Doctrines in Cult of the Lamb are the commandments that your followers live by. Some of them make you a loving and nurturing cult leader, while others make you a ruthless murderer hungry for power.
You are able to choose the type of leader you would like to become, and the Doctrines add in some Rituals, Follower Traits, and Actions for you or your followers to use. Keep in mind, though, that these Doctrines cannot be changed once chosen, so you will have to live with the choices you make in the end.
The Cult of the Lamb guide below tells you everything you need to know about Doctrines, from how many options you have to choose from, how to actually unlock them, and their traits and effects. We’ll also list the best Doctrines at the end of this guide. If you want to know more about keeping your disciples happy and worshipping you, we’ve got plenty of tips for managing Followers here.
Doctrine Categories
There are five categories to choose from when you open the Doctrine menu, each with its own set of Doctrines:
- Afterlife
- Work and Worship
- Possesions
- Law and Order
- Sustenance
How to Unlock Doctrines
So how exactly does one unlock these different Doctrines in Cult of the Lamb? Throughout the game, you acquire Commandment Stone Fragments through the Old Faith dungeons. You will need three total Stone Fragment pieces to make one whole Commandment Tablet.
Once you have all of the pieces put together, head into the Temple you built at the start of the game. Go to the Alter within the Temple, and choose the “Crown” option. After you select the Crown Option, the game will prompt you to choose from one of the five options mentioned above.
But what exactly do those options mean, and what effects can they have?
Cult of the Lamb Doctrine Effects
Afterlife
The Afterlife option will showcase Doctrines that allow your followers to either cope with death in a more positive way, allow you to sacrifice followers through Rituals, or even ascend one of your elders to the Gods above (or below, we aren’t really sure).
- Belief in Sacrifice Trait: +20 faith when another cult member is sacrificed.
- Belief in the Afterlife Trait: Only lose -5 faith when a follower dies rather than -20.
- Ritual of Resurrection: Perform a ritual that brings a Dead Follower back to life.
- Funeral: Conduct a Funeral Ritual for a follower who has passed away. +20 Faith.
- Respect Your Elders Trait: All Followers will receive +5 Faith for every elder Follower in the cult.
- Good Die Young Trait: All followers gain +10 faith if an Elder Follower is sacrificed, consumed, or murdered but will lose -20 Faith if the Elder Follower dies of natural causes.
- Return to the Earth: This Doctrine unlocks the Natural Burial building, which allows the corpses of deceased followers to become fertilizer.
- Grieve the Fallen: This Doctrine unlocks the Grave building. Gain +2 Faith when followers Grieve at the gravesite.
Work and Worship
Work and Worship Doctrines are just as they sound. They enhance the productivity of your cult in the long run and help things run smoothly within the cult when it comes to resource collection and Follower work ethic.
- Faithful Trait: Generate devotion 15% faster.
- Industrious Trait: Increase work speed by 15%.
- Inspire: Inspire a follower to significantly increase their loyalty; replaces the bless action.
- Intimidate: Intimidate a Follower to slightly increase their loyalty and make them work 10% harder over the next 2 days; replaces the bless action.
- The Glory of Construction: Ritual that immediately builds all structures under construction.
- Ritual of Enlightenment: Ritual that temporarily increases devotion generation speed by 20% at the shine for three days.
- Glory Through Toil Ritual: Allows your Followers to work through days and nights without getting tired.
- Holy Day Ritual: Declare a day of rest; your Followers will not work that day. Gain +80 faith.
Possessions
Doctrines in the Possessions category are more focused on the Faith of the cult and donations from your Followers. These Doctrines allow your Followers to become more interested in material possessions, such as buildings or even Coins.
- Extort Tithes: Collect Coin from a follower once per day.
- Bribe Follower: Bribe a Follower with x3 Coin to increase their loyalty.
- Belief in materialism trait: All cult members gain the materialistic trait.
- Belief in false idols trait: All members gain the false idols trait, and gain more faith from decorations placed.
- Alms for the Poor Ritual: Distribute 25 Coin to your Followers in exchange for their loyalty and +10 Faith.
- Ritual of Enrichment: Allow all Followers to donate Coins to you.
