PREVIEW MAY ONLY BE USED WITH PRIOR PERMISSION

CORE RULES Chapter 1 APREVIEW World MAY ONLY BE USED in DarknessWITH PRIOR PERMISSION e live in a world where the sun has set. Fallen angels, twisted demons, and lost gods walk in our midst. So too do our eternal jail- ers, pitiless beings beyond Time itself, striv- ing to keep us imprisoned. Their corrupting influence seeps into every aspect of our existence. They wield almost total control over our top politicians, religious leaders, law enforcement officials, internet celebri- ties, and media industries. Their only goal is to keep us distracted, passive and quiet, so we never awake from our trance and see W the world as it truly is.

38 Chapter 1 – A World in Darkness twisted ideals of beauty, while the charming man on the dating site is one of Tipareth’s Incarnates. Crea- The Demiurge tures no longer fully human dwell in ghost towns, Ages ago, a being of immense power, known as the Demi- rundown industrial areas, and ramshackle buildings urge, ensnared us and forced us into submission. He forged in the inner cities. In hospitals, coma patients con- ten Principles with which to bind humanity, then fettered us struct vivid and marvelous dream worlds, places and quelled our divine fire, reducing it to a dying ember. We where they can rule unchallenged even as their existed completely in His counterfeit world, and our souls fed bodies wither. Terror also dwells within us and when its infrastructure when we died. The delicate Illusion depended the Illusion weakens, our nightmares assume physi- on infinitely complex machinery, where every facet of our lives cal form and stalk the earth. Our perverse appetites, served only to perpetuate our enslavement. Our jailers, the lic- repressed for millenia, birth unspeakable creatures tors, held positions of power throughout our societies, keeping of flesh and fear. Some of us seek our origins, us distracted with endless conflicts, impossible commitments, discovering pathways, puzzles, and magic to part and aching desires. The Illusion seemed impenetrable. the Illusion and lead us toward the dim light of our original divinity. But then, unexpectedly, the Demiurge’s power started to weaken. We began to question the intricately constructed system of faith and politics which kept us enslaved. The divine order was thrown into revolt, world religions lost their adher- ents, and the once crowded churches were abandoned. Over a few centuries, the worldview that had endured for thousands of Playing KULT years slowly fell apart. Early in the 20th century, this collapse In KULT: Divinity Lost, the protagonists are people reached its zenith and the Demiurge vanished from existence, who become involved in or are pulled into events either having fled or died. tied to their pasts. Past sins catch up with them, demanding atonement. Childhood fears bubble Now, the boundaries of the Illusion are weakened. Even so, up to the surface, manifesting in physical form. only a rare few have begun seeing through the lies. Most of us These terrors take their shape based on what close our eyes to the Truth, creating new distractions to keep lurks inside of us. As such, we cannot perceive ourselves enthralled, nurtured by our greed and vanity. Our jail- whatever exists out there without also being ers struggle to keep our hands tied, obscuring our perceptions, reflected in it. Every human being has their per- whispering new lies, and always fearing we will wake up. They sonal demons, their own purgatories. In these know that most of us, somehow, feel an uneasy sense of loss stories, the protagonists are forced to journey or emptiness, a pervasive need to know that there is more. The into the abyss, perhaps even across the thresh- Illusion’s disintegration creates mental discomfort and disor- 1 old of death itself, only to discover there is no der, which are controlled with therapies and medications that final destination – Death is only the beginning. also blind us to the True Reality. MadnessPREVIEW – the irrational feeling something isn’t right – overwhelms and leads us further into The oracles and prophets seek our attention the darkness, away from the familiar and conceivable.MAY ONLY withBE their USED graffiti inlaid with hidden meanings, through their rambling screeds on conspiracy WITH PRIOR PERMISSIONblogs, and by stopping us on the street and shouting the Truth into our faces with spit- laden monologues. Yet we immediately turn Beyond Darkness our gaze down towards the comforting light of our cellphone screens and keep walking on and Madness as if nothing happened. When we see through the Illusion, we glimpse a world far In KULT’s stories, the main characters are darker and more terrifying than the one we thought existed suddenly awakened from their slumber and, around us. Grim buildings, dirty stone façades, and darkened despite everything they thought they knew, doorways, leading to labyrinthine border worlds where pale realize their lives have been a lie. As the beings dwell in perpetual shadows. Demons and other tormen- reality these characters carefully constructed tors target the mentally ill for spiritual torture, using them as around themselves falls apart piece by bridges to claw their way into our reality. In housing projects, piece, they begin to glimpse a darker world local cults worship strange gods and ritually butcher outsiders lurking behind the cracks in the mortar. The who won’t be missed. Condemned men hunt for the secrets of Illusion is starting to tear. immortality, making pacts with fallen angels. Conjurers solve The characters will confront unthinkable intricate puzzles by deciphering arcane nonsense scribbled on horrors. Those who do not perish are subway walls. At the end of the street, the desolate house has a changed irrevocably. They will make pacts secret entrance, which only an unlucky few can see. Old gods with sinister entities to elude even darker linger in the slums, bewildered, remnants of ancient beliefs forces, glimpse the Truth that renders their sustained by humanity’s dreams of bygone years. Beneath her past lives meaningless, and experience well-dressed veneer, the smiling stranger is a flayed and man- both the sweetness of victory and its gled nepharite, who leaves bloody footprints behind her. The rotten aftertaste. exquisite model is a mindless semblance created by humanity’s

The Demiurge 39 PREVIEW MAY ONLY BE USED WITH PRIOR PERMISSION

40 Chapter 1 – A World in Darkness GM: “Okay, you continue waiting there. As the minutes tick by impossibly Roleplaying slowly, hundreds, maybe thousands, of KULT: Divinity Lost is best suited for groups of three to six people hurry by you and out onto the wet people willing to experience a dramatic horror story. One of square, heading towards the surrounding the participants assumes the role of gamemaster (GM) and buildings to escape the weather. You’re just is responsible for leading the conversation and managing about to get on your way when you finally the story’s scope as well as the bulk of the game’s rules. The spot Johanna.” remaining participants are the players, who each utilize the Player: “Oh, damn. I approach her, quickly.” game rules to create a player character (PC), who represents their protagonist in the story. Before beginning the game, the GM: “Okay, as you start walking, you notice the group determines guidelines for the story, such as when and man following really close behind her. Johanna’s where it takes place, and any notable events the PCs have got the hood of her jacket up, but you can still been part of. make out the heavy bruising on her face. Some- thing is terribly wrong here. What do you do?” During the course of the game, the GM is tasked with describ- ing the scenes and people the PCs encounter, overseeing Player: “Fuck, fuck, fuck. I don’t know.” events which transpire during the story, and asking the players GM: “Do you continue approaching her, or do you just what their characters are doing. The GM also controls and stay out on the square?” portrays all characters who are not player characters – called The conversation between the GM and player continues non-player characters (NPCs). If a PC encounters an NPC in the in this fashion, letting the group discover what happens story, the GM describes what the NPC does and says. In turn, next in the story. Maybe the GM will switch to a different the players assume the roles of their characters when they PC, describe a scene, and ask the player what her PC does, converse with each other or any NPCs they encounter, as well or another PC is introduced into the scene described above: as describe what their characters do. All of this interaction is framed in the format of a conversation. GM: “Mary, you are crossing Sergel’s Square on your way home from work when you suddenly see John standing in The typical conversation might progress something like this: the middle of the square. He looks panicked, and is staring GM: “It’s eight-twenty in the evening, Saturday, November at a woman further down the square. She looks familiar but 22nd, 2014. Heavy sleet falls onto the streets of Stockholm, you can’t remember from where. What do you do?” turning the ground into brown slush. People are hurrying, almost running, through the ice-cold downpour. John, you’re hanging out by The Slab on Sergel’s Square, stand- ing underneath the roofing of the subway entrances. 1 You’re waiting for your contact PREVIEWat Daily News, Johanna, Rules, Moves, to show up. You’d decided on meeting her here at eight o’clock. But now, it’s twenty minutes past and Johanna is always punctual.” MAY ONLY BE USED and Rolls The GM is responsible for applying and adjudicating the Player (John): “I’m sure I arrivedWITH here aPRIOR while PERMISSIONrules of the game. Before the game begins in earnest, the before eight, just to make sure I wouldn’t miss her, rules help the GM prepare the story and assist the players so I’ve been waiting for a fairly long time. I’m in creating their characters. During the game, they help probably pretty nervous, considering the people guide the GM and players in determining whether difficult pursuing me, so I’ll give Johanna a call and see or resisted actions are successful or not. They also assist the if she picks up.” GM in telling the story, and serve to introduce unexpected GM: “Alright, you call. A few rings later Johan- narrative twists, adjudicate outcomes, and determine the na’s voicemail picks up and asks you to consequences of PCs’ actions. leave a message.” The rules outlining the GM’s preparation and storytelling Player: “Shit! I’m pretty sure something process are located in Book II: The Madness. Rules assisting must’ve happened. What if they know I’m the players in the creation of PCs can be found in Chap- here? Out of habit, I start fiddling with ter 2 – Archetypes and Chapter 3 – Character Traits. It is also the gun in my inside jacket pocket. useful for the players and GM to have glanced through Chapter 4 – The Player Character, and for the GM to have GM: “You’re aware there’s a pretty read Chapter 6 – Setting up a Story before the players large number of police on the square create their PCs. at this time on a Saturday night...” Certain actions the players may wish their characters to Player: “Oh yeah, true. I glance frequently undertake are described as Moves, and require around nervously and stop mess- following the instructions outlined in the rules whenever ing with the gun. Where the they’re carried out. Generally, this involves the roll of two hell is she? I think I’ll wait for ten-sided dice, doing some simple arithmetic, and consult- another ten minutes, and if ing the specific Move’s text for the outcome, depending on she doesn’t show by then, I’m the result. getting out of here.”

