Archdiocese of Ram

• This polity is the theocratic government controlling the world of Jokotre, a planet in the Mora Subsector of the Spinward Marches Sector.

The Archdiocese of Ram is a religious organization with interstellar reach.

Description (Specifications)

The Archdiocese of Ram is an expansive stellar religion that venerates stars as the physical manifestations of a divine cosmic presence known as Ram. Its followers believe that each star is a living eye of the divine, and that true spiritual enlightenment comes through direct communion with starlight. Central to the faith is the sacred pilgrimage to Jokotre, a perilous Puzzle World believed to be Ram’s first altar, where the devout undergo trials of body, mind, and soul in pursuit of divine revelation.

Theological Significance

To the Archdiocese of Ram, Jokotre is “The First Throne”—the place where Ram first emerged into the material plane. Ancient doctrinal texts claim the world was once a solid star that cooled and fractured into a planet, its divine heart buried beneath the surface in a chamber of perfect crystal.

Goals

No information yet available.

Culture and society

The culture of the Archdiocese of Ram is deeply theocratic, centered around reverence for stars as divine entities and a strict hierarchy of clergy who interpret celestial will. Daily life among the faithful is structured around cycles of starlight, prayerful silence, and ritual observances tied to astronomical events. Pilgrimage is a core societal expectation, and those who return from Jokotre are honored as spiritually transformed. Technological advancement is embraced only when it aligns with religious doctrine, while artificial starlight and unblessed AI are viewed with suspicion. Community values emphasize humility, devotion, and the pursuit of enlightenment through hardship and celestial communion.

Doctrinal & Cultural Practices

• Pilgrim’s Writ – A religious document granting its bearer access to Jokotre or other sacred sites. Must be earned through theological and psychological vetting.
• Soul-Fracture – A spiritual or cognitive affliction said to result from failure to comprehend divine revelations. Symptoms include hallucinations, apathy, or divine obsession.
• Resonant Hymns – Sacred chants that harmonize with certain alien or divine phenomena on Jokotre. Used to guide pilgrims through dangerous terrain or signal religious insight.
• Temporal Intervals of Reverence – Time periods, often linked to specific star alignments, during which all business and movement cease in favor of collective meditation.

Technology and Trade

No information yet available.

Major historical events timeline

No information yet available.

Politics and diplomacy: <Golden Era>

No information yet available.

Government and politics

Leadership Structure:

Hierarchy and Ecclesiastical Order

• Supreme Luminary – The spiritual head of the entire faith, believed to commune directly with Ram through solar meditation in the Lightwell Chamber aboard the orbital cathedral Veritas Solaris. The identity of the current Supreme Luminary is unknown; tradition holds they wear a mirrored helm and speak only through encoded solar pulses.
  • Currently the masked and silent leader of the Archdiocese, considered Ram’s emissary, is only seen during solar eclipses or major conjunctions.
• Astrologarchs – High clerics who interpret stellar phenomena and issue edicts on doctrine, policy, and pilgrimage logistics. It is said that many are former scientists who underwent religious conversion after experiencing visions or unexplained events on Jokotre or similar worlds.
• Canon-Pilots – Religious starship captains trained in both stellar navigation, spiritual doctrine and warfare. They command sacred vessels or starships and these ships are considered sanctified ground. Their ships often bear religious relics with symbology and can refuse Imperial boarding on grounds of sacramental sovereignty. Not that it works all the time.
• Luminaries, Wardens, and Sanctifiers – Mid- and low-ranking clergy found aboard orbital waystations, in planetary shrines, or managing pilgrim convoys. Most are deeply devout and often suspicious of outsiders unless they show reverence for Ram’s light.
  • Sanctifier – A cleric trained to bless goods, conduct purification rites, and adjudicate whether objects or individuals are spiritually safe to interact with.
  • Custodial Wardens – Guardians of sacred sites, often heavily armed and deeply devout.

Military and intelligence

The Archdiocese governs Jokotre and several orbital facilities and maintains a strong military-religious presence around sacred sites—especially the Puzzle World of Jokotre (Spinward Marches 1110), known to pilgrims as The First Throne. The Archdiocese maintains several facilities in orbit and one semi-permanent ground station known as Port Sanctum, staffed by ordained priest-engineers and penitential custodians. Access to the surface is granted only to those carrying a Pilgrim’s Writ, issued after intense theological examination and psychometric evaluation. In times of high celestial significance—such as rare stellar alignments or novae—access is completely suspended and the system is placed under religious lockdown, a protocol enforced by the Ecclesiastical Watch using licensed warships and sensor jamming fields.

Ground forces

Custodial Wardens form into 500 sophont size units under the title of "Ecclesiastical order" carring names of Archdiocese celestial events. These Eclastic Orders are found at the sacred sites, but there are several hundred at Jokotre captial.

Naval forces

Little is known outside of the Ecclesiastical Watch warships equipped with incredible sensor jamming field equipment that 1072 the Imperial Navy found that it countered their capabilities.

Intelligence agencies

No information yet available.

Territorial Holdings

The Archdiocese does not have control over any worlds or systems outside of Jokotre.

Economic & Trade Terms

• Rammark – Official holy scrip of the Archdiocese, used for trade within controlled systems. Values are set by the Council of Weighing Light based on perceived spiritual merit.
  • Currency Restrictions - In Archdiocesan-controlled zones, local holy scrip called Rammarks is preferred. Exchange rates are volatile and subject to the Council of Weighing Light.
• Trade Licensure - Goods must be cleared through the Office of Stellar Ethics. Any cargo deemed “spiritually polluting”—such as AI constructs, synthetic star charts, or unblessed antimatter—may be confiscated or destroyed.
• Starbound Companions - Off world traders who enable the movement of pilgrims and the distribution of relics across the stars.
• Spiritually Polluting Cargo – Items deemed heretical, dangerous, or cosmologically impure. Includes unblessed AI cores, synthetic star simulators, or unauthorized alien artifacts.
• Trade Benediction – A formal blessing given to off-world traders who operate in accordance with ecclesiastical law. Often improves relations and speeds cargo inspections.
• Pilgrim Convoy – A registered group of religious travelers bound for Jokotre or a shrine-world. These convoys are protected under ecclesiastical law and may not be impeded.

Notes from the Scout Service Mission Liaison, Spinward Marches Sector Office

FINAL REMARKS — Scout Service Mission Liaison, Spinward Marches Sector Office

• The Archdiocese of Ram is not hostile—but they are serious. Their belief is sincere, their rituals ancient, and their laws opaque to outsiders. But for those who learn to respect the divine in every point of starlight, great opportunities and rare insights await.

May the stars watch you, and may your flame burn steady.

References

{{Sources | Loren Wiseman. "Religion in the Two Thousand Worlds." Journal of the Travellers' Aid Society 24 (1985): 6. | Traveller’s Orientation Guide to the Archdiocese Traveller’s Orientation Guide to the Archdiocese published May 12, 2025 9:00 pm by Muns