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{{Major spoiler}}
{{Major spoiler}}
{{Character|image1 = Sunsetgaz.png|caption1 = The Earth's Judgement - the Sun. Art from Sunless Sea.|location = [[The High Wilderness]]|allegiance = The Conjunctions|alias = The Stars|notable_members = The Sun<br>
{{Character|image1 = Sunsetgaz.png|caption1 = The Earth's Judgement - the Sun. Art from Sunless Sea.|location = [[The High Wilderness]]|allegiance = The Conjunctions|alias = The Stars|notable_members = [[The Sun]]<br>
[[The Halved]]<br>
[[The Halved]]<br>
[[The Sapphir'd King]]<br>
[[The Sapphir'd King]]<br>
The Garden King|music = [https://failbettergames.bandcamp.com/track/the-surface The Surface]}}
[[The Garden King]]|music = [https://failbettergames.bandcamp.com/track/the-surface The Surface]}}<blockquote>''"Look ahead, to the light of the Judgement. All shall be well, and all manner of thing shall be well."''<ref name=":1">{{Citation|https://fallenlondon.wiki/wiki/Prevaricate_2|Prevaricate 2|Fallen London}}</ref></blockquote>'''Judgements''' are the ultimate power in the universe, which we know as the stars.__FORCETOC__
''"Look ahead, to the light of the Judgement. All shall be well, and all manner of thing shall be well."''<ref>{{Citation|https://fallenlondon.wiki/wiki/Prevaricate_2|Prevaricate 2|Fallen London|}}</ref>
'''Judgements''' are the ultimate power (or so they claim) in the universe.__forcetoc__
==Look to the Stars==
==Look to the Stars==
As powerful celestial entities, the Judgements oversee the lesser beings that exist beneath them. They are the ultimate lawmakers of the universe, and all under their eternal light adhere to their rules.<ref>{{Citation|https://sunlessskies.gamepedia.com/Ambition:_the_Stars_are_Dying|Further the Didact's research into the politics of suns|Sunless Skies|}}</ref> Every star in [[High Wilderness|the night sky]], even our own [[Sun]], is a god to their respective planets and subjects. Only a few exist outside their influence, such as those who reside in [[Parabola]], and those who do resent their complete dominance of the universe.<ref>{{Citation|https://sunlessskies.gamepedia.com/Dramatis_Personae#I._A_Prologue|''The revolutionaries made camp''|Sunless Skies|}}</ref> For those who live outside of a Judgement's gaze (as is the case for most Neath denizens) the laws may become... er, strong recommendations rather than mandatory rules.
<blockquote>''"But the laws of the Judgements, whose mask is God, are present even here beneath the earth. Lightly present, but present. And a reckoning, as the saying has it, will not be indefinitely postponed."''<ref name=":2">{{Citation|https://fallenlondon.wiki/wiki/Yes.|Yes.|Fallen London}}</ref></blockquote>As powerful celestial entities, the Judgements oversee the lesser beings that exist beneath them. They are the ultimate lawmakers of the universe, and all under their eternal light adhere to their rules.<ref name=":3">{{Citation|https://sunlessskies.gamepedia.com/Ambition:_the_Stars_are_Dying|Further the Didact's research into the politics of suns|Sunless Skies}}</ref> Every star in [[High Wilderness|the night sky]], even our own [[Sun]], is a god to their respective planets and subjects. Few beings exist entirely outside their influence, such as the inhabitants of [[Parabola]] and those who resent the Judgements' complete dominance of the universe.<ref>{{Citation|https://sunlessskies.gamepedia.com/Dramatis_Personae#I._A_Prologue|''The revolutionaries made camp''|Sunless Skies}}</ref> For those who merely live outside of a Judgement's gaze, as is the case for most denizens of the Neath, the laws may become... er, strong recommendations rather than mandatory rules.
