Religion

Cologne Cathedral on Earth

This article presents a brief overview of the religions featured in Star Citizen lore.

Current religions still exist but are not be a focus of the lore. The narrative attention is on religions and cults that have found followers since Humanity’s expansion into space.

Focusing on fictional religious groups allows to be less entangled with personal beliefs and avoid being potentially offensive to anyone. Fictional religions also allow to mold them in a way that benefits gameplay.

Human

There is no official religion recognized by the UEE, and the cosmic landscape is dominated by science.

There is still a need for the divine in Humanity. Current day religions still exist in the future in some form. So there are patches of Christianity, Judaism, Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism, etc. existing throughout the Universe. Many of the religions have adapted with the times, for example incorporating alien species into doctrine, and those that haven’t are slowly withering. The millennia-long grudges and intolerance between the religions have cooled, partially due to distance between worlds since if you don’t like someone you can move millions of miles away from them, but also because exposure to the Xi’An, Banu, Tevarin and Vanduul has strengthened the commonality between Humans and created a Humans-first, theology-second mentality.

A handful of new religions have sprung up as well. Some are crossovers from alien species (there are Human traders who keep trinkets of Cassa, the Banu patron of luck) and some are new. The newest belief systems tend to be humanist in nature rather than overtly religious.

Church of the Journey

The Church of the Journey is still not officially classified as a religion, it is a system of beliefs. It is commonly recognized to be but a simple moral code combined with general thirst for knowledge and experience. Its chief holiday is Traveller's Day.

Sects

The Outsiders, also known as Sun's Eye Fellowship, are a fanatical sect whose aggressive anti-modernity stance lead to them overthrowing corporate interests and ruling Mya (Leir II) since 2812. There are also smaller sects whose reach and influence is more localized, like the flare star obsessed Fire Rats gang or those that believe an all-knowing prophet resides in Pyro.

Xi'an

Li’tova is the central code of ethics and main religion for the Xi’an people. It was established in roughly 33900 BCE by early Xi’an. The core of Li’tova centers around the concept of time; specifically, the intent and effect of all actions throughout time, no matter how small. It was codified into Xi’an law in I.0 (19668 BCE) by Emperor Ya.l'ē se Ru’a, the only surviving daughter of her House and the first Xi’an Emperor. A dedicated commune to Li’tova is located on the planet R.aip’uāng.

Vanduul

Due to the cultural emphasis on solidarity, the idea of higher powers aiding or affecting an individual's life has never caught on with Vanduul society. Therefore, the 'self' is held in high regard, so the closest thing to a Vanduul religion is the admiration of a specific person and what he or she was able to achieve.

Vanduul youth are educated in the lives of exemplary Vanduul of the past. Specifically the choices they made, and how they overcame their environment and distinguished themselves.

Tevarin

Originally the Tevarin followed Rijora (/REE-jorr-ah/), a warrior-code similar to Bushidō on ancient Earth. The Tevarin believed in honor, fealty, and duty above all else. Breaking this strict code meant excommunication, or even execution in extreme cases.

After their defeat in the first war and the loss of their homeworld, the code began to decline in popularity. As a response to this, the Second Tevarin War was launched in an attempt to reclaim the Tevarin race's previous glory. However, this second war failed miserably. Consequently, when the last diehard believers of Rijora flung themselves toward Kaleeth, burning up in the atmosphere and crashing into the planet, the last chance for the Tevarin to reclaim their place in the galaxy had been lost. Following this final defeat the vast majority of surviving Tevarin abandoned their religion in a climatic period known as The Purge. Tragically, almost all Tevarin destroyed their Codices, which are the holy writs of Rijora.

Banu

There are multiple deities, out of which Cassa (the Patron of Luck) and Taernin (the Great Traveler) are the most common.

The Protectorate's spiritual center is located in the Trise System. While the Gatherings on Bacchus II handle the legal and political matters, "The Council" is responsible for the social and moral dictums that define and direct Banu society.

Their calling requires pure objectivity when dealing with their race, so they are separated from the rest of their people as much as possible.

There are no great Banu pilgrimages, so worshipers flocking to a system is not to be expected. Separation of the Council from the rest of society is mandated by the law.

As stated above, Banu don't produce works of art unless it has a practical reason for it. However, there is one exception, their monk equivalents produce elaborate copper-based artwork which has a certain kitsch value. Another product of their religion is a variety of medicines, concocted by their healers, which have been shown to have a positive effect on Human diseases.