I'm curious as to the different responsibilities that go with the ranks of the temple. What would be the real world equivalents to the likes to Diviner, Master and Patriarch? Does each temple have a person of a particular rank that serves the same duties of a priest/vicar/minister/brahmin/gothi?

As usual, while it has some similarities to real-world stuff, it isn't an exact anologue any more than Beowulf is the Odyssey. It essentially goes like there are lay members who do more mundane work, then you have healer-priests, summoner-priests, etc, with the higher ranks doing various different functions as needed. And the Ordinators would be kinda like a Swiss Guard type of thing.

So the basic answer is that it isn't rigid and is more amorphous shifting to suit it's needs wherever it happens to be?

It may be rigid, I'll just look at the ranks and make stuff up.

Layman -
Novice -
Initiate -
Acolyte - 100 posts
These four sound like monks, clerks, and underlings

Adept -
Curate -
Disciple -
Diviner -
Master -
Higher levels... do Tribunal priests preach, or lead people in prayer? They offer healing services and presumably guidance, so maybe they are scholars and doctors rather than classic clergy.


Patriarch -
Archpatriarch -
Head honchos, pretty self-explanatory. As I recall the Greek Orthodox church has Patriarchs as well.

So you can look to the game for evidence, compare rank with services, placement, etc, but you might not get much that makes sense, as rank is a stat, and the stats given to NPCs are often random and not meant to be scrutinized. Plus I just know someone is going to remember something from a book that answers part of your question, and make this post pointless.

Thats what I was hoping for. One doesn't need forums to speculate

The impression I always got is that the "Quest Giver" is the head honcho at a given temple, with Patriarch Tholer Saryoni being head honcho over all Vvardenfell temples. Their job is to coordinate the actions of the various people associated with the temple... including you. Whether or not they're also the guy that leads public worship services or gives speeches or what have you (there really should be such a thing) is unknown, as that appears to be totally unimplemented.

Then, there's the Ordinators and the Armingars, of which I am unsure. It could be that they are theoretically under the Patriarch's office, but strong enough these days that they act largely on their own regardless of the Patriarch's authority. Or they could be separate orders altogether, answering directly to the Tribunes.

Over on UESP, I notice that Tholer Saryoni has two titles: Patriarch and Archcannon. It could be that your "game" rank (Patriarch) is more like pay grade than position, acknowledging status and reputation; while your actual job within the hierarchy is a separate matter in which your "game" rank is taken into consideration, but not exactly the same.

And above all these Partriarchs there appears to be a head priest called the Alma Rula.

Ordinators = not so secret police with special responsibility for calling people scum and stuff

Did you note as your rank changed that the nature of the Quests became more Lore-oriented. I am thinking that they were specially formulated for you according to Vivec's design ... so they might not be such a good guide.

Which ones are the witchhunters - Inquisition?

The real-world inquisition was an institution The Church set up to deal with the problem of illiterate nobles making life and death decisions on matters of heresy. It was being too often used in a politically or personally motivated fashion by people with little scriptural knowledge. The Inquisition was set up to investigate claims of heresy, to distinguish between harmless people the local lord wanted offed, and actual heretics.

The Ordinators would be the equivalent of the mythical Spanish Inquisition, I would think, going after heretics with a vengeance. Witches? I've never been clear on what exactly constitutes a witch in TES, though their existence is undisputed. I do know Ordinators have been seen raiding various locations, such as the Sheogorath ruin.

Basically, if skulls need bashing, Ordinators are the ones to do it. Armingars seem to be less well defined in their role, though they seem to me not so much to serve a particular organizational function, as to be a group dedicated to living life as Vehk may have lived at one point: as freewheeling adventurers. Or maybe they're more like rangers, serving as scouts and guides pointing the way to the points Ordinators need to hit at full power.

People who consort with unclean spirits, i.e the Bad Daedra. Probably any Daedra that aren't the Anticipations, come to think of it. Not sure how the Temple would react to cults dedicated to Azura, Mephala or Boethiah. The Morag Tong is tolerated, after all, but that's as old as the hills and a long-established part of Dunmer society. I'd guess that the Temple would frown on 'Good Daedra' cults, but not consider them witches per se.

Aedra worshippers are merely heathens rather than witches, I believe.