Roleplaying 41 Example

••Influence Other When you influence an NPC through negotiation, argument, or from a position of power, roll +Charisma:

(15+) She does what you ask

(10–14) She does what you ask, but the GM chooses one: ◊◊She demands better compensation. ◊◊Complications will arise at a future time. ◊◊She gives in for the moment, but will change her mind and regret it later. (–9) Your attempt has unintended repercussions. The GM makes a Move.

The italicized text is considered the Move’s trigger. Whenever the situation described in the trigger occurs in the story, the Move is executed by following the additional instructions. In the case above, the Influence Other Move only triggers if: ◊◊The target of the PC’s influence is a non-player character (controlled by the GM), and ◊◊If the influencing is done via negotiation, argument, or from a position of power If it’s unclear whether a Move’s trigger applies – for example, if a child PC argues with their imposing teacher, who they have minimal leverage over – it is up to the GM to adjudicate whether the Move is executed or not. If the Move’s trigger is deemed to apply, the rest of the Move’s instructions tell the player taking the action to roll two ten-sided dice and add the combined result to their character’s value in the attribute Charisma. This determines their final result. ◊◊A final result of 15 or greater is referred to as complete success, and means the action takes place exactly asPREVIEW the player character intended. ◊◊A final result between 10 and 14 is referred to as success with complications, and means the player character did whatMAY they set ONLY out to do, BEbut there’s USED a complicating factor, an unexpectedWITH consequence, PRIOR a hard choice,PERMISSION or a worse outcome than what the character hoped for. ◊◊A final result of 9 or less is referred to as failure, and means the action pro- duces negative consequences for the player character. Moves are the basic mechanic in KULT’s rules and will be activated frequently during play. When PCs take actions to which no Move’s trigger applies, the GM decides what happens. Often, the PCs successfully do exactly the thing they intended, but if they’re unskilled, unequipped, currently in a bad situation, opposed by someone or something powerful, or simply because the GM believes it’d be more appropriate to the story, the GM can instead provide them with an unexpected or unwanted out- come, or make a Move themselves. More information on rules for Moves that player characters can use are in Chapter 4 – The Player Character. All actions taken by NPCs happen as described, since the GM will have already determined it makes sense for the character to take that action. The GM does have access to Moves as well, but these don’t tend to have triggers. Instead, the GM executes a Move of their choice during certain dramatic moments throughout the story. No dice rolling is involved (or required) for the GM and the events in the GM Move transpire immediately and irrevocably. These Moves often result in challenges, obstacles, or consequences in the story, which the PCs must then react to. These GM Moves, and more about running the game, are covered in Chapter 5 – The Gamemaster.

42 Chapter 1 – A World in Darkness PREVIEW 1 MAY ONLY BE USED WITH PRIOR PERMISSION

Rules, Moves, and Rolls 43 The Agent

The Agent does whatever is necessary to protect and serve her employer’s best interests. People are simply resources to be used, abused, and expended. Anyone standing in the way must be removed. She gathers and analyzes information at an almost impossible speed. Threats demand rapid responses, and sometimes there are no good choices. The Agent’s job means accepting great costs, usually in the form of dangers, but also an ever-growing debt to those sacrificed for the greater good. When this burden finally becomes too heavy, The Agent’s exits have likely already closed, and ‘good’ and ‘evil’ have lost all meaning.

PREVIEW MAY ONLY BE USED WITH PRIOR PERMISSION

48 Chapter 2 – Archetypes OCCUPATION LOOKS Choose your Agents’s occupation from the list below, or invent one Select or come up with your own distinguishing features for your of your choosing. character. Open-source officer, Case officer, Counterterrorism analyst, Clothes: Suit, everyday wear, military uniform, camo, trench- Analytic methodologist, Special agent, Security professional, coat, streetwear, or practical clothes. Operations officer, Collection management officer, Handler, Face: Scarred, inconspicuous, innocent, grim, one-eyed, expres- Infiltrator, Spy, Sleeper agent. sionless, tense, wrinkled, stern, smiling, chomping, square- jawed, or handsome face. DARK SECRETS Eyes: Penetrating, kind, hardened, avoidant, piercing, suspicious, Choose 1 or more Dark Secrets. Suggestions: curious, indifferent, intelligent, guilt-laden, or empty eyes. Forbidden Knowledge ◊◊ Body: In shape, chubby, large, emaciated, flexible, hard, ◊◊Guardian sinewy, average, right, short, quick, feline, curled, mutilated, ◊◊Occult Experience scarred, or trembling body. ◊◊Strange Disappearance NAME ◊◊Victim of Medical Experiments Choose a name for your character, suitable to the locale in which the campaign is set. DISADVANTAGES Choose 2 Disadvantages. Suggestions: RELATIONS ◊Lost Identity Everyone introduces their character by name, looks, ◊ and personality. Take your turn. Write down the Nightmares ◊◊ other player characters’ names. Go around the table ◊◊Obsession again to establish your Relations. ◊◊Rival If you know any of the other player characters ◊Stalker from before, choose one of these options to ◊ establish the relationship between the two of ◊◊Wanted you. ADVANTAGES ◊◊One of the characters has been your informant for several years. They take +1 Choose 3 Advantages from the list below. 2 Relation with you. Moles (Charisma) ◊ PREVIEWYou possess compromising informa- ◊ ◊◊ ◊◊Burglar (Coolness) tion about one of the characters’ past. ◊◊Analyst (Reason) MAY ONLY◊◊One BE of the USED characters is an old friend of yours. Take +1 Relation ◊Explosives Expert (Reason) WITH PRIOR PERMISSION ◊ with each other. ◊Tracer (Reason) ◊ ◊◊One of the characters is your ◊◊Quick Thinker (Reason) lover. They take +2 Relation ◊Field Agent (Violence) with you. Choose what Rela- ◊ tion you have with them. ◊◊Endure Trauma (–) ◊◊One of the characters is your ATTRIBUTES colleague. Take +1 Relation with them. Assign the modifiers +2, +1, and +0 to the three pas- sive attributes: Fortitude, Reflexes, and Willpower. Decide the nature of three addi- tional Relations: one neutral Assign the modifiers +3, +2, +1, +1, +0, −1, and −2 to (0), one meaningful (+1), the seven active attributes: Charisma, Coolness, Intu- and one vital (+2). ition, Perception, Reason, Soul, and Violence.

Choosing Archetypes 49 The Artist

The Artist exists only to create, to give themselves, body and soul, over to the arts. They express this desire through many mediums. A hypnotic painting, music trapping the audience in pure ecstasy, books spellbinding their readers, or a model’s sculpted flesh are all the purview of The Artist. Artists have the ability to speak to the souls of others by inviting them into their own, but this ability always comes at a price. The price is paid by The Artist themselves, be it their sanity or strength.

PREVIEW MAY ONLY BE USED WITH PRIOR PERMISSION

50 Chapter 2 – Archetypes OCCUPATION LOOKS Choose your Artist’s occupation from the list below, or invent one Select or come up with your own distinguishing features for your of your choosing. character. Author, Dancer, Actor, Painter, Videographer, Photo­grapher, Clothes: New Age, Gothic, Metal, peacockish, designer, bohe- Designer, Model, Musician, Singer, Personal trainer, Cosmetol- mian, worn, or normcore clothes. ogist, Television Host, Director, Reporter, Blogger. Face: Haggard, cute, pretty, captivating, beautiful, ascetic, tired, or expressive face. DARK SECRETS Eyes: Easy, cheerful, crystal clear, magnetic, profound, Choose 1 or more Dark Secrets. Suggestions: burned out, hypnotizing, or passionate eyes. Curse ◊◊ Body: Cute, agile, robust, emaciated, sexy, lanky, sensual, ◊◊Heir warped, graceful, or voluptuous body. ◊Mental Illness ◊ NAME ◊Pact with Dark Forces ◊ Choose a name for your character, suitable to the locale ◊◊Victim of Crime in which the campaign is set.

DISADVANTAGES RELATIONS Choose 2 Disadvantages. Suggestions: Everyone introduces their character by name, ◊Cursed looks, and personality. Take your turn. Write ◊ down the other player characters’ names. Depression ◊◊ Go around the table again to establish your ◊◊Drug Addict Relations. ◊◊Nightmares If you know any of the other player char- ◊Schizophrenia acters from before, choose one of these ◊ options to establish the relationship ◊◊Victim of Passion between the two of you. ADVANTAGES ◊◊One of the characters is involved in your art. Take +1 Relation with Choose 3 Advantages from the list below. them. 2 ◊Artistic Talent (Charisma) ◊ ◊◊One of the characters is your Fascination (Charisma) PREVIEWlover. Take +1 Relation with ◊◊ them. ◊◊Notorious (Charisma) MAY ONLY◊One BE of the USED characters hurt you. ◊◊Observant (Intuition) ◊ One of the characters is infat- ◊Body Awareness (Perception) WITH PRIOR◊◊ PERMISSION ◊ uated with you. They take ◊◊Enhanced Awareness (Soul) +2 Relation with you. ◊◊Forbidden Inspiration (Soul) ◊◊One of the characters ◊Snake Charmer (Soul) commissioned a work of ◊ art from you. They take ATTRIBUTES +1 Relation with you. Assign the modifiers +2, +1, and +0 to the three pas- Decide the nature of three sive attributes: Fortitude, Reflexes, and Willpower. additional Relations: One neutral (0), one mean- Assign the modifiers +3, +2, +1, +1, +0, −1, and −2 ingful (+1), and one to the seven active attributes: Charisma, Coolness, vital (+2). Intuition, Perception, Reason, Soul, and Violence.

