Dark Tempus

World Background

And Cultures

V1.0

Acknowledgments

Development team

Simon McBride, Richard McBride, Craig Goodall, Stephen Maddison, Illy

Richards, Andrew Rosenthal, Rachel Hignett and Matt Colligan

Special thanks to

Sheila and John Dutton and Philip McBride for all the support

and help in making this game possible.

Dark Tempus would not be possible without the dedication and

commitment of its crew and players and on behalf of all the

team, thank you.

Version

This is Version 1.0 of the game rules

Of the End of the Old

Once there were cities of shining lights

Once there were ways up to the stars

Once there was hope.

But now we know, all things Burn

The Great Burn. Destruction and Death on a scale undreamt. The great civilisation of mankind reduced to ashes and despair. The Just and the Unjust. The Kind and the Cruel, the Compassionate and the Vicious, there was no distinction. No mercy. All that we

were, burned.

Almost.

In ones and twos, in small groups, our ancestors emerged from

the ruins of the old world and sought each other out. In pain and

loss and grief were new foundations laid. New ways of being hu-

man were born in the echoes of a world forever lost.

“Once there were cities so vast as to dwarf the imagination.

Buildings that reached into the sky, and beyond. Once there

were ships that sailed the sky and sailed to the stars. We do not

know what manner of cataclysm brought this world to its end.

We cannot conceive or understand how such a thing could hap-

pen, but it did. The cities have been reclaimed by nature. The

scars in the earth have mostly healed... But still we are left with

the thought. All they accomplished – their magnificent works of

science, engineering, art... Yet still, they are gone.

We cannot understand nor conceive how or why they destroyed

themselves yet the fear remains. Is the poison that was within

them, that destroyed them… Is that poison within us as well?”

Jereo Volk. Historian of the Aristoc

The Burn is the name given to the

event that ended the vast and

advanced civilisation that

preceded the current state of the

world. It is not known what

caused the burn, or how such

level of destruction was achieved.

What is generally agreed on is

that the human race came very

close to becoming extinct.

Perhaps the most intriguing aspect

of the burn is how much did

survive, not in terms of people, or

knowledge, but in terms of arte-

facts. The earliest post burn re-

cords, mostly preserved through

oral histories of the Folket tribes,

speak of cities - mostly intact-

but empty of all but the dead.

Yet in other places are tales of

ruins that stretch as far as the eye

can see, and all who enter these

places grow sick and die.

What is certain is the pre-burn

ancients built things to last. Even

now, those willing to brave the

wild places of the world can find

things from before the burn, some

useless, some mundane, but

occasionally something wonderful

or terrible, or both. Fortunes have

been made from these things, but

for every story of great success

there are hundreds of would be

treasure hunters who are never

heard from again.

The Burn

The World

No one is sure how long it has been

since the Burn. Long enough that much

of what came before has been obscured

by time and nature. The long years after

the Burn are the Dark Time, generations

spent in a bitter struggle for survival in

the ruins of the world that was.

The old roads that crisscrossed the land

gradually reclaimed by the grass, cities

broken by vine and tree, and man’s

space born creations one by one

plummet to a fiery end.

It was out of this darkness a new world

was born. New cultures emerged,

relearning civilisation and self-

sufficiency. The world now shows little

evidence of mankind’s presence. Some

farmed land is still visible, spite the

settlements dotted in loose chains linked

by foot worn trader routes, and miles

and miles of wilderness.

Despite the claims of some of the larger

factions to hold territory, most of the

land is wilderness with settlements

separated by days and weeks of travel.

Despite the scattered nature of these

settlements, many share views and

outlooks close enough to be considered

one ‘culture’. It is easy to imagine these

cultures as monolithic blocks with

borders and territories and clear leader-

ship. This is far from the truth.

Settlements are far from each other and

develop independently - for the most

part they might as well be alone

regardless of culture. More than

anything else, it was this isolation that

came so close to finishing off the human

race for good when the Swarm came.

