Preparation for running Tyranny of dragons: The Cult of the Dragon, reimagined
[DO NOT READ AHEAD IF JOINING MY GAME, SPOILERS AHEAD]
The Cult of the Chromatic Dragon
Cult factions were created by [Redacted] to bind together the Cult of the Dragon, the Church of Tiamat and allied organisations, into his new Cult of the Chromatic dragon, and minimise frictions between factions. Essentially creating a sub-cult for each aspect of dragon-kind, [Redacted] was merciless in separating out individual cells and giving individuals appropriate roles. He has encouraged competition between cults, including subterfuge, assassination and even cases of armed conflict, knowing it cements loyalty to one’s own faction, which, in a way, cements the faith in the Cult of the Chromatic Dragon.
The concept of each Cult faction was created during the Council of Tiamat’s Ascension, where their individual roles were laid out and structures created. During this council the Cult of the Dragon, the Church of Tiamat and multiple other smaller dragon-worshipping organisations were forcefully merged then split apart into five new wholes. The council is also notable for having a death toll equal to a small war, as any objections were overruled with extreme prejudice by the new masters of the draconic cults.
There are, however, lingering remnants of the old guard- followers of the scaly way of the cult of the dragon that disagree with the Cult’s new direction, including many of the oldest and most influential members of the Cult of the dragon. In addition, the wearing of purple has been retained as a common way of declaring who is in command across the cult, and many Wearers of Purple prefer to pursue personal ambitions over the wider cult’s goals.
The largest and most military minded of the sub-cults and also the most obsessed with wealth, the Red Hand was founded to be the strong right hand of the cult, its largest and most powerful force, reflecting the attributes of the red chromatic dragon. The Red Hand revels in assaulting heavily defended targets with significant concentrations of wealth, using overwhelming force and savagely efficient tactics and strategies. They are not content until they’ve taken anything of any conceivable value from a target, including slaves and prisoners. Their might is currently concentrated to the south and east of the sword coast, with forces ready to react when great force is needed. Much of their activity is self-directed, set on training and enlarging their forces through recruitment of humans and goblinoids, as well as creating a large slave-army out of those it deems unfit for membership.
The force is composed of the Cult of the Dragons more conventional forces, including those new recruits deemed of a suitable mien, minor elements of the church of Tiamat that favoured red dragons above all others and significant elements of the remnants of the Red Hand of Doom, a Tiamat worshipping Hobgoblin horde defeated many years ago. This section of the cult spends much of its time drilling and training, working to synthesise cult, hobgoblin and draconic tactics. The Hand even has a number of notoriously arrogant red dragons on retainer, which they work with to perfect how they will fight together in a significant conflict.
The Red Hand only recruits those they deem to have the correct attitude and skills in battle. Professional soldiers, knights, mercenaries and disciplined warriors are all welcomed with open arms. They also recruit those that seem to have potential to be a great warrior, but lack the training. Of those they capture in raids the Red Hand has created an army of fighting slave-soldiers. These slaves are promised a place in the Red Hand and a chance to gain proper weapons and armours if they prove themselves skilled and bloodthirsty in battle, and death if they refuse to fight the Hand’s enemies. Few refuse an offer of promotion to the cult proper, as the conditions the fighting slaves are kept in are atrocious and require constant activity and marching to keep the slaves physically and mentally exhausted. Those that are promoted are encouraged to quickly forget their old lives and to be grateful to the cult for letting them escape the slave-armies. Thus the ranks of the Red Hand have grown full of skilled, fanatical and desperate warriors.
Because of their draconic allies, the cult has a wellspring of Kobold labour that replenishes rapidly. They despise these weak dragonlings, but make great use of their subservience, having them take care of basic errands and menial tasks. The cult also has a huge number of goblin tribes forced into its service, recruited by the hobgoblin elements of the Red Hand, which are mostly kept corralled in a separate area whenever the Red Hand is encamped. Neither of these forces is considered part of the Red Hand, but they are considered expendable auxiliaries, and are herded into battle when it is tactically expedient to do so. They are considered just equal to the fighting-slave forces of the cult, and greater than the slaves that perform non-combat functions for the cult. To the Red Hand, a warrior, no matter how lowly, is always superior in rank to a civilian.
