Editing Cauldron (section)

==History==
===Background===
[[Doctor Mother]] and [[Contessa]] formed Cauldron after [[Eden]] crash-landed near Contessa's home and was killed by Doctor Mother. They learned that the [[Entity|Entities]]' cycle would lead to the end of the human race and began formulating plans to defend humanity, including reducing conflict and maximizing the number of parahumans present for the final confrontation.<ref name="I29">[[Interlude 29]]</ref>

By extracting and refining parts of Eden's corpse, Doctor Mother and Contessa were able to produce vials that granted powers. After Scion appeared on [[Earth Bet]] in 1982, they began to more widely test those vials on terminally ill patients. [[Hero]] and [[Doormaker]] both triggered in the founders' first batch of ten vials.<ref name="I29" /> This process could also cure subjects of their illnesses, and Cauldron subsequently provided vials to [[Alexandria]], [[Eidolon]], and [[Legend]].<ref name="I27">[[Interlude 27.x|27.x (Interlude, Eidolon)]]</ref>

Cauldron expanded its operations throughout the 1980s and established a headquarters that spanned several dimensions. During the mid-1980s, it recruited the [[Number Man]] and [[William Manton]] as full-time staff. Alexandria stayed with them for two years after she gained powers and helped to implement Cauldron's plan for integrating parahumans into society by forming the [[Protectorate]] alongside Hero, Legend, and Eidolon.

William and Balminder's separate betrayals changed their operating protocol.<ref name="II5.x eDefections" />

Cauldron also created [[Gray Boy]], and it allowed him to exist as he was the most viability as an anti-Scion contingency after Eidolon. When the [[Slaughterhouse Nine]] began killing more parahumans than Gray Boy was theoretically worth, they manipulated [[Glaistig Uaine]] into killing him and taking his power so it could be used later if needed.<ref name="SB1">Cauldron permitted Gray Boy because he was the closest thing to a weapon they had against Scion since Eidolon. When the S9 started picking up and more parahumans started getting removed from the fiend{sic}(field) than Gray Boy was theoretically worth, they moved in. Maneuvering Glaistig Uaine into taking him over, so the power would still be in play. - [https://forums.spacebattles.com/posts/13172170 Comment by Wildbow on Spacebattles]</ref>

Cauldron was targeted by [[The Simurgh]] during her attack on [[Madison]], Wisconsin in 2009. The Simurgh used [[Professor Haywire]]'s technology to [[Portal|break into]] one of the dimensions Cauldron was located in, costing Cauldron a stock of formulas and releasing several Case 53s. The [[Travelers]] triggered using the lost formulas, and [[Noelle Meinhardt]]'s rampage in [[Brockton Bay]] led to Cauldron being publicly outed and the creation of the [[Irregulars]].<ref>[[Migration]]</ref>

===Story Start===
Because of the [[Cauldron#Terminus Project|Terminus project]], Cauldron was more hands-off with [[Brockton Bay]] during their test run with [[Coil]].<ref name="reddit eHandsOff">'''shonkadice:'''I think that's the right answer, but why did they then allow Coil to have a whole squad of gunmen?<br><br>'''Wildbow:''' Project Terminus. They were hands-off with Brockton Bay in a way they weren't elsewhere.<!--5/23/2019--> - [https://redd.it/bs9ywh Comment by Wildbow on Reddit]</ref><ref name="discord eTestRun">'''LordOfMysteries:''' I'm curious as to why does coil has snipers in his mercenaries. Didn't contessa discourage that sort of thing. Is the whole cauldron owes a favor to coil canon?<br><br>'''Wildbow:''' Because Coil is something that Cauldron was running as a test run, they didn't interfere or intervene as much in Brockton Bay.<br>So Coil (and other Brocktonites) got away with a bit more than might be expected<br>[...]<br>'''LordOfMysteries:''' Wonder why didn't they save him, I mean multiple tries sounds really usefull<br>What about the whole favor thing?<br><br>'''Wildbow:''' Because if they saved him then it'd spoil the whole point of the Terminus program. - Conversation with Wildbow on Cauldron Discord</ref>

===Post-[[Battle against Leviathan|Leviathan]]===
Called in a favor with [[Battery]] to save the [[Siberian ]] and [[Shatterbird]].<ref>[[Interlude 12.5]]</ref>

===Post-[[Battle against Echidna|Echidna]]===
Their position was exposed and Contessa was tasked with suppressing the information. Contessa was later retasked to the security of the [[Cauldron Compound]] after several prison breaks.

===[[Timeskip]]===
Helped the formation of [[The Slaughterhouse Nine-Thousand]].<ref>[[Interlude 25]]</ref>

===Post-[[Timeskip]]===
Supported efforts against the same group.

===[[Gold Morning]]===
Many plans fell through.

Cauldron's headquarters were badly damaged in 2013 by [[Scion]].

===[[Ward]]===
Cauldron is splintered into two notable rival factions – the one led by [[Teacher]] has occupied and fully staffed Cauldron's old facilities<ref>"[...] a guy who wears fucking sweaters is pulling at the threads that are holding everything together while maintaining and expanding the institution side of the old Cauldron.  A handful of others are running the ideological end of Cauldron.  Both of those groups are strong in their own way and yet they aren’t doing a tenth what Cauldron used to do in forestalling disasters and containing the most… unproductive capes and cape-related messes.”<br><br>“They’re rebuilding Cauldron?” Sveta asked, horrified.<br><br>“The day the Cauldron cracked, they were there moving in with what would be hundreds of employees.  You were there at one point.  You had to have seen the empty offices and rooms.  Every last one of those offices have people now.  Are they doing things on the level of what they did to you guys?  No.  But only because they lack the opportunity.” - [https://www.parahumans.net/2018/05/08/pitch-6-8/ Excerpt] from [[Pitch 6.8]]</ref>, while [[Number Man]] and [[Citrine]] maintain their own operations more focused on [[The City]].