I'm thinking of running a planescape game sometime soon, but as is usual with me I can't just play it by canon. Other than a few cosmetic changes (reducing the number of outer planes to 9), I'd like to do a little work on the factions as I plan to run a pre-faction war game. The factions, combined with Tony DiTerlizzi's artwork, was I think what made me fall in love with planescape. So if you were to revamp the factions, what would you change?
Here are a few of my thoughts:
Add the Cathar faction; these guys are to arcane casters as the Athar are to divine casters. After the rise and crash of the Incantifer faction, the Cathar quickly rose in popularity and influence. (Odd and unrelated note: the Cathar were an interesting early sect of Christianity.)
Believers of the Source: As I recall these guys ran the city foundry which always seemed like a poorly fitting job for the faction that believes that everyone has the spark of divinity within them. Instead these guys should do something like upkeep sigil's streets and public buildings.
Free League: One of my favorites, but the service they provide to Sigil has no profit whatsoever so it needs to change a little bit. Instead of the do-gooders of Sigil's markets, they operate as a kind of maffia that keeps anyone else from getting too rough with other cutter's affairs be they business, social, religious or what have you. They themselves can't get too rough because the hardheads are always on the lookout for an excuse to lock the League high-ups up.
The Mercykillers always felt redundant with the Harmonium, so I'm folding the two into the Harmonium. They police the streets and run the city jails.
The Transcendant Order is another one that I feel don't have a real purpose in Sigil. So instead of acting as mediators in the city hall, the Order keeps the city park which I think Sigil should have. They also keep the razorvine in check throughout the city. I think these nature-esque jobs fit better with their 'act, don't think' mentality. Also having a park in Sigil creates a good excuse for someone to play a druid or ranger should they choose to.
The Sign of One feels like it should be a third-party faction or a sect of another major faction; I'm thinking of just folding this faction into the Society of Sensation.
The Doomguard and the Xaositects also feel like extremist groups better suited to minor roles. I'm thinking of rolling them into the Bleak Cabal or the Dustmen.
The Revolutionary League seems like they should be rolled into the Free League. Instead of just 'don't tell me what to do or think!' they'd like to bring down all those who try to tell others what to do and think.
So, thoughts? Comments?
What exactly are the Cathar supposed to believe?