The Red hand favours strength and despises weakness and believes conflict and flame can separate the strong and the weak. Those looking to prove themselves ritualistically burn their bodies as displays of devotion, and for those the dragon god favours, when these burns heal they may develop a layer of scales or other draconic features over them. Some particularly deranged and power-hungry cultists toss themselves head-first into pyres to receive blessings- those few that survive these experiences usually are crippled for life, but some are blessed, becoming creatures akin to half-dragons or dragonborn. Most cultists of Dragonfang rank or above have some form of burn on their bodies, and those of higher ranks have more burn scars and draconic features.
The Red hand has been taking territory in Vaasa, Damara and lands around the moonsea, and holding it. They prefer not raid, only conquer or raze, and either way they ensure their targets of looted of all wealth. Another, smaller part of the red hand is present in Mughorm, recruiting from a populace that already venerates dragons, and preparing to be part of the push into Tymanther, where they hope to convert many of the ‘misguided dragon-kin’. Some more independent Red Hand warbands have taken up raiding, working with other cult cells to provide their military expertise and strong sword-hands in taking hard targets, often in exchange for the lions share of the loot. Finally, a contingent of the Red hand, under the command of Draegloth Bladelord, have been placed in charge of security and the final defence of the Well of Dragons, made up of some of their their mightiest fighters and an adult red dragon, Skylkyth.
The Red Hand believe firmly in expansion through conquest, a result of the fusion of the credo of red chromatic and hobgoblin philosophy. They view the subjugation of populaces as a holy act, and many have almost heretically strong ties with Banites. When they defeat an enemy armed force, they give the survivors a choice: join or die. Those that choose to join are forced to kill their erstwhile compatriots to prove their loyalty, and quickly pushed into ‘taking the flame’ and other rites- any hesitation or refusal is punishable by execution, either immediate or on the pyre, until they have proven their loyalty well enough. When the Red hand needs to take resources, they take slaves as well. They then divide these poor souls into the elderly/disabled, children, and those of fighting age. The elderly are tasked with performing labour, those unable to do so are killed. The children are either sold or raised to venerate dragons as cultists. Those able to fight are given an option- join the ranks of the cult or be sold/killed.
The Wyrmspeaker that rules the sub-cult is [Redacted] himself, though he rarely deigns to manage the day-to-day affairs, given both his proclaimed lordship of the entire Cult of the Chromatic Dragon and mysterious duties that see him disappear with his inner circle for months or years at a time. Indeed, [Redacted]’s prolonged absence from the realms has left the various, the Wearers of purple for the Red Hand have taken it upon themselves to take more initiative to achieve their own ends. The most senior Wearer of Purple among their number, Severin, is attempting to usurp control over much of the Red Hand, though
The Azure Wing are not the largest faction, but they are powerful in the cult, being the most skilled and able in the breeding and creation of dragonspawn, and in the changing of humanoids into more draconic forms. Many of the wizards associated with the Cult of the Dragon were directed to join this cult, though many of them, especially the Necromancers, resent this imposition. Many members of the church of Tiamat, including powerful Clerics, have joined the cult, bringing their experience of manipulating dragonspawn The Azure Wing is only just having breakthroughs in many areas in the breeding and creation of the spawn, partially due to infighting and the reluctance of many members to engage in this new path. In addition, the cult has succeeded in attracting many members who have draconic heritage, granting them special treatment as they have come to appreciate and venerate the draconic form more and more.
Gradually the Azure Wing is gathering an army of Dragonspawn and Undead, keeping their powerful creations hidden away from prying eyes in isolated laboratories and seemingly abandoned fortresses. Thought their current experiments have peaked at the creation of draconic-flesh golems and drakes, new access to dragon eggs, granted by the Dragon masks and the new Wyrmspeaker for the cult, has greatly improved the speed at which their research progresses. The ultimate goal of the cult is to create the dragonspawn of old, mighty beasts that are spawned from Dragon Eggs, especially the fabled Godslayers, and speed up their growth through magical means to allow them to participate in the final battles of the cult.
Dragonspawn are draconic monstrosities created according to Tiamat’s design out of dragon eggs corrupted by dark magic and her malevolent will. They range from gargantuan monstrosities to tiny spies, from mindless monsters to cunning intelligent creatures, but all are built for battle. The methods to create these creatures are obscure and hidden by ritual and superstition, but all require dragon eggs, corrupted by profane rituals. For this reason, many Dragons are opposed to the creatures creation, and only through the power of the dragon masks has this secret been kept hidden. The cults experiments in creating dragonspawn have not just been limited to creating novel life- many cultists have taken to submitting themselves to modification, seeking to integrate the draconic with their body through dark magic and surgery. Worse still, some sects have found it to be easier to mutate and corrupt living humanoids into draconic creatures and will use prisoners for that purpose.