- Sacral Architecture Trait: When a new building is constructed, Followers gain +5 Faith.
- Devotee Trait: Gain more Faith from your Followers when you deliver a Sermon.
Law and Order
Law and Order Doctrines are all about keeping Followers in line at all times, whether that be the nice way or the not-so-nice way.
- Murder Follower: Unlocks the murder Follower action, a simple solution to many problems. But other Followers will find this upsetting if they’re awake.
- Ascend Follower Ritual: Perform a Ritual at your temple in which you can ascend a Follower’s spirit to a higher plane of existence. All Followers gain loyalty.
- Ritualistic Fight Pits: Perform a Ritual where two Followers fight to the death unless you’re feeling merciful.
- Wedding: Marry one of your Followers and gain +30 faith.
- Belief in Original Sin Trait: All are born guilty. Reduced faith loss when putting a Follower in jail who is not dissenting.
- Belief in Absolution Trait: Freedom above all else. Every day that begins without anyone in prison, gain +10 Faith.
- Loyalty Enforcer Ritual: Appoint a loyal Follower as your Loyalty Enforcer, where they will go around to each member of the cult and raise their loyalty level.
- Tax Enforcer Ritual: Appoint a loyal Follower as your Tax Enforcer, who will collect money from your other cult members.
Sustenance
The Sustenance Doctrine revolves around food and resources, keeping cult members not only happy, but happy with a full tummy!
- Fast Ritual: Declare a Fast Ritual; Followers will not be hungry for three days.
- Feast Ritual: Throw a grand feast; refill +25 Faith and refill the hunger bar.
- Cannibal Trait: +5 Faith when eating a meal made with Follower Meat.
- Grass Eater Trait: No negative Faith when a follower eats a meal made of grass.
- Ritual of the Harvest: Causes all seeds to immediately be ready for harvest.
- Ritual of the Ocean’s Bounty: For two days, make special fish more likely to appear while fishing. You will also catch double the amount of fish as usual.
- Substances Encouraged Trait: Gain +20 Faith when you perform the Brainwashing Ritual.
- Belief in Prohibition Trait: Increases work speed and devotion generation by 10% with a 50% chance of followers becoming sick after performing the Brainwashing Ritual.
Best Good Doctrines
Now, this is a lot of information, so figuring out which Doctrines are the best is a pretty hefty task. Really, there is no right or wrong way to build your following; it’s really about what kind of leader you want to be.
If you want to go the soft and sweet route, then we suggest these choices for your Doctrines throughout the game:
Afterlife
- Belief in Sacrifice Trait
- Ritual of Resurrection
- Respect Your Elders Trait
- Grieve the Fallen
Work and Worship
- Industrious Trait
- Inspire
- Ritual of Enlightenment
- Holy Day Ritual
Possessions
- Bribe Follower
- Belief in false idols trait
- Alms for the Poor Ritual
- Devotee Trait
Law and Order
- Ascend Follower Ritual
- Wedding
- Belief in Absolution Trait
- Loyalty Enforcer Ritual
Sustenance
- Feast Ritual
- Grass Eater Trait
- Ritual of the Ocean’s Bounty
- Substances Encouraged Trait
Best Evil Doctrines
On the other side of the coin, if you want to take a more murderous and heartless approach, these would be the Doctrines you should choose:
Afterlife
- Belief in the Afterlife Trait
- Funeral
- Good Die Young Trait
- Return to the Earth
Work and Worship
- Faithful Trait
- Intimidate
- The Glory of Construction
- Glory Through Toil Ritual
Possesions
- Extort Tithes
- Belief in materialism trait
- Ritual of Enrichment
- Sacral Architecture Trait
Law and Order
- Murder Follower
- Ritualistic Fight Pits
- Belief in Original Sin Trait
- Tax Enforcer Ritual
Sustenance
- Fast Ritual
- Cannibal Trait
- Ritual of the Harvest
- Belief in Prohibition Trait
Remember that all of these are just suggestions, and you can build your Doctrines however you wish. Other than that, just have fun and be the leader you want to be! For more guides, such as where to find all 36 Tarot cards and a list of the best weapons in the game, head over to our growing Cult of the Lamb tips collection.
