I just got back from France and I spent some time in Lyon, Vezelay, and of course Paris.

I saw Perouges, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/P%C3%A9rouges a medieval town which is still functioning. Its 800 years old.

I also got to see a medieval castle being built. Its the one frequently featured in Battle Castle.
http://www.guedelon.fr/en/

As a side note, I picked up a leaf from a 520 year old book called the Nuremburg Chronicle.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nuremberg_Chronicle

This page to be precise;
https://www.beloit.edu/nuremberg/book/6 ... IIv%29.pdf


Anyways, I was contemplating a campaign setting that was monotheistic. I was thinking of it being based on the Christian church, Clerics don't adventure, and Wizards are burned at the stake (they form cabals of secret societies). I was thinking that Saints would be real, from any background. Acceptable magical powers would likely be from Oracles who would be descended from angels. However, Oracle or not, its best not to reveal the use of such powers.

It would be modeled on medieval France. Dwarves in the Alps, Elves living in Amazing Island fortresses. Goblins and other critters could exist here or there.

Most game play would center around human interaction, and less around monsters.

Any thoughts?

Ars Magica.

That sounds surprisingly similar to a campaign I put together a few years ago, but never got to run

The largest and most powerful nation, the Roseate nation, had a king with dukes supposedly controlling individual regions, and they controlled the nations army. While the aristocracy were the apparent rulers, the church was the real power behind everything.

Overall the church truly was benevolent, but there were always people in positions of authority within the church for whom power had become more important than the true principles of the church. With religious (monks, nuns, priests, church officials, etc.) being immune to secular law, the church had both it's own investigative arm (c.f. early inquisitors before the Inquisition turned nasty) and also its own military arm in the form of the Roseate Knights.

The Roseate Knights while not large in number were an elite force, and certainly the most effective fighters in the world. Non-celibate quasi-monks, they were known for their chivalry, integrity and unwavering dedication to their mission (it was not uncommon for a Roseate Monk to be reported killed in some far off land, only to have them reappear several years later having spent the intervening time pursuing their mission to a successful completion). While the Roseate Knights were based in their castle and training grounds, they rarely met in large numbers. Instead they usually worked in small groups of 2 to 5 pursuing missions all across the land. The Knights also had a reputation for exhibiting unusual abilities that helped them with their quests.

The Roseate Knights were sworn to fulfill two tasks, neither of which was military (though the Knights could take the field of war if the survival of Church itself was threatened - something which had only ever happened twice in the past, both times with devastating effect). Their first task was to maintain the integrity of the church by bringing those who eroded that integrity to justice. Their second task was to seek out and destroy demons. Such was the integrity and reputation of the Roseate Knights that they could travel freely through all but the most remote lands, and even nations at war with the Roseate nation would seek the help of the Roseate Knights to eliminate out of control demons (help that was always freely given as eliminating demons was considered a moral duty that superseded petty politics and even war).

The Roseate nation was totally against demons and through its relative purity received greater benefits from the God. Other nations often sought better and better ways to harness demons, albeit usually in secrecy, to help raise their own power. Against this, the potential power that could come from successfully summoning and controlling demons, was a lure for individuals and nations alike.

The result was a world where the Church and its single god was dominant, but its influence on politics was both constrained and ever changing (as those who drove that influence from within the Church were either found out or developed ever more subtle ways to keep their influence secret). The machinations of secular politics were ever present, though in the Roseate nation itself this tended more to a endless brewing of undercover conspiracies that were finally found out and thwarted before they caused major disruption to the nation. The temptations of demonology and the ever present danger of uncontrolled demons added another dimension (sometimes literally). Then there were the barbarian and monster races lurking in the wildlands and underground.

That was the core of it, anyway. Hope some of these ideas are helpful.

p.s. Joining the Roseate Knights was never an option for the party; the Knights were there as an interesting aspect of the environment that could also turn up unexpectedly to help or hinder the party depending on what they were doing. Woe betide the party if they ever became the subject of a Knights' mission - that would take some serious work by the party to survive.

A few quick links regarding monotheistic campaigns:

http://www.enworld.org/forum/showthread ... es-of-Wyre
http://www.thepiazza.org.uk/bb/viewtopi ... 19&t=10149
http://paizo.com/threads/rzs2qbzb?How-W ... c-Religion
http://www.dandwiki.com/wiki/800_CE_(3. ... gn_Setting)

Thanks for sharing!

