Cults of the Past:
The Freedom Fighters

Hargin of Selna

  Those who believed that good is best achieved in an atmosphere of anarchy began banding together loosely under the name "The Freedom Fighters" sometime around the reign of King Rosan the Terrible.  At its height, the group dethroned four barons and three dukes of the realm, but it gradually faded into smaller bands.  Still there are occasional reports of activity credited to this cult.

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  The premise of the sect is that all races and professions can work together against the oppressive laws and structures without the necessity of building new structures under which to operate.  The Freedom Fighters felt that if one is to be opposed to such things per se, one must not fall into the trap of using these same things to destroy them, lest the ultimate defeat of the present oppressive structure be accomplished only with an incipient structure which grows to replace it.  That is to say, this group does whatever it can to assure that it itself will not become the basis for a new order; a new order is not the goal:  the goal is the elimination of any corrupting order.

  It is understandable how the oppressive reign of King Rosan could have spawned such a group; what is more fascinating is that such a disorganized group did not die with him.  The monarch's son, Silman, was in most respects a good, just, and fair ruler, undoing much of what his father had done.  But the core of this group apparently held to the notion that as long as power existed, it would be open to abuse, and further that any abuse of power was intolerable.  Thus, although the group has fared better under stricter and harsher rulers, it continued even in good times.  The good scholar Rizzenhoff has suggested that kind monarchs have more to fear from this band than harsh ones because, although they face a smaller contingent, the remaining members are much more dedicated to the very principle of the elimination of authority.  See especially "Fetters or Anarchy?".  Although Rizzenhoff's legal extremism is not fully justified, he does show clearly the hazards of this type of group.

  No one is certain just how a non-structured group such as this could perform cooperative action.  As near as anyone can tell, one freedom fighter came up with an idea or a complaint, another said "let's do it", and from there it's every member on his own.  Such rampant disarray baffles military strategists, who have found no explanation for the toppling of government officials or the defeat of organized militia save the dedication of the troops and the popular support enjoyed at certain times.  It has been theorized that at times certain of the chaotic deities have intervened directly to achieve victory.  This may explain why the group does not fair well against certain groups, notably Moradin's Army, allegedly founded by or closely related to lawful deities:  a chaotic divine intervention would invite retaliation by the offended divinity.  However, no such manifestation of a divine guardian has been documented, so this remains a theory, and probably always shall.

  Membership, it must be emphasized, is wide open.  During certain times it appears that anyone who stood against the established order was subsumed into the sect, even when their own ideology was known to have been different.  The spectrum of membership seems to shift with shifts in authority--sometimes including some who want structure and law, but want it changed; sometimes including some who desire anarchy strictly for their own ends.  A group without structure has difficulty maintaining purity of purpose.  It may be considered remarkable that this sect has ever existed at all.

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