Copyright © 2001 by Robert J. Hall

Representing all that is dark and loathsome in humanoid nature, this evil deity is known and cursed in every land. Doom draws his twisted power from the evil aspects of other beings, and his loyal priests lust constantly for darker and more unholy rituals to increase the destructive influence of their god.

The primary aspects of Doom include hatred, maiming, torment, strife, and destruction. The priests wear a coarse black hooded robe, with long, loose sleeves, and a crimson inner lining. The unholy symbol of this church is an upside down, star-shaped silver medallion, bearing the bas relief skull of a bearded goat, set with sinister ruby eyes, and engraved on each sides with evil runes. By custom, the priests use a jagged, blackened dagger to perform all sacrifices to their god.

A Doom priest gains his power directly from his god, and must appeal to his deity through prayer, ritual, and sacrifice in order to restore or increase his magical abilities. In exchange for this power, a Doom priest must forge a blood pact with his god that requires compensation in the form of physical disfigurement. The more evil power the Priest gains, the greater the physical price he must pay.

Religious gatherings of Doom take place in darkened temples, often located deep underground. Torches and large flaming pits provide the only illumination to these abominable services, and the ritual chants are accompanied by wildly gyrating dancers and the beating of large drums. The high priest leads the final, most unspeakably disgusting ritual, often culminating the services with some form of blood sacrifice. Innocent beings are preferred for these lengthy rituals, especially those of a good and pure nature.

The secret network of Doom temples are usually built in a hub and spoke fashion. A central fortress is located in a desolate location, connected to lesser sites by secret ways, then in turn to hidden temples and recruiting centers usually located near decadent cities and towns. The fortress is a well-guarded retreat where initiates come to receive indoctrination, and later return to be inducted as full priests of Doom.

A large number of slaves are used to maintain the labyrinth of chambers in the fortress of Doom, and they also serve as fodder for the sacrifice rituals. (Being a slave in a temple of Doom is a most unpleasant prospect indeed.) The Doom clergy frequently provide support and protection for the slave traders in the region.

The fortress of Doom is guarded by all manner of natural, unnatural, and man-made hazards and barriers, hosts of evil allies, and scores of forsaken beasts. The evil abominations performed at the temple gradually scar the surrounding lands, darkening and twisting the trees and plants into bizarre forms, and radiating a sensation of pure evil that is evident to anyone with a good and decent nature. Even if the Doom fortress is later abandoned or destroyed, the evil will not be cleansed from the surrounding land for many generations.

The type of physical limitation gained is determined by Doom at the time the transformation goes into effect. Recommended limitations include dependence on some unpleasant substance, loss of a limb or sense, increased effect of PRE from followers of good religions, susceptibility to blessed ground, or an increased vulnerability to silver, daylight, or holy water.

Because the rituals are divided into packages of increasing active cost, Variable Power Pools are recommended for use when designing Doom priests. The preferred limitation on the VPP is to only allow powers to change: on temple ground; on a night sacred to Doom; or following a ritual blood sacrifice.

Doom rituals are accompanied by a faint, low throbbing sound, and a dark warping of the air about the caster and any targets. The slight tang of blood can be detected by anybody located nearby.

Doom Initiate Package Deal

When a novice to the order has completed the required training and rituals of initiation, he gains the powers and limitations of an initiate during the ritual of passage. He can then use any of the powers of an initiate, and can perform basic religious procedures within the temple. (Most initiate powers have an active cost of thirty points or less.)

 Skills and Talents                                        Cost

 100 point END Reserve, 0 REC, Only for Doom Rituals (-1/4)   8
 Doom Ritual Skill 11-                                        3
 KS: Religious Procedures 8-                                  1


 Disadvantages

 Package Bonus (10-14)                                       -2
 Distinctive Features (Easily Concealed, Major Reaction)    -10


 Package Cost                                                 0

Allure

This basic ritual increases the influence of even the lowly initiate when dealing with members of the opposite sex, allowing him to lure gullible victims to a temple for use as sacrificial victims.

