Caravar (Car-Rah-Vare)
Caravar is a title granted to those who lay down their lives in the defense of others, the nation state of the Holy Thegian Republics, to their allies, and in rare cases, even to their enemies. It is the highest honor that the Republics hand out posthumously, as a way of signaling to the Spirits that the fallen soldier is a worthy addition into their ranks.
Requirements
Not all who fall are granted this title, merely those who do so in the face of overwhelming odds, understanding that their sacrifice may well be in vain. To stand and face an enemy beyond your own strength, yet to never shake is the foundation of the Caravar, to be a soldier who never wavers.The Five Venerable Caravar
Marcus Hoghjal was the first to gain the title of Venerable Caravar, and argued to be the most deserving among Caravar. After the Idlian Revolution, the fledgling nation was targeted by the Gredja Alliance, and in a desperate manuever, Marcus led out a severely undermanned army in order to delay Alliance forces long enough to for the rest of the Idlian Democratic Union to bring itself to bear. In a bold maneuver, he split his forces and baited the Gredjan army to meet him in battle. The night before, he left skeleton crews at most of his camps and led attacks on the flanks of the Gredjan forces, managing to destroy them with few casualties, and then retreated before the bulk of the Gredjan could bear down upon them. He fled to the Herron Woods before preparing for a final stand, having received news that the army was still not ready to march. He ordered his men to erect fortifications, and within two days, he met the Gredjan army head on. Outnumbered 7 to 1, none survived the attack, but the ferocity of Marcus and his soldiers put pause to the Alliance, as he had devastated a great number of their forces. In death, he served to provide the Union with a foothold against the Alliance, ending the conflict with his final battle. Lanira Maire was the second to gain the title of Venerable. A member of the then Thegian Empire's clergy, she led the defense against the Kerian clans after the Idlian Revolution finished. The Ker managed to force the Empire's forces back to the fortress city of Gewer, where Lanira was assigned as Priestess. She sat atop the ramparts as the Clans launched their attack against the fortress city, creating a massive wind which hampered their advance and allowed the arrows used by her men to reach farther and farther. Eventually, the Clans managed to breach the walls and slaughter her men, but with her aid, they made sure that the Ker knew it would be a horrible bloodbath all the way through, blunting their momentum and giving the rest of the Empire a single moment to recover with her noble sacrifice. Samir al Jalai was the third to earn the title. A Laram man from a small farming village, he led his friends and family in the defense of his small town when a raiding party from Lyrin arrived to steal their food and cattle. Armed with little more than a pitchfork and determination, he sent his son to the nearby garrison to call for aid, and led the charge. While he and many of his friends perished in the skirmish, his bravery was rewarded with a swift arrival of the garrison, and the Lyri were routed with minor losses and nothing gained. His sacrifice was assured and the man himself awarded for his bravery. Hubert Lamprohj was the fourth to earn the title of Venerable Caravar, nearly a thousand years after the first Caravar was ordained, and merely a hundred after Marcus himself. A Captain in the army of the Idlian Democratic Union, he defended his nation from the expanse of the newly formed Kerian Empire, leading a garrison of simple soldiers against an army of mages and cavalry. Due to their resistance and the sheer will to resist demonstrated by Lamprohj, the IDU rallied around their sacrifice and managed to hold off the hordes of the Empire, convincing them to turn their forces elsewhere. Jershal Zhen was a recent addition to the Caravar, and awarded the title of Venerable by the High Priestess, Zara Zhen. He was an Inquisitor seeking out heresy and illegality within the Republics, and discovered a Death Mage slave auction. He sent a message by pigeon to the Inquisition, and immediately began to attempt to dismantle the auction. Within seconds of his arrival, he was under attack from all sides, and barely managed to defend himself and then begin to retaliate. With his efforts, all the Mages on auction were killed, and many patrons lost their lives before he succumbed to their superior might. In time, however, the trade was further dug up byt the rest of the Inquisition, thanks to his message, and he was ordained as Venerable.
Type
Religious, Military
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