Cloak & Chalice

## Overview

Cloak & Chalice is a popular live-action role-playing (LARP) game among the Xian. Originally formalized in 50C, the game has evolved to be a central component of Xian cultural identity, attracting a wide range of participants and audience. The Xian love for Cloak & Chalice underscores their unique societal values, such as subtlety, subterfuge, and strategic power plays.

## History

Formalized in 50C from proto-forms dating back to 15C, Cloak & Chalice has evolved over the course of about 300 years from simple play-acting into a fully-fledged live-action role-playing game with complex, often sequenced scenarios. Developed by a Xian couple who (in an open secret) were romantically involved despite their professed belief in Hivism, it represents a significant cornerstone of Xian cultural identity. Despite its relative youth in the grand scheme of Xian history, the game has rapidly matured and diversified, with its storylines now sometimes arcing across multiple sessions akin to sequels, illustrating its dynamic evolution over time.

## Gameplay

Cloak & Chalice scenarios can span from a few hours to several weeks or even longer in rare cases. Each game session is one-use-only, maintaining a cultural taboo against reusing a scenario. The production of these scenarios can be quite an expensive endeavor as they require manual crafting by seasoned writers, limiting the use of AI to merely an augmenting tool. High-profile scenario writers charge large sums for their work and have a significant celebrity status within the Xian society. They usually go by a one-word pen name, even though their true identities are not kept a secret.

The game settings usually lean towards high fantasy or sword-and-sandal style, yet other genres are also featured at times. Factions often arise in these games, mirroring the intricate dynamics of medieval courts with characters vying for power and position, engaging in secret alliances, assassinations, and power plays. Xian players are required to stay in character for the entire duration of the scenario, breaking character only in case of emergencies. The immersive nature of the game is further emphasized by the fact that virtual reality (VR) is never used for official Cloak & Chalice scenarios.

Despite the game's popularity among the Xian, Cloak & Chalice has also attracted interest from other species. Notably, Bendonites have shown a growing fondness for the game over the last sixty years. The Xian don't necessarily mind the spread of the game as they feel this might strengthen their position in the galactic scene, however they don't like how other species don't seem to have caught the vision of the one-time-use nature of the game. Bendonites in particular are known for recycling well-known Xian scenarios.

## Notable Scenario Writers and Scenarios

Cloak & Chalice has seen many famous scenario writers such as Epic, Dusk, and Claw. One of the most notable among them is Xeth Xiantra, known by his pen name "Raptor," who despite his other responsibilities as a mercenary in the Mission Vanguard, creates highly sought-after long scenarios that last weeks. His responsibilities with the Mission Vanguard make it so he can produce a new scenario only once every few years. Since they can't be reused they are highly sought after.

The most renowned scenario in Cloak & Chalice's history is the Dagger Dance scenario of 312C written by Dusk. Lasting for an extraordinary nine months and six days with over three dozen Xian players, this epic game became a cultural phenomenon. Its quest journal was extensively published and widely disseminated on the Mission extranet, and it was later adapted into a highly successful mini-series by a Bendonite filmmaker in 324C. In the Union and in the Red Mission, many people's first introduction to C&C was this mini-series.

## Cloak & Chalice and Xian Society

Cloak & Chalice is considered an important aspect of Xian culture and a means of teaching societal values to their young. The game is highly respected and celebrated within the Xian society and is not associated with any sort of "geeky" stigma. The high expense of top-tier scenarios and the cost of securing suitable play locations make the game attractive even to the most "high class" Xian.

This game, however, is not without its controversies. One troubling aspect is the rare but potentially severe medical condition known as Reality Disintegration Syndrome (RDS), which leads to collective hallucinations among Xian players, causing them to forget that the scenario is not real. This can be psychologically distressing as they need to have their game shut down and slowly be reintroduced to the real world, but even worse it can be physically dangerous. In one notable example in the year 327C an in-game assassination resulted in the actual killing of a Xian player. The incident spurred advancements in Xian psychological understanding and therapy, particularly concerning shared hallucinatory experiences.

## Future of Cloak & Chalice

The popularity of Cloak & Chalice continues to grow, both within and outside the Xian community. With the increasing interest of other species, particularly the Bendonites, the game's influence is expected to spread further across the Mission and perhaps beyond.

## Non-Exceptional Status

Cloak & Chalice, despite its profound cultural significance and popularity among the Xian, has been a point of contention within the larger Mission due to its exclusion as an "exceptional" by the Soran Order-directed Mission Committee on Arts, Culture, and Achievements (MCAA). The Xian argue that Cloak & Chalice, although developed after their assimilation into the Mission, exemplifies their unique cultural identity and should be recognized as an exceptional. However, the Soran Order maintains that exceptionals should represent pre-assimilation achievements. This ongoing dispute has led to strained relations between the Xian and the Soran Order, as many Xian view the decision as yet another dismissal of their contributions to the Mission's cultural tapestry.