The Swarm War

A newly established settlement,

Newtown, the furthest north a

settlement had ever been established,

was the first to fall. A few survivors fled

to nearby FTU settlements with tales of

mutated creatures and the walking

corpses of their friends and family, but

were not believed. It made no

difference, the Swarm was scant hours

behind them and none could stand in its

way.

Within months the FTU had collapsed

as an organised force. The swarm

headed generally south, cutting the FTU

in half and wiping out a full third of its

settlements. With many others being

abandoned, refugees fled to the Aristoc,

to the Matriarchy, to anywhere.

The Swarm spread across the land and

for over a year death stalked in

humanity’s shadow. Settlements fell,

travellers disappeared and the thought

spread, the thought that this might truly

be the end of humanity’s brief respite

since the Burn, and this time there

would be no survivors to rebuild. All

would be butchered by the swarm.

The Swarm fractured. The main bulk

slowly ground its way across the land,

while smaller swifter tendrils lashed out

and around, overrunning settlements

from all the great cultures and countless

independents and homesteads.

Mankind fought back.

The Matriarchy fortified their towns and

awaited the flood to break over them,

hoping to hold against the tide. The

Falket tribes sought to out run and out

think their hunters, trusting their

knowledge of the land and only fighting

if denied all other options. The Aristoc

formed up their grand Armies and took

the fight to the swarm, hoping to crush

the tendrils before they hit. All these

tactics worked, and none were enough.

In the first year an estimated 2 out of

every 5 people in the world had been

killed and consumed by the Swarm.

Four years ago far in the north, past the edge of the Free Trade Union (FTU),

across the expanse of the Wilds a great column of light blazed for days and nights.

It was extinguished as abruptly and inexplicably as it began. For weeks it was a

curiosity, an aberrant event that fuels idle speculation and then fades to be re-

placed with more pressing concerns.

Then the Swarm came.

The details of that meeting will never be known,

but Dunehill left Sanc accompanied by three

detachments of Peacekeeper powered armour, a

regiment of soldiers and many supplies. The

Peacekeepers had joined the War.

Soon, forces from the Matriarchy, dozens of

Falket tribes and remnants of the Free Trade

Union united under one banner. This allied force

would funnel the Swarm, using hit and run

tactics and suicide ‘bait’ units into a central

pre-positioned location.

The Subsequent ‘Battle of the Caldera’ was a

near disaster. Over thirty Falket tribes, two

divisions of Peacekeeper powered armour units, a

grand army of the Aristoc (including Dunehill

herself) and numerous others perished that day –

but the Swarm was broken. Pockets still appear to

this day, two years later, but reclaiming the land

lost has begun.

General Dunehill, commander of the Aristoc First Grand Army, saw that the only hope to break the

Swarm was an alliance, in which to break it in one great battle.

Twice representatives of the Free Trade Union had approached the Peacekeepers for aid and twice

they had been rebuffed.

General Dunehill tried a third time. How the Peacekeepers, notoriously insular, knew who she was

is unknown. She is the only individual known to have entered Sanc since the Burn. She returned

exactly 24 hours later. When asked what she had discussed with the Peacekeepers she would answer

only ‘Morality’.

The Aftermath

Before the Swarm War, the Free Trade Union was seen as strong and growing in power.

Independent settlements had been joining the expanding Union at an increasing rate. But

in the face of the swarm, FTU enforcer units that had been so capable of protecting trade

caravans and punishing smugglers were simply washed away. The FTU is a broken and

splintered group, desperately trying to rebuild its strength before the vultures of the

Matriarchy or Aristoc begin circling. With over half its pre-war population dead or gone,

it has a hard task ahead.

GENERAL DUNEHILL,

COMMANDER OF THE

ARISTOC FIRST GRAND

ARMY

At face value the Matriarchy endured the war best. While they sent troops and materiel to the alliance army, it

was only a fraction of their strength, the majority of which was kept back guarding the matriarchy’s settlements.

