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SECRETUM ARCHIVUM PRIMATUSNUNC MULTUM MEMBRUM SED UNUM CORPUM |
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DATE: October 20, 1870 LOCATION: Sanctum-001 DIVISION: Prime College SANCTION: Magisterium AUTHORIZATION: Cardinal Giacomo Antonelli, Preeminent Inquisitor |
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PAPAL ALLOCUTION1 TO THE PRIMACY
To the righteous Cardinals, Prelates, and Knights of the Secretariat of Supernatural Primacy:
V enerable Brothers, We Give You Greetings and Our Apostolic Blessing. Do you remember the fateful day when the Church fell again into schism when the Auctoritas Imperata turned herself away from Us like an apostate angel? Some of you even served on the High Council and fought against its illicit secularization. Pope Gregory XVI, Our predecessor of happy memory, tried valiantly to regain control during this time of crisis, but the Authority refused to obey papal commands; they claimed they had the right to command themselves. Pride truly is the root of all sin, is it not?
When We were chosen by the Holy Spirit to assume the throne of St. Peter, We were confronted with this arcane schism. Blind and idealistic, We gave the false Authority their freedom and We even bestowed a constitution to the citizens of the papal legations to satiate their demands for autonomy. Behold how they repaid Our favor: the people of Rome exiled Us from the city, Italy took advantage and stole the Papal States from her sovereign mother. Now, this sacred city is under siege by these wicked forces, We fear We soon may be a permanent prisoner here in the Vatican watching helplessly as they crucify Our Church.
We are no longer deceived; the fires of modernity cannot be appeased, you cannot put it out by water. No, you must deprive this raging fire of its air and stomp it to the Earth. From this day forward, the Military Vicariate is no more; it shall be reformed into a world-spanning magistrate, an alliance of those who proclaim the papal primacy We wield from St. Peter. To those whose allegiance lies with the false authority and all they stand for, We spit you out of the Kingdom of Heaven. It is time for the Papacy to once again defend its interests in the supernatural realms and assert we are the only true authority of the world.
You are all called to this sacred duty: to preserve our heritage, protect the sacred relics of our faith, and ensure the doctrinal integrity of truth from all supernatural threats from the world and beyond this world. The power invested to Us as the Vicar of Christ We pass onto you, whatsoever thou shalt bind or loosen upon the Earth shall be bound also in Heaven. Just as St. Peter was given the charism of infallibility, so too will you now be infallible. So go, free the world from this age of darkness, contain its objects of iniquity, and spread the love of God through the Sword of Christ; We lift Our restraining hand.
Remember the words of Saint Paul in 1 Corinthians 12,
For as the body is one, and hath many members; and all the members, whereas they are many, yet remain one body. But now there are many members indeed, claiming to be their own bodies. That there might be no more schism, the many members must reunite in the one body.
Given in Rome, at St. Peter’s, on the twentieth day of October in the year 1870, the twenty-fourth year of Our Pontificate.
— Pope Pius IX, "The Papacy"
Vatican Primacy
Ambiguous
- Authority-Aware
- Unveiled
- Seeker
- Structured
- Multinational
T he Vatican Secretariat of Supernatural Primacy2 ("The Primacy") is the containment agency of the Vatican City-State established in response to the Papal Auctoritas Imperata declaring independence from the Roman Catholic Church and becoming the modern Authority. Tracing their origins to an obscure precursor organization known as the Auctorias Ecclesiastica, the Vatican Primacy is committed to preserving the holy relics and sacred doctrines of the faith and defending the Roman Papacy from supernatural threats.
Initially comprised of traditional Catholic mercenary units known as the Military Vicarate of the Papal States, The Primacy was reformed during the First Vatican Council into a dicastery3 of the Roman Curia in order to combat the Authority's jurisdiction over the anomalous in a period known as the Arcane Schism. This defensive and war-like mentality resulted in numerous clashes with the agency. However, since the Second Vatican Council, The Primacy has moderated its aggressive behavior and now cooperates with the Authority and UNAAC on a case-by-case basis.
This state of affairs is not likely to last. Recently, a rise in religious fanaticism has been observed among VSSP operatives, reflecting changing mentalities in the Catholic Church proper. Ideas that were once fringe in Catholic thought, such as declaring a new Crusade, restoring the Christianized Roman Empire, or calling for a Third Vatican Council are now gaining wide support within the agency. With over a billion Catholics worldwide, if The Primacy were to follow through on any of these objectives, they would present a significant threat to the Veil.
A s the designated supernatural containment agency for the Roman Catholic Church, The Primacy's leadership reflects the dual nature of the Papacy's ecclesiastical and secular government structure. While each division and military order is governed by a designated Prelate4 or Commander, the Bishop of Rome maintains full authority over the agency.
Prime College
Prelate: Prime Cardinal Vicar
Members: Prime Cardinals
The Prime College of Cardinals forms the assembly of all high-ranking members of our agency, composed of the VSSP Prelates, Military Order Commanders, and select members of the College of Cardinals. In our blackened robes shadowed beneath the roof of St. Peter's Basilica, we stand as the hidden vanguard of the Catholic Church, united together as one body to debate critical issues facing our sacred agency. With the Holy Spirit guiding us from above, we are elected to lead the agency to its promised end, as the one true authority of the supernatural world.
Agenda items proposed by the Prime Cardinals are voted on by the assembly after several rounds of intense debate. If a 2/3rds majority votes in favor of a proposal, the agenda item is adopted and implemented by the Prelates. Any decision passed by this body is automatically authoritative and can only be overturned by the direct intervention of the Holy Father. This would, of course, cause an internal crisis of faith that we would need to resolve, and it is possible that his own papal legitimacy would be called into question as well.
