Old Codex Eldritch Inquisition

Goals and Motivations

An organization that above all seeks to bring order and stability to the chaotic nature of magic, through hunting evil spellcasters, breaking curses and nullifying chaotic magic. Regarding the planar rifts and the portal network. Some within the Eldritch Inquisition, recognize the value and opportunities they bring and wish to guard them, to protect the people of Kildar against the dangers (Stabilize c.q. Guard society from its effects). While others deem the risk too great and prefer to close off all rifts and the portal network.

Organizational Structure

With a lot of responsibility and dangers everywhere, the Eldritch Inquisition consists of many Orders and local Chapters, each specializing in different tasks and/or locations.
Who is the faction leader? How does the leader represent the group?

After Hadar’s Crimson Dusk and Grandmother’s abuse of powerful magic, the Eldritch Inquisition has gained broad popular support and funding for keeping evil magic out. This allows them to now regularly stretch or even overstep their authority.
The Gateway Custodians, is an order within the Eldritch Inquisition with the vital task of protecting the ancient portal network, originally reactivated by the peculiar portallist’s workshop. They maintain small garrisons at each location where a Portal Gateway has been reopened. They perform inspections of the goods and people that pass through them, and they collect tolls. The order of Gateway Custodians has a relatively high number of Dragonborn’s, most hailing from the dragonborn settlement of Eir Andusk. A place that has had first hand experience of what can happen if the portal network is abused and falls into the wrong hands.
The Eldritch Inquisition has two main sources of income:
- Toll paid by those who use the services of the Portal Network. Due to the vital nature of the gateways in Kildar’s booming economy, this has become a massive revenue stream. This has made the Eldritch inquisition a very wealthy and politically powerful institution.
- Funding by guilds or individuals to help with evil magic that is plaguing them. This has created a bit of a conflict of interest, as the Eldritch Inquisition might not want to become too effective at their job, as then this source of funding and their popularity might dry up. It might even create incentive for insidious members to create the problems for which the Eldritch Inquisition is the cure. But as long as there is still plenty of danger and evil in the world, the Inquisition will be busy enough and not have to resort to such measures…. right?

Faction Motto

Culture

Being a foreign organization originally, the Kildarian Chapters of the Eldritch Inquisition confer with chapters and similar orders from other places (some from very far away or even other planes) on their position regarding the planar changes.

What traditions do they follow? Where does the faction operate from? What traits and attitudes do its members admire?

The Eldritch Inquisition in Season 1

The Eldritch Inquisition is an organization of like-minded individuals who above all seek to bring order and stability to the chaotic nature of magic. Goals and personal motivations of members of the organization are varied. Some members seek to hunt evil spellcasters, both divine and arcane. Others seek to find, guide or temper people suffering from uncontrollable and unpredictable magic, like Sorcerers or Wild Magic Barbarians. Even others still seek to free individuals suffering from magical curses or pacts, like warlocks or victims of hags.

Members of the Inquisition are likely to be of Lawful alignment, ranging from good to, in rare, extremist occasions, even evil. People of different alignments may also be among the ranks for their own personal reasons. New initiates will either be taught the basics of spellcasting to defend themselves, or will be equipped with tools to help them deal with enemy spellcasters. Despite the fact that the organization is secular, there are still many members within the organization who worship varying gods or pantheons. Among these the most popular are those that are tied to the Magic Domain.

“Magic is powerful. Magic is corrupting. Magic is addicting. The lure of magic power can turn the most righteous person into a devious antagonist. We must protect the innocent from the wicked.”

Grand Master Janus Fairweather, before engaging a hag.

Organization

Most if not all settlements of townships or larger may have Inquisition safe houses that provide a safe place to sleep and a place to resupply. These safe houses may also house Templars for longer periods of time. Some smaller villages may have simple stashes of equipment hidden somewhere that may include items like spell scrolls, potions and rations.

Local chapters are led by Chapter Masters, who report only to the Grand Master of the Inquisition; Balasar. Each Chapter Master will have an administrative staff to support them in overseeing the region's activities. They will also have access to a local force of Initiates, Sergeants, Templars and Mentors with a separate Master to lead each of these branches respectively.

Initiates are new recruits of the Inquisition.

Sergeants are warriors that have yet to prove themselves worthy to become a Templar of the Inquisition. They will act as servants, local guards and workers for their local Chapter.

