Source Player Core pg. 206
“Long before the Rift sundered the night, faith lit the stars.”
In the Starfall Galaxy, faith is a force as primal as gravity, woven into every world’s myths and every civilization’s heart. Ancient gods, their echoes still humming in the substrata of reality, gave rise to Orders, cults, and cosmic heresies. Some worship the very energies of the Rift; others revere long-dead creators or seek the sleeper-agents of unnamed pantheons. In a cosmos of psychic storms and unstable miracles, Religion is never only dogma—it's adaptation, survival, and rebellion all at once.
Religious practitioners serve as oracles, adjudicators, and sometimes the dam between civilization and outer monstrosity. The wise learn to read omens in the pulse of Rift storms, decipher the radiance of forbidden texts, and negotiate with celestial or fiendish intermediaries. Institutions—ranging from the Cygnan Synods to the street-level cults of the Outer Sphere—vie for followers, Mana, and narrative dominance. To most denizens of Starfall, knowing the protocols and perils of faith can prove as vital as any weapon.
Religion Skill
Wisdom
Religion is a Wisdom-based skill fundamental to Starfall gameplay and lore, bridging cosmic power, cultural identity, and concrete encounter mechanics. Characters use Religion checks to decode ancient faiths, identify divine magic, and unravel theological mysteries. As religious orders and cosmic allegiances drive conflict and cooperation across the galaxy, the Religion skill unlocks narrative hooks (rituals, holy ruins, political intrigues) and mechanical opportunities: from divine spellcasting, to earning favor—or incurring wrath—of galactic factions.
In Starfall, Religion is not just academic; it's a key to the social, magical, and existential puzzles that drive adventures.
Trained Religion is a prerequisite for clerical archetypes, divine abilities, and initiatory rites in many Orders.
Recall Knowledge with Religion reveals concealed histories, forgotten cults, and the origins of phenomena like the Void and Outer Spheres.
Devotion and alignment are replaced by the color-mana system (see Starfall Devotion rules), so Religion skill checks are often the gateway to understanding, leveraging, or challenging a group's underlying values and taboos.
For GMs: Religion empowers both direct investigation (what is this relic?) and layered social play (how do we gain entry to the Synod of Anamnesis?). Reward creative use of Religion with secrets, alliances, or boons from the galaxy’s mystic powers.
Untrained Actions
Recall Knowledge: Probe the myths, rituals, and hidden agendas behind gods, cults, divine beings, and planar phenomena. Understand the coded politics of devotion, divine taboos (anathema), and major cosmic events
Trained Actions
Decipher Writing: Interpret proverbs, sacred allegories, divine commands, or apocalypse protocols—cracking the locks of spiritual archives or ancient ruins
Identify magic: Recognize supernatural effects drawn from faith, experiential devotion, or contact with godlike beings. Expose the source, purpose, or risks of divine spells and relics.
Learn A Spell: Undergo rites (or find a mentor) to access supernatural formulas, communing with the galaxy’s metaphysical foundations.
Sample Religion Skill Uses
Rescue Mission: Successfully identifying the sigil of a rival Order may grant sanctuary—or precipitate a duel for heresy.
Exploration: Reading an inscription on a derelict shrine unlocks hidden paths or knowledge of what perils lie ahead.
Social Intrigue: Know when to invoke—or avoid—taboo topics during negotiations with faith-driven NPCs, leveraging insight for alliance or subterfuge.
Devotion and Starfall’s Faiths
Religion interacts directly with Starfall’s Devotion system. Each major faith, order, or heresy is underpinned by one or more “Color” devotion traits, shaping their virtues, vices, and rituals. Using Religion may let the player character:
Detect devotion-based codes, blessings, or curses in a scene
Navigate social hierarchies and power struggles within or between religious Orders
Call upon or challenge the powers that manifest in the galaxy’s sacred—and profane—spaces
Feats
Level 1
Quick Identification; You can Identify Magic swiftly.
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