[[File:Bottledsoulwhite.png|thumb|A Judgement's Egg.]] Like all beings, Judgements have souls, known as '''Judgements' Eggs'''; these apparently function as their spores.<ref>{{Citation|https://fallenlondon.wiki/wiki/Judgements%27_Egg|Judgements%27 Egg|Fallen London|}}</ref> If such souls manage to escape being used in dark rituals and other quests for power, they may hatch into stars of their own.<ref>{{Citation|https://sunlesssea.gamepedia.com/The_Alarming_Scholar|Judgement's Egg|Sunless Sea|}}</ref>
[[File:Bottledsoulwhite.png|thumb|A Judgement's Egg.]] Like all beings, Judgements have souls, known as '''Judgements' Eggs'''; these may function as their spores, their offspring.<ref>{{Citation|https://fallenlondon.wiki/wiki/Judgements%27_Egg|Judgements%27 Egg|Fallen London}}</ref> If such souls manage to escape being used in dark rituals and other quests for power, they may hatch into stars of their own.<ref>{{Citation|https://sunlesssea.gamepedia.com/The_Alarming_Scholar|Judgement's Egg|Sunless Sea}}</ref>
Intriguingly, Judgements are also multicellular, and their insides are composed of flesh and bone; they appear to be vertebrates, as they possess skulls/ribs.<ref>{{Citation |https://sunlessskies.fandom.com/wiki/The_Baroness%27_Investigation|The Baroness%27 Investigation|Sunless Skies}}</ref><ref>{{Citation|https://sunlessskies.fandom.com/wiki/The_Autopsy|The Autopsy|Sunless Skies}}</ref>
Intriguingly, Judgements are also multicellular, and their insides are composed of flesh and bone; in fact, they appear to be vertebrates.<ref>{{Citation |https://sunlessskies.miraheze.org/wiki/The_Baroness%27_Investigation|The Baroness' Investigation|Sunless Skies}}</ref><ref>{{Citation|https://sunlessskies.miraheze.org/wiki/The_Autopsy|The Autopsy|Sunless Skies}}</ref>
Judgements communicate via [[the Correspondence]], a particularly incendiary form of language.<ref>{{Citation|https://fallenlondon.wiki/wiki/Breath_of_the_Void|Breath of the Void|Fallen London|}}</ref> They often use Couriers such as [[the Echo Bazaar]] and [[the House of Rods and Chains]] to send messages to each other.<ref name = "seventh">''[[The Seventh Letter]]''</ref> Furthermore, Judgements adhere to an immensely strict hierarchy, called '''the Great Chain of Being''', which is similar to a caste system. All entities are set to a certain rank, and contact is strictly professional (in most cases).<ref>{{Citation|https://fallenlondon.wiki/wiki/Mr_Sacks!_Take_this_dream_of_skies_untainted!|Mr Sacks! Take this dream of skies untainted!|Fallen London|}}</ref> The Judgements do not take kindly to the breaking of this rule,<ref>{{Citation|https://fallenlondon.wiki/wiki/You_have_rejected_wine_and_song|You have rejected wine and song|Fallen London|}} ''"To ascend is not possible, save by the Science (and the Science does not exist). "''</ref> and it is part of the reason why the [[The Echo Bazaar|Bazaar]] is here in the first place (and to a lesser extent, us).<ref name = "seventh"/>
Judgements communicate via the [[Correspondence]], a particularly incendiary language.<ref>{{Citation|https://fallenlondon.wiki/wiki/Breath_of_the_Void|Breath of the Void|Fallen London}}</ref> They often use Couriers, such as the [[Echo Bazaar]] and the [[House of Rods and Chains]], to send messages to each other.<ref name="seventh">''[[The Seventh Letter]]''</ref> Furthermore, Judgements adhere to an immensely strict hierarchy, called '''the Great Chain of Being''', which is similar to a caste system. All entities are set to a certain rank, and contact is strictly professional (in most cases).<ref>{{Citation|https://fallenlondon.wiki/wiki/Mr_Sacks!_Take_this_dream_of_skies_untainted!|Mr Sacks! Take this dream of skies untainted!|Fallen London}}</ref> The Judgements do not take kindly to the breaking of this rule,<ref>{{Citation|https://fallenlondon.wiki/wiki/You_have_rejected_wine_and_song|You have rejected wine and song|Fallen London}} ''"To ascend is not possible, save by the Science (and the Science does not exist). "''</ref> and it is part of the reason why the [[The Echo Bazaar|Bazaar]] is here in the first place (and to a lesser extent, us humans).<ref name="seventh" />
To those of a more... [[Revolutionaries|revolutionary]] bent, the Judgements are not unstoppable; quite the opposite in fact. Through arcane research and dedication bordering (and often well past) the bounds of insanity, the [[Revolutionaries: the Calendar Council|anarchists]] are slowly devising methods to make the lights go out, as part of their quest to achieve [[the Liberation of Night]].<ref>{{Citation|https://fallenlondon.wiki/wiki/The_lights_are_out|The lights are out|Fallen London|}}</ref>
To those of a more... [[Revolutionaries|revolutionary]] bent, the Judgements are not unstoppable; quite the opposite in fact. Through arcane research and dedication bordering (and often well past) the bounds of insanity, the [[Revolutionaries: the Calendar Council|anarchists]] are slowly devising methods to make the lights go out, as part of their quest to achieve [[the Liberation of Night]].<ref>{{Citation|https://fallenlondon.wiki/wiki/The_lights_are_out|The lights are out|Fallen London}}</ref>
By 1906 in the ''Sunless Skies'' timeline, it became apparent the the Judgements were dying off, with someone or something killing them one by one. The British Empire has taken advantage of their deaths, abandoning London and colonizing the Judgements' empty domains.<ref>{{Citation|https://sunlessskies.gamepedia.com/Sunless_Skies|Overview|Sunless Skies|}}</ref> There are still a couple alive, like [[the Sapphir'd King]], who lives in the Blue Kingdom and rules it with impunity.<ref>{{Citation|https://sunlessskies.gamepedia.com/The_Blue_Kingdom|The Blue Kingdom|Sunless Skies|}}</ref>
