Hero Rank
Core Principles
World rank scale: The world Gate authority maintains a shared standard for Breaker certification. Regional blocs keep local differences, but world rank scale scores are recognized worldwide for joint ops and salvage and arbitration.
Equal rank rule: In general, E↔E, D↔D, C↔C, B↔B, A↔A, S↔S. Equal rank is the baseline; commanders can send a team one rank stronger for safety or when intel is uncertain.
Sealing Doctrine: Every deployment includes a plan to contain, stabilize, and seal the Gate or ecological rupture (seal posts ashore; salt-proof seal posts and relic buoys at sea).
Relic Ethics & Salvage: Salvage shares and relic-handling privileges expand with rank; higher tiers are trusted with unstable/strategic artifacts. Payment is in Platinum Credits with hazard multipliers by Threat Rank.
Rank Ladder (Heroes)
Each entry covers: level range, typical missions, team composition, equipment access, legal authority, and the default Threat Rank they’re expected to handle.
E-Rank (Lv 3–6)
Scope: Low-risk patrols, first-response containment, escort of civilians/convoys, relic sweep after higher-tier clears.
Team Size/Comp: 3–5 Breakers + 1 licensed medic or remote tele-med. Focus on fundamentals: shield/control, one striker, one scout, one support.
Gear Access: Civil-grade relics; stabilized Class-E artifacts; limited explosives; no autonomous war-relics.
Authority: City or County permits through the US Gate agency (or local), supervised zones only.
Threat Match: E-Rank threats include minor oozes in Central America corridors, small goblin raider cells in the Eastern Archipelago, and single undead cluster events in European suburbs.
D-Rank (Lv 7–9)
Scope: Neighborhood-scale cleanses, bridgeheads for larger teams, convoy security in hot zones.
Team Size/Comp: 4–6 Breakers with a designated team lead and a field engineer or ritualist.
Gear Access: Up-armored civ grade, Class-D relics, deployable anchor spikes, light drones.
Authority: Municipal to state/provincial; can lock down blocks for 6–12 hours.
Threat Match: D-Rank threats include small demon cadres in the Western U.S., aberrant “null-flora” pockets in the Eastern U.S., construct patrols near Middle-East ruins, and worm sign in Southern Africa (non-brood).
C-Rank (Lv 10–12)
Scope: District-level actions; gate room assaults; mobile defense against migrating threats.
Team Size/Comp: 5–8 with embedded medic, engineer/ritualist, and drone operator; redundancy for sustain.
Gear Access: Class-C relics; first access to volatile artifacts with limiter rigs; medium armor mechs or exo-frames (where doctrine allows).
Authority: Regional; can enact rolling curfews and evacuations; limited cross-border pursuit under MOUs with the world Gate authority.
Threat Match: C-Rank threats include disciplined orc warbands (outside the @Amazon Rainforest core), undead plague-knots in Central and Eastern Europe, coastal dragonkin scouts in Asia, and mid-sized constructs guarding vault sites.
B-Rank (Lv 13–15)
Scope: City-block to borough-scale operations; strike missions on entrenched nodes; multi-front coordination.
Team Size/Comp: 6–10 with full command staff roles (Lead, XO, Medic, Engineer, Recon, Sealer, Fire Support). Often split into two cells.
Gear Access: Class-B relics; heavy exo-frames; autonomous drones; tactical seal pylons; limited orbital/satellite tasking.
Authority: National tasking; joint ops with regular militaries; airspace priority during active sealing operations.
Threat Match: B-Rank threats include dragon strike flights (non-ancient) in Asia, large aberration “null-storms” around East Coast Gates, organized demon companies, and hardened construct keeps.
A-Rank (Lv 16–18)
Scope: City-scale stabilizations, deep-strike severances, multi-gate cascades, naval trench ops.
Team Size/Comp: 8–12 elite operators plus support platoon; often three coordinated cells (breach, control, seal).
Gear Access: Class-A relics; prototype war-relics with caretakers; carrier-deployed living-weapon symbiotes (naval doctrines).
Authority: International; can cross borders under an emergency writ from the world Gate authority; command unified incident structures.
Threat Match: A-Rank threats include continental dragon offensives (non-ancient apex), aberrant city-eaters, demon legions with lieutenants, mega-construct assemblies, and major worm broods (not elder burrowers).
S-Rank (Lv 19–20)
Scope: Existential risks; region-scale sealing; Legendary targets; multi-week deep operations.
Team Size/Comp: 3–5 apex Breakers supported by dozens to hundreds of specialists, scouting grids, and heavy logistics. Cells are surgical; support is massive.
