Will You Be My Disciple? is a choice-driven cult management game shaped by unexpected encounters and characters. At the start of each run, you define your cult’s belief system by choosing a doctrine. After all, no disaster is complete without a well-organized belief structure. This doctrine determines how the world will treat you; some will see you as a savior, others as a heretic, and a few simply as a hope monger. Every decision you make must align with your chosen faith... or at least appear to. The loyalty of your disciples, the balance of your council, and the endurance of your faith in a collapsing world all depend on you.
DOCTRINE
Every cult begins with faith but faith alone is raw and shapeless. What gives it form, purpose, and the illusion of order is doctrine. At the start of each game, you choose one. Some believe in knowledge, others in unity, and a few in the sacred power of silence. It does not really matter, they all lead to the same place: authority. Choosing a doctrine is simple, you bless one truth, and everything else starts to look like heresy on its own. Each doctrine brings new encounters, events, and moral boundaries; some grow stronger through discipline, others feed on chaos. A few promise peace, others obedience. None come without a price. In the end, every faith becomes trapped in the web of its own rules and before you notice, it is no longer you guiding the doctrine, but the doctrine guiding you. Do not worry, though. It happens to every leader eventually.
RESOURCE MANAGEMENT
Your cult lives, or slowly dies, by five core resources: Faith, Morality, Secrecy, Followers, and Money. Every decision you make affects these values. Raising one often throws another into crisis. Balance is essential, a cult rarely falls from the outside, it crumbles from within. Faith unites your disciples but too much of it erases doubt and turns obedience into worship. Morality preserves order, yet excessive righteousness makes every choice harder and lets mercy replace authority. Secrecy protects you, but stay hidden for too long and you may find that no one remembers you exist.
DISCIPLES
Disciples... the loyal, willing sacrifices ready to surrender their will to yours. Without them, you are just a stranger talking to yourself in an empty temple, which is hardly the mark of a charismatic leader. Each one is here for a different reason. Some came to escape their past, some crave power, and a few, true believers (the dangerous ones). When you invite them into your council, their talents are revealed, but so are their real personalities. As their loyalty is tested, their fears and ambitions begin to surface, some will serve you with unshakable devotion, while others quietly weave their own sacred plans. Through them, you uncover the stories, hidden ties, and whispered secrets that shape the foundation of your cult. Each brings new opportunities, new dangers, and the occasional divine mistake disguised as a miracle.
MONEY
Money keeps the temple standing, and often the faith along with it. It sustains your cult, funds your rituals, and helps your teachings reach a wider audience, after all, spirituality rarely flourishes without a budget. Wealth can be gained in many ways: through trade, diplomacy, or methods that are... considerably less divine. Every coin you earn expands the borders of your faith, but also opens the door to new greed and new risks. With enough riches, you can build structures, temples, and institutions to strengthen your cult.
In the end temples grow, donations rise, and the divine order appears stable. But wealth brings a different kind of silence when someone finally asks, "What does God need all this money for?" the room tends to go very quiet.
COUNCIL
The council helps decide who joins your cult, assuming its members are not busy stabbing each other at the time. Each candidate brings their own motive, fear, and a little scheme tucked under their robes; some are loyal, some are just convincing liars. Pick the right person and your power grows, pick the wrong one and, well, you might be poisoned or wake up to a plague at your doorstep. Sometimes assassins arrive in the name of enlightenment, sometimes an infected follower hopes to speed you to your god. So do not take every applicant at face value. If you make a bad choice, remove them before it becomes a spectacle, preferably before something explodes.
Keep competent, loyal members in your council and you might survive a few more days in this cruel world.
