The Judges of Tehom

This is a Setting in progress by RPGnet user Nick the Nevermet.

An Introduction to the World of Tehom

Think of the legends and myths from Ancient Greece. In these stories, great cities were rules by greater leaders, leaders who were capable of feats beyond that of normal men and women. These were heroes in the sense that they pinnacles of excellence, though their actual moral standing was highly variable.

Now imagine what a world would be like if those ancient Greek cities had a technological level just beyond our own. Hector defending the industrial power Troy against Agamemnon’s battleships and aircraft. A live news feed documents Bellerophon killing Chimera. Fans of Hercules argue in chat rooms about which feat was the best. A documentary claims to expose who really killed the Calydonian boar.

This is the world of Tehom, and those heroes, the Few, are its judges. This setting is primarily "epic": a sweeping tale of heroism (by at least the Greek definition), against a backdrop of great historical events. Judges of Tehom is a setting where superhuman celebrity-aristocrats either use their public personas for public and personal benefit or they are consumed by fame and conflict. The generic term on Tehom for the people with superhuman abilities is “the Few,” which is distinct from baseline humanity, known as the Many. Though there is a myriad of powers, many are part of legacies, or bloodlines that tend toward the superhuman. The Few rule independent city states in a type of neo-feudalism they call kleocracy, or “rule of the glorious.”

Tehom is a planet with an average temperature slightly colder than Earth that is dominated by large oceans (roughly 87% of the surface is covered by water). The majority of dry land can be found in a large equatorial archipelago called the Set Islands. Within the Set, one finds more or less earth-like conditions. However, the farther one goes from the set, the more strange and alien the flora and fauna of the planet become.

The human population of Tehom is heavily concentrated in large mega-cities called cosmopoli that can contain several million people. Generally, each cosmopolis is an autonomous political entity that controls several less populated nearby islands that are used for agricultural production and other natural resources. ‘‘The Course’‘ is the name of the most populated and prosperous region of the Set. Human society on Tehom is highly industrialized and developed, and a vast information network links the cosmopoli together, ensuring a highly integrated culture. Even the Duidainian Anarchy (The Duidainian Commune) is easily identified as Tehomin in style and culture. The technology level of Tehom is comparable to contemporary Earth, with the occasional superscience creation from one of the Few.

The Tehomin are descendants of planetary colonists from The Garden, an interstellar empire that came to Tehom to terraform it. The Garden failed in its efforts: The climate of the planet destabilized, undetected alien life awoke, and disease engulfed the human population. The Garden quarantined the entire star system, abandoning the colony to its fate. Death and ruin were commonplace until individuals with superhuman characteristics began to emerge within the population. Over time, these Few have become the leaders of Tehomin society, cosmopoli have been built and the Set has been tamed.

History & Geographic Description

Full Article: Judges of Tehom: History and Geography

Planet & System: A Naturalist Summary

Tehom is also known as Nivdal II. Nivdal is a yellow dwarf star similar to our own, though the system is much smaller than our solar system: Nivdal I (Diflas) is a small world similar to our mercury, Nivdal III (Caligo) is a gas giant, and Nivdal IV, Kengadol, volcanically dead dwarf planet. Unlike Earth, Tehom has a ring of ice and tiny moons known as the Stanuht. Out of these planets, Tehom was the closest to supporting Terran life, though terraforming was necessary due to its extreme cold and vast glaciers.

Currently, Tehom is a planet hospitable to human life with an average temperature slightly colder than Earth that is dominated by large oceans (roughly 87% of the surface is covered by water). It is roughly the size of Mars, though its gravity is slightly greater. The majority of dry land can be found in a large equatorial archipelago called the ‘‘Set Islands’‘. Within the Set, one finds more or less earth-like conditions. However, the farther one goes from the Set, the more strange and alien the flora and fauna of the planet become. ‘‘The Course’‘ is the name of the most populated, and prosperous region of the Set.

Historical Overview

The Tehomin are descendants of planetary colonists from The Garden, an interstellar empire that came to Tehom to terraform it. The Garden failed in its efforts: The climate of the planet destabilized, undetected alien life awoke, and disease engulfed the human population. The Garden quarantined the entire star system, abandoning the colony to its fate. Death and ruin were commonplace. Then a miracle happened. There is no record of superhuman traits within the Garden, but soon after Tehom was abandoned a small segment of the population began to exhibit abilities and powers beyond what humanity was capable of. These powers were highly variable in their form and seeming origin, and these superhumans became known as The Few. The greatest of them created the Stormward Council. A handful of colony centers survived thanks to luminaries such William Goodguide, Sunbringer, and Dimday Dragoon. Over the next several generations, human society stabilized, exalting their heroic saviors, the Few.

Recently, humanity has faced new challenges. Lord General Risha Thaime is building a military that rivals that of Molyvdos. The oceans is spawning alien monsters bent on attacking anything related to humanity. And most disturbingly, a new revolutionary government called the Dundainian Anarchy has emerged that denounced the rule of the superhuman Few over the Many.

I: The Garden Grows

Little is known on Tehom about what the Garden is or was. Historical data files were not the highest priority when the colony was abandoned. According to the best available information, the Garden was an interstellar human society, spreading itself across the galaxy. They also know Tehom was not the first world the Garden had decided to colonize, as it supposedly had elaborate and codified procedures for doing so. And so a scout from the Garden came to the Nivdal System to find worlds for the Garden, and it found the second planet of the system to have potential as a human habitat. While its atmosphere was acceptable, rich mineral deposits were found. At the same time, it was seemingly devoid of indigenous life, and it was a frozen world covered in an almost completely frozen surface. The Garden began a process of terraforming and warming Tehom while establishing initial mining installations. Colonists seeking a new life came to the world, and for a time, there was a great deal of optimism regarding this new home for humanity.

II: Nightmare in the Garden

The Terraforming of Nivdal II did not go according to plan. As the planet warmed, its weather patterns became erratic and surprisingly difficult to manage. Severe storms became common, as did wild temperature fluctuations outside the expected parameters of the Garden’s Terraforming procedures. There was also a noticeable increase in seismic and volcanic activity. More troubling, however, was that the initial scouting teams were wrong about the lack of life on Nivdal II. In the deepest realms of the ocean and in the hearts of the glaciers, life remained in a dormant state. As the world thawed, old life awoke and returned. Mostly microbial in nature, they also caused problems. First, several proved to be parasitic or symbiotic with the Terran flora and fauna in ways that complicated colonization. For example, something interacted with apples trees, causing them to grow razor sharp spines on apples, sometimes even embedded in the flesh of the apple itself. These problems were frustrating to the Garden terraformers, but they would not have been enough, by themselves, to end the colony.

Then came the gray plague. Something in the water infected people at Camp Leopard, creating a degenerative nervous disease ending in death. Before death, however, fits of rage or hallucinations were common. The most disturbing part of the plague was that infected members were susceptible to a kind of mass hysteria where they would all begin to see the same hallucinations or experience an attack of extremely violent behavior at the same time, toward the same target. These groups became known as plague mobs.

The gray plague spread very quickly, and the Garden’s initial attempts at quarantine were compromised. After a plague mob destroyed the largest orbital space station by crashing it through the atmosphere, the System Colonization Authority reached a state of panic. Consequently, it all planet-side ships destroyed, and the remaining Garden ships to leave the system. The Nivdal system was now under permanent quarantine. The Garden has never returned.

III: The Gale Era

Though a cure was not found, the pandemic ended. Unfortunately, without the Gardeners, the terraforming equipment on the planet eventually spun out of control, making the weather even more harsh than it had been before. It is during this time that the colloquial name of the planet as “Tehom” became common, rather than the more sterile Garden name of Nivdal II. The primary communications post of the colony, eventually taking the name Beacon, became one of the more durable communities on Tehom, thanks to a small manufacturing facility as a relatively large number of people with the necessary technical skills to maintain it.

The Gale Age was a time when a great deal of the knowledge, technology, and heritage from the Garden was lost. Even in the Beacon, there was a gradual slide into lower forms of technology. Sometimes the knowledge was lost, but just as often the resources were simply not available. And beyond the loss of technology, societal upheaval guaranteed death from many causes (starvation, disease, conflicts between communities, etc.).

IV: Attention is Given

Decades after the Garden abandoned them, humanity continued to survive on Tehom. The original settlers were now mostly dead, though some elders remained to tell the young what the Garden was like.

One of those young was Sunbringer, the first superhuman of Tehom. His given name lost to all but the most historically minded, Sunbringer he had the power to control weather. This power lifted him from his humble beginnings as a fisherman to the Directorship of Beacon, where he used his powers to help his new realm thrive.

