There is a little bit about the cult and organization, but it leaves allot open to interpretation. I was hoping that someone else out there had some nuggests of information regarding the cult and their practices, or perhaps some interesting perspective. From what I can tell the Moritat is a rather secretive cult, so while there may be rumors that the Moritat exists, to most, a moritat would be unforgiving, blood thrist, and agressive, possibly even a little crazy to eschew the us of firearms. That being said, I find it hard to believe that they would advertise membership much, sticking out and making a scene isn't really an admirable trait for an assassin, and that much of their rituals, prayers, and sacrifices(?) would be done in relative secrecy. I only ask because I am currently playing a Moritat and my GM and I are looking for ways to make the cult a bit more poingant, but without going overboard or without veering from the canon too much. Additionally, just how close is the Moritat to the Officio Assassinorium?

I would appreciate any thoughts, or feedback, or even resources.

All death cults are run by the Officio Assassinum at the top.

I'm..... not sure thats true....

What would be an example of this? In other words, how would you prove this.

Also not sure of that. Having said that, an organisation as widespread as the moritat is probably a talent agency for the OA. The OA has a great many fingers, in a great many pies, choosing only the best, but it doesn't run 'em all.

Even of the OA controls the moritat, one would assume that the members, the avarage moritat, does not know of anyone from the OA by name or face. It also would seem difficult to control theme 'from the top' when the moritat is described as being cell structured, which would preclude having a centralized point from which to monitor and control the organization.

Speaking of which, how do you think the moritat rituals and training takes place? Do they have a formal 'killing art' that is passed down from teacher to student, or is it more haphazard and just 'gettin it done'? Do the moritat ever have any large conventions or gatherings for special occassions, such as for a ritual or especially tough taget to take out for just one individual or cell? I know that there isn't much official lore on the cult, but I would really like to explore some of their inner workings a bit beyond 'fanatical death cult'.

Letrii said:

Definitely not explicitely true. In the IH it states that it is only a whispered that the OA is the real sponsor of the Moritat. It is also implied that the Moritat cult itself might be a bit 'iffy' in the eyes of various other Orders but that they are accepted as they are very useful and make good soldiers for the Inquisition/Imperium.

Unfortunately the IH is incredibly vague as to what the Moritat actually does or how you join. Characters are 'marked' by hardship in their past and they are tested before gaining membership which strikes me as odd since you have to join at chargen.

From the novels, to the fluff. I've always been under the impression that a Death Cult is an autonomous body. Just another way to worship the Emporer. Some are "accepted", or at least put out of mind. Others are branded heretical because they take it too far. Either way the Officio Assassinorum is a known (to who matters) body within the Imperial Government that selects their operatives from the best of the best among the various assassin guilds/death cults. Moritat just happens to produce fine assassins so the OA picks from them often.

DH fluff on Assassins says almost all if not all of the orders/cults are run secretly by the Assassin Temples that make up the Officio Assassinorium. Only the ones at the top of the chain of command know of the association.

From what I gather, Death Cults take many forms. It's just another way to serve and glorify the Emperor, by quietly (or not so quietly) eliminating his enemies. In some ways, the Redemption is a Death Cult, but most Death Cults are far more subtle than those red robed fanatics. They tend to prefer carefully targeting a perceived enemy and tracking his movements before eliminating him with surgical precision and vanishing into the shadows before anyone knows what has happened.

While I doubt that all death cults are run by the Officio Assasinorum, I love the idea of some cults like the Moriat being front organizations for the OA and recruiting the most promising members into their sponsor temple.