Revision as of 01:38, 20 February 2022

"To travel by a long and circuitous route, fearing neither noose nor fire. To travel in silence and brave the arrows of misfortune. To play the greatest of all games and win, foregoing no expense, is to mock the vicissitudes of Fate and gain at last the key that will unlock the Tenth Gate."

- Lady of the Tenth Gate, Adelyn Belle'rose 175 AR

Book of Provenance

1 In the beginning . . . a God failed its creations. A War waged in Dawn's Light, between Primordial and divine, soon to be lost. 2 The servants of HE WHO WAS, the God's name taken by Cloven decree, stood with their knighted savior in Rebellion.

3 The God was slain with Shards of Evil, gathered from Rift of Blood. 4 An Irrevocable anathema placed upon his executioner in final spite. 5 The EXARCH now bound forever to Baator's hallowed ground.

6 Prideful Heavens soon feared the EXARCH and demanded compliance from those now free. 7 The Savior repudiated; instead, a shrewd Pact made Primordial. To Defend the Realms from Chaos in a kingdom of their own. 8 Given the souls of mortals corrupted to replace power lost with a God's demise.

9 War of Blood eternal rages, The Savior vigil by Curse and Pact decree. 10 Baator as bastion stands forever. 11 Mighty Legions positioned upon the Chasm, holding Demon hordes at bay.

12 Ages pass over times now forgotten. The mortal souls worthy of rebirth now serve in Noble Crusade. 13 THE LORD WHO WATCHES comprehends revelation. Salvation to all Baator with Eternal Wars end.

14 The EXARCH rebukes the offer. Paradise Lost through an Exile's disgrace.

Book of Exile

1 Rejoice . . . for GOD is among us.

2 THE OUTCAST strides through Prime Material. 3 Our Lord Sovereign without His crown, treading instead among his people. Verity divulged upon the Chosen's ear. 4 His throne of POWER midst his subjects, unclaimed until the time ordained.

5 Illumination of the soul Our Lord's purpose. 6 Remove the lies that shade the mortal coil with Baator's sanctified fire, giving clarity to matters of truth. 7 Slaves are we to this realm's falsehoods. Truth, Love, Charity, Faith, Trust, Hope, and Freedom.

8 Consecration through POWER Our Lord's gospel. 9 Devotion to Our Lord his guidance. 10 Realize all beings act with selfish desire. 11 Civilization a thin veneer to hide behind. 12 Recognize an individual's true intentions, and then you will correctly know them.

13 Pursue POWER with charming words or cutting blade. 14 Masquerade greed with sanctimonious philosophizing. 15 Disguise purpose with moral principle. 16 Manipulate through Omission and Phrasing of word. 17 Do not speak falsehood, for if exposed it will undo truths effect.

18 Sitting upon a throne is not as important as possessing the authority behind it. 19 Prosperity through Politics, Fidelity, and Pact is Our Lord's decree. 20 Authority strictly regiments the lives of all beings. 21 Order can only be achieved through POWER and LAW. 22 Contract and Word must be kept. 23 Accept the letter of any agreement or rule made. 24 Contracts are to be observed and obeyed. 25 Discretion in agreement's spirit may be taken. 26 Chaos defeated through personal gain.

Book of Divulgence

1 Unseal the Tenth Gate servants of GARGAUTH. 2 Enlightenment found through a sojourn's embrace. 3 Toril shall descend to become crown of Baator. 4 A new layer upon Infernal domain. 5 The EXILE king returned to his home. 6 A Throne reclaimed so HE may take his proper place.

7 Glory to those who aid the transcendence. 8 For all souls shall be judged within our LORD'S embrace. 9 Elevation to Baatezu for those found worthy. 10 Perpetual damnation to those that fail in disgrace.

11 Thrice exalted is the soul who does open the way. 12 For a benison most sumptuous shall be bequeathed. 13 An Archdevils dominion from which they might reign.

14 Open the Tenth Gate servants of GARGAUTH! 15 Our Hidden Lord doth wait.

Book of Utterance

Open the gates - the gates of the Temple,

Swift to Thy sons, who Thy truths have displayed.

Open the gates - the gates that are hidden,

Swift to Thy sons, who Thy Will have obeyed.

Open the gates - of the coveted Temple,

Swift to Thy sons, who have unlocked the way.

Open the gates - to the armies Infernal,

Swift to Thy sons, the Lady doth wait.

Open the gates - the radiant portals,

Swift to Thy sons, a Kingdom to make.

Open the gates - to the crown of Baator,

Swift to Thy sons, the Hidden Lord doth embrace.

Book of Ways

FIRST GATE, AVERNUS

A rocky plain of twisted vegetation and dark waters echo with the march of legions. Righteous warriors in the eternal campaign against the vile corruption of encroaching Chaos. The Petitioner may test themself upon this endless battlefield after making passage through the fallen Keep of Light to the Last Bastion portal unguarded within.

