The game revolves around relationships and religion and how they interact with or inhibit one another. Religion serves to maintain community ties and stability, but this comes at a cost of judgment, guilt, and shame. The game is actively concerned with questions of morality and ethics in a fictional theocracy, but there will be no play on economics or money.

Faith takes place in Lempana, a typical village of a few hundred inhabitants vaguely located in the ancient Mediterranean world. Lempana is only such village in a vast land with many others like it and there is no higher authority than its head priestess, Theodora. Villages are not isolated from one another but are discrete entities which trade one another for goods (and news). It is unusual, although not unheard of, for someone to move to a different village; typically this happens when a trader falls in love with a local girl. Some people try to move and reinvent themselves to escape scandal, but the truth catches up to them eventually.

Religion

Religion is a pervasive feature of society; there is one religion, the Faith, and everyone participates in some way. Its clergy hold the highest social status, serving in both community leadership and pastoral functions; strong followers are well-respected within the village and even the least devout pay lip service. Openly speaking out against the Faith is a way to become very unpopular very quickly and be looked down upon by one’s peers.

The Faith is a monotheistic religion based on an omnipotent goddess, Mother, accessed via her priestesses. Per her clergy, Mother’s greatest concerns are impious (heresy or blasphemy, mistreatment of Her clergy) and antisocial (socially disruptive or inconsiderate) behaviors. Mother punishes these in life through court proceedings held by Her clergy and in the afterlife by casting sinners into cold, hungry solitude while the pious are rewarded with eternal feasting alongside with their loved ones.

Although they generally hold lower social status, women are seen as having a more subtle, dynamic, and complex relationship with the divine and so only women may serve as clergy, the direct line between Mother and laypeople. Laywomen generally engage in intimate conversations with priestesses, thereby enhancing their own natural access to the divine whereas men may additionally engage in the Ritual. All devout laypeople would approach a priestess for help with big decisions or problems, for absolution or in distress, and even the least devout show them respect in public.

To be excommunicated from or to voluntarily leave the Faith would result in complete and immediate exclusion from all of society; the person’s parents, spouse, children, and siblings would also be shamed by association, nobody would interact with or do business with the person, and they would essentially be run out of town. Relatives may choose to follow or leave them to their fates (whereby some of the shame by association may be lessened). Those who choose to remain unbaptized into the Faith upon coming of age are treated similarly to youths, unable to wed, do business, or have access to legal protections.

The Ritual
The Ritual is the closest a man can come to Mother and would be initiated if he were under great stress and in need of comfort or being absolved of major sin. For the priestess, it is expected that they engage in the Ritual if asked (and may of course suggest it themselves) and it is the purest form of divine love, acceptance, and absolution they are able to share with men. Only men may engage in the Ritual. More details will be provided with character sheets and the Ritual is only one of several important duties for which the priestesses are responsible.

The Festival
The Festival is the biggest celebration for the entire village and involves everyone. It happens once a year and is an opportunity to celebrate the season and a time when youths who were born at least 18 years ago are baptized into the Faith, whereupon they are immediately elevated to adult status. Only baptized people are considered to be adults and may marry, have acknowledged children, be employed and do business, join the priesthood, participate in the Ritual, own property, or participate in court and other legal matters.

The Festival involves a feast followed by:

• Airing of public grievances and court proceedings
• Baptism of new adherents to the Faith (typically 18 year old youths)
• Marriages are announced and performed (also typically all of the freshly-baptized)
• New inductions to the priesthood

With the aid of the other priestesses, the head priestess prepares for and directs the Festival including performing baptisms and marriages, directing court proceedings, and accepting any new priestesses into their ranks.

The non-clergy characters are all currently in residence at the temple in preparation for the Festival: each youth attends with their parents (or surrogate parents) to participate in special preparation ceremonies prior to the Festival.

Relationships

Marriage is a highly desirable state of being for everyone involved. Mother's greatest blessings are large, healthy families, and children may only be acknowledged if their parents are (or were) married. By marrying, the man makes clear that he is responsible for protecting and providing for the woman and their children; the woman makes clear that she will maintain the marital relationship and home and produce a quantity of children directly proportional to their joint piety.

Marriage is monogamous and heterosexual. There is no formal provision for divorce, but it also isn’t explicitly forbidden and happens on very rare occasions. Any single male adult may marry any single female adult not in the priesthood, thereby becoming the father to her living children, should she have any. Marriage ceremonies can only take place at the Festival and are commonplace among the freshly-baptized. Typically, the man will publicly request marriage with a specific woman and both must publicly agree (although there may be considerable social or familial pressure and/or gifts to help “encourage” a less than enthusiastic bride or groom in advance). Until a woman is married, she continues to live at home with her family; an unmarried man however may live elsewhere if he has the resources to do so.

Sex is permitted by religious law between a husband and his wife for intimacy and reproduction or a priestess and a man only as part of the Ritual. While not explicitly permitted, youths commonly explore sex with one another from their teens; this is seen as childish fun and not taken seriously by adults. Unmarried adults are expected to have left behind their childish games and not engage in sexual activity with anyone (for women) or anyone outside of the Ritual (for men). Abortive and contraceptive medicines are provided to youths by the priestesses (who also use them), this is well-known by everyone and not a controversial subject nor a part of the larp.

All other pairings are explicitly forbidden. That is not to say that sexual activities outside of these permitted pairings (such as between an adult and a youth, an extramarital or homosexual affair, or among groups) may not take place in the game; they may, and they would also be punishable according to the judgment of the priestesses if it came to light. (So performing them but keeping them secret would be less interesting gameplay.) Sex is also explicitly forbidden between immediate family members but, again, this does not mean that this is against game rules, only that there would be consequences for such activity.

Social Hierarchy

There is a clear social hierarchy of the different groups in terms of authority, respect, and social power:

1. Priestesses (by years in the priesthood)
2. Men
3. Women
4. Male youths
5. Female youths
6. The excommunicated

Intra-group hierarchies are based on years in the priesthood for priestesses and by age for all other groups. The head priestess is the highest ranking member of society and her word is law; while a coup is theoretically possible, it has never happened before.

Every group has power over others yet must also submit to them in other ways:

• Although priestesses define law and judge cases brought before them with absolute authority, they cannot publicly accuse someone of wrongdoing.
• Although men most often bring public cases against lawbreakers, they must abide by the priestesses’ rulings.
• Although women are subservient to men, they control the household and family and have strong social and spiritual ties to other women and the priestesses.
• Although youths are subservient to all adults, they are free from responsibility, famous for their gossip and choose which stories reach which ears.

The interplay between the different types of power – nominal and public versus subtle or secret – is a key component of Faith.