Getting Started

This guide will walk you through how your character comes to exist in New Ognos. This guide was last updated July 20th, 2026 to reflect New Ognos's shift into a settled, multi-generational era. Any changes made after the fact will be marked with a star (★).

Coming to New Ognos

While New Ognos is still a place of exploration it is no longer a frontier filled solely with fresh arrivals. It's been many years, in-character, since the island was first resettled and we're now seeing our third and later generations of characters being born and raised on-site. The island has begun to move on from the chaos of its early years, though its wild and rocky history still shapes everything about it: its leadership, its territories, and the people who call it home.

This means most new characters today are not "new arrivals", they're locals that were born here, raised here, and are now working, ruling, or causing trouble here. That said, immigration and unusual origins are still very much a part of the world, and this guide covers all of it below.

Before diving in: three of the background options below (Leadership, Vessels, and Temple leadership) require approval before you create your character. Please read those sections carefully if any apply to you.

Character Origins

Born in New Ognos

The most common origin for a new character today. Your character may be:

• A second, third, or later-generation descendant of an original settler
• Born into a settled territory, one of the Kingdom-immigrant communities, or a noble/leadership House
• A descendant of one of the original Wave settlers, the Starchildren, or other notable figures from the island's recent history — feel free to draw connections to the events in History & Current Events, but note that using a named historical figure as a direct ancestor may need a check-in via your private support channel to avoid overlap with other players' characters.
• Some example backgrounds include:
  • A character who's recently come into a noble title or inherited a House seat they weren't raised expecting to hold (younger sibling whose elder died/stepped back, distant cousin called in when a line ran out)
  • Someone born during one of the sieges or crises (Shard-Touched Horde, Final Night, the Oracle's Fall) now old enough to have grown up entirely in the shadow of a story their parents lived through firsthand
  • Someone raised in one of the newly-unlocked territories rather than Pyronmouth proper
  • A character estranged from or actively rejecting their family's noble/leadership status — chose commoner life, ran from an arranged succession, etc.
  • Someone born into one of the Shrines, factions, cults, or organizations rather than into a district or House
  • A descendant of Starchildren or siege heroes who's spent their whole life being compared to a parent's legend, for better or worse
  • Someone from a Riftborn or otherwise Rift-touched family line

Immigrating from a Kingdom

New Ognos maintains contact and trade with several outside Kingdoms, and immigration is ongoing. Your character might have:

• Left one of the Kingdoms recently, or years ago, for any of the reasons that have always drawn people to New Ognos (opportunity, refuge, curiosity, running from something)
• Family who immigrated a generation or two back, making your character New Ognos-born but Kingdom-descended
• Some example backgrounds include:
  • Sent specifically to represent Kingdom interests in New Ognos now that formal diplomacy/leadership exists — a minor noble posted here almost like an ambassador
  • Left because of a Kingdom's specific internal tension (e.g., fleeing Pyraheim's Valka/Human unrest, escaping Vel'Kora's strict laws around True Names, a Rockfolk who doesn't fit the segregated social mold)
  • Drawn by New Ognos's new formal Leadership system specifically — an ambitious character angling to claim or marry into a noble seat
  • A trader or Guild-affiliated immigrant who came for the economic opportunity tied to a specific export/import shortage (e.g., Asteria's grain shortage, Vel'Kora's magical reagent shortage)
  • Someone who immigrated generations ago and whose family has just never left — less "recent immigrant," more "permanently in-between" culturally
  • A political or religious exile — someone who ran afoul of a Kingdom's laws or beliefs (Vel'Kora's memory-stripping punishments, The Sanctuary's severe penalties for magic against nature)
  • Someone who arrived as part of a delegation for a specific event (the Version 7 battle, a leadership summit) and simply never left

Displaced from Other Times or Places

Characters transported to Kinship after stumbling across ancient traps, tools, or other anomalies left behind by the gods remain a valid background, arriving in New Ognos with no prior context for the world around them. This route works especially well for characters who need an "outsider" perspective on the setting.

