DESIGNATION: CREED — ZEAL (IMBUED/SHIH ONLY) CLEARANCE: PUBLIC ARCHIVE: BASILICA PURGATORY

Zeal Creed

Hunter — Imbued Creed

The Truest Mechanisms of Balance

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Not available to Mundane Hunters — see the Hunter overview for which types can access this Creed.

Who They Are

Zeal Hunters are the most complete expression of what the God-Machine intended when it created the Hunter mandate. They do not merely protect the balance — they embody it, holding the precise middle point where human and supernatural life can coexist. This is harder than it sounds: it requires standing against a Hunter who has gone too far as readily as against a supernatural who has violated the compact. The Shih tradition was built around Zeal, and its path is open to anyone willing to live it, regardless of origin.


Best fit for	Shih (natural — the Creed the tradition was built around), Imbued (strong)
Core philosophy	Balance is not a state. It is a practice. Practice it every day.
Training focus	Meditation, Athletics, Investigation, Empathy, all combat skills
Starting Willpower bonus	+2

Creed Abilities

Level	Option A	Option B
●○○○○	Balance Sense — instinctively perceives imbalance, a mandate-violating being, or a wrong situation. Passive, certain.	Centered — immune to destabilization of identity or moral certainty; mind-affecting powers face +2 difficulty. Passive.
●●○○○	Restore Equilibrium — an unstable being gets an extra control roll at -2 difficulty; a Hunter losing Conviction to despair gains 1 immediately.	Perfect Strike — an attack's damage is real but its exact consequence (stop, warn, force compliance) is chosen within range.
●●●○○	Living Example — an action embodying the balance grants witnesses 1 Willpower; anyone considering violation must beat a Willpower roll (diff 7).	Dual Accountability — invoked judgments apply equally to both sides of a conflict for a scene, supernaturally enforced impartiality.
●●●●○	Restore Balance (2 Conv) — actively corrects a significant imbalance; each success reduces an Exposure Incident or violation level. Roll Willpower (diff 8).	The Turning Point (2 Conv) — at a tipping-point moment, all parties get one additional Willpower roll to choose differently. Once per session.
●●●●●	Perfect Balance (3 Conv) — for a scene, no supernatural can act against the balance nearby through genuine recognition it's wrong. Once per session.	The God-Machine's Purpose (3 Conv) — corrects one significant imbalance at a scale normally requiring entire factions. Once per month.

Quick Reference


Availability	Imbued and Shih only
Type fit	Shih (natural), Imbued (strong)
Training focus	Meditation, Athletics, Investigation, Empathy, all combat skills
Starting Willpower bonus	+2