Order of the Dark Moon

The Order of the Dark Moon was a secretive order of monks who dedicated their lives to the deity Shar. They were considered an elite sect of the Sharran faith, fanatic devotees who managed to keep hidden their identities, and nearly entirely obscure their exploits from the people of Faerûn.

"Today you enter her umbra, baring not just your body and mind but also your souls to the Mistress of the Night. As you train in the darkest mysteries, you too will hear the whispers of the goddess...to the worthy who obey, she grants strength and power."

- Gamaz, to a group of Dark Moon initiates.

Organization
The leaders of the Dark Moon had direct contact with the Lady of Loss and were not subject to the will of her clergy. Their agents acted independently as killers or enforcers of her wishes on Toril.

Hierarchy
Monks of the order followed a militaristic hierarchy, one in which the failure to follow orders was punishable by death. Each monk was granted only the knowledge they needed in order to carry out Shar's plots, similar to the manner the Dark Deity treated her clergy.

Most monks referred to each other as "Dark Brother" or "Dark Sister", while senior instructors were known as "Dark Fathers" or "Dark Mothers". The most senior monk of each monastery was referred to either as "Dark Father Abbot" or "Dark Mother Abbess". These leaders received their divine instructions directly from Shar her self.

Activities
The Dark Moon acted openly in lands friendly to the worship of Shar. It also had secret sects in places where the faith of Shar was outlawed. These secret sects usually worked in rural settings or in hidden underground enclaves. The monks sought knowledge and wisdom from the shadows, in the belief that true understanding was within darkness and loss.

Head monks of the order personally prepared their pupils for each mission beforehand, warning them about foes or perils they many encounter.

Monks of the Dark Moon were among Shar's most trusted agents, especially for missions that involved striking out against the worshippers of Selûne, Shar's divine sister, or Loviatar, one of her lesser rivals. In Shar's name, they sacked the temple of Chauntea in Purskul, killed the head priest of Loviatar in Cormyr and desecrated a holy site of Selûne, transforming into a safehouse for Dark Moon monks operating within the Moonsea.

Beliefs
Monks of the Dark Moon were single-minded in their purpose of executing Shar's will across the Realms. They devoted their entire existence to reflect her religious dogma in every aspects of their lives.

They sought what they referred to as "knowledge and conversation" with shadows. They believed that personal loss and the darkening of ones soul was the only means to find true insight into the spiritual self.

Membership
Each monastery of the Dark Moon would take on a new cohort of young adults every 14 months. Shar commanded that the order should never recruit children, or from among the ranks of her church, as the Order must act without interference. Lastly, each prospective Dark Moon acolyte had to demonstrate some sort of sorcerous power. Any recruit caught lying about any their age, abilities or affiliation were put to the knife.

Acolytes that were eligible were culled from the most indoctrinated of Shar's faithful who had shown zealous devotion. In addition to the intense, year-long-plus training of mind, body and soul, neophytes of the Dark Moon Order were required to perform vile acts upon the groups enemies. Anyone that failed the training, or who could not command sorcerous magic were eliminated, some killed personally by Alorgoth himself.

Novitiates were tasked with performing their first mission for the order, typically one that involved spying upon, infiltrating, or otherwise undermining Shar's enemies. Upon successful completing, they were granted full membership as monks of the Dark Moon.

Abilities
Monks of the Dark Moon were practitioners of the Way of Shadow monastic tradition, in a manner akin to practicing shadowdancers.

They often took on specialized roles for their missions, becoming masters of guerilla tactics, skilled arsonists, lethal dispensers of poison, or expert mounted combatants. Each monk had a specific role to play in each mission; the preparation for which was repeatedly practice until perfection was all but ensured.

All monks of the order were capable of tapping into the Shadow Weave, and gained access to dark spells like lesser and greater shadow tentacle.

Base of Operations
The Order of the Dark moon had a number of safehouses and dark sanctuaries located throughout Faerûn. Among these were a shrine in the northwestern region of the Sword Mountains serving agents across the Sword Coast, a network of tunnels deep below the storms of the Calim Desert and a mountaintop refuge within the Thunder Peaks of central Faerûn, which was guarded by a group of manticores.