By 1905 in the ''Sunless Skies'' timeline, it had become apparent that the Judgements were dying off, with someone or something killing them one by one. The British Empire chose to take advantage of their deaths, abandoning London and colonizing the Judgements' empty domains.<ref>{{Citation|https://sunlessskies.gamepedia.com/Sunless_Skies|Overview|Sunless Skies}}</ref> There are still some alive, like the [[Sapphir'd King]], who rules his [[Blue Kingdom]] with impunity.<ref>{{Citation|https://sunlessskies.gamepedia.com/The_Blue_Kingdom|The Blue Kingdom|Sunless Skies}}</ref>
''"Parabola-linen crumbles in sunlight. The mushroom wines of the Neath are not kindly received in the wine-shops of Italy and France. [[Prisoner's Honey|Prisoner's honey]] loses all its virtue."''<ref name = "linen">{{Citation|https://sunlesssea.gamepedia.com/Naples|Buy a train ticket to Vienna|Sunless Sea|}}</ref>
'''The Sun''' is the Judgement of the Earth and of Mankind, at least for those dwelling on [[the Surface]]. For many, it is a benevolent force, even one worthy of worship, but for more... informed individuals, the Sun's virtue is questionable at best. It is ''brutally'' effective at enforcing its laws; denizens of the Neath who have lived too long often drop dead or even disintegrate upon reaching the Surface, and most of the Neath's fantastic delights are reduced to their normal variety under sunlight. [[Parabola]]n entities are cooked almost immediately, as they too Are-Not. And stories about the Neath are simply not believed because of all this.<ref name = "linen"/>
The Sun does have a view of the Neath, in [[Aestival]], where there's a gap in the roof. Despite its deadly effects, sunlight is highly addictive to denizens of the Neath (who doesn't love a warm summer day?) and many of them go out with a smile.<ref>{{Citation|https://sunlesssea.gamepedia.com/Aestival|Gather supplies|Sunless Sea|}}</ref> Denizens of the Neath who are severely starved of sunlight may enter a trance of sorts when exposed to sunlight in small quantities, such as through a '''Sunlight-Filled Mirrorcatch Box''', causing them to chant an infamous mantra: '''"THE SUN! THE SUN!"'''<ref>{{Citation|https://sunlesssea.gamepedia.com/THE_SUN!_THE_SUN!|The light's delights|Sunless Sea|}}</ref>
The Sun's story is that of fleeting desires and the horrors of love. Before even [[the First City]], the Sun fathered [[the Mountain of Light]] with [[the Bazaar]]. Naturally, such a union was scandalous even for the stars, so the Sun stored Stone in the Neath to avoid execution. Then the Sun, being the cad that he is, fell in love with a different star, and had the Bazaar deliver a love letter to her. The Bazaar delivered it, and the other star rejected the Sun, so the Bazaar now bides its time to prevent the Sun from drowning in its own tears.<ref>''[[The Seventh Letter]]''</ref>
It's not clear what became of it by the 1900s; contrary to popular belief, Albion's star is ''not'' the Sun.
===[[File:Mountainglowsmall.png|40px]] [[The Mountain of Light]]===
*'''[[The Sun]]''' is the Judgement of the Earth and of Mankind, at least for those dwelling on [[the Surface]].
|-
*'''[[The Sapphir'd King]]''' is the Sun of the [[Blue Kingdom]], where he rules as king of the [[Death|dead]].
|
*'''[[The White]]''' is the spymaster of the heavens.
''"It's very far away; but perhaps it's watching you."''<ref>{{Citation|https://sunlesssea.gamepedia.com/The_Gods_of_the_Zee:_Stone%27s_Attention|The Gods of the Zee: Stone's Attention|Sunless Sea|}}</ref>
*'''The Red''' and '''the Gold''' are mentioned in relation to the White; not much is known of them individually.'''<ref name=":0">{{Citation|https://fallenlondon.wiki/wiki/You_have_given_up_your_intrigues|You have given up your intrigues|Fallen London}}</ref>'''
*'''[[The Garden-King]]''' was the Regent of the [[Reach]] until his death. The Reach has overgrown in his absence.
*'''[[The King of Hours]]''' was regent of what is now [[Albion]] until his death.
*'''[[The Halved]]''' is the Sable-Sun of [[Eleutheria]], formerly known as '''the King who Wars.'''
*'''[[The King Who Speaks]]''' was the Halved's sibling. Together, they were known as '''the Binary'''.
'''The Mountain of Light''' is the daughter of the Sun and the Bazaar, making her a half-Judgement. Zailors know her as '''Stone'''. Her daughter, a quarter-Judgement, is [[Mt. Nomad]].
=== Beings similar to Judgements ===
:''Main Article: [[The Mountain of Light]]''
*'''[[The Dawn Machine]]''' is an ambitious and dangerous artificial Judgement, built by the [[Admiralty]].
|}
*'''[[The Clockwork Sun]]''' is the Admiralty's second, more successful artificial star. In the ''Sunless Skies'' timeline, it reigns over [[Albion]] in the King of Hours' absence.
*'''[[Salt]]''' is a former Judgement who left its past behind. Also called '''the Sun-Beneath-the-Sea''', it lurks to the East, where new scents arise.
* '''[[The Mountain of Light]]''' is the daughter of the Sun and the Bazaar, making her a half-Judgement. Zailors know her as Stone. Her daughter, a quarter-Judgement, is [[Mt. Nomad]].
!colspan=3|
* '''[[The Black]]''' is not a Judgement, gives no light, and does not exist.
===[[File:Dawnmachinesmall.png|40px]] [[The Dawn Machine]]===
|-
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''"-UN. THE SUN. THE SUN. THE SUN. THE S-"''<ref>{{Citation|https://sunlesssea.gamepedia.com/Dawn_Machine|Dawn Machine|Sunless Sea|}}</ref>
'''The Dawn Machine''' is an ambitious and dangerous artificial Judgement built by the [[Admiralty]].
''"The light of the Clockwork Sun oozes into your cabin like rancid honey."''<ref>{{Citation|https://sunlessskies.gamepedia.com/The_Clockwork_Sun|Log Entries|Sunless Skies|}}</ref>
'''The Clockwork Sun''' is the second, more successful artificial Judgement that lords over [[Albion]].
