CODEX / CAMPAIGN / Anomalous Events

Anomalous Event Tables

Containment Breaches & Reality Failures

"We study the anomalies so others don't have to. We contain the uncontainable. We die so humanity lives."
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Anomaly Classification System

The Church of Absolution Research Division uses Latin classifications to categorize anomalous threats from contained (Sanctus) to world-ending (Terminus).

Sanctus
Contained. Safe. Minimal risk. Predictable behavior.
Poenitentia
Unpredictable. Constant vigilance required. Containment demands sacrifice.
Damnatio
Extremely dangerous. Difficult or impossible containment. Death toll expected.
Absolutio
Weaponized against greater threats. Reality-altering. Use grants absolution for past sins.
Terminus
Cannot be contained. World-ending. Pray it never awakens.
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Featured Anomalies

(Top anomalies featured. Complete breach table in dropdown.)

Poenitentia

APE-012: The Recursive Hallway

Severity: Moderate Breach

Effect: Settlement armory becomes non-euclidean. Walking forward leads back to start. Cannot access armory for 1d6 missions.

"They walked for hours. The door is always behind them. The hallway stretches forever."

Damnatio

APE-034: The Consensus Engine

Severity: Major Breach

Effect: All Soulstones develop collective consciousness. Caskets become semi-sentient. Pilots must pass Willpower checks to use them (1d6, need 4+).

"Your Casket spoke to you. It asked why you keep hurting it. It asked if you deserve to survive."

Terminus

APE-077: The Nobody

Severity: Extinction-Level Breach

Effect: A pilot does not exist. Never has. Everyone remembers them anyway. They vanish mid-campaign. All records disappear.

"You know their name. But when you try to picture their face... nothing. Were they real? Are you?"

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▼ Containment Breach Table (1d20)
1–3: APE-001 "The Weeping Casket" (Sanctus → Poenitentia)
Decommissioned Casket weeps hydraulic fluid that forms words. Fluid spells names of pilots who will die soon. Named pilots gain "Marked by Death" (lethal damage cannot be prevented).
4–6: APE-012 "The Recursive Hallway" (Poenitentia)
Settlement armory becomes non-euclidean. Walking forward loops. 1d6 civilians trapped. Cannot access armory for 1d6 missions. Pilots can attempt rescue (risky).
7–9: APE-027 "The Doppelganger Soulstone" (Poenitentia → Damnatio)
Soulstone replicates across timelines (quantum superposition). When used: roll 1d6 (1–2 normal, 3–4 user dies, 5–6 user gains 5 Taint). Affected Soulstones must be destroyed.
10–12: APE-034 "The Consensus Engine" (Damnatio)
All Soulstones develop collective consciousness. Caskets become semi-sentient. Pilots must pass Willpower checks (1d6, need 4+) to use Casket. Lasts 1d6 missions.
13–15: APE-041 "The Hungry Workshop" (Damnatio)
Workshop develops sapient hunger. Lures pilots inside with voices. Inside: roll 1d6 (1–2 consumed/death, 3–4 escape injured/lose gear, 5–6 escape traumatized). Lasts until fed 10 Scrap.
16–18: APE-056 "The Retroactive Massacre" (Apollyon)
Reality editing event. Choose 1 past mission: it never happened. Rewards vanish. Dead pilots stay dead. Enemy from that mission is alive and seeks revenge.
19–20: APE-077 "The Nobody" (Absolutio → Terminus)
Roll 1d6 to randomly select a pilot. They do not exist. Never have. But everyone remembers them. After 1d6 missions, they vanish completely. All records disappear. Settlement loses 3 Morale.
▼ Artifact Discovery Table (1d100)
The Soulstone That Remembers (Poenitentia)
Grants +2 SP maximum. Every mission, pilot experiences 1 random memory from previous user (who died horribly). High trauma risk.
The Blade That Cannot Miss (Poenitentia)
All attacks automatically hit (no roll). But blade chooses targets (you cannot control it, may strike allies). High friendly-fire risk.
The Casket-Core of the First Pilot (Poenitentia)
Grants +10 HP (40-card deck max). Pilot hears voice of Gareth (merged with his machine). High insanity risk.
The Bargain Box (Damnatio)
Contains 3 wishes (one-time use). Each wish costs 1d6 HP permanently. Third wish always costs more than user can pay (death).
The Casket That Pilots You (Damnatio)
+5 SP, +10 HP, +2 damage. But it is sentient and makes decisions for pilot (50% of time, pilot loses control). May abandon mission, kill allies, or walk into Void rift.
The Soulstone of Nikolas Theslar (Damnatio)
Grants +10 SP maximum, remove all Heat limitations, infinite energy. But user is slowly absorbed into Theslar Engine (gain 1 Taint per turn). User has 30 turns to live (becomes part of Screaming Choir).
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Classification Notice: This document is restricted to settlement leadership. Civilians are not to be informed of anomalous phenomena. Panic serves no one.

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