Cult of the Crushing Wave

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Cultists of the Crushing Wave worship the awesome power of water, from the surging tides and deadly maelstroms of the sea to the raging torrents of rivers in flood and the rock-crushing power of ice and glaciers. Crushing Wave cultists see all living creatures as nothing more than trapped water that could one day be free to return to the seas or skies in a new form. The seas and deep waters are eager to reclaim the parts of themselves currently held in the blood and bodies of living creatures, and it is the duty of Crushing Wave initiates to return nonbelievers to the primal waters by drowning them or shedding their blood. The Crushing Wave cult appeals to those who live in or near bodies of water, as well as to those who appreciate subtlety and inevitability. Wicked sea creatures such as aquatic ghouls and merrows are friendly toward water cultists. Even non-sentient predators such as sharks or octopuses understand that water cultists are allies to be aided or masters to be obeyed. The Sign of the Crushing Wave. Water cultists use a simple hand sign to identify one another when a token of recognition is required: crossing the forefingers and overlapping the thumbs to create an X-shape linked by a line across the bottom. It stands for water’s eternal surge and retreat, a cycle of unending change.

TACTICS AND PHILOSOPHY

Crushing Wave cultists are almost as patient and stoic as the followers of the earth cult. They understand the value of outlasting formidable foes and slowly eroding their defenses. However, they are far more flexible and opportunistic in their overall philosophy than the earth cultists are. Like a flood that seeks the weak point in a levee and then bursts through with ever-growing strength, water cultists are quick to sense an opening and then act to exploit it. This philosophy of pragmatism and opportunism means that the Crushing Wave is the most mercenary of the four elemental cults. Water cultists eagerly seek out rich prizes and use their ill- gotten loot to develop their schemes. In combat, Crushing Wave cultists excel as skirmishers. They value mobility and opportunism, rarely making a stand in one place for long. Instead, they feign retreats, regroup, and launch new attacks, wearing down their foes like storm-driven waves eating away at a sandy beach. Almost all water cultists are excellent swimmers skilled at fighting in water, so they look for opportunities to surprise their enemies by using bodies of water to slip around or through defenses. Because the cultists see water as the wellspring of all life and purpose, they spend as much time in or around it as possible. Many cult hideouts are located near large bodies of water, and those that aren’t feature hidden pools or wells in which cult members can immerse themselves. Water cultists prize water-breathing magic and seek it out for no other reason than to spend hours meditating underwater. Few cultists gain any profound insights from these exercises.

ENEMIES AND ALLIES

The followers of the Crushing Wave detest the Cult of the Eternal Flame. They find the fire cultists to be hostile, short-tempered, and unforgivably rash. The Howling Hatred cultists aren’t as hostile, but they are likewise given to sudden impulses and are unreliable. The water cultists get along with the Cult of the Black Earth. The earth cultists are deliberate and dependable, if perhaps too inflexible for their own good.