In a world where there is a single powerful religion that sits alongside the secular authorities, then churches authority over religion and heresy is likely to be manifest in ways such as those exhibited by the inquistion in the Roman Christianity, or by the role of sharia law and the clerics that interpret it in Muslim society.

I don't know enough about sharia, UHF, to give examples, but you may find the different forms of the holy inquisition may be useful in your setting.

The holy inquisition first started because local rulers were identifying and punishing heresy, often with dubious accuracy. The first inquisitions were simply priests assigned to determine the truth or otherwise of heresy accusations, and ensure that heresy accusations and the penalties associated with the were used on where genuinely warranted. This was the start of the inquisitors power to overrule secular authorities and specify punishment with regard to heresy, and the arrival of such an inquisitor was generally a good thing for the accused.

Over time, what started as occasional role for some priests developed into a more permanent role.

When the interests of both church and local lords coincided, the inquisition became a force to be reckoned with and abuses of its power became more likely. A classic example of this was the suppression of the Cathars in southern France. The Catholic Church was concerned that the Cathars (whose way of life was often more Christian in behaviour than that of their Christian countrymen) were attracting growing numbers of people away from Christianity. Ubfortuantely for the Cathars, their territories also bordered those of French lords seeking to expand their own lands and wealth. The combination was devastating as under the mandate of the Inquistion, their lands were invaded by French lords and entire Cathar populations were slaughtered or forcibly converted to Christianity.

And we all know about the Spanish Inquisition who used the mandate of suppressing heresy to become a long-lasting dominant political force in Spain.

Any or all of these modes of inquisition could play a useful role in your campaign.

One idea I had for a game like this was a setting where there was an apocalyptic prophecy that the church had labelled as heretical, and the group was trying to track down the various fragments of prophecy scattered around the country while keeping ahead of the Church and its Inquisitors to both learn the whole of the prophecy, keep those who were part of it safe, and figure out how to prevent the apocalypse, or at the least, minimize the damage that it would cause.

There would, of course, be a lot of intrigue, misdirection, and dangerous social interactions within the game, finishing out with a series of climactic battles between good and destruction as the group faces down the forces of the apocalypse.

One thing to remember is that monotheistic does not mean a single church. All three of the major mothistic religions have had splinter groups over time and even major decisions.

For Christians, you had the split between the eastern othadox and Roman churches, popes vs anti-popes and the Protestant reformation.

So you can still have lots of conflict on religious grounds even without differing religions.

There's the debates over which prophet is the best one. Islam, for instance, considers Jesus as a prophet, just a less important one than Muhammed.

The position of royalty can also be a factor, with kingship often considered to be divinely bestowed. This leads to behaviour such as Henry VIII of England creating his own church when the head of the Catholic Church refused his royal desire for a divorce.

Vampire: Dark Age might be a useful resource. It's mostly historical, after all.

Also fun is having several competing monotheistic religions.

From my 1630s game:

The Faiths of the Book

The Book of the Faith: All of the following religions share a common book as the basis of their doctrine. Differences in translation, interpretation, and precedence of these books has led to a fragmenting of the monotheistic faiths.

Centrist: While claiming to be the most universal of religions Centrism is one of the most prejudicial of sects, claiming that most of the non-humans have limited souls and in fact that the Elves, Orcs, and Goblins have none at all. Practitioners of Arcane Magic are viewed as universally damned. The Centrist faith has more followers in the Old World than all the others combined, if it has one saving grace it is that it holds teaching and the study of the world around it as the highest of callings.
The Centrist and Eastern Standard religions parted over the Crusades of Faith in the first two centuries of the current millennium. The difference of opinion on the subject of Arcane Magic has not eased relations, however the Centrist faith has recently begun licensing Arcane spellcasters, though at a usurious cost. This licensing has in turn strained relations with the Matthiests.
In organization the Centrist Faith has a rigid Hierarchy with a Primiarch at the top, High Patriarch below him,, Patriarchs followed by Legates below them and priests followed only by lay brothers.
A second, monastic, branch of the clergy removes itself from most worldly concerns - at least in theory. In actuality, the lands and wealth controlled by the monastic brothers grants the brothers a good deal of political clout, which has at times been abused.
The third branch of the faith is the church knights - armed knightly orders that range from the truly saintly paladins to titled thugs that acts as no more than mercenaries, brigands, or even pirates.
Centrism's deadly flaw is its overwhelming desire for control.
The Domains central to the Centrist Faith are Law, Protection, Strength, and War.

