The Manuscript of Penance
Welcome, seeker of the Bound. Herein lies the complete chronicle of Penance: a grimoire of iron, blood, and redemption. Study well these pages, for knowledge is the only armor against the darkness.
Playtest Ready: Version 2.0 + Campaign Systems
The great work is complete. Ten factions stand ready for battle, their Caskets armed and their souls bound. The campaign systems await those who dare long-term play...with procedural mission generation, 26 faction enemies, 7 anomalous horrors, and the Latin classification of the damned.
Contents of this Grimoire:
- Setup Time: 15 minutes of preparation
- Battle Duration: 45-60 minutes of bloodshed
- Ten Complete Factions (Church, Dwarves, Ossuarium, Elves, Wyrd, Nomads, Exchange, Bloodlines, Emergent, Crucible)
- 24 Support Units with Behavior Decks
- Variable Deck Sizes (26-50 cards, as fate allows)
- 60+ Equipment Items (weapons, shields, sigils)
- 16 Weapon Move Sets (89 cards of martial technique)
- NEW: Campaign System - Pilot generation, settlement management, 26-enemy core bestiary, 7 anomalous entities, procedural mission generation
For the Uninitiated
If you are new to the ways of the Bound, begin your journey here:
- Turn Structure - Learn the four phases of combat
- Combat Flowchart - Visual guide to combat sequence
- Common Mistakes - Avoid the most frequent errors
- Deck Construction - Build your deck using the v2.0 formula
- Terrain - Elevation, cover, hazards, and line of sight
- Playtest Codex (PDF) - Complete guide with pre-built decks
- First Blood - The Proving Grounds scenario (45-60 minutes)
- Example of Play - A complete battle walkthrough
The Manuscript's Contents
| CHAPTER | CONTENTS | STATUS |
|---|---|---|
| Playtest v2.0 | Complete rules, 4 faction decks, 24 support units, 2 scenarios, dice system | ✅ Complete |
| Factions (Playable) | Church, Dwarves, Ossuarium, Elves - modular equipment (26-50 cards) | ✅ Complete |
| Support Units | 24 AI companions with behavior decks (6 per faction) | ✅ Complete |
| Equipment System | 60+ weapons, shields, plating, sigils - craftable and lootable | ✅ Complete |
| Weapon Move Sets | 16 weapons with complete card sets (89 total cards) | ✅ Complete |
| Scenarios | Proving Grounds (deathmatch), Reliquary Ruins (objective control) | ✅ Complete |
| Dice System | 3 custom dice types (Attack, Defense, Suffering) with symbols | ✅ Complete |
| All 10 Factions Complete | Church, Dwarves, Elves, Ossuarium, Wyrd Conclave, Nomads, The Exchange, Vestige Bloodlines, Emergent Syndicate, Crucible Packs (21 cards each, 210 total) | ✅ Complete |
| Campaign System | Pilot generation (5 tables, 320M combinations), pilot skills system (38 skills, faction-specific abilities), settlement phase (6 steps), Core Bestiary (26 enemies), Anomalous Bestiary (7 entities with Latin classifications) | ✅ Complete |
| Lore & Cosmology | 437-year timeline, The Sundering, faction histories, species origins, three-layered cosmos | ✅ Complete |
Table of Contents
Rules
Factions
Campaign
Scenarios
Enemies
Tools
Lore
- Chronicle (Timeline)
- Cosmology
- Theslar Engine
- The Sundering
- Before the Sundering
- Year Zero
- Caskets Overview
- Casket Origins
- Casket Manufacturing
- Ground Zero
- Neural Threads
- Engine Doctrine
- Soul Binding
- Soulstone System
- Soulstone Volatility
- Factions Overview
- Iconic NPCs
- The Void
- Climate and Biomes
- Bonelord Karath
- Settlements
Recent Updates to the Codex
(Top 3 most recent. Past updates archived below.)
2025-10-31
Soulstone Sketches (Lore Illustrations), Added two hand-drawn diagrams to Soulstone Power System and Soulstone Volatility pages, with manuscript torn-edge parallax presentation.