Because so many of the powerful necromancers joined the Wing, the Wing now lays claim to the loyalty of many of the Dracoliches that the cult once created, including those that were brought under the direct control of cult cells. [Redacted] has collected the phylacteries of many of these Dracoliches, personally destroying several to intimidate the others into obedience. Many rankle at this imposition, and would gleefully betray the cult, and only reluctantly follow orders under the threat of their phylacteries being destroyed. Still, given [Redacted]s absence from the realms, some are refusing orders outright, working to locate their Phylacteries, which they know must be stored somewhere on this Plane, and would work with adventurers to return them. Still others remain loyal to, or at least under the sway of their necromantic transformers, the old wizards of the Cult of the Dragon. Some of these wizards are full devotees to the new cause, while others are wistful for the return of Sammaster and the old ways.
The Azure Wing has been taking part in the raiding of the Sword Coast, as well as in the southern lands, taking the opportunity to put their creations to the test, and have been responsible for many atrocities. The Cult’s central base of operations, and the residing place of the Blue Wyrmspeaker, Galvan and their mask, is Castle Perilous, where they assisted the Red hand in clearing out forces of Bahamut from Damara and Vaasa. Here they have revived ancient spawning pools and reservoirs of necromantic magic, allowing them to progress with dark experiments, often on the terrified citizens of Vaasa and Damara.
They have a presence in the Dracolichdom of Threskel where a cell has been working with the ruling undead drake, Alasklerbanbastos, who was originally made into a Dracolich by the cult of the Dragon. Alasklerbanbastos’s support has been wavering however- he does not entirely believe Tiamat would favour undead dragons like himself, and fears being displaced from power in favour of a living dragon. He sees a great threat coming from Tchazzar, the ancient red draconic ruler of Chessenta. Though Tchazzar is a chosen of Tiamat, he has long preferred to nurture his own cult and claim godhood, but it is little secret that both the Red hand and the Jade Fang have sent agents and emissaries to convince him to lend the might of his forces and his own considerable combat ability. Alaskerbanbastos fears that Tchazzar is being offered rulership over the entire southlands in exchange for his aid and has agreed to commit fully to the cult if Tchazzar is prevented from joining, or even better, destroyed. The Azure wing has agreed, and works to bolster these efforts, knowing that if Alaskerbanbastos joins through their efforts, they will rise greatly in the esteem of the cult, even if their actions hurt the cult as a whole.
To the chagrin of the Jade Fang, the Azure Wing has been credited with the recruitment of allies form the Red Wizards of Thay. While the Jade Fang’s representatives attempted to infiltrate the courts of Szass Tam, the Wyrmspeaker of the Azure Wing, Galvan his contacts to establish a rapport with rebellious cells of Red Wizards, led by Rath Modar, his cousin. The contribution of the Red Wizards magic to the Cults activity has been a great boon and made up for setbacks the cult suffered in its failure to crack the secret of creating Dragonspawn in the early stages of their work.
Galvan the Blue Wyrmspeaker is an Archmage who favours schools of necromancy and lightning evocation, an interest he picked up during his education on the creation of Flesh Golems. An aged human whose life has been extended by multiple forms of magic yet has resisted the temptation of lichdom. He was old when Sammaster returned to the realms in the 1300s and has come to see Sammasters failure with the Dracorage Mythal as a divine event, as without the Dracorage, dragonkind would once again come to rule. He views Sammaster as ultimately misguided, but necessary for the completion of the prophecies found in the chronicle of years to come. He is unsure of the wisdom of summoning Tiamat to the world, but relishes a chance to practise his art and is terrified of [Redacted] , for he knows the full consequences of wielding the hand of Vecna. Galvan was the one to introduce the Red Wizards with the cult and innovate the mass-production of undead and dragonspawn for the cult, and is thus high in the Cults esteem, though slow progress in the creation of Dragonspawn has marred his reputation somewhat. Galvan’s age has given him great patience, and he knows he is close to creating something… magnificent.
