The Forces

Trigger Warning: Contains deliberate and excessive sexism

Contents

Never underestimate the power of The Forces,
for they will seek to corrupt even the strongest willed of us.

— Rule of the Men of Authority

Monotheistic

The Religion of The Towns is monotheistic in that it is built around the idea of a single god, The Protector. It is even known by the Nomads as "the religion of one god". However, the Townsfolks recognise that there are other powers at work, both good and evil, which play a part in the lives of men. The evil powers are known as The Forces.
The Forces are everything which is wrong with the world. They cause people to do bad things as well as being to blame for any bad luck, injury or illness which may befall someone.

Background

Pronouns

She/Her

Demonym

Force

Alignment

Evil

Parent Organisation

Religion of The Towns

Innumerable

The Forces are many and are as varied as the sins of man. They are determined to corrupt the men of the Towns and will do so by whatever means necessary. There are as many of The Forces as there are women corrupting men at any given time, and they are just as different from one another. They do, however, all have some things in common.

Female

The Forces are all female. This means they are not physically strong like The Protector so they have to go about trying to gain power in more manipulative ways.

Possessive

The Forces don't fight out in the open. They prefer to take over a person, another female with a weak enough mind or spirit, and use them to corrupt men.

Deceptive

The Forces are not only manipulative, but they are also excellent liars and cause those whom they have overcome to lie and deceive as well.

Leading Men Astray

The Forces are many, and there is no organisational structure to speak of. There are some which appear more often than others. These include:

Temptation

Who lives to tempt man to give in to their desires, pulling them from their duties.

Chaos

Who distracts men from their purpose and rains down destruction upon the peace of a man's life.

Greed

Who pushes men to take more than they should and be selfish

Societal Impact

The Forces play a large part in the lives of the men and women of The Towns, as they are constantly on the lookout for someone who has been overcome by The Forces. Without even trying they manage to spread a level of uncertainty and distrust within a group faster than anyone could were they actually trying. This does tend to, of course, lead to a firmer belief in the power of The Protector.
Women who are under the control of one of The Forces are sent to Stoneham Town where the Protector's Blessing ritual is carried out on them. A woman is unlikely to know she is under the influence of The Forces and getting her there and carrying out this blessing can be difficult, but it is done by whatever means necessary.