Introduction
In Cult of the Lamb, your doctrines are the backbone of your cult. They dictate what your followers believe, how they act, and ultimately, whether your crimson crusade prospers or crumbles into dissent and despair. One wrong doctrine choice, and you might find yourself cleaning up more than just the usual ritualistic mess! For those new to the flock, Cult of the Lamb combines fast-paced roguelike dungeon crawling with deep base-building and cult management. You, the Lamb, are resurrected by The One Who Waits and tasked with building a loyal following to overthrow the Old Faiths. A vital part of this process involves establishing the very foundations of your cult through Cult of the Lamb Doctrines.
Doctrines are the core principles that shape your cult’s beliefs and behaviors. They influence everything from how your followers work and worship to their attitudes towards death, law, sustenance, and health. Unlocking these doctrines is crucial to maintaining faith, managing resources, and progressing through the game. They are earned through the collection of Commandment Stone Fragments, earned mainly through successful crusades and specific follower interactions. They provide significant bonuses and unique mechanics, but require careful consideration, as each choice has consequences and can dramatically shape your cult’s identity. This guide delves into the intricacies of Cult of the Lamb Doctrines, offering insights into the strengths and weaknesses of each option and providing strategic advice for choosing the doctrines that best align with your vision for your ever-growing flock.
Understanding the Doctrine System
The path to enlightening your followers with the truth begins with finding Commandment Stone Fragments. These fragments are primarily acquired through venturing into the lands of the Old Faiths and conquering its bosses. However, don’t underestimate the value of tending to your followers’ needs, as they may also present you with tasks and requests that lead to these fragments.
Once you have gathered enough fragments, the next step is to weave them into a Commandment Stone at your temple. Interacting with the temple will allow you to choose a new commandment to issue to your followers. At this point, you will face a crucial decision: selecting one of two doctrines from one of the five distinct categories. This choice is permanent, so careful planning is vital.
The five doctrine categories each govern different aspects of your cult’s lifestyle: Afterlife, Law and Order, Work and Worship, Sustenance, and Health. The doctrines within each category offer distinct bonuses and features, leading to unique advantages and disadvantages, and each category has its own importance to running the cult smoothly.
When choosing your Cult of the Lamb Doctrines, it’s crucial to consider the diverse traits of your followers. Some followers may naturally align with certain doctrines, while others might vehemently oppose them. This internal conflict can lead to dissent and decreased faith. It’s up to you, the Lamb, to manage these conflicting beliefs through sermons, rituals, and other means. Understanding your followers’ individual needs and preferences is paramount to fostering a loyal and productive flock.
Delving into Each Doctrine Category
Let’s explore each doctrine category and the choices they present, offering a deeper understanding of their potential impact on your cult.
Afterlife Doctrines
The Afterlife doctrines revolve around your cult’s beliefs about death and what happens to followers after they pass. This category offers powerful tools for maintaining follower loyalty and mitigating the negative consequences of death.
One option is Resurrection, a doctrine that allows you to bring a deceased follower back to life, though with an aging penalty. This is incredibly useful for preserving valuable followers with high levels or unique traits, offering a massive boost to loyalty and preventing the loss of experienced workers or fighters. However, repeated resurrections can accelerate aging, eventually leading to natural death.
Alternatively, you can embrace the belief in Return to the Earth. This doctrine allows you to bury your dead, creating a grave that generates fertilizer which can be used to improve your crop yields. While this offers less loyalty gain than resurrection, it provides a steady stream of valuable resources for your farm. This can be incredibly useful for players who are looking for ways to manage the constant need for food.
The choice between Resurrection and Return to the Earth hinges on your priorities. If you value individual followers and their contributions, Resurrection might be the better option. But if you prioritize resource generation and sustainable farming, Return to the Earth can be a more effective choice.
Law and Order Doctrines
Law and Order doctrines dictate how your cult is governed, the types of rituals you can perform, and how dissent is handled. This category is crucial for maintaining control and preventing chaos from disrupting your carefully built community.
One path leads to the Glorious Ascencion doctrine, allowing you to select a Follower to ascend to a higher plane of existence. This provides a significant boost to faith. It is useful to note however that the Follower is permanently removed from the Cult.
