Affiliation: Difference between revisions

Revision as of 20:38, 17 June 2024

One's affiliation describes their standing (or lack thereof) as a member of one or more of Nodd's Houses and Cults. Joining a House or Cult is commonly seen as the primary way to learn powerful magic, though it requires dedicating oneself to the given faction's particular way of thinking.

In almost all cases a citizen may only be the member of one House at a time. Leaving one House for another is not unheard of, but it is very rare to be welcomed back into a House after leaving. However, a citizen may be a member of a House and one or more cults at the same time depending upon the exact situation.

Many citizens consider themselves "unaffiliated", choosing not to have an official tie to any one House or cult. Houses and cults will still gladly do business with an unaffiliated citizen, however. Saying one is "affiliated" with a House or cult doesn't always imply membership, and can also mean a given citizen simply agrees with a certain faction's ideologies or manner of conduct.

Joining a Faction

If one were to wish to join a faction the most common method of making contact would be through an Initiation Party. Held frequently by Houses and cults alike, these gatherings serve the dual purpose of fostering wide-spread belief in the faction's magical prowess as well as reaching out to interested initiates.

When seeking to join a House or cult, the would-be mage has a handful of options. Houses in particular offer three relatively standardized methods for joining: completing a trial, offering suitable tribute, or enduring apprenticeship. Cults, being less regulated than Houses, tend to have more varied methods of joining.

Trials

A newcomer to a House may opt to attempt a trial, a potentially deadly task assigned to them by one of the House's Savants. Many Savants use trials as an excuse to haze newcomers, offering tasks that are impossible or intended to humble the newcomer. Given that most Savants would rather have the prestige of an apprentice studying under them, trials tend to be unappealing by design.

Tributes

A newcomer who proves resourceful enough may skip the need for other tests entirely by making an ample contribution to a given House (or, at least, the correct members of said House). Sometimes membership in a House is given as repayment for a favor owed by the House.

Apprenticeships

The most common route towards becoming a House member. Apprentices study under a Savant for a full turn, obeying their every command. While the Savant is free to abuse this relationship as they see fit, the experience a given apprentice has varies wildly. A fair amount of slaves in Nodd are actually apprentices studying under their chosen Savant.

Given the incentive a Savant has to take apprentices, many will pressure a newcomer to choose this option unless there is a chance of a significant tribute.

Disciples

A disciple is a member of a House or cult who has completed one of the above methods and gained full membership within their chosen faction. While ranked above an apprentice, a disciple does not have the privileges afforded to one who has undertaken the Final Rite and become a Savant.

Final Rite

The Final Rite is the barrier between a disciple and a Savant, and conquering it is typically the primary goal of a given House member. It is a trial unique to each House and cult, carefully crafted by the most powerful mages within said faction to serve as the true test of a mage's capability.

