Getting started5 min read
How to Choose a Pact
- Pick by stage: starters Tethren (S) / Sirin (B) / Oscelda (A) — match weapon Virtue pips first.
- Mid-game: Garren Rood after Torment Stag (B); Bromius after Waste Bear (S); full tiers on /pacts.
- Endgame: Ode Tempest (S+) for Oden line; Duelo (S) via Mestra Carmo — P11 bleed nerf unverified.
Virtue fit · early vs late unlocks · loadout identity
Your starting Pact determines your starting Enclave — and that affects how fast you can reach Ode Tempest, the only S+ pick on our tier list. No starter locks you out of it; one just takes a detour. Here's the path.
Quick Answer
A Pact is the closest thing Soulframe has to a class — three Arcanics, two unique passives, and a long-term identity. Loadouts swap freely, and Virtue points re-allocate for free per loadout in Preludes 15, but Pact swaps at Tuvalkane cost time and materials — so the starter pick shapes your first dozens of hours:
| Starter Pact | Virtue | Tier | Best fit |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tethren | Courage | S | Front-line melee bruiser — strongest starter kit |
| Oscelda | Spirit | A | Crowd control and support — easiest to learn |
| Sirin | Grace | B | Stealth finishers with bows and short blades |
The hidden decision chain: after the Torment Stag, your starter Pact auto-assigns your first Enclave — Tethren → Kith of Kings, Oscelda → Alca's Children, Sirin → Silent Rose. The Ode Tempest recipe only appears on the Alca's Children and Silent Rose Rank 5 shelves, so Oscelda and Sirin starters walk a direct path while Tethren starters add one Enclave switch. Full breakdown below.
Starting Pacts Overview
All three starters are complete day-one kits — no fragments, no crafts, no Faction rank — and if you regret the pick, all three can be bought back from a Faction NPC later. Practical rule: match your starter weapon's Virtue pips (Wulder, Thistle, Gwylen) on day one, then commit to the Pact that shares that Virtue.
Tethren — melee bruiser · S
- High Life from Courage; strong front-line sustain
- Good with long blades and heavy weapons
Oscelda — Spirit caster · A
- Magick staff scaling; crowd control and support
- Spirit also reduces Arcanic cooldowns globally
Sirin — Grace assassin · B
- Bows, short blades, stealth finishers
- Third Arcanic scales with Grace — invest accordingly
Which Starter Pact Unlocks Ode Tempest?
No starter is Ode Tempest — it is an endgame craft behind high Faction rank. But your starter decides your first Enclave, and your first Enclave decides how short the road to the recipe is.
Starter Pact → starting Enclave
| Starter Pact | Starting Enclave | Enclave Virtue | Ode Tempest recipe at Rank 5? |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tethren | Kith of Kings | Courage | No — Kith's Rank 5 recipe is Mora's Hand |
| Oscelda | Alca's Children | Spirit | Yes — 27,500 Standing |
| Sirin | Silent Rose | Grace | Yes — 27,500 Standing |
The direct path (Oscelda and Sirin starters)
- Factions open after the Torment Stag and the An Invitation subfable; your starter's Enclave is auto-assigned when Sparrow's Tales unlocks.
- Grind Standing — Favour turn-ins and Sparrow's Tales — to Rank 5.
- Buy the Ode Tempest recipe for 27,500 Standing.
- Reach Tuvalkane Bond 3 in Nightfold and craft it; the craft itself is a significant grind.
The Tethren detour
Kith of Kings' Rank 5 recipe is Mora's Hand, not Ode Tempest. Tethren starters need one Enclave switch first:
- Grind Kith of Kings to Rank 3.
- Buy Sacred Shimmer (5,000 Standing) from the Favours shop.
- Craft an Alca's Children or Silent Rose Talisman at Tuvalkane, equip it, and speak to that Enclave's leader.
- Grind the new Enclave's Standing to Rank 5 and buy the recipe as above.
Time comparison: no verified hour counts exist for either route. What is certain: the Tethren route stacks a Rank 3 Kith grind, the 5,000 Sacred Shimmer, and a Standing restart — Standing is retained per-Enclave and does not transfer — on top of the same Rank 5 recipe grind. Daily Standing is capped (16,000 base, rising with Envoy Ranks; community-sourced), so every Rank 5 run is a multi-day commitment either way. Consolation for Kith loyalists: Mora's Hand is the native endgame Courage craft on that shelf. Full switch walkthrough: how to change factions; full rank tables: factions guide.
Numbers policy: the 27,500 Rank 5 recipes and the 5,000 Sacred Shimmer are community-catalog synced; rank thresholds and daily-cap figures are community-reported — treat as unverified and confirm in your Faction panel.
Decision Table
The whole progression at a glance. Full rankings live on the Pacts hub — we do not duplicate the tier table here:
| Stage | Unlock gate | Pact picks (editorial tier) | Role |
|---|---|---|---|
| Early | Character creation | Tethren S · Sirin B · Oscelda A | Starter decision — see above |
| Mid | Torment Stag | Garren Rood B | Spirit control, summons, factions |
| Mid | The Waste Bear (main quest) | Bromius S | AOE tank, armour steal |
| Mid | The Shewolf Snared | Orengall B | Pack hunter, wolf form |
| Late | Oden line / Chordstone | Ode Tempest S+ | Courage melee endgame |
| Late | The Wreck of Mestra Carmo | Duelo S | Grace duelist burst |
Tiers reflect overall kit strength for Preludes 15, not every Virtue route. Ode Tempest's top spot is community consensus; Duelo's S reflects the Flintlock + Duo Duelo core burst (bleed-nerf claims are unconfirmed).
Next Steps
- Want the full data sheet? All Pacts overview — every pact's Arcanics, passives, and unlock conditions in one table. This page stays the decision layer; that page is the reference layer.
- Want the rankings? The Pacts hub carries the S+ through B tier table plus each pact's detail page.
- Grinding the recipe? The factions guide (linked above) has the rank reward tables, Favour turn-ins, and switching costs for all three Enclaves.
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