This turned out to be a double edged sword for the Matriarchy as, while they lost the fewest people during the

war, the gesture of support for the alliance was returned with a token effort in defending them. The alliance

army did little to draw Swarm elements from the East before the battle of Caldera and subsequently areas around

Matriarchy holdings are the most Swarm infested today. Travel and trade within the matriarchy is conducted

with large armed escorts, or by the terminally overconfident. Yet the Matriarchy does not lack for soldiers and

now, while others are weakened, may be the time to bring the message of Restoria to the Godless.

For the Falket tribes, priding themselves on their martial ability, two years of evading, running and hiding had

taken a toll on the spirit of the people. So when the opportunity to finally go on the offensive was presented the

Falket seized it with relish. The network of Seers was an invaluable information gathering resource and Folket

made up more than their fair share of bait squads, each and every one a volunteer. For this they paid a heavy

butchers bill, but ask a Falket today how they feel about the war and one of two replies is all but guaranteed.

Either pride in having taken part or sadness at having been too far away to get involved. Many tribes were lost,

many more are now under strength. How the Falket plan to replenish their numbers remains to be seen.

The Aristoc became the foundation for the alliance army and whatever view one might hold of the Aristoc in

general, it is not wise to insult the memory of General Dunehill to a veteran of Caldera, regardless of their

Culture. Once looked upon as something of a threatening presence with their rigid society and unnatural leaders,

the Aristoc, or at least its soldiers, have become something like heroes in many places. But the reputation has

come at a price. The first grand Army wiped out to a man, the second and third suffering so many casualties as

to barely make one grand army between them. But their sacrifice preserved much of the Aristoc’s lands and

infrastructure – much needed in the aftermath of the swarm. The Aristoc are becoming the breadbasket of the

world, and their goods are finding new markets in the devastation of the FTU. The Aristoc may be poised to

make great gains in the wake of the Swarm, if their own intrigue and politics will allow it...

Sending the Peacekeeper Expeditionary force to join the Allied Army was the biggest exodus from Sanc ever.

Losses were to be expected, although one might wonder if they expected them so high. Regardless, what must

have come as a shock is just how many of that expeditionary force chose not to return. The reasons are as varied

as the people in question – a newfound love, a mission of revenge on the Swarm for a fallen friend, newfound

wanderlust with the wide open world. Whatever the reason, there are suddenly a great deal more peacekeepers

out in the world.

Far to the North is Newtown. The first settlement to fall. The edge of the civilised

world. The border of the wilds. Newtown is open for settlement once again.

A Note on Culture

The game is set in Newtown. Massacred and abandoned at the start of the Swarm

war, Newtown is now being resettled. There are no laws, no government, no leader-

ship and no social structure of any kind until the players make one. It will be up to

you how Newtown works. Are you going to attempt to be a tyrant, or set up a voting

system for a council? Will you start a tax system for free medical care, or will you

become the richest person in Newtown with “Newtown Medical Inc.”? Will New-

town be a bastion of hope, or the biggest predator out there? This is your world, how

are you going to run it?

Newtown is located at the most northerly point within the free trade union (FTU). It

is populated by peoples (and Mutants) of all the major cultures, the FTU, the Aristoc,

The Restoria Matriarchy, Peacekeepers and the Falket Tribes.

Its easy to think of the Cultures as monolithic blocs such as factions or nations, but

this is far from true. A character’s culture determines the social environment they

were brought up in. This might foster a sense of loyalty and allegiance to this group,

it might not. There is no requirement that a character identify with their culture, no

expectation that they always agree with any agenda they may have. The cultures

presented here are designed as starting points to build characters from, not absolute

restraints on player creativity. It is worth stating however that characters who identify

closely with a particular culture might find it easier to access 'culture' related plot.