Previous Agenda Items:
- Ratification of the Demonymless Alliance
- Declaration of a Crusade against Omega Iota
- Condemnation of Heresy against Malthusianism
- Excommunication of the Psychological Occult Initiative
- Statement on the Authority Site-014 Detonation
The Congregation
Prelate: Cardinal Secretary of Defense
Members: Military Order Knights
The Congregation for Divine Warfare is the combat task force responsible with the eschatological defense of the Roman Papacy from the demonic forces of the underworld. Led by the powerful heads of the Church's military orders, and the Inspector General of the Gendarmerie Corp of Vatican City, the Congregation exercises jurisdiction over all the armed forces of the Catholic Church. Let not our classic medieval-style armor deceive you, we are the last defense of mankind from the forces of darkness.
Formulating spiritual battle tactics and prayer stratagems to combat a variety of dangerous paranormal threats to our faith, we shall protect the Heavens and the Earth from those wicked abominations of the Anti-Christ, in all the forms and gods they take. Not all of our strategies are limited to spiritual warfare. The Holy Land contains many sacred relics of our faith, and so we are called to lead a new crusade to secure Armageddon's plains for the armies of Christ, and restore the Outremer lands5 to glorious life; God wills it!
Task Force Strategies:
- Abaddon Containment Program
- Holy Land Reclamation Project
- Nihil Annihilation Initiative
- Leviathan Extermination Proposal
- Whore of Babylon Intervention Committee
Arcane Inquisition
Prelate: Preeminent Inquisitor
Members: Arcane Inquisitors
The Preeminent Tribunal of The Arcane Inquisition is the canon law and intelligence court which is invested with the highest judicial authority beneath the Pope. Our division oversees the classification of supernatural heresies, trials of accused persons of interest, and enforcement of Catholic doctrine internally, as well as diplomatic affairs. The Tribunal wields the powers of excommunication, interdiction, and execution of all condemned individuals. Arcane Inquisitors therefore serve as judge, jury, and executioner over all sinners of the Papacy.
Eldritch abominations from other dimensions, magic spells that blaspheme the sacraments, unholy relics that trigger apostacy against the sacred mysteries—all of these we are tasked alone to correct, not to contain these threats like the rest of the agency, but to annihilate them; to unbind them from the Earth and condemn them to the furnace. Our mission does not stop at protecting the agency; our mission is to save the Church from those forces that seek to subvert and corrupt it from the outside and the inside.
Inquisition Courts:
- Paranormal Canon Law
- Supernatural Heresy Prosecution
- Schismatic Conversion Tribunal
- Liturgical & Sacramental Preservation
- Malthusian War Crimes Council
Pontifical Academy
Prelate: Pontifical Academy Rector
Members: Academy Theologians
The Pontifical Academy for Supernatural Studies is an academic society operating within the Pontifical Colleges in Rome that recruits Catholic researchers and theologians into the agency. The Pontifical Academy brings together monks, friars, priests, and seminarians from many religious orders and dioceses to serve the Church in supernatural ministry. You will find in our division the few women of the agency we employed; the pious nuns who assist the priests with developing our containment procedures for select relics.
Scholasticism originated within the Catholic Church; we are the ones who have given the world true knowledge. We are called to be children of the light, to purify our minds and bodies in holiness, and to lift our spirits up to divinity. Holiness is our authority and the search to become one in contemplation with God's love through all supernatural phenomena is our objective. We will faithfully follow those Church Fathers who set the path for our enlightenment through the temptation and crucifixion of Christ.
Course Subjects:
- St. Justin Martyr: Against the Nihilists
- Church History: The Auctoritas Era
- Paranormal Ministry Practicum
- Supernatural Martyrs, Popes, & Saints
- Tactical Christology: Defending The Trinity
Mystic Bank
Prelate: Mystic Bank President
Members: Mystical Bankers
The Bank of Holy Mysteries is the banking division that provides specialized financial services that ensure the fiscal stability of the Papacy's supernatural mission. The services our division provides includes general fiscal management, fundraising drives, employee payroll, balancing revenue streams, and overseeing other banking investments. As a department of the Institute for the Works of Religion6, we only receive money as deposits which are then reinvested into papal government bonds.
The truth about the economic system of the world is that it relies on faith: faith in governments, like with fiat currency; or faith in precious metals, like the gold standard. At the end of the day, faith is value and the Catholic Church, one of the largest sources of faith, therefore is the most valuable institution in world history. We exert a monopoly on the Catholic faith; the Pope is our currency. Just as there are advantages and disadvantages to having a strong or weak currency, there are advantages and disadvantages to having a strong or weak Pope. We will protect the financial health of the agency at all costs.7
Investment Portfolio:
- Purchasing Weapons against Monarch Security in the Falklands War
- Storing recovered German Anomalous Research Division gold reserves
- Coordinating with the Authority against the Iron Initiative in Europe
- Drafting financial reports on Omega Iota's international funding
- Releasing a CBDC8 cryptocurrency
T hroughout the history of Christendom, several military orders have been founded by members of the nobility and religious believers dedicated to safeguarding the sacred artifacts of the Church. As part of the Roman Papacy's defense force, the Primacy maintains an alliance pact with these chivalric orders who serve as the agency's tactical assault and containment force.
Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem
Commander: Cardinal Grand Master
Specialization: Desert Combat, Biblical Relics, Abrahamic Faiths
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The Knights of the Holy Sepulchre9 were founded in 1099 and based out of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in the Crusader State of Jerusalem. King Baldwin I of Jerusalem took command of the Order's structure in 1103, granting the monarch and the city's Latin Patriarch the right of knighthood investiture. Pope Paschal II sanctioned the Order's establishment in 1113.
The Knights assisted with supernatural containment efforts in the Holy Land alongside the Order of the True Cross, and the Auctoritas Imperata until the secularization of the RPC Authority in 1835. After Pope Pius IX restored the Latin Patriarch in 1847, the Order was then tasked with coordinating anti-Authority operations. In 1871, the Order was integrated into The Primacy.
Specialized in operating in desert environments, the Knights are assigned to the containment of biblical relics, especially those of Jewish and Islamic origin. Maintaining an active presence in the Middle East, Central Asia, and North Africa, the Knights ensure that the sacred heritage of the Catholic Church and the Holy Land, where Jesus Christ walked the Earth, is preserved.
Military and Hospitaller Order of Saint Lazarus
Commander: Grand Master of Saint Lazarus
Specialization: Biological Research, Botanical Phenomena
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The Knights of Saint Lazarus10 were founded in 1119 and based out of leper hospital founded by crusaders from the Latin Kingdom in the Crusader State of Jerusalem. Initially a hospitaller order dedicated to the resuscitation of leprosy and other diseases, the Knights were soon militarized and deployed in 1244 to the Battle of La Forbie against Khwarazmian mercenaries. Pope Alexander IV sanctioned the Order's establishment in 1255.
In 1572, Pope Gregory XII transferred command of the Order to the Savoy monarchy, which then merged the Knights with a local military order, forming the Order of Saints Maurice and Lazarus. However, in 1604, King Henry IV of France restored the French branch of the Order, which continued until the French Revolution. The Order was restored by a council of Parisian Catholics and united with The Primacy in 1910.
Specializing in the research and prevention of supernatural diseases and other illnesses, the Knights are assigned to the containment of dangerous biological and botanical phenomena that could pose a threat to members of the agency. Just as Saint Lazarus was raised from the dead, the Knights seek to raise to life the blood of the Church through its believers and preserve them from all threats.
Sovereign Military Hospitaller Order of Saint John of Jerusalem, of Rhodes and of Malta
Commander: Grand Master Lieutenant of Malta
Specialization: Aquatic Environments, Naval Combat, Ocean Exploration
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The Knights of Malta11 are the successor military order to the Knights Hospitaller founded in 1099 based out of the monastery of St. John the Baptist in the Crusader State of Jerusalem. Militarized during the reign of Pope Paschal II in 1118, the Knights evacuated to the Kingdom of Cyprus in 1291, and later to the island of Rhodes in 1310. In 1513, Pope Clement VII and King Charles V of Spain relocated the Knights to Malta.
During the Great Siege of Malta in 1565, the Knights and the Auctoritas successfully defended against a massive Ottoman naval invasion. The Order transitioned into a privateering force in 1571, purchasing four islands in the Caribbean12 in 1661. In 1798, Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte conquered Malta and dissolved the Order. Pope Leo XIII restored the Order in 1879 as the Knights of Malta, integrating them into The Primacy.
Specializing in naval exploration and operations, the Knights oversee the containment of ocean-based supernatural phenomena, as well as those located on islands, lakes, rivers, and shores. Primarily operating in the Caribbean and the Mediterranean Sea, the Knights also maintain sanctums and citadels on several islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. Commanding the agency's naval force, the Knights ensure that the seas are safe for spreading the Evangelion.
Sacred Order of The True Cross
Commander: Grand Crusader of The True Cross
Specialization: General Protection & Containment, Supernatural Ministry
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The Knights of The True Cross13 were founded in 1099 in the Crusader State of Jerusalem after the Latin Patriarch discovered a piece of the True Cross14 in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. The Knights rapidly expanded across the Crusader States, securing remote monasteries and temples from the Assassins. Initially under the command of the Latin Patriarch, Pope Innocent II assumed control of the Order in 1139.
In 1203, the Knights were excommunicated by Pope Innocent III for besieging the Catholic city of Zara in the Fourth Crusade. Although reported to have disbanded, the Knights were secretly pardoned by the Pope and transformed into a covert military order for the Papacy. In 1871, the Knights were integrated into The Primacy by Pope Pius IX.
Tasked with the general protection of the Church and containment of its sacred relics, the Knights undergo extensive combat training and instruction in counter-anomalous tactics with holy weaponry, including applied iconography, saint reliquary, holy water diffusion, and sacramental warfare. Those whom God has graciously willed to grant extraordinary miracles15 are placed into the Order's elite division.
Supreme Military Order of Christ
Commander: Supreme Military Order Chancellor
Specialization: Covert Operations, Urban Combat, Target Tracking
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The Knights of Christ16 are the successor military order to the Knights Templar founded in 1120 based out of the occupied Al-Aqsa Mosque in the Crusader State of Jerusalem. Serving as shock troopers for the Crusader Army, the Knights routed the army of Saladin under King Richard I "the Lionheart" of England at the Battle of Arsuf in 1191. King Richard I subsequently sold the island of Cyprus to the order in 1192.
Attempts to establish a Templar State in Cyprus failed when the Knights Hospitaller restored exiled King Henry II of Cyprus in 1310. On Friday, October 13, 1307, King Philip IV of France ordered the arrest of the Templars. Although Pope Clement V ordered the suppression of the knights in 1312, King Denis of Portugal refused to persecute them. In 1318, the surviving members of the Knights were rebranded as the Order of Christ.
