Church of Asmodeus

Most followers of Asmodeus are power-hungry priests, diabolists, greedy slavers, ruthless lawyers, wicked enchanters, or decadent nobles in search of secret pleasures. In lands such as Cheliax where his worship is open, Asmodeus’s followers are much like people in other lands, except they believe in harsh punishments for lawbreakers, are accustomed to the appearance of imps in the company of spellcasters, and are openly tolerant of slavery, considering these things a mild price for keeping order. Many common people active in the church remember the chaos and suffering of civil war, or fear the violence and barbarism in places like Galt, and gratefully support the secure—if tyrannical—stability of Asmodeus’s faith. In these lands, city guards, government officials, artisans, and even farmers and laborers willingly pay lip service to Hell if the alternative is being robbed by bandits or strung up by an angry mob. Most still pray to other gods for health and prosperity, which Asmodeus and the church allow as long as the Prince is acknowledged as superior and these other faiths do not challenge his position.
True followers of Asmodeus believe in law, order, and knowing their place in the grand scheme; in many cases, they aspire to a higher position and work to prove they are worthy of it. They study their betters to learn necessary skills, watch their equals and jockey for position, and keep an eye on their inferiors for signs of exploitable talent or dangerous ambition. They keep their friends close and enemies crushingly closer, usually acting through the proper channels rather than resorting to base tactics like assassination. Most Asmodeans find it far more effective to eliminate a rival by unearthing evidence (showing your skill in the process) than by a wasteful murder.
Services to Asmodeus require chanting long phrases without error, tolling bells, participating in or receiving public punishments, and other acts of domination or submission reinforcing one’s position within the church. Blood sacrifice is also not unknown at Asmodean gatherings, typically the killing of a bull, goat, rooster, or another animal held as being particularly regal, virile, or benevolent. Humanoid sacrifices are not unheard of, but such are typically only required of groups that have fallen out of favor with the Prince of Darkness, are performing a magical rite, or have a member attempting to leave their fold. Minor devils, usually imps or bearded devils, are occasionally conjured to participate in the events, but sometimes more powerful entities might appear to show the Prince of Darkness’s favor (or that of one of his more powerful minions). Services in temples converted from another faith often have rituals designed to blaspheme the deity once honored there, particularly on holidays celebrated by the previous tenants.

Temples & Shrines

Public temples dedicated to Asmodeus thrive in Cheliax, where they often share space with the nation’s bureaucracy, although secret shrines are scattered across Golarion. Public temples built specifically for Asmodeus have a distinctly gothic, diabolical aesthetic. Secret temples dedicated to Asmodeus are usually single, hidden rooms or basements, away from the public eye and secured against accidental discovery. Temples range from grand, opulent affairs with silk curtains and gold fixtures to altars of blackened metal in dark places. The Prince of Darkness appreciates the trappings of wealth but is more interested in sincere devotion to his cause than incidental displays. However, he realizes that greedy mortals enjoy these displays as evidence of their own power and success, allowing such ostentation to fuel their greed for more and their need for him.
Shrines to Asmodeus are usually simple things like standing stones, symmetrical rocks or trees with odd marks, or even statues of prominent but reviled rulers. The faithful have a feel for these places, whether or not they are clearly marked, and some are truly ancient, dating to an age when early humans were still trying to understand the patterns in the night sky and the darkness in their own hearts.

Clothing

Asmodeus’s impeccably clean and orderly priests dress mostly in dark tones, usually black with red accents. The exact type of clothing worn varies according to the local fashion and climate. Chelish garb has multiple layers, while in chilly Nidal clerics favor dark red robes trimmed with black fur over wool clothing, and in humid Isger priests wear black shirts and pants with red vests and short cloaks. Many ceremonies use horned masks or helms, often resembling devils, goats, or rams. Like the Dark Prince, they favor rubies, and other red gemstones (such as carnelian, red beryl, red garnet, and sard) are popular for those who cannot afford true rubies. Among wealthier or ostentatious priests, red-hued ioun stones are very popular. Maces of terror and magic rods (particularly rods of lordly might and rods of rulership) are sought after by priests as status symbols.

