Legend
You head to the small church where you meet with the one in charge. His name his Father Alberto, (If you haven't met him already you exchange pleasantries now) you ask him why hasn't more been done to spread the faith and why the congregation is so small. Father Alberto sighs heavily.
"Things are not so simple for us as I'm sure you're aware of. Most people aren't bad; it's just that they're afraid of change. They still worship these other beings which have manipulated them for their own cosmic power struggle. This has been going on for so long that people don't know anything else, not even the truth when it is spoken to them."
"Well, maybe we need to start being more aggressive!" you say vehemently.
"Heh, we have gone and preached the word in the streets many times, still do. But it's not having any affect. Most of us are either beaten for our troubles, or at best ignored. Worse there's sinister forces at work and I'm not talking about the pagans."
"What do you mean?"
"We've sensed the great Adversary of the One True God. We feel his presence attempting to undermine the very fabric of the city The Dark One. While these Pagan gods are content to live off there laurels, the Dark One is far more proactive, he lies and hides in his goal to eclipse this city. He disguises himself in good deeds and promises of a better future, but there is no better future when following the Dark One, only death and damnation.
"What must be done? I'll do anything to make sure HIS glory is the only one that people follow." You say.
Alberto looks at you for a moment, like he sees a new ray of hope that previously wasn't there before.
"Hmmm, yes. Perhaps HE has sent you to here to perform the work that we have been unable to do. Listen to me, we are not without a plan, but most of us have not been trained in battle and conflict, like you obviously have. The first problem we must deal with is the Temple of Karn. Unlike most of the other faithful of the Pagan gods the faithful of the blood thirsty Karn aren't content on leaving us alone. They routinely bully our members and make their disgust for our ways openly known. We have prayed that one day the One True God will see fit to smite this pack of jackals and show them that only HE is God. I pray that you may find a way to carry out his will."
You leave the church and think how you're going to accomplish this daunting task. The Priests of Karn maybe heathens, but they aren't weaklings. Challenging them in direct battle might not be the best solution. Surely the One True God doesn't intend for you to die needlessly, not when you have so much of his work to carry out first.
At this point all your work for the One True God is focused, so alignment isn't too much of an issue (In fact you can add 5 alignment points right now) however HOW you carry out his work is another matter. For this part of the adventure you'll be temporarily getting a new stat: AGGRESSION. (-20 to 20 just like alignment, you start at 0)This will gauge how you're spreading the faith. Doing something peaceful like helping the poor will result in a decrease, while actively killing your "religious rivals" will result in an increase. Please note this isn't good or evil, it just determines how you're going about things and the benefits (and consequences) of those actions later.
You do a little scouting of Karn's Temple for a couple days before acting, just so you can get a feel of what's going on and how you should approach this. You do notice the Priests of Karn are also bullyish when it comes to their own flock. While most of the followers are guards and are in similar professions of some sort, they aren't really warriors. Most likely a majority of them have never fought in a true battle, save for catching a thief here and there. The Priests of Karn are certainly in top physical condition compared to all of them, hence the bullying. After following a couple of them around the city, you also notice their collection of donation techniques are practically bordering on extortion, people look like they follow out of fear more than anything.
So how are you going to do this?
"Things are not so simple for us as I'm sure you're aware of. Most people aren't bad; it's just that they're afraid of change. They still worship these other beings which have manipulated them for their own cosmic power struggle. This has been going on for so long that people don't know anything else, not even the truth when it is spoken to them."
"Well, maybe we need to start being more aggressive!" you say vehemently.
"Heh, we have gone and preached the word in the streets many times, still do. But it's not having any affect. Most of us are either beaten for our troubles, or at best ignored. Worse there's sinister forces at work and I'm not talking about the pagans."
"What do you mean?"
"We've sensed the great Adversary of the One True God. We feel his presence attempting to undermine the very fabric of the city The Dark One. While these Pagan gods are content to live off there laurels, the Dark One is far more proactive, he lies and hides in his goal to eclipse this city. He disguises himself in good deeds and promises of a better future, but there is no better future when following the Dark One, only death and damnation.
"What must be done? I'll do anything to make sure HIS glory is the only one that people follow." You say.
Alberto looks at you for a moment, like he sees a new ray of hope that previously wasn't there before.
"Hmmm, yes. Perhaps HE has sent you to here to perform the work that we have been unable to do. Listen to me, we are not without a plan, but most of us have not been trained in battle and conflict, like you obviously have. The first problem we must deal with is the Temple of Karn. Unlike most of the other faithful of the Pagan gods the faithful of the blood thirsty Karn aren't content on leaving us alone. They routinely bully our members and make their disgust for our ways openly known. We have prayed that one day the One True God will see fit to smite this pack of jackals and show them that only HE is God. I pray that you may find a way to carry out his will."
You leave the church and think how you're going to accomplish this daunting task. The Priests of Karn maybe heathens, but they aren't weaklings. Challenging them in direct battle might not be the best solution. Surely the One True God doesn't intend for you to die needlessly, not when you have so much of his work to carry out first.
At this point all your work for the One True God is focused, so alignment isn't too much of an issue (In fact you can add 5 alignment points right now) however HOW you carry out his work is another matter. For this part of the adventure you'll be temporarily getting a new stat: AGGRESSION. (-20 to 20 just like alignment, you start at 0)This will gauge how you're spreading the faith. Doing something peaceful like helping the poor will result in a decrease, while actively killing your "religious rivals" will result in an increase. Please note this isn't good or evil, it just determines how you're going about things and the benefits (and consequences) of those actions later.
You do a little scouting of Karn's Temple for a couple days before acting, just so you can get a feel of what's going on and how you should approach this. You do notice the Priests of Karn are also bullyish when it comes to their own flock. While most of the followers are guards and are in similar professions of some sort, they aren't really warriors. Most likely a majority of them have never fought in a true battle, save for catching a thief here and there. The Priests of Karn are certainly in top physical condition compared to all of them, hence the bullying. After following a couple of them around the city, you also notice their collection of donation techniques are practically bordering on extortion, people look like they follow out of fear more than anything.
So how are you going to do this?