Cultures and Faiths
Peoples and gods give a realm its grain. This chapter gives you archetypes to build from: the book names no nations and no churches. Give each culture and faith your own name when it enters play, and write the name on the settlement's or realm's culture field.
Culture archetypes
Each settlement and each realm has one culture. A realm's culture is its ruling house's. Shared culture between two realms gives +1 on negotiations between them, and conquered settlements of another culture take +2 integration segments (Conquest and Integration).
| Archetype | Land | Strength | Favored companies | Weakness |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Highland | mountains and passes | +1 Defense in its settlements; mines +10% | pikemen, scouts | farms −10% |
| Riverland | valleys and floodplains | farms +10%; trade routes on rivers cost no Authority | men-at-arms, archers | −1 Defense without Walls |
| Seafaring | coasts and islands | ports +10% trade; galleys +1 Power | crossbowmen, galleys | −1 local Stability when landlocked |
| Steppe | grasslands | cavalry upkeep −20%; armies march +5 mi/day | light horse, outriders | towns and larger −1 local Stability |
| Forest | woods and hills | lumber camps +25%; +1 in ambushes | longbowmen, scouts | heavy horse cost +25% |
| Desert | dry lands and oases | water holdings (Aqueduct, Granary) −25% cost | light horse, crossbowmen | growth halved without an Aqueduct |
| Urban | old cities and leagues | Guildhalls and Markets +10%; promotion costs −20% | swordsmen, engineers | +5 unrest in villages under Heavy taxes |
| Frontier | marches and borderlands | recruitment costs −20%; veterans factions start +1 | spearmen, war-dogs | Legitimacy gains −1 |
Mixing: a realm ruling several cultures has its ruler's culture as the main one. Every other culture holding 3+ settlements forms a cultural faction (loyalty 0) whose demand each season is a charter, a seat or a tax break.
Faith archetypes
Every faith is one of these shapes. Name it, choose its patrons (if you use them), and set its status in your realm.
| Archetype | Organized as | Gives | Asks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hierarchical church | parishes, bishops, a high seat | +1 realm Stability per 2 Temples (max +3); Trials +1 | clergy demands every season; tithes |
| Old ways | groves, circles, elders | farms +10% in its settlements; −5 unrest in villages | no levies two seasons running in its lands |
| Ancestor veneration | household shrines, clan halls | succession contests −1 rival; family officers +1 loyalty | a great rite at every funeral of a ruler |
| Mystery cult | hidden lodges, initiates | +1 intrigue op slot; secrecy +2 | must stay secret: heresy thread if it reaches T3 |
| Philosophy of law | academies and courts | research +10%; just rulings +1 extra Legitimacy | no favor gains from rites (no patrons answer it) |
The sample pantheon (Faith and Oaths)
If your table wants patron powers that choose mortals, use or rename these eight. Each one is a nature, not a person.
| Patron | Nature | Earns Favor for | Signs (omens) |
|---|---|---|---|
| The Sun | hope, law, revelation | just rulings, mercy, oaths kept | white sunrises |
| The Storm | change, daring, freedom of the road | bold marches, broken sieges | unseasonal storms, torn banners |
| The Sea | depth, debt, the drowned | voyages, paid debts, honoring the dead | rivers running backward, fish dying |
| The Harvest | endurance, soil, plenty | feasts, full granaries, famine relief | double-kerneled grain |
| The Forge | craft, arms, labor | great works, masterwork arms | hearths burning blue |
| The Grave | hunger, secrets, endings | hard bargains, secrets kept, funerals | crows in granaries, iron-tasting wells |
| The Wyrm | old law, beasts, memory | honoring ancient pacts, duels, dragons | eagles or wings over the capital |
| The Unbound | rebellion, change, the crownless | freeing captives, defying unjust rule | strangers' faces in the crowds |
The example files (the Sacred Flame faith, the example dynasty, omens and lore) use this pantheon.