Specializing in covert operations, tracking persons of interest, and infiltrating governments and organizations, the Knights are tasked with the containment of sacred relics located in major urban environments, as well as the retrieval of those currently in the possession of other agencies and groups of interest. With bases in several developing nations, the Knights provide The Primacy with global striking capabilities.
Teutonic Order of the House of Saint Mary in Jerusalem
Commander: Grand Master of the Teutons
Specialization: Arctic Environments, Cold Weather Combat, Pagan Faiths
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The Teutonic Knights17 were founded in 1192 based out of a field hospital founded by German merchants in the Crusader City-State of Acre. The Knights were transformed into a military order during the reign of Pope Celestine III in 1198. The Knights intervened in the Prussian Crusade in 1226 after Emperor Frederick II of the Holy Roman Empire issued the Golden Bull of Rimini, resulting in the establishment of the Teutonic State.
Catholic expansion into the Baltic states resulted in the creation of The Livonian Order as an autonomous branch of the Teutonic Knights in 1237.18 In the Treaty of Pressburg in 1804, the Hapsburg Dynasty was made the new heads of the Order, and the Knights were incorporated into the Austrian Empire's agency of interest. As a result of the collapse of the Empire in the Great War, the Knights united with The Primacy in 1923.
The Knights, who specialize in operating in cold weather and arctic environments, are tasked with containing supernatural objects of Pagan origin, particularly Norse, Romuvan19, Suomenusko20, and other European variants. Maintaining citadels across Northern Europe, Canada, Russia, and Antarctica, the Knights are willing to brave the elements in the most hostile environments on Earth for the faith.
T hroughout its history, The Primacy has encountered various anomalous organizations and agencies of interest that were previously unknown to the Roman Catholic Church. Although the RPC Authority is historically the primary group of interest to The Primacy, other containment organizations have recently begun initiating diplomatic relations with the agency.
AMBIGUOUS: The RPC Authority
The very inception of the Vatican Primacy is rooted in the origins of the RPC Authority. Few events in papal history were as devastating as the secularization of the Auctoritas Imperata by The Architect, The Commander, and The Scholar of the High Council. With a majority of the Roman Curia's supernatural departments breaking off with the Authority, the Catholic Church resorted to anomalous mercenaries known as the Military Vicarate to guard its relics and defend its geopolitical interests.
Only with the establishment of The Primacy at the First Vatican Council was the Papacy able to re-establish its influence in anomalous affairs. The Arcane Schism lingered for around a century, with both sides clashing with one another over their respective legacies. The Authority Question was eventually resolved at the Second Vatican Council with recognition of mutual legitimacy. Recently, however, members of The Primacy have been starting to reconsider the debate over if there can be only one true authority.
ALLIED: Demonymless
Black-market contractors operating over clandestine trade routes, assassins for hire on dark web servers exchanging cryptocurrency with their clients, ex-military mercenaries specializing in the acquisition of anomalous antiquities or individuals. These merchants are known as the Demonymless and the Vatican Primacy has made good use of their services on multiple occasions.
From its origins, the Military Vicarate partnered with the Demonymless, whose mercenaries formed the Papal Zouaves that were recruited into the prelature. The Papacy's wealth made it a valuable client to do business with; the missions consisted of eliminating enemies of the Pope and returning any relics taken by the Authority or other groups to his possession. With the formation of the Primacy, the Demonymless continues to be contacted for missions that require plausible deniability.
NEUTRAL: Federal Occult Agency
Formed out of the ashes of the Holy Roman Empire, the witch-hunters of Germany had been united by the Kaiserreich as the Imperial Occult Agency. Scarred by fighting the Kulturekampf21, The Primacy clashed with the IOA over control of the empire's anomalies. During the Great War, the VSSP and IOA temporarily set aside their hostilities to assist the Central Powers.
Although the Weimar Republic allowed the Primacy to expand into Germany, this situation changed with the rise of the Führerreich. Politically abandoned, and determined to reclaim Germany's supernatural heritage, remnants of IOA rebranded as FOA and struck a deal of mutual cooperation with the VSSP. Once bitter enemies prior to World War II, the VSSP and FOA now see themselves as equals, though resentment still lingers over historical grievances.
ALLIED: Indian National Defense Initiative for the Reclamation of Anomalies
During the struggle for India's independence from the control of Monarch Security and sectarian attacks by the Pakistani Occult Agency, The Primacy promised to shield the Syro-Malabar and Syro-Malankara Churches and their sacred relics from possible attacks. Forging an alliance with the Catholic members of INDIRA, The Primacy established a strong presence within the subcontinent.
In recent times, the rise of Hinduvata nationalists within INDIRA, who have begun pushing out non-Hindu members, has strained relations with The Primacy. With INDIRA's leadership pledging to cleanse the country of foreign faiths to break the cycle of Samsara, it is inevitable that The Primacy will be forced to respond against the agency in the event they attempt to destroy the proselytizing legacy of Thomas the Apostle.
AMBIGUOUS: United Nations Anomalous Activities Committee
Signing the International Anomalous Accords in 1964, the Vatican Primacy became an observer agency within UNAAC after a narrow ratification vote within the agency. Attitudes at the time of the Second Vatican Council expressed the belief that the Primacy should engage diplomatically with other anomalous organizations in the same manner as the Holy See in the United Nations.