Leadership & Nobility

With the island fully settled, New Ognos is introducing formal leadership. This section covers the structure and how to claim a role within it. All claims below must be finalized before you create the character tied to that title.

The Hierarchy

High Leadership Titles

• The Monarchy — Rules over all of New Ognos. Possible titles include High King/Queen/Monarch, Emperor/Empress, etc.; their spouse typically also has a companion title. Their children and their children's spouses carry lifetime titles, typically Prince (typically used by men), Princess (typically used by women), or Sovryn (gender-neutral).
• The Archduchies — Rule over one quarter of the island's territories (e.g., "Archduke of the Northeast") and oversees every Duke/Duchess within it. Within their own Quadrant, they answer only to the High Monarch. In any other Quadrant, they are second to both that area's ruler and the High Monarch. Possible titles include Archduke (typically used by men), Archduchess (typically used by women), or Archduxe / Archreeve (both are gender-neutral). Their spouse typically also holds a companion title, and their children and children's spouses carry lifetime titles of Dame or Thane.
• The Duchies — Rule over a single territory within a quadrant (e.g. "Duke of The Whispering Atoll"). They answer to both the archduchy of their quadrant and the Monarchy. Possible titles include Duke (typically used by men), Duchess (typically used by women), or Duxe / Reeve (both are gender-neutral). Their spouse typically also holds a companion title, and their children and children's spouses carry lifetime titles of Lord/Lady or Liege. You can use the method below to claim one of these positions; they will be open to all players on a first come, first serve basis.

Noble Houses & Estate Titles

Beneath the High Leadership tier sits a more local layer of nobility: Houses that hold and govern individual towns, areas, or estates rather than an entire territory. These titles can be inherited, granted, or claimed depending on the House's founding circumstances. You can freely create nobles (and the towns / areas / estates they run!), no special permission needed.

Titles for Heads of Noble Houses

• Dame (typically used by women) / Thane (gender-neutral, typically used by men) — The head of a noble House, holding direct authority over their House's domain. Answers up the chain to whichever Duchy governs their territory.

Titles for Other Nobles

• Lady (typically used by women/girls), Lord (gender-neutral, typically used by men/boys), Liege (gender-neutral) — Members of a noble House who are not its head — spouses, children, siblings, or extended family. May be granted authority over a smaller portion of the House's holdings at the family's discretion.

Titles for Gentry & Commoners

• Ser (gender-neutral, typically used by women), Sir (typically used by men), Mistress (typically used by women), Master (gender-neutral, typically used by men) — Not nobility, but distinguished professionals, landowners, or officers of standing; the bridge between noble Houses and commoners. A gentry character may manage land or business on behalf of a noble House without holding a title within it.
• None (Gentry or Commoner) — The default; most characters won't hold a formal title.

Specialty Titles

Some characters may receive titles outside of the normal leadership system.

• Exile — Exiles are ancient beings that predate most life on Kinship; they are old, powerful, and not always inclined to listen to mortal leadership. Exiles were introduced as a special character opportunity during our Eonmere arc. If you are a new player interested in taking on an Exile, please contact Signe to discuss options.
• Mayor — An appointed or elected administrative leader of a settlement; Mayors handle the day-to-day governance of a town rather than holding an inherited seat. The Mayor of Pyronmouth answers directly to the High Monarch while Mayors of other settlements answer to the Duke/Duchess of the territory their town sits within, and may need to work closely with Dames/Thanes in the area. A Mayor and a Dame/Thane may both hold authority in the same town at once — a Mayor handles civic administration, while a Dame/Thane (if one exists there) owns the physical ground under the town, holds the noble House, and manages their own estate/investments. The two aren't mutually exclusive, and a single character could theoretically hold both.
  • Duties of a Mayor may include, but are not limited to:
    • Oversee town government operations and manage budgets.
    • Enforce laws and maintain order through the town guard.
    • Officiate town activities and ceremonies.
    • Meet with citizens for grievances and disputes.
    • Coordinate emergency responses.
    • Issue proclamations and executive orders.
    • Chair town council meetings.
    • Act as a diplomat for the town.
    • Grant pardons, titles, and licenses.
    • Manage taxes and fees.
• Vessel — Vessels carry a fragment of a deity; they have access to limited forms of Divinity and will typically be respected by those who know their true nature. Known Vessels carry enough weight that even the High Monarchy and Archduchies tend to give them an ear — not out of obligation, but because turning away a god's fragment is rarely wise. You can learn about them here.