The Jade Fang perhaps has the fewest competent warriors, monsters or magic-users in the wider cult, but of all its compatriots, it wields the widest influence on the realms. The fang is responsible for almost all non-hostile dealings with the wider world, charged with representing the cult in person and manipulating matters from afar. The current members of the Fang have been recruited from diverse backgrounds, most anyone with charisma or wider influence in the realms. This includes merchants, nobles, dignitaries, diplomats, bards and more. Entrance into the Fang is often made out to be akin to an elite club or society, and comes with significant benefits, courtesy of the cult. Indeed, many join the Jade Fang not knowing of its involvement with the wider Cult of the Chromatic Dragon until it is too late, by which point the cult knows too much about them and has too much dirt on them for them to ever escape.
Jade Fang cultists are often the nicest and most outwardly amenable members of the cult. Many hide a vicious streak, but some are genuinely nice people, who just happen to believe that the reign of dragons over the world is both inevitable and desirable. Others are simply in the Fang for the connections and influence membership can bring. Cultists will often attempt to retain their outward humanoid appearance in order to improve their diplomatic relations with others, but a common cult rite is to encourage members to build up a resistance to poisons and venoms through regular imbibing of small amounts, and because of this many cultists often appear sickly, pale and wan. The draconic changes these acts cause on their bodies are often incredibly subtle and hidden, though on occasion a more obvious mutation will occur, in which case an agent must either abandon their position or conceal it, perhaps covering it as an injury. Blessings of Jade Fang cultists can include increased perception, glibness of tongue and the development of retractable, venomous fangs.
The Jade fang coordinates the mercantile interests and finances of the wider cult. While all parts of the cult are expected to supply themselves, the Fang can provide resources and wealth to other sub-cults when needed, though it rarely does so freely, except under the command of [Redacted] . The Fang uses all forms of underhanded tactics and the resources of other sub-cults to ensure that its merchants always get the best deal, and that rivals always seem to suffer unfortunate accidents, whether to cargo, or to their persons. A great many wealthy noble houses and merchants have the Fang to thank for their recent successes as it has brought to bear all the old influence of the Cult of the Dragon.
Similarly, the Fang has been entrusted with securing powerful allies amongst the kingdoms and cities of the civilized peoples, where their most trusted agents bump shoulders with kings, queens and archmages. There has been less success on this front- the truly powerful of the Realms do not need the Cults help, but a rare few have been manipulated or converted to pledge allegiance to the cult. No monarchs have yet pledged, but success has been made in Cormyr to set up the succession of a ruler that will allow the Cult free movement through their land (allowing the red hand to reach the Well of Dragons without having to cross through the Anauroch desert or facing the armies of Cormyr) and refuse to commit forces against them. When the time comes, representatives of the cult that go to proclaim the Cults goals and demand the surrender of the cities and kingdoms of the realms will be of the Jade Fang, and many compete for this position.
The greatest success to date has been gaining the allegiance of the Eldreth Velthuraa, the achievement of which elevated the current Wyrmspeaker, Neronvain, to his position. The Eldreth Velthuraa have been led to believe that Tiamat will cleanse the Realms of all non-draconic humanoids, but that Evermeet will be preserved, and have been promised that the elves will be allowed to settle the lands alongside the dragons as equals. The Eldreth Velthuraa are no fools, and realize that they will be wiped out too, but believe that Evermeet can survive the Dragon Queen and her servants long enough for them to enact the Dracorage Mythal once again and introduce a new age of elven supremacy.
Recruiting at a street level is one of the most important duties entrusted to the Fang, and while less grand in scale than its mercantile efforts or its diplomatic forays, without it the cult would be a fraction of its current size. Recruiters, as in all cults, look for the downtrodden and destitute, and offer them a chance to part of something greater, to experience real power, and to gain prestige and status beyond which society currently affords them. In a realm wracked by the Sundering and a great many evils and injustices, their tactics have been incredibly successful, though the real challenge is turning the recruits into proper cultists, while keeping any activity secret from local authorities or organisations that oppose cult activity.
While the Jade Fang does have some operatives skilled in the arts of combat, they have the least of any sub-cult. They retain their status and prevent the other sub-cults pushing them around not only through their control of the flow of recruits and gold, but also through the fact they are in charge of hiring most of the cult’s mercenary agents. While most of these are hard-scrabble mercenary companies looking for the next payday, some of the things the Jade Fang treats with are more Fiendish in nature, hiring Devils and occasionally Yugoloths to work with them. Indeed, the Jade Fang’s Wyrmspeaker, Neronvain, treats with many Greater devils working to remove Tiamat from the nine-hells.
