View Crimson Cup Members Handbook flipbook.
A Member's Book of Revelry, Temptation, and the Open Cup For SkyrimRP - The Crimson Cup
THE CRIMSON CUP 1 The Book of the Open Chalice For the eyes of members, invited guests, and those being shown the first cup You have not been given commandments from a distant throne. You have been handed a cup. What you do with it is yours to decide. The Crimson Cup exists for those who are tired of living entirely by the expectations of priests, jarls, families, guildmasters, commanders, and strangers. We gather to celebrate appetite, risk, laughter, music, pleasure, freedom, curiosity, and the truths people reveal when they stop pretending not to want. "Desire does not lie. The mouth may deny it. The heart does not." What We Believe We honor Sanguine, Lord of Revelry, not by kneeling all day before an altar, but by living. A worthy revel can be prayer. A wager can be confession. A feast can be sacrament. A night remembered for years is worth more than a hundred empty sermons. Yet the Cup is not an excuse for mindless cruelty. Temptation is most meaningful when a person is free to refuse it. A Reveler offers the door. The guest chooses whether to walk through. The Three Truths Desire reveals. What a person longs for tells you more than what they claim to be. Shame chains. Many rules exist only because someone else fears what you may become without them. Revelry remembers. Leave behind stories worth retelling. "Sanguine places the cup before you. Drink or do not. Just do not lie about wanting it."
THE CRIMSON CUP 2 The Laws of the Cup A revel without rules becomes a cage of another sort I Offer. Never compel. We tempt, invite, wager, tease, and challenge. We do not force another into a revel they did not choose. II A guest may leave. No one earns Sanguine's favor by turning hospitality into imprisonment. III Protect the revel. Do not start needless bloodshed that ruins the gathering, exposes the society, or draws guards without purpose. IV Keep the Cup's confidence. Names, shrines, meeting places, private confessions, and hidden rites are not tavern gossip. V Do not prey upon your own. Stealing from, blackmailing, betraying, or deliberately humiliating fellow members without an agreed game or ritual fractures the Cup. VI A wager accepted is honored. Terms are spoken clearly. Tricks may be clever; hidden rules are cowardice. VII No revel is mandatory. A Reveler may refuse a drink, a lover, a fight, a substance, a dare, or a ritual. Choice gives indulgence its meaning. VIII Do not confuse excess with stupidity. A burned tavern, dead ally, or exposed shrine may be memorable, but not every memory is worth making. IX The Host settles the room. During an official gathering, the appointed Host or Toastmaster may end a wager, eject a guest, or halt a rite to preserve the faction. X Never be needlessly boring. If a choice must be made between the forgettable and the memorable, the Cup usually knows which one to pour.
THE CRIMSON CUP 3 What the Crimson Cup Does Our worship is lived more often than spoken Public Revels Tavern nights: buy rounds, tell stories, meet strangers, and create reasons to return. Feasts: rich food, unusual drink, musicians, contests, and guests from every walk of life. Games of chance: cards, dice, wagers, races, and contests with agreed stakes. Fights and trials: fistfights, sparring, hunts, drinking contests, and tests of nerve. Masquerades: masks, false names, hidden identities, and one night without rank. Quiet Work Find secluded rooms, cellars, caves, ruins, or private halls suitable for future gatherings. Acquire wine, mead, food, moon sugar, rare ingredients, masks, instruments, and gifts. Listen for rumors of unusual festivals, forbidden luxuries, curious relics, and spectacular risks. Protect members who have drawn unwanted attention. Acts of the Rose The Beggar's Banquet: feed people who rarely see a rich table. Pleasure means more to those denied it. The Last Septim: wager from almost nothing and see who walks away with the story. The Long Night: carry a revel from one tavern, camp, or hold to the next. The Unspoken Wager: members draw private challenges to complete before sunrise. Relic hunts: pursue objects tied to Sanguine, revelry, forbidden feasts, lost cults, or legendary celebrations. A Good Event Has Three Things A temptation. Something someone wants. A choice. A real opportunity to accept or refuse. A story. Something worth talking about afterward. "We do not gather to forget life. We gather to remember that it can still surprise us."
