Peccatula (죄종, Joejong) are entities similar to Distortions that are commonly encountered in story dungeons and the Mirror Dungeon.
While they are similar to Distortions, Peccatula are more beast-like, showing higher levels of aggression and antagonism. They appear to come from the same source as a Distortion, wherein a being that fails to become a Distortion instead becomes a Peccatulum [1]. Unlike Distortions, the transformation into a Peccatulum does not seem to be revertible.
The kind of Peccatula one transforms into depends on the types of Sin that they have embodied in life [2]. Currently, there have been seven unique types of Peccatula observed, corresponding to each Sin. Within these seven Sin types, Peccatula further have different evolutions or stages, with higher Stages being more mature and stronger.
List of Peccatula[]
Peccatulum | ||||||
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Stage 1 | ||||||
Stage 2 | ||||||
Stage 3 | ||||||
Gulae[]
Peccatulum Gulae is a densely packed bundle of grey flowers with dark green stems trailing behind them. At the center of each flower is an inward spiral of teeth, like a leech's mouth. A few leaves on the stems reach outward, in front of the flowers, and twitch frequently. A few green eyeballs dangle from the highest parts of each stem.
Its first evolution variant shows a much larger loose stalks of 3 grey flowers with a hole gaping open in the middle, messily coated with blood. On the stalks connecting the flowers is a green eye staring in the middle of the stems.
Irae[]
Peccatulum Irae is a dark scrawny figure whose entire body appears to be made up of rigid branch-like structures with glowing red cracks and flickering particles throughout. Two branches emerge from the front half of its body that split into what appear to be humanoid hands resting their fingertips on the ground. Its head has an elongated snout, almost like a beak, one large red eye, and two glowing antennae that twitch frequently.
Its first evolution variant shows a much brawny figure compared to its original variant, making up more of muscular thick structures with similar glowing red cracks and flickering particles. The red eyes on its head appears much larger and fiercer, with its beak looking more like a dangerously-large snout.
Its second evolution variant appears more golem-like compared to its previous variant. Instead of standing quadruped, it instead stands biped, with its front legs replaced with two giant heat-blazing sickle appendages. Its eye can be fully seen at the top, brazen in blood red with red fire flickering above its eyeballs. The size of it is much larger than its first variant, talling over most humanoids.
Pigritiae[]
Peccatulum Pigritiae is a large round rock-like figure with wide red cracks along its body, all of which meet at its "face," which has a single yellow eyeball nestled deep inside. In battle, red humanoid arms appear from the cracks to attack units.
Its first evolution variant shows a smaller rock with four other rocks jutting near its center, with blood veins supporting the rock-like formation in the form of a cross. Its yellow eyeball still rests at the center of the rock figure, but has gained more mobility in the terms of having red veins acting as movement.
Morositatis[]
Peccatulum Morositatis is a floating transparent gelatinous figure filled with a blue fluid of some sort. The lower half of its body protrudes outward and a tangled bunch of pink organs can be seen inside. One light blue eyeball floats at the top of the figure, connected to the lower organs by a single thin cable. Two "arms" reach outward from between the "head" and "body" of the figure and curl back into a spiral shape.
Its first evolution appears much larger than its original form, its internal organs at the lower half are more visible with more organs resembling human in clearer view. One light blue eyeballs floats over its newly formed head resembling that of a shrimp, floating with more tiny tentacles at the bottom.
Superbiae[]
Peccatulum Superbiae is a large blue wheel-shaped entity with spikes along its rim. Red and flesh-colored scraps are tied around its spokes. At the very center of the wheel is one dark blue eyeball.
Luxuriae[]
Peccatulum Luxuriae is a large pale flesh-coloured four-legged creature with vein-like patterns across its body. It has a long, flat tail like a salamander. Large bumps form along its spine that increase in size as they get closer to the head, which is heavily wrinkled, partitioned down the middle, and shaped like a shield. One bloodshot orange eyeball pops out from the right side of its "face."
Invidiae[]
Peccatulum Invidiae are unique as they do not have an actual form in combat. Instead, all Peccatulum of this type will instead mimic the stats, moves and even E.G.O. of certain identities. All identities they mimic are at Uptie IV, and they possess an available E.G.O. of every risk level for the mimicked sinner, which is Threadspun to IV as well. The E.G.O. equipped depends on the level they are found in. Peccatulum Invidiae are capable of undergoing E.G.O. corrosion, utilizing Support passives and the Backup system available in Refraction Railway: Line 4, forming Resonance and gathering E.G.O. resources.