Alongside the Sable eye, the Jade Fang must constantly oppose and avoid the agents of the ‘goodly’ factions of the realms, as well as other churches, though it tries to do so in a more ‘hearts and minds’ kind of way, avoiding direct conflict. On occasion the Jade Fang will require agents to engage in assassination and spying, usually against targets that the Sable Eye cannot reach through stealth, but they prefer not to- such actions risk compromising their Agents cover. The Jade Fang has come into increasing conflict with the agents of the Harpers and Lords alliance as they increasingly come to manipulate the courts of the great and powerful.
The leader of the cult, Neronvain, is the son of king Melendrach and this status still grants him significant respect and admittance to elf-friendly courts across the realms. He currently resides deep in the misty forest, organising cult activities and raiding against elven settlements. In these raids he uses only non-elf agents and is using them to drum up support for the Eldreth Velthuura, while also advocating for them in court. He uses a network of ancient elven teleportation circles and his trusty griffon mount to travel rapidly across the realms and is famous for being both overly enthusiastic and controversial. Seen as a naïve idealist, as well as a hedonist, by many, he is in fact incredibly manipulative, charming and has been using the resources given to him by his new allies to great effect in stirring discord and conflict amongst those that would oppose the cult of the dragon.
The Sable eye has been tasked with keeping order in the wider cult and ensuring that its enemies and erstwhile allies are prevented from learning of its existence or growing too powerful. It is also tasked with orchestrating campaigns of terror and fomenting strife through famine and pestilence. It is composed of those agents of the old Cult of the Dragon and the Church of Tiamat more suited to the subtle arts of spying, assassination, interrogation and intimidation. Entrance into the Eye is unusual in that it usually occurs horizontally, with an invitation to a member of another sub-cult that displays desirable talents, fanaticism and loyalty. Recruitment is often laced with significant incentives, such as increased authority, wealth, access to magical items and less arduous duties. Those recruited directly into the sub-cult are always those that chose to join the wider cult voluntarily and are undergo severe vetting to ensure their loyalty and weed out any spies or potential traitors. All in all, the Sable Eye is the most difficult Sub-Cult to join, but possibly the one that grants the greatest degree of freedom and power from the outset.
Members of the Sable Eye, as a result of the stringent recruitment methods, tend to be proud and of the attitude that they are superior to the members of other sub-cults. They also tend to be highly skilled in their chosen area of expertise and dedicated to the wider cult’s goals. The Sable Eye revere acid as a tool of cleansing, and believe it reveals purity, and will ritualistically daub their bodies in just enough to irritate their flesh. Though painful, this process, accompanied by the correct rites, eventually creates patches of acid-resistant black scales that absorb light and hide motion from the eyes. In addition, many are granted mutation of more esoteric form- those that risk daubing their eyes with acid may go blind, or they may be granted greatly superior vision in the darkness, their eyes turned to cat-like pupils, those that suspend their extremities in vats of acid might be granted painful transformations into claws or simply lose them, some may even be granted wings.
Of the two main duties of the Sable Eye, the one that it is known and feared for within the cult is its work policing the other sub-cults. It has explicit permission from [Redacted] to spy upon the other sub-cults and a duty to report any traitors in the ranks, and even has the power to eliminate those within the cult that it deems subversive, though any assassination against a target of Dragonwing or above must be approved by a Wyrmspeaker. In addition, the Sable Eye is important for ensuring that other sub-cults cleave to the overall will of the Cult of the Dragon, and do not let petty vendettas and rivalries get in the way of achieving the overall goal of the cult.
Members of the Sable eye will join the raiding parties or task groups from other sub-cults and act as a constant reminder of the watchful eye of the greater cult. In addition, they will act as advisors and specialists in subterfuge to these groups, ensuring that the cults activities don’t garner too much unwanted attention from the wider world, an important activity as the cult ramps up its operations. If too much ire from other factions is drawn at this early stage of cult activity, then the cult will be unable to assemble the resources to complete its plans. They are also favoured inquisitors and interrogators amongst the cult, combining their expertise with inflicting pain, a terrifying mien and a trained skill at questioning to quickly extract information the cult needs, or to uncover any traitorous acts from amongst the ranks.
