The Order of the Burning Heart

1. Honor the Order and its demands, then thy Brothers and Sisters in arms, then the Laws of the Land ye be in.
2. Break not an Oath you have sworn, save only when the other side has sworn in bad faith.
3. Fight with strength in your heart, Die with your honor unbroken.

These are the main tenets of The Order of the Burning Heart, one of The Clans of Krakonia . They are best known for their involvement in The Unification Wars , and most notably their success, at great personal cost, during The Stand at Helirim Fields. The Order is a clan that consists of highly skilled, powerful warriors with various talents useful for war efforts. Their intense levels of discipline and respect for The Kingdom of Krakonia has earned them a level of independence within Krakonian law, and even a certain amount of influence within The Kraken's Reach , the current military force of the kingdom.

The Order first arrived in Requerm when a full regiment of the Order was transported en masse as part of the The Effects of the Dawn . Arriving to a chaotic scene of interracial violence between fellow ‘off-worlders’ and native Requans, the Order interceded and, through superior tactics and numbers, subdued the situation and established dominance in the local region. Thankfully representatives of each Banner had been transported, and they soon had reestablished their preferred structure with new Masters and Grandmasters. They provided order and stability in the region and, when forced to pick a side during the Unification Wars, they chose Daerius Quintus . All Banners participated heavily in the war, earning the Order’s place as a Sanctioned Order of Knights in the newly founded Kingdom of Krakonia.

Soon after the Order had sworn their first oaths to the rising Darius Quintus, the soon-to-be King found himself misled by false intelligence and outmaneuvered by one of his rivals. As Quintus was spirited away by his bodyguards to rejoin the bulk of his forces, the Order rallied themselves to cover his retreat across Helirim Fields. Though the Order was a full thousand Knights strong, with many Initiates and local levies, Quintus’ enemies had sought to end his ascendancy then and there, and had brought the full might of their armies to bear. What chance did a mere thousand have against five times that number in an open field? The Order, however, did not yield, stubbornly holding their ground against wave after wave of enemies as the ground grew slick with shed blood. When Quintus’ cavalry at last arrived to relieve the Order, they found a mere two hundred Knights left alive, with the enemy’s army broken and fleeing the field. From that day forth, their loyalty was no longer in question.

As a formal reward for their service, the Order received stewardship of the land they had previously controlled as peacekeepers, as well as laborers and seed money to repair and expand their Fortress Monastery. They maintain a presence at the capitol as well, both through their Wardens who are in active service as well as through those Knights who wish to be seconded to the Hook to serve as adventurers. Normally such a militaristic order would be considered a threat to a kingdom and be tightly contained, but given their oaths of loyalty to the kingdom and to Darius himself both before and after ascending the throne, as well as the fact that none of the ‘Knights’ of the Order are actually nobles and thus lack political power, they have been given more freedom than is normal for such orders.

The Order itself is notoriously rigid, down to the uniform. Understanding the many different aspects of the Order is important to understanding the Order as a whole, and as such, will be detailed below.

Heraldry:

• Order banner is a black fleur de lis over a white saltire on a scarlet field.
• Male members must wear a scarlet field with a black saltire on the pauldron of their right arm.
• Female members must wear a scarlet field with a black fleur de lys on the pauldron of their right arm.
• If the member is not armored, then it is acceptable to instead wear a shoulder cape with the same design on their right arm. This same cape is also always worn during ceremonial occasions, even when fully armed/armored.
• In all cases (pauldrons and capes), those who are healed by positive energy have the outer border of the design done in white, while those who are healed by negative energy have the outer border done in black. This is for the convenience of battlefield healers and clerics.
• Masters and Grandmasters of the Order always wear the full heraldry of the Order on their pauldron/cape regardless of gender.
• The left pauldron is emblazoned with the heraldry of their Banner. If unarmored, the knight may choose to wear a shoulder cape of the emblem, but this is not required.

