Mennith
The Just
A deity of extreme ideals, Mennith (Meh-Nith) appears as a powerfully built man of early-middle years, invariable with close cropped dark hair and matching, short beard. His eyes blaze with the light of justice from beneath the helm of his black armor. While his followers are few, they are typically rabid in their beliefs and generally live in communities dedicated to their lord and his precepts, the most notable being the Grand Duchy of His Lord Mennith on the Sea of Storms where Mennith is the state religion.
History/Relationships
During the earliest days of humanity, few worshipped the Mennith, favoring more practical dieties such as Chetria to bless crops or Anderi to keep the darkness at bay. As society developed, however, with its excesses of bounty and the inevitable inequal distribution of wealth, his popularity grew. Why, after all, should some be granted a life of leisure while others broke their backs in the fields all day. It was simply not fair. A just deity should distribute wealth and power evenly among its flock.
As humanity inevitably coveted the wealth of others, leading to crimes of theft and even murder, the concept of justice evolved to include vengeance. It was, after all, only right and fair to punish those whose sins of covetous led to the injury and death of others. And so the cult of Mennith grew in popularity amongst the commonfolk of l pre-Imperia Eldoria. Persecuted by the increasingly powerful warlords of the Island of Eldoria, who feared their growing popularity, the Mennithites left, heading west and hoping to find a home where they could live alone with their beliefs. During the first days of the colony, his avatar descended to save the city from a dragon attack, cementing their worship in Mennith to the exclusion to all others.
Dogma
Many believe that Mennith represents the basest of human emotions - a desire for fairness and justice in all things. To achieve this, Mennith teaches his devoted the necessities of strict law and rigid order. This fairness has, according to many, been taken to far. If one cannot have, then none may have it, a tenet that has reduced much of his flock to a bare level of substance. Similarly, transgressions against others must be punished equally. All thefts must be repaid, injuries returned in kind, and death responded to by death.
While the simplicity of these beliefs appeal to many there are those that say the dogma itself has become corrupted. A truly just and fair god would instead teach its worshipers to hold themselves to a higher standard than the masses. These views, however, are typically not expressed by those who profess their faith in Mennith but instead by outsiders who, according to faithful, lack an understanding of their Lord's will.
Church/Preisthood
From this simple dogma, the religious elite of Mennith have created a complex priesthood and society. While it is true that every man or woman
in a fair world would have the same gifts in life, it is necessary to provide a stable culture in which these notions can flourish. And such a culture needs leaders that can guide its growth and, perhaps more importantly, adjudicate disputes that arise when individuals come into conflict with the will of Mennith and the needs of the flock. From these principals the priestood rules the duchy, keeping an extremely conservative regime that protects the church and, by necessity, their own power.
Over the years they have learned that non-humans viewpoints can fracture the homogeny of the flock and as such, no longer tolerate their existence. Similarly, those that practice the arcane disrupt notions of fairness - how can one have such unchecked power in the hands of a mere mortal? Given these views, the Duchy banned magic far before the Mage Wars. Today, outsiders rarely travel inside the Grand Duchy, due to these prejudices and those that do often find themselves unexpectedly at odds with the religious authorities.
Common priests of Mennith's wear white and blue robes, with balanced scales on the chest. The color balance of their robes denote rank within the priesthood, with robes of novices generally blue with white highlights and scales, the color scheme shifting more and more in favor of white until the one finds nothing but blue stictching on a snow white robes for the Lord of Justice.
"One might claim that those that follow the faith of the Mennith devoutly are the most misunderstood of all the flocks on Tarien. Those that follow the precepts are justice are, as a rule, fair and wise; slow to anger and fierce in their defense the helpless. Is it the fault of these noble men and women - clearly in the minority of Mennith's worshipers - have been marginalized by such radical factions those that rule in the Grand Duchy?. Would you paint all worshipers of Anderi with the same brush that you would use to paint the Holy Legion of Light?"
Religions
Alignment
Lawful Evil
Children
Sex
Male
Ruled Locations
Flaming Sword
Main Temple
Grand Temple of Justice, Mennith
Portfolio
Fire, Justice, Self-Reliance, Tyranny, Vengeance
Domain
Order
Favored Weapon
Greatsword
Head of Priesthood
Faris Retaal
Grand Temple of Justice