The other main activities for which the Sable Eye is responsible are theft, spying and assassination, jobs for which their agents are highly suited. The theft of powerful magical artefacts is an important goal of the cult, as many will be useful in their ultimate goals or in achieving secondary goals. They typically seek objects of great power and importance, with wider abilities than just offensive power.
The Sable Eye also works with the Jade Fang to work with, or eliminate, criminal organisations such as the Xanathar guild, thieves’ guilds, or guilds of assassins. They have come into conflict with these organisations just as often as they have managed to arrange cooperation, however, and certain parties are increasingly alarmed by the increasing presence of the cult in the criminal underworld. They have recently begun to engage in wider criminal enterprise to help fund their increased scope of activity and to provide tribute to the wider Cult, ranging from protection racketeering to fraud to engaging in the trade of illicit substances to piracy.
The Sable Eye has found itself in increasing conflict with the shadowy Zentarim and the Harpers network. The Zentarim have had multiple items stolen from them and are growing increasingly concerned about the Sable Eye’s influence in the criminal underworld, including alliances made with the Xanathar guild, an old enemy of the Zentarim, with the aid of the Jade Fang. Their agents are now beginning to wage a subtle, hidden war, outside of the public eye, as the Zentarim increasingly begins to interfere with the operations of the wider Cult. Though the Zentarim and the other factions of the Sword Coast are not natural allies, they nevertheless have a common purpose in this matter, and some limited cooperation has been achieved.
The Wyrmspeaker of the Sable Eye is Rezmir, a black half-dragon, who is a skilled combatant, assassin, and practitioner of shadow magics. She has become extremely personally involved in the transport of the cults looted treasure across the sword coast, taking charge of ensuring that it reaches its destination without piquing the interest of factions opposing the cult. She is also highly aware that members of the cult may try to steal from the hoard being transported, so has the agents of the Sable eye ready to clamp down on any theft being perpetrated- by the other factions, of course.
Of all the sub-cults of Cult of the Chromatic dragon, the Ivory Claw is seemingly the most disorganised, and the most apparently fanatical and barbaric. It forms the expendable muscle of the cult, the base mass of swarming bodies sent to overwhelm and intimidate the Sword Coast, the scouts and skirmishers, scavengers and raiders. They gladly induct recruits from all walks of life, no matter their prior skillset, allegiances or outlook- anyone willing to join enthusiastically with their worship of Tiamat is accepted, no questions asked. The claw will recruit from any race or species, but the majority of its recruits come from human communities. Recruiters of the Jade Fang also send recruits that are too fanatical and unskilled to be useful elsewhere to this sub-cult, including many powerful warriors deemed too chaotic and unmanageable for the Red Hand. Furthermore, most that approach agents of the cult actively looking to join the cult are directed to join the Ivory Claw, as it is both widespread and willing to accept anyone who wishes to praise Tiamat. Despite this, the Ivory Claw remains only the second largest sub-cult, after the Red Hand, as its strength is constantly being expended on ceaseless raiding and acts of brutal devotion, activities which have increased exponentially in recent years. Nevertheless, it is perhaps the most quickly replenishing and vigorous, and its agents will be those which opponents of the cult will face most in open combat until the Red Hand receives orders to march on the Sword Coast.
The Ivory Claw likes to portray itself as a welcoming family of faith and community, that offers purpose to those that join (at least to potential recruits, to its victims it is little more than a pack of slavering barbaric raiders), though it is clear to anyone joining that this ‘family’ has a very cruel and vicious streak. Each new recruit is inducted into a ‘warrior band’, a tribe-like group of warriors led by a Dragonfang. This band sleeps together, eats together and fights together. It expects every member to welcome a new recruit, and will provide them with new clothes, weapons and (very) brief training in how to use them. After this the generosity of the cult quickly ends, with the recruit being granted few rights or privileges, left at the edges of the campfire, as the more experienced cultists laugh and carouse amongst themselves. The new member is expected to join in the cult as it engages in its ritualistic acts of worship, before being thrust to the frontlines of the next raid. If they survive their first ‘blooding’ their status in the band improves, and they begin to be allowed to join the band proper, granted limited privileges over unblooded recruits and a small portion of loot- though nothing more valuable than a silver piece.
