The National Republic House governs in name, but true power lies with the unseen Council of Thirteen, never seen but always felt. Through Cerberus, the Council manipulates the three major National Bureaus: The National Bureau of Propaganda and Domestic Security (NB-PDS), which dictates the flow of information, crafts the official narrative, and ensures order is maintained through surveillance; The National Bureau of Intelligence, Investigation, and Assessment (NB-IIA), which handles espionage, law enforcement, and the dismantling of sedition; and The National Bureau of Paranormal Research and Containment (NB-PRC), responsible for monitoring supernatural anomalies, restricting the actions of Mages, and keeping the unearthly horrors of the world at bay.
The Government's mission is clear—quell disorder, watch the Mages, chain the Mancers, and ensure that what lurks in the shadows never steps fully into the light.
When the twin Martyrs gave their lives for Unity no one thought The Church of the Twin Gods would be the result. However, hundreds of years later, the followers of Nyx, Bringer of Chaos, and Darium, Steward of Order, find themselves sharing the same roof. The unified Church dominates the Central Districts, but extremist Darium and Nyxian cults can be found on the fringes preaching radical beliefs.
On the whole, The Church values balance of person, where both Nyx and Darium have equal influence. Therefore, many within The Church try to make themselves more androgynous, bisexuality is promoted, and hermaphrodites are valued and groomed with care by the clergy.
The Churches station in the world is always balanced on a knife's edge of freedom of belief and falling in line with the Government's edicts.
A lineage born out of pragmatism, the Greys are a family who have become the leaders in industry, science, medicine, philosophy, art, and more. Grey’s try to breed with whoever is a protege in their field, no matter what that field is. For this reason, the Grey family is highly mixed in race and social origin. Even Darkleechers and Exalted have made their way into the family. Pragmatic, brilliant, odd, eccentric, dedicated. All these words can be used to describe the Greys. Brutal, absentminded, and unethical are also words that describe many in the family.
To the outside world, the Greys are both revered and feared—the architects of civilization’s greatest achievements and its most unsettling experiments.
An old family, so ancient in origin their history has been lost even to themselves. Ellsons own the majority of the banks in all Districts. This gives them the finances to stay in power, even in places where they’re unwanted. Generationally minded, they’ve invested in mining precious stones and metals, acquiring art and artifacts, and most recently historical research. They enact their power through their banks, schools of Mathematics, and Tax Collectors - persons trained since childhood to calculate risk and reward on a deadly level and see that debts are paid in gold or blood.
A failed business, a political downfall, or a familial war sparked by economic collapse—these are the marks of Ellson influence at work. They are patient, calculating, and unyielding. Those who owe them are never truly free.
Once war-bound Darkleechers, the Freemen now control Acheron’s farmlands with the Government’s reluctant permission. Freemen value their land and way of life above all else. Unlike the urban elite, they embrace rural traditions, placing great importance on history, art, and cultural heritage that many believe was deliberately suppressed for generations. While the Government monitors their actions closely, Freemen maintain a strong spiritual connection to the supernatural, practicing magic and rituals that others dismiss as superstition but they hold as personally divine.
Despite their hard-won autonomy, the Freemen remain watchful, knowing that true freedom is never given—it is fought for, again and again.
For centuries, history itself was forbidden knowledge. The study of the past was seen as dangerous, a threat to the order carefully maintained by the Government and the Church. But the Historians of Galilee defied these restrictions, piecing together forgotten truths at great cost. Many were executed for their defiance, but their legacy endured.
With the passage of the Reclamation Act, history is once again open for study, and the ranks of the Historians have swelled. Their members fill universities, libraries, and research institutions, but their reputation remains divisive. Many believe that some knowledge is best left buried. The Church sees them as a dangerous cult, meddling with truths that could unravel the fragile balance of the world.
Yet, the Historians care for one thing above all else—truth. And truth, once uncovered, cannot be silenced.
Dedicated to studying and exterminating deadly beasts, the Guild unites people of all backgrounds—Greys, Ellsons, farmers, and servants alike. Their work keeps the world safe in ways the Government cannot. Mostly lawful, they will break rules when necessary to put down a true monster.
While the Guild operates largely within the law, they do not hesitate to bend or break it when necessary. To them, the hunt comes before politics, before morality. If a monster must be slain, they will see it done, no matter the cost.
A rising power-for-hire, Wexler provides small factions the muscle once reserved for the elite—at a price. Their ranks are comprised of ex-cops, private investigators, magicians, Mancers, and even Exalted. The Wexlers operate in the grey areas of the law. Their services range from personal security and intelligence gathering to blackmail, sabotage, and assassination.
Their pay is high, and their morals are loose. Officially, they deal in security and investigations. Unofficially, they deal in death just as often.
