Lantern

'There is a light behind the world, a light above the Mansus, a light that penetrates both glass and skin. It is present here.'

- A Consciousness of Radiance

Lantern is one of the Principles of the invisible arts. It is the merciless aspect of the Glory and the gods-from-Light, associated with truth, light, and reason.

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Themes and Imagery

'It has been expressed like this: 'Each Hour has its colour, but colour exists only where there is light.'

- A Watchman's Secret

The Glory, the Sun, and Light are the most prominent themes of Lantern, as symbols for knowledge and illumination.[1] It is also associated with mirrors, dreams, sight, and language.[2][3][4]

The Light of Lantern is often characterized as cold and harsh, capable of revealing truths and uncovering secrets or warding against dark powers,[5][6] but also driving people mad or consuming their minds.[7] Mercy is found only in shadow, and light has the power to both illuminate as well as blind.[8]

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Ascension

'Little of this flesh remains. I will pass through the Tricuspid Gate and I will not return. The Watchman awaits me. In His footsteps, I will find the Glory's light. The understanding is too much for my soul to hold, and so my soul will open. I will not be immortal: I will be more than that.'

- The Incursus

The standard method of ascension for Lantern, like many others, involves the gathering of seven Marks before performing a grand ritual under a specific Hours to pass the Tricuspid Gate and become a Long.[9] In Cultist Simulator the Watchman oversees the path of Enlightenment and is assumed to be the primary patron for Lantern-Long since the Intercalate [10]. Those who ascend further under him hope to become a part of the Pilgrimage, a prophesied event in which the Watchman will lead seven souls to rise higher. This event will likely serve as a prelude to the Second Dawn and the return of the Sun-in-Splendour.[11][12]

Uniquely, Long who ascend under the Watchman, and perhaps other Lantern Hours, surrender their physical forms and now dwell in the Mansus. These Lantern-Long are considered by some to actually be minor Names.[13]

Subversion

'The Glory is a question, and Moth always answers Yes.'

- The Light Above

In Cultist Simulator, Lantern subverts Moth, the aspect of chaos and passion.[14] This reflects the Hour of the Moth’s yearning for the Glory, as well as the light of reason and higher thought overtaking base instinct.

Lantern itself is subverted by Forge, as the Forge of Days was responsible for dividing the Sun-in-Splendour in the Intercalate.[15][16] Light dissipates to heat, and knowledge is taken to be used in practical applications.

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The Hours

'The Meniscate, the Madrugad, the Flowermaker and the Forge of Days are the gods-from-Light. There is a fifth, but now we know it is not the Watchman. Yet the Watchman shares a secret doctrine with those five, and here is that doctrine....'

- Illuminate Mysteries

• The Watchman: The Watchman is the Hour who illuminates, who navigates, who is not compassionate. One day the Pilgrimage will follow in his shadow, and so he lights the way for others to discover Enlightenment. He represents Lantern as merciless knowledge and blinding light.
• The Forge of Days: The Mansus was different before the arrival of the first gods-from-Light, among them the Forge of Days. It was she who opened the way for mortals to the House and to the Glory, and she who divided the Sun who ruled over all. She represents Lantern through the Light of a burning flame and the might of the Glory, knowledge applied to a purpose.
• The Sun-in-Rags: One of the fragments of the Divided Sun, the Sun-in-Rags may be cold and distant, yet his Light burns still. Once he was the departing sunset, a beautiful light that marks the end of things, and now he embodies Lantern as the sunset at noon. He is most likely "the fifth" mentioned in the Illuminate Mysteries.
• The Meniscate: Once the night-self of the Sun-in-Splendour, the Meniscate presides over the House of the Moon, a strange reflection of the House of the Sun. She represents Lantern as an Hour of moonlight and reflections, of truth and revelation.
• The Madrugad: Even before the Intercalate, the Madrugad was recognized as the light that went before the Sun, guiding the dead as they passed into the House and presiding over the Cindered Tally. She represents Lantern as the chilly early dawn, who demands focus and concentration from those that beseech her.
• The Flowermaker: The Flowermaker was born from the Forge’s sparks of delight, and should we find him, he shall satisfy our desires with his own sweet delights. He represents Lantern as the power who presides over dreams and intoxicating wonders.
• The Colonel: While an Hour of conflict and violence, the Colonel is also a power which knows Light. He was scarred and blinded by the traitor gods, and among the first of humanity to ascend. He presents Lantern in the tactics of war and knowledge through experience.
• The Sun-in-Splendour: The House of the Sun was once ruled by the Sun-in-Splendour, the greatest of the Hours and one of the original gods-from-Light. During his reign, the sun was no warmer, but it contained colors lost since the Intercalate. He presented Lantern as the magnificent noonday Sun, a manifestation of the Glory’s Light.
• The Egg Unhatching (?): Before the gods-from-Light, before humanity, another sun once shone upon the world; while no brighter than the Sun-in-Rags, its light was warmer and more merciful. The Egg Unhatching may not have embodied Lantern as we understand it today, but certainly he represented the power of the Glory in some form, the pale sun on the horizon.
• The Giribrago (?): While this Hour does not appear directly in Cultist Simulator, his provisional name of "The Second Egg" indicates a possible connection to the Egg Unhatching and the Sun-in-Splendour, as suns, eyes, and eggs are all conjunct in the aspect of Lantern.[17]

