The Anchors’ Guild does not maintain ranks, titles, or authority.
However, Anchors themselves require a way to understand what kind of narrative weight they can survive.
For this reason, capability ranks exist—not as assignments, but as reflections.
Anchor Capability Ranks describe the maximum narrative strain an Anchor can reliably endure without destabilizing—physically, mentally, or existentially.
They do not measure:
Moral worth
Importance
Authority
Destiny
They measure readiness.
A higher rank does not mean an Anchor should intervene in greater crises—only that they can.
Ranks are not issued, awarded, or recorded.
They update automatically, responding to:
Accumulated experience
Identity coherence
Relationship with Continuance
Alignment with one’s Storyforged Arm
Anchors do not “gain” ranks.
They realize them.
When uncertainty exists, an Anchor may consult their Storyforged Arm, which always knows the Anchor’s current capability rank. The Arm does not exaggerate, withhold, or soften the truth.
It answers plainly.
The Storywake does not scale danger politely.
Some stories fracture worlds.
Some unravel civilizations.
Some erase themselves violently.
The rank system exists so Anchors can:
Avoid stories that will hollow them out
Recognize when retreat is wisdom
Understand escalation before it happens
It is a survival tool, not a badge.
Anchors at F-Rank can influence small, contained narratives.
Typical scope:
Individual lives
Isolated locations
Personal conflicts
Failure is survivable. Consequences are limited.
This is where most Anchors begin.
E-Rank Anchors can engage with small groups or communities.
Typical scope:
Towns or districts
Local factions
Repeating but bounded problems
Mistakes can cause harm—but not collapse.
D-Rank Anchors can affect large, interconnected systems.
Typical scope:
Regions or nations
Cultural or political conflicts
Multi-site crises
Consequences begin to ripple outward.
C-Rank Anchors can intervene in world-defining narratives.
Typical scope:
Entire Story Realms
Civilizational turning points
Core Story fractures
Failure here risks Unwritten outcomes.
B-Rank Anchors can act across multiple Story Realms simultaneously.
Typical scope:
Inter-realm conflicts
Storywake disruptions
Colliding narratives
Identity strain becomes a serious concern.
A-Rank Anchors can engage with cosmic-scale narrative forces.
Typical scope:
Persistent Unwritten incursions
Homeward-level disruptions
Storywake-wide consequences
Very few Anchors ever reach this rank—and fewer remain sane if they do.
S-Rank Anchors are capable of confronting singular, mythic narratives.
Typical scope:
Entities or events that redefine how stories function
Irreversible cosmological shifts
Outcomes that alter Light, Darkness, or Continuance itself
An S-Rank Anchor is not stronger than others.
They are simply able to survive responsibility.
S+ Rank represents theoretical maximum capability.
Typical scope:
Stories that should not be touched
Endings that cannot be undone
Decisions with no correct outcome
S+ Anchors are exceedingly rare. Many believe that reaching this rank means one’s own story is approaching its final chapter.
The Guild does not speak of S+ lightly.
When an Anchor acts beyond their rank:
Their Storyforged Arm may resist
Continuance generation falters
Identity fractures occur
Unwritten erosion accelerates
The most dangerous Anchors are not low-ranked ones—
but those who refuse to acknowledge their limits.
Ranks do not define what an Anchor is.
They define what an Anchor can endure without breaking.
The Guild does not care how high your rank is.
It cares only that you understand it
before you choose to act.
And when you are unsure—
your Storyforged Arm
will always tell you the truth.
Anchor Capability Ranks
This document maps Anchor Capability Ranks to D&D-style character level bands. This is not an assignment or title system—only a practical guideline so players and GMs can quickly gauge what scale of trouble is “reasonable” for a given party.
Ranks still update automatically and can always be confirmed by consulting a character’s Storyforged Arm.
F-Rank (Local Stories): Levels 1–3
Personal stakes, small locations, limited consequences.
E-Rank (Community Stories): Levels 4–6
Town/district scale, small factions, contained but meaningful threats.
D-Rank (Regional Stories): Levels 7–9
Regional conflicts, multi-site arcs, consequences ripple outward.
C-Rank (World Stories): Levels 10–12
Realm-defining events, Core Story fractures, world-scale stakes.
B-Rank (Cross-World Stories): Levels 13–15
Multi-realm arcs, Storywake disruptions, high identity strain.
A-Rank (Cosmological Stories): Levels 16–18
Persistent Unwritten incursions, Homeward-level disruptions, Wake-wide consequences.
S-Rank (Singular Stories): Level 19
Mythic-scale singularities, reality-defining narrative events.
S+ Rank (Terminal Stories): Level 20
Stories that should not be touched; irreversible, foundational outcomes.
Mixed-level parties: use the lowest rank present for “safe” arcs.
Stretch arcs: one rank above the party’s lowest is possible, but should carry meaningful risk and cost.
Overreach: two ranks above is where Unwritten erosion, Arm resistance, and catastrophic fallout become likely unless the story is designed as a retreat/escape scenario.