The North is a hostile place and if Newtown is to survive and thrive it must work

together. It faces the threat of the Swarm; it faces opportunistic bandits and rogue

traders and competition from other FTU settlements to name but a few. An all-out

culture war would only divide and weaken Newtown.

The Restoria Matriarchy

₁Once woman and Man existed in a Beautiful Garden. ₂The garden was

bountiful and provided all that the woman and man would need.

₃But the Man was seduced by the Stars and feverish he lent all his

skill and drive to reaching them. ₄He bent his knowledge to shaping

the garden to his will, raping it on the altar of his pride. ₅His

thoughts were bent outwards and he was blind to the suffering

within the garden.

₆The Garden was in pain. The Garden was dying. It could no longer

support the works of man but could not bear to see them de-

stroyed. ₇When man’s work led to its eventual conclusion the Gar-

den protected the Man and Woman so they did not die. ₈The Garden

then spoke to the Woman, “Man has squandered our gifts and

gravely injured us. We have sheltered you from the fire he

unleashed. You must help us heal and you must guide the way now.

₉There must not be another fire. The garden must be restored”.

The Book of Restoria

Chapter 1 verses 1-9

The Restoria Matriarchy is technically a

Theocratic Kritarchy. Authority is held by

Priest-Judges, always female, who hold

secular power as well as religious

position. Each settlement usually has a

single Judge or a small council in the

larger settlements. These judges, in

addition to having literal life or death

authority over their ‘flock’, are also

personally responsible for the behaviour

of said flock, answerable to the Choir.

The Choir travel from place to place

ensuring the principles of Restoria are

being upheld by closely interviewing the

judges as to their conduct and the conduct

of those under their authority. Poor

performance in this interview can have

dire repercussions.

Outside of the ruling systems the most

obvious difference within the Matriarchy

is the place of men. All males within the

matriarchy are under the ‘governorship’

of an appointed female. Precisely who

this governor is will vary based on the

individual’s situation and probably on

their age. Young boys will be under the

governorship of their mother, later in life

it might be their wife (the matriarchy

practices Polyandry), their superior

officer, if in a military based organisation,

or their employer if part of a business

venture.

The Matriarchy denies claims that men

are women’s property, rather that it

ensures appropriate guidance is always

available to help men resist their darker

impulses.

The Matriarchy is impossible to separate from the principles of Restoria, and any attempt to describe one must include the other. The Matriarchy is homogeneous culture spread over a wide area united by the

principles / religion of Restoria. The Matriarchy itself covers far more area than its population would suggest, divided into self-sufficient settlements surrounded by wilderness. This is intentional. The

Matriarchy believes that no more than one tenth of land should be used by humans, the rest being left to ‘recover’. This policy of leaving the majority of the land to go wild has made the Matriarchy the most

aggressive, expansionist faction in the land.

The Matriarchy might lack the sheer numbers that the Aristoc or Falket have, or the technological

superiority of the peacekeepers, but they do boast a unifying certainty of belief that some might describe

as fanatical that has ensured a steady creeping increase in the matriarchy’s holdings.

General Information

Culture

Restoria, the Religion of the Matriarchy is elegant,

simple, and undoubtedly a direct result of the

conditions prevalent directly after the great burn.

Some speculate that the structure of Restoria is biased

on pre-burn religions but if so then no-one now knows.

The premise is simple – the old world was ruled by

men. This rule led to the Burn. The Earth herself saved

some of humanity so as we might have a second

chance, but this time we must do things differently.

The Matriarchy believes that the male of the species

has empirically proven that it is unfit to hold positions

of power and leadership. From now on these positions

are the sole providence of women. This is not to say

that Restoria believes men to be lesser (although it is

not uncommon for this view to be expressed unoffi-

cially) but that the genders have different strengths, and

authority is a female one.

