The Helosguard
"Trade Prince Arushala is a great man~! Oh look, look~! There he is~! Hiiiiiiiii~~~!! Hiiiiii Arushala~~!!! Oh look, there's his Helosguard! Their armor is soooo shiny~!!! They're so amazing~!" -Young Aristolian Parade Attendee-
Composition
Manpower
The Helosguard are an offshoot of the famed Hadanguard with an elite contingent of highly skilled mage-warriors. They have an encyclopedic knowledge of the world and it's history passed on to them through sacred rituals held by the Church of Helios. They are the official guardians of the city of Mandas, the Church of Helios, and the Merchant's Guild and serve exclusively to these organizations.
Equipment
Each Order of the Helosguard is equipped with unique specialized plate armor of polished Fervorian craftsmanship featuring detailed reliefs of iconography of the Church of Helios. The steel armor is decorated and trimmed with gold and platinum with black cloth covering some areas for manueverability. Finely crafted greaves and gauntles fully cover the wearer's body.
The helm of the armor completely covers the head and each ranking of the order has a unique shape to them. Large tower shields are outfitted with a polished steel cover and enforced with steel, platinum, and darkwood trim. On the shield is specially embossed reliefs of iconography of the church.
Weaponry
The weapons associated with the Helosguard are of Fervorian craft, with polished ceramic accentuations and extremely well-made silversteel. They utilize a wide range of weapons from longswords, polearms, shortswords, maces, axes, and some one-of-a-kind weapons made specifically for the powerful individuals who wield them.
Structure
The ranking consists of three orders all of which are responsible for different roles within the operations of the Church of Helios.
Seraph, Seven Personal Attendents to the Head of the Church of Helios
Cherub, Seven Guardians Who Protect Sacred Temples
Thran, Seven Hidden Ones Who Hide Between The Worlds
Dominuos, The Fifteen Offspring of Parr, Tasked with Maintaining Order
Virtus, The Lonely One Who Wears Fifteen Faces
Prowas, Fifteen Offspring of Marr, Tasked with Maintaining Chaos
Princips, Twenty-One Mage Warriors Who Serve as Advisors
Arrgras, Twenty-One Mage Warriors Who Serve as Soldiers
Arrchangras, Twenty-One Mage Warriors Who Serve as Generals
The Order of Archae
The Order of Genesii
The Order of Draegis
Training
The Helosguard are spread widely throughout the empire of Aristolia at the order of the Church of Helios and the Trade Princes of the Merchant's Guild.
The rituals behind the training of the Helosguard are a highly guarded secret within the church, but it is generally understood that the Merchant's Guild handles the finances of training those driven towards the divine goals of the Church of Helios, including lodging, food, armor, and basic luxuries of living. The Church privately makes selections, as the positions are highly valued and eagerly desired by particularly passionate members of the church.
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Behind the closed doors within the church, the Church of Helios uses the souls of the children of the distant and little-known peoples of the distant lands of Chillrend. The white-haired, blue-eyed, pale skinned "ghosts" of the Kingdom of the First Men. It is believed that their children contain the original sources of magic within them. The Essebu inhabit the armor through complex magics written within the armor in Dawntongue.
The Essebu cannot manifest themselves in the real world without the soul of a Chillrendian child to animate them. The Essebu and the child become linked telepathically, and the child learns of the long extensive thousands of years of history of the world of Ardras. The child's body is transfigured into the body of a Fervorian warrior and their soul, along with the soul of the Essebu is bound the marble body. Their body is then animated with a mixture of platinum blood enriched with potent amounts of nura.
Logistics
Auxilia
Members of the clergy operate in tandem with and in service to the Helosguard. None but the highest of clergy members hold positions of authority over these highly skilled mage-warriors. This includes keeping their armor clean and polished, operating communications between members of the Helosguard with specially trained messenger birds, and traveling merchants.
The Merchant's Guild provides a delivery service with a specialized communications service between members of the church and Helosguard.
Upkeep
The Merchant's Guild supports and provides all costs for maintaining the Helosguard, this includes lodging, transport, salary, and many other services afforded to a wealthy lifestyle
Recruitment
When a member of the church has decided that they are ready to fully devote their life to the Church of Helios, they are welcomed with open arms to the clergy. Only clergymen of Helios may enroll to serve in the Helosguard. When the recruit is prepared, he is sent on a missionary pilgrimage to Fervor where they are to attend the Schools of Hadan and train with the Fervorian warriors there.
A celebration for the family and kin of the selected is held by the Church of Helios and excited conversations about the recruit's journey are held between guests. The selected is congratulated and their pilgrimage begins to following day to the triumphant cries of their family, honored to have a member of their kin on such a noble journey.
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Recruits never usually make it past the The Wall of Paxum, as the Church of Helios ensures that no other "noble devotees" interrupt the church's secret rituals.
History
The The Helosguard was personally established by Arushala Ivorcoat in the wake of the collapse of the Empire of Blackhearth and the death of Emperor Nefaros. The Helosguard is said to have originally been a band of members of The Hadanguard who Arushala had swear fealty to him after defeating each in single combat.
These 129 mage-warriors make up the defensive backbone and mighty power behind the empire of Aristolia. It was named such in honor of Helos the Copperblood, the inspirational figure which lays at the foundation of the Church of Helios.
Historical loyalties
The Helosguard is looked down upon with scorn by the Hadanguard, who see them as traitors who broke their blood oaths to the Schools of Hadan and their teachings. To swear fealty to a Human is not only unheard of but especially insulting considering their ancient enslavement to the human race.
The Church of Helios is the offical patron of the The Helosguard, but ultimately these warriors are loyal to the Trade Princes who occupy roles both within the Merchant's Guild and the Church of Helios.
Type
Security
Founding
9505
Overall training Level
Elite
Assumed Veterancy
Decorated/Honored