Templars can be assigned to that specific region. As their duties change some of these Templars might be sent out on missions or reassigned to different Chapters, while others may spend their entire life devoted to their local Chapter. Templars have numerous duties, like acting as bodyguards to Inquisitors, Mentors or other high ranking members of the Inquisition, protecting dangerous individuals from themselves and others and guarding the vital anti-magic vaults.

Mentors are powerful spellcasters that aid the Inquisition. Usually these Mentors will be specialized in either Arcane or Divine Magic. They will advise Chapter Masters on all matters arcane and divine, and they may train individuals in ways to protect themselves from magic. They will teach Abjuration and some anti-magic spells to initiates for free, and uninitiated at a cost. They will also guide those who come to the order out of their own free will. They will do all in their power to guide people suffering from uncontrollable and unpredictable magic, and attempt to free individuals suffering from magical curses or pacts.
Sentinels are a seperate order among the ranks of the Eldritch Inquisition. They are often tasked with missions that require utmost secrecy and ruthless precision, whether it is the meticulous dismantling of cult conspiracies, infiltrating within arcane demiplanes or lairs, or neutralizing rogue magic-wielders. They are identified by their layered, muted leather coats with high collars, pointed leather hunting hats and tall boots. Their most defining characteristic are their dark red leather gloves. To suppress their enemies, they carry heavy wooden crossbows engraved with runes.

Finally there are the Inquisitors. Inquisitors tend to move from place to place, chasing down enemies and researching emerging threats. As a result, they often travel alone but they will work with others from outside their order, even if such allies are not above suspicion. Grim and determined, the inquisitor roots out enemies of the Inquisition, using trickery and guile when righteousness and purity is not enough. Although inquisitors are dedicated to their cause, they are above many of the normal rules and conventions of the Inquisition. Inquisitors answer only to the Chapter Masters, the Master of the Inquisitors and the Grand Master. The more pure-hearted of these Inquisitors may carefully heed the words of their allies and seek to do good, while other more radical Inquisitors may stoop to heinous acts to achieve their goals.

Recources, Revenue and Funding

The Eldritch Inquisition has two main sources of income:
- Toll paid by those who use the services of the Portal Network. Due to the vital nature of the gateways in Kildar’s booming economy, this has become a massive revenue stream. This has made the Eldritch inquisition a very wealthy and politically powerful institution.
- Funding by guilds or individuals to help with evil magic that is plaguing them. This has created a bit of a conflict of interest, as the Eldritch Inquisition might not want to become too effective at their job, as then this source of funding and their popularity might dry up. It might even create incentive for insidious members to create the problems for which the Eldritch Inquisition is the cure. But as long as there is still plenty of danger and evil in the world, the Inquisition will be busy enough and not have to resort to such measures…. right?

Recruitment

Members of the Inquisition are numerous and varied. They will accept anyone, regardless of species, rank or gender. The Inquisition’s Chapter Keeps often draw young locals in search of adventure towards them, where they will be inducted into the Inquisition as Initiates where they will begin their training. Promising recruits will be sent to the Grand Temple where they will start the grueling process of becoming an Inquisitor. The training to become an Inquisitor is a trial in and of itself, and only 1 in 10 potential candidates will see themselves graduate.

The Inquisition will also accept particularly motivated adult outsiders into their ranks if they manage to prove themselves worthy and devoted. These individuals will be put through rigorous trials that will put all their abilities to the test. If they succeed, they may be inducted as a Sergeant, from where they may grow to become a Templar or Mentor. In extremely rare occasions, these individuals may even become Inquisitors, though this has happened only a handful of times in the Inquisition’s entire existence.

Tactics

Their Inquisitors will scout ahead towards dangerous areas, where they will often deal with the threat themselves with their party, or request reinforcements at the nearest Chapter Keep if the threat proves too great to deal with alone. The Inquisition will send armed patrols of Templars and Sergeants in the direct vicinity of their Chapter Keeps. These warriors may sometimes serve as local enforcement if the proper local authorities are lacking. Groups of Templars and Sergeants may engage powerful spellcasters at the request of an Inquisitor, and sometimes they may venture out on their own accord if they have confirmed reports to respond to.

