The Servants of the Stag are a small faith that is followed primarily within the Western Coast. Most followers of the religion are also paladins in the organization of the same name. The Servants of the Stag venerate a large spectral stag that has been spotted sporadically across the Western Coast over the last few hundred years, seeing it as a protective if aloof guide. In Y9950* the Servants followed the ghostly spirit to the region around Lake Plegadis, where they pushed out the bandits that formerly ruled the region and established the small theocratic realm of Plegadis.
Edicts and anathema
- Edicts
- Tend the land, care for your family, remain honest
- Anathema
- Focus on personal wealth or pleasure over aiding your family and community, disobey an elder
History
Though the Stag had been worshiped in the Western Coast since at least Y9850*, the religion in its current form only began in Y9932* with the formation of the Servants of the Stag. Originally based around Sarhess, the Servants took a more lawful stance to the Stag's faith compared to any of their less well-organized predecessors. Shaping their religious organization into a well-trained group of paladins, the Servants wandered the Western Coast for the next two decades, traveling between the many small communities of the region and defeating local threats as they went.
In Y9950*, the Stag appeared once more after an absence of several decades. The Servants followed the specter to the region around Lake Plegadis, where it slowly faded into the forest. Believing that the Stag had led them there for a reason, the Servants debated long as to its intentions. After much harassment from the bandits that controlled the surrounding towns, they eventually concluded the Stag had brought them to the area in order to establish a model society out of the current lawlessness. By Y9952* the bandits had been entirely driven out of Fallowshore and the surrounding regions. The paladins have slowly grown the territory under their control since, gradually expanding north and west around the lake. The Servants have attempted to mold Fallowshore into their ideal community, something neither the former bandit inhabitants nor the more progressive residents have particularly appreciated.
Beliefs
The Servants of the Stag see the eponymous Stag as a guide, one who protects their communities from a distance while allowing them to develop on their own. They place great emphasis on the importance of close family and the advice of elders, often with a strongly patriarchal inclination. Just as a parent's firm instruction guides their family, so to do the Servants believe they must be a strong influence in their communities, maintaining order even when it is not yet appreciated.
To the Servants, large cities are places where even the most righteous will be inevitably corrupted by the allure of money and hedonistic pursuits. They view small agrarian communities of yeoman farmers to be social idylls, places untainted by greed or any other influence that would lead one to abandoned their family for selfish reasons.