VSSP representatives quickly realized though that UNAAC would remain firmly secular. Despite attempts to counter this influence, opposition within the VSSP to UNAAC membership continues to grow. Many factions now call on the Prime College to fully withdraw from the body if it does not recognize the authority of the Bishop of Rome as the leader of the anomalous community. Given this state of affairs, the Prelates may decide that the agency is ready to embrace a new unilateral approach to international affairs.
Heathens
HOSTILE: Omega Iota
Omega Iota is a multinational network of occultists specializing in the supernatural bio-engineering of human beings. Omega Iota and its proxy organizations desire to install a new world order ruled by the Sepulcrum Auream and the Roman goddess Veritas so that they may become the new gods of the human race. First encountered by the Papal Military Vicarate in 1863, the society attempted to infiltrate the Roman Curia and assassinate Pope Pius IX.
OI was formally condemned by Pope Leo XIII as part of the Catholic Church's condemnation of Freemasonry. During UNISAAF's discovery of the Damascene Stronghold, the Knights of Malta recaptured stolen Catholic relics contained in the facility. OI has since expanded internationally, infiltrating powerful governments and anomalous organizations in order to enact their hostile takeover of the world. Because of their global power structure, Omega Iota is considered the agency's most dangerous adversary.
HOSTILE: Children of Nihil
One of the oldest hostile religions known to The Primacy is the Children of Nihil and their syncretic cults. Worshipping a pantheon of 10 primary deities known as the Nihil Suns, the Children of Nihil have attempted to subvert or destroy Catholicism from its origins to the modern era. Historical research suggests the Children of Nihil may have been behind the first Christian heresy known as Gnosticism.22
Condemned by the Church Fathers, the heresiarch Marcion of Sinope declared there were two gods: The malevolent demiurge of the Old Testament known as the Engineer and the all-loving deity of the New Testament known as the Early Light who sent Jesus Christ to free humanity from spiritual imprisonment. As the responsibility for defending the Church has passed on from the Apostles to the Patriarchs, and the Auctoritas, it now falls on The Primacy to safeguard the doctrinal integrity of the Catholic Church.
HOSTILE: Church of Malthus
Developed by the English scholar Thomas Malthus, Malthusian Theory proposes that the world has reached its carrying capacity and mass starvation awaits us all, but mankind can still be saved only by lowering its population naturally or by force. Believing Malthus to have been a prophet, the Church of Malthus has carried out several mass terrorist attacks against population centers. Through biological warfare, Malthus aims to create a "self-sufficient" human race by reducing the global population to 500 million people.
Initially opposed by the Papal Auctoritas, the Vatican Primacy began to encounter the Church of Malthus more directly as the Church sects began spreading outside of the United Kingdom into mainland Europe. After preventing a terrorist attack by the group on St. Peter's Square during Easter celebrations, the agency labeled the Church as a supernatural heresy and authorized inquisitorial action against suspected heretics. Though weakened since their zenith in the World Wars, the CoM remains a dangerous adversary for the VSSP.
HOSTILE: German Anomalous Research Division
The victory of the NSDAP and the establishment of GARD sent a shockwave throughout the anomalous world, as once-fringe political and racial ideas had become enshrined national beliefs. The outbreak of Positive Christianity23 in Germany and attacks on prime sanctums deeply concerned the agency. Arcane Inquisitors assigned to the country began reporting on strange occult rituals involving GARD operatives, as well as the esoteric beliefs held by the agency's leader and founder Heinrich Himmler.
Despite the Reichsconcordat between the Holy See and the Führerreich guaranteeing the Primacy possession over Catholic anomalies, GARD continued to seize artifacts from the Catholic Church during the annexation of Austria, Czechoslovakia, and occupation of Poland, while imprisoning its clergy. After the Psychological Initiative Occult declared their loyalty to Adolf Hitler, GARD operatives exploited the schism and began attacking prime citadels across Europe. It was at that moment The Primacy decided to wage war on GARD with the assistance of the RPC Authority Volunteer Army for the Allied Force.
HOSTILE: Monarch Security
Established by King Henry VIII in 1534, Her Majesty’s Subjugation Office was established to support the newly-created Anglican Church against potential adversaries. Anomalies previously belonging to the Papal Auctoritas were stolen by the HMO's warlocks and wizards. While Queen Mary attempted to return Catholicism to Great Britain and destroy the HMO, her half-sister Elizabeth I fell under the possession of the HMO's soothsayers and was turned into a witch queen.
The HMO continued its conflict with the Papacy after it was reorganized to become the Department of Occultism and Phenomenal Affairs in 1874, attacking VSSP sanctums within the United Kingdom. The agency, which took the name Monarch Security in 1894, occupied the Holy Land in the Great War and denied the VSSP access to the Mandate of Palestine. Although The Primacy and Monarch Security share UNAAC membership, relations between the two agencies remain entrenched in their hostilities.
HOSTILE: People's Committee for the Acquisition of Anomalous Objects
In the days of the T'ang Dynasty and the Mongol Empire, Christianity made its way to China. Though the Church of the East24 would fall, the Papal Auctoritas would introduce Catholicism during the Ming Dynasty. However, Confucian elites angered at the rejection of Chinese rituals as incompatible with Catholicism, mobilized to prevent the Auctoritas from establishing a strong foothold in China until the Qing Dynasty era. During the political chaos of the Opium Wars, Taiping Rebellion, and Dungan Revolt, Military Vicarate forces entered the region to secure Catholic anomalies.
