Revelation
The Revelation is the name historians have given to the social, political, and theological chaos following the emergence of the Vault dimension.
The Conflict
Prelude
When portals to another dimension suddenly started popping up across the lands, people started asking some hard questions of their local clergy. This only intensified as early Vault Hunters reported seeing altars and feeling the effects of (apparently) divine favor and disdain. The Priesthood of the Father, as Flimflam's only monotheistic and most politically connected religion, took a hardline stance that the Playful Pantheon observed in the Vaults were false gods, possibly even powerful Demonic spirits. However, this panetheon was already known on Flimflam, with an organized (if small and somewhat obscure) religious organization: The Playful Orders. Those who knew of them spread the word enthusiastically, and the Hierophants suddenly had more followers than they knew what to do with. They began opening new temples and expanding across the world. Conflict was inevitable.
Deployment
The Priesthood of the Father sent orders to their vast network of diplomats and advisors to pursue legal bans on the worship of the Playful Pantheon or at least prevent new Playful Orders sects from buying land and buildings.
The Hunter's Guild had already begun to form but found a clear purpose in protecting Playful clergy and temples. Their rough-and-tumble membership arguably stopped a lot of fights by simply looking too mean to tangle with.
The Engagement
The Priesthood of the Father (unofficially) supplemented their legal and political efforts by whipping up mobs and pointing them at Playful temples or clergy with sermons about their supposed depravity.
On their side, the Playful Orders were mostly reactive. The Hierophants preached to larger and larger crowds, with Initiates of Agon trained in martial arts acting as bodyguards for Hierophants of all the Playful orders. The Playful Hierogrammats coordinated with the Hunter's Guild to set up nightly patrols around threatened temples and handle crowd control at their events. If it hadn't been for the Hunter's Guild, it's doubtful whether the Playful Orders could have avoided being burned out or beaten into the ground.
The legal and political side of things, however, continued to be a quagmire. Even those local authorities not convinced (or bought out) by the Priesthood of the Father hesitated before granting building permits or leases because they saw the Playful Orders as "bringing trouble" with them. The Chief Hierophants of each order met in secret and agreed that they needed to break new ground. This, ultimately, became the city of Hierophany.
The longer the conflict went on, the clearer it was that having the Playful Orders in your city made it much, much easier and more efficient to enter Vaults because they could determine the appropriate sacrifices necessary to open the Vaults. Vault Hunters also had much lower death rates, which eased the labor issues inherent in asking people to risk their lives so you can have shiny rocks. The more important Vault-born resources became, the less leaders were persuaded by the Priesthood of the Father's arguments.
Historical Significance
Legacy
The conflict has more simmered down than it has definitively ended. Tensions remain between the Priesthood of the Father and the Playful Orders, though they now primarily take place in words rather than set fires and thrown bricks.
Conflict Type
Civil War
Conflict Result
The Playful Orders skyrocketed to prominence as the main religious practice of Flimflam.
Belligerents
Playful Orders
Priesthood of The Father
Strength
Discovering the iconography and relics of the Playful Pantheon deities in the Vault dimension gave the Playful Orders an enormous advantage in new followers and perceived legitimacy.
In terms of the force of arms, the Order of Agon traditionally trains warriors to elite levels of skill. But their numbers were small. Much more of the Playful Orders' muscle came from Vault Hunters who desperately wanted the blessings of the deities who seemed to reign over the Vaults where they were continually risking their lives.
Entrenched as the dominant religion across Flimflam with ties to most governments, particularly the Albion Empire.
Casualties
Objectives
Transition the Playful Orders from a largely obscure religion to the dominant religion across Flimflam
Put down the upstart Playful Orders.
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