''"Old soul. Where are you going, old soul?"''<ref>{{Citation|https://fallenlondon.wiki/wiki/The_Sun_beneath_the_Sea%3F|The Sun beneath the Sea?|Fallen London|}}</ref>
'''Salt''' is a quasi-Judgement of sorts, also called '''the Sun-Beneath-the-Sea'''. He lurks to the East, where new winds blow.
''"The White comes to fulfil the frozen law."''<ref>{{Citation|https://fallenlondon.wiki/wiki/Attend_a_service_at_the_Chapel_(no._6)|Attend a service at the Chapel (no. 6)|Fallen London|}}</ref>
'''The White''' is the spymaster of [[The High Wilderness|the heavens]]. It was the entity responsible for sending [[Salt]] to the Neath, but unfortunately Salt got distracted and things got complicated.<ref>{{Citation|https://sunlesssea.gamepedia.com/The_Name-Which-Burns|The fifth letter: the White|Sunless Sea|}}</ref> The White's grand plan is mysterious, but it may have something to do with holding back [[the Liberation of Night]].
The following information on the White is taken from Alexis Kennedy, who no longer works at Failbetter Games. Kennedy has clarified that the below explanation is 'apocryphal', i.e. not canon anymore, but still valuable.
''"The Liberation of Night stained the Deep Wilderness long, long before it touched the Earth, and the White feared - reasonably that its metastasising rapture would darken the hearts of too many stars for it ever to be contained. [This is lore I'd have explored more in Sunless Skies as it was originally conceived, but Failbetter have gone, I believe, in a completely different direction, and this is no longer continuity.] He resorted to the Neath, that notorious half-secret laboratory of stellar secrets. [[The Bazaar]] is developing its own Counsel to soothe and cheer the Sun; the White hoped to find or foment a final argument of despair which would quell the rebellious hearts of any Liberated star it touched. It would also quell the hearts of any loyalist Judgements, but the White would rather see an empty universe than a disordered one. Of course the White couldn't know that the Counsel of Peace might threaten Histories beyond its own, but the White is the White, and it's unlikely that this would have dissuaded it."''<ref>https://www.reddit.com/r/fallenlondon/comments/806h9p/re_an_answer/</ref>
===[[File:Reach_square_icon.png|40px]] The Garden-King===
|-
|
''"They rage against the sun's death at the hands of a half-sun, a midnight murderer. The killer sent false messengers bearing a well-seed. They planted the seed in the sun's heart, and it bloomed! Bloomed and ravened. A lawless killing! A shameful death, enacted without due ceremony!"''<ref name = "old tom">{{Citation|https://sunlessskies.gamepedia.com/The_Bones_of_the_Sun|Strive to hear the death-cry of a fallen sun|Sunless Skies|}}</ref>
'''The Garden-King''' was the Regent of [[the Reach]]; by the 1900s, in the ''Skies'' timeline, he has long since died. Without his regulating influence, the Reach overgrew and became the wild and chaotic realm that it is now known as today. Luckily, however, the Garden-King prepared light-emitting plants that keep the region somewhat well-lit, so the Reach isn't completely dark by any means. The Garden-King is responsible for the conception of the [[Scrive-Spinster]]s at [[the Forge of Souls]]<ref>{{Citation|https://sunlessskies.gamepedia.com/The_Forge,_Awoken|Craft a Scrive-Spinster|Sunless Skies|}}''""As was taught by the Regent of the Reach to the Binary," says the Venturer reverently."''</ref>
The Garden-King was murdered when false messengers, who were likely sent by [[the Halved]], planted a well-seed in its heart. This created [[Old Tom's Well]], and the corpse of the Regent now lies deep within.<ref name = "old tom"/> It is said that you can still hear the Garden-King's spirit throughout the Reach, manifesting as '''the Peacock Wind''', as he rages at his own unlawful murder.<ref>{{Citation|https://sunlessskies.gamepedia.com/The_Autopsy|Investigate a mysterious noise from the back of the laboratory|Sunless Skies|}}</ref>
===[[File:Clocksquare.png|40px]] The King of Hours===
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''"The body of the sun is still cooling. A few embers continue to glow at its core, a low and sullen red."''<ref>{{Citation|https://sunlessskies.gamepedia.com/The_Most_Serene_Mausoleum|Contemplate the dead sun|Sunless Skies|}}</ref>
'''The King of Hours''', also known as '''the Martyr-King''', was the Regent of [[Albion]], or at least the space that would become it.<ref name = "hours death">{{Citation|https://sunlessskies.gamepedia.com/The_Autopsy|Investigate what killed the sun of Albion|Sunless Skies|}}</ref> During his reign, he used his power as the king of all time to hold his realm in a state of eternal daylight, a '''Golden Day'''.<ref name = "golden day">{{Citation|https://sunlessskies.gamepedia.com/Ambition:_the_Portrait_of_the_Unseen_Queen|Ask about the Golden Day|Sunless Skies|}}</ref> [[The Sapphir'd King]], a Judgement who adhered to the Amaranthine Conjunction (the resolution that everything must end), didn't like that very much, so he had the King of Hours murdered<ref>{{Citation|https://sunlessskies.gamepedia.com/The_Sun%27s_Daughter|Hand over the Dignity of Albion Bill|Sunless Skies|}}</ref> using poisoned words.<ref name = "hours death"/> A long, (long, long,) long time after his death, the [[Clockwork Sun]] took over his domain, and Albion took the credit for his death.<ref>{{Citation|https://sunlessskies.gamepedia.com/The_Most_Serene_Mausoleum|Contemplate the dead sun|Sunless Skies|}}</ref>
