Even terrorists, pedophiles, and murderers play religious board games. This is the case with the Order of Nine Angles (ONA), a far-right, self-identified Satanic new religious movement currently spreading around the world, and their use of a board game, The Star Game. The beliefs and practices of the group have led to the ONA being labeled as a terrorist organization in many places, and they have confirmed ties to Neo-Nazi organizations, pedophiles, and murder plots (Simone 2021; CTEC 2023; Romero 2023; ISD 2024). The Star Game influences and embodies all the beliefs and practices of the ONA. Scholars tend to overlook The Star Game despite its centrality to the Order, likely due to its nature as "just a game," which are often seen as trivial at best. In this paper I present a material culture study of The Star Game and argue for the importance of seriously studying religious board games.
Founded in the late 20th century by a man (or more likely multiple men) using the pseudonym "Anton Long," the ONA represents a dangerous fringe of Satanism. The ONA relies heavily on its material culture and aesthetics to spread their ideals, recruit, and signal membership to one another (Colin 2024). The oldest and most influential aspect of this material culture is The Star Game, which initiates must build and master themselves and/or with a partner. Members have created and played both physical and digital versions of the game since the founding of the ONA. There is no mass production of The Star Game, so each board reflects the individual creator, and digital versions act to connect "Niners" around the globe.
Scholarship has overlooked The Star Game in most studies of the ONA because it tends to view such games as unserious and relegates these games to the realm of "folklore." In Satanism a Reader, Fredrik Gregorius only mentioned the game in passing (Gregorius 2023, 258). Satanism: A Social History by Massimo Introvigne likewise referenced the game a single time (Introvigne 2016, 361). Jacob Senholt's work on the ONA only briefly brought up the game three times without meaningful discussion on it (Senholt 2009, 35; Senholt 2012, 260, 262). In fields outside of religious studies, such as terrorism studies, a 2023 article simply names the game in a parenthetical note (Shah et al. 2023). A more recent article does not address or acknowledge the game at all, despite being a study of ONA aesthetics (Colin 2024). Therefore, the only in depth information on the game comes from its creator and the ONA, sources who have a clear investment in a particular portrayal of The Star Game.
In this paper, I first analyze two authentic versions of The Star Game created and played by ONA members, using methodological grounding from scholars of material culture including Nancy Ammerman. I then investigate how these games embody the beliefs and practices of the ONA regardless of their materials, format, or aesthetics. I will go on to share my own experience attempting to build and play the game, both physically and digitally. This includes a simulation of The Star Game in Tabletop Simulator, which can be actively engaged with by scholars without going through the ONA itself. In sharing this experience, I will highlight how creation and mastery of the game acts as a form of performative evil, thus empowering the practitioners and uniting them to each other. Finally, I will reflect on how understanding what many see as "just a game" is relevant to religious studies because religious scholars are uniquely positioned to interpret the way this "game" furthers the crimes and violences currently perpetuated by the ONA.
Works Cited
CTEC. (2023). "Dangerous Organizations and Bad Actors: Order of Nine Angles. "Retrieved from https://www.middlebury.edu/institute/academics/centers -initiatives/ctec/publications/dangerous-organizations-and-bad-actors-order-nine.
Colin, M. (2024). "And the Devil Marches with Us": Aesthetics and Accelerationism in the Order of Nine Angles. Terrorism and Political Violence, 1–20. doi:10.1080/09546553.2024.2365749
Gregorius, F. (2023). "The Order of the Nine Angles, The Black Book of Satan (1984)." In P. Faxneld and J. Petersen (eds.) Satanism: A Reader. New York: Oxford University Press. 252–270.
Institute for Strategic Dialogue. (2024). "The Order of Nine Angles." Retrieved from
https://www.isdglobal.org/explainers/the-order-of-nine-angles-explainer/.
Introvigne, M. (2016). Satanism: A Social History. Leiden: Brill.
Romero, D. (2023). "Former U.S. Soldier Gets 45 Years for Helping Neo-Nazi Group In Plot to Kill Troops." Retrieved from https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/former-us-soldier-gets-45-years-helping-neo-nazi-group-plot-kill-troop-rcna73374.
Senholt, J. (2009). The Sinister Tradition: Political Esotericism & the Convergence of Radical Islam, Satanism and National Socialism in the Order of the Nine Angles. Trondheim: University of Aarhus.
Senholt, J. (2012). "Secret Identities in the Sinister Tradition: Political Esotericism and the Convergence of Radical Islam, Satanism, and National Socialism in the Order of Nine Angles." In P. Faxneld and J. Petersen (eds.) Satanism: A Reader. New York: Oxford University Press. 250–274.
Shah, S., Cooper, J., & Newcombe, S. (2023). "Occult Beliefs and the Far Right: The Case of the Order of Nine Angles." Studies in Conflict and Terrorism, 1–21. doi:10.1080/1057610x.2023.2195065.
Simone, D. D. (2021). "Ryan Fleming: Neo-Nazi Paedophile Jailed for Messaging Children." Retrieved from https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-leeds-56044179.
Even terrorists, pedophiles, and murderers play religious board games. This is the case with the Order of Nine Angles (ONA), a far-right, self-identified Satanic new religious movement currently spreading around the world, and their use of a board game, The Star Game. The beliefs and practices of the group have led to the ONA being labeled as a terrorist organization in many places, and they have confirmed ties to Neo-Nazi organizations, pedophiles, and murder plots. The Star Game influences and embodies all the beliefs and practices of the ONA. Scholars tend to overlook The Star Game despite its centrality to the Order, likely due to its nature as "just a game," which are often seen as trivial at best. In this paper I present a material culture study of The Star Game and argue for the importance of seriously studying religious board games.