Sunbringer was soon joined by other superhumans: The powerful psychic William Goodguide helped stabilize what would one day become Pinnacle, and the seemingly invulnerable Dimday Dragoon founded Highspire. Over the course of a decade, a dozen or so of these Few with powers emerged from the ranks of humanity, usually becoming the leaders of desperate communities (the famous exception of course being Thomas the Sage, who guided the development of Calmport hidden from view). Sunbringer’s greatest accomplishment was the creation of the Stormward Council, an annual meeting of the Few where disputes could be resolved and plans for surviving and growth could be coordinated.

V: The Conciliar Era: Attention is Fixed

Over Sunbringer’s life, humanity turned a corner and began to stabilize and grow (if not necessarily thrive). The number of the Few born steadily increased, often with radically different powers from the others. Toward the end of Sunbringer’s life, the Few began to pass the blessing of power to their offspring, creating the first legacies, bloodlines of power. William Goodguide used his powers to find those destined to found powerful legacies, and invited them to Pinnacle.

The variations of the Few gradually began to grow. In addition to founders (spontaneous manifestations of power) and legacies (members of a superhuman bloodline), the Few were joined by Keepers (wielders of powerful objects, be they technological in nature or otherwise), and the Imparted (people who gained powers through an accident or a procedure of some sort).

While it would be an overstatement to call humanity under the Stormward Council a golden age, it was the first time humanity had an expectation of stability and a degree of optimism since the Abandonment.

VI: The Shattered Era: Broken to Distraction

The Conciliar Age officially ended with the dissolution of the Stormward Council, though this event was practically inevitable when Sunbringer died after a century of ruling humanity from Beacon. Within a few years, the Council became an ineffective body used to put a veneer of legitimacy on political machinations. Eleven years after Sunbringer’s death, Pinnacle broke from the council and closed its borders to most of the other settlements. This drastic action was done because of two reasons. First, Pinnacle’s leaders saw the civil war was becoming inevitable and wished to withdraw from the conflict as a neutral entity. Second, it was one of the most self-sufficient human settlements at the time and was capable of surviving on its own.

Pinnacle’s exit only accelerated things. Srimec city had emerged as the undisputed leader of sacritech, and had been pushing to gain more influence on the council. High spire and its allies, meanwhile, opposed. A handful of other settlements, such Novum Volsci and Beacon, attempted to manipulate the conflict between the two to create an opportunity for their own political interests. Within four years, the Council was officially disbanded. War was officially declared between Highspire and Srimec, and most of the other settlements prepared for an uncertain but violent future.

The Few were instrumental during the Shattered War, as they were often as available if not more so than a well-trained and equipped military of the Many. While handful of large scale battles did occur, though it was more common for the Few to launch raids and strikes, while the Many remained on defense. Compared to the mass conflicts of the 20th and 21st Centuries, this time looked less like a world war and more a period of destabilization, an increase in failed states, and seemingly constant small conflicts. During this chaotic period, Warmaster Molyvdos of Hazor and his legions rose from relative obscurity to being a new and ambitious power on Tehom.

Historians generally describe the Shattering War as ending when Pinnacle entered into a network of alliances to contain the Warmaster Molyvdos, though they actively debate how much Pinnacle’s involvement was necessary. Beaten and severely injured, Molyvdos managed to personally negotiate a contract before succumbing to his wounds. Before he died, the Biotheurge II created an elaborate suspended animation device. Hazor has since been renamed patience, as they maintain this device with religious fervor, waiting for their leader to return.

VII: Post-Shattering: Tired Time to the Path

Stability gradually returned to Tehom after the Shattering, though the political and social landscape had dramatically changed. The Shattering, with its fluid alliances, constant preparation forced the human settlements into more sustained contact than there was before. This resulted in a more homogenized Tehomin culture that was deeply indebted to the settlements that had the greatest impact on the Shattering (Pinnacle, Highspire, Srimec, and Hazor). It also resulted in a net loss of power for Beacon, the traditional center of humanity on Tehom.

Pinnacle’s legacy-based polity was generalized and became the blueprint of “kleocracy”, a neo-feudal arrangement where the Few stood at the center of all sphered of life: political, economic, and cultural. This also created (often through blood) a network of alliances that brought some of the less developed settlements closer to the standard of living found in the more prosperous settlements. Engineers from Srimec disseminated technology throughout the Set. Novum Volsci developed an international banking system, quickly becoming one of the most prosperous cosmopoli in the Set. Highspire’s style of urban planning, with a large urban core surrounding a great plaza, became the norm. Hazor’s primary contribution was adjusting Molyvdos’ rules for combat to create the first code of archonic war, the idea that the fate of a cosmopolis should in some situations be decided through personal combat by Archons, the Few champions of the cities. The Tenax Primacy developed a space program and created a space station in orbit around Tehom. Srimec was instrumental in creating a mass communication and information network connecting the Set even more to one another.

Slowly, the “tired time” after the Shattering have way to The Path, a common phrase at the time referring to the steady progress humanity seemed to be making. The struggling human settlements finally came into their own, becoming the glorious cosmopoli rising from Tehom’s tides. Kleocracy created a way for the Few to create elite ties that connected the settlements together, and archonic war ensured that the infrastructure of cosmopoli were rarely damaged in a substantive way, even if it was a guideline rather than a solid rule all obeyed.

Within the last two generations, the optimism of humanity on Tehom has become strained, and there is a fear a new dark time is coming.

VIII: Off the Path: The Hadalians & Novum Volsci

The first new problem was with the native ocean life of Tehom. The reports of dangerous sea life and its attacks on human vessels began to increase steadily. More disturbingly, some technocrats began to argue they saw patterns and strategy in the attacks, rather than the more arbitrary or immediate savagery one would expect from non-sentient life. The attacks have continued, especially on the outskirts of the Set, with no explanation. The diverse set of alien creatures and monsters that come from the depts. To harass humanity have come to be called “Hadalians,” though that’s a collective term that tells one little about what the life form is actually like.

This new stress created economic problems for several cosmopoli, first some of the peripheral ones, but the problems eventually reached some of cores of the Set. The first to fall was Novum Vosci, whose economy collapsed in a financial crisis. This lead to a bitter civil war among its Archons. The rebels eventually lost, despite broad supported among the Many of the cosmopolis. Since the revolt, the regime has allocated resources within the cosmopolis on military spending (to maintain order) and public works (to make the agora attractive to visitors and dignitaries) at the expense of all but the Few and the rich. In a few years, Novum Volsci went from being known as one of the wealthiest cosmopoli of Tehom to a place with shocking poverty. This created a boom of refugees fleeing the cosmopolis, leaving Novum Volsci as a large city of slums and vacant ruins. It also lead to the creation ghettos called “Novel towns” (a deformation of “NoVol” for Novum Volsci) in many other cosmopoli.

IX: Thaim Rises

Deltaport was a cosmopolis of medium size and less than average influence. It had no particularly major raw materials or exports, and it was not in a strategically important location. It was simply a quiet city-state out of the way. That all changed with Risha Thaime.

One day, a hulking figure walked out of the ocean and onto an agricultural area to the south of Deltaport. He announced his name was Lord General Risha Thaime, and he preached a gospel of conquest and domination to the Many who worked on the farm. Those who attempted to flee or argue with him were summarily killed. Those who agreed with him were transformed into “metamen”, shock troops that were fanatically loyal to Thaime and enhanced well beyond the capabilities of normal humans. The first squad of Archons to attack Thaime were quickly killed, as was the second. Thaime and his metamen then began a direct march into Deltaport, and within a day they had taken over the city and killed the hereditary Legacy ruler of the cosmopolis. The Few who wished to flee were allowed to, though some pledged allegiance to the new ruler with promises of glory and conquest. The Many, however, were not allowed to leave, and any who attempted to flee Deltaport after Thaime took power were summarily killed.

Since then, Deltaport was renamed Thaimbase, and it is less a neo-feudal city-state and more a military dictatorship. Risha Thaime, who is both a fearful combatant and a master of biotechnology, has been turning Thaimbase into a military machine. He rents out his small but growing military as a mercenary group to the highest bidder, and carefully manages his political alliances to ensure it is never in the interests of any of the major cosmopoli to deal with him directly. Recently, however, he has begun direct attacks on Pinnacle, sending his metamen and archons to attack strategic resources under Pinnacle’s control. Many worry war with Thaim is inevitable, and many more worry that his true power is not known.