The opposing path is that of Ascetic, which allows you to perform a ritual to sacrifice a Follower. This Follower’s traits are transferred to all remaining Followers. This provides a different method of gaining powerful boons through carefully selected Follower sacrifices.
Both of these offer powerful boons in different ways, and the style in which you approach the situation is up to you.
Work and Worship Doctrines
The Work and Worship doctrines focus on how your followers contribute to the cult’s productivity and how they express their devotion. These doctrines can significantly impact resource generation, faith levels, and overall cult efficiency.
One path here is the Industrious Trait, which causes your Followers to work for a longer time throughout the day, gaining more resource generation. This comes at the cost of having to pay attention to follower tiredness, and keep their faith high.
Alternatively, the Devotee path decreases the time they work by, but increases the amount of Faith generated from them. This can be a great benefit for players that focus heavily on faith gain, and can benefit from the higher uptimes.
Combining certain Law and Order doctrines with your Work and Worship doctrines can create synergistic effects. For example, doctrines that suppress dissent combined with doctrines that boost work efficiency can create a highly productive and well-behaved cult.
Sustenance Doctrines
Sustenance doctrines dictate how your cult obtains and consumes food. This category is vital for ensuring a consistent food supply, maintaining follower health, and minimizing resource wastage.
One possible doctrine is the Grass Eater trait, which means that consuming grass is no longer bad for your Followers. This dramatically increases the supply of food for your Cult, as Followers can be sent out to passively harvest grass.
Alternatively, the Cannibal trait removes the penalty from cooking and eating follower meat, allowing for some nasty but effective cult upkeep.
It is up to you how you wish to sustain the needs of your Cult.
Health Doctrines
Health doctrines determine your cult’s approach to sickness, hygiene, and healing. This category is essential for preventing disease outbreaks, maintaining follower well-being, and minimizing mortality rates.
One path here is the Traitual Healing, where your Followers will be healed fully upon you performing a ritual to heal them. This comes at a great cost of resources, however it provides a quick and fast way to heal any Follower without using medicine or having to heal them individually.
The alternative is the Functional Necromancy trait, which ensures that any dead Followers are revived as a zombie. This is a great boon, as it effectively removes all health penalties from Followers that have died.
Strategic Cult of the Lamb Doctrines Selection: Choosing What’s Right for *Your* Cult
Your choices regarding Cult of the Lamb Doctrines are not made in a vacuum. They must consider the desired playstyle of your campaign. Are you focused on maximizing combat potential? Then prioritizing doctrines that boost follower loyalty, increase combat stats, and enhance ritual effectiveness during crusades is vital. Are you instead seeking a productive and self-sustaining commune? Then look towards doctrines that optimize resource gathering, boost work efficiency, and ensure a steady food supply. Maybe you want to just have everyone be happy with you at all times? Choose doctrines that boost follower mood, reduce dissent, and minimize the negative consequences of death.
In the early stages of the game, it’s wise to prioritize Cult of the Lamb Doctrines that help you establish a solid foundation for your cult. Doctrines that boost resource generation, increase follower loyalty, and improve health and hygiene are generally beneficial in the early game. Later, focus on doctrines that optimize end-game content and challenges, such as doctrines that enhance combat effectiveness, boost ritual power, and unlock powerful new abilities.
No matter what stage of the game you’re at, you can use Cult of the Lamb Doctrines to counteract negative follower traits or events. For example, if you have a lot of dissenting followers, doctrines that suppress dissent or boost follower loyalty can help you regain control. If you’re struggling with food shortages, doctrines that improve food production or reduce food consumption can alleviate the problem.
The key to mastering Cult of the Lamb Doctrines is experimentation. Don’t be afraid to try different combinations of doctrines to see what works best for your cult and your playstyle. Remember, the most successful cult is one that is built on your own unique vision and strategic planning.
Conclusion
Cult of the Lamb Doctrines are a cornerstone of your cult’s success. They shape your followers’ beliefs, behaviors, and overall well-being. By understanding the intricacies of the doctrine system, carefully considering your options, and strategically choosing doctrines that align with your desired playstyle, you can create a thriving and devoted cult that can overcome any challenge. So embrace the power of doctrine, experiment with different combinations, and build a cult that is truly your own! What are some of your favorite Cult of the Lamb Doctrine combinations? Share them in the comments below!