The Boxer Rebellion and the Demon Hunters killed thousands of personnel, yet together with the Authority, Our Lady of China25 helped to vanquish the society. In the aftermath of decades of warfare ravaging the nation, Communist China rose to power. Attacking foreign anomalous organizations, the People's Liberation Army - Special Directorate successfully expelled both The Primacy and the Authority from China. In spite of their shared UNAAC membership, The Primacy maintains a hostile stance towards PCAAO because of its role in suppressing Catholicism in China.
Writer Resources
D eveloping a modernized containment format was essential for The Primacy in the aftermath of the secularization of the Auctoritas. A more complex terminology and categorization system was created to facilitate this process. Containment Documents are organized under three classifications: Sacred, Demonic, or Obscure Phenomenon.
AoI Format Template
Additional lore and writing resources can be found in the format page below.
- Template Page: http://rpcauthority.wikidot.com/vatican-primacy-format
B efore the Vatican Primacy was formed, the Roman Papacy for centuries had dealt with threats from the supernatural world. In veneration of this tradition, the agency embraces its role as a continuation of precursor organizations that sought to preserve the institutional church by containing the hordes of holy and demonic artifacts that threatened it.
Albigensian Crusade, 1209-1229
Behold, the Albi abominations have been crushed with stunning ferociousness and swiftness! I beheld an army bearing the papal insignia cleansing the lands of Languedoc from those horrific demons summoned by the Cathars that disintegrated men where they stood. Disguised as angels of light, they roamed from village to village, ripping souls out of bodies that withered away into dust, not sparing even women and children from this agonizing fate.
The sorcerers of the heretics stood no match against the might of the Holy Father Innocent III's forces. Their swords and maces dripped with the blood of the demons, cast down again into the Abyss of Hell from whence they came. A new form of warfare has been revived by the Church of Rome not witnessed since the First Crusade: St. Peter wields the sword of Christ once more!
— Cyneheard Wymane, Angels of Eden Grandmaster
Fall of The Latin Empire, 1261
The Empire of Constantinople has been conquered; its liberation from the rule of the schismatic Greeks has now come to an end. The Greek tyrants of Nicaea have destroyed the New Rome on the Bosporus, sending hoards of mercenaries using arcane and supernatural weapons to ravage the land. Now the Latin court has gone into exile, and all supernatural relics contained in the region have been lost.
The Auctorias did all they could to defend the empire, but the Order of the True Cross and the Order of the Elect One of Constantine26 were outnumbered by the vast number of soldiers that descended upon the sacred city. A disaster of this scale has never been seen since the day Saladin conquered Jerusalem!
— St. Louis IX, King of France
Lithuanian Crusade, 1283-1422
I can confirm the grisly reports from the Tannenberg: The Teutonic Order has been massacred; I saw the thousands of bodies scattered across the northern plains. The Polish nobility allied with the heathen Lithuanians and routed our forces in combat. The audacity of their actions is pure iniquity, this land is rightful Teutonic and Livonian Order clay. To wage a war against fellow Catholics to defend a pagan state is blasphemous!
Are we to take as gospel reports that the pagan lords of Lithuania converted only now when the Polish approached them for an alliance? For centuries, we have been attempting to proselytize in these frozen wastes, yet we've had to fight every barbarian and beast sent our way. The battle here may be over, but the consequences of this sacrilege will not be. It is only a matter of time before this war spreads to the Empire itself.
— Heinrich von Plauen, Grand Master of the Teutons
The Great Schism, 1378 - 1417
When they found the Ark of the Covenant in Ethiopia, several of our mystics warned us to leave it there. The Earth had buried it for a reason; the Lord understood the Israelites responsible enough yet to wield its power again. The Grandmaster and the High Council in the Curia did not listen and they brought the Ark to Rome. They could not contain what came from the Ark because they did not understand Yahweh's power cannot be contained.
No temple on Earth can force the Lord to remain idle on his earthly throne, so when they locked it in the Necropolis, the Lord ripped the Veil to be free. Now, three claimants to the Papal throne are waging war against each other for control of the Roman Papacy. Not since the era of Benedict IX has the Church faced a cataclysm of this magnitude. We have been cursed by the Auctoritas, who have brought this fate upon us.
— Crius Arvina, Psychological Occult Initiative Director
Roman Republic, 1849
First, the Auctoritas broke away from the Church, now Rome itself has sent its bishop into exile. The reforms of our Holy Father Pius IX have been wholly forgotten. By giving an inch to liberalism, the revolutionaries have taken a mile. The Military Vicariate can do nothing to defend us, for it has suffered a coup d'état. Now its forces are under the command of an ex-Cardinal. The world as we know it is descending into madness.
Despite these calamities, I know that we shall reclaim the sacred city. At this moment, President Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte is preparing an army to destroy the Republic for the Church. Though some are concerned about his pro-Authority instincts, I am not. His government is dependent upon the French Catholics who have stood by us; he will fulfill his end of the bargain, so help me God.
— Cardinal Giacomo Antonelli, Prime Cardinal Vicar
Assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand, 1914
The Austro-Hungarian Empire has been sent into shock as Archduke Franz Ferdinand, the heir to the throne, has been ruthlessly assassinated by a Serbian nationalist in the streets of Sarajevo. While Austria has the full right under Catholic war doctrine to strike back, the Russians have made clear their intention to intervene if Serbia is attacked. The schismatic Eastern Orthodox intend to drive a stake through the body of Latin civilization.
The Arcane Inquisition has uncovered connections between the godless RPC Authority and the murderer Gavrilo Princip. They must have known the Archduke intended to sign a formal alliance with our agency upon his ascension, as the French have done with the false Authority. This event is a harbinger; tensions across Europe are rising, Gog and Magog are assembling at the gates. The signs are clear: a war to end all wars is coming.