X: Off the Path: The Wasting War and the Anarchy

Novum Volsci’s fall from grace increased the general amount of fear and instability within the Set. With the fall of Novum Volsci, international trade was disrupted temporarily, leading for an increased desire for cosmopoli to exploit their own natural resources. This trend was felt in particular by Highspire, Stoutfort, and the Tenax Primacy; as the three city-states all shared the same landmass, called Dundain. The increased concern with territoriality inflamed pre-existing feuds among the Archons of the three cities, eventually creating a conflict. The war between them became increasingly bitter, until it moved beyond archonic war into a full military conflict. In the chaotic war, Tenax was eventually hit with a massive barrage of biochemical weapons, destroying a large portion of both the Many and the Few. In retaliation, a group of Tenacian Archons lead by Seraphim Scythe into the heart of Highspire to kill and destroy as much as possible. None of the so-called Tenacian Reckoners are known to have survived, though they succeeded in effectively destroying Highspire.

The third cosmopolis, Stoutfort, had also been severely damaged in the Wasting War, and it had a temporary ceasefire in place with Highspire when Tenax was attacked with biochemical weapons (it is still unclear whether Stoutfort or Highspire ordered the attack). When news came of what the Tenacian Reckoners were doing to Highspire, an unthinkable thing happened: the Many rebelled, killing or driving off all of Stoutfort’s Archons, and it eventually turned on the remaining Few within Stoutfort’s territory. To the disbelief and horror of the rest of The Set, the revolt achieved its objective of overthrowing the kleocracy. This horror only increased when emissaries of Ox (the new name of Stoutfort, highlight the Many’s role as beasts of burden for the Few) invited the Many of Highspire and Tenax to join them in purging the Few from the entire island. This new nation called itself the Dundainian Collective, though it is more commonly known as the Dundainian Anarchy.

When the dust settled, the world was stunned: two of the great city-states of Tehom lay in ruins, massive numbers of the Few and the Many had been reduced to a refugee status, and an Anarch-free state controlled a large (if devastated) landmass. Its mere existence terrifies the rest of Tehom, as it should not be possible. Humanity’s hope lied in the Few, and yet this new power explicitly rejects and denies them. To call it blasphemous would not be entirely inaccurate in the eyes of many. Despite its inward focus on self-sufficiency to-date, many fear it will attempt to export revolution to other cosmopoli. Indeed, it has in the past few years begun a sophisticated propaganda campaign, leading the Archons of some city states to impose new censorship laws to prevent the spread of Dundainian ideology.

XI: Searching for the Path: the Kairos Initiative

In the face of the Anarchy and Thaimbase, many of the powers of the Set are increasingly nervous, both for their personal security as well as the future of humanity. The cultural memory of an abandoned colony that almost died off is still a powerful for many on Tehom. In the current threats (the Hadalians, Thaime, and the Anarchy), many see storms that may sink humanity.

Out of fear came action. Diplomats from Pinnacle, Srimec City, and the Saltmerche Citadel created a treaty called the Kairos Covenant. Since those three created the Covenant, another dozen smaller cosmopoli have joined. While this agreement is a non-aggression pact, it goes much further in attempting to create a set of institutions outside the individual cosmopoli committed to the future of humanity. It has a standing diplomatic corps, as well as a security and intelligence force called the Dynaton Initiative. Additionally, it has a group of the Few committed to defending all member states called the Agonist Arbiters. The Agonists are also charged with the sacred duty of ensuring the rules of honorable archonic war are followed by member city-states, especially if there is an archonic conflict between two members of the Covenant.

The Covenant central base is Eiren Bay, a then small-sized cosmopolis at the time known for its open door policy toward refugees and its unusually democratic governmental structure that gave a voice to the Many. Since the establishment of the Covenant, its size and influence has increased, and it has gained the reputation of being one of the most cosmopolitan places in the Set.

Not everyone is optimistic about the Covenant, as it often devolves into a political conflict between Srimec and Pinnacle. Nevertheless, the archons are scared, and there is no better option.

The Few of Tehom

The most notable characteristic of the human population of Tehom is arguably the presence of The Few, individuals who exhibit superhuman powers in one form or another. The Few are distinct from The Many, who are the "normal" or "baseline" human beings that comprise the vast majority of the population.

The Few and the Fates in the Tide's Eye

The powers of the Few are incredibly diverse, both in their capabilities (super strength, flying, casting spells, etc.) and their origin (some of the Few are born with their traits, some train, some are altered, etc.). Some do not even have inherent powers, but rather wield items of power. The most unifying characteristic of being of the Few is that fate twists around them in improbable and implausible ways. Coincidence seems to constantly conspire in the lives of the Few. They survive the impossible, meet one another by random accident, etc. These coincidences are not always beneficial, and they are not necessarily harmful. Happenstance seems to conspire to ensure the Few have “kleos,” actions & experiences that inspire awe in others. The Tehomin are aware of these oddities, and have tried to study the nature of the Few as best they can. The amount of consensus, however, is extremely limited.

This twisting of chance is called the Tide's Eye by the Teomin, and it has many consequences beyond the biographies of the Few. For example, certain cities have improbable weather patterns, and some sea lanes are calm whereas others become stormy as soon as a ship comes close. These effects seem to also influence the collective mind of the cosmopoli as well. A particular cosmopoli may have an inexplicably high or low crime rate, for example. Often, these environmental effects tie into the lives and actions of the Few. If an Archon dies, it is often the case that the weather changed (often severely). If someone is the "rightful" ruler of their cosmopoli, then things will simply work better if they officially are in power.

The Powers of the Few

The few have powers that go beyond what normal humans are capable of. Generally, we can categorize these powers into three types.

Inherent powers are abilities the character simply has. These powers may include super strength, the ability to shoot energy blasts from one's eyes, or anything else. The point is the character acts and the power manifests.

Kept powers are those that are found in items of power, be they objects of superscience (called sacritech), or mysticism and the Tide's Eye (called foci). How the powers work depends greatly on the item that contains them.

Mystical powers come from one's ability to perceive and manipulate the unseen powers and energies that flow through the world. Mystics are wizards and sorcerers. Mystic powers often require some sort of ritual to maintain.

Origins of the Few

There are very few hard and fast rules on the powers of the Few. However, some general comments can be made.

Legacies and Founders

The first question regarding any member of the Few is whether or not they are part of a Legacy, hereditary bloodlines of power. The children of the Few are much more likely to exhibit powers than the children of the Many, creating hereditary bloodlines of power in some ways. To be a legacy means one is born different and is within a family line that has been distinct from the Many for generations. If someone is born a member of the Few, but outside of a known Legacy, they are called Founders, and they are treated with a different form of respect and fear than the legacies. However, Founders are merely the first of their line, and their children are likely to inherit their powers.

The inheritance of powers is not guaranteed. Mundane children of the Few are uncommon but not rare. The powers of the children generally have some continuity with their parents' powers, but again this is a probabilistic rather automatic relationship. To the frustration of Tehomin scientists, there does not seem to be a "Few gene," that explains the hereditary bloodlines, though some powers and devices can target the members of lineages. To the frustration of some of the Few, the birthright among Legacies is much lower than it is for any other human on Tehom.

In terms of Marvel Comics, think of Legacies as mutants.

The Few Outside Legacies

Legacies and Founders comprise between one third and one half of the Few across all of Tehom. There are many paths to power, it would seem, beyond blood. Beyond Legacies and Founders, there are four other types of members of the Few: Keepers, the Formed, the Risen, and the Inhuman. They will be listed in order of their frequency.

The Formed are people who were among the Many until some event happened. Perhaps there was a freak scientific accident, or an alien creature bit them and passed along strange powers. Whatever happened, they now have superhuman powers. In terms of Marvel Comics, the Hulk, Spiderman, would qualify as Formed Few. The Formed are the most common member of the Few who are not Legacies.

Keepers are people who would be one of the Many if it was not for their possession of an item of power. After legacies became established, powers began to attach themselves to objects in addition to people. Some of the Few were scientific and technological geniuses capable of creating marvels of superscience, and some of those technological marvels could be wielded by anyone. For example, TekMek created devastating weapon systems that anyone could learn to use. These devices of superscience, generally called sacritech, could take countless forms: guns, armor, shields, a jet pack… the examples are endless. While some Keepers wield sacritech, others possess a focus, an item imbued with power thanks to their associations with events and memebers of the Few. For example, Dimday Dragoon’s armored regalia bestowed power on whoever wore it, and the First Gun constructed on Tehome (rather than imported by the Garden) evolved from being a mere antique to being the embodiment of violence. In terms of Marvel Comics, Iron Man and would be a quintessential example of a Keeper.