Choosing Archetypes 51 Guilty of Crime rituals, exposed cults serving disturbing entities, or seen things revealing that the world is not what it seems. Your You feel constant remorse for a crime you have com- experiences make it difficult for you to accept the Illusion that mitted. Regardless if you committed the crime on your most others live in. own initiative or because you were coerced by others, you feel you are solely to blame. The victim, their rela- Suggested personal drives: tives, and/or the police are probably looking for you. ◊◊Uncover more of the Truth. Suggested personal drives: ◊◊Seek atonement for your actions. ◊◊Avoid justice. ◊◊Help others realize the Truth. ◊◊Confront the victim or their relatives. ◊◊Seek out more occult knowledge and power. ◊◊Punish yourself. ◊◊Fight the demons. ◊Help other people. ◊ Pact with Dark Forces ◊◊Bring the other perpetrators to justice – be it of the legal or personal variety. You have sealed a pact with a powerful entity. You may have made the pact willingly or been tricked into it. Regardless, ◊Take revenge on those who made you commit the ◊ you are now under the being’s spell. You may have benefited crime. greatly from this pact, but the cost could be your literal soul. Deep inside you understand you must find a way to trick the Heir being into breaking the pact. The question is how? You have been granted a unique inheritance from rela- Suggested personal drives: tives or friends. It could be a small object or something more substantial, such as a house. The inheritance has ◊◊Find a way to break the pact. instilled an unnatural obsession within you. You know ◊Cheat death. it hides secrets and perhaps unknown forces. Might it ◊ reveal what happened to its previous owner? Others ◊◊Slay the being. want to possess your inheritance also, and you suspect ◊Achieve further power or success. they will stop at nothing to acquire it. ◊ ◊◊Take revenge on whoever tricked you into the pact. Suggested personal drives: Responsible for Medical Experiments ◊◊Discover the truth about your inheritance. ◊◊Protect your inheritance. You were responsible for or assisted in shady medical exper- PREVIEWiments, which ended in horrifying results. Regardless of Investigate what happened to its previous owner. ◊◊ whether the subjects were willing or not, the experiments ◊◊Confront those who seek to acquireMAY your ONLY BEdestroyed USED their lives and they are now dead, missing, or inheritance. transformed into something inhuman. In addition to your WITH PRIOR PERMISSIONpangs of guilt, you may be pursued by your former test sub- Mental Illness jects, their relatives, the law, former colleagues, employers, or nameless forces trying to silence you. You or one of your close relations suffer from mental illness. There’s a good chance you have seen with your Suggested personal drives: own eyes (or heard from your relative) that reality is ◊Avoid taking responsibility for the experiments. simply an illusion. But who would believe a crazy per- ◊ son? Psychiatric institutions hold many secrets and many ◊◊Seek forgiveness from subjects and/or their relatives. doctors have hidden motives. For the insane who end up ◊Gather evidence to expose your former employer. on the streets, disturbed mentors gladly take newcomers ◊ Conclude interrupted or failed experiments. under their wing to initiate them in the Truth. ◊◊ ◊Continue researching your findings. Suggested personal drives: ◊ ◊◊Restore the test subjects to their former selves. ◊◊Explore the Illusion. ◊◊Expose the conspiracy. Returned from the Other Side ◊◊Take revenge on your doctors and other caregivers. You experienced an event where the Illusion shattered ◊Find out the truth about your relative. completely, and you were the only one who returned. Your ◊ apartment block may have slipped into another dimension, Find your missing mentally ill relative. ◊◊ its existence wiped from history. An airplane may have disap- peared and you were found twenty years later, without mem- Occult Experience ories and having not aged a day. A company of soldiers in You have witnessed occult proceedings, which changed Afghanistan may have literally walked into hell and only you your view of reality. You may have participated in arcane returned, covered in your comrades’ blood. Deep down you

94 Chapter 3 – Character Traits feel you were not meant to have survived, and that something is of helplessness torment you, and in order to survive this coming for you to restore balance and order. trauma, you must find a way to heal your wounds. ◊◊Discover the truth about the event. Suggested personal drives: ◊Expose what happened to you to the world. ◊ ◊◊Get revenge on the perpetrator. ◊Elude your fate. ◊ ◊◊Re-experience the crime again (as victim or as ◊◊Return to the scene. perpetrator). ◊◊Find lost relatives or friends. ◊◊Find out why it happened to you. ◊Stop similar crimes. Rootless ◊ ◊◊Confront and forgive the perpetrator. Your family always moved around. Your parents never told you why, but the haunted look in their eyes and hushed conver- Victim of Medical Experiments sations hinted that you were running away from something terrifying. They would rouse you in the middle of night, leaving You were subjected to medical experiments with unexpected behind everything you owned, simply to escape. Even- outcomes, with or without your consent and knowledge. tually, they even abandoned you. Maybe they’re still The experiments have had enduring mental and/or on the run, or maybe whatever they feared finally physical side effects. They may have shown you caught up with them. The feeling of being windows into alternate dimensions – resulting in followed never truly lets go, and wher- madness. The side effects still torment ever you end up it’s not long before you, and ridding yourself of them you’re on the road again. You don’t requires you to find the respon- know exactly what would happen sible parties. It’s also possible if you stopped, but you feel it’s your parents were the test something terrible. subjects and you inherited the experimental effects, as a result. Suggested personal drives: Suggested personal drives: ◊◊Find out what is pursuing you. ◊◊Track down those responsible. ◊◊Find a place where you can stop and breathe. ◊◊Restore yourself to the 3 state you were in before. ◊◊Escape what is pursuing you. PREVIEW ◊◊Get revenge on the per- ◊◊Find your parents. son(s) responsible. ◊Figure out why this is MAY ONLY BE USED ◊ ◊◊Find a way to accept the happening. WITH PRIOR PERMISSION person you are now. Explore other dimensions. Strange Disappearance ◊◊ ◊Expose the truth to the world. Someone close to you disappeared after getting ◊ too close to the truth while investigating some- Visitations thing. You have no idea what happened, but some- one recently sent you cryptic information, urging You have a history of encounters with you to finish what your colleague started. Since your beings from the other side. They could be associate disappeared, you’ve become the victim of family members or friends tracking you down unknown stalkers. post-mortem, entities discovered at haunted locations, or inhuman forces taking an interest in you. Suggested personal drives: Regardless of what you do, you can’t seem to escape ◊◊Figure out whatever became of the missing person. them. Every time you think it’s finally over, they reap- pear in your life – you are never truly free. ◊◊Finish the investigation they started. ◊◊Escape your pursuers. Suggested personal drives: ◊◊Bring the guilty to justice. ◊◊Figure out why you are haunted in this way. ◊◊Reveal the truth to the public. ◊◊Help spirits find peace after death. ◊Fight evil beings. Victim of Crime ◊ ◊◊Help people communicate with the dead. You have endured a terrible crime. Your whole life is marred ◊Escape the entity pursuing you. by this event and you cannot mentally suppress the violation, ◊ no matter how hard you try. Fear, shame, anger, and a sense

Dark Secrets 95 CLOSE COMBAT WEAPONS

Equipment Unarmed The players select the property their characters own, but need to justify why they would own very obscure or illegal items. Distance: arm These rules describe weapons, armor, drugs, and special equip- Attacks: ment the PCs may find useful. Players can feel free to come up Punch, kick, and tear [1] with their own items, as well. In many cases, no special rules ◊◊ are necessary, while in other cases the GM can use the exam- ◊◊Lock [0] [you are in control of the target until they break ples here and their own creativity to invent any additional rules free] the group requires. ◊◊Shift [0] [you create distance between yourself and the target through a throw, body check, or push] Weapons and Armor ◊◊Disarm [0] [you remove an object your opponent held in These rules explain how weapons, armor, and other equipment their hand] work. It is up to the GM to decide if a particular PC’s concept, ◊◊Excessive force [2] [focus entirely on killing your target, and/or the story’s setting, justifies their access to weapons and disregarding your own safety] armor or not. Edged Weapons WEAPON TYPES Examples: knife, stiletto, dagger. Base Harm: This is the Harm the weapon type causes before any Advantages and Edges have modified it. The Harm mechan- Distance: arm ics have two effects: Attacks: ◊◊PCs subtract the Harm value when they make the Endure ◊Cut, slice, and stab [2] Injury Move. ◊ ◊◊Edge at the throat [0] [you are in control of the target ◊◊NPCs take the Harm value directly after subtracting any until they break free] armor. Ammo: A resource value indicating how many times a firearm Crushing Weapons can be fired before it needs to be reloaded. The value doesn’t literally indicate how much ammo is in the weapon, but is Examples: baseball bat, hammer, crowbar. symbolic of how many rounds are being discharged in a typ- Distance: arm ical attack. To use an attack, you must first ensure you have Attacks: the required amount of ammo to spend.PREVIEW After using the attack, check off the appropriate amount of ammo on the weapon’s ◊◊Pummel, maul, and crush [2] ammo track. MAY ONLY BE USED◊◊Knock down [1] [the target falls to the ground] Distance: A rule of thumb for how close or far a given weapon ◊◊Knock out [1] [target is knocked out; PCs must suc- or attack could feasibly hit its target. WITH PRIOR PERMISSIONcessfully Endure Injury to avoid getting knocked out] ◊◊Arm: When you’re close enough to attack with a leap, roughly arm’s reach. Chopping Weapons ◊◊Room: When you’re just several steps apart. Examples: machete, axe, sword. ◊◊Field: When you’re within a hundred meters of one another. Distance: arm ◊◊Horizon: When you can barely see your target with the Attacks: naked eye. ◊Hack, slash, and chop [2] Attacks: Different forms of attacks the PC can make with the ◊ Momentum [1] [may hit one additional target] weapon. The first underlined attack is the default, unless the ◊◊ player specifies otherwise. The value in the first square brackets [X] is the amount of Harm caused by the attack, and the additional square brackets con- tain special rules for the attack.

