>>6053434Each title represents the six aspects of Dim's arcana, set along three opposing axes.
The Shepherd, who protects all, aspect of passion
vs
The Hopper, who leads unladen, aspect of control
The Stripling, who garners youth, aspect of desire
vs
The Vicar, who suffers no lax, aspect of duty
The Anointed, who scours the world, aspect of faith
vs
The Hermit, who withdraws from them, aspect of self
The Anointed, for example, epitomizes Dim's zeal for destroying the Vice at every turn,
Dim's arcana acts as a kind of reputation and guiding ethos for him between votes. The labeled options have a larger impact, but many others nudge his arcana to a lesser degree.
I've flirted with the idea of giving these some kind of mechanical impact, but I didn't want to gamify story decisions too much, e.g. voting for Anointed repeatedly to maintain some bonus vs the Vice. For now, the arcana directs Dim's smaller decisions, especially for future time skips.