— Eugenio Pacelli, Cardinal Secretary of Defense
Discovery of the Damascene Stronghold, 1953
The Knights of Malta uncovered something dark hidden in Damascus. Noticing in the distance a faint reflection on the sand, they dispatched a regiment to investigate, believing they had come across some ruins from ancient days. What lay beneath the Earth was not an ancient ruin, but a pipeline connected to an underground facility. The Knights discovered its sealed entrance hidden within a cliffside and alerted UNAAC to its discovery, but no organization claimed ownership.
Assembling a joint task force, they breached the facility. What they found inside shocked them to their core: Within the building were miles of containment cells filled with sacred relics and strange entities, humans left in decrepit cells later discovered to be missing persons, and cadavers of failed experimentation littering the hallways. In the midst of exchanging gunfire with unknown operatives arriving at the base, they discovered this was a stronghold of the Freemasonic Order of Omega Iota.
— Michel-Louis Guérard des Lauriers, Preeminent Inquisitor
Authority Fail-Safe Detonation, 2019
Our prayers have been answered, God has finally struck down the false Authority! These reports from UNAAC indicate a nuclear detonation was detected beneath an Authority facility in the Nevada desert. They do not know why this fail-safe was triggered, but the Arcane Inquisition suspects the Malthusians may be responsible. Though we are saddened by the loss of any life needlessly, we know this action was only God's retributive justice.
Maybe now the Authority will wake up and realize their separation from the Papacy was a mistake; there is no life to be found outside of God's love. Our offered commitment to aid in this situation should stand as a testament to our desire for unification with our fallen counterparts. Primacy forces in America have been notified to stand guard for any spike in supernatural phenomena and assist Authority forces should they deem it necessary.
— Angelo Caloia, Mystic Bank President
The Primacy Overview
For thousands of years, humanity's fate has been laid in the hands of the Church. Ancient prophecies prophesied in sacred scripture are sunken beneath time, awaiting the day; aberrant idols of fallen stars that corrupt the mind and poison the soul with sinful charms; the acid of Satanic-paganism that corrodes the world and deforms the human race; and the demented violence of heretics that rip apart the body of truth and inflict insanity on the deceived.
This is the state of the world the brave must face. For those who are called by the highest power above to put on the armor and bear the sword of righteousness, this mission is the greatest of all endeavors. Though the god of this world envelops the Earth in overwhelming evil, the light of our Redeemer shall shine through the darkness and conquer the night. The only question left is "are you willing to take up his Cross and Sword?"
Aesthetics & Tone
T he aesthetics of the VSSP can best be described as a mixture of Gothic architecture draped over with sacred imagery using Christian symbolism. The very logo of the agency represents the all-seeing eye of God expressed through sharp geometric shapes. Aesthetics not only taps into the supernatural reality of Catholic religiosity but serves as an identifying sign to other initiated personnel within the Deep Church operating in the upper echelons of the Papacy.
Unlike the Authority's facilities, Prime bases are cohesively built using stone, metallurgy, and other medieval sensibilities. Their containment facilities are intricate cathedrals and imposing fortresses built over archaic flesh pits and impossibly tall hallways leading to Greco-Roman libraries filled with incomprehensible texts. Shrines of the reliquary, icons of saints, and holy mosaics dawn their poorly-lit halls in bulletproof-frames as portals to the divine reality above.
Though each division's dress code differs, VSSP personnel of all ranks display earned medals on their uniforms and carry other devotional items such rosary beads, holy water, and crucifixes with them. Military equipment is frequently adorned with religious symbols and intricate engravings intended to instill a sense of gravitas and magnitude in the item. Combat ships, aircraft, and vehicles of the agency are either adorned with the military knights' or the Vatican's insignia.
The tone of VSSP documents should generally be strict and formal while incorporating Catholic terminology and history. Actions taken by the agency should also come across as biblically significant and spiritually impactful in the battle between the ungodly and the righteous. VSSP members are expected to be well-versed in the Roman Catholic faith and culture, so this aspect should be reflected in any interactions between agency personnel.
Topics & Themes
A s an agency under the authority of the Roman Papacy, a strict adherence to the Catholic faith is maintained by The Primacy. In order to maintain the integrity of the religion, The Primacy must adhere to these beliefs and traditions at all costs. While a full-breakdown of Catholicism is beyond the scope of this Writer's Guide, the Authority ACI Assessment of the Roman Papacy explains some key components of the faith.
Articles involving the Vatican Primacy should generally focus on ideas and concepts relating to religious beliefs/cults, ritual practices, thaumaturgy/sorcery, spirits/ghosts, angels/demons, gods/divine entities, and other supernatural or Catholic Christian topics like ecclesiology and eschatology. Biblical figures like Lucifer, the Anti-Christ, Abbadon, and other chaos monsters are ideal. These thematic elements below should help highlight some potential directions for articles to develop:
Grimdark — Although Catholic Christianity does not adhere to a mind-soul/body dualism, they do differentiate between a state of perfect divinity and the corrupted state of nature. Essentially, the world is almost completely corrupted by sin - there are demons hiding in the shadows and people worshipping false gods everywhere.
- This paranoid mentality is a core aspect of the Primacy's personality. VSSP prelates must remain ever-vigilant just in case sinister forces sneaks upon them. It may even be schizophrenic, but nonetheless, it's true - the monsters are really there.
Hopefulness — A powerful element that motivates Catholic Christians is the belief that the present state of darkness will be destroyed by the light to come. This is theologically the notion of the Second Coming of Jesus Christ, but in a general sense, there is an absolute certainty that God and the angels will win against Satan and the demons at the end of time.