Temple Titles

Alongside secular leadership, New Ognos recognizes a structure for organized worship: The Temple, the umbrella body over every individually recognized Shrine. Temple titles run separately from secular nobility — a Shrinekeeper doesn't outrank, or answer to, a Lord or Dame, though the two frequently work together.

• High Voice (gender-neutral), High Priest (typically used by men), High Priestess (typically used by women) — Presides over the High Table, the Temple's governing council made up of every Shrine's Shrinekeeper. Sets Temple-wide policy and represents the Temple as a whole to the Crown.
• Shrinekeeper (gender-neutral), Priest (typically used by men), Priestess (typically used by women) — Leads a single Shrine, the formally recognized worship of one deity. Holds full authority over that Shrine's internal doctrine and clergy, and a seat on the High Table.
• Other Temple clergy titles are set by each individual Shrine and vary widely — see The Temple guide for suggestions.

Claiming a Duchy

If you want your character to hold, inherit, or be closely related to a leadership title — whether founding a new duchy over a territory, or joining an already-established one as a relative or heir — this must be arranged before your character is created. If there is no one in this position/no player has made a claim in the area, it is currently being run by a NPC and you can proceed with the below process. If someone is already playing characters from the family, please contact them directly to discuss options.

Process:

1. Post in #leadership, for example: "I would like to found the duchy overseeing [Territory]" or "I want to create the sister of the [Territory] Duke and have her brother be a NPC" (or the equivalent).
2. Support will check your request against the current availability (ideas already under discussion, approval already given, etc.) and confirm whether you're clear to proceed. If the position has already been filled, or another issue has come up, Support will let you know and can suggest alternatives.
3. Once approved, you're clear to build and submit your character through the normal Joining form. If you are moving an already-established character into the position, Signe will handle the updates from her side and notify you once complete.
   • Please make sure to put "[Title] of [Area]" (ex: "Duke of Aethelreach") in the Alias section prior to any actual nicknames/aliases.

Our current Monarch and Archduchy positions were selected through polls, surveys, and list randomization based on the number of players available. While we are open to the idea of allowing other players to experience the position at some point in the future, there are currently no timelines for when that may occur; if this is something you would be interested in in future, please contact Signe.

How Leadership Works

Holding a leadership title doesn't mean every decision needs a full IC thread before anything can happen. Most leadership calls work like this:

1. A player asks in #leadership whether their character can do something that falls under your authority (e.g., "can my character open a trade route through your territory," "would your Archduchy allow X").
2. You give a yes/no answer OOC — no IC post required to make that call official.
3. If you'd like to follow up with an actual IC scene or thread reflecting that decision, you're welcome to write one whenever it's convenient.

This means other players' plots are never stalled waiting on an IC post from you, and you're never on the hook to drop everything and write something right away. The OOC answer is what makes the decision real; anything IC after that is just extra flavor if you want it. For pacing, we ask for an OOC response within a few days for small requests, and up to a week for bigger ones; Signe is also always available to help work through requests, especially bigger ones.

Deity's Welcome

Upon joining, each character will be approached by one of our on-site deities and receive a special boon; players can select the deity, or have it randomized. These gifts may be pets, items, or Talents (energy-based abilities). Deities will also reward the pair when a new bond is formed with a Companion Creature.

Next up...

You can check out the other Essential Guides using the links below!

• Guidebook - a brief look in to game setting & mechanics
• Game Overview - a brief look in to game setting & mechanics
• Playable Races - learn more about the people of New Ognos
• Posting Guide - learn how to use our custom-coded boards

When you've read everything over, you can get going by registering for an account here.