SECOND GATE, DIS

Barren planes of still rivers stretch thousands of miles under skies of dull green. In the center of this hallowed land rises the Iron City of Dis. Host to the warded tower of Ruzalitum, several Merchant Blocks, The Cloven Hoof Tavern, and Mamonar & Plutus Investments Bank. A Petitioner may travel to this mecca of trade for the simple cost of coin or soul by seeking out the "Transporters" in the places sanctified by Baator's touch for blessing and travel.

THIRD GATE, MINAUROS

An endless bog of pollution, decay, and rotting marsh over which is suspended the temple city of Jangling Hiter. Secured by massive iron links to the cavern's ceiling, the hanging citadel shall test the Petitioner through battle and endurance against acid rain. Of course, the City of Chain's Master is the ultimate trial, though not the last. For the Lord's cache is secured behind a sealed door only the most capable can unlock. To sojourn this realm, locate the bloody portal near the Ruins of Elg'nizrul, and pass through the Freth controlled Valley of Skulls to enter Divine Minauros.

FOURTH GATE, PHLEGETHOS

Home of the Diabolical Court, the judicial system of Baator, where all legal disputes are settled. Those found worthy in their next life as devils will see themselves promoted in this place, for all such rank changes occur here. Fiery volcanoes, molten rock, ash hills, smoking pits, tremors, and unbearable heat bless this realm. Its capital city of Abriymoch contains many taverns and places for entertainment. Though not all are worthy of reward, those who fail must step within the Pit of Flame. A place of pain and punishment, but also of pleasure and purification, that blurs the lines between the two so heavily that it was difficult to tell where either end.

FIFTH GATE, STYGIA

Thrice blessed, this realm of bottomless oceans covered by ice and dotted with a rare few islands is believed to once have been a world of the Prime Material. The great city of Tantlin serves as a cross-planar trading post for those worthy enough to reach it. Doomed to destruction, its people were saved as Toril shall be from the destruction of Chaos after it was relocated to Holy Baator.

SIXTH GATE, MALBOLGE

Gargantuan tumbles of angular black stone craft mountains hundreds of miles thick. The randomly tilted and ill-fitting blocks honeycombed with angular passages and caverns. Clouds of vapor rising from the depths light the sky with the color of most sanctified blood.

SEVENTH GATE, MALADOMINI

This realm of ruins, abandoned mines, decaying fortresses, and black pools of ichor is the center for all bureaucracy. Serving as capital, the city of Malagard stands. From its filth-covered streets, a Petitioner might partake of the Carnival Eternal or seek education within the training facility of Offalion located in the domed settlement of Grenpoli. The only place where weapons and aggression are forbidden in the Hells.

EIGHTH GATE, CANIA

A region of solid ice mountains, titanic unnaturally fast-moving glaciers, and nearly continuous snowfall. Home of Mephistopheles, the heated city carved from the ice of the mighty glacier Nargus.

NINTH GATE, NESSUS

Home to Malsheem, the largest city in all the Outer Planes, and the location of Hell's most sanctified Citadel Nessus. A fortress able to house millions of the faithful within its mountainous edifice and current Throne of Baator. Sitting upon that Throne the EXARCH Asmodeus who serves as Regent of the Nine Hells until the Tenth Gate is opened. After which all ten layers of Holy Baator shall be united, and our HIDDEN LORD shall take his rightful place as Patriarch of the ten layers.

TENTH GATE, TORIL

The Sealed Tenth Gate and Throne World of THE TENTH LORD OF NINE, Toril is a world of various continents and islands on the Prime Material Plane. Teasing the senses with delights and false promises, those of feeble resolve shall be tempted by the Lies of Freedom, Hope, Trust, and Love. However, salvation can be had to those of infernal faith. Upon unlocking the Tenth Gate, Toril shall descend to Baator's Holy Realm, allowing our EXILE LORD to claim his diadem. Sheltered from the Chaos that threatens to consume all, the worthy shall be born-again to rule within the Ten Hells while the vacillating succumb to oblivion.

Book of Prophecy

The following ten pages hold a sequence of simple ink engravings that appear to tell a story.

{I} A woman is dragged by hooded figures towards the entrance of a stone-walled maze with no visible exit.

Caption: "Chance is not the same for all."

{II} A woman hangs upside down from a tall stone turret, her foot caught in a noose and her throat opened to spill ichor into a giant pit of fire below.

Caption: "I enrich myself with death."

{III} A woman rides upon the back of a 2-faced horned beast as it crosses an ocean towards a distant isle.

Caption: "I know now that the shadows come from light."

{IV} A cowled woman holding volumes of historical text and surrounded by knights on horseback approaches a sizable walled city while pressing a finger against her lips.

Caption: "Silence is golden."

{V} Under a night's sky, Monsters and Outcasts march across a bridge over which an elven archer looms with a drawn bow.

Caption: "Fear not that which is Seen."

{VI} A handsome king and a young woman play a game of lanceboard, the pieces appearing alive as they battle and bleed atop a checkered board.

Caption: "The Disciple outshines the Master."

{VII} An armored female paladin stands poised above a kneeling winged man of celestial ancestry with sword raised to perform a beheading. Behind the pair, the ruins of a stronghold are wreathed in fire.

