Sacristies of Mormekar

The sacristies of Mormekar, where the Mormekim (MORR-muh-kim) worship, were founded in their current form by a visionary justice of Maal. Named Alonzo d’Eriq, he claimed to have been visited by the Grim Wanderer himself. Mormekar told this Maalite of his deep displeasure, for the mortal races had come to lose respect for death. While they wondered at birth, the marvel for which his wife Morwyn is regularly praised, they hid from death. They celebrated the deceased’s life and then left the body to the lowest members of society, for at the time, gravediggers and crypt-keepers came from the dregs of the mortal races. To make matters worse, some among the mortal races violated the sanctity of death, raising up the spirits or bodies of the departed to mock its stillness. This lack of respect made Mormekar’s duties more difficult to perform. Many who died had no idea they had passed. The god of the dead had to personally inform them, and lead them to Maal’s kingdom. Worse, many rose as undead, created by foul necromancers. The god charged d’Eriq with founding a church in Mormekar’s name, to ease the passage of souls with funeral rites given by the Grim Wanderer himself. His church would also “give rest” to the undead, and remind mortals that, just as surely as they are unified by birth, so too are they united by death—the only two things they all share. The Maalite swore he would spread these lessons and he was true to his word. He traveled to the four corners of the world, teaching all who would listen the rites of the dead, and the wrath Death would unleash upon the disrespectful and blasphemous. For Mormekar left d’Eriq and his church, with words of warning: If his duties were made any more difficult by disrespect, he might prematurely claim the lives of all mortals, or refuse to return the reborn to the world. D’Eriq swore to Mormekar this would not be necessary, and the Mormekim of today see themselves as the inheritors of that promise. Mormekar is fond of his church. It’s a rare attachment for the Grim Wanderer. As the Mormekim say, they perform a useful service for their god. Their rites properly ready the dead for Mormekar, and their opposition to necromancy pleases him. That said, fondness rarely extends into actual interference or guidance. Mormekar rarely speaks to his clergy or anyone else who worships him, except at the moments of their deaths. Unlike other gods, he has no domain where his faithful go, so there is no chance of standing at his side in the afterlife. He is a god of little warmth; worshippers understand this, and do not expect rewards.

Tenets of Faith

Death is Sacred

“If I do not do my duty to Mormekar, what am I? I could ignore Death’s decrees as others do, I could pretend death is beyond my ken as they do, but that would make me little more than a coward. I bear the burdens of duty, and all who would do what is right will follow in my steps.” —The fourth decree of the Minister Alonzo d’Eriq

The Mormekim faith is one of duty, followed by few. While nearly everyone who worships the gods of the tree comes to the sacristies for funeral services, most leave other matters of death to these strange folk, who are completely devoted to its ways. Donations given by the families of the dead more than fund the sacristies. Some people believe the more generously they give, the kinder Mormekar will be to their loved ones, so the sacristies often have far more money than they can use. The faith can be explained in three utterances, often repeated by the Mormekim. Mormekar reportedly made these three statements to d’Eriq long ago:

Death is sacred. Minister to all those who have passed this rite I have given you, and you will be blessed.
Death is sacred. Obey my command: Seek out those who violate that sanctity and destroy them.
Death is sacred. When you come to my embrace, do not reject it.