2025-10-31
Soulstone Volatility (Lore: Casket Technology), New deep-dive into volatility thresholds, instability states, and battlefield implications; linked under Casket Technology and Lore.
2025-10-25
Pilot Skills System (Optional Campaign Rule), Complete progression system with 38 skills across 3 tiers. Universal skills + faction-specific abilities. XP-based unlocks, Settlement Training, Flesh Bargain integration.
2025-10-25
Combat Flowchart & Common Mistakes, Added visual combat flowchart showing turn sequence and a Common Mistakes guide to help new players avoid frequent errors.
2025-10-19
Balance Simulation Results, Church viability improved dramatically (+15 HP survival, 93% improvement), Blood Offering cost reduced (2 HP → 1 HP), Biomass generation rebalanced.
2025-10-19
Latin Anomaly Classification System, Replaced SCP terminology with proper Latin classifications: Sanctus (Safe), Poenitentia (Euclid), Damnatus (Keter), Necessitas (Thaumiel).
2025-10-19
Expanded Bestiary & Procedural Missions, Core Bestiary expanded to 26 enemies, 7 Anomalous entities added, full procedural mission generation system implemented.
2025-10-19
Tactical Map Generator, Built Python utility. Input simple text config (ROW1: PC PC FR WA OG...), output gorgeous SVG hex maps with terrain.
2025-10-19
Comprehensive Codex Cleanup, Fixed 9 critical issues including duplicate articles ("the The"), outdated faction links (Merchants → Exchange), balance inconsistencies.
2025-10-17
Major Balance Overhaul, Component HP normalization (Head 6→8, Legs 8→10), Salvage efficiency (2-for-1 → 3-for-2), overspending cap reduced (2× → 1.5×).
2025-10-17
Component Damage System, Added comprehensive system to codex with AP zones, Structure zones, and Exposure zones. Three ways to die, one inevitable outcome.
2025-10-17
Integrated Draconid Lore, Added The Petrified Inheritors, ancient dragon-spawn with apocalyptic memory spanning 50,000 years. They remember the last three sundings.
2025-10-17
Salvage Economy Rebalance, Renamed Cannibalize to Salvage and increased cost (1 SCRAP → 1 card became 2 SCRAP → 1 card). Now with 100% more painful decisions.
2025-10-15
Scenario Navigation Fix, Fixed an issue where players couldn't find individual scenarios in the navigation. Scenarios can now be found! We promise they were there the whole time.
2025-10-14
10-Mission Campaign Arc, Added complete campaign with 5 possible endings. Testers report "concerningly replayable." We consider this a feature, not a bug.
2025-10-14
Pilot Generator Released, Implemented with 320 million combinations. Statistically, you will never meet another player with the same pilot. We're not sure if that's good.
2025-10-14
AI Behavior Decks, Created 15 enemies with If-Then AI behavior. They will now predictably ruin your day in approximately 47 different ways.
2025-10-12
Alternate-Earth Cosmology, Wrote complete cosmology. Answered zero questions, raised 47 more. As intended.
2025-10-12
Support Units System, Added 24 AI companions with behavior decks. They're allies! Kind of. They might shoot you. It's complicated.
2025-10-12
Weapon Move Sets, Designed 89 weapon cards across 16 movesets. Turns out swords have a lot of opinions about how to stab things.
2025-10-12
Variable Deck Sizes, Implemented deck ranges from 26–50 cards (see Deck Construction for the v2.0 formula).
2025-10-12
New Factions: Ossuarium & Elves, Added vampire mechs (Ossuarium) and bleeding assassins (Elves). Balance is a lie we tell ourselves at night.
2025-10-12
Custom Dice System, Created custom dice with 6 symbols each. Math teachers everywhere are weeping. We're sorry. We're not sorry.
2025-10-11
Random Event Tables, Wrote 232 tables. Your settlement will now suffer in 232 unique and horrible ways. You're welcome.
