Hunters

The hunters of Thormalk are amongst the most skilled warriors. They are organized into a Cadre of five warriors, five cadres to a Shelf. There are five vigilance in the kingdom, for a total of seven hundred twenty-five warriors. These warriors train with the Khopesh and spear until the weapons become an extension of themselves. They also learn advanced stealth techniques. These warriors retire at the age of forty. Once a warrior retires there is a contest to see who the new member of the cadre will be. These contests are brutal and the resulting victor becomes the new member.
The contests consist of demonstrations of skill and combat prowess. A challenger needs to throw ten spears into moving targets while on horseback, draw and slice thrown apples out of the air with the khopesh without missing any. Once the demonstrations are complete it comes down to the grand melee, where each who passed the first challenge face-off against each other until there are only five remaining. These five then have to face off against members of a cadre to prove their worthiness to those with whom they will be serving, by showing their skill in stealth and combat. The combat aspects are conducted with blunted blades, as those unworthy this time are still respected and could be accepted next time. No potential hunter is worth losing to death in the contest. However, there can be other injuries such as broken bones. With the death of a member, there is a week-long mourning period before a contest can be arranged and adjudicated for a suitable replacement. These contests can last for a week or more depending on the number of applicants.
Once a new warrior is acclaimed as a member of a cadre there is a feast held in their honour. What most cultures would consider odd is that a hunter can be of either gender. In fact, some of the most acclaimed hunters are female. The hunters are feared throughout the land.
Potential hunters are the local protectors for their respective villages in case an enemy happens to slip past the hunters on patrol. These potential hunters are considered elite.

Composition

Structure

The command structure is loose, in that the member of the cadre which first notices the threat is the one to take charge of the action.  Most communication delivered during any action is done by non-verbal commands.  If the threat is larger than a single cadre can deal with but not large enough for the need for a full shelf, the remaining members of the shelf await as reserve units.
When the threat is shelf level or greater the vigilance holds guarding position.  Rarely is there a need for more than one vigilance to be required.

History

Historical loyalties

The hunters are loyal to the Chief and have been since the founding of the units. These warriors were first commissioned during the Unending War when they were needed for protection of the land against the other races and nations. Though they were some of the first to recognize the wisdom of the Druids of Corrigenda through meeting Servalin during his long years of wandering about the lands in his effort to end the eternal conflict raging across the face of Corrigenda.

Corrigenda    Humans    Thormalk      Hunters

Type

Special Forces

Founding

725 BTO

Overall training Level

Elite

Assumed Veterancy

Decorated/Honored

Parent Formation

Hunters