The interplay between the genders is the core of the re-

ligious beliefs – the Matriarchy believes that the Planet

is a God – Goddess actually - who was grievously

wounded by the Burn. This ‘wounded Goddess’ is now

relying on mankind to heal her, preserving a small

measure of humanity through the Burn in order to re-

build a society that will not repeat the mistakes of the

past.

Followers of Restoria seek to create a civilisation that

avoids the mistakes of the past. These mistakes,

it believes, are a Male led culture that focused on

technology at the expense of nature, and power at the

expense of culture. This approach, they believe led

inevitably to the Great burn.

Restoria recognises that technology and power and all

such masculine attributes have a necessary place, but

their unfettered propagation will be, and has been,

disastrous. Followers of Restoria seek a middle ground

of carefully controlled reconstruction of civilisation in

harmony with the natural world, an approach that

manifests as an iron fisted control of development

within the matriarchy’s sphere of influence.

Expanding that sphere of influence is also important to

followers of Restoria, this is primarily good old fash-

ioned evangelism, but has on occasion been done by

more forceful methods, particularly if a settlement was

seen as overly damaging to the environment.

Beliefs

The Aristoc “We make no demands of Faith, no promises requiring divine intervention. We are the Aristoc. We offer you life

eternal, if you show yourself worthy. We will protect you, we will provide for you and we will give birth to a

bright new future that you can be a part of, forever. In exchange we demand your loyalty, your ability and your

dedication.

Join us”

Background

Human history is filled with examples of a singular

invention or ability shaping the development of

cultures and civilisations. Domesticating the horse, the

creation of gunpowder, glass, the microchip...

Sometimes a single invention is enough to define the

culture that possesses it.

The Aristoc is one such culture.

Perhaps one of the bleakest truths about the great burn

is not just how much we have lost, but that we do not

know how much we have lost. What wonders and

mysteries have been reduced to ash? What remains out

somewhere in the wilderness waiting for us to

rediscover?

Those who founded the culture now known as the

Aristoc made such a find. It was a piece of knowledge

from before the great burn of such power and influence

that it has shaped every aspect of their lives. Simply

put, the Aristoc discovered immortality.

How the pre-Burn humans achieved such a feat is

unknown, as is why it seemed not to be in widespread

use. Certainly, there seems to have been no survivors of

the Burn with this gift. Nevertheless its recovery after

the burn has created a culture in the Aristoc unlike any

other.

Aristoc society is severely

divided between powerful

minorities who have all the

control, and a servant class

majority bonded to one of the

upper class. What maintains this

inequality? Eternal life, or the

promise of it.

The title Aristoc properly refers

to the controlling minority, the

upper class, who have received

the treatment that makes the

aging process stop or reverse.

The rest of the culture are Serfs,

working in servitude for an

Aristoc master. Should a Serf

manage to impress their master

with their loyalty, dedication

and ability there is the

possibility that they will

themselves be elevated to the

position of Aristoc.

As such it is rare to encounter an

Aristoc without at least a

personal servant, and more

likely a retinue, all doing their

best to impress their ‘master’

and be elevated to the rank of

the immortals themselves.

The ancient science that grants

the Aristoc immortality does not

make them any harder to kill by

conventional means. That they

have the potential for hundreds

of years of life has resulted in a

somewhat cautious and

conservative outlook.

Negotiation and diplomacy has

become a specialty and the

Aristoc will usually distance

themselves from violence,

preferring well trained Serfs to

fulfil that function.

A Servant class, personal

security and a great deal of time

on their hands has led to a

government system full of in-

trigue, one-upmanship and pa-

tronage.

One’s standing in the political

sphere is everything to an

Aristoc, and there are many

ways to advance – from throw-

ing the best parties to brokering

trade, from whom you sleep

with to finding new resources

out in the wilderness.

Culture

The Aristoc walk a fine balance between short

term personal advancement and the Long term

goals of the culture. All but the most powerful

amongst the Aristoc will have a patron, someone

even more influential – probably the individual

who sponsored their raising to the Aristoc from

the Serfs however many years ago.