The Risen are do not possess any special items, nor have they been altered by a mystical process or bitten by a radioactive animal. The Risen have found their powers, rather, through self-sacrifice, vision, and determination. Some, like Master Trainer Tem, have developed a training regimen that may help people down the path to power. In other cases, it is a singular and obsessive mission. The stereotype of the Risen is that they are often scientists or martial artists, though they can take other forms as well. In terms of raw power, the Risen are rarely the most powerful members of the Few. Additionally, they are often not trusted by the most established and powerful members of Legacies, as they are most “Many-like” of any of the Few. However, for this same reason, they are often folk heroes and heroes of the People. In Marvel Comics, Power Fist would be an example of one of the Risen.

The Inhuman are exactly that: superbeings that are not human. Perhaps they are something grown in a laboratory. Maybe they are an artificial intelligence android. It is even possible that there is a fully sentient Hadalian who has decided to find a place for itself among the humans. This is an extremely diverse, and exceedingly rare, category. Marvel Comic’s The Vision would be an Inhuman.

Final Remarks on Origins

A few general points should be made here about the Few.

First, some members of the Few can fit multiple categories. For example, Captain America could be described as a “Formed Keeper”, as his shield is an important item and he has been boosted by the supersoldier serum.

Second, the relative prestige of different members of the Few varies radically depending on the Cosmopolis in question. In Pinnacle, for example, Legacies are given special legal protections and are automatically part of the city-state’s aristocracy. Srimec, on the other hand, is ruled by Formed Cyborgs who are selected as the most capable members of the population. Eiren Bay, finally, has a fascination with the Risen like nowhere else.

Third, the Tide’s Eye does some strange things to the Few. First, any member of the Few has a chance of having a child who is a Legacy/Founder. Even a member of the Risen who has no ancestry involving the Few has a better chance of having a Founder child than a member of the Many. Power accumulates, it would appear, in the Tide’s Eye. Additionally, the number of new members of the Few is radically lower within the Dundainian Anarchy than anywhere else on Tehom. Founders are simply not born there, and scientists, no matter how smart, never seem to invent sacritech.

The Roles of the Few

There are several common terms for the types of roles the Few occupy within Tehomin society.

Archons are the leaders of Tehomin society. Where their authority comes from is secondary: Archons may be attached to business ventures, government agencies, or even organized religions (the lines between these categories are less distinct on Tehom than in our society). Generally speaking, the majority of the population use the terms "Archon" and "the Few" interchangeably, as there is an assumption that the Few are in leadership positions.

Auxiliaries are mercenaries who hire themselves out as temporary archons to various cosmopoli or other interests. There is a small handful of exceedingly wealthy and famous auxiliaries, and a relatively large crowd of relatively low-powered, low-reputation auxiliaries trying to establish themselves somewhere.

Banished are bandits and robbers, who use their power to what they need to survive. Some Banished have explicit vendettas they are pursuing against Archons or a specific cosmopolis, but these are the exception not the rule.

Mad Legionnaires are one of the boogeymen of Tehomin society. Powers can often be taxing on the psyche of the Few, and some go insane and "join the Mad Legion." Though many are simply indiscriminately violent, the more advanced members of the Mad Legion have something that goes beyond mere mental illness. These fallen beings make strange prophecies that tend to come true, try to kill specific people due to what they believe their grandchildren will do, or deliver strange messages to Archons. When the Mad Legion speaks or acts, it expresses a dark side of fate and the Tide's Eye most wish not to think about. Thankfully, the Mad Legion is relatively small at any given time.

Magistrates are experts, trading in the publicity of the archon for policy control. They work behind the scenes as spymasters and economic forecasters. The average member of the Many does not think much of the Magistrates, but the smarter Archons worry about skilled Magistrates as much as anyone else. It is not always clear who is a talented and lucky human, and who is a Magistrate until it is too late. It is an extremely unwise but relatively easy error to mistake a magistrate for a mere technocrat and one of the Many, rather than one of the Few. Elton Last, the Financial Minister of Novum Volsci, has a reputation for making people who make such an error disappear.

Key Archons and Members of the Few

• Cloudmaker is one of the greatest masters of cryptotechnology on Tehom. Using his unsurpassed abilities, he has created Kachlex City, a floating battlestation that Cloudmaker uses for both piracy and mercenary activity.

• The Crown A banned who is a member of the Few who is currently imprisoned within the Tower.
  • Initially named by Unka Josh

• Cynosure Star is the media darling of media darlings. Impossibly good looking and charismatic, Cynosure Star's fame has become self-perpetuating, outpacing the relatively modest plasma field manipulation powerset Star wields. Cynosure Star has become a popular "talking head" on Archon-matters, and rarely if ever bothers with things like battles or ruling anything.

• D'vora, The High Executive is the Cyborg-in-Chief of Srimec. Its current form is a seemless silverly body draped in a toga. Dvora is in constant contact with a fleet of gyrodrones, the Set Stock Exchange, and several other communication installations.

• Elton Last is a Magistrate for Novum Volsci. Nominally in charge of economic forecasting, in reality he is a kingmaker and mastermind. His enemies tend to disappear and few know what his long term goals are.

• Gemdah the Assessor is the sole proprietor of Clarified Harvest Ventures, a company that specializes is assessing economic risk and calculating the costs and profits associated with exploiting various resources. On Tehom, such a position is less like an actuary and more like a freelance East India Company: for the right price, Gemdah's corporation will acquire trading and resource rights by any means necessary.

• Gimcrack is a mystic who specializes in making and reading foci. He generally is covered in seeming random trinkets, each serving as a charm for various spells. Though eccentric, he is a master at the arcane and how things and places may gain the attention of the Tide's Eye.

• Karka the Warden appears to be an extremely strong human covered in partially dry mud. He lives alone in the Elder Green, emerging for few reasons other than to defend Saltmerche Citadel. Karka rarely talks, and uses no weapons beyond his body.

• Hero of a Thousand Faces is a master of impersonating others, including Archons, and primarily uses this ability for reenactments. His streamcast production of "The Rise and Fall of Molyvdos" was a gigantic hit, despite protests in Patience.
  • Originally conceived by SquidHeadJack

• Ioun is a Banished Archon whose powers come from swarm of incredible strong crystals that constantly orbit him. He can use them to strike enemies at a distance, absorb incoming attacks, and other various uses.

• The Maul of Comets is a famous mercenary. Rarely seen in social or relaxed setting, he is known for a calm, controlled professionalism until a battle begins, at which point his ferocity is unmatched. His reputation for collateral damage is equally legendary: Caliban Arcology cancelled his contract after he created a larger breach than the Tentacle Pentacle did.

• Mirk the Swamp Prophet is a master of nature-based magicks and the defender of the Saltmerche Citadel. A recluse to leaves the day-to-day activity of the citadel to others, Mirk is very careful in selecting the leaders of the Citadel and testing them to examine the strength of their character.

• Warmaster Molyvdos is a powerful Archon trapped in suspended animation as a massive computer complex attempts to cure his body of a nanotech smart-virus. The citizens of Patience expect that he will lead them into a golden age (no doubt at the expense of other cosmopoli) after he awakes. When active, Molyvdos had an array of density-control powers in addition to being a brilliant strategist and a fearsone combatant.

• Pillar is an Archon within the Lion Guard, Pinnacle's primary defense force. A master grappler with gravity-based powers of strength and endurance, Pillar is also trained in the logistics of emergency response efforts. Whether it is a tsunami or an Archon battle, Pillar will often be found as an early responder.

• Reck Reck is considered the most successful genetic enhancement experiment by Doctor Telos. Unfortunately, Reck is also considered an abomination. With hooked claws and a metabolism that ensures heightened strength and reflexes, Reck terrorized the slums of Eiren Bay for months before being caught.

• Lord General Risha Thaime is a gigantic Archon who violently took control of Deltaport several years ago, renaming it Thaimbase. Violent, cruel, and surprisingly cunning, he has centralized his control over the cosmopolis.

• Marcus Steelcrow is the entrepreneurial Archon in charge of the Caliban Arcology, a massive, high stake / high reward mining operation and attached city. A normal child to a Lineage family, he returned to the Few after developing the Steelcrow Armor system. After a brief but illustrious career in the military, he went into the private sector and convinced investors to fund the creation of the Arcology. His colleagues have become the Council of the Reef, the lords of the Arcology.

• Swan Song. A superhuman thief currently imprisoned in The Tower.
  • Originally named by Unka Josh.