The King had a daughter, a being by the name of '''the Unseen Queen''', who resides in the underworld of [[New London]].<ref>{{Citation|https://sunlessskies.gamepedia.com/A_Royal_Presence|The Queen joins your crew|Sunless Skies|}}</ref> The Queen is a flirtatious spirit who manifests as a painting of a noblewoman with her face scratched out.<ref>{{Citation|https://sunlessskies.gamepedia.com/The_Portrait_of_the_Unseen_Queen|Description|Sunless Skies|}}</ref> In his last moments, the King used his last remnants of the Golden Day to create '''the Martyr-King's Cup''', an artifact that can grant the imbiber immortality.<ref>{{Citation|https://sunlessskies.gamepedia.com/Ambition:_the_Portrait_of_the_Unseen_Queen|Ask her about the Cup|Sunless Skies|}}</ref> Using it, he stole the moment of his daughter's birth to evade death and transform into [[the Storm that Speaks]].<ref>{{Citation|https://sunlessskies.gamepedia.com/Ambition:_the_Portrait_of_the_Unseen_Queen|Ask about the King of Hours|Sunless Skies|}}</ref> The Unseen Queen ''heavily'' resents her father for creating the endless day where she never shone, as well as for using her as a contingency to escape his death. One day, she may take her revenge.<ref name = "golden day"/> One of the erstwhile questers for the Cup, and one of the most successful of them, says that the Queen "is nothing; she is less than nothing. She never existed."<ref name="conformer">{{Citation|https://sunlessskies.gamepedia.com/Piranesi#The_Chaplains|Ambition: Ask the Conformer for the location of the Martyr-King's Cups|Sunless Skies|}}</ref>
''"The Halved! The sun turned to night!"''<ref>{{Citation|https://sunlessskies.gamepedia.com/Spectacles#Eleutheria|Domain of the Halved|Sunless Skies|}}</ref>
'''The Halved''' is the Sable-Sun of [[Eleutheria]], formerly known as '''the King who Wars'''.
===[[File:Secretsquare.png|40px]] The King who Speaks===
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''"INT: An ancient throne room, built and bathed in the light of Law. On a throne of fire sits the KING WHO SPEAKS. On a throne of obsidian sits the KING WHO WARS. They are the TWIN KINGS OF ELEUTHERIA, united in ruling."''<ref name = "palace">{{Citation|https://sunlessskies.gamepedia.com/Dramatis_Personae#III._Palace_of_the_Twin_Kings|III. Palace of the Twin Kings|Sunless Skies|}}</ref>
'''The King who Speaks''' was [[the Halved]]'s other half, the brother of the King who Wars. In a time when [[Eleutheria]] was still bright, the King who Speaks ruled alongside the King who Wars as a duumvirate, and were known collectively as '''the Binary'''.<ref>{{Citation|https://sunlessskies.gamepedia.com/Dramatis_Personae#V._A_Night_Of_Transfiguration|The Messenger returned!|Sunless Skies|}}</ref> The Binary was petitioned by the nascent Solonacean Conjunction to adopt an ideology similar to [[the Liberation of Night]];<ref name = "palace"/> the King who Speaks expressed interest, but his brother shot it down.<ref name = "speak change">{{Citation|https://sunlessskies.gamepedia.com/Dramatis_Personae#III._Palace_of_the_Twin_Kings|The Prophet began to speak|Sunless Skies|}}</ref> Later on, the King who Speaks lowered his guard and submitted to the Conjunction as their disciple, but he was brutally assassinated by the vengeful members.<ref>{{Citation|https://sunlessskies.gamepedia.com/Dramatis_Personae#V._A_Night_Of_Transfiguration|V. A Night Of Transfiguration|Sunless Skies|}}</ref> The betrayal and death of the King who Speaks led his brother to slaughter the Solonacean Conjunction, and their leader was condemned to [[the Well of Wonders]].<ref name = "mourn">{{Citation|https://sunlessskies.gamepedia.com/Dramatis_Personae#VI._The_King_In_Mourning|VI. The King In Mourning|Sunless Skies|}}</ref>
Based on information from the Prophet Exile's play, the King who Speaks can be characterized as a ruler who valued change, as opposed to his brother, who preferred stagnation and preservation.<ref name = "speak change"/> He also claimed that he and his brother were growing dim, so he resolved to "let the old Order fall" to allow the Binary to become greater than what they already were.<ref>{{Citation|https://sunlessskies.gamepedia.com/Dramatis_Personae#IV._The_Aftermath|Enter the King Who Speaks|Sunless Skies|}}</ref>
''"The Sapphir'd King suffuses the entirety of the Blue Kingdom, but he emanates from its heart"''<ref>{{Citation|https://sunlessskies.gamepedia.com/The_Sapphir%27d_King|The Sapphir'd King|Sunless Skies|}}</ref>
'''The Sapphir'd King''', also called '''the Azure''' and '''the Westernmost King''', is the Sun of [[the Blue Kingdom]], where he rules as the king of the [[death|dead]].