Blood Vow Ritual

By ritually drawing his own blood with a dagger, the Doom Priest can renew his faith in his god and increase his personal power.

Command Automaton

The priest of Doom can attempt to control any automaton within the area of the spell, including most types of Golem and some lesser Undead. Once controlled, the automaton will attempt to perform all mental directions from the priest that it can comprehend.

Fear of Doom

By placing the image of Doom in the mind of his enemies, the priest can cause great fear in his foe. The victim will often flee in terror, losing interest in whatever task he was attempting to accomplish.

Tentacles

As the powers of an initiate grow, his body can become gravely deformed when rituals are miscast, making certain physical tasks increasingly difficult. This ritual allows him to compensate somewhat for short periods by growing a bundle of tentacles about his deformed limbs. If he fails his magic skill roll, however, his body will grow even further deformed.

Doom Aspirant Priest Package Deal

Initiates deemed worthy will gain the powers and limitations of an aspirant priest during the ritual of acclamation. He can then use any of the aspirant priest rituals, as well as those he already employed as an initiate, and is expected to go forth into the world to spread the word of Doom. This aspirant priest package completely supersedes the initiate package. (Most aspirant priest powers have an active cost of sixty points or less.)

 Skills and Talents                                        Cost

 200 point END Reserve, 0 REC, Only for Doom Rituals (-1/4)  16
 Doom Ritual Skill 13-                                        7
 Oratory, Persuasion                                          6
 KS: Religious Dogma 11-                                      2
 KS: Religious Procedures 11-                                 2


 Disadvantages

 Package Bonus (15+)                                         -3
 Distinctive Features (Difficult, Major Reaction)           -15
 Vulnerability: x1.5 damage from holy weapons (Uncommon)     -5
 Promotes the faith                                         -10


 Package Cost                                                 0

Note that by the time an initiate is fully prepared to become a priest, he will usually have incurred one or more physical limitations due to unsuccessful rituals.

Black Wolves

The Doom Priest can use this ritual to summon a pack of black wolves to serve as guardian and spy for the temple. However, the wolves must be fed every 13 days with fresh humanoid meat, or they will be drawn back to their home plane of Doom.

Blood Healing

When this ritual is cast, the incisors of the priest grow several centimeters longer, allowing him to make neat incisions in the flesh of his victim. The priest can then drink the flowing blood and use the warm fluid to slowly restore his own health.

Death of a Thousand Knives

When this ritual is completed, the target begins to suffer cuts from a magical talon that penetrates through the toughest plate armor. The victim is slowly and painfully sliced apart until all life has flowed from his body.

Discord

The victim of this spell will acquire a sudden, burning hatred of another individual in the immediate vicinity. This hatred can only be sated by the death of the individual, but the fervor can be brought into check with sufficient willpower.

Eye Gouge

Upon completing this ritual, the Doom priest can gouge out the eyes of his foe with a simple gesture. This loss of sight is preceded by a terrible stabbing pain as the sensitive flesh is torn out by evil magical energies. The sight can be restored by healing magic equal to the Active Cost of the Darkness, or by dispelling the magic.

Flaming Foe

By channeling the malevolent anger of Doom, the priest can use this ritual to incinerate a humanoid foe. The fire will burn for as long as the priest expends the required END from his reserve, and can spread to combustible material. (The flames can be doused in the same manner as normal fire.) If the priest fails his magic skill roll, however, his body will become deformed instead.

Iron Talons

Upon completing this ritual, the nails of the priest grow longer and harden into sharpened metal. The talons will slice easily through most ordinary materials, and inflict an evil, burning wound.

Paralyze

With a word and a gesture, the aspirant priest can paralyze a foe, leaving him vulnerable to a normal attack. This ritual locks the nerves of the being, using an EGO-based attack to freeze his muscles.

Sacrifice

By sacrificing the life of a mortal being, a Doom priest can use this ritual to increase his own power for a few hours. Doom receives the life force of the sacrificed life, then rewards the priest with greater magical power. The total aid is limited by the damage inflicted with the dagger. Thus, to maximize the effectiveness of this spell, the dagger is usually plunged into the vitals of the helpless victim.