It's first evolution is almost identical to it's base form, with it now gaining a buff allowing it to deal 15% more damage and take 15% less damage.
As of now, it is unknown if Peccatulum Invidiae will appear in the Main Story, or if that would come changes to how they function in it, which is completely possible due to their debut being in a alternate mode intended for a hard challenge, unlike other peccatula.
Observation Level[]
Similar to Abormalities, all Peccatulum have an Observation Level, but compared to others, only has 0 level. Each type of Peccatulum are observed by a specific sinner, and each Stage of evolution when encountering them bears a different story log.
Story[]
Stage 1[]
Gulae[]
Log Writer: Ishmael
It was a dense green wilderness full of tall flowers and trees, as well as outlandish bees and butterflies.
You can find all kinds of unfathomably strange creatures in a place like that.
For example... That flower.
It's said that a plant can't normally move on its own. One[sic] it takes root, it stays there for the rest of its life.
That's what people consider a major difference between plants and animals.
But those "plants" were like a pack of rabid beasts.
A group of them charged at us, raising their teethed flowers like it was their head.
Their roots morphed into limbs that no longer serve the original purpose, and there didn't seem to be any space in their bodies for storing nutrients.
Yet, those scrawny stems were hungrily seeking the missing sustenance.
Continuously shoving things into the mouth, despite being unable to absorb any of it...
What an odd creature that was.
Irae[]
Log Writer: Heathcliff
Thing's shaped like a dried tentacle... There was some kind of red liquid in the middle.
Smacked it a couple times with my bat, and the lanky thing was a bit more durable it seemed.
Bigger problem, though... That thing's got a weird way of attacking.
It prods poor sods with its long snout, and... It starts shooting that red water into the body!
It gives me a heartburn like I had some hard stuff on an empty stomach... 's irritating...and suffocating...
A-Anyway, it makes you feel all weird. Makes you mad over wee stuff.
Some even blew up after getting hit by that juice. I really don't want that happening to me.
→ Weren't you always prone to getting mad over the smallest things? (Ishmael)
→ Don't piss me off. (Heathcliff)
Pigritiae[]
Log Writer: Yi Sang
I am uncertain how an object of its mass is able to move. Its appearance could not be any less adherent to laws of science, but when I look back, it might have been an inherently scientific object after all.
It would levitate in the air and stay still.
It rolled its eyeball lodged in the center. And when it felt like it, it would ram into some persons.
I am not yet sure what motivates it to move. Even so, I wonder if it's necessary to learn its reasons at all.
It's possible that this pebble is alive.
No one would call it an organism, but by the same token, I may not be alive if no one refers to me as such.
Perhaps it was simply a matter of laziness.
We were lazy to think that it mustn't be what it thought to be.
That pebble is probably a lazy living being.
And the same could be said of me.
Morositatis[]
Log Writer: Meursault
-Unable to identify several physical requirements for maintenance of life; cannot determine it as an organism.
-Its body is filled with water.
-Objects that appear to be organs are observed inside, but they do not appear to function as organs.
-The water does not appear to play any part in biological activities, either.
-The body of liquid appears to be stagnant.
-It has the face of someone lost deep in thought. It could merely be a resemblance to a species of zooplankton.
-Prolonged observation makes my mind sink.
-Sinking… Reminding me of the past.
-…It is not a pleasant feeling.
Superbiae[]
Log Writer: Yi Sang
It represents humanity's realization of its ability to think up and actualize things that weren't in the nature.
At the same time, it marks the beginning of humanity's transformation into prideful creatures.
That might be why pride takes the form of a wheel.
The steel circle doesn't ever seem to stop rotating.
It doesn't care if it gashes at flesh or crushes patches of grass.
Because, it can roll…
While others cannot.
Luxuriae[]
Log Writer: Sinclair
Has an ugly maw at the front... I thought it was a tongue at first, but what's inside that maw was a hand.
A hand, made from two twisted arms coiling around each other. I saw the eye inside stare into me.
As if that wasn't enough, it looked eager to devour me and nourish its flesh.
Even if I couldn't hear it, I could tell.
