The History of Zakarum

In ages past, the Archangel Yaerius visited a young man ascetic man named Akarat and revealed to him the tenets of what was to become the religion of Zakarum. These teachings stressed the necessity of resisting all things evil and embracing, with total devotion, the Light. The angel appointed Akarat to be the prophet of these new teachings, and bade him to take the Word to the people of all lands. This new religion spoke directly to the common man, and the people of Kurast soon embraced it. They sent disciples throughout Kehjistan to spread the Word. Popular religious leaders soon sprung up, endorsed by the new Church, and within half a century Zakarum was the dominant order of faith and binding political force in the East.

During the mid-twelfth century, after the Church of Zakarum had gained prominence in the East, the Church decreed that the visions of Akarat would be spread throughout the known world in order to redeem the masses. Thus, the Church selected a group of its most charismatic and devoted priests and sent them on a mission to proselytize the people of the West.

Unfortunately, the Church had not prepared these men for the rigors of travel nor the hazards of the world. The priests that survived their missions recounted tales of harsh weather, inadequate supplies, attacks from bandits and even encounters with horrible monsters. To ensure the success of future missions, the Church set about training holy warriors, Paladins, to accompany and safeguard their missionaries. In practice, these “Protectors of the Word” proved to be more successful at converting the native peoples than the Priests they were assigned to defend. Impressing the locals with daring deeds, powerful weapons, and martial prowess was far more convincing than the condemnations of a soft-spoken monk. However, once the Word had been spread to every major city of the West, the “Protectors of the Word” faded from public view.

Some decades later, Paladins were again called into service. During the height of the Time of Troubles, the Church commenced a second campaign of conversion. This time, however, the inconvincible were deemed evil. The Zakarum Inquisition spread through the land like a tempest, laying waste to all suspected of demonic possession or corruption. Leading this crusade was a new generation of Paladins, known as the “Hand of Zakarum.” These Cavaliers of Righteousness swept through the lands, expunging the taint of demonic contamination wherever they found it.

In the midst of this bloody crusade, a rebellion arose within the ranks of the Paladins of Zakarum. The rebels condemned the methods of the Inquisition, proclaiming that the new Order of Paladins should protect the innocent, and that the evil corruption was rooted in their forebears’ failure. They resolved to fight the true source if corruption, the Three Prime Evils: Diablo, Baal and Mephisto. And so, these rebellious Paladins left their Zakarum brethren and ventured West.

It was in the West that these rebellious knights traveled and spread the Zakarum religion as it was meant to be done by Akarat. Several libraries and abbeys were built in Khanduras and Westmarch, the two predominant kingdoms in the West.