All this time the Dragonfang or one of their four lieutenant Dragonwings will be observing the new recruit, as well as any other recent inductees, ensuring that they integrate well into the group and begin to earn their place, and that they display no signs of disloyalty or subterfuge. Any suspected spies are dealt with brutally and immediately. A cultist that survives five successful raids, in which they manage to achieve at least one kill (slaughtering civilians is fine), or otherwise comport themselves with ferocity and fanaticism, will get promoted through the ranks to become a Dragonclaw- an eponymous ‘ivory claw’, and is inducted in the arts of draconic magic. New Dragonclaws are apportioned a greater share of loot and may even take slaves for themselves on raids.
From here, a Dragonclaw must prove itself in the eyes of the Dragonfang in command of the band- those that show sufficient skill and devotion are further promoted to Dragonwing, usually upon the death or promotion of another Dragonwing. A Dragonclaw is welcome to challenge a Dragonwing to a duel for their position as well, though this rarely ends well for the Dragonclaw, as the duel is to the death and Dragonwings are skilled and magically empowered combatants. Ascension to the rank of Dragonfang occurs when a Dragonwing challenges and defeats the current Dragonfang of a warband, and then is granted full authority of the position when the band is next visited by a Dragonsoul, or on rare occasions, the Wyrmspeaker.
The Ivory Claw, though it seems simple and barbaric, actually implements a large number of highly effective tools to turn new recruits into frothing fanatics, loyal only to the Claw and Tiamat. These strategies were devised by [Redacted] ’s lieutenants and a number of veteran recruiter and organisers from the old Cult of the Dragon and Church of Tiamat. The creation of the warrior bands, as described above, is but one of the tactics used by the cult to indoctrinate their followers, making a follower feel isolated when separated from their newfound ‘family’, and only complete when working within their band. Each band is too small, with perhaps 50-100 or so members, to effectively rebel, and the leaders of each band are incentivized to seek to join the ranks of the Dragonsouls.
Mandatory participation in vile rituals of sacrifice and torture leads the cultists to feel they have crossed a line and can never return to normal civilized society. The leadership of the Claw distributes psychogenic and hallucinogenic drugs that make cultists feel both elated and truly spiritually aware and savage during religious ritual and before combat, leading to the cultists anticipating and demanding both, as well as creating an addictive tie to the cult. The nature of the drugs is a deliberately kept secret in order to ensure that the cultists can never fulfil their addiction without the help of the cult and their warband. Cultists are encouraged to engage in sexual and brief but fierce emotional relationships with other cultists, in order to tie them even more emotionally to the cult. Contact with family members and friends from one’s old life is forbidden, with the exception of those that may be open to recruitment.
It is commonly said that there is no leaving the Ivory Claw but through death, by both the Claw’s members and its foes alike. If a member of the sub-cult attempts to flee the band, the entire group will drop what it’s doing and hunt them down, and entire villages have been raised for harbouring a single fugitive ex-Claw. Cultists are encouraged to hate theses ‘traitors’, and whenever a band suffers set-backs, it is often blamed on hidden spies and traitors in their midst.
The Claw is often deployed to support other bands of cultists and will often be recruited by Wearers of Purple to accompany them on missions for the Cult. They are often treated as little more than expendable fodder, but the bands follow slavishly nevertheless, fanatical in their worship of dragons, Tiamat and the Cult of the Chromatic dragon. Otherwise, the Ivory Claw is left to reave and raid as directed by their local Dragonsoul and wearers of purple, typically in areas that are away from major population centres but contain many isolated populations of humanoids. Some accompany Jade Fang diplomatic expeditions to treat with ‘barbaric’ tribes in the far north and other lands, as both security and to impress those tribespeople with the cults’ similar way of life.
The leadership of the Claw has an entirely different mien from the cult at large. Chosen for a completely different set of characteristics, those of Dragonsoul and Wearer of Purple rank are usually proficient warriors, but also circumspect and manipulative social climbers and leaders. Contrary to the beliefs of most of the Claw’s cultists, they often are promoted from outside the organisation, taken from sub-cults such as the Jade Fang or Sable Eye, and a great many are members of the old guard of the Cult of the Dragon, or agents introduced by [Redacted] himself. These leaders have a better grasp of strategy and work to ensure the brutal fanaticism and savagery of the cult is directed where it is most valuable, while also letting bands remain mostly self-sufficient and independent. The leaders treat with each other in comfortable safe houses in isolate regions of Faerun, where they live lives of luxury while protected by an elite caste of fanatically loyal berserkers, culled from the ranks of the Claw. From these places they organise raiding, recruitment and coordination with the wider cult.