Impressing their patron will always be at the

forefront of any Aristoc’s mind, of course quite

how one impresses can vary tremendously. Long

term, the Aristoc wish for peaceful development.

They have made clear they intend to return to the

heights of Pre-Burn civilisation, but slowly and

cautiously. Humankind came so close to

extinction before and the Aristoc have no wish to

risk the same again. Besides, they have all the

time in the world.

The Serfs, regardless of duties or specialisations

all share a single goal – to join the ranks of the

Aristoc. How this is done is a great secret, but its

reality is undeniable. Precisely what qualities an

Aristoc looks for in a Serf they will sponsor can

vary tremendously, but at the very least it

includes personal loyalty to such an extent that

they are willing to share eternity with them.

The process that grants eternal life will also

reverse the aging process – usually stabilising

around the 30’s physically, so it is not uncommon

for a lifetime’s service to be required from the

Serf. Of course it is the rarity of the uplifting to

Aristoc that gives it its value, most will die a nor-

mal death... But there is always the hope.

Beliefs

The Falket Tribes And the Sky did fall. And the ground did burn. And there was giga-death. When all has

been taken from us do we realise what is important. Our ancestors realised it, and we

honour their realisation. In those dark days before the sky cleared those who became the

Falket understood that all we have is our word, our vow. The trust that we can

co-operate, and that we will relentlessly punish those who break their vow is what defines

us, what binds us. Our vow is writ upon our living flesh... Let it be that if we ever break it,

our transgression be writ upon the cold of our corpse.

Excerpt from the ritual of initiation.

Black wing Falket tribe

The Falket tribes, if taken as a single group are

probably the single largest culture in the lands.

They are far from unified however, split into

separate groups they call tribes who live a

wandering hunter gather lifestyle. This lifestyle

has let to them being viewed as savages by many

of the more settled cultures – an opinion many of

the Falket are happy to allow to continue if it

keeps outsiders away from their interests.

The truth is somewhat more complicated. In the

years after the great burn a nomadic lifestyle

offered many advantages over settling in one

place. The people who became the Falket

adapted to this lifestyle well, valuing the freedom

and safety the ability to move around gave them

and building a culture that puts the interests of

the tribe over those of the individual.

Much of the codes of behaviour from which the

Falket draw their cultural identity seem to be

drawn from a relatively small group of people

soon after the Burn. The Falket refer to these as

the Ancestor tribe, but outsiders should be careful

of equating this belief with any form of religion,

as while the ancestors are held in great esteem,

they are not thought of as Gods or spirits.

Background

Falket culture is inexorably

linked to the tribe. The worth of

an individual is determined on

how they can benefit the tribal

group and not anything inherent

to the person.

This outlook makes them very

pragmatic and unsentimental

when it comes to making

decisions, but has also made the

Falket very successful

survivors.

The Falket are primarily

scavengers and warriors, and

martial ability is a source of

fierce pride with ritualised

combat between tribes a custom.

Many a bawdy joke is made

about the tribes and their

constant search for fresh

breeding stock. Tales of young

women being abducted in the

night or men enticed away from

their families are frequent

around bars all over the land...

But, as often with the tribes the

truth is far more practical.

It approaches a taboo for

members of the same tribe to

have children. The tribes believe

this weakens them and the

children are born ‘wrong’.

As such the tribes are always

looking out for outsiders worthy

of joining the tribe, or of

providing the next generation at

least.

Of course it is rare that anyone

would meet the tribe’s

standards, so the most common

pairings are made at the annual

quorums - meetings of many

tribes in a two week long

festival where it is customary

for matches to be made and

tribesmen and women to join

new tribes.

Many who are not of the Falket

see a contradiction here, how

can one place so much

importance in tribe, and then

leave it so easily?

