Namaneil, Lord of Filth
Lord of Vermin, The Rat-Faced, The Plague Master, The Mistress of Horror
Lesser Deity
Symbol: A fly
Home Plane: Abyss
Alignment: Chaotic Evil
Portfolio: Disease, Famine, Nightmare, Plague, Perversion, Vermin
Worshipers: Evil Druids, Evil Werecreatures, Sadomasochists, Serial killers
Cleric Alignments: CE, CN, NE
Domains: Chaos, Charm, Destruction, Evil
Favored Weapon: “Pleasure”, (whip)
Namaneil's faith has largely been exterminated on Ortho. The Sin Eaters have been extremely harsh in attempting to blot out all mention of the Lord of Filth. Very few mentions of the goddess remain other than in nursery rhymes, harsh curses, and musty old books that would be burned if they were ever examined by Mother Church. Unfortunately, the obscurity of the deity has lead some to mistake her faith for one that has secret wisdom.
Namaneil has two forms. The first is a seductive and sensual woman with dark hair and purple lips. The second is a terrifying rat-human hybrid that is still recognizably female with poison dripping claws. Her avatars are known to frequently appear on Ortho, seduce men to her bed then leave their poisoned or disease ravaged bodies floating in the town water supply.
Chal's faithful is smaller than Alzrius' worshipers, with most of her surviving cults being founded directly by the goddess in some form or another. They are absolutely disgusting and loathsome groups that must live in utter isolation or are swiftly stamped out by the Harmonium. Wererats are the race that fears Namaneil's touch the most and her place is especially fearsome in their pantheon.
Namaneil's faithful attempt to spread disease, pollution, perversity, and horror wherever they can. The Book of Vile Darkness is an excellent source for describing typical activities of the Mistress of Horror's faithful. Most of her faithful pass along their nightmarish deeds onto their children and there is nothing that is worse than the violation of an innocent.
Unfortunately, Alzrius' influence is starting the church to become less obvious. Corrupt Merchant Barons have found deals with the church have allowed them to hide the pollution from their industrial deeds while unscrupulous Doctors have discovered that her blessings allow them to reap vast amounts of wealth if the sick never quite get better. It will be decades before an organized church of corruption is built up on Ortho but the Church of Alzrius is patient enough to help nurture the monstrous' goddess towards a more useful state.
Namaneil's faithful tend to meet underground in sewers, in garbage dumps, and their own disgusting shacks on the edges of civilization. Many of them tend to be inbred or covered in signs of horrible sickness. Leprosy and tumors are uncommon ailments in the largely healthy land of Ortho but the faithful of Namaneil exploit the sympathy for their plight in order to disguise their inner evil. Quite a few of Namaneil's faithful become so mutated by her rights that they cease to be human and become Mongrelmen or undead.
The faithful tend to rely on summoned fiends like Arcanoloths, Succubi, Incubi, Slaadi, and Glaabezu in order to actively recruit followers. The infernal charisma of the demonic mixed with the fear inducing powers of certain priests is all that can spread the religion. Green is an especially favored color of Namaneil.
History and Relationships: After the disgusting birth of Namaneil and her brother Ghanalim, the two were immediately hunted by Dildarin along with the other Lords of Order. The Fox gave his protection to the diabolical twins in hope that they could be eventually taught the merits of good. This proved to be a false hope for their evil natures only grew as the power of Order spread on Ortho.
Namaneil and her brother were eventually banished from the realm of the Lords of Chaos to the Abyss for their crimes. Furthermore, their influence on Ortho was almost completely shattered. It was in this place, surrounded by enemies, that they were befriended by the King of Brands. Alzrius held the twin godlings in contempt but offered them his tutelage and protection. While both twins wielded more power than the Demon Prince, they submitted to his stronger personality.
Namaneil dreams of destroying Ortho and slaughtering all of the people on the planet that do not come to worship her. She hates her father and the other Lords of Chaos almost as much as the Lords of Order that destroyed her faith. She will still obey the commands of the Fox out of fear but secretly dreams of his fall. Namaneil believes she is using Alzrius but the Lord of Brands knows her so well that any plan of his will almost certainly get her cooperation. Namaneil carries on a unnatural relationship with her brother and the two seem to have genuine love for one another despite their otherwise completely evil lives.
Namaneil is a lover and confederate of the goddess Talona but otherwise has no allies.
The Harmonium's Take
Whenever the Harmonium talks about the destructive and evil nature of Chaos. They're usually talking about Namaneil. If you can think of something stomach churning and disturbing then its a sure bet that her clergy has probably done something similar. It's because of gods like Namaneil that they believe that you cannot trust anything that's tainted by Chaos. According to the Harmonium, the only punishment that her worshipers deserve is a swift death followed by the burning of the body.
The Dark
Hard to believe as it is but Namaneil's faith really is *that* repulsive. Unfortunately, the goddess is slowly realizing that she can't really rely on her naked depravity in order to grow her faith. The faith is gradually starting to realize the merits of slowly leading individuals into the vile.
While Namaneil is a mad and disgusting goddess, she's also prone to rewarding followers quite lavishly (though one should be very specific as to what one wants as a reward). Anyone who can win souls over to her tiny church will find that they receive a good deal of the deity's attention.
Dogma: Taboos are the products of weak minds. Pain and pleasure are one in the same. Beauty and Ugliness are the same. Health and Sickness are one in the same. One should perform the most vile, debased, and disgusting acts in order to free one's minds from the barriers that so-called civilization has placed upon it. Only when you can reveal in the wickedness shall you be utterly free.