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Spoiler Alert: This page contains major spoilers from the events of the games. Read at your own risk. |
| “ | May God forget you... | ” |
—The creed of the Shepherds. | ||
About[]
Members of the Shepherds convincing a suicidal man to continue living by embracing despair.
Shmerz Kaiserin (シュメルツ・カイゼリン, shumerutsu kaizerin), more commonly referred to as the Shepherds (導く者, michibiku mono), was a dark organization founded by Am Isuel, a former pope of The Continent's largest religion the AL Church. The group devoted itself to spreading despair throughout the world, with an ultimate goal of killing the Creator God Ludo-Rathowm.
The Shepherds were founded sometime after GI0979, the year in which Am was recognized as pope. As part of the inauguration process, Am was visited by the Goddess ALICE, the patron deity of ALism, who informed her of the true purpose of the Continent and all life within it: to serve as a fleeting means of entertainment for the Creator God. While it is the intended function of the pope of the AL Church to act as an agent of this mission by ensuring that those of the Protagonist Race are made to constantly suffer, Am's stubborn character caused her to reject this duty and abandon her position as pope after only two months. Intent on subverting the cruel reality of her existence, she wandered the Continent in search of a means to destroy her creator.
At some point during her research, Am discovered that lifeforms whose Souls had become completely polluted by feelings of negativity and self-loathing could not properly enter the Reincarnation Cycle and return to Ludo-Rathowm's body. As Ludo-Rathowm's body is composed entirely of souls, she concluded that she would eventually be able to weaken him enough to kill him if she produced enough of these polluted beings, and wasted no time in enduring unfathomable amounts of grief and suffering to transform herself into one. With this new goal in mind, she secretly returned to the Holy City of Kaiz, the headquarters of the AL Church, and met with five members of the Temple Knights, the Church's private military, who she had been particularly close to. Am shared her knowledge with these men, who agreed to abandon their faith and aid her in spreading despair for the sake of freeing their world. Over time, whispers of their actions attracted others to seek Am out and pledge loyalty to her until she had gained enough followers to found a movement.
The Shepherds used the despair felt by people to prevent their souls from returning to the Creator God.
Throughout much of its existence, the Shepherds deliberately hid themselves from the public, acting with discretion to avoid drawing the attention of the AL Church. Their activities primarily consisted of approaching people in great emotional distress and compelling them to embrace their despair rather than take their own lives, preaching that there was solace in understanding the harshness of the world as opposed to living in blissful ignorance. While small in numbers, totaling at just over 200 members, they had near-limitless resources, with the fortune Am acquired as pope being further supplemented by financial backing from various nobles, politicians, and business owners who had been placed under her thrall. Furthermore, the group had influence over several other organizations with no formal affiliation to it, providing it with a deceptively high amount of manpower that allowed it to mastermind schemes that could not be traced back to it. It also had numerous hideouts scattered around the Continent, including one located in a secret passage within the Holy City of Kaiz, enabling it to operate in any number of locations when needed.
The Shepherds were known for having a distinct Gothic aesthetic, with all of its associated clothing and architecture being jet black in color and adorned with skulls, chains, roses, and inverted crosses. Members of the organization were rechristened with new and extravagant names by Am, generally derived from characters spoken of in the AList bible, and given grandiloquent titles that loosely correlated with their skills and role within the group. The five executive members that served directly beneath Am were known as Schachmatt (スカック・マット, sukakku matto). Clad in face-obscuring heavy armor, these men differed from each other in both temperament and fighting style but were united by a shared devotion to Am, who they each had a personal connection with prior to her becoming pope. Low-ranking members were referred to as Hopefuls (志望する者, shibō suru monoa) and uniformly wore black suits and face masks and wielded long rapiers in battle. Compared to the five executives, every Hopeful had their own distinct reasons for joining the Shepherds, ranging from personal grudges against ALism, to juvenile senses of rebellion and nihilism, to simply finding the idea of killing God interesting, but were similarly devoted to their cause. Unlike Am, both the Hopefuls and Schachmatt had surprisingly low levels of soul pollution, believing fully in the rightfulness of their actions.