...It wasn't the first time I saw that kind of gaze.
Stage 2[]
Gulae[]
Log Writer: Ishmael
I remember it looking completely dried out, like it’s about to wither away… Not that it’s gotten any easier on the eyes, that is.
Now it has three flower heads and stems stretched out like limbs. I think I saw a tail, too… It’s only gotten more unsettling to look at.
Maybe it devoured a human or something. It’s got plenty of blood on its sharp and fearsome teeth that reminds me of a catfish's…
Actually, never mind that. There’s something weird about these things.
The monster snatched us up using its roots… stems… or whatever it is… like arms.
And immediately devoured us like a starving beast.
But… after it devoured us, it immediately spat us back out like it tasted something awful. I suppose this means that it didn’t eat us for nutrients. Not that it could, given that I didn’t see any digestive tracts or any other organs for that purpose.
But it kept trying and trying… to shove something in its maws.
Not because it’s hungry, not because it needs the nutrients…
Knowing that its stomach, if it even exists, can’t be filled.
Maybe, at the end of the day, this monster doesn’t even need to eat.
Maybe it’s all about the desire to devour. And that’s all it’s got.
Like I was myself, not so long ago.
→ Do you still remember the things she said? (Dante?)
→ Well… I doubt I’ll ever forget what that bastard said, but that’s all. I might turn around to look at the path I sailed through… but I’m not going back. (Ishmael)
Irae[]
Log Writer: Heathcliff
Its eyes are more bloodshot, and they're glarin' at me fierce... It's got a tail, too.
I think I can summarize this report with "it got creepier".
Looks like its wee dried squid legs got hydrated and slightly thickened. It's still got that red juice that gives me heartburn.
It's still got that stabby attack... but it certaintly diversified its pattern.
Here's the most memorable one. It tried to smack me with its tail! Remember? It couldn't do that before.
Or maybe it could, but its stick-bug legs couldn't support its weight.
Well, it's not really my business.
Oh, here's another thing. The bug learned how to spark fire. Watch out for that burn, yeah?
Pigritiae[]
Log Writer: Yi Sang
Its nature could not be determined; it very well could be veins, muscle tissue, or aught else that carries blood. Thus the most ideal nomenclature for the fluid, for the moment, would be ‘red things’.
With its every movement, the four smaller rocks held by the red things wavered precariously.
It rolls its eyeball still, yet naught seems enough to stir it; it refuses to even ram us with its body.
Instead, it merely swings with what is in its grasp.
Though it oft lashes with two or so of what is grasped, it swings all four rocks at once, from time to time.
As those numbers must originate from its own conscious decisions… I consider this to be a living being.
In other words, I am, in turn, alive as well still.
I merely find it regrettable that the rock is no longer levitating.
It is quite miraculous that such a thin thing can endure the weight of such a heavy boulder… Yet, as it is attached to the earth, it is self-evident truth that it can no longer be said to be in a state of levitation.
What has once levitated, though bereft of wings, has fallen to the earth.
And the rock vacillates hither to thither, fettered to the swaying red thing with no freedom to call its own.
Though its form has changed, its nature remains that it is a lazy living being.
Yet, it may also be said that such staunch resilience to change may itself be a form of assiduity.
What changes is slothfulness, yet what changes not is diligence.
What an odd sophistry.
Such is all I have to say.
→ I.D.K.W.T.H.H.T.A. (Ryōshū)
→ C’mon, mate. Even the incomprehensible lass can’t understand what the hell you’re talking about. Write plainly for once, yeah? (Heathcliff)
→ I believe that this record was composed in quite the luculent incontrovertibility… (Yi Sang)
→ Lucu— Incontro— Haah. C’mon, Yi Sang. You’re doing this on purpose at this point, aren't ya? (Rodion)
→ … I have naught else to say. (Yi Sang)
Morositatis[]
Log Writer: Meursault
- More organs required to maintain a biological organism has been identified inside its body. Some of it has matured further.
- However, no physiological characteristics enough to meet the criteria to constitute a living organism has been identified.
- What appeared to be a 'hand' has been identified. It is visible from the outside, and is wielding a round object.
- A close analysis of its behaviors and attack patterns reveals that the round object is a fluid sac of sorts.
- The fluid inside the entity's body appears to be connected with the sac. When the sac inflates, the internal fluid on its main body shrinks.