Alonzo d’Eriq was the first to administer the rite when he founded the order of the ministers. He gave the order a twenty-step rite for preparing the dead, passed down from Mormekar himself. The rite connects the minister with the deceased’s body and spirit, so all may be properly prepared for Mormekar. It should be performed within one day of death. Mormekim believe if this ceremony is not properly performed, the spirit might become trapped in the world, rising as one of the restless dead. Knowledge of the rite leads some Mormekim believe, perhaps arrogantly, they alone perform a proper and useful duty for the gods. If a person dies and does not receive the rite, most clergy of the gods of the tree can perform a fair approximation. An approximation is not the rite proper, though, and many faithful request their bodies be brought to the Mormekim if they die, even if they are far from civilization. Different societies have different notions about what happens after the rite—some burn bodies, others bury them. The rite is a preparation, not the entirety of the body’s disposal. There is more to the faith than the rite, of course. The obedient brotherhood was formed to focus on the second utterance, though it is an edict all Mormekim obey. They stamp out the undead and those who would create the undead. Death must remain sacrosanct and inviolate. The final utterance sets the Mormekim apart from other faiths of the pantheon: They expressly forbid any magic that brings a person back from death, and counsel their companions against the use of such magic. For this reason, it is usually impossible to raise a Mormekim, unless the deceased would return to perform a greater task for the sanctity of death. Mormekim care little, if at all, about mortal society or matters of good, evil, law, or chaos. They strive to uphold their divine task. Their scriptures, prayers and everything else about their faith focuses on death, not life, and it is often said (and justifiably so) the Mormekim are more at home surrounded by the dead than by the living. Finally, there are no holy days, festivals, or celebrations among the Mormekim. They are a grim people.

Worship

The core of the Mormekim faith is the rite of the dead. Sacristies are holy houses of the rite, where ministers keep all the materials necessary to perform it: sacred ointments, linens, incense, and scriptures, within chambers of dark glory. Administering the rite takes four or five hours, and includes chanting a long series of prayers, most of which are admonishments to the spirit of the deceased, preparing it for the afterlife. One of the earliest chants informs the spirit that it has died, as many deceased do not realize they’ve left the mortal coil. Unless informed, they might haunt the living. The following prayer prevents that:
“I call upon you, (name of the deceased)! Heed me this hour! You have passed beyond living. You are quick no longer. The light has left your eyes. The heat has fled your flesh. Mormekar will claim you. The final path is before you.”

Priesthood

Ministers of Mormekar

The ministers perform the rite, and keep the dead safe from desecration. This is the whole purpose of their order and it keeps them quite busy as naturally, people are constantly dying. Ministers almost never involve themselves in secular affairs, and few leave their sacristy but to fetch supplies and bodies. Yet some make it their mission to travel the world, administering the rite to people who cannot reach a sacristy. Others leave to wage war against necromancers and the undead, pledging to destroy them all. They perform their duty for Mormekar and don’t give two figs about mortal society. While they sometimes perform “good” acts such as opposing the undead, they don’t do them because they believe necromancy is evil, but because it is their duty, and the undead defy the cycle of existence their god protects. This makes them seem quite lawful, but save for the rite and commands of Death, most the ministers don’t care about laws or rules. They don’t give each other orders and recognize no ranks in their churches. They serve Death, not living morality. Yet many Mormekim care about structures, and authority. They see the Mormekim’s wealth and importance, and believe the only thing keeping the faith from having a more profound impact is its lack of organization. With a proper structure, including a central authority, the Mormekim could spread their faith all over the world and into the halls of power, influencing secular society so greatly that perhaps there would be no more necromancy. Another vocal minority consists of crusaders against the undead, wanderers who wish to extend the rite to those who might never receive it. They believe the withdrawal of the ministers into their sacristies allows much evil to be done in the world. They want to bring the mercy of Mormekar’s edicts to all people. A very few ministers came to the Mormekim because the faith is about as different from the rest of mortal society as one can get. They enjoy being outsiders concerned only with death, scoffing at “the quick.” Many of these ministers play to the prejudices most folk have about the Mormekim, dressing in black and speaking in mordant voices.

Joining the Ministers

Prospective ministers go to sacristies and take a one-year vow of silence. During this time, they try to understand the stillness of the dead and learn the rite. When they have completed their time of silence, they speak the rite before any other words, and recite it perfectly and in its entirety. If they succeed, they become ministers: clerics of Mormekar. A minister is addressed as “Father,” or “Mother,” and introduced by full title.