THE CRIMSON CUP 4 Who We Seek The best recruit is not the loudest drunk in the room The Crimson Cup is strongest when it contains different appetites. Do not seek only people already living in excess. Often the most interesting recruit is the person who has spent years denying themselves everything. The Restless People trapped in routine: laborers, guards, soldiers, servants, apprentices, caravan hands, and anyone who keeps saying that someday they will finally live. The Restrained People bound by reputation, duty, family, religion, rank, or tradition. Nobles and disciplined warriors can make excellent members because they understand what restraint costs. The Curious Scholars, alchemists, mages, explorers, treasure hunters, bards, and anyone fascinated by strange experiences simply because they have never had them. The Unwanted Outcasts, foreigners, criminals seeking fellowship, failed apprentices, disgraced soldiers, and people who feel every respectable door has already closed. The Bold Mercenaries, adventurers, hunters, duelists, thieves, gamblers, performers, and people who already understand the pleasure of risk. The Secretive People with a private appetite they hide behind a respectable face. They often understand the Crimson Cup faster than anyone. People to Approach Carefully Fanatics: someone who wants Sanguine to excuse every cruelty may damage the faction. Informants and glory-seekers: people desperate to brag about secrets are dangerous. Those already ruled by an appetite: a person completely enslaved by drink, violence, skooma, or gambling may need help more than another invitation to excess. People seeking victims rather than companions: the Cup is not permission to ignore another person's will. "Do not ask who already drinks. Ask who keeps staring at the bottle."
THE CRIMSON CUP 5 The Art of Invitation Recruitment begins with curiosity, not preaching 1 Observe. Notice what they complain about, envy, avoid, miss, or secretly admire. Do not immediately mention Sanguine. 2 Share the table. Buy a drink. Offer food. Join a game. Help with a problem. Become a person they would willingly speak to again. 3 Ask the right question. Find the desire beneath the complaint. "What would you do if nobody judged you?" is often worth more than a sermon. 4 Offer something small. A harmless wager, unusual drink, night of music, fistfight, masked feast, hunting trip, extravagant meal, or chance to break routine. 5 Invite them to an outer revel. Their first gathering should be enjoyable. Do not reveal every secret at once. Let them discover why they want to return. 6 Test discretion. Give them a small confidence. See whether it becomes tavern gossip by morning. 7 Reveal the Rose. Only after they have chosen the Cup more than once should they learn that the revel has a patron and the society a deeper purpose. Questions That Open Doors "When did you last do something purely because you wanted to?" "What would you buy if coin did not matter?" "What rule do you obey that you secretly hate?" "What is the worst decision you remember fondly?" "What have you always wanted to try once?" "If nobody knew your name tonight, what would you do differently?" "What would make this night worth remembering?" "Who taught you to be ashamed of that?" "Nobody is making you drink."
THE CRIMSON CUP 6 Reading a Potential Recruit Look for hunger before you offer a feast What You Notice What It May Mean A Good First Invitation Always working, never celebrating They may resent duty but lack permission to stop A meal, bathhouse visit, quiet drink, or night with no work talk Constantly boasts but refuses wagers Pride is probably the appetite A contest with a funny, non-destructive stake Complains about rank or family They may want anonymity or rebellion A masked revel or "Night Without Names" Obsessed with rare objects or stories Curiosity and possession may be stronger than drink A relic rumor, forbidden book, treasure lead, or strange ingredient Always watches others dance, gamble, or fight They are interested but fear embarrassment Invite them privately and make the first stakes small Lives for danger Risk itself may be their sacrament A hunt, duel, race, dungeon wager, or dangerous delivery Outcast with nowhere to belong Fellowship may matter more than indulgence A feast where they are treated as a guest, not a charity case Three Recruitment Mistakes Preaching Too Soon If your first sentence is about Daedra, you have turned curiosity into fear before the revel begins. Pushing Too Hard Pressure creates resistance. A good recruit should eventually feel that joining was their own idea. Offering the Wrong Vice Not everyone wants drink or lust. Some want danger, beauty, status, secrets, wealth, freedom, praise, or simply one reckless night. The Recruiter's Measure A potential member is ready for a deeper invitation when they have returned voluntarily, kept at least one confidence, shown respect for another guest's choice, and demonstrated that they have an appetite beyond simple destruction. A recruit should be drawn toward the Cup - not dragged toward it.
THE CRIMSON CUP 7 Ranks and Duties Titles describe what you bring to the revel Title Place in the Cup Expected Duties Guest An outsider being welcomed and observed. No secrets required. Attend, choose, enjoy, and decide whether to return. Cupbearer A newly initiated member. Learn the Laws, assist gatherings, keep confidence, and begin bringing ideas for revels. Reveler A trusted full member. Recruit carefully, support other members, host small events, and protect the Cup's name. Rose Recruiter, social operative, negotiator, seducer, or rumor-gatherer. Find worthy guests, cultivate contacts, and make outsiders curious without exposing the whole society. Thorn Protector and enforcer. Guard gatherings, escort members, handle threats, and stop revels from becoming uncontrolled slaughter. Vintner Supplier, alchemist, brewer, cook, healer, or quartermaster. Keep the Cup stocked and prepare the tools of revelry. Toastmaster Master of ceremonies. Lead formal events, announce wagers, oversee rituals, and keep the room moving. Keeper of the Cup Leader of a local cell or chapter. Maintain safe locations, judge internal disputes, organize larger rites, and guard deeper knowledge. The Host The highest local authority of the society. Set direction, preserve unity, choose major goals, and ensure the Cup remains tempting rather than merely destructive. "A Rose opens the door. A Thorn keeps it standing. A Vintner fills the cup. A Host gives everyone a reason to stay." Advancement Rank should follow trust, contribution, discretion, and good roleplay, not simply time served. A member who creates scenes for others, protects faction secrets, respects boundaries, and brings new stories to the group is more valuable than one who merely appears at meetings.