- Several organs that may constitute a 'leg' or an 'antenna' has been identified. No particular usage outside of offensive uses has been found.
- Prolonged observation of this identity remains inadvisable.
- Reminders of the negative past events remains unpleasant.
Superbiae[]
Log Writer: Yi Sang
Luxuriae[]
Log Writer: Sinclair
Stage 3[]
Gulae[]
Log Writer: Ishmael
Irae[]
Log Writer: Heathcliff
It’s grown even bigger than before… like it’s gotten physical augmentations or something.
It stabs with its horn-like hands instead of pecking us with its beaks.
It’s just as irritatin’ when it hits me, but… the red water’s now hot like lava. That’s another layer of difficulty.
When it stabs the ground, pillars of fire burst from the earth. Now I see why the Backstreets blokes say that we should avoid death by fire at all costs.
These bastards, they keep… getting in my way. Glarin’ at me fierce with their blood-red eyes, bursting with flames from the top of its head...
What the hell does it even have to be so mad about?
I’m the one that’s frustrated. This… this awful feeling, like I’m about to burst. Like I’m trapped in.
Look, I don’t even have the time to waste on writing shite like this...
I’ve got to go. Right before me, there’s— (The log continues, but whatever was there is now scorched and illegible.)
Pigritiae[]
Log Writer: Yi Sang
Morositatis[]
Log Writer: Meursault
Superbiae[]
Log Writer: Yi Sang
Luxuriae[]
Log Writer: Sinclair
Gallery[]
Trivia[]
- 'Joejong' (죄종) is the Korean translation for peccata capitalia, the Latin word for a deadly sin — in reference to the Seven Deadly Sins.
- 'Peccatulum' is the Latin word for peccadillo; a small, relatively unimportant offense or sin. Each Peccatulum's name refers to the deadly sin they represent:
- Gulae - Gluttony
- Irae - Wrath
- Pigritiae - Sloth
- Acediae was the name for Sloth in Latin and the original name designated for said sin, but after the update on April 11th 2024, it was changed to match the meaning of Sloth rather than its latin name.
- Morositatis - Gloom
- Superbiae - Pride
- Luxuriae - Lust
- Invidiae - Envy
- Peccatulum Luxuriae's Log foreshadows Kromer's transformation into the Dreamer of Human Wholeness.
- Peccatulum Morositatis appears to be inspired by Daphnia or 'water fleas'; a genus of small aquatic crustaceans commonly found in freshwater habitats such as stagnant ponds.
- Wings like J Corp have tried to utilize them as "tamed guard dogs", though it seem that these attempts have backfired.
- Prior to the April 11th 2024 update, each of the Stage 1 Peccatula had unique Classification Codes and were categorized as ZAYIN-class.
- Gulae: S-08-04-01
- Irae: S-08-04-02
- Pigritiae: S-08-04-03
- Morositatis: S-08-10-01
- Superbiae: S-08-11-01
- Luxuriae: S-08-11-02
- The Stage 2 Peccatula did not have a proper code (instead using ??-??-??-??) and were categorized as TETH-class.
- The letter code 'S' (likely standing for 'Sin') and first number code '08' are not used by any known Abnormality, suggesting they were unique to the Peccatula.
- Each of the Peccatulum have unique kill animations when they defeat a Sinner:
- Gulae leaps on its victim and consumes the upper half of their body.
- Irae ignites its victim with flames.
- Pigritiae causes blood to squirt out of its victim's body.
- Superbiae causes the victim to temporarily spasm while they lie on the floor.
- Luxuriae's victims become partially skeletal.
- Curiously, Morositatis is the only Peccatulum to not be based off a traditional deadly sin. The Alpha Version however uses Greed instead of Gloom.[3]
- The exact reason as to why is unknown, but was likely done for narrative and theming purposes.
- If the Greed affinity was kept in game, the corresponding Peccatulum would have been named Peccatulum Avaritiae.
- That being said, Gloom may be based on the idea of Acedia, a historical sin of melancholy, seen in Christian thought, that lack of joy was a willful refusal to enjoy the goodness of God, or the lack of effort due to that depressive state. It would later be absorbed into Sloth. More recently, it has been connected to depression, and has seen a rise in modern media as the "8th deadly sin".
- The exact reason as to why is unknown, but was likely done for narrative and theming purposes.