The current Wyrmspeaker, Varram the White, is a dwarf that was once a Battlerager, and integrated many of that cult of warriors’ doctrines and tribalistic worldviews into the Ivory Claw’s indoctrination techniques. He considers himself more of a philosopher and researcher of people than a cultist and will often spend long periods observing the behaviour of prisoners and cultists when put into cruel and unusual circumstances. Nevertheless, he is prone to fall into rages when provoked, struggling to deal with the anger issues that originally led him down the path of the Battlerage, linked to the death of his wife and child at the hands of bandits. He uses these rages in a constructive manner, however, to understand what might provoke his followers into similar states of mind when required. This led him to create a creed of dragon-touched berserkers dedicated to Tiamat within the Ivory Claw, which can fall into great but controlled rages and serve as bodyguards for many of the more senior members of the claw, and as shock troops for the cult. This achievement led to his elevation to the position of Wyrmspeaker of the Ivory Claw, but he has been struggling to manage the position and maintain control over the sub-cult.
The success of the Ivory Claws methods of indoctrination and recruitment has led to other cults to adopt many of their practices. The ranking structure of ‘Dragonclaw’ to ‘Dragonsoul’ has widely been adopted as a way of designating rank and cult secrets to cultists. The Sable Eye, the Jade fang and the Azure Wing have their own ‘warbands’ of cultists that take in recruits in a manner akin to the Ivory Claw
Without central organisation, the 5 ‘Heads’ of the cult would be little more than a squabbling group of loosely affiliated factions. Recognising this problem, [Redacted] co-opted the wearers of purple from the Cult of the Dragon and made them into a special caste within the Wider Cult. These individuals have authority and power invested in them to demand obedience from any member of the cult, aside from other Wearers of Purple and the Wyrmspeakers. The Wyrmspeakers have the authority to appoint normal cult members to the rank of Wearer of Purple, but to do so requires a special ritual, where the prospective member is granted access to the innermost mysteries of the Cult of the Chromatic dragon.
A Wearer of Purple therefore often leads specific cult activities that require a multifaceted approach beyond which individual sub-cults could provide, such as finding long-lost magical artefacts, coordinating raiding activities, gathering and moving resources or organising assaults against powerful targets. One Wearer of Purple cannot overrule another from a different sub-cult, so most groups of each sub-cult of any importance are assigned a wearer of purple to oversee operations and command any auxiliaries from other sub-cults. When Wearers of Purple in the same sub-cult disagree, the most senior (whomever received initiation as a wearer of purple first) is granted authority, but only while they are present.
Each Wearer of Purple is (usually) associated with a specific colour of chromatic dragon and sub-cult and is given a title loosely based on the colour of dragon they favour. For example: Tallis the White, Langdegrosa Cyanwrath, Alson the Argent.
The Wyrmspeakers are wearers of Purple that have been placed at the head of each of the Cult of the Chromatic Dragons. Charged with ultimate authority over their own faction, and charged with ensuring that the ultimate goals of the Cult are achieved, they are promoted based on the merit of achievement, and the leaders of the Jade Fang, Ivory Claw and the Sable Eye have been replaced multiple times as their Wyrmspeakers have fallen out of favour for one slight or another. Only the Red hand (whose Wyrmspeaker is [Redacted] ) and the Azure Wing have retained their Wyrmspeaker since the Chromatic Council.
Given the Cult of the Chromatic Dragons focus on serving dragonkind, most drakes in their service do so voluntarily, out of lust for power, promises of wealth or sheer boredom. Some serve out of coercion, as the Cult has stolen their eggs, mate, or some other emotionally valuable item to them, but such practise is frowned upon by the cultists. Most of the factions of the Cult prefer to associate with those dragons of the hue that their faction is associated with and make great promises and bribes to acquire their services on raids. As the power of the cult has increased, so has the number of Dragons pledging loyalty to it. Some metallic dragons have even sided with the cult, mostly out of the belief that they could use the renewed rule of dragons to improve the lot of the smallfolk, though some have joined out of fear as well. The former are often unaware of the cults ultimate plans, while the latter are.