138 Chapter 4 – The Player Character RANGED WEAPONS

Handgun

Examples: Beretta M92FS, Colt M1911A1, CZ P-10 C, FN Five seveN, Glock 19, Glock 23, H&K USP45, H&K VP9, S&W Model 10, S&W MP40 Shield, SIG-Sauer P226, Walther P99. Distance: arm/room Attacks: ◊◊Combat shooting [2] [−1 Ammo] ◊◊Overkill [3] [−2 Ammo] ◊◊Multiple targets [2] [hit up to one additional target] [−3 Ammo] Ammo: 

Magnum Handgun

Examples: Colt Python, FA Model 83, IMI Desert Eagle, Ruger GP100, Ruger New Model Super Blackhawk, Ruger Super Red- hawk, S&W M586, S&W Model S&W500, Taurus Raging Bull. Distance: arm/room Attacks: ◊◊Combat shooting [3] [−1 Ammo] ◊◊Overkill [4] [−3 Ammo] Ammo:  Submachine Gun (SMG) 4 Examples: FN P90, Glock 18, H&K MP5, H&K MP7, H&K UMP45, IMI Uzi, Ingram MAC-10, KRISS Vector,PREVIEW Skor- pion vz.61, Steyr AUG A3 Para XS. Distance: room MAY ONLY BE USED Attacks: WITH PRIOR PERMISSION ◊◊Short bursts [2] [−1 Ammo] ◊◊Focused full auto [3] [−2 Ammo] ◊◊Spray and pray [2] [hit up to two additional targets] [−3 Ammo] Ammo: 

Assault Rifle

Examples: AK-47/AKM/AK-103, Colt M4A1, FAMAS, FN SCAR-L, H&K G36, HK416, IWI Tavor TAR-21, QBZ-95-1, SA80, Steyr AUG. Distance: room/field Attacks: ◊◊Controlled fire [3] [−1 Ammo] ◊◊Mow down [4] [−2 Ammo] ◊◊Empty the mag [3] [hit up to two additional targets] [−4 Ammo] Ammo: 

Equipment 139 PREVIEW MAY ONLY BE USED WITH PRIOR PERMISSION

148 Chapter 5 – The Gamemaster Several large, closed double-doors built from aged wood line both sides of the hallway, and from the far end you can hear a Scenes piano echoing from a bright, white salon. In the door opening A scene is an uninterrupted section of the story, transpiring in stands an old, black man dressed in a white tailcoat. Despite the a single place and/or continuous span of time. For example: doorway being probably three meters tall, you get the sense the old man is hunched over, in order to fit it. What do you do?” ◊◊Pillow talk between the PC and her lover. ◊◊A car chase through the streets of Manhattan. ◊◊Talking with a witness for information. ◊◊Investigation of a murder scene. The ◊◊A firefight between the PCs and the bad guys. A story consists of many distinct scenes, and the GM’s duty is Gamemaster’s to present these scenes, keep track of time, and move on to the next when appropriate. Typically, the GM cuts to a new Moves scene when the story moves to another place or time. For The GM’s Moves are meant to create obstacles for the PCs to example: overcome during the course of the story. Unlike the players, the ◊◊Later that morning, after James has gone to work, the GM never makes dice rolls for their Moves. phone rings. What do you do? WHEN? ◊◊You lay low in the parking garage for a while. Your pursu- ers don’t appear. What do you do? The GM makes a Move when one of the following takes place during a game session: ◊◊After searching the apartment for clues for a few hours, you started getting hungry. You’ve all headed to the fast ◊◊When the GM wants to increase tension. food joint across the street. This seems like a good oppor- ◊◊When a player Move tells that the GM may make a Move; tunity to discuss what you found at the murder scene. note the ‘may,’ as the GM always has a choice whether to What do you talk about? make a Move or not. ◊After escaping from the warehouse, you all meet up at ◊ ◊◊When a character’s actions grant an opportunity for the GM Andy’s place. Sam is bleeding heavily from the bullet to make a Move. wound in her arm and seems about to go into shock. What do you do? HOW? The moment to end a scene often arrives naturally. Sometimes, 5 The GM follows this sequence when making a Move: the players initiate this by taking actions to leave a locale or PREVIEW[1] The GM describes an obstacle and asks what the PCs do move forward in the story: about it. ◊“I’m going to head over to [location].” ◊ MAY ONLY[2] BE The USEDplayers describe their characters’ responses to the ◊◊“I take it easy for a while and wait for sunset.”WITH PRIOR PERMISSIONevent. Sometimes, these responses involve rolling for one ◊◊“I want to skip ahead until [situation].” of their Moves. Sometimes, the GM will feel it appropriate to conclude a scene [3] The GM describes the outcomes of the responses, based on because nothing much is happening. The GM can always ask established fiction and any Moves the players made. the players if it’s okay to cut the scene short, or if they plan As the GM makes her Moves, she keeps her Principles in mind on doing something else, so the players don’t feel like their and describes the environments the PCs find themselves in. actions don’t matter. An obstacle is a creature, object, or event hindering or oppos- The setup and pacing of scenes can be highly variable. Some- ing the character from reaching their goals. The GM Move times, the GM simply wants to describe a location and let the descriptions, and the threat section in Chapter 9 provides PCs interact with it without worrying about establishing a high plenty of inspiration for obstacles the GM can put in the char- concept or introducing important NPCs. At other times, the acters’ way. GM will want to nurture tension and drama through making Some examples of obstacles are: a storm, a hostile witness, a Moves, introducing threats, or presenting obstacles the PCs are psychotic killer, an inquisitive police inspector, a mysterious forced to react to. object, a curse, a locked door, the sound of approaching foot- When the GM describes locations and NPCs, it can be helpful steps, a revelation that the murderer is one of the character’s to focus only on the general impression and some notable best friends, a rusty old fire-escape, a fire, a riddle, a vision details. Let the players take the lead on what aspects they’re of the Illusion ripping apart and Inferno intruding upon the interested in getting more details on. cityscape. For example: “You enter an enormous hallway with red walls and black carpets with gilded patterns covering the marble floor.

Scenes 149 Chapter 6 SettingPREVIEW up MAY ONLY BE USED aWITH Story PRIOR PERMISSION his chapter outlines how to create a story in KULT: Divinity Lost, providing you with step-by-step instructions for creating your stories, developing suitable PCs, and collaboratively designing an Intrigue Map to kick off your campaigns.

Choose a Setting The setting is the environment in which the story takes place. The first step in creating a story in KULT: Divinity Lost is T discussing as a group what environment you think would be a cool setting for the story you want to play out. The setting is defined by two factors: location and time.

164 Chapter 6 – Setting Up a Story Location The Agent: Agents are intelligence analysts, spies, and special agents for governmental authorities or private organizations. The location of your KULT story could be a partic- ular city, such as New York City, London, or Berlin, The Artist: Artists are creative individuals, whose works walk the line or regions thereof, such as Manhattan in NYC or the between genius and madness. French Quarter of New Orleans. The setting can also The Avenger: Avengers are victims of real or imagined injustices, feature more localized and specific places, such as an who willingly employ brutal and bloody methods in their quest for Atlantic freighter, an Antarctic research station, or a retribution. military base in the Nevada desert. The location affects The Broken: The Broken are ordinary people who have experienced what PC Archetypes are available and what sort of horrible things and suffer major traumatic stress as a result. story you’re telling. In KULT: Divinity Lost, a PC will be spending most of her time in urban environments, as The Careerist: Careerists are manipulative leader types, whose cities are regularly influenced by otherworldly powers, shrewd ruthlessness allows them to step on others to reach the top but don’t feel limited to telling stories only in crowded with a minimum of guilt. downtowns or back alleys. Desolate wilderness, dark The Criminal: Criminals are hardened offenders who use cunning, highways, and Levinesque suburbs are all also appro- threats, and violence to get others to do what they want. priate for a KULT: Divinity Lost story. The Cursed: The Cursed are living on borrowed time, aware that death or something even worse will eventually claim them. They Time desperately try to find a way to avoid their fate. KULT: Divinity Lost is primarily meant to support stories The Deceiver: Deceivers use their good looks, natural charisma, and taking place in modern urban environments. You may talent for manipulation to get others to give them whatever they wish to set your story a few years prior to the current want. date, but it’s also possible to set your story in the past, The Descendant: Descendants are cursed by inheritance, destiny, in order to play with particular moods or themes. You or the sins of their ancestors. Something is trying to get them for might be interested in playing in Berlin after the end of something they didn’t do. World War II, in Manhattan’s gay community during the 1980s AIDS-crisis, or in London at the turn of the century, The Detective: Detectives are highly perceptive professionals who as Jack the Ripper stalks the slums. are masters of investigation and casework. A story in 1950s Tehran is likely to play out quite differ- The Doll: Dolls possess a kind of magnetic attraction, which uncon- ently than one set in Tehran in 2010. Playing in Hong Kong sciously evokes desire in others. This often leads to unintended versus playing in Stockholm will provide very different, yet consequences. equally enjoyable, experiences. Take some time to discuss The Drifter: Drifters are usually people living on the fringes of soci- 6 and decide what would be most fun. Invite everyone to ety, longing for acceptance. They may also just as easily be subver- make suggestions and contribute to the PREVIEWfirst session. sives who despise the society they have escaped from. The Fixer: Fixers are sly, clever, underworld businessmen and MAY ONLYoperatives. BE USED WITH PRIORThe PERMISSION Occultist: Occultists are seekers of knowledge and power, Choosing who have begun experimenting with magic, parapsychology, and spiritualism to solve the riddles of existence. Archetypes The Prophet: Prophets are charismatic religious leaders, preach- Each player now selects an Archetype to play. Only one of ers, and ecstatics. each Aware Archetype can be present in a story – no dou- The Ronin: Ronin are professional murderers for hire. bling up! Every Archetype includes specific rules for creating a PC with that concept. In addition to the Archetypes in this The Seeker: Seekers are urban explorers, hackers, and conspiracy book, you may create new ones, if the need arises. theorists, who use the internet to poke holes in the fabric of the Illusion. All Archetypes except one – the Sleeper – are considered to be Aware. Aware Archetypes have various Advantages, and also The Scientist: Scientists are genius researchers and inventors, possess knowledge, somehow, that the world is not quite as whose experiments might be above board or of questionable it appears. ethics. The Veteran: Veterans are normal people hardened into terrify- Aware Archetypes ing warriors by violence and death. Aware characters are people who sense reality is not as it appears. Their Dark Secrets pursue them, reminding them of Sleeping Archetype the horrors of their pasts and making their futures uncertain. The Sleeper: A Sleeper is a person living out their lives blinded The Academic: Academics are subject matter experts, intellec- by the Illusions. Sleepers represent the regular people of KULT: tual authorities, and students whose search for knowledge has Divinity Lost. caused them to question everyday reality.