Serpent Charm

By communicating through his own subconscious mind, a priest of Doom can use this ritual to charm and command any serpent. The charm is more effective when the priest is in close proximity to the serpent. If the priest fails his magic skill roll, however, his body will become deformed instead.

Spectral Form

The priest can use this ritual to assume, for a brief period, the dark, spectral form of a malevolent spirit. While in this form, the priest is still vulnerable to magic, and attacks with silver weapons.

Vile Creatures

One of the more bizarre rituals possessed by a Doom priest, this spell intermixes the features of the creatures in the target area. Thus, a captive eagle, lion, and lizard can be intermixed to produce three different cross- breeds. What purpose this ritual serves is a mystery to goodly folk, but the results of this experimentation can be seen in many dark corners of the realms. Some of these mixed breeds have become highly successful species in their own right.

Wrack

This ritual can be used to terrorize friend or foe alike. For as long as the priest chooses to maintain the spell, the target is wracked with painful mental energies. Only the most strong-willed beings can resist a lengthy period of such torment.

Doom Priest Package Deal

When an aspirant priest is finally deemed worthy, he will gain the powers and limitations of an ordained doom priest during a ritual of ascension. He can then use any of the doom priest rituals, as well as those he already employed as an aspirant priest, and can create a temple to increase his followers. This doom priest package completely supersedes the aspirant priest package. (Most doom priest powers have an active cost of ninety points or less.)

 Skills and Talents                                        Cost

 300 point END Reserve, 0 REC, Only for Doom Rituals (-1/4)  24
 Detect Unbelievers (Smell), Ranged                           7
 Doom Ritual Skill 16-                                       13
 Oratory, Persuasion, Acting                                  9
 KS: Religious Dogma 12-                                      3
 KS: Religious Procedures 11-                                 2


 Disadvantages

 Package Bonus (15+)                                         -3
 Distinctive Features (Difficult, Major Reaction)           -15
 1d6 RKA from holy water & items                            -10
 Vulnerability: x2 damage from holy weapons (Uncommon)      -10
 Promotes the faith                                         -20


 Package Cost                                                 0

Beast Presence

Using this arcane ritual, the caster can assume the form and some of the properties of a creature that has the same evil nature as the priest. That is, the beast to be copied must possess some type of limitation versus holy men or their items. If he fails his magic skill roll while casting this ritual, however, the body of the priest is deformed instead.

Lash of Pain

Upon completing this ritual, the priest is able to lash his foes with a magical whip that induces waves of intense pain. This whip can reach out to foes up to 3" away, provided there are no intervening barriers. In addition, stronger priests are able to wield this whip with much greater force.

Nightmare Minion

A nightmare minion is a shadow creature born from the subconscious fears of its victim. The minion relentlessly pursues the target, drawing him into a shadow world of terrors and unborn imaginings. The victim of the minion must be visible when the spell is cast, or the minion will return to its home plane unsated.

Restore Life

This powerful ritual will restore life to a corpse for a short period of time, usually to serve some dark purpose of Doom. A fresh corpse can return to life with little loss of abilities and powers, while a long dead figure will function like a skeleton. The resurrected being will gradually return to the land of the dead, losing BODY from a "Susceptibility to Living" disadvantage. If the priest fails his magic skill roll, his body will become deformed instead. Note that this ritual can quickly drain the Doom reserve of the caster due to the high END cost required. The longer the corpse has been dead, the less likely this spell is to succeed.

Strife

A favorite and diabolical trick of the Doom priests is to employ this ritual to spread strife among his enemies. The target of this ritual will grapple with his nearest ally, who in turn becomes infected by the mental discord. When more allies attempt to break up the conflict, they too will become infected. In this manner, the priest can spread strife throughout the ranks of his enemies.