The Azure has a daughter, known by the name of '''the Arbiter of Fates'''.
:''Main Article: [[The Sapphir'd King]]''
|}
Other Judgements, such as '''the Red''' and '''the Gold,''' are known to exist.<ref>{{Citation|https://fallenlondon.wiki/wiki/You_have_given_up_your_intrigues|You have given up your intrigues|Fallen London|}}</ref>
==Interstellar Politics==
==Interstellar Politics==
''"All st-study of the suns is difficult. The Judgements are vast. Ancient. Beings of incomprehensible complexity. Any investigation is also an act of t-translation, rendering their concerns and structures into analogies we can comprehend."''<ref name = "didact find">{{Citation|https://sunlessskies.gamepedia.com/Ambition:_the_Stars_are_Dying#Trigger_conditions|Deliver your findings to the Bedevilled Didact|Sunless Skies|}}</ref>
<blockquote>''"All st-study of the suns is difficult. The Judgements are vast. Ancient. Beings of incomprehensible complexity. Any investigation is also an act of t-translation, rendering their concerns and structures into analogies we can comprehend."''<ref name="didact find">{{Citation|https://sunlessskies.gamepedia.com/Ambition:_the_Stars_are_Dying#Trigger_conditions|Deliver your findings to the Bedevilled Didact|Sunless Skies}}''"Nevertheless, I b-believe I better understand the Conjunctions that divide them now. Imagine vast nations, but f-founded upon philosophy, not geography. There are th-three primary [...] Conjunctions."''</ref></blockquote>
[[File:HeirloomDyingStar.png|thumb|300px|They exchanged war for murder. Art from Sunless Skies]]
[[File:HeirloomDyingStar.png|thumb|300px|The stars are dying.]]
Thanks to [[the Royal Society]]'s magnificent telescope, the behavior of Judgements among themselves has finally come to light (ha!).
In the Sunless Skies timeline, thanks to the [[Royal Society]]'s magnificent telescope, the behavior of Judgements among themselves has finally come to... er, ''light.''
It turns out that Judgements can form groups. Minor ones, called '''constellations''', consist of three to four stars, and are often formed by neighboring stars, resembling clans. '''Conjunctions''', on the other hand, are much, much bigger,<ref>{{Citation|https://sunlessskies.gamepedia.com/Ambition:_the_Stars_are_Dying#Trigger_conditions|Further the Didact's research into the politics of suns|Sunless Skies|}}</ref> and are founded on the principles of an ideology or philosophy. So far, three conjunctions are known to exist:<ref name = "didact find"/>
*The '''Chrysanthemum Conjunction''' is concerned with new beginnings.
*The '''Amaranthine Conjunction''' believes in endings and conclusions.
*The '''Nepenthine Conjunction''' advocates separation and isolation.
A group led by [[The Well of Wonders|the Prophet Exile]] tried to form the '''Solonacean Conjunction''' by petitioning the Binary to join them; it would have followed an ideology not unlike the modern [[Revolutionaries#Liberation of Night|Liberation of Night]].<ref name = "speak change"/> Following the assassination of the King who Speaks, however, the other half of the Binary slaughtered the proto-Conjunction and condemned the Fingerking to the [[Well of Wonders]].<ref name = "mourn"/>
===The Courtesy===
Judgements can form groups of various sizes - factions, even. Minor ones, called '''constellations''', consist of three to four stars, and are often formed by neighboring stars, resembling clans. '''Conjunctions''', on the other hand, are much, much bigger,<ref>{{Citation|https://sunlessskies.gamepedia.com/Ambition:_the_Stars_are_Dying#Trigger_conditions|Further the Didact's research into the politics of suns|Sunless Skies}}</ref> and are founded on the principles of an ideology or philosophy. So far, three Conjunctions are known to exist,<ref name="didact find" /> though many more have come and gone:<ref>{{Citation|https://sunlessskies.miraheze.org/wiki/Senior_Scrivener|Recover sheaves of parchment|Sunless Skies}} ''"You gather what you can: litanies of dead conjunctions [...]"''</ref>
''"Once, the stars went to war with themselves. The Courtesy was the agreement that ended it: thereafter, the stars were permitted to kill each other so long as they adhered to the formalities and procedures set out in the Courtesy."''<ref name = "courtesy">{{Citation|https://sunlessskies.gamepedia.com/The_Brazen_Brigade#The_Adamant_Idol|Ambition: Ask "What is the Courtesy?"|Sunless Skies|}}</ref>
*The '''Chrysanthemum Conjunction''' is concerned with new beginnings.<ref>{{Citation|https://sunlessskies.miraheze.org/wiki/Ambition:_the_Stars_are_Dying|Deliver your findings to the Bedevilled Didact|Sunless Skies}} ''"The Chrysanthemum Conjunction are concerned with inception: with beginnings and n-newness [...]"''</ref>
*The '''Amaranthine Conjunction''' believes in endings and conclusions.<ref>{{Citation|https://sunlessskies.miraheze.org/wiki/Ambition:_the_Stars_are_Dying|Deliver your findings to the Bedevilled Didact|Sunless Skies}} ''"[...] while their counterparts, the Amaranthine Conjunction, believe in culmination, and bringing things to c-completion."''</ref>
*The '''Nepenthine Conjunction''' advocates separation and isolation.<ref>{{Citation|https://sunlessskies.miraheze.org/wiki/Ambition:_the_Stars_are_Dying|Deliver your findings to the Bedevilled Didact|Sunless Skies}} ''"The Nepenthine Conjunction advocate separation, distinction, isolation: the raising of b-barriers and the drawing of borders."''</ref>