• Ten Trial Orrin is an Auxilliary mercenary who weilds the First Gun, an ancient weapon that has gained power with its reputation. He is cold, never breaks a contract, and specializes in killing Archons in fair combat. He is known for his encyclopedic database on the combat abilities of the Few, current and historical.

• Thunder Bolide is one of the Few, who was known for flawless integrity until he killed an opposing Archon and her entire entourage in a static duel (a highly ritualized combat between champions of different cosmopoli regarding intractable but non-critical disputes). Thunder has the ability to tap into the world's energy fields, resulting in flight, forcefields, and other effects. His name comes from his patented energy blasts which can either emanate from him or rain down on his enemies from the sky. He is a well known Nammanist (Tidling), and has on occasion discussed his beliefs regarding Tehom's world mind.

• Void King is the distant leader of the Glimmern Array, a collection of space stations mining Tehom’s ring (The Stanuht) established by the Tenax Primacy two generations before its fall. The Void Tyrant is said to have discovered a cache of Garden technology, and people are becoming worried they do not really know how powerful he is.

• Uncle Vulture is a reclusive mystic that lives within the ruins of the Fallen Horn (originally known as High Spire), one of the cosmopoli that destroyed itself in the war that created the Dundainian Anarchy. Draped in vulture imagery and symbolism, Uncle Vulture can sense destruction and death, and his pursuits are less about the politics of Tehom and more its mystical landscape. His intentions are often inscrutable.

Tehomin Society and Kleocracy

The human population of Tehom is heavily concentrated in large mega-cities called cosmopoli, the largest of which measure several million people (Pinnacle, the largest cosmopolis, has an urban population of roughly 8 million). Generally, each cosmopolis is an autonomous political entity that controls several less populated nearby islands that are used for agricultural production and other natural resources. Human society on Tehom is highly industrialized and developed, and a vast information network links the cosmopoli together, ensuring a highly integrated culture.

The cosmopoli of Tehom are dominated by the Few – superhumans with powers and abilities fantastic in their scope. These powers may be something they were born with, developed later in life during a stressful event, the product of scientific experiments, or based on super-scientific items in the individual’s possession. Powers are exceedingly diverse, and many seem to defy the laws of science as understood by mortal humans. When one of the Few has a leadership position, he or she is known as an Archon, though many use the terms "Archon" and "the Few" interchangeable. Adoring fans follow the every move of the Archons, and this fixation is woven into the political structure of the cities as well.

Kleocracy

In a very real (if flawed) sense, social order is created and maintained by the many watching the few. Tehomin society revolves around the lives and struggles of the Archons. Popular Archons inspire the public, and the people live in fear of notorious Archons. Partisans support specific Archons. Daily streamcasts document the latest public and personal activities of Archons.

This social order grounded in fascination in the Few is called kleocracy, the rule of the glorious. In ancient Greece, kleos was glory or recognized heroism. Acts of kleos inspired awe among the spectators, as if they were watching the divine enter the world. The Archons embody this. To watch Pillar lift a building to save a hundred people, or witness the Swamp Prophet drown his enemies in a wave of doom algae, fills one with awe. This is kleos. Kleocracy is a form of neo-feudalism, and a kleocatic society is understood in terms of three overlapping spheres of life: the common, the formal, the synoptic.

The Common Sphere

The common sphere is the mundane realm of day to day life and the Many. The Common Sphere is the domestic, the personal, and what keeps society running. The Few, precisely because of the attention the attention they receive at all turns, have limited access to the common sphere. Different cosmopoli have different customs and laws regarding the common world of the Many. In some, such as Eiren Bay, the feel of society is very similar to what we would expect in an industrialized, liberal democracy. In others, such as Pinnacle, a rigid hierarchy with the Few on top is constantly in view.

One cannot understand the common sphere or Tehomin society in general without understanding that it is grounded in Cosmopolism. Generally speaking, each Tehomin polity is based on a primary urban center, called a cosmopolis. Tehomin society is an urban one: resources are extracted from the environment (agriculture, raw materials) and sent to maintain dense population centers. Very few people willingly live in the country, away from people, away from the Few. Dark things can happen away from the City - things that can only be understood by some of the Few. The city is the place of humanity; within the city, one finds work, family, entertainment, and life. Outside the city, one finds wilderness.

The Formal Sphere

The Formal sphere is the realm of power, policy, and the decisions of society’s elite, and the neo-feudal character of Tehomin kleocracy is most obvious and distinct in this realm. In a formalized or bureaucratic organization, a large amount of authority is held by the office of the leader. Various positions have standardized, official responsibilities and available methods. Neo-feudalism attaches less resources and obligations to official positions, focusing more instead of the personal characteristics and resources of the individuals in power. Consequently, kleocracy focuses on personal rather than official authority. This also leads to patrimonialism and noblesse oblige as an ideal. The Few have authority, and when things work as they should, use it to care for the Many. When it does not, the potential for exploitation and authoritarianism is great.

The personal nature of elite political structures within the cosmopolis gives rise to adhocracy. Kleocracies rely on a decentralized model with temporary task forces and projects designed to respond quickly to various technological, political, or economic situations. These various projects and joint ventures have a tenuous relationship to one another, and conflicts may erupt between them. Supporters of kleocracy believe the increased conflict is balanced by higher degrees of flexibility. A central authority (often with titles such as “Lord” or “High Archon”) attempts to balance and manage this diverse set of projects.

Archons are grand personalities with various forms of personal resources and capabilities. There is no guarantee, however, they will have the necessary training for any given assignment. Beneath the elite network of personal relationships, one finds a vast array of high trained if mundane specialists. These technocrats are to work to put the vision of the Archons in practice. A creative tension constantly exists between the Archons and the technocrats. Young Archons who do not listen to the voice of Technocrats find themselves in impossible situations, and experienced technocrats who forget their betters find themselves in dangerous ones. Between Archons and Technocrats, one sometimes finds Magistrates, members of the few who have given up publicity and glory to apply their powers to technical expertise. Magistrates are often seen as strange, not fully respectable, but exceedingly useful.

What we would consider as business and government are both within the formal sphere, as Tehomin society doesn't distinguish the two as people in our society do. Instead, Archons are given the command of ventures. An Archon may command a venture that helps maintain the peace, or mines a rare metal ore, or studies science. Some of these projects are more directly tied to taxation as a form of finance, some toward sale of products, many to both.

The idea of a conflict of interest is not present in Tehomin society; it is perfectly reasonable for someone who organize economic policy for a cosmopolis and also run one of its primary industries. Because of the fluidity of the adhocratic element of kleocracy, Archons often have dual roles, and its possible for the responsibilities of an Archon to change frequently over time. However, Tehomin society has a very clear idea of what running things poorly looks like: there is no glory in running one's business or a cosmopolis' economy into the ground either for bland personal gain or out of incompetence.

Finally, a common form of conflict between competing cosmopoli is Archonic War. Total and nuclear war is terribly wasteful, and kleocracy tries to avoid such unpleasantries at all costs. When diplomacy fails (and it often does), wars are waged by Archons, not armies. Minor conflicts, called Static Struggles, are highly ritualized and are rarely lethal. Fluid Struggles, on the other hand, are high stakes and often with very few laws except the most basic codes of honor. When Pillar and The Render destroyed 3 square kilometers near Pinnacle's agora, it was a fluid struggle between Pinnacle and Thaimbase.

The Synoptic Sphere

The Synopticon is an arrangement of society that creates order from the Many watching the Few. It is also called "The Civil Sphere," as it is the realm of community. A healthy cosmopolis requires community, and community requires festivals, entertainment, culture, and the arts. The social structure of Tehomin society is grounded in a ubiquitous system of mass and social media, a highly interconnected society where everyone talks about the celebrity aristocrats who are the Archons and other members of the Few. Many Archons use their power to create community organizations. Some are religious in nature, some secular. Some of these association promote a lifestyle, while others are effectively charities.

For an Archon, one's glory is reflected in one's cosmopolis, and this has lead to an interest in monumentality. The leaders of cosmopoli take great pride in various public works to demonstrate their prosperity. Cities almost always have a core downtown that is developed, safe, and aesthetically pleasing (at least according to the ruling Archon's tastes). When this norm of governance is functional, it means that the Archons "give back" to the Many by ensuring a maintained infrastructure, cultural opportunities, and economic development. When monumentality is dysfunctional, the cosmopolis may be in risk of bankruptcy in the name of vanity projects.