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-One's affiliation simply refers to their membership or association with one, or more, of Nodd's major factions.
+One's affiliation describes their standing (or lack thereof) as a member of one or more of Nodd's [[Houses and Cults]]. Joining a House or Cult is commonly seen as the primary way to learn powerful magic, though it requires dedicating oneself to the given faction's particular way of thinking.
-An individual usually cannot be a full member of more than one House at a time, though Houses can be more tolerant of cult membership, depending on the respective House and cult in question. Some will join a House and then later leave it to join another, but this has its own set of risks and consequences and they are unlikely to be welcomed back.
+In almost all cases a citizen may only be the member of one House at a time. Leaving one House for another is not unheard of, but it is very rare to be welcomed back into a House after leaving. However, a citizen may be a member of a House and one or more cults at the same time depending upon the exact situation.
-====The Six Arcane Houses====
+Many citizens consider themselves "unaffiliated", choosing not to have an official tie to any one House or cult. Houses and cults will still gladly do business with an unaffiliated citizen, however. Saying one is "affiliated" with a House or cult doesn't always imply membership, and can also mean a given citizen simply agrees with a certain faction's ideologies or manner of conduct.
-Each House represents one of the six [[Major Aspects|Major Aspects]] of Nodd's world and their rituals and beliefs represent that wholly. Joining a House is the primary way to learn the most powerful magics but requires a dedication of the individual to the House's particular way of thinking and beliefs.
-Each House has a [[citygod]] at its head, though this position can be seen as a dubious honor. Citygods are essentially prisoners in their own towers and are said to be wildly corrupted. Even so there are many who aspire for the role or similar in search of the power it brings.
+====Joining a Faction====
-*[[House Viviria]], encompassing the [[Major Aspects|Aspect of Life]]
+If one were to wish to join a faction the most common method of making contact would be through an [[Initiation Party]]. Held frequently by Houses and cults alike, these gatherings serve the dual purpose of fostering wide-spread belief in the faction's magical prowess as well as reaching out to interested initiates.
-*[[House Umbrasia]], encompassing the [[Major Aspects|Aspect of Death]]
-*[[House Vorn]], encompassing the [[Major Aspects|Aspect of Flesh]]
-*[[House Psilysium]], encompassing the [[Major Aspects|Aspect of Mind]]
-*[[House Omnillian]], encompassing the [[Major Aspects|Aspect of Control]]
-*[[House Morphoria]], encompassing the [[Major Aspects|Aspect of Change]]
-If one were to wish to join a House the most common method of making contact would be through an [[Initiation Party]].
+When seeking to join a House or cult, the would-be mage has a handful of options. Houses in particular offer three relatively standardized methods for joining: completing a trial, offering suitable tribute, or enduring apprenticeship. Cults, being less regulated than Houses, tend to have more varied methods of joining.
-These gatherings are held regularly by each house and many cults to draw in fresh blood. These tend to be showy and alluring, and any attendants are carefully attended to, if not outright spoiled with every indulgence the house has to offer.
-Those curious may freely attend and speak with established mages, partake of exclusive amenities, and sample various spells and artifacts.
-From here, one may request to proceed with an official initiation, if desired.
-A fledgling mage has a couple options when it comes to being accepted as a disciple of a particular house or cult. While cults may vary in their procedure, all houses currently accept disciples on the basis that they successfully complete one of three options: trial, tribute, or apprenticeship.
 ======Trials======
-A prospective disciple may choose to complete a trial to be accepted into the house. These are harrowing, sometimes deadly tasks that test the mettle of newcomers. Higher ranking mages - savants - are known for seeing the trials as an opportunity for hazing, and often the tasks will be made impossible, distasteful, or meaningless.
+A newcomer to a House may opt to attempt a trial, a potentially deadly task assigned to them by one of the House's [[Savant|Savants]]. Many Savants use trials as an excuse to haze newcomers, offering tasks that are impossible or intended to humble the newcomer. Given that most Savants would rather have the prestige of an apprentice studying under them, trials tend to be unappealing by design.
-As most savants would prefer the luxury of having an apprentice, trials are intentionally made an exceptionally off-putting choice.
 ======Tributes======
-A would-be disciple with access to lots of gloam or other resources may be able to make an ample enough tribute to bypass the need for a trial or apprenticeship. In some rare cases, this may also be a favor of some kind.
+A newcomer who proves resourceful enough may skip the need for other tests entirely by making an ample contribution to a given House (or, at least, the correct members of said House). Sometimes membership in a House is given as repayment for a favor owed by the House.
 ======Apprenticeships======
-An initiate will most often choose the route of apprenticeship to grant them acceptance. For one turn, the student will shadow their mentor and obey their every command.
+The most common route towards becoming a House member. Apprentices study under a [[Savant]] for a full turn, obeying their every command. While the Savant is free to abuse this relationship as they see fit, the experience a given apprentice has varies wildly. A fair amount of slaves in Nodd are actually apprentices studying under their chosen Savant.
-Needless to say, this experience varies greatly depending on the mentor. Much of Nodd's slavery is in fact apprenticeship for various houses and cults.
+Given the incentive a Savant has to take apprentices, many will pressure a newcomer to choose this option unless there is a chance of a significant tribute.
-Unless there's the potential for a significant tribute, most prospects will be pressured to enter into an apprenticeship, over completing a trial.
+======Disciples======
+A disciple is a member of a House or cult who has completed one of the above methods and gained full membership within their chosen faction. While ranked above an apprentice, a disciple does not have the privileges afforded to one who has undertaken the Final Rite and become a Savant.
 ======Final Rite======
-Once a disciple has been accepted into the fellowship, their goal is to work towards taking on the Final Rite. Completing this will grant them the rank of Savant, and is the primary goal of most enrolled in a house.
+The Final Rite is the barrier between a disciple and a Savant, and conquering it is typically the primary goal of a given House member. It is a trial unique to each House and cult, carefully crafted by the most powerful mages within said faction to serve as the true test of a mage's capability.
-The Final Rite is a trial unique to each house and cult. Unlike the initiation trial - which may be anything a savant decides - these challenges have been carefully crafted by the most powerful mages in that house.
-====Unaffiliated====
-Many citizens consider themselves "unaffiliated", meaning that they have no particular official tie or association with any one house or cult. This does not mean they never deal with any of these groups, simply that they do not consider themselves closely tied. Similar, a citizen who is "affiliated" with House Vorn, for example, may not be an actual member - they simply associate heavily with Vorn in its ideologies, goals, in business, or in some other manner.
-====Cults====
-Numerous cults exist and are constantly vying for power, membership, and recognition. Cults have immense variety in their goals - some aspire to become fully recognized as Houses by the Council while others could be seen as hardly more than a celebrated book club.
-The most prominent and known include:
-*[[Cult of Byle]], a cult focused on filth of various sorts
-*[[Cult of Amyrnum]], a cult that pursues a universal definition of beauty
-*[[Cult of Quelsh]], a strange cult that attempts to resist and endure the city's darkness
-*[[Cult of Gorgharia]], a cult that believes in power through consumption
-*[[Cult of the Nameless]], a cult that sacrifice self identity while active in its halls
 [[Category:Major Concept]]