In the year LP0006, construction finished on a perfected version of the Soul Shackle, enchanted bracelets commissioned by the Shepherds that made a person feel comfort experiencing negative emotions when worn, allowing for individuals to more easily achieve maximum levels of soul pollution. Mass-producing these devices, the group began to distribute them en masse to troubled people, advertising them as a means of feeling at ease amid the chaos of the world. The implementation of soul shackles led to a sharp increase in incidents of criminal activity across the Continent, with wearers losing all inhibitions relating to bringing suffering to others. Manipulating Dark Rance, a young Devil with a Human father capable of reaping souls without the use of a soul contract, the group collected the souls from Humans who had achieved full soul pollution from wearing soul shackles and gathered them together into a single mass. This conglomerate of souls was then placed on the highest floor of the Tower of Babel, an enormous building constructed in the fledgling Free City of CITY, and amplified in potency with the powerful Curse Magic of the Kalar queen Pastel Kalar, whom the Shepherds had abducted and brainwashed.
A thick miasma made from the essence of polluted souls is projected all across the Continent.
Emanating from atop the large tower, the mass of polluted souls began to spread all across the Continent and infect the minds of all that it came in contact with, increasing global levels of soul pollution at an alarming rate. Before the plan could come to fruition and transform the entire populace into fully-polluted beings, the Tower of Babel was stormed by the warrior Rance and his allies, who defeated the leading members of the Shepherds and destroyed the miasma, putting an end to their plot. As Am could no longer be killed due to being a fully-polluted human, her body was instead separated into several pieces and sealed deep beneath Kaiz, temporarily bringing an end to her campaign against God.
Despite officially having disbanded after losing all of its members in the incident, the ideology that served as the foundation of the Shepherds remains alive and well with Am. Having always anticipated her objective to take millennia to accomplish, Am continues to pursue new means of spreading despair long after her organization's destruction, founding many groups that carry on its legacy to assist her.
Notable Members[]
| Name | Codename | Description |
| Shepherd | The leader of the Shepherds. A woman in possession of supernatural charisma who served as a leading member of the AL Church before turning her back on religion after learning the truth of her world. Singlemindedly devoted to her goal of killing God, she will stop at nothing to achieve it. | |
| Twilight Raptor | The leader of Schachmatt. A man who once served as the leader of the Temple Knights and Am's lover. Cautious and contemplative, all that he does is in the hope that he may one day see Am return to her cheerful former self. | |
| Cold-Blooded Smile | A member of Schachmatt. A former assassin who joined the Temple Knights after meeting Am. Straight-talking and practical, he is somewhat embarrassed by the ostentatious nature of his organization. | |
| Dark Green Procession | A member of Schachmatt. A former member of the Temple Knights known for his valiant personality. Hot-blooded and aggressive, he often clashes with Beckdoran when coordinating plans. | |
| Suggesting Philosopher | A member of Schachmatt. An amnesiac man who was taken in by the Temple Knights on Am's orders. Believing words to have lost their beauty after learning the truth of the world, he has pledged a vow of silence. | |
| Bitter Hellfire | A member of Schachmatt. A strange man who speaks entirely in flowery prose that only Am can understand. Flamboyant and theatrical, he is a mystery even to his fellow executives. | |
| Obsidian Prince | A young devil with a human father. Facing persecution from both humans and devils alike, he devoted himself to serving Am as a show of thanks for her offering shelter to him and his mother. As he is just entering puberty, he is very enthusiastic about the organization's pretentious trappings. | |
| Destroyer of Justice | A young woman obsessed with romanticized heroics. After stealing the Dark Sword Chaos, her mind was steadily corrupted until she became nothing more than a mindless berserker. A self-proclaimed ally of justice, she did not join the Shepherds of her own volition. |
Notable Targets[]
| Name | Description |
| A town in the Free Cities Alliance whose inhabitants were used as test subjects for an early prototype of the soul shackle. The citizens were transformed into Undead creatures a side effect of the faulty bracelets, leaving the town an uninhabitable wasteland. | |