Choosing Archetypes 165 MUSIC ◊◊The Avenger is behind the wheel of their car when they spot one of the targets of their oath of revenge. They Using suitable background music during the session step out into the pedestrian crossing up the street – can help increase the players’ immersion into the offering the perfect opportunity for vengeance – only environment or atmosphere. The GM can make use to be immediately followed by a parent pushing a baby of several different playlists for the story’s various stroller. What do they do? locations and situations. With the Internet, the GM has access to numerous movie/video game soundtracks ◊◊The PC is watching a live-feed of their best friend, body and dark-ambient artists to use for their game sessions, parts strapped to two machines – moments from being and can switch tunes depending on the story’s mood – torn asunder, piece by piece. They receive a text-mes- be it calm, tense, action-packed, or scary. sage reading, “Draw your pistol and shoot [another PC] immediately… or your friend will be torn apart!” What MAKE AN INTRIGUE MAP do they do? Chapter 6 – Setting Up a Story covers how to develop ASK THE PLAYERS TO ROLL FOR an Intrigue Map, based on the characters and their Dark THEIR DISADVANTAGES Secrets, Disadvantages, and Relations. The Intrigue Map is a useful tool to get a quick overview Before beginning the session, the GM should get the play- of the story’s important elements, and can ers to roll for the Disadvantages that should be rolled be utilized even if the GM has developed prior to game start. If the players get (10–14) or (–9), all the characters on her own, the GM gets Hold for that Disadvantage to be e.g., for a specific scenario. activated anytime during the session During the course of the (should she wish to). When the GM game, the GM should note gets Hold, the player knows the down important events and Disadvantage can come into play new NPCs on the Intrigue at anytime, which creates a sense Map, keeping track of how of insecurity and tension right the PCs’ actions affect their from the start. Hold for Disadvan- surroundings and the story’s tages are noted down and saved progression. until the GM spends them.

BOMBS To kick the story off with an exciting and formative chal- To lenge, it can be useful to put PREVIEW the PCs through a kind of trial-by-fire situation, known Consider as a bomb. The GM prepares MAY ONLY BE USED a few bombs prior to the first During session. They never have prede- WITH PRIOR PERMISSION termined endings – their outcomes Play are always based on how the PCs react Once the game has started, the GM can use to them. The best bombs put the PCs in the the following guidelines for running the first position of making difficult choices between two session: or more decisions, and have a personal connec- tion to the characters. For the first session, the GM PRESENT THE WORLD may have to put extra thought into crafting good TO THE PLAYERS bombs. However, as she becomes accustomed to the GM Moves, it becomes easier to improvise bombs during Begin by giving an overview of the current setting to play. Here are some examples of bombs: the players. Tell them what date and time it is, and what is going on in the world around them. ◊◊A cowardly and physically weak PC and their beloved are assaulted by robbers. The PC is put in the position For example: “It’s Tuesday, October 7th, 2014. New York is cold of either making a pain-free and safe escape or staying and rainy, and it’s approaching 7am.” behind to help their lover. In each scene, the GM is responsible for describing any import- ◊◊A PC awakens with no memories, after being possessed ant aspects of the character’s situation. She doesn’t have to lay by the entity currently haunting them. They discover an everything out at once, but can work a few notable aspects innocent person tied up and tortured in their bed. into her descriptions over time. What do they do? For ­example: “As you enter the alley from the street, you notice this side of the house is dilapidated, nearly lost and ­forgotten

174 Chapter 7 – First Session in the ­shadows cast by the surrounding skyscrap- ers. A few unlit windows face the alley, and in the middle of the lone house is a boarded-up door. The building on the other side GET TO KNOW THE PCS’ of the alley is just a dirty, grey wall with no windows or doors, MOST IMPORTANT RELATIONS rising five stories up. A group of tattered figures huddles by a You might wish to introduce the characters’ important set of stairs at the end of the alleyway. They glance over at you Relations into the story. If you like, you can allow their player anxiously, and begin whispering to each other.” to determine what they look like and describe any notable features. Establishing these Relations early is a good idea, as INTRODUCE THE PLAYER it enables the GM to utilize them later in the story. During the CHARACTERS INTO THE STORY first session, only short scenes are needed, enough to estab- During the first session, the players get to portray their char- lish the nature of the relationship. acters for the first time, revealing how they behave and act in For example: the game-world. In longer stories, the players generally decide where their characters are and what they do. In this ◊◊As you walk in you see your wife, Mary, sitting in the case, the GM should ensure the spotlight is shared dining room. Can you describe what she looks like for equally between the players, scene by scene. If us? you’re playing a pre-written scenario, the GM may ◊◊You’ve emptied half your pint when suddenly have the first few scenes prepared in you feel a hand on your shoulder, “Hey advance to introduce the PCs to the buddy, what’s up?” It’s your old pal, players or set up important story Bobby. elements. ◊◊Sam steps out of the patrol car, For ­example: hand resting by the holster, and ◊◊The first PC is working late in looks over at you. “What do you her office on the 86th floor of a think we should do, partner?” financial district tower. HAVE THE ◊◊The second PC, a police PLAYER CHARACTERS officer, and his partner are in MEET UP their patrol car, sirens blaring, If the PCs have established preex- en route to a reported break-in isting relationships with each other, 7 in Buschwick. PREVIEW it makes sense for the GM to let ◊◊The third PC sits in a bar them get together naturally. If they in NoHo with a half empty don’t already know each other, bottle of whiskey, listening MAY ONLY BE USED the GM can arrange circumstances to a hoarse jazz singer while where they encounter each other, waiting for her friend to arrive. WITH PRIOR PERMISSION creating a ­relationship during the story’s progression. It’s also completely The players elaborate on how their PCs okay to allow the PCs to remain on their own act in the scenes, while the GM describes their for the first session. There will be plenty of time surroundings and any NPCs present. By placing to get the PCs to join up later. If you’re struggling the PCs in an assortment of different situations, the to get the characters to meet up, here are some GM can provide the players several opportunities ideas for these encounters: to explore and explain what kind of people their characters are. ◊◊A contact in common, such as a mutual friend of yours arranging a meeting at her place, an employer For example: bringing you together, or bumping into each other at a ◊◊The PC is hard at work preparing a contract when she mutual acquaintance’s get-together. suddenly hears the ding from the lobby elevator doors. A common interest, such as a common enemy, a shared Dark All her coworkers have left for the day, and she hadn’t ◊◊ Secret, all the PCs individually acquire a clue leading them to anticipated anyone else staying this late. What does she the same place, or two PCs attend the third PC’s art exhibit. do? Opposed goals, such as one PC is a gangster and another is the ◊The PC and his partner park the patrol car outside an ◊◊ ◊ police officer trying to collect evidence to use against him. old three-story, brick tenement. As they get out of the car, they hear gunshots from the top floor. What does ◊◊External influence, such as the PCs are kidnapped and brought he do? to the same location, the PCs share the same dream and meet inside of it, or the PCs are afflicted by the same curse. ◊◊The PC’s friend is nearly thirty minutes late and can’t be reached on her cellphone. All of a sudden, she sees her ◊◊Coincidence, such as the PCs happen to be at the right place at friend staggering into the bar. His face is covered with the right time when something interesting transpires, bringing blood. What does she do? them together.

