Zoroastrianism

Zoroastrianism is a religion in Total War: Attila.

Description

In the east, fire as well as water was a symbol of purity, and banished dark and chaotic forces from the world. Zoroastrianism, which greatly influenced later monotheistic faiths, had temples that housed 'atar', or holy fire. Earlier, there had been a reverence for hearth fire as the source of warmth, light and food. Holy shrines and temples began as raised mounds on which fires were lit and offerings were made. In Zoroastrianism, Ahura Mazda, the force of wisdom and truth, was opposed by Angra Mainyu, the destructive spirit of chaos. Ahura Mazda's fire kept chaos at bay, and played a part in divination and oracular predictions. The priests would interpret the flames, or burn a variety of spices and other substances, inhaling the smoke to make contact with the world beyond.

Excarnation, the removal of flesh by carrion birds, was a common form of funereal practice in the ancient world, and especially in the east. Bodies were placed on towers with high platforms and left for the birds and elements to consume, so that only the bones remained. These dakhma or 'towers of silence' were usually outside a settlement, as the bodies of the dead were considered unclean. Bones were eventually collected and placed in ossuaries, either within the tower or at a nearby shrine. In Zoroastrianism, where a body would contaminate the purity of earth and fire, its excarnated remains were placed inside a well-like structure known as an astudan; lime and rainwater were then used to disintegrate the bones. After being filtered through charcoal and sand, the water would be allowed to flow away.

Bonus

Growth: +1 (all provinces)

Edicts

Pursuit of Truth

• Corruption: -5%
• Religious influence: +4 Zoroastrianism (province to each region)

Teachings of Zoroaster

• Growth: +10
• Public order: -50% religious unrest

Buildings

Provincial Capital

Tier	Name	Cost	Resource required	Food consumption	Sanitation	Sanitation (provincial)	Religious influence	Religious osmosis	Public order	Bonus
1	Burial Platform	2500		0	2	1	1	0	0
	Holy Brazier	2500		30	0	0	3	0	3
2	Tower of Silence	4000		0	3	2	1	1	0
	Fire Altar	4000		60	0	0	5	0	5
3	Ossuary	7000	Timber Timber	0	4	3	2	1	0
	Fire Temple	7000	Timber Timber	90	0	0	7	0	7
4	Astudan	11500	Marble Marble	0	5	4	3	1	0
	Temple of Great Fires	11500	Marble Marble	125	0	0	10	0	12

Minor Settlement

Tier	Name	Cost	Food consumption	Religious influence	Public order	Bonus
1	Sacred Site	2000	10	1	1
2	Sacred Hill	3000	20	2	2
3	Hilltop Shrine	5000	30	3	3
4	Pirangah	8000	50	4	4

Factions

• Sassanid Empire Sassanid Empire
• Abarshahr
• Abasgia
• Afrighids
• Aria
• Arran
• Atropatene
• Kartli
• Makran
• Parthia
• Persia
• Spahan