Titles (beyond the veil)

Titles are of infinite importance in realms of spirit, for they are one of the few luxuries among such denizens. There are three types of titles; High, Low, and Power. Each High or Power title grants an equipment bonus of one to all that individual’s conflicts and allows the character to spend an additional Belief, Soul, or Substance in a round. For each High or Low title possessed an individual receives a Soul the first time they leave their Personal Demesne for a game session.

If more than one individual is tied in eligibility for a title, such as tied Ranks for Power titles (Prince or Dragon) then those titles can be claimed by none of the contenders. Similarly, if a single individual is eligible for both High and Low titles in a category (such as if they are the only Denizen with their Attunement) they gain neither title.

High Titles
High titles are granted for having significant Station. The top 3 Stations each grant a title; Sovereign, Archduke, Peer. These titles are cumulative. Thus, the Sovereign has 3 “titles,” the Archduke 2, and Peer 1, plus any other titles they gain.

The highest Station individual with each given Attunement is the Duke of that Substance. Also, the title of Lord can be claimed by yielding an amount of a single type of Substance to the Gatekeeper. If the amount given exceeds a previous grant of the same Substance that individual becomes Lord of that Substance (Lord of Hate, for example). Unlike Dukes (or Dragons) a Lord need not have Attunement with that Substance.

Finally, the individual with the most other characters yielding them Fealty, either directly or through their own vassals, is the Lord of the Host.

The benefits of a High title are great; Each High title grants an equipment bonus of one to all that individual’s conflicts and allows the character to spend an additional Belief, Soul, or Substance in a round. The character also receives a Soul the first time they leave their Personal Demesne for a game session for each High title possessed.

Again, if a single individual is eligible for both High and Low titles in a category (such as if they are the only Denizen with their Attunement) they gain neither title.

Power Titles
Power titles are granted for having significant Rank. The individual in the Realm with the highest Rank is Prince, while the highest Ranked individual with a given attunement is the Dragon of that Substance.

Power titles grants significant advantage to their holders in conflicts. Each such title grants an equipment bonus of one to all that individual’s conflicts and allows the character to spend an additional Belief, Soul, or Substance in a round.

Low Titles
Low titles were originally intended as a form of derision, however beyond the veil any sort of recognition grants an individual power. The lowest Station Denizen in the realm is the Jackal. The lowest Ranked Denizen in the realm is the Worm. The lowest Station Denizen with a given Attunement is the Slave of that attunement while the lowest Ranked Denizen is the attunement’s Serpent.

Wise but weak individuals seek low titles if they cannot take or hold High titles, using them as a source of Resources with which to build their personal power. For each Low title possessed an individual receives a Soul the first time they leave their Personal Demesne for a game session.

However, holding a low title is a unique challenge, as they cannot also be elegable for the corrisponding High title (such as if they are the only Denizen with their Attunement) or they gain neither title. Further, it is not unknown for the fighting for these "low rung" positions to be more fierce than for the High titles. Similarly, it is not uncommon for powerful Denizens to intervene with "largess" or other manipulation recognizing that these low rung positions can be as important to a balance of power as either High or Power titles.