Church of Nicodemus

Roleplaying Notes

Followers are generally somber, serious, and quiet. They believe death comes to all, everything else is temporary. They observe the ending of things, and honor them all.

Mythology & Lore

Legendary Items and Weapons of Nicodemus

Grave Dust

One of the tasks often given to acolytes is to collect the dust that gathers on graves and in mausoleums. This is then used for rituals to Nicodemus when the clerics meditate on death at midnight.

Tenets of Faith

The Duties of the Clerics of Nicodemus

Silent Sisters care for the recently dead and disposal of bodies to local “Twilight Houses”, which serve as graveyards and mausoleums.
Black Priests care for the Twilight Houses and maintain the rituals and rites to Nicodemus
All Twilight Clerics have taken their vows to look for Death in all places; this often makes them dour and quiet types, carrying the gravity of a graveyard with them at all times.
Silent Sisters, in specific, take a vow of silence and utter reverence for the dead. Begger or King, it doesn’t matter - the Sisters receive all in the end.
Twilight Clerics are required to stop and pray at Midnight, honoring the ‘death’ of each day.

Forbidden to Nicodemus

• Desecrating dead bodies or allowing it to happen
• Refusing burial services

Sacred to Nicodemus

Funerals, cremations, etc.

Typical Offerings

Ash, bones, etc., from the dead

Worship

Major Areas of Worship

Most major cities have a House of Twilight which serves the city. Smaller cities and towns may only have one local Silent Sister or Black Priest, which sees to the towns needs.

Holidays

Any day in which someone has died is considered to be a “Traveler’s Day” as Nicdemus has visited the world.

Common Sayings and Blessings

• “Death comes to all” - usually said not as a threat but as a comforting thought, that no one escapes the Twilight Prince’s reach.
• “He Travels today” - either said to convey that someone has died, or that someone is “on Travel” to or from a body.

Priesthood

Head of the Church

The current head of the church is Desdemona Ouimet.
The House of Twilight is the Central church of Nicodemus, located within Midnight City in the Summerlands

Organization of the Church

There are two main factions of Clerics to Nicodemus:
The Silent Sisters - exclusively female (or female presenting) clerics who take a vow of silence and who serve both the Twilight Church and communities worldwide as funeral and caretakers of the recently dead.
The Black Priests - Clerics to Nicodemus who serve the church and communities as administration of graveyards, mausoleums, etc.
Acolytes serve under both factions, doing much of the ‘grunt’ work of the various tasks.
There is no militant arm to the Twilight Church, as the church does not feel it is their job to go ‘hunt’ undead - death comes to everything in its time.
As part of this, most Twilight Clerics have relatively free reign to “Travel with Death” in order to assist with burial needs, transport bodies, etc.

Clothing

Twilight Clerics wear exclusively black - robes, armor, etc, adorned with a sickle.
Silent Sisters, on the other hand, wear exclusively gray.

Membership Restrictions

None - in fact, the Twilight Church is home to many ‘undesirable’ races, and given their service to communities many of those races find acceptance alongside membership in the church.
Most notable there are a large number of sentient undead present in the Twilight Church.

Typical Followers

Almost anyone - on its face, ‘taking the black’ is considered a right and honorable pursuit, however there are some noble houses that look down on religious service.

Political Influence & Intrigue

Interaction with Society

The Twilight Church maintains graveyards, funerals, etc.

Ceremonies

Funerals

Type

Religious, Organised Religion

Leader

Desdemona Ouimet

Divines

• Nicodemus, God of Death & Afterlife

Controlled Territories

• Novandria House of Twilight

Notable Members

• Desdemona Ouimet

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Religions of Terranon