Belief system (not only religion) and colony cohesiveness (mutiny/civil war)

[thetj]

Hi! This is my first post though I have been following the forum for a while now, and playing the game quite a lot! It is refreshing to have such a sophisticated game that doesn't dumbly rely on gratuitous gore or sexism to sell.

The following suggestion comes from my experience as a player of paper and dice RPGs. I know there has been talk about adding a belief system, so here are my suggestions.

I am starting a new topic because the thread I found is mostly about religion (https://ludeon.com/forums/index.php?topic=11560.0). I am seeing this as something broader than religion. We all have belief systems, and the most prevalent one could be called "Humanity." it is already integrated in the game, for example, when executing a prisoner has negative mood effects (killing is bad for our conscience). Another example of this default belief system is the fact that cannibalism is also negative to the colony's mood (humans are more than animals).

My idea is that a diversity of belief systems can add an element of management towards "colony cohesiveness." What if some colonists had a belief system that allowed for cannibalism? How would that affect their relation to a colony who has a majority of colonists who are not cannibals?

Of course, some belief systems will be more compatible with others, and they will determine the 'goodwill' among colonists, similarly to how goodwill among tribes are calculated, just based on different reasons.

This basically opens the possibility of 'mutiny' and civil war within the colony. This spirit of rebellion and conflict is already present when colonists refuse to be imprisoned (a new feature in Alpha 10, I believe). So now the player will have to be careful with the selection of colonists, making sure their colonists will get along, or purposefully making selections that will create interesting tensions.

So that is my main idea. Some extensions of that idea are below:

Attach certain belief systems to certain races, class (in terms of poor/rich), and gender. Now that would make it a fabulous challenge to balance the game. Imagine a group of women colonists making a coup and expelling/enslaving the men? A matriarchal society! A patriarchal colony could be the default system.

Another default belief system could be 'Humanity,' as it is already implement now with penalties for inhumane acts, like execution, cannibalism and eating raw food. Here is a sample 'humanity' belief system that could be adopted into Rimworld with extensive modifications. (http://www.thesubnet.com/portal/wod/vtm20/PathsH.html ).

Alternative systems can get creative. Like a 'hipster foodies' system, where eating cooked food adds a penalty, and having a very complex and difficult raw diet is crucial to their 'joy.' Here is a great set of belief systems (http://whitewolf.wikia.com/wiki/Path_of_Enlightenment#Known_Paths). Something similar could be designed for this game.

Anyhow, enough say. I hope this makes sense and is something feasible to implement coding-wise (so that it is worth discussing at least). What do you think?

Cheers!