Deceivers

From Glen Cook Wiki

Worshippers of the dark goddess Kina. They worship her by murdering using a special strangling cloth called a rumel. The cult is outlawed, and members practice in secret. It is organized into decentralized, regional cells, each reporting to a local jamadar (captain). Overall, there are between one to two thousand members of the cult in the greater Taglios area at the outset of the series.

The Deceivers' ultimate goal is to fulfill their prophecy and bring Kina back to the world, so she can initiate an apocalyptic event called the Year of the Skulls. Their most sacred temple is at the Grove of Doom, where Deceivers gather twice a year in the Festival of Lights.

Variations of the Deceiver cult exist or existed in most of the worlds accessible through the Plateau of Glittering Stone. because Kina waged war across this interdimensional crossroads. The Black Company and the other Free Companies of Khatovar were formed by a branch of Deceivers located in another world.

The Deceiver caste structure

"The newest members begin as grave-diggers and bone-breakers. Many never advance beyond that level, for they develop no skill with the rumel. The yellow rumel men are the lowest ranked Stranglers. Apprentices. They seldom have a chance to kill, being mostly assigned as arm-holders for red rumel men and as scouts and victim-finders. Red rumel men do most of the strangling. Few win the black rumel. Those almost always become jamadars or priests. The priests do the divining and take omens, intercede with Kina, and keep the chronicles and accounts of the company. When it becomes necessary they act as judges." - Sindhu, in Dreams of Steel