Draft:High Priest of Hecate

Omega 0.90.4

The High Priest of Hecate leads Hecate's priesthood. The initial holder is Dara, a spellcaster whose Holy Symbol of Hecate appears unidentified as an Obsidian Crescent. Athena's Senior Priests need it for their final promotion; it is also accepted for becoming Archdruid.

Initial holder	Recorded level	Combat level	HP	Attack strength	Armor class	Base melee damage	Kill XP
Dara	10	9	220	9	5	9	180

Encounters

The main Church of the Far Side lies southwest of Rampart, at world coordinates 19, 46. Dara occupies the northwestern chamber, connected to the central altar by a concealed passage to the altar's north. Hecate's followers receive a nonhostile initial temple; outsiders face hostile inhabitants.

The office-holder can also be selected as a mansion resident, through wilderness encounters or by a random historical-person summon. A mansion Dara starts hostile regardless of your patron. The shared rules describe these sources and the missing-priest behavior after a player's promotion.

Dara uses ordinary personal dialogue rather than offering priesthood services directly. In combat, the initial holder's spellcasting matters far more than the small melee damage value: sight of a hostile player allows spells including poison, sleep, curses, equipment destruction, level drain and disintegration, subject to magic resistance. Later holders can have different recorded styles.

Succession and strategy

Hecate's Senior Priests must bring the Holy Symbol of Athena to Hecate's altar and exceed the incumbent's recorded character level, initially requiring level 11. The promotion grants Desecration, +5 current and maximum Power and an authorized Symbol of Hecate.

Athena's followers seeking Dara's symbol should account for the danger of approaching an enemy spellcaster. A successful theft supplies the quest object without killing Dara, but moves alignment one point toward Chaos; do not let that remove the positive alignment required for Athena's promotion. An eligible mansion encounter offers the same symbol, with its own defenses and hostility.

Killing the priest installs a new holder and does not award you the office. An identified stolen symbol remains unsafe to activate; preserve it for the promotion that authorizes its use.