Relationships

Public Agenda

Generally, the Inquisition will attempt to maintain cordial relationships with local authorities. They however are eager to point out the fact they are an international organization who do not owe allegiance to any form of governance. Their keeps, however, are there at the whim of local authorities, which they in turn are fond of reminding the Inquisition of. They will attempt to maintain cordial relationships with friendly or neutral organizations, but they will be quick to condemn those who do not follow their personal beliefs. Those organizations they will be at odds with, if not showing outright hostility toward them. Goals and personal motivations of members of the organization are varied. Some members seek to hunt evil spellcasters, both divine and arcane. Others seek to find, guide or temper people suffering from uncontrollable and unpredictable magic, like Sorcerers or Wild Magic Barbarians. Even others still seek to free individuals suffering from magical curses or pacts, like warlocks or victims of hags. Members of the Inquisition are likely to be of Lawful alignment, ranging from good to, in rare, extremist occasions, even evil. People of different alignments may also be among the ranks for their own personal reasons.

History

The Inquisition finds its roots in the first anti-magic keep and current headquarters of the entire Inquisition, known as the Grand Temple. These original Templars were a group of Paladins and Clerics that had amassed a large assortment of cursed magical items. These Templars served different gods of the Magic Domain that united under the common purpose of safeguarding these items from the world. They ordered the construction of the Grand Temple, a grand vault full of anti-magical auras and glyphs that would serve as their headquarters. The foremost Paladin among them, Janus Fairweather, became the first Grand Master of the Inquisition.

Over time the Inquisition saw large growth, and evolved from the religious organization it began as into a secular one. The remaining original Templars each set out to create new Chapter Keeps, where they became the first Chapter Masters. They sought to expand their influence and thus safeguard a larger area.

Assets

The Eldritch Inquisition have local bases of operations in each region that will condone their presence. These bases of operations will usually take the form of fortified Chapter Keeps, located near regional or national capitals. The largest and first of these, located in Stormhaven, is known as the Grand Temple, which serves as the Inquisition’s headquarters. Inside are anti-magical vaults and prisons that are well guarded by the Inquisition. They hold magical prisoners and items deemed too dangerous to be out in the greater world. Some of these prisoners come here freely, to be protected from their own inherent powers. The keeps will also provide lodgings to members, as well as Garrisons with Warriors and training grounds for initiates and their trainers. Most if not all settlements of townships or larger may have Inquisition safe houses that provide a safe place to sleep and a place to resupply. These safe houses may also house Templars for longer periods of time. Some smaller villages may have simple stashes of equipment hidden somewhere that may include items like spell scrolls, potions and rations.

Heraldry

Shield with Eldritch Inquisition heraldry

The Inquisition are usually represented by an image of a silver lightning bolt displayed on a background of varying shades of purple. Local Chapters may sport variations on this as their local coat of arms.

Members of the Inquisition will display their allegiance in various ways. Some display their chapter’s coat of arms on their shield or cloak, or they may even wear a tabard displaying the symbol of the Inquisition itself.

Usually the Inquisitors carry some way of identification: a way to distinguish themselves and their rank among the Inquisition. This will usually take the form of a simple badge of office; a broche, ring or amulet.

Military

Notable Chapters & Orders

The Ironhold chapter. This chapter is known for their high quality of weapons and armor. The chapter master is a human named Sevetar Mason. Their coat of arms is a rearing white owlbear on a checkered yellow and black field.
The Ironhold chapter coat of arms both with and without the Eldritch Inquisition heraldry incorporated.
The order of Gateway Custodians is an order within the Eldritch Inquisition with the vital task of protecting the ancient portal network, originally reactivated by the portallist’s workshop. They maintain small garrisons at each location where a Portal Gateway has been reopened. They perform inspections of the goods and people that pass through them, and they collect tolls. The order of Gateway Custodians has a relatively high number of Dragonborn’s, most hailing from the dragonborn settlement of Eir Andusk. A place that has had first hand experience of what can happen if the portal network is abused and falls into the wrong hands.

Notable Members

Janus Fairweather: the first Grand Master of the Eldritch Inquisition (Deceased).
Sevetar Mason: Former master of the Ironhold chapter.
Balasar: Current Grand Master of the Eldritch Inquisition.

Inquisition NPC Statblocks

This page was last edited on 7 July 2025, at 22:58.