Faithful of The Black Butterfly
Some beings come from the very fabric
of what it means to be good, or evil, and others are created by mere chance.
Even true gods don’t always understand their own power and today’s being of
divine power was formed by accident from the creation of the stars by the deity
Desna. The Empyreal Lord known as The Black Butterfly is concerned with
distance, silence, and space. We look today at this defender against the
madness of the Dark Tapestry and I present you with three possible sects to The
Silence Between.
As always, let us
imagine we are sitting at our theoretical gaming table. Our imaginary GM sets
out the rules for the game that we will play. In this game, we are to make a
follower of Black Butterfly. The character does not need to be a divine caster,
just a devotee of The Silence Between. What character do you make?
For more information
on Black Butterfly
Black Butterfly’s
Pathfinder Wiki Page
Black Butterfly’s
Archives of Nethys Page
Monks of the Black Tower
There is a saying
about becoming the monster you hunt. Delving too much into how any evil
creature thinks and acts is likely to rub off on the one studying them. This is
even truer when the creatures you wish to understand are the personifications
of madness. But the Monks of the Black Tower do just that as they study the
Dark Tapestry – the void between the stars – for hints into the workings of the
great old ones and the outer gods.
Wizards, sorcerers,
occultists, oracles, and astronomers make up the membership of the Monks. They
each take a vow of silence, as to speak the names of these eldritch creatures
is to invite them into your heart. They also take a vow of isolation never to
leave the monastery again. All of their findings are kept on scrolls that are
locked away until the information is needed to battle specific threats.
Void Hunters
Whereas the Monks of
the Black Tower isolate themselves, the Void Hunters actively seek out the
agents of their enemies on Golarion. Far older than the Monks. it is believed
that one of the members of this sect was the founder of the Black Tower
Monastery. The Hunters are believed to have come into existence as some of the
earliest explorers of the crashed starship in Numeria. They were very active in
Osirian during the second age in AR -1498, where they fought against a
mysterious cult they discover from their findings in Numeria.
The Void Hunters
consists of active field agents who work in small cells to hunt down agents of
the mysterious Dominion of the Black. Any person who has felt the touch of
these emissaries of the void can join. Often, though, hunters and investigators
of the occult find their way into the ranks. Clerics, rangers, investigators,
occultists and other psychic classes make up the core of this sect.
The Silent Gift
Battle against the
unknown isn’t the only way followers of the Black Butterfly make their presence
felt on Golarion. Like many Empyreal Lords, there is a small mystery cult to
The Silence Between in the city-state of Magnimar. Their existence is mostly
unrealized but their impact is felt by many of the most downtrodden of the
citizens of the City of Monuments.
Most of the sect
members were at one point destitute themselves and know what it means to want
for even basic necessities. As such the cult members perform seemingly random
acts of charity every day, often taking from the well-off to give to those
truly in need. The leader is a shadow dancer by the name of NyvenWildershins, a
Varisian who grew up in the shadow of the irespan known as Underbridge. His
followers are mostly rogues and a few clerics to the Black Butterfly who came
from the slums of the city they call home.
Some fight the
darkness and some use it to do good, but all pay homage to this chaotic deity.
Who is your disciple of Black Butterfly? Why have they chosen to dedicate
themselves to The Silence Between? Where does their devotion to this Empyreal
Lord come from? Let me know in the comments.
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If the CRB has helped you take a closer look at those inspired by the divine, please consider showing support and become one of my patrons by donating to my Patreon or making a donation to my Paypal. Looking for more out of the CRB? Then you’re in luck! Facebook, Google +, Tumblr, and Twitter all have a CRB presence. And if you’re as impatient as I am, have the CRB pushed directly to your Kindle with every new post by signing up for Kindle Subscriptions.
One of my players in PF2 is making a fleshwarped assimar. After being flushed by his creator for not living up to the purpose of his creation, Ream was saved by the church of Desna. They helped him get work as a file clerk. It was a lonely job, often in the dark.
ReplyDeleteWhen working in the great file vault some members of the church approached him and taught him of their goddess's darker side. He felt at home in the silence and darkness and worked as a contact with the Thieve's Guild, filing things with the city for them, and arranging for them to deliver supplies to families in need who fell through the cracks of the bureaucracy.
Our hero party will soon be sent to him to become licensed to work in this city, and this warped angelic file clerk will heed the call of The Silence Between, take up her power, and join the Heroes in fighting the servants of her greatest enemies, the Outer Gods.