Ordainers

Ordainers were powerful Demons of the Essaence who would most often serve The Unlife in some fashion. They were considered fallen demigods who would often rule over whole planes of existence, with the power of forcing anyone they killed to serve them for all eternity. They were "fallen servants of the Lord of Fate" who "now serve those who feed their appetite for death and destruction." Known as "Death Watchers" (Erlini: "Vog Muylari"), they would "ordain" a foe by tearing the soul out of its body, utterly destroying it. They had the power to immolate themselves in either fire or ice, blasting it out from themselves. The most powerful and unruly would sometimes become banished to the Void.

Famous Ordainers included Kharuugh, servant of Lorgalis; Shu'raax, bodyguard of Kadaena; and Maleskari, Demon Lord of Death and Undeath. The symbolism under The Graveyard is partly based on them, including all of the above mentioned qualities. Though their categorization is not self-consistent across Shadow World and Rolemaster. Ordainers do not exist in modern Elanthian history, but specific ones have occasionally been referenced out of context.

Behind the Scenes

The Rolemaster and Shadow World Addendum lore for Ordainers is slightly different. The Rolemaster version of Ordainers, which makes the Void out to be a place for fallen souls of this world (blurring the demonic and undeath), has their "fall from grace" rooted in avarice with a thirst for casual revenge. In this version most of them were imprisoned or passed beyond existence from upsetting Balance, but a few came to dwell deep within the earth, "laying in wait as a dormant curse upon the world." Ordainers also have a sheer fear effect that is potentially lethal, perhaps madness inducing. Their appearance was misleading, more easily grotesque than fair. These points are all specially relevant to The Graveyard.