- Articles should not portray The Primacy as a nihilistic agency. Despite any setbacks they might encounter, VSSP personnel believe their agency will ultimately succeed in their mission to subjugate anomalous threats no matter how powerful.
Fantasy — There are a ton of fantastical beings mentioned in the Bible such as dragons, giants, cherubim, pit locusts, the Leviathan, the Grim Reaper, and so forth. The world is a battlefield between the cosmic forces of light and darkness, the false gods and the true God. Mankind is caught in the crossfire of this conflict and must flee to the sanctuary of Christ.
- From the Primacy's perspective, this theomachy still rages on to the present day and it's their task to intervene on the side of God and his archangels. This allegorical and mythological war takes concrete form in the realm of the anomalous.
Archetype & Characters
W hether it's a Prime College Cardinal, Arcane Inquisitor, Military Order Knight, Academy Theologian, or Mystical Banker, all members of The Primacy maintain a sincere belief in Catholicism and distrust certain aspects of modernity. While some hold more moderate viewpoints, believing the Primacy can collaborate with contemporary society, others embrace extremist beliefs that call for the total annihilation of the modern secular world.
These differences are rooted in the agency's mission to protect the integrity of the faith. To them, the result of secularism has been an atheist world that worships itself over God, holds no shame in sin and takes pride in immortality, calls for religion to be eliminated from the public space, and either denies the existence of the supernatural or seeks to lock away sacred relics from the people. Secularism created the Authority and deprived the Papacy of its Papal States. The anomalous confirms what the Catholic Church has preached for over 2,000 years is true.
The inner conflict of a VSSP character then is to what extent the agency should shield the faith from contemporary influences that aren't just anomalous. The dismissal of Liberal forms of Catholicism within the agency places the Primacy in a precarious position where it claims to be more "Catholic" than the Catholic Church itself. According to The Primacy, the integrity of the Catholic faith is being faithfully preserved by the agency, but only in a form which not even the current Pope still adheres to, nor the majority of Catholics actually follow.
How to Write a Vatican Primacy Article
U nlike the RPC Authority, the Primacy's entire worldview is firmly religious. VSSP articles should generally be a mixture of a formal tone with religious and philosophical language included throughout. In contrast to the clinical tone of Authority articles, the formal tone of VSSP articles is directly based on biblical imagery, philosophical explanations, and historical events that convey a straightforward understanding.
The Primacy's central directive is containing anomalies that have some religious significance to Christianity or Catholicism specifically and defend against heretical groups of interest. Anomalies and GoIs/AoIs that have no substantial connection to religion will largely be ignored by the Primacy unless they could pose a threat to the Papacy of the Catholic Church. Their impact on the faith should determine the behavior and response of VSSP members.
- Military Order Knights are assigned to contain and guard anomalies in the Primacy's possession. The Order of the True Cross is the agency's general containment and protection force, while the other military orders are specialized to contain certain types of anomalies. In this way, they are similar to the Authority's MST system.
- Dangerous anomalies are locked away in containment cells called Dungeons which are located in Citadels, while utility anomalies and other holy relics may be stored in special cells called Vaults which are often located in Catholic holy sites like cathedrals, basilicas, and pilgrimage sites; all of which are designated as Sanctums.
- Academy Theologians are in charge of researching and documenting anomalies in VSSP custody. Meanwhile, Arcane Inquisitors deal with any fallout by targeting witnesses or tracking down persons of interest. Mystical Bankers may also assist with regard to financial intelligence. Lastly, Prime College Cardinals deal with the administrative work of the agency.
QUESTION: How factual is the Primacy's perspective and what does it mean for the legitimacy of non-Christian anomalies?
- The Primacy's allegiance to the Catholic faith impacts the way the agency approaches other religious anomalies. The agency focuses on containing Christian anomalies first and foremost. Other religious anomalies are of less importance to the VSSP unless they could present a direct threat to the faith or the Papacy.
- The way the VSSP understands baseline reality is from a Catholic perspective: the anomalous serves as direct proof of the reality of the Catholic faith. Everything is interpreted through this worldview, in contrast to the Authority which does not recognize the anomalous as indicative of one overarching religious tradition.
QUESTION: How much do individual agents know when they are recruited into the Primacy?
- Because all members of the VSSP must profess the Catholic faith, this means they at least implicitly accept the Church's perspective that the world is fundamentally supernatural in some way. The Primacy therefore recruits people either through the pontifical academies in Rome, or by targeting high-profile cardinals and other clergymen worldwide.
- Depending on which division a member is recruited into, this knowledge of the supernatural is then specialized to certain anomalous responsibilities of the agency through on-the-job training or advanced spiritual study. A general history of the Papacy's involvement in anomalous affairs would be part of this recruitment program.
QUESTION: What prevents the Primacy from becoming the Authority 2.0 or revering back into the Auctoritas?
- The only thread preventing the Vatican Primacy from becoming a new RPC Authority is its belief in papal primacy. So long as the agency considers the Pope to exercise legitimate authority over it, it will remain loyal to the Papacy. In the event the agency broke away again, it would be less like a new RPC Authority and more like a new Catholic Church.
- From the perspective of the VSSP, the fate of the Papal Auctoritas and the RPC Authority are fundamentally interconnected; the Auctoritas model of semi-independence from the Papacy is blamed by VSSP members for it secularization in the first place. This is why the VSSP didn't rebrand itself as the new Auctoritas or reuse the old name, the Auctoritas failed.
