Scaled Orders of Pater Draco

Collectively referred to as the 'Scaled Orders of the Dragon Father', or "The Scales" more casually, these eighteen organisations are almost identical, but at the same time very different. They serve primarily as the military arm of the Dragonborn Faith as well as something of an Elite in many avenues for the Republic. Depending on which Order one is part of, duties may range from diplomatic missions, to guard duty, to aiding in the tending of farms, or even pursuing rumours of undead.
Each Order is mostly made up of Knights sworn to the cause of the Dragon Father, or Priests who prefer a more hands on approach, instead of prayer and sermons.
Each order follows a similar naming scheme to the Temples they are associated with, so for the Red Dragon, and the Red Temple, there is the Order of Red.

Structure

The Orders are subject to two authorities, depending on what duties they are performing. When performing in a religious function, the Orders are subject to the commands and wishes of the Vertex Consilium that lead the Prismatic Faith. When performing more secular duties, they are subject to the commands of the Senate, though when performing these duties they are more commonly left to their own devices.
Each Order follows the same internal structure. The most senior member of each Order is referred to as the "The Colour Maw". In practice, this would be The Red Maw, or The Silver Maw. When referred to in person, Maw becomes the title of the addressed. In practice, a Dragonborn named Latius would be titled "Maw Latius".
The next most senior members of an order are the Wings. They follow a pattern of "Wing of Red", "Red Wing" or "Wing Latius". Each order has two Wings.
Third in the structure would be the Claw, of which there are four, with each Wing having two subordinate Claws. "Claw of Red", "Red Claw", "Claw Latius" are all appropriate terms of reference for a Claw. These persist down the ranks.
A Talon is equivalent to a Sergeant or similar rank, being the lowest ranking officer of an Order, and the most numerous. To each Claw, there are four Talons, which comes to a total of sixteen Talons in each order - 288 across the entire system.
The lowest full member rank of an Order is a Scale. These are effectively unlimited. Not all Scales serve a Talon at any one time, and their numbers vary between orders. Some Talons might serve a specific function, preferring the religious duties of their Order to the Military, while others take it upon themselves to travel the Peninsula, doing what good they can in alignment with their Faith.
The 'trainee' equivalent of a Scale would be a Whelp, who are the lowest possible rank within any of the Orders. These are mostly very young members, as most join an Order in their pre- or early teen years. While Whelp began as a derogatory term for these initiates, it quickly began an affectionate nickname, and later the proper term of reference for their position.
When operating in a more organised function, each Talon leads twelve Scales. Following this structure, the official number of an Order comes to 215, though when counting extra Scales and Whelps, this could range anywhere from 250 to 400, depending on the Order in question.

Public Agenda

Each Order shares the common goal of defending the Faith and the Faithful, and the betterment of the Dragonborn people, though they go about this in different ways. Aside from military actions, each Order usually performs some form of nonmilitary duty, or paramilitary duty.
Red - Training and aiding in recruitment of regular soldiers.
Black - Aiding in funeral services, helping to manage the spread of disease
Blue - Aiding rural settlements, most especially when bad weather has hit or is coming
Green - Tending to the forests and wild places, and helping deal with rabid animals.
White - Helping to treat the sick and injured
Purple - Hunting undead, tending to graveyards.
Brown - Guarding the roads, helping travellers, aiding in funeral services and tending to graveyards.
Yellow - Aiding rural settlements, usually coastal, especially when bad weather is coming or has hit
Gray - dealing with wild animals, usually maneaters, and helping law enforcement crack down on illegal activities.
Gold - Often serve as diplomats or as part of envoys, often responsible for handling/retrieving ancient knowledge.
Silver - helping in the management of farmlands
Bronze - helping in forges and other crafts
Copper - help in bringing down illegal activities, and often perform for audiences
Brass - Usually help in regards to festivals, also help with farms and the like for breeding animals
Platinum - Often serve as diplomats or as part of envoys, sometimes help law enforcement in varying ways.
Steel - help in organising and running festivals and state events
Cobalt - help in organising and running state events, especially tournaments, also help keep the roads and streets safe
Adamantine - Searching for rogue magic users, protecting lawful magic users.

Assets

The Orders, by virtue of their position within the Republic, are funded in part by the Temples, in part by the Senate, and in part by public payment or donation. Collectively they possess a number of strongholds within Republic lands, and at the very least have the capacity to outfit all ranking members of their Orders sufficiently. The exact extent of their resources in unclear.

History

The Orders in their current form were created when the Republic absorbed Amatar, after the Prism King was overthrown. Before that, paladins had existed for many years in service to different aspects and intepretations of the Dragon God.

Founding Date

-63

Type

Religious, Holy Order

Alternative Names

The Scales, Scaled Orders

Training Level

Elite

Parent Organization

Prismaticism

Notable Members

• Tarnia Zavonius

Related Ethnicities

• Patrian Dragonborn