[RPM] Cultists of the Cold Ones (Apocalyptic Cult of the Path of Nonexistence)

[Johnny1A.2]

Originally Posted by Icelander

In my campaign, Caribbean by Night (despite the name, currently set in Galveston, Texas), I need to make up around thirty or so cultists who belong to the Keepers of the Last Hearth, an apocalyptic cult devoted to the Lords of the Last Waste, vast, cool, unsympathetic intelligences that devour all life, light, heat, love, hope and possibilities.

There will be about five leaders, each with their own group of assistants, students, followers and hangers-on. Most of the people involved in the ritual in question come from South America, with previous NPCs associated with this cult having come from such South American countries as Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador and Peru. There are also North American members, however, and the cult seems to be worldwide.

I'm looking for two South American leaders, one from the United States and one from somewhere else in the world. Random dice determination tell me that the American one is female, young and attractive and that she has eight followers (none of whom amount to much).

We know that she was born with an aptitude for magic and that she was somehow recruited into the wing of the Keepers of the Last Hearth that is led by a mysterious Hidden Master in South America.

What kind of person would join an apocalyptic cult?

That depends on a couple of things.

What does 'apocalyptic' mean in context? And does she understand that actual meaning?

That'll have a heavy effect on what sort of person would be drawn to this. It depends in much on what she thinks she's doing, as opposed to what's actually going on.

She might:

1. Think of it as a cold-eyed trade-off. 'I help the Cold Ones wipe out most of humanity, in exchange they give me 'x'. 'X' could be wealth, power, immortality, a hunky lover or 10, whatever appeals to her. It doesn't matter if these benefits will actually materialize, as long as she thinks they will.

Option 1 might tend to appeal to a classic sociopath.

2. Raised to it. Her parents might have been cultists too, and she might have been quite literally raised to take part. Whether she really understands what's involved or not would depend on the details.

3. Totally misinformed. She really has no idea what's actually going on, she thinks the goal is something totally other. She might have been led to believe that the cult is a blind or a distraction for whatever she thinks is really going on. She might have been misled by others or her own wishful thinking. She could be at once intellectually brilliant and clueless about practicalities.

4. Curious. Her academic thirst for knowledge is so great she'll risk global destruction to satisfy it. This is another 'sociopath' type.

5. Bitter/angry about Whatever. It could be something big, she might have been a victim of child abuse, slavers, tortured by the drug cartels, suffered any number of horrific things. It might be relatively minor, maybe her lover betrayed her and she's prepared to destroy the world to get even. Either way she might be said to at least a little insane.

6. A lot insane. Totally bat-excrement crazy. This could be compatible with brilliant, she wants to destroy the world because it's Thursday or because her neighbor is growing sunflowers. Her motives would defy rational analysis because they are irrational.

Note that the sixth option makes her potentially a liability to the cultists, too, because her actions are inherently unpredictable.