Knights of the Ardent Flame
In the southern reaches of the Skurl Mountains, looms the sacred Mount Aelis. For millennia, some say since the lost mythos, a cloistered sect of devout worshippers have maintained a temple to their mysterious patron believed to reside on the mountain. This small sect grew steadily over the generations, and their temple to the ‘ardent flame’ grew into a breathtaking monument unrivaled in Kordania. The Knights, as they were later named, worship an entity they know as the pure light and the ardent flame. Through this enigmatic divinity, the Knights pursue lives of virtue, honor and righteousness.
Most outside of the monastic order do not fully believe in or understand the Knights patron, viewing them as misguided, if well-meaning, followers of some false idol. Yet none deny the Knights nor the otherworldly gifts that many of them bear. The greatest of their number can emit glowing, radiant light from their eyes, make themselves shine like a beacon, or even cast glowing, golden flames from their outstretched hands. And that the Knights are fierce combatants against evil and darkness is beyond doubt.
It was a delegation of the Ardent Knights that first travelled north to Rilga to try and reason with the rising threat of Mordred Rannasland. After their betrayal and murder, the surviving paladin Aldwin Dawnwell was the driving figure behind the fight to end Mordred’s evil. Ever since their liberation, the people of the Massarlor Dales and Rilga have heralded the Ardent Knights as true heroes; champions of the meek and just, and fierce adversaries of evil. So quickly did the tales of Aldwin’s deeds spread, that hundreds of people simply abandoned their old lives to make a holy pilgrimage to the temple at Aelis.
The Knights faith has grown so popular, in the Dales especially, that the cult of the Pure Light is now one of the dominant faiths in Langharad. The more established holy orders of Sharivhem, Tanith and Ouma scowl and preach of the dangers of worshipping unknown entities, yet still the faith of the ardent flame remains prolific among every strata of society. Religious schisms have begun to crop up with increased regularity in recent days, and fanatical preachers of all persuasions, even those who have no real ties to the official faiths, are growing in number and denouncing their rivals as heretics.
The town of Gaellin has become a holy place of pilgrimage to many in Western Kordania. The temple itself is actually several miles away on a rocky cliff, with Mount Aelis rising majestically behind it. It is here that the more monastic followers of the Ardent Flame reside, forever tending a massive brazier whose flame must never be allowed to go out. While any person is permitted to stay and serve at the temple, to be ordained as a priest or knight of the flame, one must be chosen by the orders patron. There is no doubt when some select soul is chosen to serve, for they rise from their nights rest aglow in radiant light, their body infused with divine elation. The most holy of incidents for an Ardent Knight sees them gripped by a divine inspiration, a compulsion not their own, to abandon their earthly life and travel the long, dangerous path to the peak of Mount Aelis. What happens to these blessed souls, none can truly say, for only five have ever returned and none have spoken of their experiences.
Goals
Strangely, the Knights of the Ardent Flame do not adhere to a codified set of strictures of tenets as other religious orders do. Rather, each Knight speaks of being driven by an instinct not quite their own; a divinely ordained impulse that guides the nature of their journeys. Some are compelled to track down dangerous criminals or creatures. Others seek out communities struggling from poverty or illness. More look to expose lies or corruption, while a few look to cleanse places of malign magics or curses. Whatever their differences, every Knight is willing to lay down their lives to protect the helpless. While the Knights are mainly occupied in the goings on in Western Kordania, a few find the divine will within them urging them further afield to combat evils in the wider world. Malign fey spirits from the Callair, some growing fiendish presence in the Frosthalda or Kesselbron, and other, even stranger prey.Relationships
The Knights Ardent are held in reverence, even awe, by most of the common folk of Langharad and Rilga. Even the minotaurs and centaurs of Fennmoin hold them in high esteem, as demonstrated when they answered Aldwin Dawnwell’s call to war. Still, they are not beloved by all. For every noble or wealthy merchant who respects the Knights convictions, there are a dozen who view them with a mixture of suspicion and annoyance. Anytime an Ardent Knight arrives in town, the ruling classes see it as an ill-omen, believing the Knights are there to stir up trouble and rouse the masses into an hysteria. Still, officially the Ardent Knights are friends to the crown of Langharad, and are to be welcomed in any lords land. The Knights receive much the same welcome in Rilga as they do in Langharad. The more proud and conservative of the noble families of Rilga see the Knights are their “meddling” as the direct cause of their countries fall from grace. While they publicly denounce the evils perpetrated by Rannasland, they privately maintain that it was a problem that should have been left to Rilga to fix.Symbol
An armoured, glowing figure beneath a pale mountain with a winding trail to it's peak, a white flame burning above itNotable Classes & Subclasses
- Barbarian - Path of the Zealot
- Cleric - Life, Light, Peace, Twilight
- Druid - Circle of the Stars
- Fighter - any subclass
- Monk - Way of Peace, Way of the Sun Soul
- Paladin - Oath of Devotion, Oath of Redemption
- Sorcerer - Divine Soul
- Warlock - Celestial, Noble Genie (Fire)
Type
Religious, Holy Order
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