To Consider During Play 175 PREVIEW MAY ONLY BE USED WITH PRIOR PERMISSION

176 Chapter 7 – First Session TRY OUT THE RULES For example: The GM lets the players activate player Moves and ◊◊The PC is viewing a blurry surveillance Advantages, rolling the dice to see what happens. tape where someone is kidnapped. As the The GM makes some Moves of her own and the victim’s face passes into frame, the PC sees situations escalate. The rules might take a bit longer her own face looking back at her. to execute the first few times before everyone has ◊◊A murderer is shot in the head, falls out internalized them, but this should not be an issue. a window, but disappears without a Take it easy and try them out, and you’ll quickly get single trace. a handle on how the Moves work. The GM should be on the lookout for players taking actions that ◊◊A homeless person claims the missing activate Move triggers, and ask if they’d like to girl has been taken by the people Read a Person, Influence Other, and so on. She living in the sewers. should also make them roll for defensive Moves ◊◊A corridor should end, based on like Avoid Harm and to Keep it Together in suit- how large the building appeared able situations. on the outside, but continues into the distance. ACTIVATE DISADVANTAGES THROW IN The GM can spend any of the Hold she’s collected MORE BOMBS for Disadvantages at anytime to make the Disad- As mentioned in the preparation vantage Move’s effects occur in the story. Don’t section above, the GM can pre- go full throttle spending Hold for Disadvantages pare bombs before the session the first session though. It is often better to and choose some to play out suggest future problems – like shadowy figures in game. Remember you’re stalking the character – than have them attack not obligated to use bombs the PC from ambush. It’s up to the GM to deter- simply because they’re mine what makes the most sense for the story. prepared. If there’s no For example: good opportunity for it to occur, then it’s better to ◊◊The entity haunting one of the PCs leaves a save it for an appropri- cryptic message behind. ate occasion. ◊◊The PC catches a glimpse of her pursuers. 7 ◊◊A nemesis has intimidated one of thePREVIEW PC’s relatives. The GM can also activate Disadvantages that trigger in particular situations, such as Pho- MAY ONLY BE USED bia (the object of the PC’s phobia appears), WITH PRIOR PERMISSION Repressed Memories (the PC is exposed to something connected to the repression), or Nightmares (a scene starts with the PC going to sleep) and see what comes of it. The GM should be prepared for the eventuality that major effects might be called for if the player misses a roll (–9).

SUGGEST SUPERNATURAL PHENOMENA It’s usually best to refrain from introduc- ing too many supernatural phenomena during the first session, in favor of building mystery and mounting tension. The GM can suggest a few things to cause the players to ponder what happened after the encounter. The fewer clues to its true nature the GM provides, the more the players will want to understand what happened. The phenomenon can be con- nected to a Higher Power or to one of the other dimensions.

To Consider During Play 177 The Death Angels

ThaumielPower

SatharielExclusion ChagidielAbuse

GolabTorment GamichicothFear

Togarini PREVIEWCompulsion MAY ONLY BE USED WITH PRIOR PERMISSION SamaelVengeance Hareb-SerapConflict

GamalielLust

NahemothDiscord

212 Chapter 11 – Beyond the Veil Thaumiel Chagidiel The Two-Headed One. The Twin God. The Inequitable Ruler. The Blood-Stained Patriarch. The Empty Word. The Corruptor. Thaumiel is the embodiment of the saying “might makes Chagidiel’s will is directed against the young and innocent, right.” He is the essence of extreme individuality and the moulding them through constant abuse of body, mind, and creative power in shaping and ennobling yourself. His soul. The children are torn apart inside and are repeatedly commands are clear: if there is power to be gained, then traumatized, until the litany of assault and fear becomes you should grasp it. Trample those beneath you and ingra- their life. The trauma itself becomes the Principle governing tiate yourself with those above. Always be wary, since your their world, a dark deity in their consciousness with whom power only has value if you can make it endure. Thaumiel they constantly grapple. It often expresses itself as fear, is every bit a master and ruler as he is a rebel and radical self-loathing, shame, nightmares, and illness. A few become reformer. Those who become subservient to Thaumiel’s will perpetrators themselves and, like apostles and prophets, are filled with extreme hunger for power and their moral continue to spread Chagidiel’s will. barriers crumble one by one. Their will alone is powerful, The Death Angel’s influence reaches into every corner of soci- while friendships, family, and other relationships are as a ety. He awakens forbidden thoughts and desires in adults, millstone around their neck. and then encourages them to commit atrocities against their The subjects of this Death Angel are all locked into intrigues own and others’ children. His presence is corruptive and and power struggles. His realm is a political meat grinder is difficult to remove. This essence is injected into films of where the weak are torn asunder and the strong feast on the vicious assaults, horrific photos of victims, books devoted to leftovers. Anyone distracted or led astray for even a moment ‘childhood discipline,’ and webpages dedicating to torment- is immediately ripped to shreds. The hierarchy remains in ing children. While his influence is most obvious in child constant flux and the most ruthless and strong-armed indi- pornography, the rise of parents humiliating their children on viduals reside at its top tiers, having bathed in the blood of the Internet has given Chagidiel another foothold in Elysium. thousands on the way up. The more you study his works, the more you are consumed 11 by them, and are either moulded into a perpetrator or a Thaumiel has always been powerful, but his power PREVIEWpotential victim. increased greatly when the feudal realms, with their rigid hereditary rules, collapsed. His servants are cunning, greedy, Chagidiel’s presence has always been strong. These days and known for their pragmatism in pursuit of theirMAY goals. ONLYhis BEservants USED are considerably more organized in extensive networks, expanding his influence. Many of those who serve Principle: Power. WITH PRIOR himPERMISSION do so for the sake of their own depraved empowerment, Symbols: A black diamond. A snake biting its own tail. An or are enslaved souls, incestuous abominations, and brain- iron fist. A vulture sitting atop a torn human body. A blood washed victims who spread their master’s will further. soaked swastika. Principle: Abuse. Spheres of Influence: Thaumiel’s Principle is strongest Symbols: Ragged doll with burnt hair. A rosebud beginning where there are hierarchies and power structures with to rot. Phallic symbol in sharp ceramics. A toy pierced by rusty clear rifts. Governments undergoing political upheaval, nails and razor blades. the entertainment business, the world of sports, organized crime, neo-nazi organizations, Wall Street and other stock Spheres of Influence: The prime arena of the Death Angel is exchanges, major corporations, and so on down to street nuclear families, but it also is active within pedophile net- gangs and school classes. works, orphanages, youth centers, trafficking rings, illegal porn sites, and various cults and religious organizations all Shadow: The Archon Kether. over the world. Enemies: Currently in conflict with Hareb-Serap and Golab. Shadow: The Archon Chokmah. Fears Netzach’s focused will. Enemies: Hates Astaroth. Allies: Sometimes cooperates with Chagidiel, but has no hes- itation about forming pacts and alliances with any power Allies: Thaumiel and Gamaliel. whatsoever, as long as there is a clear profit in it. Servants: Nepharites. Abominations. Nightmare creatures. Servants: Nepharites. Razides. The Army of the Tormented. Chagidiel’s children. The Apostles of Atrocities.

The Death Angels 213 Iaineivša and Ašvieniai (Sleeping Gods) Wounds & Harm Moves  Home: Elysium. Wounds:  Creature Type: Gods in Elysium. ◊◊The gods shrug off the attack as if it was nothing. Abilities ◊◊The gods’ golden blood spills on the ground. It will stay liquid forever. ◊◊Pact-weaver: This being can seal pacts with humans. See Chapter 21 – Pacts and Magic. ◊◊As the attack hurts the god, it sings a song of pain and death [Keep it Together to not be filled with fear]. ◊◊Imbue gifts: The beings are capable of investing some of their power into a person of their choosing. They will gain ◊◊The gods starts swirling around in an ancient dance one of the following gifts: set one Attribute to +4; the ability and electrical energy crackles between them [all oppo- to call on the being whenever in need; copy one of the nents must Avoid Harm or be hit (2 Harm)]. beings Abilities; acquire something related to the being’s ◊◊When one of the gods is hit, the other one imme- higher Power. The gift disappears whenever the being diately leaps at the attacker, clawing at their throat chooses to take it back, or if the being is defeated. [Avoid Harm]. ◊◊Inhuman strength: The dancing gods are stronger than any ◊◊The hurt god smiles in admiration of the opponent’s human. They are capable of of throwing humans like rag- strength. dolls and bending cars like straws. Even a solid steel door ◊The god stumbles backward, temporarily confused can’t hold them at bay for long. ◊ [+1 to next roll]. Combat [5], Influence [1], Magic [5]. ◊◊When one of the gods falls to the ground, the other Combat [Exceptional] one gives out an otherworldly cry and fights with ◊◊Both attack and overwhelm the same target [causes +1 increased bloodlust [+1 Harm to victims, but +1 to hit Harm, opponent gets −1 to any attacking or avoidance moves]. the god for the rest of the battle]. ◊Both the gods turn into a blue flame that flees into ◊◊Swirl up to a target and attack it in an instant [−2 Avoid ◊ Harm]. the nearest outlet [anything getting in their way takes 2 Harm]. ◊◊Dance through rain of bullets uncaring of any harm [−2 on all attacks]. The Swap Dealer ◊Cast people aside like ragdolls. ◊ The homeless, the poor, and the outcasts have heard ◊◊Rain down on someone with a dance of swirling claws and rumors about him. In India, South America, and parts of death. Africa there are small temples and shrines erected in the Influence [Weak] PREVIEWshantytowns and slums. People burn incense and sprinkle liquor on primitive figurines, murmuring his many names ◊Locate someone by just hearing their voice over the phone. ◊ MAY ONLY BEin mantras,USED in the hope of garnering his favor. His home Magic [Exceptional] is hidden within the rubbish dump in the Borderlands, ◊◊Wake an uncontrollable rage againstWITH a victim ofPRIOR their choice PERMISSION where Time and Space have worn away. To find your way in a group of people [Keep it Together to resist]. through it, you must follow a primitive map drawn on a crumpled piece of paper. There, between mountains of Knock out all electricity in the vicinity. ◊◊ stinking garbage, lies a small shed. The god sits inside, ◊◊Create a lightning storm with their position as the center of surrounded by piles of clutter and illuminated by sooty the storm. flames. He is swollen and sickly. An odd, unpleasant scent ◊Distort someone’s memories [Keep it Together to resist]. emanates from him and his breathing is labored. He is a ◊ swap dealer and listens to what his visitors want, and then ◊◊Tear a portal to Gaia’s wilderness. produces a counter offer. He immediately sees all objects Attacks a person owns when they stand before him, and perfectly understands every item he has ever owned, seen, or heard Iaineivša and Ašvieniai fight as a couple in a beautiful and mad about. dance of blood, death, and suffering. When they dance, the air is filled with an electrical humming. The Dancing Gods are a terrible What the God offers: An artifact from another world. foe that few things can stop. The gods are intertwined and it’s Objects from the past. Occult writings. The combination to impossible to kill one of them without killing the other. a safe. Important mechanical parts. A bunch of keys, which open all the doors in a building. A revolver with a curse Unarmed: Tear someone’s flesh with their curved claws [3] [Dis- connected to each bullet. An ampoule filled with liquid, which tance: arm]; Cast aside [2] [Distance: arm, the victim is thrown cures any lethal disease. A bag with $1,000,000 USD in cash. away]; Grapple [1] [victim is pinned and must Act Under Pressure Insight into the future or the past. to get free]; Bite and rip out someone’s tongue [Critical Wound] [Distance: arm, victim has to be grappled by the god]. What the God wants: A fresh human kidney wrapped in a newspaper. Three specific objects from one’s belongings. Magic: Rage [–] [Distance: field, Keep it Together to not attack a A box of Cuban cigars. A specific Fabergé egg. A bottle of victim of the gods choosing]. Distort memories [–] [Distance: arm, champagne. A notebook currently in the possession of a lictor. Keep it Together to not lose memories]. A soul fetched from Inferno. An IOU for a future service.