The Falket do not see it that

way, rather that if any single

tribe is to survive it must adapt,

and the loyalty to the idea of

tribe is greater than allegiance to

any individual one.

Culture

Beliefs

The Oath. For a Falket the single most defining aspect

of their life is their oaths. In the chaotic time after the

Burn the first Falket faced a dilemma. Their chances of

survival as a group increased greatly if they cooperated,

but the survival of any individual in the group could be

increased if they looked to their own survival at the

expense of the rest of the group – hoarding food and

medicine for example. The answer was Oaths.

A Falket oath is literally more important than life. An

oath can be given for anything, but once given will be

followed until its terms are completed or the individual

dies in attempting its completion. Breaking an oath is a

great disgrace, and the only way to remove this

disgrace is the suicide of the individual. If they have

fallen so far from the principles of the Falket that they

cling to life it is the duty of all Falket to hunt them

down and restore their tribe’s honour.

Seers

Seers are held in extremely high regard amongst the

Falket as, without them, a tribe would lose all

communication with the rest of the Falket and struggle

to find new resources. Tribes are structured around a

seer, who takes the role of advisor to the members of

the Tribe.

The emergence of seer talents is a cause for great

celebration and a seer who reaches maturity can be

expected to form a new tribe at the next quorum or take

over from the current seer if they grow elderly. Falket

will protect seers at all costs as the survival of the tribe

is in jeopardy without them, and they have been known

to react poorly to mistreatment of non-Falket seers.

The Peacekeepers

“Come in, come in son. I know that look, Wore it on my own face some twenty years

back when I was fresh out of the mountain. Figured I would roll on back an’ impart some

of my vast learnin’ on you fresh faced youngsters. Heh.

Firstly, you got your piece? Good. Keep it. Gonna need it sooner or later. Now my advice,

pick your battles. You want to go off messenger-ing to all and sundry? Thats good, but

you’ll get nowhere being all scattered. You a doctor? Make ‘em wash. You a solider, make

‘em behave... Whatever, most won’t listen and most won’t thank you, but that ain’t the

point now, is it. Go. Be better. An’ show ‘em how.”

Sherriff Moluda (retired)

There is a mountain unlike any other. The

mountain is Sanc, and it is hollow. Deep within

its protective stone survives the last remnant of

the world before the Burn – the Peacekeepers.

Sanc is undoubtedly a Pre-Burn military facility,

vast in scale and filled with technology that is

generations ahead of anything anyone else has

functioning. If the Peacekeepers’ own records are

to be believed, at the Start of the Great Burn the

military forces stationed in Sanc threw open the

doors and took in as many people as they could

to save them from the Burn. No one has been

allowed into Sanc since.

No one knows how many people live inside Sanc

today. The Peacekeepers have no interest in

‘recruiting’ to their faction and they certainly do

not give tours. Indeed, if it were not for a

fundamental internal problem, many believe the

doors of Sanc may have stayed shut forever.

This problem is due to the nature of Sanc itself.

The Mountain is a closed, self-sufficient

environment. Power is generated by a massive

machine that is tunnelled into the depths of the

ground. It has its own water supply that provides

both drinking water and supplies the ‘water gar-

dens’ that grows all the food Sanc needs.

However, as it is a closed system there is an up-

per limit on the number of people it can support –

People being people, this limit is frequently

reached. The surplus population problem has led

to the ‘Peacekeeper messengers’.

General

Culture

Peacekeeper culture is founded on the principle

of a Moral Military. There are clear divisions

within society and each citizen will be a member

of a particular division.

These divisions are Infantry, Medical and

Logistics. There are also rumours of a

Mechanical division but members of this division

must be very rare outside of Sanc itself.

Individuals join a division at a very young age

and are taught skills appropriate to their division.

The whole of Peacekeeper culture then operates

on a military model with rank structure reflecting

ability and experience in their fields.

