The ORDO AGENT
In this supplement you will learn about the ORDO and how to make an AGENT character in the Neptaverse setting. There will be insight into the basics of the lore, the politics of the Silverhost Empire and a short guide for the specifics that differentiates an AGENT from an adventurer.
Adventures as AGENTS
'The ORDO Hunts' adventures are either epic journeys aboard Matriarch-Class Arcships, traveling from planet to planet to confront threats or politically charged encounters within the capital city of Cornerstone, uncovering plots and investigating heresies against the Silverhost Empire.
This set of missions blend high-stake encounters with politically charged intrigue that explore the balance of power within the Empire as well as the numerous other threats that face the Silverhost. The plots, at their core, revolve around power struggles: who has it, who wants it, and how they plan to seize it. Agents aboard the ArcShips or stationed within the Keep face themes of corruption, justice, revenge, and redemption, layered with ethical and moral dilemmas.
With deadly encounters, monstrous foes, and mysteries lurking on every world, your party must navigate challenges with strategy, skill, and wit. The decisions made by each Agent — whether noble, daring, or morally ambiguous — shape the tone of these adventures, as you defend the Silverhost Empire’s interests and strive for progress amid the chaos.
THE ORDO V'NANDI
Be proud, it is not just anyone who makes the ranks as a member of our esteemed ORDO. We sail the Astral Sea, protecting the realm. We are the saviors, we are the last defense, the best of all the Silverhost; we are why the regular folk can rest easy at night. We are the Bane of Beasts, Hunters of Horrors and the Keepers of Knowledge; the Ordo V’Nandi.
A QUICK GUIDE TO THE ORDO
History of the Guild
For over two thousand years, our guild has been at the forefront of combating the myriad of threats that face the Silverhost Empire. Ever since its foundation, we have protected its borders from all types of menace, from within and without. We travel the Empire to quell infestations, seeking out terrors and battling monstrosities. Though we operate secretively, our fame follows us and the young ones idolize us. We are the heroes of the realm and the people of the Empire's true protectors.
In the halls of our home, the Severnite Keep, there are a collection of trophies, remnants and reminders of the threats the ORDO has defended the Empire against. Included are the Skulls of the Vyahl Dynasty of Astral Dragons and the preserved plucked out eyes of the giant kraken, Minahad the Devouring. You'll also find dated artifacts like the Founder's Shield an armament given to the ORDO's first agents by the Founder of the Empire as well as the bones of Ikbael the self proclaimed Demi-God himself. The great hall is the remembering place for many past threats kept as relics of the past.
Those of us that have done more remarkable things, find our tallies and tales forever marked in the ORDO's Grand Book of Heroes. To be remembered among these pages carries no greater honor for a member of our guild and it is what all of us strive for; glory to the Empire.
The Diviospecs
Our ORDO is broken down into divisions known as the Diviospecs or 'specs', each with their own specialization and hierarchy of commands. The largest specs are the Astrata, the Monstrüm, the Magicae, the Diabolous and the Hereticus; the big five. You will most likely be assigned to one of these and given an overseer Agent from the Keep or a Cpt-Agent of an ORDO vessel.
The Astrata are Agents who patrol, navigate and explore the astral currents for any trace of one of the connectable gates of Lastra Porta. Often connected or attached to the exploratory missions of the planet hopping guilds, these agents represent the Empire's interests during the larger prospecting convoys. Relations with Corpo-Guilds is a priority and it would seem, at times, they are protecting the Corpo-Guild interests as much as the Empire's. - Charismatic characters or those who practice the Divination or Enchantment Schools of Magic are often assigned these roles. These Agents are often living an aristocratic or wealthy lifestyle.
The Monstrüm are Agents who specialize in the hunting of aberrations, beasts and monsters that threaten the Empire's borders and planets. These brave Agents are the first and last defense against the viciousness and ferocity of the primal creations of the Neptaverse. Most of the threats are to populations of municipalities that come to this spec's attention however there have been instances of cosmic level threats that endangered entire planetary systems. On these rare occasions, the entirety of the Silverhost Navy has been brought to bear. - Strong and/or dexterous characters with survivalist instincts are most often recruited as monster hunters, unless it is a specific research or arcane role. These Agents are often living a moderate lifestyle aboard an Arcship for a watch rotation, sometimes their second or third in a row.