232 Chapter 13 – Elysium The Swap Dealer

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Elysium’s Gods 233 PREVIEW MAY ONLY BE USED WITH PRIOR PERMISSION

Nachtschreck

272 Chapter 16 – Beyond the Dream The Yearning Nachtschreck The Yearning itself is spellbinding with pale fingers, thin hands, A nachtschreck is a nightmare, which has been painted eyes, and long eyelashes. It sings songs in every brought to life. It assumes the form of whatever language, and can guide you by the hand through Limbo, as the dreamer fears the most, infecting their dreams well as to foreign places and worlds. As real as it may appear, with rot and decay. Nachtschreck can move out the Yearning is only a dream – a fantasy created by an insane into Elysium and live there, feeding on terror and person’s vehemence and appetites, yet it has a fervent desire urban myths. Nachtschreck have all kinds of unique to join the living. If you spend time with it, you quickly realize forms, and each one finds its own way of reaching how vapid it is; the same phrases are repeated and the same its victims – often spawned from the dreamer who gestures and smiles used, as though it is pantomiming. Sor- gave them life. row resides in its beautiful eyes and behind its melancholy One of them lurks behind misty mirrors, at the fringes of smile. However, when it dances, time itself appears to stop, reality, somewhere on the edge of the hypnagogic state, and rust-red pollen drifts through the air, spreading the scent hunting those who fear sleep. of saffron. It follows you silently through your dreams and makes observations, trying to protect you from dangers, if it Another manifests itself as a dusty, dark-blue mist upon can. As it approaches your dream, parts of Limbo are fringed all the blackness, slowly taking form. Is that a face in the and broken, exposing passages to a realm of red-resplendent gloom? Suddenly, the mist cracks open and you hear it: the shadows, fireflies, and the sound of waterfalls. roar of machines, the creaking of metal, and the stench of motor oil and decay spilling into the world. You cannot see anything, but feel something cold and corporeal step into The Child Collector our reality. The presence is awful and menacing, little more Late at night, a wardrobe’s doors slide back, and the shadows than a black shape in the dusk. Every night, it draws a little emit the lilting melodies of a music box, or colorful images closer and leaves stinking trails of oil and blood in the room sparkle on the computer or the TV. In this fashion, the Child until the victim is eventually found, strangled in his bed or Collector lures children into its dream world. In the morning, having taken her own life. parents find empty beds, their little ones vanished without a Blindmaiden.com is a web page only available during certain trace, leaving only vague and anxious dreams from the night times of night, serving as a direct portal into Limbo. On the site, before. The Collector’s dream world is a nocturnal waterfront you find grotesque images of dismembered and tortured people, choked with rusted vessels, where fish float bloated and and the deeper you venture into the site’s horrors, the more you rotting in the bay. On an oil platform, wreathed in mist, the look and read, the closer the nachtschreck comes. Finally you children are kept captive. The creature feeds them and forces reach a page where it says “New content coming soon” and then them to play with it. Hide and seek, peek-a-boo, dress up, the nachtschreck manifests in your room. It gives you a choice – 16 and charades. During these moments, the Collector is truly either it will slay you immediately, or you must kill and maim a happy. It wants the children to alwaysPREVIEW remain its friends, but someone else (a stranger, a friend, your child...). Those who have they always betray it by becoming adults. When this happens, been killed in this way turn up as new content on the webpage. the creature screams in sorrow over the victim’s treachery, tearing them apart and devouring them in frontMAY the other ONLY BEThe black-eyed USED children with pale skin wander on the city’s out- captives. The Collector constantly measuresWITH the children’s PRIOR PERMISSIONskirts, wait in abandoned houses, or hitch a ride on the freeway. height, pokes and prods at them, sniffs their skin, and feels They often gaze downwards in order to hide their raven-black around to see if they are starting to develop breasts or pubic eyes from giving them away. When they talk, they sound hair. Cunning children can conceal these signs of puberty for strangely grown up and often ask for a ride, to be let a while, but are only prolonging the inevitable. Some have in, or receive aid. If they are turned down, they succeeded in escaping back to Elysium, although the Collec- venture onward, but may come to follow or tor never stops searching for these traitors. haunt certain people and areas for an extended period of time. The creature itself is pale, bald, and has large teeth, which are deformed, square, and constantly grinding and ruminat- ing. It has no eyes, but uses its sense of smell and hearing to make its way around. Sometimes, its body is so large it stretches into the sky, and its every footstep makes the ground thunder. At other times, it is small, curled up, and hides in the shadows. It can disguise itself by wearing human hides, concealing its entire grotesque appearance for a while. When the Collec- tor penetrates into your dream, you smell the scent of saltwater and decay, and can hear a music box in the distance.

Dream Beings 273 Erelim The Angelic Choir who served the Archon Binah, the Erelim are worshippers and guardians of the Holy Blood and sacred genealogies. Their past duty was to punish any who went against the sanctity of Family and find infants who bore the taint of Awakening within their hearts. These children were stolen from their families and stored in blood-filled, copper urns sealed with holy runes. Erelim are all identical in appearance, bearing the same name. Only their personal holy shrouds and symbols differentiate them from each other. They lack fear and see themselves merely as part of the Whole. If one of them dies, the rest live on. They still carry out their sacred duties, albeit confused and lost.

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Hashmallim The shattered and rare fragments remaining of this Angelic Choir were in service to Chesed, and have been distorted by madness. They were tasked with guarding humanity and lulling us into a false sense of security so we would not try to break the Illusion. They gave us closeness and warmth, consoling us with their bodies and words. They enchanted us with fairytales, delusions, and hope. Now their songs have been silenced. Those angels who remain are primitive, squalid beings who have lost their minds and now exist as parasites and predators. Their previously crystalline voices have devolved into grating howls.

310 Chapter 18 – Metropolis Seraphim The Seraphim serve Geburah and are sworn to uphold the Law. The Angelic Choir maintains the age-old decrees of the Demiurge and studies ancient tenets preserved on tablets of iron, attempting to follow them dutifully. Their narrow perceptions and countless rules have fettered them, allowing them to cope with the Demiurge’s fall and the war between the Archons. They have not allowed themselves to feel and think, but instead follow what the laws say about how they should act. The Seraphim are fearsome warriors and Geburah dispatches them over the worlds occasionally, in order to solidify his power.

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Malakhim Under Tiphareth, this Angelic Choir were messengers, cour- tesans, and heralds. They travelled between the worlds, the courts of the Archons, and the Demiurge’s Citadel with decrees, court rulings, and accolades. The Malakhims’ beauty was enchanting and stirred desires in everybody who encountered them. The Demiurge named them as His favored children, and as such His disappearance became ever so fateful for the Malakhim. Their intimate connection to the divine ruler caused their souls to be torn asunder. They wasted away in sorrow, a rare few surviving. Some still serve Tiphareth, while others have surrendered themselves to the winds, bewailing their creator in the wilderness. Others strug- gle to forget who they are in Elysium’s cities.

