The Black Temple
The mummified remains of the original thirteen founders along with The Feathered King are buried here in this black rectangular crypt. The outer walls are featureless and are made of perfectly smooth black obsidian. An open vestibule faces the Street of the Gods. The walls of the vestibule are likewise made of perfectly smooth black obsidian however the floor is made of bright red marble. Opposite from the outer opening to this room is a sealed door that is difficult to spot (DC 20) due to its seamless design that makes it appear as part of the walls. Two-thirds of the way into the vestibule stands a four foot tall basin made of white alabaster.
Citizens of Lankhmar regard the founders and The Feathered King as Gods and their remains as corporeal evidence of their existance. They are collectively known as the "Gods of Lankhmar". There is no religion that surrounds The Gods of Lankhmar, and therefore there are no priests, ceremonial services, nor dogmatic rules to follow. Despite this, the head priest or priestess from every temple along the Street of the Gods pays respect to The Gods of Lankhmar on a monthly basis by entering the vestibule (also known as the "Red Room") and placing an offering into the white basin. Likewise, some citizens will do the same; some offer a copper tik while others place a bit of food. Children will often leave a toy; and some have been known to leave a folded note, presumably with a petition asking for favor. The offerings disappear after the offerer(s) leave the vestibule and no one is around. It is speculated that the basin teleports the offerings to the interior rooms of the crypt so that The Gods of Lankhmar may enjoy them, however no one truly knows or dares enter the crypt in order to find out.
The Gods of Lankhmar are more than mummified remains or sacred relics; as the founders of the city they fought for and loved so much in life, they continue to protect Lankhmar even in "death". Whenever the city faces a natural or man-made disaster, siege, or other danger that threatens its existence, the near invisible door at the back of the vestibule will slide downwards into the floor, and The Gods of Lankhmar will emerge to defend the city in whatever manner is necessary. For example, in the year 2412 SK, a particularly powerful hurricane pummeled the city and its winds began tearing down segments of the seawall and destroying buildings randomly throughout town. The Gods of Lankhmar emerged, stood in a circle in the middle of the Street of the Gods, raised their staves above their heads and created an invisible magical protective dome over the city. While the hurricane raged outside the dome, the interior climate of Lankhmar returned to the clime it had immediately prior to the storm.
As is known by all, The Black Temple lies at the westermost end of the Street of Gods which signifies that it is the most important Temple in the city. Just as The Gods of Lankhmar will emerge to protect and defend the city, they will likewise emerge to destroy any temple that would dare to stand further west than the Black Temple. This was discovered when a temple to honor Issek of the Jug was being erected on the site where Hester's House in the River District presently stands. In that event, The Gods of Lankhmar emerged just as the priests of Issek began their consecration rites to sanctify the temple and declare its official status as the most popular religion in the city. It was high noon and the Street of the Gods was bustling with merchants, acolytes, and other such travelers and citizens, all of whom did not initially notice the Gods as they emerged from their Crypt. Moments later, Martha the Apple Seller approached Falkor the Brown from behind to offer him her wares. "Care for an apple, Sai?", Martha offered. Falkor the Brown turned to face Martha. When Martha say his skeletal visage, she dropped her basket of apples and her mouth froze open in a silent scream. Amy Morgen, a small child who saw the apples fall ran to take advantage of the accident, hoping to grab a free snack. Amy chased an apple that rolled its way to the feet of Sewastian the Feared. After she picked up the apple, she looked up at Sewastian the Feared and did all the screaming that Martha could not do. It wasn't long before everyone in the immediate vicinity realized that The Gods of Lankhmar stood silently among them. If a bird above could testify, it would say that people fell prone to the street in what looked like a "human ripple effect" pattern, rippling outwards in all directions from where the Gods stood. Except for Amy; she remained standing and continued that scream that was seemingly without end. Sewastian the Feared knelt down to Amy Morgen's face, eye to eyesocket. He placed his bony forefinger against what was left of his withered and rotted lips to indicate silence. Amy obliged immediately but couldn't seem to look away. Sewastian the Feared then spoke in near whisper, "My child, Take us to Issek of the Jug". Amy thought for a second and replied, "oh yeah! I know where that's at! Follow me!". She then led Sewastian the Feared and the other Thirteen Gods down the street to the intersection of Street of the Gods and Nun. "There it is, right there!", she pointed at the Temple with a glee and a delight in her eyes, the delight that every seven year old gets when they feel they are helping an adult, undead or not. They walked slowly and some say casually to the Temple of Issek's doors. It was Steffan the Brilliant who opened the doors in grand gesture. The large cathedral-sized