The Iron Guard

Few fighting forces in Théah command as much fear and respect as Eisen’s Iron Guard. These loyal guardians have existed as far back as the Nation’s inception under Stefan the Great and have served the ruler and the people of Eisen ever since. Now with the leadership of Eisen in question, the Iron Guard has been split into seven small private armies, each loyal to an Eisenfürst. Still, each unit protects its königreich under their rallying oath: Geschmiedet aus Eisen, Gehärtet in Blut. “Forged from Iron, Tempered in Blood.”
The Eisenfürsten take warriors from all across Eisen. A recruit can come from common or noble stock alike, with the prospect of setting aside her entire life to seek out a position in the Guard. A recruit must already know how to track, fight with a sword and ride even before entering training, which is some of the most rigorous anywhere. She must also secure a letter of introduction from a person of note from her home königreich before even being seen by the head of recruitment and division’s leaders for consideration.
Many prospects never make it through training to take the oath, but those who do are some of the most formidable fighters in the entire country. The secret to their superior fighting capability lies in their ability to work seamlessly as a unit. Iron Guard units, made up of twenty soldiers, operate as one, trained to anticipate their fellows’ movements and able to move in concert without the need for words. Iron Guard members train to protect one another or risk leaving their flanks exposed. For this reason, units historically experience a low turnover rate, with every death mourned like the loss of a limb.
In previous generations, the Iron Guard stood united under the banner of a single commander who served at the side of the Imperator. Now, each of the seven individual Iron Guard units have formidable leaders, living legends whose reputations precede them all across Eisen. The most notable leaders of Iron Guard units are Kurt Valrund, a powerful but older bull of a man leading the Swamp Dogs in Pösen, as well as Selena von Hoff, a savvy and sneaky younger woman in command of the Wachhunde serving Niklas Träge. The most famous is Heinrich Dray, an Adel’s son who gave up his position of nobility and wealth to serve as commander of the Roaring Drachen under Roswitha von Wirsche. And even the rest: the commanders of the Wily Foxes who serve Fischler, the Steel Warriors who serve Hainzl, the Ghosts who serve Heilgrund, and the Clenched Fists who serve Sieger are all among the most skilled warriors in Eisen.
The lack of centralized leadership has unsettled much of Eisen, and the Iron Guard have fought, bled and died to keep everything from falling to pieces. Despite supposedly being apolitical, the seven divisions find staying out of the political fray swirling around the Eisenfürsten impossible. A young recruit comes to see the other divisions of the Guard as his enemy rather than compatriots, and the groups have more often than not come to blows as the militant enforcers of their Eisenfürst rather than protectors of the people. This has led to a few defections from the Iron Guard when a jaded member chooses to uphold her oath to the people of Eisen alone, joining small independent bands or as a solitary mercenary. Still others have left to join the Drachenblut, seeing the new organization as a throwback to what the Iron Guard once was and should become once more: an elite fighting force, guarding Eisen with its very lives.