" Spread the word, strengthen the heart " - Cuthbertine Chapeaux
Cuthbert is the curmudgon of Oerth, set in his ways and quick to gripe about the shortcomings of others. Despite this, he is a benign god who holds an unwavering dedication to lawfulness and goodness. He is a stern disciplinarian in a world where evil lurks just out of sight. The patron of honest, good-hearted folk willing to stand up for themselves and others in the face of danger, evil, or contrary opinions. He is a practical deity who gets the job done, for nothing is worth doing if not done well, whether that means raising a barn or crushing evil.
Let’s take a closer look at one of the earliest mortals to become an ascended deity.
The Origin
Cuthbert’s origins are unclear and various myths and legends are told. An old scripture of the faithful talks about a mortal human man of humble origins, born either across the Crystalmist Mountains or Western Flanaess.
At a young age he fought against the hypocritical and manipulative words of rulers which resulted in him being enslaved for most of his life. He led a rebellion to freedom and became a ruler himself, guiding his realm wisely with plain talk, hard work, and strength of purpose. In his later years he was a paladin of Rao, keeping the peace by personally fighting the forces of evil with his cudgel. He became an inspiration across the lands of the central and western Flanaess.
Theologists have written that Rao himself ascended Cuthbert to divinity. Cuthbert is known to appear on Oerth when Iuz rears its ugly head on Oerth.
Appearance
He is typical depicted as a white-haired, moustached, man wearing plate mail, carrying a stout Bronzewood cudgel or, when geared for battle, his eponymous mace. His platinum and ruby medallion is always visible. Some paintings will also depict him as the same white-haired man with a moustache, but wearing travelling clothes, a crumpled hat, his medallion, and cudgel. A common trait in either depiction is the colour brown which made it his sacred colour.
Relationship with other faiths
He is a staunch opponent of evil, a zealous and driven deity who values discipline, honest, zeal and pragmatism, all tempered by common sense. As an ascended deity, we may at times forget that he was once a mortal human, and his personality is certainly not without its faults. Cuthbert is firmly convinced of his own wisdom and authority; he can easily come off as self-righteous and arrogant - not helped by the fact he claims to know the only true path for a person to behave.
This is why he does not get along with the Pholtus, a lunar deity of inflexible law, who is similarly benign but likewise convinced his way is the most correct and any who believe otherwise are dangerous heretics.
With his hard-line stance on following the rules and his values, Cuthbert has little tolerance for actively chaotic deities such as Olidammara and Trithereon. He is gruffly tolerant of more neutrally aligned deities who "do their job" and don't interfere with his interests. His closest ally is Rao, a gentle god of peace and reason, someone whom he can lean on when he needs a bit of rest.
You can see why it is not surprising that Cuthbert does not belong to any particular Pantheon.
Cuthbert despises evil in all forms and never backs down when it rears its ugly head, although he leaves the active campaigns against evil to martial deities such as Heironeous. He particularly despises Iuz, son of the demon lord Graz'zt and the mortal witch lggwilv, and Vecna, seeing them as the opposition to his own ideals; and myths talk about him physically clashing with Iuz on the Material Plane on more than one occasion, and expects he might have to do so with Vecna as well when the Arch-Lich returns.
Teachings
Cuthbert is accepting of all civilized ancestries and nationalities if they follow his teachings that hard work, truth, forthrightness, and discipline are the keys to ‘just’ rewards in this life and the next. He is a stern paternal figure, stingy in praise and quick to lecture, but doing so out of love and concern for his followers and layfolk alike.
Community is one of the central tenets, this means faithfulness to one’s spouse and family, respect for one’s elders and community leaders, speaking plainly and openly about problems. He also preaches the values of caring for one’s neighbour and helping the poor, stating that helping someone in need today prevents them from turning into a criminal tomorrow. People should strive to practice what they preach, providing a strong example to others in so doing. Thus parents, kings and other community leaders have a central role to play as leaders of virtue and honesty. Rulers and leaders who break this trust or prove unworthy of it are worse than the vilest person and deserve to be punished accordingly.
In that way the good of the community is strengthened, as goodness and common sense are spread to all.
Justice is another tenet in his teachings. Cuthbert sees things mostly in terms of black and white, with only a few narrow shades of grey in the middle, for it is just common sense to realize exceptions exist to every rule. For example, there are laws against thievery, but a man whose family is starving might have to steal food to provide for them. Such a man must be punished, but not to the same extent as someone who steals out of greed or to harm another. Cuthbertine communities usually have a few simple laws and rely on the common sense of the clergy to deal with special cases such as these.
The virtues of the Cuthbertine faith include many of the values stated above: charity, compassion, morality, honesty, faithfulness, hard work, keeping promises and refuse to give in to temptation.