Peacekeeper Messengers have a vital role in the

culture of the peacekeepers. Practically they

enable the continuation of Sanc by removing the

surplus population that Sanc would not be able to

support. Each division within Peacekeeper

society has a maximum number of people that it

is permitted – calculated on its importance to the

functioning of Sanc.

As this maximum number approaches the

division requests volunteers to become

messengers (what happens if they do not receive

enough volunteers is not generally known, but

there are unpleasant rumours). Messengers are

individuals who leave Sanc for good – taking the

‘message’ of the Peacekeepers out into the world.

This message is the second vital role the

messengers perform for Peacekeeper culture –

they give it the moral right to exist!

Peacekeepers living inside Sanc have the longest

lifespan and the best quality of life of anyone

(with the possible exception of the most powerful

of the Aristoc).

For the Peacekeepers to live in this relative safety

and luxury while those around suffer is an un-

comfortable position for a culture that values its

moral system. The messengers are a partial

answer to this. Periodically skilled individuals

leave Sanc and go out into the world to be visual

representations of Peacekeeper values. They

integrate into the settlements and provide moral

examples that others can aspire to – often

becoming ‘sheriffs’ or setting up medical clin-

ics... Or that’s the theory...

Beliefs

Peacekeepers believe that they are the only true

survivors of the Burn. They in no way deny that

others are ‘human’ but that they have lost all the

civilisations development that came before the

burn, and as such the Peacekeepers are the only

link to this past.

In many ways they have become obsessed with

preserving this legacy and become very insular.

Sanc may be an impregnable fortress, but it is

also the Peacekeepers Prison. There is no way

they could spread out from Sanc without an

aggressive War and forced labour to support their

troops away from Sancs resources – and this they

will not do.

Insted they have adopted the principle of

minimum interference, maximum example. In

their dealings Peacekeepers try to be a moral ex-

ample, but believing power corrupts, will not

force their position on the world—rather allow

the world to realise the rightness of their position

for themselves.

That position is best summed up by the guiding

principles the Peacekeepers call the Charter

rules.

1. All Humans are Equal

2. Mutation threatens the inherent nature of Hu-

manity and must be prevented

3. The strong must protect the weak

4. Justice must be done

The Free Trade Union

General

The Union is formed from a collective of vastly different and diverse settlements and groups, unified by a shared

belief that you don't attack your business partners. this simple idea led to the largest and most powerful organisa-

tion since before the Burn. The Union makes no judgements on what you do, what you believe or how you act -

so long as these things do not interfere with the flow of trade. more than anyone else the Union has Surplus.

More food than it could eat, more workers than it could use.

For the first time since the Burn significant resources could be devoted into needs other than the immediate.

Science, exploration, art, literature, the Union was on the verge of a renaissance. Then the Swarm Hit.

Culture

The FTU is a melting pot of cultures, but without exception the Swarm has devastated them. If they did not

come under direct attack from the Swarm, or avoided the attention of opportunist bandits, they were swamped

by refugees. The FTU is a ruin of its former glory but it has far from given up. It has called in every debt,

employed every scheme and provided every incentive in its arsenal to regain its strength.

Beliefs

The FTU prides itself on its indifference to the... quirks... of its members, but is also ruthlessly efficient at

protecting its interests. The Union is Free, so long as you don't use that freedom to disrupt the Union’s activities.

If the Union is considered to believe in anything, it’s money. But as any trader worth their salt will tell you -

money is simply a way of keeping score - what it really wants is power - resources to do whatever it needs to do

to survive and prosper. In the wake of the Swarm, this is more important than ever.

“I can still smell the farms back at Greenwood when I close my eyes. The sound of the bell when

grub was up... That bell... That was the last I heard of Greenwood, but its last ring wasn’t for food,

it was for the Swarm.

You have no idea. The Swarm barely touched you. The Union took its brunt. It was us who felt the

force of it. Once we were so big, so strong, now look at us—the only thing we have now is

corpses.”

Survivor testimony.