Sects

Obedient Brotherhood of Mormekar

The obedient brotherhood upholds the covenant between mortals and Mormekar as expressed by the second utterance, “Death is sacred. Obey my command: Seek out those who violate that sanctity and destroy them.” Unlike ministers, obedient brothers and sisters are not dispassionate beings of duty. They are filled with holy righteousness, and stand opposed to the pure evil of undeath. They are just as concerned with protecting the living from the ravages of necromancy as they are with preserving the sanctity of the dead. They believe the utterances pertain to life as well as death. For instance, since death is sacred, it should not be brought on by something unholy like the undead. Thus, the living should be protected from the undead. Members of the obedient brotherhood often join adventuring groups, happy to go on missions that might not involve the undead, but they always prefer war against undeath over any other venture. They have no authority structure, and are free to go wherever they will. The order tends to attract grim specimens. Most of the obedient brotherhood are quiet, tend toward dark garb and whispering voices, and have childhoods touched by the ravages of the undead. There are exceptions, of course, and the order does not require a dark outlook. Nevertheless, every obedient brother and sister sees death as one of the two most sacred acts of the mortal races, with the other being birth. They do not shy from the dead and the dying, and wish to give them dignity. A member of the obedient brotherhood must not permit the defiling of the dead, including creating undead or looting corpses. They oppose violators. Yet one could deprive one of the undead of its treasures, if these were taken after the creature was damned, or could take items from a body if they know (and do not just believe) that the deceased would have desired this. Furthermore, they are not opposed to all necromancy, but only that which disturbs the slumber of death. An obedient brother would rather die than let undead flourish. He administers the rite to any who need it. Members of this order are excellent traveling companions. While they must give top priority to battling the undead and dark necromancy, they are otherwise completely free. The order commands them only to go forth and oppose the defiling of death, so if their companions aren’t defiling the dead themselves, they make perfectly pleasant company. They have no disposition toward chaos or law, so other holy warriors, rogues, barbarians, wizards, sorcerers, monks, druids—all make fine associates for obedient brothers and sisters. If they will aid the holy warrior in her quest against the undead, even better. Their favorite companions are Morwynites, who protect life and birth as Mormekim protect the dead and the dying. Together, they make a formidable team.

Joining the Obedient Brotherhood

Initiates to the order must find an obedient brother or sister willing to train them. Together they pray for guidance from Mormekar, and if they both feel the god wishes the candidate to become an obedient sister (or brother), she becomes one. She then trains for a year, learning the rite and the secrets of destroying the undead. It’s a very simple process. One is an obedient brother or sister all of one’s life, and there are no higher titles in the order. A member of the obedient brotherhood is addressed as “brother” or “sister” and introduced by name, followed by order: “Ming Tan, an Obedient Sister of the Sacristies of Mormekar.” Most come from the ranks of rangers or Champions (who all take the Shining Oath feat when it becomes available).

The Ritual of Rebirth

Mormekar is the god of rebirth as well as death. This rarely has any impact on mortal society, as those who are reborn have no recollection of their previous lives. There are those, however, who believe it is possible to influence one’s rebirth, or even to be reborn in one’s lifetime. Some who have led lives of unspeakable wickedness come to the sacristies of Mormekar pleading to be reborn so they might set their unforgivable acts to rights. These acts are usually crimes that are certain to result in eternal punishment in one of the infernal realms—consorting with demons and devils, murdering family, or worse. People seeking rebirth pray for days, sometimes weeks, to the other gods of the tree, begging for forgiveness. During this time, the ministers bring food and water but do not speak to the petitioner. At the end of this period, a penitent rises and ministers administer the rite, though she still breaths. The penitent then leaps into one of the massive braziers that sit at the center of each sacristy, showing they are prepared to make the ultimate sacrifice for forgiveness, and surrender to the will of the gods. Usually, flames consume the penitent, and none know whether they attain forgiveness, or the afterlife torments they were destined for. Once in a great while, for reasons known only to the gods, the fires do not consume the penitent. They rise from the flames, and the ministers gather around her. They anoint her with three pure oils—one for birth, one for life, and one for deat —and give her a new name. Under this new name, she is sent into the word to right the terrible wrongs she did in her prior life. She is now one of the reborn, the third holy order of the Mormekim. She receives no special address, honorifics, or introduction, but can ask for the aid of any faithful Mormekim by saying, “I am reborn.”