Let no sin go unwitnessed, nor unconfessed. We beneath this earth may offer no absolution - only Candor is worthy of such grace - but through your witness and confession strive for holiness. For as it was written in the scriptures, "Thou shalt not bear false witness," as well, "Those things which proceed out of the mouth come forth from the heart; and they defile the man". Keep watch over your brothers and sisters, and if your brother should not confess his sins, confess them to Candor on his behalf."
-St. Vigilus, in his letter to Salona (43 AT)
And Wisdom said, "The names given to the worldly are deceptive, turning the heart from what is good to what is evil. So also with 'The Light' - it does not lead one to what is good but to what is evil. How pitiful are those that listen to the names of the worldly! Yet it is Tenebra who brought names into the world, for we cannot learn it without these names. There is only one truth, but it has many things to teach us."
-Phillipus, in his Gospel
The lands of Sepulchre lay beneath the world that was. In this place, the color of ones' skin holds no bearing over their allegiances. While kings reign under the earth, citizens' allegiances do not truly lie with them. Instead, the most significant aspect of one's identity is their Ordo (pl. Ordines) - their order of faith. When creating a character in Anno Tenebris, an Ordo must be selected. Many Ordines exist in Sepulchre, and each vary in many ways, but they can be split into roughly two broader schools of thought: Candescent and Tenebrous.
"The Pentecost" by Jean Restout II (1732)
The Candescent Ordines are the only Ordines permitted in most lands. Each is part of the 'Universal Church', sharing their common head in the Supreme Pontiff, but few would identify themselves as such. The Candescent Ordines refer to the Godhead as 'Candor', first and foremost viewing light and flame as holy. Most Ordines fall under this classification; several are listed below:
Domae: Derived from the pre-Fall practices of the lands above, the Domae maintain that only proper observance of the old ways will lead to humanity's return to the surface. Due to their strict observance of the surface faith, they maintain the ability to transubstantiate.
Vigilan: The Vigilan tradition stems from the writings of St. Vigilus, a wandering ascetic who held that only witnessing and confessing would result in forgiveness from Candor. Their Ordo is centered around the shrine at Calidae, where St. Vigilus' journey ended in his death.
Cares: The Cares are, in most cases, a quiet and meek Ordo. They maintain a strict schedule of fasting and prayer - a schedule which many find altogether too rigorous. Even so, they hold that greed and material desires led to the Second Fall, and only the rejection of such desires will herald their redemption.
"Mater Dolorosa" by Jusepe de Ribera (1638)
A much more recent development, the Tenebrous Ordines are denounced as heresy by the Supreme Pontiff and as such illegal in much of Sepulchre. According to the Tenebrous Ordines, when fire rained down from above, it was the darkness that offered them succor. Thus, the Divine is present not in light, but in darkness. This has resulted in an altogether very different theology, where the Divine (known to them as Tenebra) resides not above the earth, but far below. They reject many of the modern scriptural texts such as the book of Eskhat, which details the divine process leading to the Second Fall. Due to their strict illegality, there are fewer Tenebrous Ordines large enough to speak of.
Tenebrae: The first and largest of the Tenebrous Ordines, the Tenebrae maintain that the Second Fall is a way of bringing them closer to Tenebra, as well as offer a test. Only the most faithful in this time of trial will journey deeper into the earth to approach the divine throne. Altogether a more dour and mystical group than the mainstream Candescent Ordines.
This list is far from exhaustive, and when I get to some more proper rules balancing I'll be able to make something a little more concrete as far as the rules implications of each Ordo. It's also worth noting that not all characters need be priests or others dedicated to religious life (though it's certainly useful to have at least one in a group). Even so, the tenets of the Ordines dominate life under the earth, and thus one's Ordo has a great effect.