Symbols
Cuthbert has three symbols: a crumpled hat, a simple wooden billet, and a starburst. All three are tied to his appearance but have a practical aspect as well, as it makes no sense worrying about dirtying or damaging a fancy hat or walking stick when the time comes to crack a few heads. The hat is a common man's well-worn hat, good for keeping off the rain or sun and even useful as a pillow. The billet, of oak or bronzewood, can be used in the making of a campfire or in knocking some sense into a stubborn skull. The starburst is his medallion, which represent purity of heart and purpose. Members of the order of the star often adorn their holy symbols with tiny gemstones they acquire over time, but even these gaudier elements are just a way for them to carry wealth that is also easy to distribute when necessary, such as by donating a few gems to a struggling community or paying an especially stubborn monster to relocate to a wilder territory.
Places of worship
Cuthbert is not interested in grand ceremonies honouring him – he would rather devote such time and resources to converting the layfolk and providing needed services to the faithful. Because of this, he has few cathedrals but instead sturdy farmhouse-style temples, or solid simple shrines often built by the roadside and tended by the community. Their entrances or facades invariably feature inscriptions of quotations attributed to the Cudgel. These can be inspirational or threatening:
Square corners can be pounded smooth.
Thick heads are not made of glass.
Salvation is better than smart answers.
Enlightenment can penetrate even the helm of iron.
Evil, which cannot be removed, must be eliminated.
Foolishness can be beaten.
Chaos and evil prevail where good folk do nothing.
Capricious behaviour brings knots to the heads of those lacking wisdom.
Obstinacy brings lumps to the heads of the unfaithful
Some large city buildings have a shrine built into an exterior alcove, especially those on high-traffic streets or bordering areas where passers-by might need his protection. The church has little interest in grand decorations and ostentatious displays, they focus more on the worship service which includes singing, prayers, reciting parables, and sharing simple food such as bread, milk, and gruel.
When they shed their mortal coils, those who worshiped him in life go to his divine realm, called the Basilica of or the Bastion of Law, on Arcadia. Souls there act as silent observers while the saint gives out judgments from his Seat of Truth.
Anathema
The sins of the Cuthbertine faith include breaking an oath or a promise, refusing to help a friend or a neighbour in need, refusing to obey a king, lord or other leader who has acted in good faith, living in a slothful or lazy manner, showing defiance or disobedience towards other members of a community, committing theft, adultery, murder, or otherwise grossly violating the rules of whatever community a person lives in. The Cuthbertine faith is well known for its strict punishments of those who break its rules-beatings with wooden clubs being the most common.
Lies, sloth, and moral weakness lead to wickedness and failure.
Beliefs
Obey the law and be good:
Order, lawfulness, is the only way to promote goodness
A community grows strong through discipline: Those who lack the discipline to be lawful are barely worth attention
Practice what you preach: In that way the good of the community is strengthened, as goodness and common sense are spread to all.
Goals:
Proactively assist the world versus evil
Strengthen the community of the common folk by stressing the values of hard work, faithfulness to one’s spouse and family, respect for one’s elders and community leaders, and speaking plainly and openly about problems. They also preach the values of caring for one’s neighbor and helping the poor, stating that helping someone in need today prevents them from turning into a criminal tomorrow.
Imbue rulers with the faith, and values, of Cuthbert
The virtues of the Cuthbertine faith include charity, compassion, honesty, faithfulness, hard work, and keeping promises and oaths
Aphorisms
The common, everyday sayings of the faithful speak a great deal about their attitude and general outlook. The clerics of Saint Cuthbert make good use of such adages, as their common use can have great impact on the people.
"I may be a fool, but I am a wise fool."
Taken from the Parables of the Wise Fool, this phrase is often used as a rebuttal to anyone who disparages Cuthbertine thinking as foolish or backwater. It is a polite way for the speaker to defend himself from abusive talk yet acknowledge that he realizes he is being insulted. Usually this is the last warning before the speaker decides he has had enough, and it is time to knock some sense into the insulting party.
"Spread the word, strengthen the heart."
Used mainly by the Chapeaux, this phrase is also used at the dose of general prayers or as a farewell, expressing a hope that the Cudgel's teachings reaches others and create a better world for all. Some clerics like to chant it while healing, using it to focus their will.
"Use your common sense."
This phrase essentially means that the listener needs to stop what they're doing and think for a moment, as what they're doing is foolish, inefficient, or outright dangerous.
Divine relics
Cudgel of Righteousness:
This Bronzewood heavy mace or club is the personal weapon of Cuthbert, and he sometimes lends it to great mortal heroes (although he can recall it to himself at any time, even across planar barriers). The mace various powers and enchantments, sometimes varying with each time he sends it to a hero.
Tabard of the Great Crusade:
This simple white tabard bears Cuthbert’s starburst symbol on the right breast. It was once worn by Mar the Barehanded, a great paladin of the stars who discovered a heretical Cuthbertine cult and forced them all to convert to the proper teachings of the faith or face his wrath. In the four years it took to eradicate the cult (by conversion and lolling), Mar saved the lives of dozens of church heroes and inspired thousands more to join the cause. He died an old man in his bed and was buried with his armor and tabard, but his tomb was later defiled and looted. The Tabard was lost in history.
It is rumoured to show a light in darkness and have healing properties. It would also slowly clean itself over time, becoming pristine and white again in at most 24 hours from when it was dirtied.
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