Eastern Standard: While outwardly the most insular of the Faiths of the Book the Standard faith is in fact the most accepting. While it has no Ogres as members it would welcome them, while it has neither Elves nor Orcs and Goblins it would tolerate them, if not greet them with open arms. Indeed in the Lands of the Scimitar Eastern is welcome as the other faiths are not, largely because of its own tolerance in turn and their nonparticipation in the Crusades of centuries past.
The organization of the Eastern Standard Faith is much looser than the Centrists hierarchy with two main bodies, a secular branch and a monastic branch. The priests that visit towns or administer to parishes are from the secular branch and most often are married. The monastic brothers and higher clergy are both celibate and chaste. Arcane Magic is viewed as a special gift from Heaven and Practitioners may be found in both the secular and monastic branches.
If Eastern Standard has a fault it is with its acceptance that what is believed is that which is true. The followers of the Eastern Standard tend to take life as it comes to them, with little desire to investigate life’s workings. The few scholars in its numbers tend to join the monastic branch, where, oddly, they are highly esteemed.
The Standard Faith holds to the domains of Good, Healing, Luck, and Magic.

Agravainicanism: The most recent faith of any note, the Agravainics are, on the surface, very similar to the Centrists, the chief point of conflict being a complete denial of the authority of the Primiarch.
A second telling difference is the acceptance of Wizards and Sorcerers in the body of the faith. A minor separation of the faith into a high and low church also derives from that choice, the Low Church barring membership of Arcane spellcasters, actors, and playwrights to their numbers.
The high church, mindful of the desires of the nobility has welcomed such with open arms.
The Low Church also shuns the pageantry demonstrated by the high church, feeling that such displays ape the worst flaws of Centrism, while the high church feels that such ceremonies reflect the glory of God.
The flaws that mark the Agravainic faith include its blatant kowtowing to the desires of the monarch and the split between High Church and Low.
The Domains of the High Church are Law, War, Air, and Water. The Low Church Domains are Protection, Good, Healing, and Strength.

Mattheism: The second youngest of the Faiths of the Book is Mattheism, which was founded only forty years ago. The Centrist and Mattheistic faiths have been at war almost from the beginning. The Mattheists favor a non-centralized, non-hierarchical organization, viewing the village as the natural level of control and government. Nearly as prejudiced as Centrism, it views Arcane Magic as a snare and a temptation, to be avoided by the wise. Non-humans are more welcome than with the Centrists, perhaps because of their relative abundance in Mattheist controlled lands.
The exception to this rule is the race of the Halflings, who are viewed as thieves, rogues, and scoundrels, unworthy of trust or welcome. As the Mattheists are a purely Old World phenomenon they have never encountered Orcs, Goblins, or Dark Elves.
The gravest flaw in Mattheism is the belief that much of the world exists as a temptation to the unwary, and that ignorance is truly bliss.
The Domains practiced by the Mattheans are Healing, Law, Protection, and Strength.

Cavillism: A dour, unforgiving faith Cavillism believes in predestination, that only those chosen by God may be granted entrance into Paradise. Much given to mortification of the flesh, with no room for leniency, the Cavillists believe that the laws contained in the book are the only true laws, that all kings and rulers in the material world should be subservient to the guidance of the enlightened. The Cavillists attempted a takeover of the Swazian Confederation in 1560 under Pierre Zuingli, a student of Jean Cavill. The effort ended shortly after the death of Zuingli but Cavilism has remained a small but determined force in that fiercely independent nation. The Cavillist’s being a mystic faith have little or no central hierarchy.
The overriding flaw in Cavillism is that once a person’s soul is stained with sin, no matter in how small a matter, that person is forever afterward damned. As a result once a Cavillist deems himself a sinner he often indulges in truly immense excess and debauchery.
The Domains of Cavillism are Protection, Law, Destruction, and Knowledge.