A Priest’s Role

Priests of Asmodeus are careful in their exercise and pursuit of power, understanding that a foolish overextension might leave them vulnerable to those watching for any weakness. Within Cheliax, Asmodeus’s priests are a force of order, keeping mortals and weak-minded devils in line or torturing prisoners to extract information. Outside Cheliax, priests work with slavers, bureaucratic governments, despots, and nobles in positions of power (or those hoping to be in power). They whisper dark promises in the ears of the desperate, arrange meetings between people of influence, and act as judges in lawless lands. Many travel to bind or destroy rogue fiends (especially demons), seeking to convince folk that their faith supports order and opposes wanton destruction.
Priests honor devils as envoys of their lord, greater or lesser players in the immense infernal bureaucracy that all right-minded individuals should join. Of course, they see lemures and other minor devils as expendable, and non-lawful fiends as even more so. Unlike typical conjurers who control devils with magical force, many Asmodean magic-users parley carefully with devils, rewarding those in the Prince’s favor and abusing those out of it. An Asmodean conjurer would no more send a called osyluth on a suicide mission than a priestess of Shelyn would send a called hound archon to a similar fate. All priests have at least a passing knowledge of Hell’s organization and workings, and as such they take at least one rank in Knowledge (planes). Most keep their skills in negotiation sharp by taking ranks in Diplomacy. Some sell their services to broker mercantile transactions, treaties, bargains between devils and mortals, and so on.
A typical day for a priest begins with a prostrate prayer, a meal, and then either reporting to a superior for orders or following extant orders if no superior is present. Those with underlings issue orders after receiving their own. Evening prayers usually include a blood sacrifice, typically an animal or slave’s blood. Significant prayer rituals often require greater sacrifice, possibly including a human or other intelligent creature—most temples use slaves, captured enemies, or traitors for this purpose. Divine spellcasters usually prepare their spells after evening prayer, typically during the deepest hours of night.
Like Hell itself, Asmodeus’s church is carefully ordered, with a precise hierarchy of reports and detailed means of determining who is superior or inferior within the church—two priests of distant temples can easily establish their relative ranks with only a few sentences. Of course, some priests are effectively independent, especially in lands where their religion is forbidden, and use their magic to pursue their own agendas and interpretation of Asmodeus’s will. Members of the organized church tend to look down upon such unaffiliated priests (much as academy-trained mages look down upon hedge wizards) and strongly encourage them to join a known temple.
Asmodean inquisitors command intense respect and fear. These priests seek out disease and corruption in the tree of the unholy in order to maintain orthodox beliefs. In lands where Asmodeus worship is public, the inquisitors are easy to spot in their iron masks and black robes, and are always alert to news of heresy or blatant violation of church doctrine. They maintain a network of contacts and informants, rewarding news with coin, prestige, and the authority to arrest and interrogate in addition to their duties within the church hierarchy.

Adventurers

Beyond Asmodeus’s clergy, many strict, conniving, and entitled individuals serve the Prince of Darkness. Worshippers are drawn to Asmodeus through any number of temptations, but in the end most trade service for the promise of wealth and power. Though Asmodeus is unquestionably evil, his lawful nature draws many law-abiding individuals to his faith, and his status as the recognized patron deity of Cheliax means that even a few good-natured souls exist uncomfortably within his church (though never as divine spellcasters, and rarely in positions of any real power).
Many soldiers and martially minded types welcome Asmodeus’s dogma of force and dominance. While his church has few organized groups of soldiers, monastic orders or mercenary companies aligned with Hell are not that unusual. Among such militaristic servants of Asmodeus are those who extol him has a paragon of law and enforcer of order. With the encouragement of the church, many go so far as to call themselves “paladins,” relying on the reputations of virtuous crusaders to gain acceptance among commoners and those of modest faith. Although such armed propagandists lack the holy powers of true paladins, many supplement their strength of arms with magic items that allow them to perform miraculous feats. Most go out of their way to perform heroic deeds for communities in need—or to manufacture then thwart tribulations for those not in imminent need. Thus Asmodeus’s servants hope to undermine the common knowledge of their god’s evil, opening the minds and hearts of everyday people to the belief that Asmodeus has been judged too harshly, and that perhaps peace is worth harsh laws and rigid order. Once even a few entertain the previously unthinkable possibility of living alongside worshippers of the Prince of Darkness, the insidious seed of Asmodeus’s faith has taken root.