Honors:

• Leadership Skull: Awarded for leadership in combat and ultimately carrying one’s unit to victory. It takes the form of a tiny silver skull welded to the center of the gorget of one’s armor, or otherwise worn as a pendant.
• Challenge Tally: A roman numeral worn on the left poleyn (kneepad) denoting the highest total of consecutive opponents the Knight has defeated in single combat. Not always worn, though the young and brash often take pride in it.
• Lifeward’s Cross: Awarded for saving the life of a fallen comrade in combat, either taking them to safety or otherwise standing firm until their corpse could be recovered. Takes the form of a small silver saltire welded to the shield-side of the gorget of one’s armor, or otherwise worn as a pendant.
• Star of Triumph: Awarded for being integral to the success of a battle or an entire campaign, or otherwise central to the achievement of the Order’s goals. Worn as a small silver 4-pointed star welded to the sword side of the gorget of one’s armor, or otherwise worn as a pendant.

Religion: The Order as a whole does not endorse the worship of any specific Deity/Religion , nor seek to censure its members from worshiping (or not) as they please, so long as the deities or entities they venerate are not evil. However, that is not to say that they are wholly without religion. Instead, the Order and its members offer up prayers and votives to what they call “Celestial Entities”, which Chaplains of the Order simply describe as “venerating all that is Good and Just, with special attention nor favor to none”. Members of the Order who are religious view this simplistic worship as supplemental to their faith, and those who are not will often still partake as a means to bond with their brothers and sisters in arms. Regardless of one’s fervor (or lack thereof), all Order members have portions of their daily routine set aside for meditation, prayer, and rest.

Ranks of the Order

Each member of the Order has a specific rank that distinguishes them from their peers. These are those ranks.

Aspirant: The lowest rank of the Order, and not a formal one. Almost all Aspirants are children born to Order members who are raised in the Order’s Fortress-Monastery. Also the formal title for non-members who seek to join, but have not yet passed their trials.

Initiate: Aspirants who pass their trials become initiates, which are in many ways analogous to Squires. They learn from senior members, as well as perform manual labor such as polishing armor/weapons, washing clothes, caring for mounts, etc. “Initiate-Senoris” denotes an initiate that has spent significant time in service to the Order already, and is either preparing for their final trials and oaths or is earmarked for promotion to a full Knight of the Order.

Knight of the Order: Full members who have taken their oaths and sworn themselves to the Order. Knights may be assigned initiates of their own to tutor, as well as be called upon to fight the Order’s battles. As the Order is in turn sworn to Krakonia, this means that the Order is expected to contribute to any formal armed conflict the country may find itself in. Within this rank are innumerable lesser titles, pertaining to a given Knight’s seniority, area of expertise, accomplishments, etc.

Master of the Order: Each outpost of the Order, be it a full fortress or a humble town hall, is headed by a Master. These are senior Knights deemed worthy of the honor and responsibility of leading their brothers and sisters at the local level. The Order maintains multiple variants of this title depending on seniority, degree of responsibility, area of expertise, etc. In common usage, however, “Master” is sufficient, with the knight’s banner added for more formal occasions (“Master of Campaigns” or “Master of Stars”, for example).

Grandmaster of the Order: Grandmasters are the highest authorities within the Order, and sit at the Council of Five. As the name implies, there are only ever five grandmasters at any given time, each with control over a specific Banner of the Order.

Lord General of the Order: During campaigns where the whole of the Order marches to war, a Lord General will be elected from among the Grandmasters to oversee the war effort and serve as a supreme commander of all the Order’s assets. While they still take counsel with their fellow Grandmasters, they effectively become an absolute ruler until either the campaign is finished or until the threat has been pacified to the extent that it no longer requires the Order to be on a footing of total war.

Banners of the Order

Each banner is a sub-organization of the Order, which has its own speciality. Banners are not necessarily of equal sizes or even prestige within the Order, though all have sworn the same oaths and work together with minimal friction in service to the Order and Krakonia.