A group led by the [[The Well of Wonders|Prophet Exile]] tried to form the '''Solonacean Conjunction''' by petitioning the [[The Halved|Binary]] to join them; it would have followed an ideology not unlike the modern [[Revolutionaries#Liberation of Night|Liberation of Night]].<ref>{{Citation|https://sunlessskies.miraheze.org/wiki/Dramatis_Personae#III._Palace_of_the_Twin_Kings|The Prophet began to speak|Sunless Skies}} ''"Not words of injustice, but of change. Of the Laws that bound the Makers of Law tighter than any. Of another place, where chaos flourished."''</ref> However, after the nascent Conjunction assassinated the [[The King Who Speaks|King Who Speaks]], the remaining half of the Binary slaughtered the proto-Conjunction, and condemned the ambitious [[Fingerking]] at its head to the [[Well of Wonders]].<ref>{{Citation|https://sunlessskies.miraheze.org/wiki/Dramatis_Personae#VI._The_King_In_Mourning|The King Who Wars mounted his chariot|Sunless Skies}} ''"This was how a King fought, with fire and light / And the Princes learned the folly of their youth. [...] THE KING WHO WARS: Scream not for the comfort of oblivion / Such mercy is not for traitors to know / As you burn forever in my palace / In the flames of anger you have ignited."''</ref>
What is killing the stars? Well, they're killing each other. Some massive insult has provoked a cosmic war among them, with '''the Courtesy''', the Judgemental "rules of war," being constantly invoked.<ref name = "courtesy"/> That the suns are prone to just as much lethal politics as mortals is something they do not want ''anyone'' lower on the Great Chain to know, so they specifically assigned a [[Logoi|Logos]] to hunt down anyone who learns of it, called '''the Fire that Follows''',<ref>{{Citation|https://sunlessskies.gamepedia.com/Speaking_to_your_Second_Mouth|Pursuit|Sunless Skies|}}</ref>, which manifests as an electric-blue flame that relentlessly pursues and punishes the intended target until they draw their very last breath.<ref>{{Citation|https://sunlessskies.gamepedia.com/And_the_Lamps_Burned_Blue|Snuff out the lanterns and fly in the dark|Sunless Skies|}}</ref>
While the hints toward this are vague,<ref>{{Citation|https://sunlessskies.miraheze.org/wiki/Heart-Catcher_Gardens|Ambition: Ask "What is the Courtesy?" (Second Storyteller)|Sunless Skies}} ''"Of a war that broke out between the stars and how, when the first star died, they paused. To end the war, they made the Courtesy: an agreement which set out the terms and rituals under which one star can kill another. And to ensure the Courtesy was kept, they— "''</ref><ref>{{Citation|1=https://sunlessskies.miraheze.org/wiki/The_Brazen_Brigade#The_Adamant_Idol|2=Trade mysteries with the Piper|3=Sunless Skies|4=}} ''"When you are done, she tells you of a great war fought before the devils fell; of a new Conjunction in heaven; of diets of war and of peace; of counsels betrayed and feasts where the sky ran with spilt starlight [...]"''</ref> the resultant rebellion may have been the event that led to the institution of '''[[the Courtesy]]''', a set of rules to govern stellar warfare.<ref>{{Citation|https://sunlessskies.miraheze.org/wiki/The_Brazen_Brigade#The_Adamant_Idol|Ambition: Ask "What is the Courtesy?" (The Piper)|Sunless Skies}} ''"Once, the stars went to war with themselves. The Courtesy was the agreement that ended it: thereafter, the stars were permitted to kill each other so long as they adhered to the formalities and procedures set out in the Courtesy. They exchanged war for murder" [...]''</ref> This has only expedited the bloodshed, as the Courtesy's death toll may number in the hundreds of thousands.<ref>{{Citation|https://sunlessskies.miraheze.org/wiki/The_Roll_of_Ash|Return to the Lamentation|Sunless Skies}} ''""I think— [...] a great many stars have died under the veneer of this 'Courtesy'. Hundreds of them, in fact." [...] "That chamber? One annex of Roll of Ash. Annex thirty-four," she says, "of two hundred and seventy-eight." "''</ref>
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Latest revision as of 20:45, 5 February 2025
"Are you quite sure you want to know this?"
Beyond this point lie major spoilers for Fallen London, Sunless Sea, Sunless Skies, or Mask of the Rose. This may include endgame or major Fate-locked spoilers. Proceed at your own risk.
You can find out more about our spoiler policy here.
"Look ahead, to the light of the Judgement. All shall be well, and all manner of thing shall be well."[1]
Judgements are the ultimate power in the universe, which we know as the stars.
"But the laws of the Judgements, whose mask is God, are present even here beneath the earth. Lightly present, but present. And a reckoning, as the saying has it, will not be indefinitely postponed."[2]
As powerful celestial entities, the Judgements oversee the lesser beings that exist beneath them. They are the ultimate lawmakers of the universe, and all under their eternal light adhere to their rules.[3] Every star in the night sky, even our own Sun, is a god to their respective planets and subjects. Few beings exist entirely outside their influence, such as the inhabitants of Parabola and those who resent the Judgements' complete dominance of the universe.[4] For those who merely live outside of a Judgement's gaze, as is the case for most denizens of the Neath, the laws may become... er, strong recommendations rather than mandatory rules.
