[MEHughes]

Evening Folks,

I wanted to run an idea I had past the creative minds here. I was thinking of a character who comes from a world dominated by a suicide cult. A suicide cult being a cult which practices worship to the Emperor through the self-inflicted ultimate sacrifice. I was thinking of my character surviving a number of suicide attempts, and so she has partnered up with an Inquisitor in order to meet her righteous death even faster.
Does this make sense to you guys? Or do you have any more ideas that might help to expand this character?

Thanks!

[Dolnikan]

Such a suicide cult could lead tp problems, it is easy to commit suicide with the right tools and it would quickly die out. A martyrdom cult could work better, especially when some poeple are selected in some way to sacrifice themselves by dying against the enemies of the Imperium. But outright suicide would be banned. This character could then be very lucky(or unlucky of course) and have survived many attempts to die at the hands of the enemies of the Emperor.

A cult that promotes outright suicide would very easily die out. The most devoted members would kill themselves and the less devoted would quickly try to get away from the cult, not wanting to die and the like.

[MEHughes]

How about if it was less of a cult ( implying choice in participation) but a planetwide belief system that was so ingrained in the cultural belief that it'd be hard to escape?
I like the idea of a lottery, but maybe a system where if you should survive the suicide, you're simply returned to your ordinary life? I don't know. 
What would be the best way for the suicide to be carried out? I wanted to make it a clear distinction from Martyrdom, which implies murder and violence. This cult could potentially be very peaceful, using medicines or toxins to end the sacrifice's life.

[Dolnikan]

A planet wide belief system could work, if most people would be relatively safe, like in the lottery system. The suicide attempt could entail all sorts of things, perhaps they climb the Tower of Sacrifice and throw temselves off, they could drink a sacred poison, they could be bitten by some sort of poisonous animal. Someone who survives could be seen as refused by the Emperor and effectively become outcasts. They could also be seen as people with a special purpose yet to fulfill. I would try to keep it rare though, to have it really be something special.

The character would then suffer a deep crisis and concludes somehow that the Emperor has another death in store for them. Perhaps she still was in the crisis when she met the inquisitor who helped her cope and convinced her to join him or her.

[Heroka Vendile]

What it really sounds like you're after is a 40k version of dwarf trollslayers.
And that's fine, the vikings and spartans both believed dying in battle was preferable to anything else. There's no reason not have have a cult or planet-wide interpretation of the imperial creed where such a thing is also the case.

[MEHughes]

It doesnt have to be violent though; in fact I was hoping it wouldn't be violent. I was thinking something more peaceful, like a lottery where those that "win" are infected with a serum which ends their life, and their soul then gets sent to the God Emperor

[Dolnikan]

You could have them drink from a blessed beaker, containing a fast-working poison. The poison could be immensely deadly, but, mixed in with the effective poisons, there always are a few that contain no poison, those who by chance drink a non-poison are cast out from society because obviously the Emperor refuses them. Another option could be a less deadly poison, which could fail on some of the drinkers. To get a relatively quick and clean death while letting the survivor continue in a healthy state you could use a poison that is quickly cleared but also has a strong effect. A high clearance ensures that it rapidly leaves the body to prevent long-term damage to organ systems due to for instance cell death.

[Kaludram]

Dolnikian's got a good idea here, but I quite prefer the idea of a sub-cult of the Ecclesiarchy that encourages the faithful to martyr themselves--perhaps....

...the Hive is home.  Outside, there are only dribbling lunatics, mutants, and worse.  Only the faithful venture out to reclaim the few who would repent and purge the rest with righteous wrath.  And when one returns, he is tried to determine if he has received the Mark of Evil or remained faithful, for most who return have fled in fear of the horrors beyond the Hive or have made dark deals to bring insidious lies to our homes.  No more than one in a generation returns to the Hive penitent and victorious, and he may only be so declared by the Cardinal himself.

How's that for a hook?  Of course, if you meet Kaludram out there, you probably won't pass the rites of sanctity imposed by the Cardinal upon your return. 

[Dolnikan]

That could work, outside the hives life would be very hard. There would however have to be a strong reason for the cultists to actually venture out. Few would willingly put their souls on the line after all.

[Kaludram]

..There would however have to be a strong reason for the cultists to actually venture out. Few would willingly put their souls on the line after all.

But that's the beauty of the idea.  To prove their true devotion to the Emperor, they willingly carry the message of salvation to the wastelands.  The reward is almost certain martyrdom at the hands of the Unbelievers and the accompanying eternal salvation in the Emperor's bosom.  A Few return to the Hive (i.e. mother church) unable to face the horrors beyond and are unceremoniously executed for cowardice and lack of faith.  But every now and then, a truly unique individual returns from the wastes having brought faith to the faithless and death to the unrepentant.  That 1 in a generation person would be of the heroic stature you're looking for in a game of Inquisitor.

I don't think this sort of a concept is too unrealistic.  Consider the Jesuit missionary efforts in the early colonial period.  Many went to South American and African tribes knowing that the previous round of missionaries never returned and were likely dead--but the next wave still went!  They were largely considered heroes for going and were not even regarded as strange within what was then and still is now a major religious movement.

[Dolnikan]

That might work, but the jesuits knew that they only risked their life, not their soul, which is something completely different. People fleeing back would be very, very rare, if they would fear death they would never return, and if they had seen too much they would simply kill themselves or do something that was certain to lead to martyrdom.

[Seargent Maxwell Forest]

I think that the old of the cult could sacrifice themselves as a sacrafice for the emporer,good luck and prosperity
for the rest of the family.