Supplication

After a period of supplication and prayer to Doom, the weakened powers of the priest will be slowly restored to normal. Since these prayers are more likely to be heard by Doom while in the presence of a loyal congregation, this is a standard opening ritual during services. This ritual is very risky to perform in solitude, however, as failure can result in physical deformity. For this reason, despite the relative simplicity of this ritual, it is only taught to a fully ordained Doom priest.

Thunderbolt Strike

Calling upon the power of his god, a priest of Doom can use this ritual to call down a powerful stroke of lightning against a foe. This ritual will only function under the open sky, or on unholy ground that is sacred to Doom.

Doom Lord Package Deal

The most powerful priest in the temple of Doom is given the honorary title of Doom Lord, and is the only Doom priest who can don the blood robes. A Doom Lord gains the special attention and favor of Doom, and he will often be whisked away to the Doom plane at any time deemed fit by his god. While he now commands absolute authority within the order, lesser rival priests will constantly seek opportunities to usurp the current Doom Lord and take over the post for themselves. This Doom Lord package completely supersedes all other Doom packages, and he can employ any of the Doom rituals, including those reserved solely for the Doom Lord.

 Skills and Talents                                        Cost

 400 point END Reserve, 0 REC, Only for Doom Rituals (-1/4)  32
 Detect Unbelievers (Smell), Ranged                           7
 Extradimensional Movement - Plane of Doom, Only from Doom
   END Reserve (+0), No Conscious Control (-2)                7
 Doom Ritual Skill 18-                                       17
 Persuasion                                                   5
 Oratory, Acting                                              6
 KS: Religious Dogma 13-                                      4
 KS: Religious Procedures 12-                                 2


 Disadvantages

 Package Bonus (15+)                                         -3
 Distinctive Features (Difficult, Major Reaction)           -15
 2d6 RKA from holy water & items                            -15
 2d6/Turn when on blessed ground (Uncommon)                 -15
 Vulnerability: x2 damage from holy weapons (Uncommon)      -10
 Hunted (Rival Priests: Less powerful, 8-, Assassinate)      -5
 Promotes the faith                                         -20


 Package Cost                                                 0

Animate Armor

The Doom Priest, by means of this ritual, is able to animate a set of plate mail armor and use it to battle a foe. The suit of armor need not be in the same room as the priest. Indeed, the spell caster will be extremely vulnerable to any attacks, as he will be completely preoccupied by controlling the suit of armor. If the armor is missing an appendage, then the priest is unable to use that feature of the suit. Thus, if a leg is missing, then the suit will need to hop about in order to move.

Beast Summoning

The Doom Lord can use this ritual to summon any creature that is formed from parts of other creatures. Beasts such as a Griffon, Siren, Chimera, Minotaur, Cockatrice, or Manticore can be conjured by this means. This ritual will not summon shape-shifting creatures, or beings altered into other forms by lycanthropy. Once the beast has been successfully summoned, the priest will need to find some other means to placate or control the creature.

Dark Storm

Upon completing this ritual, a huge thunderstorm begins to form above the target hex in a 4km diameter. The storm creates a strong wind, flashes of thunder, and a driving rain for a period of several hours. As quickly as it arose, the storm will evaporate when the duration expires or the caster moves out of range.

Hand of Doom

A great, blood-covered gauntlet appears before the Doom Lord, and begins to smash any barriers that stand before him. This crude implement of destruction is very powerful, but incapable of any more subtle actions. The gauntlet is also gravely weakened by range, losing 5 points of STR after 4", 10 points after 8", and so on.

Mind Slave

The victim of this ritual becomes a helpless slave of the Doom Lord, and must obey his every command. While following the instructions of the Doom Lord, the victim is immune to pain and can withstand STUN damage without becoming stunned. If the Doom Lord fails his magic skill roll, however, his body will become deformed instead.

Symbol of Death

This protective ritual is used to guard sacred sites from intruders. The symbol of Doom is placed in a fixed location, such as a door or passage. Anybody touching the symbol, with the exception of the caster, will be struck by a massive surge of energy.