Order of Shield Maidens

"We are the same as the goddesses who govern society. Who made our highest laws? The Lady. Who did Saint Antral speak with - the one who inspired her to act? The The Negotiator did most certainly not tell her to act peacefully against the Empire. . . . The men do not rule the battlefield - we do. Gods do not rule over our fields, the goddesses do.

— Matilda Skarzvard

Shield Maidens, led by Shield Matrons, were once a group of young women who would fight in battles. Before Matilda Skarzvard reorganized the order during the Thydian Unification Wars, they were often younger daughters who were looking for a "little adventure" or "looking for a little glory."
Matilda was younger daughter who joined the Order because she wanted to see the world and believed in old stories about Shield Maidens fighting at the side of historic figures such as HistoricPersonA and HistoricPersonB. She was disappointed in the Shield Maidens she found, and instead made alliances with some of the older Maidens before she gathered up the Shield Maidens she fought alongside and laid down the expectations of how the Shield Maidens would face battle from that moment on.
Now, thirty-six years later, the Shield Maidens are once more an order of women who prepare to fight.

"There is no such thing as a former Shield Maiden. You either become a Shield Matron, or you're a warrior who found a battlefield ro cause worth repeatedly dying for."

Membership/Recruitment

Thydian militaries are not gender-segregated, but the Shield Maidens take on individuals who identify as women who have shown to have specialized talents. Many of these talents are along the lines of cooperative independence skils. The women are expected to think for themselves instead of relying on a planned strategy.

"No plan ever survive the first arrow."

Type

Mercenary

Overall training Level

Elite