doors opened inwards and away in a slow motion that reminded one of a stage curtain being drawn upwards at opening night at the Theater. Screams rippled through the congregation as they turned their heads to see who would be so rude as to interrupt the consecration rites. The Priests of Issek, upon hearing the screams, stopped mid-chant and an alter boy lost grip of his thurible of incense mid-swing, sending it flying into the pews where it connected with some poor soul's face. The Gods strolled in, looking around in feigned admiration of the temple's architecture. It was The Serpent, Orm who closed the doors behind him. No one within survived to tell of what exactly happened, but exactly eleven minutes after The Serpent, Orm closed the temple's doors, they re-opened as dramatically as before, and out came The Gods of Lankhmar, calm as ever. The Feathered King led the party this time, walking proudly back towards their crypt on a then very empty street. In his right hand he carried the severed head of the High Priest of Issek by his black hair. The High Priest's eyes were rolled all the way up, revealing only the bloodied whites of his eyes, and his jaw was completely slack. The priest's tongue seemed to be tasting the air as The Feathered King swung his head around in the same rhythm as had the alter boy swung his thurible, mocking their gestures of worship. The Gods continued past their Crypt eastward down the Street of the Gods, stopping at the intersection of Carter street. The Feathered King turned to his comrades, then turned back to face Marsh Gate. In one great swing, he flung the High Priest's head with amazing force and velocity. The head landed in the gate's archway and continued to roll eastward and out of the city, eventually rolling off to the south and into the Great Marsh. At that, The Feathered King made a pushing motion with his right hand which slammed the 5,000 lb city gates shut, creating a thunderous sound heard throughout all of Lankhmar, a city that was at that point so silent, not even the birds sang in the sky. The Feathered King then turned and faced westward and held his right hand high above his head, holding it there for a few seconds, then brought it down in a slamming motion. As he did so, the Temple of Issek crumbled to the ground, completely obliterated. The Gods of Lankhmar then went on a 12 hour murderous rampage, exacting their toll upon the citizens who "allowed" a temple to supercede their own. 579 Lankhmarians lost their life that day at the hands of The Gods of Lankhmar. Never again has a temple been built westward of the Black Temple since.
While The Gods of Lankhmar are indeed a great benefit in disastrous situations, their protection comes at a price. Immediately after they handle the situation that threatened the city's existence, The Gods of Lankhmar separate and prowl the city streets and kill anyone foolish enough to cross their path or meet their gaze. It is advised that if you are unfortunate enough to see a God of Lankhmar walking towards you, you should immediately avert your eyes downward, lie prone onto the street before you on your belly, and lie as still as quietly as possible. Begging for mercy will only arouse their anger even more. It is said that the purpose of this murderous rampage has two reasons: the Gods need to replenish their spent energy by killing and to ensure that the citizens do not rely upon the Gods to protect the city by creating better risk management techniques to diminish city destroying perils in the first place. The theory of energy replenishment has been posited due to many accounts by people who have witnessed a God murdering someone. They say that after the person is killed, the God touches the victim's body with the staff that each God carries, and that "energy" or "their soul" passes from the corpse, up the staff's shaft, and into the God. This rampage lasts until midnight, so depending on exactly when the Gods emerged and completed their defensive mission, they could be out "collecting their payment" anywhere from a few minutes to 24 hours.
Discovered in what remains of the archival books written during their life, The Gods of Lankhmar were known in life as:
- Anselm of the North
- Wolff, Guardian of the Woods
- Skade of the Sea
- Steffan the Brilliant
- Sewastian the Feared
- The Serpent, Orm
- The Architect
- Knut, Bringer of Light
- Odenn the Mighty
- Sevve the Dark
- Brittz
- Falkor the Brown
Purpose / Function
The Black Temple serves as a monument and crypt to the Gods of Lankhmar, who are the founding fathers of the city.
Architecture
This is an artist's rendition of the Black Temple, idealized in a peaceful meadow.
The vestibular area of the Black Temple where many go to pay their respects and relinquish an offering to the Gods of Lankhmar.
The Black Temple is made entirely of black obsidian. Its walls are perfectly smooth and it is strangely absorbant of light (99.6% light absorption). It measures 40 feet wide, 50 feet deep, and 17 feet high.
Vestibule inside the Black Temple of the Gods of Lankhmar by Selket
History
Historical records reveal that the Feathered King designed the building with the Architect for the purposed of becoming both a monument and a crypt for himself and the fellow founders of Lankhmar.
Tourism
People visiting Lankhmar for the first time are nearly always eager to see the Black Temple as it's considered a world wonder.
Founding Date
922 FK
Type
Temple / Church
Parent Location
Owner
Characters in Location
Related Traditions
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