Church of Barasios

Roleplaying Notes

• Always keep your word and your sworn oath
• Be upright before the Law
• Be zealous against the lawbreaking
• Consider what is legal first, what is moral next, and what is wanted last.

Mythology & Lore

Legendary Items Associated with Barsios

The Book of Grudges

Assumed to be both a magical item as well as a literal record within the Ironhold about issues, criminals, and such that have gone unpunished. It is widely believed that clerics of the Iron Church who have gravely erred can choose to pursue one of the Grudges as their penance.
While most are never seen again, successfully removing a Grudge from the book has allegedly been rewarded with obvious and lavish rewards from Barasios as well as readmittance back into the Iron Church.

Tenets of Faith

The Duties of the Clerics of Barasios

Priests of the Iron Church spend countless hours studying the Law and its various interpretation as an act of prayer
In larger churches, there are three main devotional periods - Morning, Midday, and Evening. Each of those periods comes with a reflection on the Law and meditation on whatever obscure ruling is being studied at the time.
The Oathbound are expected to oversee and judge or punish the Iron Clerics, who are themselves expected to oversee their Iron Binders, who are then expected to oversee their Clerks, and so on.
Members of the Iron Church are expected to be masters in the Law of whatever country they are placed within.
Iron Binders are expected to offer their services to local courts and governments as legal advisors, barristers, and so on.

Forbidden to Barasios

• Breaking the Law or a sworn Oath on purpose
• Not accepting Punishment for a broken law or sworn oath

Sacred to Barasios

• Upholding the Law
• Administering Punishment
• Breaking the Law to Administer Punishment, thus earning another punishment (no one ever said Barasios was a reasonable god)
• Courts, Courtrooms, and Prisons

Typical Offerings

• Time is the most common offering, either time spent studying the law, working in a courtroom, etc.
• Iron Clerics and Ironbinders consider offering their services pro bono to those in need of legal advice and representation before the court to be an offering to their god.

Worship

Major Areas of Worship

Most major metropolitan areas have an Iron Church prominently featured near the center of the city or near local courts. In some smaller locations, the Iron Church is the local Courthouse.

Oaths

Crown, Watchers

Holidays

While there are not calendar style holidays to the Iron Church, the opening of a legal proceeding and the verdict are considered ‘sanctified’ days and often result in extra hours of study and meditation - or celebration when wrongdoers are justly sentenced.

Common Sayings

“In fire we are forged” - This saying can mean either ‘we’re strong enough to take this’ or ‘conflict is needed to grow’, and is a common saying among the various martial arms of the Church.
“All are equal before the Law” - a common invocation before a court hearing, or as religious meditation.

Priesthood

Leader of the Church of Barasios

Groodrig Copperhide, a male dwarven fighter. Copperhide lives in the central temple of Barasios, called the Ironhold, located in some of the oldest parts of Novandria.

Organization of the Church

The Iron Church is organized along very rigid lines, more or less along the lines of a law office.

• The Oathbound - the global head of the church and operates on a ‘first among equals’ manner
• An Iron Cleric  - often leads individual churches or can serve as an underpriest to an Oathbound in larger churches.
• An Ironbinder  - serves as lesser priests under the Iron Clerics, though they can occasionally be the lead priest of a very small township or village.
• The Clerks  - make up the faceless masses of acolytes that supports the Iron Church as everything from assistants to law clerks.

Clothing

Clerics of Barasios are exclusively limited to light armor and simple weapons, though many eschew even that, given the prevailing doctrine of the Iron Church is that the Law is both armor and weapon. Of notable exception to this is the sword cane, which is a hallmark of a member of the Iron Church and given to them upon their promotion to the rank of Ironbinder. Many pride themselves on having never had to draw their blade, however.
Ironbinders and Iron Clerics often dress in bright crimson colors, favoring bronze jewelry to accent it.
Oathbound wear formal judges robes, done in Crimson and Brass, for formal occasions.

Membership Restrictions

None, however, working ones way up the jokingly called ‘iron ladder’ is a process which starts at the very bottom. From level 1 to level 20, everyone starts as a Clerk. This has turned into occasional strangenesses where lay members of the Church end up in positions of religious power, such as Copperhide himself who was given to the Iron Church as a small boy.

Typical Followers

Lawfully minded people, zealots, etc.

Political Influence & Intrigue

Interaction with Society

• The Iron Church either assist the local Court system or simply is the local court system.
• Most Iron Churches, and the Ironhold in particular, maintain a Jail system.

Ceremonies

Opening and Closing of Court proceedings.

Sects

The Iron Church maintains a number of militant arms in support of its less material clerics
The Order of the Iron Fist
The Order of the Iron Fist is a set of knights, paladins, and other martial folks who focus on bringing criminals to justice so that the Iron Church can see them brought to justice
The Order of the Watchful Eye
The Order of the Watchful Eye is almost exclusively fighters and paladins charged with maintaining the jails of the Iron Church
The Order of Broken Chains
The Order of Broken Chains tends to be a comprised of more rough and tumble types, rangers, rogues, and the like, and specifically serves as bounty hunters and hunting for escapees.
The Lawgivers
Lawgivers tend to be fighters and other non-paladins in particular who believe in taking the Law into the lawless areas of the world, be that between cities or in the deepest and darkest dungeons.

Leader

Groodrig Copperhide

Divines

• Barasios, God of Contracts

Controlled Territories

• Ironhold

Notable Members

• Alia Orlov
• Groodrig Copperhide

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Religions of Terranon