Key Tehomin Polities

• Beacon is the oldest continually occupied polity on Tehom, going all the way back to the Garden Period. Though not officially a theocracy, its ruling Archons are all staunch defenders of the Remnant Church, and Beacon is the main hub of Remnant activity and thought. They spend a great deal of their wealth on their continuing effort to contact the Garden and bring them back to Tehom.

• Broken Horn was once known as the Tenax Primacy after it fell during the Dundainian Revolt. All who could flee this place have done so and taken most of what was valuable when they laft. A Hadalian disease has infected the land and water table. The Dundainian Anarchy is slowly attempting to take control of the area, but it is difficult and it is a low priority in the eyes of the Peers.

• The Buttonwood Triarchy is a former colony of Pinnacle governed by three rulers: Triarch of Blood is a hereditary title from a Legacy, the Triarch of The Visible is a Sacritech Keeper elected by the other sacritech Keepers within Buttonwood, and the Triarch of Dolphins is always a practitioner of the mystical and cosmic arts selected through a ritual of some kind (they may be a Legacy or otherwise).

• Caliban Arcology is a new cosmopolis commissioned by a set of Archons known as the Council of the Reef, lead by Marcus Steelcrow. The Caliban Arcology is the most ambitious mining effort on Tehom, a city-sized mining rig just off the coast of the Winged Islands. Constantly under attack from Deep Monsters, the Caliban Arcology is designed as a gigantic fortress to be defended against any assault. To date, it is a venture that has more or less broken even, with the massive wealth it generates from rare earths and metals being spent almost completely on its maintenance and defense. Time will tell if it can be maintained.

• Calmport is a small polity and a curiosity. If asked, all citizens of Calmport are of the Many; none will admit to superpowers. The civilian government similarly is allegedly made of nothing but the Many. However, in the darkest nights and in moments of great need, the hidden heroes of Calmport emerge to defend their city state. Emissaries from Eiren Bay have learned that Calmport is in fact rules by a secret Archon council that allows the Many to believe they are in control.

• Eiren Bay is a relatively open democratic cosmopoli where there is a shared governance model between Baselines and Archons. While there are many legal protections in place for human rights, Archons are in practice the political and economic elite who dominate the function of government and Eirenian business ventures. However, as baselines can rise to levels of prominence, it is sometimes seen as one of the more open societies within the Set. Eiren Bay has risen to prominence as the seat of The Kairos Covenant, a diplomatic agreement between several Cosmopoli that works to minimize the amount of violent and destabilizing conflicts on Tehom. In Earth terms, it is somewhere between United Nations, with its interest in diplomatic solutions to conflicts, and NATO, to help defend the peace of member cosmopoli from other non-covenanting cosmopoli.

• Fallen Horn was once known as High Spire, until it's ruling Archons were killed in the Dundainian Revolt. Now it is mostly abandoned, though Uncle Vulture resides in the remains of its agora.

• Kachlex City is a gigantic flying fortress created, maintained, and ruled by ‘’Cloudmaker’’, a legendary technical genius, keeper, and pirate. It slowly floats in the skies of Tehom, sending its storm shard down to plunder and raid.

• Novum Volsci is a fallen cosmopolis. Once controlling a large sphere of influence, long periods of internal conflict weakened it, creating opportunities for its vassal states to either declare independence or be taken over by another power. Novum Volsci still has a beautiful and well maintained city core and angora, but it is surrounded by near lawless slums and completely abandoned ghost-districts of the cosmopolis. The poverty of the Many of Novum Volsci is shocking even to Tehom's neofeudal Archons.

• Ox is the capital of the Dundainian Anarchy. Before the revolution, it was known as Stoutfort. It is sometimes called “Little Horn”.

• Patience was originally known as Hazor when it was founded and ruled by Warmaster Molyvdos, an extremely powerful Archon and demogogue. He now rests in a cryogenic vault as a supercomputer slowly removes a radioactive nano-toxin from his genetic code. Maintaining this chamber has almost bankrupted Patience several times, but Molyvdos is venerated to the point of religious worship by the citizenry. Weirdly, no Archons are ever born to the people of Patience, and they have an active policy of hiring mercenaries and "converting" Archons to their cause. Patience is views the day of Molyvdos' renewal as an eschatological event that will usher in a new age. The biography of Molyvos is a complicated one, portraying a brilliant yet heartless ruler who brought both peace and carnage to his region of the Set.

• Pinnacle is an exceedingly stable cosmopolis and it has one of the longest continuous regimes on Tehom. Pinnacle is ruled by an aristocracy of Legacy families obsessed with understanding the genetics of their superpowers. Their genetic knowledge and biotechnology, both in regular human technology and cryptotechnology, is unsurpassed. The Startree Index is a listing of the genetic markers for the Linneages of Pinnacle, and anyone who has any of those markers (including baselines humans) are afforded special legal rights. Additionally, Pinnacle's law distinguishes between Startree Archon (Archons who belong to the aristocracy), Sundered Archons (Archons without the markers of their genetic aristocracy), and The Strewn (Archons with the Markers that are foreigners). The energy manipulating members of the House of Arc are currently dominant, with three of the last five Doges (appointed head of state) coming from its ranks. However, the House of Rend, their major ally full of bestial-appearing mutants, has been increasingly unhappy with their role in the Senate.

• The Retenu Chain is a chain of islands toward the periphery of the Set. While its waters hold an extremely rich and fertile amount of aquatic life, the islands themselves are relatively desolate. The consequence of this is that Retenu is one of the least urbanized polities in the Set, but its hinterlands are more populated than most. The Retenuans life revolves around Sorts, networks of families and business partners. Archons on Retenu are called Judges, and are selected by Sorts through a variety of methods. In times of war, the Sorts may select a supreme Judge to be the Admiral of the Chain, though this is rare. The Retenuans are famous for their devotion to a Retan Dualism, a religion that see the Tide’s Eye as a generally malevolent force. However, they also posit another divine being that is benevolent yet more distant, called the Song Eternal, that shall one day force the Sea to submit and be tamed. The more traditionalist Retenuans know many rituals for supposedly calming the sea and banishing storms. If these Retuans are mystical members of the Few, the spells sometimes even work.

• Saltmerche Citadel On the edge of the Set Islands, there is a region called the Elder Green, a saltmarsh with a great deal of hybridized Terran and indigenous Tehomin life. It is a strange place, and it is one of the consistently "magical" areas humans know of on Tehom. The economy of the Citadel is dependent on the unique life within the Elder Green. A baseline human regent rules the citadel, aided by the Reeves, a group of (relatively low-power) magic-oriented archons. The true power, however, lies in the hands of a Mirk the Swamp Prophet, a powerful sorcerer-priest who lives in a monastery within the Elder Green, and Karka the Warden, an inhuman-looking combatant that resides in the wilds between the Citadel and the monastery.

• Srimec City is also the headquarters of Srimec Technologies, a transnational venture specializing in advanced robotic technologies. Citizens of Srimec are referred to as shareholders, and their legal rights increase depending on the amount and type of Srimec stock they own. Srimec is run by ‘’the Imparted’’, individuals who have undergone an extensive cyborg transformation. These individuals volunteer for the process, and they are selected as the elite of their society. Srimec law makes relatively few distinctions between the non-Imparted Few and baselines, a fact that irritates quite a few Archons. The Current High Executive has been in her position for well over a normal human lifespan, and some are worrying that her wisdom is becoming outdated.

• Thaimbase, was known until recently as Deltaport until a hulking Archon named Risha Thaim lead a coup, exiling and executing many of the native Archons. With the support of his Metamen, Lord General Risha has centralized his power and his neighbors live in fear of his next move.

The Dundainian Anarchy

Dundain is the largest single landmass in the Set, and it was once home to the cosmopoli Highspire, Stoutfort, and the Tenax Primacy. However, that all changes with the Wasting War, a conflict involving all three city-states in a free-for-all that devolved from Archonic war to a full military engagement, culminating in a biochemical holocaust against Tenax and a genocidal retaliative attack against Highspire. Seeing this, the Many of Stoutfort began a rebellion against all members of the Few, driving them from first their cosmopolis, and then from Dundain all together. A new nation thus emerged, called the Dundainian Collective, a nation where the Many rule themselves with no superhuman masters. The rest of the Set, however, calls it the Dundainian Anarchy, quite literally a land without Archons.