Gear Access: Class-S relics under treaty oversight; “red-tag” artifacts; reality-bias engines; full carrier or satellite tasking; limited use of forbidden reliquaries with ethics board approval.
Authority: Above nations, under the world Gate authority's Council; can requisition strategic assets; direct coalition forces during crises.
Threat Match: S-Rank threats include Legendary entities (e.g., H’rogal, the Unbreakable holding the @Amazon Rainforest core), continental-scale undead avatars in Europe, cosmic-scale giants near Greenland and Iceland, and dragon emperors in Asia. Known S-Rank heroes include figures like Nox Vinlaud (“The Undying”), who only appears for true crises.
Threat Rank Doctrine (Monsters & Incursions)
Rank = Operating Envelope. Threat Ranks measure the sustained tactical ceiling of a Gate or monster (durability, command aura, how fast monsters come out, and warp influence), not just raw damage.
Equal Rank Rule: Plan for equal rank teams vs. threats. If intel is uncertain, send a team one rank stronger.
Composite Nodes: If a zone contains mixed ranks, use the highest active rank for planning.
Leader Monsters: Some S-Rank monsters strengthen the monsters around them (boosting lesser creatures). Treat the whole theater as S-Rank until the banner is severed.
Team Architecture (by Rank)
E/D: Single cell; one lead; remote command.
C: One cell + rover support; embedded medic/engineer.
B: Two cells with shared command; dedicated seal crew; UAS/UGV swarm.
A: Three synchronized cells; air/naval integration; on-site intel fusion.
S: Apex cell + large support network (logistics, scouting, psy-ops, evacuation control). Apex cell engages the S-rank leader monster while the other cells manage the battlespace.
Assessment, Promotion, and Oversight
World Rank Scale Score Components:
Peak Output Index (burst + sustained);
Resilience Factor (injury tolerance, corruption resistance, time-on-task);
Cohesion/Leadership (skill in running a command staff);
Relic Sync (safe interface with high-tier artifacts);
Cognitive Hazard Tolerance (anti-maddening/abyssal effects);
Sealing Skill (seal post placement, ritual execution, failure recovery).
Boards & Trials: US Gate agency and bloc boards review combat readings, relic audits, and simulations. Promotions require clean relic logs and sealing sign-offs; demotions or holds occur after corruption events or ethics violations.
Recertification: Annual at E–B; semi-annual at A; quarterly at S, including psychevals.
Legal Authority & Mission Types
E: Patrol, escort, post-clear salvage, crowd protection.
D: Block clears, gate room holds, convoy through warm zones.
C: District purges, offensive gate assaults, rolling evacuations.
B: City defense/offense, multi-node severances, coalition ops.
A: Cross-border crises, sealing Gates in ocean trenches, cascade collapses.
S: Continent-threat scenarios, killing S-rank leader monsters, ecosystem resets.
Equipment & Relic Access Tiers
E/D: Stabilized relics only; no self-directed war-relics; mandatory safeties.
C: Volatile relics with limiter harnesses; tactical pylons; counter-corruption kits.
B: Heavy exo-frames; autonomous drones; theater sealing kits; limited orbital tasking.
A: Prototype war-relics; symbiotes (naval); wide authority on artifact use under black-box monitoring.
S: Red-tag reliquaries; unrestricted access governed by the world Gate authority's ethics councils and after-action audits.
A significant amount of wealth can allow one to break the restrictions on relic access, but on a case by case basis.
Pay, Salvage, and Logistics
Compensation: Base pay + Threat multiplier (E×1.0, D×1.2, C×1.5, B×2.0, A×3.0, S×5.0+).
Salvage Shares: 5% (E) → 35% (S) of non-strategic relic value, escalating by rank and mission type; strategic relics go to public trust with bonus bounties.
Insurance: Rank-indexed medical, corruption care, and survivor benefits in Platinum Credits.
Travel & Jurisdiction: A/S have fast-track cross-border rights under the world Gate authority's mutual-aid rules; others travel via bloc MOUs.
Mixed-Rank & Asymmetric Deployments
Team Rank How to count it: Take the average world rank of the top four operators as the team rank. If that equals the threat rank, the ranks are equal and the team can go; if one below, add extra assets (air, artillery, pylons).
Specialization Override: Elite seal crews can raise team rank by +0.5; apex controllers and seal post specialists can raise it +1.0 only if the mission is mainly sealing.
Civ Shielding: When civilians are within two blocks or one nautical mile, commanders should send a team one rank stronger regardless of team rank.