2025-10-10
Deck-as-HP System, Implemented where taking damage discards cards. "But what if we made EVERYTHING hurt?" ...us, probably
The Ten Factions of the Bound
| FACTION | PLAYSTYLE | CORE MECHANIC | SUPPORT UNITS |
|---|---|---|---|
| Church of Absolution | Aggressive Martyrdom | Blood Offering (self-harm for burst damage, infinite scaling) | 6 units: Flagellants, Penitents, Relic Bearers, Aspirants, Choir, Absolution Engine |
| Dwarven Forge-Guilds | Fortress Defender | Rune Counters (stack for defense/damage, armor-piercing) | 6 units: Shield Wall, Artillery, Rune Sentinel, Siege Crawler, Ancestor Golem, Dreadnought |
| The Ossuarium | Necromantic Grinder | Soul Harvest & Decay (card recovery, resurrections, corruption accumulation) | 6 units: Bone Thralls, Grave Knight, Fleshcrafter, Bone Colossus, Lich, Death's Herald |
| Elven Verdant Covenant | Hit-and-Run Assassin | Bleed Stacking (infinite scaling, mobility, regeneration) | 6 units: Thorn Stalkers, Rootweavers, Archers, Briarwood Colossus, Assassin, Ancient Treant |
| The Wyrd Conclave | Reality Bender | Wyrd Tokens (reality distortion, stolen faces) | 6 units: Changelings, Tricksters, Dream Weavers, Bargain Keepers, Fae Lords, Court Herald |
| Nomad Collective | Mobile Survivor | Improvisation (salvaged equipment, movement) | 3 units: Salvage Crew, Outrider Squadron, Caravan Walker |
| The Exchange | Economic Warfare | Credit Tokens (bribery, mercenaries, resource control) | 6 units: Enforcers, Negotiators, Mercenary Casket, Trade Caravan, Broker Network, War Profiteer |
| Vestige Bloodlines | Mutation Specialists | Biomass Tokens (5 bloodline variants, extinction clock) | 6 units: Feral Pack, Regenerators, Titan-Strain, Void-Touched, Alpha Mutant, Hive Mother |
| Emergent Syndicate | Hive-Mind Collective | Metamorph Tokens (coordinated swarm, chosen evolution) | 6 units: Swarm Drones, Metamorphs, Hive Node, Collective Mind, Swarm Nexus, Overmind |
| Crucible Pacts | Fire Duelist Packs | Forge Tokens (volcanic honor duels, ancestral iron) | 6 units: War Pack, Flamebearers, Iron Champions, Forge Titan, Warmaster, Crucible Engine |
| Draconid Remembrance | Ancient Archivists | Memory Shards (apocalypse cycles, petrified knowledge) | Not yet inscribed |
Interactive Tools
Digital grimoires to aid your campaign:
- GM Helper - Interactive game master tools (loot tables, event generators, NPC creation, encounters, settlements, weather)
- Pilot Generator - Create unique pilots with random roll or manual select modes (1 in 320 million combinations)
- Deck Builder - Build and customize your Casket's equipment deck
- Card Database - Interactive filterable card reference with full statistics
External Resources
Additional grimoires and reference materials:
- Main Website - Presentation site with timeline and faction overview
- PDF Downloads - Professional codexes of all documentation
- GitHub Repository - Source documents and development
Design Philosophy
Penance follows brutal design principles:
- Brutal progression - Permanent consequences matter (component destruction, pilot death, scars)
- Asymmetric factions - No two play the same (Church ≠ Dwarves ≠ Ossuarium ≠ Elves)
- Mystery over answers - The lore raises more questions (What is the Theslar Engine?)
- Meaningful scarcity - Resources are precious (Scrap economy, equipment slots)
- No pure heroes - Every faction is morally complex (Church burns heretics, Ossuarium harvests souls)
- Death spiral - Inevitable decline (Damage cards accumulate, component destruction is permanent)
- Support Units - AI companions with behavior decks (unpredictable allies)
Contact the Chronicler
Questions, feedback, or reports of heresy:
- GitHub Issues: Report here
- GitHub Discussions: Community forum
"In iron we seek forgiveness. Through blood, absolution."
, The Creed of the Bound