Malosia
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This section contains canon Ravenloft information from officially published sources; see the References below. |
Malosiais the domain seen in the novel Black Crusade. It is a land of contrasts and dualities. On the one hand, the inquisition agents of the Empyrean Church, a religious institution of monolithic power that also controls the country, zealously scout for heresy and witchcraft and can take away anyone with an odor of transgression against the church. Transgressors are taken away to horrible prisons such as Perdition Hill, where they face religious indoctrination and hard labor. Anti-witch hysteria has even spread to some communities even in the absence of Redbreasts. On the other hand, old pagan beliefs and witch cults can lurk secretly within these very same communities. The Laginate Cabal, Malosia's most long-lived witch tradition, practices close in proximity to the Caercaelum.
Things, Creatures & Personages of Legend
Geography
Terrain
Hills and Mountains
Forests
Population Distribution
Cities
- Caercaelum, the Heavenly City
Towns
Villages
Authority
Darklord
- Although an outlander unconnected with the Empyrean Church, Sir Diederic de Wyndt is nonetheless recognized as the hero who ended a plague of madness that gripped the land.[1]
Temporal and Spiritual Rule
Ever since the Empyrean Church subsumed the power of the royal crown, the Church has ruled over the country of Malosia with Caercaelum as both the seat of temporal authority and the seat of spiritual authority.[2] The Pontiff is the head of the Church, previously this was Pontiff Cornelis Antheunis the First, but he was arrested by the Inquisition for collusion with and failure to report a witch.[3] Pontiff Cornelis may likely have had his status and powers removed.
Law-Enforcement
The Empyrean Inquisition keeps a watchful (some even within the church would say paranoid) eye for witches and heretics. Their church soldiers are commonly referred to as Redbreasts. The current leader is First Confessor Oste van Brekke.
Intelligence Gathering
- Special members of the Empyrean Church's clergy called Truth Seekers see to the interrogation of prisoners and evaluate potential witch activity. Although it is taboo for the clergy to spill blood, this potential restriction on interrogation techniques can be gotten around through many creative means of injury.[4]
Gods and Religions
- The God Most High is the sole deity recognized by the monotheistic Empyrean Church. His children, the Sixfold Scions, are recognized as the saviors of humanity.[5]
- The people of the villages still hang onto the beliefs of old. Witches and their cults lurk out of sight, but the presence of a witch pact with fey spirits and demons might be judged by the flourishing of crops and agriculture.
References
- ↑ Black Crusade p. 319
- ↑ Black Crusade p. 75
- ↑ BC p. 283-293
- ↑ BC p. 67
- ↑ BC p. 69