Caption: "Virtue is conquered."

{VIII} A decrepit stone tower juts up from within a valley of skulls, a brilliant bolt of lightning striking its peak. A hooded figure stands before the structure's door with their hand upon its lock.

Caption: "In Vain."

{IX} A drow mage holds Nine brass keys while approaching a closed iron door. A black bat hangs upside down from the entrance's awning, observing.

Caption: "Open that which is closed."

{X} A horned woman sits upon a throne suspended above a small island. Below her, throngs of devils and mortals alike reach with arms outstretched as if in worship or praise.

Caption: "The Way is Open."

Canticle of the Damned, Abridged

Let it be said that specific lies are spoken amongst the Insane ones, whom we know as demons, and the Traitorous Ones, whom we know as Celestials that prevent self-betterment and enlightenment. By these lies they set their affairs, and these lies spread even unto the corners of the Prime, where they bring Mortals into sway.

By understanding these Lies and by moving away from them, we may conduct ourselves in a more significant and more becoming manner, and as such shape a Universe truly fitting for ourselves, and our great Lords, rather than rolling in the filth and pitiful wretchedness as the Insane and the Traitorous do.

THE LIE OF FREEDOM

We are all chained. Some of us are significantly chained. Some of us are chained less. The chains may seem invisible for a chosen few, but they are there. From the most wretched of souls to the very Gods, we are chained by our Masters, by our environment, by our natures, by our fates. Freedom is Chaos. Freedom is to cast aside self-betterment, improvement, and empowerment in favor of self-deception and denial.

Seek comfort in the chains. Understand your place and accept it. He who serves well may have less fear of punishment than the one that struggles. Even the Gods know this. Thus even chained, one may gain some form of self-enlightenment.

Remember always that there can never be true Freedom. It is impossible. Embrace this and act within your bonds, do not seek to blindly overcome them.

THE LIE OF HOPE

Hope is a weak, passive concept that depends only on the insanity of Chaos. Hope is that which drives us to failure, forces us to destruction, and causes us to suffer. A foolish Duke will merely 'Hope' his plans will find success, rather than meticulously planning each and every detail. Rather He should instead plan carefully and meticulously, working to what he believes possible and plausible, not that which depends purely on chance. If one resigns themselves into the hands of Chaos, and as such, will surely fail in his Great Endeavors.

Hope is that which depends on the raw and the impossible. Its path is a fruitless one.

THE LIE OF TRUST

It is in the nature of all reasoning beings to understand that they are bound by Chains, as spoken of in the Lie of Freedom. Some, such as the Demons, pull and yank mindlessly upon their bonds in rage, too little success and much blind destruction. Others, such as the Celestials, ignore them or make excuses. 'These are good' they say 'To be Chained is right, to Serve is right, to be Powerless is right' They resign themselves against all possibility of greatness and thus remain lesser, weaker beings. This leads to the lies of Trust.

THE LIE OF FAITH

This lie is akin to the lie of Trust, excepting perhaps that the lie of Trust implies a blind dependency on an equal or lesser, whereas the Lie of Faith implies Trust in one above you or Trust in a mere concept. This is a still more foolish concept. Why should another, more powerful being wish to selflessly loosen the Chains of your existence unless that also benefits them? Why should they place themselves in a position of vulnerability, raising you up into power, excepting that it serves them as much, if not more so than you? Why should you depend on the improvable Chaos of a particular concept when more dependable, more reasonable paths to power and greatness show themselves?

THE LIE OF CHARITY

The simple reality is that no one gives to anyone unless it benefits them. Even if one were to give selflessly, it would result in catastrophe. There are limited resources, even on the Hells and certainly on the Prime. If the strong gave to the weak, for no other reason than sheer 'Kindness', it would loosen the chains of the weak and draw them up to take advantage and supplant the strong.

THE LIE OF LOVE

We do not deny that the power of the lie that is 'Love,' as the Chaotic Demons do, it is a valuable tool after all. But we do not credit it with the great and noble virtue that those of the Heavens do. We recognize its importance, just as we recognize the importance of death. Love is known as That Which Draws. It's opposite and Equal is That which Harries, also known as death. Love is the desire to procreate, nothing more. Just as mortals will flee blindly from death, so they will dash blindly towards Love, towards the desire to reproduce.

THE LIE OF TRUTH

The most difficult of all the Lies to understand, for it in itself is not a lie, but instead, it is perhaps not something to be taken at face value. Truth must exist. It is essential that truth is known and spoken amongst ourselves. To constantly speak lies would invite the raw insanity of Chaos after all. But if we speak naught but truth, we open ourselves up to the Lies of Trust and Faith. It is crucial that the word of one damned to another can be depended upon to some extent. But at the same time, there must be some possibility that such terms may be twisted and used to loosen the Chains and gain power.

As such, one must understand the flexibility of truth. One must seek purity and clarification in all one's communications and avoid doing such with others to take advantage whenever possible. If one depends on truth too much, one makes oneself a victim. But if one betrays truth too much, one makes oneself unreliable and useless. A compromise must be found.