The broad phenomenon meant by the blanket term of Doomsbay Cults is the widespread use of occult ceremonies with Inner Sight aspects pre- and early Orc Wars Cuprien.

Emergence and Context

Cuprien had an older tradition of Inner Sight, which had likely initially derived from Nordic readings of weather, animal behavior, and the condition of the Weave. This was however broadly considered to be superstition until approximately 45 b. OW, when great many practices and small cults with Inner Sight aesthetics popped up.

The atmosphere in which these Doomsbay Cults emerged was very tense, marked by uncertainty. Ogre and orcish forces were invading Litchy from the north (and as a consequence, many Nords fled south, bringing their baggage - including practitioners and fakers of Inner Sight - with them), while political conflict and civil war ravaged the country from within. Furthermore, belief in and contact with the Star had lessened over the past century, due to an increasing belief in practicalism (Cuprien was a very materialistic merchant society) and the rise of reason in step with industrialization and modernization. However, the explanation and certainty the Gods had brought were now missing, and new tenets were shaken by the continued security issues Cuprien faced.

As an additional factor, social norms and very old traditions were undergoing change. Some religious codes were broken, fashion evolved, even the nature of family and marriage changed. This also increased people's uncertainty and worry. An increasingly competitive political system further shed doubt on stability and safe future.

To find answers, people of all classes - peasants as well, but especially merchants and elites - turned to divination. These were the Doomsbay Cults.

Form and Purpose

There was no central doctrine or organization behind these practices, and as a result they were greatly varied between places and times. However, a few key characteristics were shared by most.

The central focus of all cults was the finding of answers through a human medium - a seer. The precise nature of the seer's ability differed; some cults had prophetic individuals who lucidly preached their answers, but most understood the answers to come from the beyond, either the gods or the demons or vague energies from the ether (the energy idea appeared mostly in later years, as a precursor form to Serene ideas of predominant historical forces). The answers seen by this individual - in a trance, recounting a dream, or whatever - were communicated verbally to those who wanted to hear them. Often, the visions were then transmitted further, in verbal or written form, and in some cases became local or even national news, if believed exceptionally truthful, relevant, or spectacular.

The point was to have a glimpse of fate ("doom"), and usually the reasoning behind needing to see this doom was so that one could take action against it, keep it "at bay". This is the source for the name that was latter assigned to this movement.

These practices were banned to some extent, almost everywhere. As a result, most cults were in a small, informal format: for example, the local community might talk about a Nord seer's arrival, and decide to meet now and again at someone's home to listen to her visions. Sometimes, Doomsbay-style ceremonies were even held publicly in churches.

Certain more esoteric groups also had the appeal of being special social occasions, made all the more important by their secrecy. This was mostly the case for elite cults. Here, a select small group of people met, making politics and business while they were at it. Their sources for visions could be as innocuous as reading reports they collected from other occasions, or full on trance rituals with candles and donations.

###The Armurian Women's Cults In Armuria of 10 OW and later, Doomsbay took an almost standardized form among the women of the elite class. Armuria's political situation was unique: it enjoyed relative stability (though its army was often in action, there wasn't too much pressure felt at home), and especially remained neutral and thus stayed on good terms with their new orcish neighbors. Much of this politicizing and trading was in the hands of men, who felt confident and certain of the direction they were headed, while women were left at home to worry. They found no answers at church.

They formed small groups, between five and twenty elites who knew one another personally, and met regularly for tea and talk. These social groups occasionally desired to consult a medium; many even had regular secret meetings, for example once every tenday.

Only the choice of venue and the chosen medium differed between groups (though some locations, and especially the seers, were used by several different groups). There were very few Nord seers, though, but there were also few social assumptions about Nords being the best seers. Instead, especially Vivis from the east were thought to be mysterious and exotic, with some kind of supernatural powers. For these noblewomen, the aesthetics of the show were often of great importance: they chose impressive, gloomy venues, believed seers could only find answers in a trance, liked to use candles and rich offerings of plant matter and altars. Often, Vivi seers - who normally wore draping clothes to cover their eight extremities - undressed to give their visions, giving it seem much more taboo-breaking and thus believable.