Unifist Faith: The root faith for all of the Faiths of the Book, Unifism believes in a single God who will reward the members of certain families in the afterlife. They do not proselytize, seeing all others as irredeemable. In spite of this, the faith is currently very pacifistic, not abjuring intercourse with others, just not welcoming them into the fold. In many areas, both in Panathia and in the East, Unifism is persecuted and only allowed to hold work deemed unacceptable by the other faiths. Only in Swazia and the lands that follow the Eastern Standard faith are they welcome. Most Unifists are Halflings, generally of the Halmaadic race..
The only magics they prohibit are those either dealing with and raising the dead demonology. Despite this some of the most famous Necromancers were fallen members or even clerics of the Unifist faith.
Their weakness is isolation, given a choice they settle in their own communities, follow their own laws and speak their own language, not forming relationships with the peoples and cultures around them.
Their Domains are Healing, Law, Knowledge, and Protection.

Faith of the Prophets: The last major Faith of the Book holds little power in the nations of the Old World, being the State Religion of the Empires of the Tulwar. It is believed to be a heretical sect of scholars and warriors who follow a false prophet. In truth the sect holds to the belief in many prophets, not all of who have been recognized as such. The Faith of the Prophets was the target of seven crusades over the centuries. As such very little trust is found between the Prophets and the Centrists.
The Eastern Standard sect on the other hand maintains cordial relations with the Prophets and is welcome in the lands of the Tulwar. Some of the more tolerant Prophets are members of both religions.
Their Achilles heel is in the rigidity of their daily rituals.
The Domains maintained by the Prophets are Healing, Knowledge, Protection, and War.


Heresies, cults, and splinter sects: As the Wars of Religion continue, the Faiths of the Book continue to divide into ever smaller splinters. Many of these are Matthean sects notable for their intolerance and fanaticism. Others are corruptions of Centrism, notable for their irrational mysticism.



Of the Saints:
The Centrist, Agravainic, and Eastern Standard Faiths believe in the existence of Saints - Followers and Martyrs of the Faith that have been elevated to positions in the divine hierarchy. Saints may intercede if called upon for aid and Centrism in particular has many small denominations who are dedicated to the various saints, some of these are granted Domains other than the ones listed.

Of The Faiths of the Book and the Undead:

The Faiths of the Book view undead as mere mortal shells animated by a demonic presence, as such they gain the ability to turn undead as described in the Players Handbook. In addition Clergy of the Book may attempt to turn any demons that are either manifested or free floating as though they were undead of two Hit Dice higher.

Of the Adversary:
Each of the Faiths also believe in the Adversary, either a loyal servant of the Creator sent to test his followers (Unifism) or a servant who has rebelled, seeking Dominion for himself. In either case there are a great number of lesser spirits who follow him, collectively known as Demons.

Of the Wars of Faith:
In July of 1564 Mattheus Lieber posted a list of ‘Crimes of Faith’ that the upper clergy of the Centrist Faith either condoned or practiced. It is likely that the matter would have ended there had some of Matthius’ friends not copied the accusations down and had them printed for distribution. Again, matters may have ended there had the Centrists not retaliated by arresting Mattheus, on charges of Heresy.

The wars spawned by the Centrist reaction continue to this day.

The Auld Grump

Thanks everyone. I'm wading through it all.

Ars Magica is pretty close, but I'm not sure I like the system.

The setting will likely work for me. My preference will be to run this with Pathfinder. I guess I'd also like to see the mysterious be more mysterious.

I was leaning to the fact that as soon as a race gets written about it becomes standard fare for fantasy. I want the same low tech, low fantasy, and human centered.

Elves should be scary... Dwarves should be scary... Dark Elves... wha?

Goblins should be scary... lots of goblins should should scare the wits out of you.

http://www.tuckerskobolds.com/

Zenguy, that is one cool religious drama premise. I'm tempted to try that sometime as a campaign foundation.

I've had time to absorb some of that... I was always a fan of the Razmiran Church in the Pathfinder setting. It might be kind of funny of a false church ran little 'razmiran' cults. It would suck more power away from potential religions, they could fight other religions, and they could always out them to break people's spirits.