Banner of Campaigns: The most straightforward banner, it focuses on the perfection of martial skill and dedication to honor. Knights who follow this Banner are foot soldiers and champions who are equally comfortable marching to war in a formation of thousands or trekking through the wilderness in a band of five to complete quests/missions. Given that most knights either do not have the skills or the motivation to join other Banners, or do not qualify immediately, this Banner is the largest by far. When adventuring, Knights of this Banner have no formal organization and instead integrate themselves into their ‘adventuring parties’. When engaging in the Kingdom’s business, teams of five, ten, or twenty knights are commonly dispatched for purposes of communication, beating back hostile wildlife from villages, and bandit suppression. Their heraldry on their left pauldron is White Saltire on Red field. The banner is currently led by Grandmaster Seigfried Henning.

Banner of Marches: The Banner of Marches is not glamorous nor glorified, but they are necessary. The logistics wing of the Order, the Banner of Marches ensures that all dues are paid on time, that the forges always have sufficient material, that men and beasts alike are fed, and that the other Banners are never without supplies. These knights are equally quartermasters and soldiers, for they must guard those supplies they wish to deliver to their comrades. The Knights of the Marches take pride in their work, for they keep the Order and its operations running smoothly. Their heraldry on their left pauldron is Black Saltire on White field. The banner is currently led by Grandmaster Laura Stonehill.

Banner of Shadows: The Banner of Shadows is viewed as necessary by most in the Order, though whether it is a ‘necessary evil’ is up to individual interpretation. Unlike the rest of the Order, the Banner of Shadows focuses on reconnaissance and intelligence gathering, often under suspicion that their conduct is less than honorable. Their numbers are unconfirmed, and even within the Order itself it is a commonly accepted fact that only the Grandmaster of Shadows will ever know the true extent of the Banner’s reach and influence. While they do not typically wear their heraldry for obvious reasons, the official heraldry is red saltire on a black field. To the shock of no one, the current leader of the Banner of Shadows is unknown to most individuals.

Banner of Stars: The most beloved Banner of the Order, the Banner of Stars is the medical staff and their assigned Knight guard. Composed of clerics and other mundane healers, this Banner made the Order a common name among King Quintus’ armies during the Unification Wars. Everyone likes a good healer. Those sworn to the Banner of Stars do not wear the standard Order heraldry, but instead wear an emblem of a scarlet saltire on a white field on both pauldrons or shoulder capes. The banner is currently led by Grandmaster Tiyeri Al’Kara.

Banner of Wardens: Smaller than the rest of the Banners, the Banner of Wardens is composed solely of grizzled veterans and the utmost champions, who are hired out to nobles, wealthy merchants, and anyone else with the coin to pay for a master bodyguard. They are also regularly provided to the The Diplomats Guild of Krakonia(DGK) to protect their envoys and diplomatic guests. Assigned singly or in pairs, these Knights have sworn to safeguard the life of their charge even at the cost of their own. Their heraldry on their left pauldron is White Saltire on Black Field. The banner is currently led by Grandmaster Sarvin Moloch.

Notable Members of the Order

Below is a list of notable characters within the Order.

Grandmaster Seigfried Henning - Leader of the Banner of Campaigns
Grandmaster Laura Stonehill - Leader of the Banner of Marches
Grandmaster Nunya Bizness - Leader of the Banner of Shadows (For clarity's sake, I am compelled to add on that that was a joke)
Grandmaster Tiyeri Al’Kara - Leader of the Banner of Stars
Grandmaster Sarvin Moloch - Leader of the Banner of Wardens
Master Askellion - Watcher of the Dead
Master Yalandlara - Master of Campaigns, recruiter of the Order in the Chapterhouse of The Hook
Sister Miraya - Knight of the Order of Campaigns, Adventurer of the AGK
Sister Lucia - Knight of the Order of Campaigns, Provisional Adventurer of the AGK