involve the invocation of the names of the Dark One, the destruction of good sacred items, the utterance of blasphemies against good established religions, and the sacrifice of living creatures. For minor ceremonies, a black cockerel or new-born piglet is used, but upon any major feast-day, a human (preferably a virgin of either sex) is used instead. (An elf is even better, but getting hold of them can prove tricky.)
Important Ceremonies/Holy Days: Any day regarded as a bad day in the calendars of good religions is especially favoured, as is the first full moon after an equinox or solstice. Days when the dead are said to walk are highly auspicious as well. Additionally, the Dark Churches occasionally get together to perform an act of blasphemy upon some major feast day of another faith, as when, shortly before the Great Upheaval, the Pontiff Akbar Abd-Azra'il was found nailed to the door of the Spireward vestry at Excelsior Cathedral on the morning of the feast of Esperance. (This tragic planar event has thankfully not been mirrored by any similar catastrophe in Faerun. However, a serial-killer of diplomats on the Rock of Bral in the Tears of Selune was found to be a practising worshipper of the Dark One a few years ago.)
Major Centers of Worship: Temples to the Dark Lord and to the other Lords of the Nine are found throughout Baator, where such is the established religion. Elsewhere, the Temple of Dark Secrets at Ribcage is the largest such site. (Found on the Mimir.) There are no known shrines to the Dark One in Sigil, but that hardly constitutes proof that there are none at all. In Faerun, rumours persist of a shrine to the Prince of This World somewhere on the fourth level of Undermountain, said to be presided over by a powerful vampire priest. A small temple to the Dark Lord can also be found in Myth Drannor, in one of the building complexes presently controlled by baatezu. They pray to him for help in their escape attempts and their constant scrapping with Druth Daern, the phaerimm, the baelnorns, and especially the tanar'ri. So far no supernatural aid has been forthcoming except for spells for their priests. In Zakhara, the worship of Iblis is a forbidden act, punishable by death. However, in the dark cellars of Huzuz, a shadowy figure known as He Who Defies the Gods has assembled a small idol-cult dedicated to the Wyrm.
Affiliated Orders: There are no known knightly orders dedicated to the Dark Lord. (However, the FR boxed set Lands of Intrigue and the Powers and Pantheons book threw up one or two interesting snippets of chant...no spoilers here.) The Dark Lord's holy slayers are a secretive and nameless cult controlled by the baatezu, and used by them as agents. Their sign, left at the scenes of assasinations, is a pentagram carved or burned into the victim's flesh.
Priestly Vestments: Priests of the Dark Lord usually wear robes of absolute night black, that cover them from throat to foot, perhaps with a pentagram in silver on the back. The higher-ranking priests wear visorless helmets with rams' horns attached to the sides.
Adventuring Garb: There is no adventuring garb for priests of the Father of Lies - they always travel anonymously.
Speciality Priests (Children of Darkness)
The experience progression table for all priest types is found in Appendix 1: Priest Group Classes in the Faiths and Avatars book, but is identical with the Druid table, except for the Druid's 'reset'.
Any race may be Children of Darkness, although those with predispositions to chaotic alignments (such as all elves) are very rare.
Granted Powers
Observations:
'Satan' simply means 'adversary', and is not, strictly speaking, a proper name. All fiends might be called satans.
'Satanael' means 'enemy of God' and is only an applicable name for the Dark Lord if a monotheistic religion is active in your campaign.
'Shaitan' properly refers to an adversarial race of genie-like spirits. However, the word derives from 'Satan' and is a fine title for the Dark Lord.
'Melchiresha' is from the Dead Sea Scrolls and means 'Bad, or Evil King'. The opposite name is 'Melchizedek' (see Genesis 14:18), meaning 'Good, or Holy King', and in the same context may be justly used as the name of a Crown Archon. (Specifically the archangel Michael if you use him - I don't.)