Stoutfort was renamed Ox, though it is sometimes called Little Horn in the Set. The only agora has been completely leveled and turned into the Memoriam Field as a symbol of their triumph against the Few. The Many generally find the place oddly peaceful, but the Few find it eerie and unnaturally disturbing. Ox is now a small but sprawling city, and the Anarchy has demolished any buildings they did not have immediate use for. It has rebuilt most of the armaments, living in paranoid fear of an Archon attack. The governing body of the Anarchy, ‘’the Peers’’, live in hidden camps in the hills outside the city most of the time. There is also an extensive tunnel network beneath the city. Slowly, Ox has stabilized and allowed the Dundainian Anarchy to begin to spread its message of liberation and humanism to the rest of Tehom. Generally, these attempts at propaganda are met with confusion and terror by both the Few and (most of) the Many. The social order of the Anarchy should simply not work. It is an impossibility that nevertheless exists. Beyond the propaganda wars, however, the Anarchy is still relatively poor and weak, as it lacks trading partners, and much of its territory was devastated during the Wasting War and the subsequent Dundainian Revolt.

The exiled Archons and their familes that once rules Highspire, Tenax, and Stoutfort are biding their time, hoping for an opportunity to retake their homelands. However, few cosmopoli wish to expend the resources to create such an operation, as the open warfare it would require is unpalatable to Tehomin thinking. Additionally, the few times exiles have attempted an attack on their own have ended in the defeat, and often death, of the exiled Archons in question. Rumors have spread that the Anarchy has developed various power suppression technologies, but these rumors have not been confirmed yet. And so, a tense and uncertain détente continues between the Anarchy and the rest of the world.

Things to do on Tehom when you're Glorious

This section describes the way this setting can be put "in motion" for a game.

Current Challenges and Obstacles

The world of Tehom is full of many threats that require the attention of Archons. It is worth identifying some of the more obvious threats.

The Other Archons

Cosmopoli rarely go to war in a conventional sense. The expenditure of resources is too great, and the memory of the Waste Rebellion is deep. Instead, disputes are handled by Archons, diplomatically at first, and then in personal combat. While the collateral damage of two sets of Archons fighting can be dramatic, it pales to what a modern military could do.

Of course, not all conflicts between Archons are affairs of state. Some conflicts between Archons are at their core personal matters. When one has developed a celebrity-aristrocracy around the lifestyles of the superhumanly powerful, many things can become the cause of conflicts. Romantic entanglements and personal insults have lead to more than one popular Archon match vidcast.

Finally, Some Archons only have the name because they have power. These villains (sometimes called Petalans or the Banned) either sell their services as mercenaries, or commit piracy and banditry on outlying areas.

The Duidainian Anarchy

The single largest landmass on Tehom is the island of Dundain. It was large enough to sustain three independent and very powerful cosmopoli. Eventually, these three polities went to war, destroying their economies and the island in the process. In an act that shocked the rest of Tehom, the citizens of Dundain rose up and overthrew the Archons, creating the Dundainian Anarchy (literally “Rule of no Anarchs”). Other Archons would have moved in to reestablish order if it wasn’t for the Anarchists acquiring control of a cosmopoli’s nuclear arsenal very quickly and publicly. Now , the Anarchy (they refer to themselves as the Duidainian Collective) is officially cutoff from the rest of the world, with few cosmopoli willing to recognize it as a sovereign state. It has rebuilt itself without the help of the Set, and one only wonders what they plan next.

The world lives in fear that Anarchist cells will begin to form in the Set, undermining the kleocracies of various cosmopoli. Player Characters may very well be the people to search out such cells. Alternatively, perhaps they will help the exiled Archons retake Dundain in the name of Highspire, Tenax, and Stoutfort.

Hadalians and the Monster Tide

When humanity came to Tehom, it was a frozen world and humanity was unaware what slept beneath the ice. As the terraforming proceeded, a dormant ecosystem came to life, and generally the indigenous life was actively hostile to humanity and its ecosystem. Today, most surface life is terrestrial (or at least compatible with terrestrial life). This is especially true within the environs of the Set. As one moves toward the poles, or into open waters, or goes toward the abyssal plains under water however, life becomes alien very quickly. Many of these lifeforms are antithetical to terrestrial life. Many are dangerous and hostile. This other, pre-human ecosystem has become known as “Hadalian”.

A “monster tide” is when Hadalian organisms attack a human outpost, such as a mining rig. Sometimes, like the Urchin Tide, Hadalians attack a cosmopolis. The word “attack” is used because while some incidents appear random, others are very much planned. On occasion, a monster tide will take the form of a Leviathan, a gigantic creature, often a unique mutation, going on a rampage. Many Archons watch the sea, waiting for the next monster tide.

The Mad Legion

The Mad Legion are boogeymen that keep many a citizen and Archon awake at night. Some of the Few are driven insane with their power. Sometimes they would immediately begin to rampage through an area, other times they would lurk and slowly terrorize the population.

The Mad Legion is worse than the Banished, because at least with the Banished there are goals that make sense (make money, kill a particular Archon, etc.). The Mad Legion has goals, but they make no sense. Most worrying, however, is that members of the Mad Legion seem to act separately yet their actions build on one another. More than one person has wondered if there is a relationship between the gray plague of old and the Mad Legion, but no link has been substantively identified.

The Larger Questions

The Judges of Tehom is not an expression of the famous maxim of Marvel’s Stan Lee: “With great power comes great responsibility.” Instead the question becomes this:

Set apart from humanity by great power, what will you struggle to achieve, and what will you sacrifice?

There are three things in this question:

• Apart from humanity. Your character is one of the Few, a “superhero.” They are not, by definition, a normal person. They are different, exalted, and capable of things the Many can only dream of doing. How will your character handle this?

• What will you struggle to achieve? What does your character fight for? Personal wealth? Fame? Revenge? Or perhaps your character is a patriot, or devoutly religious. You have immense power, which begs the question of what you will use that power in the name of.

• What will you sacrifice? Is your character willing to risk their life? Their reputation? Or perhaps they are willing to let innocents die in the name if their cause. What about family? Or perhaps your character is comfortable having a life that is more private and possibly safer than one could have while trying to reshape the world?

Examples from media

The tone of this setting can be found in several media references:

• Politics is extremely centered on the personal lives of the Archons that dominate most Cosmopoli. To think in these terms, there are several examples in TV and film we can turn to:
  • The modern adaptations of Shakespeare are a good place to start. Anthony Hopkins' "Titus," Ralph Fiennes' "Coriolanus," and Ian McKellan's "Richard III" are all about the fates modern (or relatively modern) nations resting on the relationships and whims of a small number of people. Give Coriolanus super-powers, and you have a situation one could easily find on Tehom.
  • There was a short-lived TV show on NBC in 2009 entitled "Kings," which starred Ian McShane as a modern day King Saul ruling a monarchy and dealing with David, Samuel, and divine intervention. It is a dark and complicated show, but deserving of more praise than it received. The world of Kings is a clean and modern world completely comfortable with absolute monarchies. Again, this fits the world of Tehom very well.
• Regarding comic book sources, the possible sources are varied.
  • Power level, we are talking about Civil War - era Marvel Universe.
  • In terms of the relationship between supers & the public, the very beginning of Kingdom Come captures the sense of fascination and celebrity the Archons enjoy.
  • Alan Moore's famous never done project Twilight of the Superheroes, where different heroes (the Batman-related, the Marvels, etc) controlled different polities. This is very much the political reality of much of Tehom.
• While mostly set on a single planet, the tone of the game borrows heavily from the "Cosmic Opera" style created by people such as Jim Starlin, Kieth Giffen, and especially Jack Kirby. Godlings controlling a wonderous world where the difference between technology and magic is razor thin, if extant at all.
• Regarding other roleplaying games, “Aberrant” by White Wolf in the 1990s is relevant in that it is about superhumans who are not defined as crimefighters, and who have immense amounts of celebrity. However, while Aberrant is grounded on the question of how different the Novas are from humanity (or how different they should be or will be), The Judges of Tehom begins with an a priori assumption: The Few are different from the Many. The core question is what are the consequences of this distinction.

Glossary

• Adhocracy. An element of kleocracy. In short, the responsibilities of Archons is fluid and not defined by a fixed office as found in formal, bureaucratic organizations.

• Archonic War. The preferred form of violent conflict between Tehomin city states. Rather than having a conflict between militaries, the city states of Tehom often will have a duel between champions to determine the outcome.

• Archon. An Archon is one of the superhuman Few who has a position of authority within a cosmopolis. The type of power or authority is not defined by the term Archon: one could be a military position, a governmental role, a magnate of a particular industry, or anything else. Many use the terms Archon and the Few interchangeably, though this is not technically correct.

