The Tome Of Drow Lore.pdf - RoseRed

The Dark Lady of Agony believes this pain
begins at birth, a pain shared by mother and
child. Though drow births are easier than
those of many other races, they are certainly
not without their share of pain and suffering,
viewed by Polshoath as an introduction to
the pains of life for the newborn and a stern
reminder of those pains for the mother.
Religious Observances
Drow who worship Polshoath honour their
goddess through sacrifice, pain and offerings
to support the church.
Like Belishtim, the temples of the Dark Lady
of Agony are frequently the site of orgiastic
rituals. However, unlike the cult of the
Seducer, these rituals are not devoted to lust
or desire, but rather to pain and to procreation
at all costs, an ongoing episode of torture and
fornication which is designed to bring the
drow involved ever closer to Polshoath.
Birth itself is central and sacred to Polshoath
and is carried out on an altar to the goddess,
offering the pain of mother and child to the Dark Lady and
ensuring that the newborn takes his or her first breath in the
sight of Polshoath.
Sacrifices and offerings are frequently made to the Dark
Lady in hopes of a successful impregnation and may take
the form of anything from a ritualised flogging of the
supplicant to the sacrifice of a specially-prepared slave to
the goddess.
Temples
On the outside, the temples of Polshoath are made up of hard
edges and sharp corners, squat, hulking buildings ringed
with spikes and seemingly devoid of grace. On the inside,
that pattern continues, with the addition of bright light in
multiple areas, bright enough to cause the drow pain. To
the drow, the entire structure appears uncomfortable and
that is indeed the intent.
For the goddess who believes pain is the fire that will forge
the drow into the mightiest race in the world, it would
hardly do to have her worshippers relaxing in comfort
while at one of her temples. Indeed, pain is thought to draw
the drow nearer to the Dark Lady of Agony. In addition
to the bright light and disquieting architecture, all areas of
her temples (aside from utilitarian areas like storerooms)
feature devices and implements for inflicting pain, either
on oneself or on another.
Clergy
The clergy of Polshoath is primarily, but not exclusively,
female. Unlike the cult of the Dark Mother, the necessity
and worth of the males of the race is acknowledged but as
they are, obviously, incapable of giving birth, they are not
as well-esteemed in the eyes of the Dark Lady of Agony as
are the females.
However, pain affects all drow equally and improves all
drow equally. It is in this aspect of Polshoath that most of
the males come to the clergy.
The priests and priestesses of Polshoath are recruited from
all classes of drow society, though most do come from the
upper classes. Still, the more of the ecstasy of their goddess
the drow are able to bear, the higher they will climb in the
clergy and it is not unknown for a priestess born in the
back alleys of a city to rise to such a level she can claim
absolute obedience from those members of the clergy born
to pampered luxury.
Worshippers
Like the clergy, worshippers of Polshoath come from all
levels of society. The constant need of the drow to replenish
their population provides a continuous drive for drow of all
stripes to see the services of the temples of the Dark Lady
of Agony.
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