Angels 311 Temples Sacrifice A magician’s temple is a sanctum where they can perform Many rituals require sacrifice. A sacrifice doesn’t their rituals undisturbed. It is forbidden for anyone other necessarily have to be some living creature, but than the magician and any beings affected by, or partici- could also denote a sacrifice of food, drink, or the pating in the ritual, to enter the temple. It is usually sancti- destruction of an object. Bodily sacrifice can be fied in accordance with the traditions the magician adheres in the form of sexual acts, physical pain, blood, or to, which can vary widely between different schools of body parts. In major rituals, particularly within the magic, but are always adapted to the magician’s own school of Death, magicians may also be required personal style. Assuming she has all the necessary tools and to sacrifice living creatures – animal or human – or resources available, a magician can prepare a new temple other entities. Even in other schools, where the in seven days, and can maintain several temples in different rituals alter or curse a creature, this can itself be places simultaneously. If the magician lacks access to her considered a sacrificial act. Sacrifices can even be temple, she runs a much higher risk of losing control when more abstract than this, such as the loss of a mem- performing her rituals. If necessary, a temporary temple can ory, sensory or emotional capacity, several years of be prepared for the purpose of performing a specific ritual your lifespan, or even one’s soul to a higher power in 24 hours. After this ritual is performed, the location loses or other being. Mortal self-sacrifice is quite uncom- its sanctified temple status. mon, but may play a role if the magician is trying to perform extremely powerful rituals with the aim of Rule: A magician performing a ritual outside of a temple being reborn in a particular body or to leave their takes −2 to the roll. physical body behind in favor of a divine form. Examples of Temples Common to Different Schools of Magic: ◊◊Madness: Alleyways; sewers; abandoned industrial ware­houses; desolate subway tunnels; a circular room with padded walls and floor with an operating table in Playing the middle of the room serving as an altar; condemned buildings; forgotten spaces underneath overpasses and a Magician bridges. Magicians are rare and mighty people with the ◊◊Time and Space: A makeshift astrolab in a dilapidated power to open portals to other dimensions and clock tower; buildings constructed on the basis of bind creatures to their own will. In a typical story, advanced mathematical formulas; mosaic atriums; magicians will be non-player characters who the St. Peter’s Square in the Vatican; astronomical temples; players’ characters will join forces with if they’re Stonehenge. PREVIEWlucky, or come into conflict with if they’re not. ◊◊Dream: The dream magician’s temple is generally located KULT: Divinity Lost’s core rules focus on playing in Limbo, where it can take any form the magician wishes. Sleepers or Aware Archetypes, where the PCs have MAY ONLY BElittle orUSED no understanding of the true nature of ◊Death: A basement under a house in an idyllic suburb; the ◊ WITH PRIOR PERMISSIONReality. Characters may develop into Enlightened dark attic in an old house in the shadows of the skyscrapers; Archetypes, such as The Death Magician, through an a damp stone chamber hidden in the forest; ancient cata- Aware Archetype such as The Artist, The Criminal, The combs; mortuaries; the centre of an abandoned battlefield; Detective, and others. When a PC develops all the a defaced tomb in the largest cemetery in the middle of the way from Sleeper through Aware to Enlightened, the city; the forgotten murder scene in a closed apartment. player will develop their own understanding of the ◊◊Passion: A Victorian salon with mirrors mounted in the world’s reality alongside their character. But play- ceiling; a sterile industrial space featuring ropes, chains, ing an Enlightened character from the story’s start and other constructions used for BDSM; an empty base- will mean the GM has to reveal part of the Truth to ment furnished only with a long wooden table with leather the player. straps; a richly veiled bedroom with an enormous poster The Enlightened Archetype The Death Magician is bed, erotic paintings, soft pillows, and nude statues; a available in Chapter 22 – The Awakening alongside natural cave near the top of a dormant volcano. three others, giving players the ability to play as a magician and granting the GM some insight Equipment into how magic works. The GM should be aware that this Archetype alters the balance of the game Many rituals require particular equipment to enable certain considerably. Future supplements will contain actions or as symbolic representations of aspects of Reality. further Enlightened Archetypes along with rules Candles, incense, statuettes, fabric, knives, swords, crowns, and suggestions for how to play stories featuring rings, bowls, staffs, mirrors, alcohol, stones, glass, and altars Enlightened characters. One Enlightened Archetype are some commonly used ritual equipment in many schools of will be available for each school of magic, allowing magic, but there is no fixed limit to what kinds of equipment players to portray magicians of Dream, Time and magicians may use in their rituals. If a magician feels a servant Space, Passion, and Madness. of Yesod could be represented by a crumpled dollar bill, that’s entirely possible.

346 Chapter 21 – Pacts and Magic PREVIEW 21 MAY ONLY BE USED WITH PRIOR PERMISSION

Playing a Magician 347 Chapter 22 The PREVIEWAwakening o truly Awaken, one must cast off the shackles of the Illusion and return to their divineMAY nature. ONLY Howe ver,BE thereUSED are no clear steps to achieving this goal, so the journey towards one’s divinity is always a lonely one. The path taken depends on eachWITH individual. PRIOR Some PERMISSION Awaken by sinking deep into madness and affirming their most primitive nature, severing their social ties, breaking all taboos, and committing cruel deeds to become so traumatized and inhuman they tear back the Illusion’s veil. Others devote them- selves to analysis, mathematics, and accumulating knowledge to take control of all desire and suppress their distracting emotions. Through art, some have learned to depict reality and its lies with such clarity they can start seeing themselves and the world beyond the Illusion’s restraints. Total insight into the nature of the Principles, learning to harness death, Tand finding truth in madness are other possible gateways to Awakening. But every voyage towards enlightenment is a perilous one, and very few ever rediscover their lost divinity.

348 Chapter 22 – The Awakening The Search The Stages for Our Divinity of Awakening Even as we fumble in our blindness, we constantly try to The Awakening is in itself akin to exploring a mental labyrinth reacquire our enlightenment. We do this instinctively. In – a world of veils, temptations, and confusion. We must find our sleep, we journey inwards and awaken parts of our our way through cobwebbed rooms and dusty vaults, unlocking slumbering souls. We use mathematics, magic, and natural doors only we can open. No two human beings walk the same sciences as tools to unshackle us. In the abstract corners of path in breaking free from the Illusion’s grip, but each journey fol- visual arts, music, poetry and literature, something familiar lows a similar progression. Generally speaking, one can categorize reaches us deep down. The lyrics of a moving song, the humanity’s path to Awakening in four successive stages: painting’s brushstrokes, the graffiti on the concrete wall, Sleeping: The Illusion has complete domination over the individual and the novel’s eloquent words can touch our soul and and their perceptions. Sleepers do not want to see the true exis- stir up memories mathematics and physics can never tence and are comfortable with the lies. They have no insight into reach. their origin or awareness of the supernatural. The Principles have an Everything we create carries the seeds of our divinity. iron grip on their soul. A smartphone can serve as the gateway to Limbo, a Aware: The Illusion has started to crumble slightly. The person real- strange key opens doors to forgotten rooms, and songs, izes there is something fundamentally wrong with the world, at least, paintings, and photographs are reflections of our true as they experience it. They are plagued by their Disadvantages and essence. We are building an invisible network of syn- Dark Secrets and begin to notice the cracks in the Illusion. apses, slowly weaving our memories back together. Pre- viously, the oppressive veils of the Illusion successfully Enlightened: The Illusion crumbles away and the individual more drowned these out, but now they are growing stronger clearly understands what lies beyond. An Enlightened could be and stronger, ripping our prison apart. Some of us have one of the Children of the Night, a magician of Death, Passion or started to truly wake up. Some of us have started to Dreams, or something else entirely. Only upon becoming Enlight- truly see. ened can one truly begin the journey towards Awakening. How- ever, this pilgrimage is long and meandering, and very few ever Insight into and knowledge of the Truth have nothing reach its conclusion. to do with age or education. An outcast, uneducated teenager may clearly see aspects of the hidden world, Awakened: The individual achieves their Awakening. The Illu- while an experienced occultist might search an entire sion no longer blinds them and the individual returns to their life without finding a single clue. The maniac in the original divinity. They are now a higher being totally alien to 22 underground station can scribble words PREVIEWto bend the rest of us. Time and Space, while the rational physicist is kept captive by his own mind and logical equations. The hacker might step into Limbo and create her ownMAY ONLY BE USED universe, yet the devout priest searches for God and finds nothing but emptiness. The architect designsWITH PRIOR PERMISSION The fantastical towers to break down the barriers to Metropolis, but the ambitious politician merely Enlightened regurgitates established lies and advocates con- Among us, there are those who have started perceiving ventional policies, without changing anything. The Reality for what it truly is. They see the cracks and homeless man sees the monsters and demons sense what lies behind them. They have escaped our walking amongst us, while the rest of us drift by collective disorientation. These Enlightened come in gazing down at our smartphones, oblivious. many kinds, such as magicians who utilize rituals Every human being exists at the center of their and incantations to unlock parts of their divine own universe, encircled by conflicts, joys, sor- soul, and those who serve the Archons or the rows, and traumas. The individual fates and Death Angels devotedly in the vain hope of being passions playing out in cheap housing are not rewarded with power and insight. There are any less true or important than what you see the victims of misguided medical experiments, in the movies or read about on the Internet. It Children of the Night, and tormented survi- does not matter how large or how small one’s vors who have gained insight into insanity. life may be. In our shared prison, we are all There are wanderers and seekers who have wrestling with the same desires and ordeals. successfully laid bare aspects of their divin- And each of us has the chance of clawing ity, led by dusky memories and prophetic through the Illusion and gazing out on the predictions they’ve screamed out in their other side. Every little insight we have in our nightmares or notes they write themselves short lives is a knife that pierces a hole in the while high on hallucinogens. Even in the Illusion and places us one step further up the darkest cities of Elysium, these Enlight- staircase towards Awakening when we are ened exist and move closer to full reincarnated. Awakening.

The Search for Our Divinity 349