The Magicae are the hunters of rogue magic casters and unsanctioned arcana users. There are few but those that are able to dodge the Magistrate's tight grip or betray their oaths to the Collegiate's Creed are their prey and they are relentless in their pursuit. Magic of all types are under their purview and their reputation of mercilessly chasing those they deem offenders is infamous across many galaxies. Their Agents are renowned for their strict adherence to magical sanctions. - Intelligent characters or ones adept with various types of magic are common in squads with Magicae Agents. Full squads of Magicae Agents are usually comprised of members with bounty hunting skills and equipped with magical deterrent gear. These Agents are often living secretive lifestyles or lifestyles tht suit the mission when not traveling on an Arcship.
The Diabolous hunt the demons from the Abyssys and devils from Nilhevete who cross the planar barriers to prey on citizens of the Empire. Their charge is to collect true names and banish the demons in all their forms as well as imprison any devils who cross over to their forbidden planes of the Matter. Lords of the Dark Planes are constantly battling each other and the Divine Family for influence on the Matter and the Agents of the Diviospec Diabolus are there to help maintain the balance. - Wise or Charismatic characters who are religious are most inclined to gravitate towards being a Diabolous Agent. Divine Magic practitioners like Clerics and Paladins most commonly start their careers as Diabolous Agents. Lifestyles of the pious are at best moderate.
The Hereticus hunt traitors of the Empire and hold everyone true to the letter of the Empire's laws. None are above their authority as they root out corruption, subdue ambition and silence dissent. Hereticus agents adhere to a strict code and through the millennia of their existence, they have maintained a pristine track record of persecuting those who put their own desires ahead of the Empire's will. - The Hereticus by far has the most Agents as members and recruits members with diverse skills and backgrounds. These Agents can be recruited from anywhere with any type of lifestyle, including from previously nefarious backgrounds, even citizens who have broken an empirical law and owe a debt to the Empire.
On the capital planet, all of the big five specs operate out of the same base of operations commonly referred to as 'The Keep'. When traveling, Agents are assigned to a 'Matriarch Class' Space Galleon Arcship. The ORDO's specs have a joint command comprised of the big five and multiple sub-branches known within the ORDO unofficially as 'The Brass'.
There are many lesser known specs; some form for a single detail while others focus on more clandestine operations. The Brass are truly the only ones who know the full spectrum of their jurisdiction and there is often cooperation between specs in the ORDO with a singular focus to protect the Empire.
Cornerstone : The Grand Capital
The power has always resided here. Ever since the second millenia, it has been home to the Warden-Elects, those tasked with the governance of the Silverhost Empire. It is here where the planetary leaders convene and from here where the many machinations of the Empire are rooted. Industries of trade, dynasties of fabrication, and powerful Corpo-Guilds can all call Cornerstone home. This city is where the power brokers play, constantly trying to outdo one another to achieve dominance in the structure that rules. From the Lords of Banner-Houses to the Shipping Guild Merchants; from the Priests of the Reflection Creed to the Mages of the Magus Collegiate - none are immune to the game. Knowingly or not, they all play a part, participants in one way or another.
Everyone is a piece on the grand board of power. All make their moves, kill other pieces, and in turn, get killed. As pieces fall and are replaced anew, those that remain will become the power brokers. The ones who rule.
The Keep
On the Aegda Island in Cornerstone is the Secernite Castle known as 'The Keep' to the Agents. Out of the ORDO's few larger bases of operation within the Empire, it is considered the main.
Built upon the shear cliff face of the ocean coast and standing eighty feet tall between two perimeter walls of forty foot proportions each. This location is considered the bastion for all Cornerstone City based adventures. It has full amenities that are accessible to all with the proper clearances (Spec membership as well as player level).