The order also maintained numerous, secreted shrines to Shar throughout the Underdark.

Notable Locations

 * Dark Moon shrine of Purskul, the Sharran shrine that was known to everyone in the city, but whose activities within were completely secret. Anyone who entered its premises either became a faithful member of the Dark Lady or were killed outright.
 * Dark Moon monastery, a secret mountaintop temple in the northern Cloud Peaks was used to recruit acolytes from across the Sword Coast and Lands of Intrigue.
 * Dark Moon shrine of the Sword Mountains, a simple shrine that serviced monks operating in the cities of Waterdeep and Luskan.

Relationships
The leader of each Dark Moon monastery met together once per year at the Temple of Old Night, in conference with leaders of the Sharran church.

History
In the late 14 century DR, Shar appointed her most trusted faithful, Alorgoth, "the Bringer of Doom" to establish the Dark Moon shrine in Purskul and train a sect of sorcerer-monks in her service. These acolytes attuned their spiritual growth, honed their martial abilities and perfected their magical skills under the tutelage of veteran monks, an master assassin and a sorcerer who had a wealth of control over the Shadow Weave. After their initial period of training, these monks ventured out throughout Faerûn to spread the word of Shar and recruit more into their ranks. Alorgoth entrusted the Dark Moon shrine with three senior Sharran priests from the Temple of Old Night, and traveled onward to grow the order.

Alorgoth expanded the influence of the Dark Moon across all of Amn, founding cells in numerous cities, including Crimmor, Keczulla, and the capital city of Athkatla. Within five years of the founding of the shrine in Purskul, the Order of the Dark Moon was ready to execute Shar's will across the west.

Twofold Truth
In the, Alorgoth took on the guise of 'Collus Darathon', founder of a new spiritual order that sought to bind together two conflicting religions. Taking advantage of the emergent Dark Moon heresy―the belief that Shar and Selûne were two aspects of the same goddess―Alorgoth founded the Cult of the Twofold Truth, operating out of a temple in the southern Cloud Peaks. The cult rapidly grew more popular among the faithful of Shar and Selûne, but in fact entirely fraudulent. Alorgoth used newfound movement to weed out weak-willed Sharrans, and gather Selûnite faithful in an enclosed location for easy slaughter.

Alorgoth, nearly managed to kill several prominent worshippers of Selûne at the Twofold temple, save for the efforts of Rasaad yn Bashir. Rasaad revealed the secrets of the Twofold Truth, and with the help of his allies, turned away the Sharran assassins Alorgoth summoned to the temple. Alorgoth himself barely managed to escape from the battle.

Opening the Shadowfell
After Alorgoth was exposed as the leader of the Twofold Truth, the Sharran monk led a group of the Dark Moon south to Tethyr. The order rallied scores of Sharran warriors, and enslaved the dwarves of Clan Deepstone, forcing them to mine shadow gems beneath their clanhold in the Marching Mountains. Alorgoth used the shadow gems to power an artifact known as the Wheel of Obliteration to create a permanent portal to the Shadowfell, and let loose hordes of shadow creatures unto the Realms.

Once again, Alorgoth was relentlessly pursued by Rasaad yn Bashir and his allies, seeking revenge for the corruption and death of his brother Gamaz. Alorgoth and his shadow dragon ally Yxttrazzal lured Rasaad into the Shadowfell and attempted to trap him away from Toril and the Prime Material plane. As the caverns in the Shadowfell began to collapse, Rasaad used the Wheel to return to the Deepstone caverns, trapping Alorgoth within. His soul became forfeit to the shadow creatures he promised a world of light to devour.

Legacy
Alorgoth survived his time in the Shadowfell and continued his service to Shar as her "Bringer of Doom". The Order of the Dark Moon continued their traditions for over a century, into the era of the Second Sundering.

Notable Members

 * Alorgoth, the founder of the monastic order and favored devotee of Shar.
 * Alon, the earth genasi monk that served as the bodyguard to Daren Timbide.
 * Gamaz, leader of the Dark Moon monastery in Amn.
 * Tharag, the Devoted.

Appearances

 * Video Games
 * Baldur's Gate series (Baldur's Gate: Enhanced Edition • Baldur's Gate II: Enhanced Edition)