A Judgement's Egg.
Like all beings, Judgements have souls, known as Judgements' Eggs; these may function as their spores, their offspring.[5] If such souls manage to escape being used in dark rituals and other quests for power, they may hatch into stars of their own.[6]
Intriguingly, Judgements are also multicellular, and their insides are composed of flesh and bone; in fact, they appear to be vertebrates.[7][8]
Judgements communicate via the Correspondence, a particularly incendiary language.[9] They often use Couriers, such as the Echo Bazaar and the House of Rods and Chains, to send messages to each other.[10] Furthermore, Judgements adhere to an immensely strict hierarchy, called the Great Chain of Being, which is similar to a caste system. All entities are set to a certain rank, and contact is strictly professional (in most cases).[11] The Judgements do not take kindly to the breaking of this rule,[12] and it is part of the reason why the Bazaar is here in the first place (and to a lesser extent, us humans).[10]
To those of a more... revolutionary bent, the Judgements are not unstoppable; quite the opposite in fact. Through arcane research and dedication bordering (and often well past) the bounds of insanity, the anarchists are slowly devising methods to make the lights go out, as part of their quest to achieve the Liberation of Night.[13]
By 1905 in the Sunless Skies timeline, it had become apparent that the Judgements were dying off, with someone or something killing them one by one. The British Empire chose to take advantage of their deaths, abandoning London and colonizing the Judgements' empty domains.[14] There are still some alive, like the Sapphir'd King, who rules his Blue Kingdom with impunity.[15]
The Clockwork Sun is the Admiralty's second, more successful artificial star. In the Sunless Skies timeline, it reigns over Albion in the King of Hours' absence.
Salt is a former Judgement who left its past behind. Also called the Sun-Beneath-the-Sea, it lurks to the East, where new scents arise.
The Mountain of Light is the daughter of the Sun and the Bazaar, making her a half-Judgement. Zailors know her as Stone. Her daughter, a quarter-Judgement, is Mt. Nomad.
The Black is not a Judgement, gives no light, and does not exist.
"All st-study of the suns is difficult. The Judgements are vast. Ancient. Beings of incomprehensible complexity. Any investigation is also an act of t-translation, rendering their concerns and structures into analogies we can comprehend."[17]
The stars are dying.
In the Sunless Skies timeline, thanks to the Royal Society's magnificent telescope, the behavior of Judgements among themselves has finally come to... er, light.
Judgements can form groups of various sizes - factions, even. Minor ones, called constellations, consist of three to four stars, and are often formed by neighboring stars, resembling clans. Conjunctions, on the other hand, are much, much bigger,[18] and are founded on the principles of an ideology or philosophy. So far, three Conjunctions are known to exist,[17] though many more have come and gone:[19]
The Chrysanthemum Conjunction is concerned with new beginnings.[20]
The Amaranthine Conjunction believes in endings and conclusions.[21]
The Nepenthine Conjunction advocates separation and isolation.[22]
A group led by the Prophet Exile tried to form the Solonacean Conjunction by petitioning the Binary to join them; it would have followed an ideology not unlike the modern Liberation of Night.[23] However, after the nascent Conjunction assassinated the King Who Speaks, the remaining half of the Binary slaughtered the proto-Conjunction, and condemned the ambitious Fingerking at its head to the Well of Wonders.[24]
While the hints toward this are vague,[25][26] the resultant rebellion may have been the event that led to the institution of the Courtesy, a set of rules to govern stellar warfare.[27] This has only expedited the bloodshed, as the Courtesy's death toll may number in the hundreds of thousands.[28]
↑The Prophet began to speak, Sunless Skies"Not words of injustice, but of change. Of the Laws that bound the Makers of Law tighter than any. Of another place, where chaos flourished."
↑The King Who Wars mounted his chariot, Sunless Skies"This was how a King fought, with fire and light / And the Princes learned the folly of their youth. [...] THE KING WHO WARS: Scream not for the comfort of oblivion / Such mercy is not for traitors to know / As you burn forever in my palace / In the flames of anger you have ignited."
↑Ambition: Ask "What is the Courtesy?" (Second Storyteller), Sunless Skies"Of a war that broke out between the stars and how, when the first star died, they paused. To end the war, they made the Courtesy: an agreement which set out the terms and rituals under which one star can kill another. And to ensure the Courtesy was kept, they— "
↑Trade mysteries with the Piper, Sunless Skies"When you are done, she tells you of a great war fought before the devils fell; of a new Conjunction in heaven; of diets of war and of peace; of counsels betrayed and feasts where the sky ran with spilt starlight [...]"
↑Ambition: Ask "What is the Courtesy?" (The Piper), Sunless Skies"Once, the stars went to war with themselves. The Courtesy was the agreement that ended it: thereafter, the stars were permitted to kill each other so long as they adhered to the formalities and procedures set out in the Courtesy. They exchanged war for murder" [...]
↑Return to the Lamentation, Sunless Skies""I think— [...] a great many stars have died under the veneer of this 'Courtesy'. Hundreds of them, in fact." [...] "That chamber? One annex of Roll of Ash. Annex thirty-four," she says, "of two hundred and seventy-eight." "