• Auxiliary. A mercenary or freelance member of the Few who is hired by a cosmopolis, a corporation, or an Archon. To be an Archon implies a general responsibility, while being an auxiliary suggests a narrow set of responsibilities and rewards.

• The Banished. The banned are outlaw or renegade members of the Few that have no responsibilities for running a cosmopolis (Lord Genderal Risha may be widely considered evil, but he isn't banished). Some pillage for personal gain, some are motivated by vendettas, and some appear to just want to watch the world burn.

• The Common Sphere. The realm of Tehomin society left to the daily life of the Many. This is the realm of humdrum work and family life.

• Cosmopolis. A Tehomin city-state. An independent political entity, a cosmopolis is a sprawling sustained by international trade, the powers of Archons, and the hinterland territories under its control. Cosmopoli, save for some key exceptions, are ruled by Archons.

• The Course. The Course is a channel in the middle of the Set Islands that collectively form the most developed, prosperous, and populated area of the planet. From space, the Course looks like nothing but cities and sea.

• The Few. In-setting term for superheroes, individuals who have some degree of power that goes beyond normal humanity. The Few may be magical in nature, users of super-science like powered armors, altered on a biological level by science (intentionally or accidentally), or they could be a heredity mutant and therefore part of a Lineage. Some members of the view do not even truly have super powers as such, but are rather exceptionally trained individuals. Different city-states think about the Few differently and organize their societies and legal codes accordingly.

• Focus. A mystical item or weapon of power. When a member of the Few has a focus, he or she is called a Keeper.

• The Formal sphere. The realm of Tehom society associated with control and leadership over political and economic concerns. It is the realm of Archons.

• The Formed. A member of the Few who gained his or her powers due to some event or process that occurred during their lives. They were not born with their powers, nor are their powers dependent on an external object.

• Founders. A human born to parents who have no powers but who nevertheless has superhuman capabilities. Founders have the ability to begin legacies.

• The Inhuman. A member of the Few who is not actually human. They could be a robot, or a nonhuman life form.

• The Kairos Covenant. An alliance between Srimec City, Pinnacle, Saltmerche Citadel, and a dozen smaller cosmopoli.

• Keepers. Members of the Few who possess an item of power. Unlike many other members of the Few, Keepers do not have any inherent superhuman abilities.

• Kleocracy. The neo-feudal form of government that dominates Tehomin society. It is the rule of the glorious, the rule of the superhuman Few over the Many, combining temporal power with celebrity.

• Legacy. A legacy is a hereditary bloodline within the Few. In short, they are mutants who exhibit superhuman powers. Some cosmopoli, like Pinnacle, are actively run by lineages, while in others they are distrusted as being detached from the Many. Some forms of cryptotechnology exist that can identify lineages, and sometimes even suppress lineage-based powers.

• The Mad Legion. Members of the Few who have gone insane from their power.

• Magistrate. Technocratic members of the Few. They have given up celebrity in the name of expertise.

• Monumentality. An aspect of kleocracy where the Archons of a city spend resources creating monuments and major works that demonstrate the power and glory of the city and its rulers.

• The Many. Baseline humanity. The Many are the vast majority of the population, and they are "normal" humans. Due to the history of Tehom as a lost colony, the range of physical variation associated with different races is present, though society is not as explicitly organized around race and ethnicity as many societies on Earth. The main question is which cosmopolis is home.

• Patrimonialism. An aspect of kleocracy where the Few are expected to act with responsibility and charity toward the Many. It is noblesse oblige.

• The Peers. The secretive ruling council of the Dundainian Anarchy.

• The Risen. The Risen are those Few who are not members of lineages, but gain their powers through some form of rigorous training.

• Sacritech. Super-science, the technology created and understood by the super-intelligent Few. Sacritech is not merely more advanced than baseline Tehomin science; it is qualitatively different. Sacritch always appears to the Many to be violating one or more natural laws of the universe (be it thermodynamics, gravity, or something else).

• The Set. The Set is gigantic archipelago near the equator of Tehom. The vast majority of habitable land is found among the Set Islands, and as a consequence, it is home to the vast majority of Tehom’s human population. The Set’s ecology is almost completely Terran in its character, though some precursor life remains around the edges. The deep oceans far from the shallow waters of the Set are a source of mystery and dread for much of the population, and its dark abysses are havens for pre-terraform Tehomin life.

• Stormward Council. The original ruling council of the Few that helped humanity survive the abandonment by The Garden. They are seen as the founders of Tehomin civilization.

• Static Struggles. A highly formalized type of archonic war.

• The Synopticon. The civil sphere of tehomin society. It is the realm of community and culture.

• Technocrat. One of the Many who has risen to a position of influence due to his or her expertise. Archons rely on technocrats to help make their endeavors successful.

• Ventures. Organizations lead by Archons. They may be oriented toward business, governmental responsibilities, or something else. The key trait is they are a formal organization recognized by a cosmopolis.

Campaigns

• Defenders of Eiren is a campaign set in the democratic free city of Eiren Bay and follows the exploits of the city's heroes.

Religion, Science, and the Tide’s Eye

The Tide's Eye is the name for how certain people and places gain unusual powers and improbable lives. The distortion of probability and the expected laws of physics has been well documented by the Tehomin, and they have spent generations debating what it could mean. Generally speaking, the various beliefs attached to various religions, philosophies, and hypotheses revolve around whether the Tide's Eye phenomena an expression of a consciousness? If the answer is no, then the Tide's Eye and the Few are the result of some sort of natural, if strange, phenomena. If the answer is yes, then Tehom has a world-mind and an intelligence, albeit an alien one. At that point one must also ask what the Tide's plan is for humanity and the Few? What is it pushing humanity and events toward? The speculation on this issue becomes rather religious in tone, with answers ranging from maltheism to apologetics and theodicy.

The following is a brief list of some of the common lines of thought among the Tehomin:

• Nammanism is a religion that believes that Tehom, in addition to being a planet, has a consciousness of its own, and it is actively guiding humanity toward some end. Nammanists are sometimes called Tidlings, though many view that as a derogatory name. While the Nammanists Nammanists have successfully promoted the cultic veneration of famous Archons, both past and present, within much of Tehomin society. As the practice seems to have a small but measurable positive effect, the Archons encourage the practice. However, cultic worship of Archons has, as a practice, become disconnected from Nammanism, and is much more popular than the philosophy that spawned it.

• Marducists is another philosophy that is older than Nammanism. Like Nammanism, it believes that The Tide's Eye is a god-like consciousness controlling events on Tehom. Unlike the other world-mind religion, however, the Marducism has a maltheistic view of the Tide's Eye, viewing it as manipulating humanity for ends that are not beneficial for humanity. A common fear is that the Tide's Eye orchestrates devastation for its own entertainment. Marducism has always been controversial, as the Few cannot help but in some ways be representatives of the Tide's power. Nevertheless, there have been the occasional mystic who has argued humanity must turn the tools of the Tide against it to achieve freedom. Marducist rituals involve attempts to satiate or “blind” the Tide’s Eye in various ways. An austere variant of Marducism, the Wind of Hills, has become popular within the Dundainian Anarchy. Marducists can be found among disaffected Many throughout the Set, though one can find factions of the Few in both Thaimbase and Novum Volsci who are practicing Marducists.

• Iterationists reject that the Tide's Eye is in any way conscious. Rather, they argue the planet somehow serves as a psychic feedback loop, responding to the collective dreams and fears of humanity. As humanity's desire for survival became increasingly its sole concern, Heroes emerged, and as humanity began to understand what Heroes were supposed to be, the nature of the Few stabilized. With varying degrees of cynicism, Iterationists often try to experiment to see if they can manipulate the Tide's Eye to maximize desirable effects. There have been some successes, but many more failures. Pinnacle promotes a “soft” form of iterationism, that downplays the idea of manipulating the Tide’s Eye, while the version promoted by Srimec City is deeply invested studying the Tide’s Eye in an attempt to control it.

• The Remnant Church claims to be the religion of the Garden. More accurately, it is a synthetic faith that combines the beliefs and practices known to be within the Garden when Tehom was colonized and terraformed. The result is a religion that appears to either be polytheistic or transtheistic in its character, often talking in terms of myths that they view as important metaphors rather than literally true. In its most elite forms, it is a religion of scholars and mystics. Paradoxically, its common forms are incredibly diverse, as local variation is actually encouraged as long as it fits certain parameters. Because of this, the Remainers discuss the Tide’s Eye in a way that sounds both like the Iterationists and the Marducists: the Tide’s eye can be thought of either as a force or as a being, just as all things in this world can be. Beacon is a center of Remnant thought.