The Brass
Within the ORDO, the nickname 'The Brass' has been donned to those who assign designations, create cases and report the budgets. This structure of governing allows autonomy and the ORDO's creed is that no one is above their gaze. The Brass are officially known as the ORDO's Executive Council, it is an extremely secretive organization that handles the Empire's most sensitive information.
During the founding, the ORDO's Executive Council was primarily an advisory group of arcane spellcasters who served the Empire's Warden-Elects on all matters magical. Since then it has grown into an investigative branch of the Silverhost Empire for a wide variety of issues that are deemed as a threat, including unsanctioned magic use, disruptive planar breaches and policing the power brokers of the realm.
The Ordo Arc-Ships
Matriarch class Arc-Ships are the planar travelling ships of the Ordo V'Nandi. Structurally, these vessels are the most advanced astra-nautical arcane technology available to the Empire. Captained by veteran Cpt-Agents, often ex-navy pilots trained in the School of Dunamancy and accompanied by the finest capable Astalseers who can navigate the astral sea. These ships allow the squads of the ORDO the mobility to meet any threat in the Neptaverse head on with force or subtlety.
The Silverhost Empire at a Glance
The Silverhost Empire spans trillions of light years, a span impossible to traverse without magically aided travel. The majority of the Empire's planets are connected by a set of arcane gates; made in an unknown time by an unknown people, these gates, the Lastra Porta, are what the Silverhost was founded upon.
The Silverhost is governed by the Capa-Senate, the House of the Warden-Elects and then enforced by a series of law enforcers known as the Magistrate Marshals. The Capa-Senate, the all powerful, oversight electorate consists of a large number of racial compositions and galactic representatives from every corner and angle of the Neptaverse. This bloated bureaucracy, built by the ruling class that live in the capital and its satellites are the reason, citizens of the empire have such a distaste for everything related to the Magistrate.
This Empire, like all empires before it, is always expanding; a maintenance that is reliant on the growth and the industry that comes with it. Expansion has become the focus of the Warden-Elects and with that expansion, comes an exponential growth to the number of threats; all destined to cross the desk of the Brass of the Ordo.
The Ordo Protects
Threats to the Empire's longevity come from everywhere, including within. Its short history is wrought with civil feuds and expansionist wars that have nearly destroyed itself on numerous occasions. Its hold on the collected galaxies containing gates is not a certain one and the Capa-Senatorum is a political viper pit of power hungry planetary motivations.
The union that is the Silverhost is in a constant struggle to maintain the control of the irreplaceable system of ancient arcane gates that connects the planets. These planets have a large militaristic presence set on each These armies protect the gate itself and the cities that have built up around them. Their importance to the realm is paramount, without them there would be no Empire. They allow anyone and anything to freely travel between them, giving the ability to the Silverhost Navy to rapidly transport the entirety of their forces across their domain. Through this system, the risk and time become minimal compared to the chaos and dangers the Astral Sea and conventional space travel provides.
All ORDO Agents receive three magic items in their inventory that do not count towards Adventurer's League limitations. These items are meant to symbolize the Agents membership to the ORDO and the ORDO's role as the Empire's protectors, investigators and justices. Agents are also, citizens of the Silverhost Empire, the vast majority of which have a Red Shield Coin.
AGENT MAGIC ITEMS
ORDO Signet RingORDO Pocket
SILVERHOST ITEM
Red Shield CoinAGENT MODIFICATIONS
CHARACTERISTICS
ORDO Agents use the point-buy system for determining their characteristic scores. They also gain a +2 to a score of their choice, maximum is still 20. This bonus is on top of the bonuses for the character's origin choices. Agents of the ORDO are the best of the best, and this +2 is what represents this in game mechanics. Intelligence and Wisdom scores of an Agent character must be a minimum of 10, to pass the aptitude tests of their enforcer Agents.
FIREARMS
If it suits your character, an ORDO Agent may be proficient with Firearms and may be equipped with sanctioned firearm magic items.
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