Other Entities and Followers

'The virgins/maidens of the mirror favour orchids. The [behindlings?] favour the rhododendron. Cut flowers of either nature should not be placed before polished bronze.'

- Read Poemander's 'On What is Contained by Silver'

• The Baldomerian/Teresa Galmier: The author of the Locksmith’s Dream, now a Lantern-Long who frequently spends time at the Lodge of the Sage-Knight.[18][19]
• Lars Westergren: An explorer and murderer who recorded his expeditions to the Mansus and eventually became a Lantern-Long who abandoned his physical form. He is favoured by both the Colonel and the Meniscate, and can be encountered in the Apostle Entheate legacy as an enemy Long.[20]
• Maids-in-the-Mirror: The Dead who pass the test of the Ascent of Knives enter the service of the Sun-in-Rags. They are said to favor orchids, and in the Apostle Entheate Legacy assist in gathering Witnesses.[21][22][23][24]
• Hints: Once dead spirits drawn into the Mansus, Hints now act as subtle and vicious killers. They prefer to dwell behind mirrors and out of sight, as the gaze of a living mortal would destroy them.[25][26]
• The Church of the Unconquered Sun: An organization influential in the Third and Fourth Histories that worshipped the Sun-in-Splendour and his Names. After the Intercalate they were severely weakened and collapsed. [27]
• Mireya: A painter of occult subjects and a business contact of the Exile. She can be recruited as an ally from Granada, where she owns an art gallery.[28][29]

Other Notes

• Lantern is the foremost of the Apollonian aspects, as the Principle most closely linked to reason and the Glory.
• In the early demo of Cultist Simulator, Hours and Principles were one and the same. The Hour called Lantern appears to have been an early version of the Watchman.
• The Principle of Lantern most likely owes its name to the Watchman, who is holding a lantern in his hand in the Tarot of the Hours. However, the connection here is clearly less direct than in cases of the other Hour-named Principles - which may suggest him not being as powerful within Lantern as, say, the Forge of Days is within Forge.
• Oddly enough, the Mother of Ants also has a number of lanterns on her Tarot card.

In-Game Sources

1. Slee, a believer 2. Watchman's Glass 3. The Watchman's Eye 4. The Vision of the Peacock 5. We call upon the Watchman, who navigates 6. We call upon the Sun-in-Rags 7. The Gate Opens Outwards 8. An Unmerciful Mantra 9. The Incursus 10. The Marks of Light 11. The Lodge of the Sage Knight 12. Read 'The Time of Division' 13. Inquisitions for the Demiurge 14. The Light Above 15. Sunset at Noon 16. Read the Six Letters on Necessity 17. Read 'The Focus of Amber' 18. Summon the mysterious Name known as the Baldomerian 19. Ask Teresa about the Dream of the Key '...but as Lantern-long, I owe courtesy to your mentor...' 20. The Concursum Diaries, Our Enemy's Identity, #diarist_unknown section 21. Maid-in-the-Mirror 22. Mantra of Ascent 23. Read Poemander's 'On What is Contained by Silver' 24. Send a Maid-in-the-Mirror to lure a Witness 25. Summon a sharp-edged Lantern-thing 26. A Hint 27. Sunset Passages 28. Mireya, the Visionary 29. Granada

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