"Engraving of Marcella of Rome" by Diodore Rahoult (1886)
However! Beyond that it's probably good for me to get some concrete rules put together for Anno Tenebris (GLOG Hack Edition). Like I said in the last post, BONES by The Oblidisideryptch is a good starting point. First up: Stats!
Much like the source here, we have 3 primary statistics, each of which is determined by the number of slots available within it. Unlike the source, I am changing the names of them in order to fit more with the broader feel of the setting. The 3 primary statistics are as follows: Corpus (C, analogous to BONES' Meat), Mens (M, analogous to BONES' Head), and Spiritus (S, analogous to BONES' Soul).
Personally I find the d20 roll under system a little unintuitive, but every attempt to find something better has run into walls. I considered Fabula Ultima's increasing dice size as an option, but this added complications to the inventory system and resulted in way too many charts. I also considered the PbtA system of no values, only modifiers, but that basically eliminated the inventory I liked so much. So we're going to keep it.
Character creation is basically 3 steps: Rolling for stats (see BONES' 2d4 per stat), rolling for Ordine (table forthcoming once I have more concrete rules), and rolling for initial template (templates forthcoming). Until then, there are several things I want to get onto paper (or. . .digital paper).
Some archetypes I want to hit with templates include: The Holy Person (feels a bit obvious, also there will likely be a lot of these), The Soldier (a classic for a reason), The Dungeon Specialist (dungeons will almost certainly be getting their own post - for now though just know that they are plentiful and dangerous), Alchemists (did I mention there's alchemy?), and The Spellcaster (see above. Needless to say, it's complicated and requires consorting with Otherworldly Creatures). There will almost certainly be more, but those are some initial concepts that definitely need to be included.
Also, some more concrete and less vibes-based setting lore. Like I said in the last post, the world 'ended' in 500 AD. The mechanics are unclear, maybe it was natural, maybe wasn't, but at that time the sunlight was brighter and hotter than ever before. It burned the people, it set fires, it ended civilizations.
"history of the entire world, i guess" by bill wurtz (2017)
The lands of Sepulchre lie predominantly under what would be Italy in the modern day. Just pretend there's a huge, underdark-like network of caverns underneath the world. There are still oceans, of a sorts, but life is carved out in small beacons of light in these massive caverns. Being in the dark and with limited ways in/out of any given cavern, trade and information networks are much smaller than they once were.
Beyond the lights of small settlements, there are plenty of failed towns - ruins of the many who survived the initial Fall, but could not persist against the horrors contained in these caverns. Demons roam in the darkness, preying on the weak-willed and weak-bodied. Whether by possession or merely sharp claws, most who encounter them will surely perish.
"The Last Judgement" by Jan Van Eyck (1436-38)
That's where our adventurers come in. In these ruins are valuable artifacts of the above world - knowledge lost to mankind, holy relics of ages past, and of course, all manner of precious metals. With the increasing role of alchemy, metals in general have become in higher demand than ever before. That goes double for the planetary metals, for while the planets themselves are no longer in sight, their influences are essential. Those who dare to search for these great treasures are known as Fossors, or Grave Diggers.
There are many reasons one may become a Fossor. Most Ordines have them, both from the Holy Orders and the laity, and increasingly nobles have begun to compensate Fossors for their services. Few liege lords will allow just any peasant to leave their lands and delve into the dangerous dark, but many noble houses find it glorious and right for their children to search those ancient ruins. Not the heirs, of course, but an unfavored third son is almost certainly going to have to do his time out in the darkness.
While most peasants are unlikely to leave the relative safety of their liege's lands, those trained in crafts such as smithing, alchemy, or magic are often given the "opportunity" to become a Fossor, usually escorted by knights or disgruntled scions. Those who survive attain riches and prestige. If you're looking for the way society is stratified, just look at the estates in Many Rats on Sticks by Skerples. Anyway here's some fun art of goetic demon yaaaaay.
"Andras" from Dictionnaire Infernal by Jacques Collin de Plancy (1863)
woag...... blog real.................
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