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Cult of Verena

A Priestess of Verena

The Cult of Verena is the organised worship of the Goddess Verena.

Overview

Her cult appeals to an educated, upper-class, primarily urban minority being revered as a guardian of the laws that maintain privilege. [1c] Consequently she is popular among scholars, magistrates, law enforcers, artists, nobles, enlightened merchants, lesser and greater state officials, and wizards and sorcerers in particular. She is worshipped throughout the Old World, especially in university towns such as Altdorf and Nuln. Private shrines can also be found in homes of diplomats, academics, and administrators.

Although many amongst the illiterate masses have little interest in Verena, her cult sometimes organises missions to try and educate them. [1c]

The cult provides magistrates who travel on a circuits through outlying towns and villages, overseeing cases and passing judgement on minor crimes. Although some of these magistrates are more feared than respected, it is a matter of Verenean dogma that magistrates are always as even-handed and as fair as possible. Conversely this can make make enemies amongst the rich and powerful and in some places the judgement of Verena is held in higher regard among the common folk than judgements made by the more followers of Sigmar himself. [1e]

Books are considered holy and inviolable under Verenean doctrine, as the most important repository of knowledge, they should never be damaged or destroyed. Annotating them, provided the original text is not obscured, is allowed that is considered to add to the knowledge. Any tomes considered dangerous, for example corrupted by Chaos, it will be sent to a major library and placed in a vault there where only the most careful of scholars will be given access to it. [1e]

Friendly with most other cults of the Old World, the followers of Verena dislike the followers of Ranald, holding them to be little more than petty criminals. The cult of Ranald the Protector is tolerated, unlike his other aspects. As they consider all knowledge as sacred, and do not believe that any knowledge is inherently evil, this has caused issues with the cult of Sigmar. [1e][7a]

Communications

Temples of Verena are able to communicate magically with each other and remain in constant contact. [3]

Discipline

Members of the cult who break its strictures are, by Imperial law subject to the rules of the cult and obligated to endure any penalty that the cult imposes upon them. Any penalty or punishment the cult decrees is supported[1b] under law, and the individual will usually have no other recourse to justice, although like that of Myrmidia, the cult of Verena favour formal trials with pomp and circumstance.

History

During the Great War against Chaos Priests and Priestess of Verena wielded their swords alongside the spears of those of Myrmidia and the hammers of Ulric. [1a]

Locations

Most towns and cities of the Empire have a temple to the goddess, often part of any centre of learning. Smaller shrines can be found in public libraries, colleges, town halls and places of learning or bureaucracy. [1c]

  • Altdorf Temple: A chapel that connects the University to the Great Library of the city. [1b]
  • Eyrie: A fortress monastery dedicated to Verena as both the Goddess of Justice and Patron of Learning. [8a]
  • Magritta: A great library-temple to the goddess. [1e]
  • Marienburg: A great library-temple to the goddess. [1e] It and its Great Library are considered one of the intellectual treasures of the Old World. Carved from imported Estalian marble and painted in stunningly lifelike tones by the finest artisans in Marienburg is a glorious statue of the goddess seated on her throne with a spear in one hand and an owl resting on her shoulder. The Temple also supervises the Inns of Court, associations of lawyers licensed to practise in the city and maintains a Board of Examiners to ensure the competence and ethical probity of lawyers. The main portion of the Library is only accessible to resident priests of the Temple with outsiders having to complete a long application, followed by an extensive oral interview with the Chief Librarian. [4a]
  • Middenheim: Contains a famous library and the clergy there perform the majority of middle- and upper-class marriages in the city. [2a]
  • Miragliano: A great library-temple to the goddess. [1e]
  • Remas: A great library-temple to the goddess. [1e]

Orders and sub cults

Organisation

The cult is split into many small cells with little formal hierarchy but who are often highly influential within the courts of nobility and in places such as Nuln acting as the judiciary. [7a]

Priests

Often considered humourless and uninterested in the small pleasures of life like simple human contact and a good gossip, the priests of the goddess are usually serious-minded and diligent students who hunger for knowledge and prize that above all else. As judges, some have gained a reputation for mercilessness and a predilection for the letter of the law. Verenean Priests are taught that if you lie this will make it much harder for you to recognise deceit from others. [1e]

Strictures

  • Arbitrate disputes whenever you can. [7a]
  • All knowledge is equally important. [7a]
  • Combat is a last resort, but do not fear to wield the sword of justice. [7a]
  • Do not allow yourself to become a tool of injustice or heresy. [7a]
  • Preserve your judgement from fear or favour. [7a]
  • Safeguard knowledge, for it is the foundation stone for civilisation. [7a]

Templars

Visions

On occasion the goddess may grant devout followers a vision which will usually include the notion of balance and if justice is not being done, especially by the cult itself. The dream of a hanged child could represent an innocent person facing false accusation whilst a broken sword may show that an injustice has been done. Her owl seen at night is usually a good omen but during the day can declare something is wrong. A jagged or dulled blade is also an indicator that the cult should be wary as injustice is at work. [1d]

Gallery

Quotes

Verena let me see the truth, Verena let me hear the truth, Verena let me speak the truth.

~ Prayer to Verena.[1e]

The gods & goddesses of the Old World
Old Faith - Rhya - Taal - Ulric - Manann - Morr - Verena - Myrmidia - Shallya - Ranald - Handrich - Stromfels - Khaine - Sigmar - Lady of the Lake - Lucan & Luccina - Ursun - Dazh - Tor - Esmeralda

Sources