THE CRIMSON CUP 8 Rites of the Crimson Cup Simple enough to use in live roleplay The Three Cups - Initiation First Cup - Desire The initiate answers: "What do you want when nobody else is allowed to answer for you?" Second Cup - Shame They answer: "Who taught you that wanting it made you lesser?" Third Cup - Choice A cup is placed before them. They may drink or refuse. Either answer is accepted if it is honest. The Night Without Names Members wear masks or use chosen names. Ranks, family names, guild titles, and social standing are left outside. A beggar may command a dance from a noble; a soldier may sing badly; a scholar may fistfight. The point is not chaos. The point is discovering who remains when status is removed. The Unspoken Wager Each participant draws or receives a private challenge. Challenges should create scenes, embarrassment, courage, discovery, or comedy - not force unwanted sexual, violent, or permanently damaging RP. The Empty Chair At the start of certain feasts, one place is left open "for the unexpected guest." Anyone who arrives alone, forgotten, or unwelcome elsewhere may be offered that seat. The Final Toast At the end of a successful gathering, each member names the moment they will remember. The Toastmaster closes the feast with a final toast. The Rose and Thorn A member tells one pleasure they seek and one danger that comes with it. The rite teaches that indulgence without consequence is fantasy; choosing with open eyes is devotion. "May tomorrow judge us less harshly than we intend to judge ourselves."
THE CRIMSON CUP 9 Words of the Cup Phrases members can use naturally in everyday roleplay Greetings "Your cup looks empty." "May tonight surprise you." "Has life entertained you lately?" "Come. The table still has room." Toasts "To bad decisions and better stories." "To whatever happens next." "May we remember enough to laugh about it." "To the Lord of Revelry." Goodbyes "Until the next cup." "Save a drink for the Grove." "Give the Prince something worth hearing about." "Try not to behave." Teachings "Desire does not lie." "The Rose has thorns for a reason." "Pleasure without risk is merely comfort." "The Cup reveals what the mouth denies." "Every saint has a thirst." "Every chain begins with the word should." "The Prince provides temptation. We provide opportunity." Useful Coded Phrases "The cellar is open." - A private gathering is happening. "Bring a red bottle." - Come prepared for an official Cup event. "A rose is blooming." - A promising recruit has been found. "The thorns are showing." - Trouble, suspicion, or unwanted attention is nearby. "The table is cleared." - End the meeting and disperse. "What would make tonight worth remembering?"
THE CRIMSON CUP 10 The Member's Compact A final page for the player behind the character The Crimson Cup is built to create scenes, not shut other players out of them. Sanguine's themes can touch alcohol, drugs, lust, gambling, violence, humiliation, addiction, and other mature subjects, so the faction works best when everyone treats the player behind the character with more care than the cultist may show in-character. Player-Friendly RP Rules • Character consent is not player consent. Check OOC when a scene may become sexual, extremely violent, humiliating, coercive, or permanently damaging. • Server rules always outrank cult doctrine. "Sanguine made me do it" is never a reason to ignore community rules. • Recruitment should create RP. Do not spam strangers with cult invitations. Build an actual relationship or scene first. • Let people say no. A refusal can be great RP. Do not repeatedly pressure a player who clearly is not interested. • Do not require real intoxication. Characters can drink, use substances, or lose control without players doing the same. • Avoid permanent consequences without agreement. Death, mutilation, forced addiction, kidnapping, blackmail, or major character changes should be mutually agreed upon where server rules require it. • Share the spotlight. Good cult RP gives guests and new members choices, questions, wagers, and chances to influence the event. The Oath of the Open Cup "I will not pretend that I do not desire. I will not make another's choice for them. I will guard the table, honor the wager, and keep the confidence of the Cup. I will leave behind stories worth telling. And when the cup is offered, I will choose with my own hand." - THE CRIMSON CUP - "To bad decisions and better stories."