Anthem Lore for Beginners

Hey there, everybody. Today, I’m going to be talking you through what we know about the stunning background lore for Anthem. All the factions we know about so far, and the core conflict that you can look forward to, changes the tides of when the game releases in February next year.

What is the Anthem?

The Anthem of Creation, or more simply the Anthem, is a violent source of unknown power found deep within the world of Anthem. This power was harnessed by the Shapers, the old Gods of the world, who vowed to build the world in nine days. After just three days, however, they vanished. In their wake, they left a fledgling world, churning and warping with unknown powers. The Shaper tools were abandoned, as well as their subjects and all life on the planet. The Anthem still resonates strongly in the world as we know it, unleashing world-shaping cataclysms as if to undo the Shaper’s work, like a force of nature seeking to return to its original shape.

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This power corrupts all who try to wield it, of whom we know of only one surviving individual: the Monitor. He is the leader of the Dominion, a force in Anthem’s world that seeks to harness the power of creation in order to ‘end the suffering’ of those on the planet. Their methods, however, are questionable at best, and mindlessly destructive at their worst. Anthem’s world sees many shades of grey battle over control of the light, and Monitor’s ideology is simply one more of those shades. In a world with such violent, warring powers, nobody is to know which decision is correct. Perhaps, the Shapers once knew what had to be done. Perhaps, that is why they left.

Welcome to the Fight, Freelancer

We find ourselves joining the Freelancers, a group of Javelin pilots whose glory days are gone, but who still retain their goal of ensuring mankind’s survival despite the encroaching dangers beyond the walls of Fort Tarsis. We are the vanguard, the scouts, and once, we were the valiant knights of Tarsis. The Legion of Dawn. Led by their super-heroic general, Helena Tarsis, the Legion of the Dawn was a guiding light for humanity during their darkest chapter. They led the way for the creation of safe human settlements, retreating away from the very real dangers of the outside world.

Over time, this group faded from history. But Helena Tarsis was not forgotten by those that followed her shining example, and even now, the Freelancers continue to battle the forces of the outside world, namely the Dominion as well as the insectoid Scars, and a whole host of lethal, ferocious creatures. We are a Javelin pilot, who has joined the Freelancers, and has set out into the world in an effort to make a difference. As to what kind of difference we seek to make, it seems that that will revolve around the player’s own motivations and connections within the world. For certain, there will be difficult decisions to make, as the player is left responsible for deciphering which shade of grey lead towards the true path of light, and which may return us to that dark chapter of humanity’s past.

Enter Fort Tarsis

Within Fort Tarsis, there are numerous factions who will seek our aid. The freelancers, our own faction, are now reduced to something akin to bounty hunters or contractors. The freelancers maintain their Javelins with parts found out in the world and rebuilt within Forges inside Fort Tarsis in order to face bigger and stronger opponents. We aid, and also seek the aid of, groups like the Arcanists, a group of science-mystics who have hidden themselves within their Bastion. They categorize and record the complete knowledge of humanity. They are the ones directly, or indirectly, responsible for much of humanity’s technological advancements, such as reverse-engineering the Dominion Valkyrie in order to create the Storm Javelin, a marvel of scientific creation and an awe-inspiring, terrifying force of destruction.

Meanwhile, the Sentinels are the policing faction within Fort Tarsis. Led by Tassyn, they seek to uphold the law at all costs. They believe in justice and order above all else. They largely distrust the Freelancers, who they deem suspicious because of their visits beyond the wall and their ‘work for pay’ mentality. Nonetheless, the two factions largely work together within Fort Tarsis, and the player will often find themselves performing missions for them involving the defense and upkeep of the populace.

Fort Tarsis itself is the stage upon which your personal drama will be acted out. Players will have their own choices to make about which factions and ideologies are the correct ones to follow, and their decisions throughout the personal story section of the game, found within Fort Tarsis, will impact the overall narrative. As such, we are left to decide whom to follow, and all of the options, at times, will seem to dissolve between their own shades of grey along the spectrum of right and wrong.

Out in the Beyond, Adventure Awaits

Beyond the walls of Fort Tarsis, there are very real threats that every player must face, no matter where their allegiances fall. Monitor, seeking to cleanse the world of all suffering, must be stopped. It seems that the corrupting influence of the Anthem has taken him over, but Monitor pursues what he believes to be the right course of action. Until the game releases next February, we won’t know exactly who is right and wrong, or what lies in the future for the world of Anthem. Will the Anthem be harnessed and the Shaper’s mission completed, or will the wrathful storms consume all? Or maybe, just maybe, can one lone Freelancer and their team change the course of fate?

Leave me a comment below to let me know which faction you’ll be siding with in Anthem. I’m Jake ‘FaultyOptics’ Logan, thank you for joining me on our whistle-stop tour around the world of Anthem, and I’ll see you next time for more great gaming guides and news.