is a Japanese language

epic fantasy High fantasy, or epic fantasy, is a subgenre of fantasy defined by the epic nature of its setting or by the epic stature of its characters, themes, or plot. Brian Stableford, ''The A to Z of Fantasy Literature'', (p. 198), Scarecrow Pres ...

role-playing game A role-playing game (sometimes spelled roleplaying game, or abbreviated as RPG) is a game in which players assume the roles of player character, characters in a fictional Setting (narrative), setting. Players take responsibility for acting out ...

released in 1999. Its setting is similar to

medieval Europe In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the 5th to the late 15th centuries, similarly to the post-classical period of World history (field), global history. It began with the fall of the West ...

, including a strong church of

monotheism Monotheism is the belief that one God is the only, or at least the dominant deity.F. L. Cross, Cross, F.L.; Livingstone, E.A., eds. (1974). "Monotheism". The Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church (2 ed.). Oxford: Oxford University Press. A ...

religious war A religious war or a war of religion, sometimes also known as a holy war (), is a war and conflict which is primarily caused or justified by differences in religion and beliefs. In the modern period, there are frequent debates over the extent t ...

s and

knight-errant A knight-errant (or knight errant) is a figure of medieval chivalric romance literature. The adjective '' errant'' (meaning "wandering, roving") indicates how the knight-errant would wander the land in search of adventures to prove his chivalric ...

s. Player characters, called ''Engraveds'' have engraved on their bodies the three

stigmata Stigmata (, plural of , 'mark, spot, brand'), in Roman Catholicism, Catholicism, are bodily wounds, scars and pain which appear in locations corresponding to the Crucifixion of Jesus, crucifixion Five Holy Wounds, wounds of Jesus in Christian ...

s of 22 ''Arcaeus'' (apostles of the light) and can use ''

miracle A miracle is an event that is inexplicable by natural or scientific lawsOne dictionary define"Miracle"as: "A surprising and welcome event that is not explicable by natural or scientific laws and is therefore considered to be the work of a divi ...

s'' three times every a session. There are 22 classes (called ''arcanas'') corresponding to Major Arcana of

tarot divination Tarot card reading is a form of cartomancy whereby practitioners use tarot cards to purportedly gain insight into the past, present or future. The process typically begins with formulation of a question, followed by drawing and interpreting cards ...

. The names of arcanas are same as Arcaeus' ones and named with

Latin Latin ( or ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally spoken by the Latins (Italic tribe), Latins in Latium (now known as Lazio), the lower Tiber area aroun ...

, for example: ''Mater'' (clergy), ''Adamas'' (knight), ''Dextra'' (alchemist) and ''Ignis'' (archer). Players choose three arcanas during character creation. Three arcanas represent character's past, present and future. For instance, he might have lost the throne in the past if his past arcana is ''Corona'' (represent royal). In contrast, He may have the destiny that he will ascend to the throne if his future arcana is ''Corona''. The person who has more than three stigmatas is called ''Marauder'' and slain by ''Engraveds'' because he has the

sin In religious context, sin is a transgression against divine law or a law of the deities. Each culture has its own interpretation of what it means to commit a sin. While sins are generally considered actions, any thought, word, or act considered ...

of arrogance and unbelief. But every player character also will become ''Marauder'' if his Dignity Point (DP) is lost. At the game's climax, Marauders always shout that ''"Dedicate Stigmata! We shall hold Lammas tonight."'' as a traditional statement. The game system uses only 20 sided dice and special tarot cards.

Peculiar settings

*The pope of ''Ostia Sinistralic'' that is the most traditional sect is a woman, and a lot of clergy are also women. The messiah called Mater and her nine apostles were also women. Nine apostles are often taken

falcon Falcons () are birds of prey in the genus ''Falco'', which includes about 40 species. Some small species of falcons with long, narrow wings are called hobbies, and some that hover while hunting are called kestrels. Falcons are widely distrib ...

s that run after the person as an analogy. Because the messiah's mother was a falconer. *There are many demon lords are hostile to God. The strongest demon lord is ''Aerglyph lex thunderous''. He is blind in one eye and has infinite wisdom. Obviously Aerglyph is modeled on the Norse God

Odin Odin (; from ) is a widely revered god in Norse mythology and Germanic paganism. Most surviving information on Odin comes from Norse mythology, but he figures prominently in the recorded history of Northern Europe. This includes the Roman Em ...

References

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External links

FarEast Amusement Research
Japanese role-playing games Fantasy role-playing games Role-playing games introduced in 1999 Kadokawa Corporation franchises Knights-errant