Order of the Dark Moon

Order Locations
The hub of the Order is in a mountain range of Aezith. This is where all high-ranking clergy are taught. Any specific instructions for the smaller cells scattered across Aezith and Usratia (and less often, the neighboring continents) come from this monastery.
Built into the natural stone of the mountain. There are not multiple levels, but a network of tunnels modeled after the Underdark The only visible areas of the monastery are the large, dark metal door set in a stone archway and a window set horizontally and slightly above the ground.
There are cells of the Order in most highly-populated areas, although a “cell” might just include a few select members of clergy that act as informants and recruiters
There is always at least one clergyman stationed in
a) areas in which the church has been sworn loyalty by the leading faction and
b) areas in which a cell or notable shrine to Selune has been formed
Choosing Recruits
Through the Orphanage Initiated monks who are not physically capable of completing assignments run an orphanage under a different name - Order of the Setting Moon.
Children who are left as infants are curbed from familial inclination and encouraged to be respectful and dependent only on those who provide for them.
Older children who are surrendered by or lost their family to tragedy are encouraged to embrace the anger of the loss or abandonment.
Any children who are afraid of the dark are punished by being forced to spend their nights in a room with no candles or windows until they're no longer afraid.
The monks keep their eyes on children who display exceptional ingenuity, stealth, intelligence, intimidation, persuasion, or independence.
They take the children for official training as soon as they meet three conditions:
1) they express more comfort in darkness than daylight
2) they are no longer hopeful that they return home/are adopted
3) they face the threat of punishment without reaction.
Monks rarely prevent misbehavior, but they do observe it to determine if the child possesses skills useful to the goddess. Punishment options are typical (corporal, isolation, no food) except that it is always given in the only room that allows natural light. (The room below the window).
Children not chosen as acolytes are still educated and, if they display a moderately useful skill, are pushed toward an apprenticeship or career that benefits the church.
-Officers put in place in loyal areas that request them
-Scholars of law (these are usually the students who were very close to becoming members of the church; they’re placed in locations preparing for a full change to the church’s control)
-People who produce material or sustenance resources are sent to where they will be most useful, typically near a cell
Once they reach adulthood, unskilled students are given a small sum of money and taken to the base of the mountain to make their own way.
Training
In order:
-Martial Arts
-Meditation Practices
-Weapon Training-Most often, a student starts with daggers (the preferred weapon of Shar monks eventually allow them to choose weapons more suited to their strengths
-Tactical Training (This includes how to recruit for or speak about the Lady discreetly but clearly)
-Climate Adaptation
By the time they’ve reached the point of initiation, they’re able to:
-spend 24 hours in the snow in a single layer of clothing
-spend 24 hours in a high-temperature, humid room carpeted in sand
-successfully regulate their body temperature in wet conditions to prevent illness
-Resistance to enemy interrogation technique
-In-depth lessons on the doctrine of Shar (Because of their secrecy, the deepest secrets of the goddess are kept from new recruits until they are able to withstand most known torture methods)
-Harnessing Ki (At this point, regardless of how successful the student is at using ki power, they will be assigned the target of their first initiation)
-Use of the Shadow Weave
-Detail skills required of any long-term assignment they are given, such as languages and local history.
All official training is done in the monastery in Aezith. Recruits are not sent there until Shar has sent a sign or communicated their worth to the recruiter (usually dreams)
Roles
-It is expected that recruitment is included in any and all long-term assignments; those stationed in smaller cells may even be given a quota if it’s in a highly populated or traveled area
-Student lessons are almost entirely self-paced and overseen by a specific member of the church who takes the student under their wing; most become sorcerer-monks, using the Shadow Weave as their source of magic
-Students who have made it to a point where they learn the doctrine are given small assignments, usually to dispose of someone who has abused the Shadow Weave or has otherwise disobeyed the teachings of Shar
-Monks must only complete the first initiation by murdering a Moonbathed priest(ess) of Selune and returning with the wooden amulet stained the proper color. They keep this with them until their death. Clerics must return with the holy symbol of an Initiate or High Initiate Priest(ess) of Selune, which is destroyed in the ceremony of their initiation
-Paladins must retrieve both the holy symbol and weapon of a Paladin of Selûne. Occasionally, the weapon is used by the initiated paladin to carry out the deeds of Shar for the rest of their assignments.
-Priests and Priestesses of Shar are given a target chosen by the goddess herself, and once their task is completed Shar gives them a name that only their inner circle may know
-It is assumed that if a cleric or priest(ess) fails, attempts to lie, or was misjudged as fit by the church, Shar personally punishes them. Clerics are usually drowned during the ceremony as a judgment. Any aspiring clergy who dies because of this failure is left in an area on top of the mountain where their body will freeze, but be exposed to full sunlight as an insult.
-Shar doesn’t encourage debilitating punishment. Keeping a large number of loyal followers is a high priority. Minor issues are usually handled with re-training, demotion, or relocation.
-Not meeting a quota (these are typically generous and undemanding; 4/year max - quality over quantity)
-An established monk who takes on failed recruits; if their charges fail initiation/are punished by the goddess three separate times, they are re-trained.
-The church member who takes on the supervision of a student is also typically the one who chose them
-An accidental misuse of the Shadow Weave

Public Agenda

They keep note of outcasts with useful skills
Mentally ill/physically handicapped members of society; focus on those without support systems (homeless, beggars)
-Will often provide treatment or accommodations for them (medication, prosthetics, etc.)
Young members of noble families; those who inherit little except the influence of their name - the church encourages bitterness and jealousy toward their family
-Depending on the goal status of the recruit, a member of their family may become a target of initiation or simply to prove that their loyalty has fully shifted
They often reach out to disgraced members of Good deities; these are especially satisfying and may even lead to a boon for the recruiter
Aid governments and individuals with influence in exchange for resources and some control over their area; almost always leads to a full leadership shift to clergy of Shar
-Assassination of opposing factions
-Controlling civil unrest
-Providing resources from their cells of followers or from other controlled areas that can provide them
Provide police forces

Type

Secret, Religious sect

Location

Aezith