| A group of women who turned to banditry after being ostracized for their looks. Given soul shackles by the Shepherds to amplify their negativity. Destroyed by the warrior Rance and Bishop Crook Mofus of the AL Church and returned to their normal lives. | |
| A young martial artist who fell into a state of depression and self pity after placing fourth in a tournament he had won the previous year. Given a soul shackle by the Shepherds and became a fully-polluted human during a training expedition to Rising Dragon Mountain. Defeated by Rance and Crook and sealed by the AL Church. | |
| The manager of Nirot and his younger sister Reave. Grappled with feelings of blame and frustration after Nirot's loss and had them amplified by the effects of a soul shackle. Found at 85 percent soul pollution by Rance and Crook and killed before he could become a fully-polluted human. | |
| A cult of 1,000 people who chose to embrace despair under the encouragement of the Shepherds. Possessed a large number of soul shackles and assisted in dispensing them to the public. Viciously exterminated by a unit of Temple Knights commanded by Bishop Oz Tortoise. | |
| A viscount of the Kingdom of Leazas whose twisted feelings of worship and resentment toward the royal family were exploited by the Shepherds for financial support until he became a fully-polluted human. Defeated by Rance and Crook and sealed by the AL Church. | |
| A legendary sword capable of piercing the Invincibility Field that guards Dark Lords from all conventional forms of damage. Captured by the Shepherds while in Matilda's possession and placed into a ritual to convert it into a weapon capable of harming gods. Reclaimed by Rance before the transformation process could be completed. | |
| The queen of the kalar race who was subjected to repeated trauma and hardship after having Rance enter her life. Kidnapped by the Shepherds while visiting Kaiz and brainwashed by Am into an obedient servant. Her mastery of curse magic was central to spreading the effects of soul pollution across the world. Defeated by Rance and Crook and freed from Am's control. | |
| A solemn Dark Lord who dedicated his life to protecting the inhabitants of Green Village from the uncaring world around them. Achieved complete soul pollution after witnessing the girls of Green Village get callously poisoned to death and had his anguish transmitted throughout the Magic Kindom of Zeth by Pastel's magic. Defeated by Rance and Crook and sealed by the AL Church as a Demonic Blood Soul. | |
| The former head of the Amazusa Group, a prominent construction company responsible for building the Tower of Babel. Cursed by Pastel to be dependent on consuming GOLD to live, he ate all of his wealth, pushed away his employees, and became obsessed with vengeance. Given a soul shackle by the Shepherds to ease his anguish and eventually became a fully-polluted human. Defeated by Rance and Crook and sealed by the AL Church. | |
| An arrogant bishop of the AL Church who fled to the Shepherds for protection after engaging in illegal activities during the Mula Test. Unable to handle the pressure brought on by negative thoughts, he hanged himself in despair. | |
| A decrepit bishop of the AL Church who fled to the Shepherds for protection after engaging in illegal activities during the Mula test. As his soul was already heavily polluted prior to joining the Shepherds, he became a fully-polluted human with ease. Defeated by Rance and Crook and sealed by the AL Church. |
Theme[]
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| Polluted Humans (Rance Quest) | |
Trivia[]
- The Shepherds were unexpectedly popular among Haniwa, who found the group's wardrobe fashionable and cool. If the player succeeds in defeating all 200 Hopefuls enlisted in the organization in Rance Quest, they will be replaced in all following battles with hannies attempting to emulate their style.
- The term "shepherd" is often used in religious texts to symbolically represent an enlightened person who leads others with their knowledge.
- The majority of secondary names given to various people, places, and things within the Shepherds use German words. "Schmerz Kaiserin" literally translates to "Grieving Empress" in English while "Schachmatt" translates to "Checkmate".
- The Shepherds' status as a group attempting to subvert the actions of the AL Church due to knowing the true purpose of the Planner Scenario is highly reminiscent of the description of the Tenshi Sect given in RANCE THE COMPLETE, suggesting that it was created from this unused concept for the other organization.
Gallery[]
