Hunter's Keep
In memory of those that stand against the tides of dark. For the thrill of the Hunt is unending, and our blades ever sharpThe Hunter's Keep is a renowned and centuries-old guild of beast hunters, monster slayers, and stalkers of the supernatural. Whenever a particular beast, monstrosity, or even dragon is causing problems for a local town, village, or city, invariably the call of the Keep is sounded to aid. Its main purpose is to prevent the ecosystem of any given area from being damaged or interfered with by monstrously invasive creatures and to safeguard any pockets of civilization that may become adversely affected by them. While the intended purpose of the guild is noble by nature, the funding for the guild's operations is procured through contracts created by nobles, businesses, or other high-standing members of society. These contracts may ask for harvested parts of rare and dangerous beasts in exchange for large sums of gold, or the simple slaying of a creature causing problems, such as vampires, werewolves, or even dragons. After such rare components are harvested from these creatures, the Keep will often sell them for a high price to vendors who procure rare animal parts such as dragon's teeth, mimic tongues, or hell-hound skulls. Any creature parts used as a material component for a spell, potion, or used in the crafting of Magical items were almost certainly procured at some point by the bold and fearless Hunters of the Hunter's Keep.
When monsters prey upon the innocent, we prey upon them, and raze the lairs from which they stem
We are the man, the woman, and the child, from which monsters took so much and left us defiled
We slay for those who cannot fight, to bring hope for tomorrow's light
Ears to the Ground.
Eyes to the Skies.
Hunt Well.
The Huntsman's Test
All who seek to join the ranks of the Hunter's Keep undergo a trial called the Huntsman's Test. It is a very simple test designed to prove the worth and ability of any prospective member. The Hunstman's Test consists of a contract to slay a beast of the Grand Hunter or Huntress' choosing, followed by a blood pact to bind the contract to the recruit or recruits. A group or an individual can take the Huntsman's Test, but the creature selected by the Grant Hunter or Huntress will always provide the recruit or recruits with a dangerous challenge, chosen specifically to push the limit of their skills and ability to quickly assess deadly situations, strategize, or work together as a team. It is not uncommon for uncoordinated or clumsy initiates to perish at the hands of such creatures. The Trial will always have a time limit of one week, and any creature contracted to be slain will always be within a week's travel from the Trial's starting location. The trial will also usually require a minimum number of components from the creature to be harvested. Should the creature not be slain, the components not harvested, nor the contract completed within the time frame of one week, then the recruit or recruits are rejected and not reconsidered for a retrial. Should initiates complete the trial, they are accepted into the Keep as novice Hunters, and can work their way up the ranks to become veteran Hunters, and even a Grand Hunter/Huntress.Lodges and Ranks of the Keep
The reach of the Keep extends far, and it has many arms in many regions across the world. Though all branches of the Keep can be considered one organization, each branch of the Keep functions independently of one another, each one has its own rules and structure, and each broadly specializes in hunting specific types of creatures, though individual hunters can be experienced hunting other game. Each branch is called a Lodge, and is lead by a Grand Hunter/Huntress who is second only in command to the Lord of the Hunt himself, Rathgar Whitefang. Each Grand Hunter/Huntress oversees a number of veteran Hunters who tackle large and dangerous game. These veterans coordinate with a number of novice Hunters beneath them. A promotion from novice to veteran Hunter is typically given by a Grand Hunter/Huntress or the Lord of the Hunt. A veteran can only be promoted to a Grand Hunter/Huntress by the Lord of the Hunt. Most Hunters describe the hierarchy of the Keep as akin to that of a large pack of wolves, with the Lord of the Hunt described as the pack alpha. Duunhollow Lodge. The largest Lodge of the Keep is located within Duunhollow in Meyland. It is the heart of the Keep's leadership and is where the Lord of the Hunt, Rathgar Whitefang, spends most of his time. Under the experience of Rathgar, the Duunhollow Lodge specializes in slaying dragons and other draconic beasts. They came into prominance during the tyrannical reign of Malinis over northern Meyland, when Rathgar himself slew the ancient white dragoness with his own blade. The current Grand Huntress of the Duunhollow Keep is Liska Aul'Luma. Lodge of Tec'Tahos. The second-largest Lodge is located within the golden city of Tec'Tahos in Tansia. Lead by Grand Hunter Vorsha, the tahosian Keep famous for its specialty in hunting large beasts such as tyrannosaurs and death-raptors. Following the pervasive culture of beast taming throughout the Tahosian Dynasty, it is also famous for taming such dangerous creatures as well. Rarely will one find a deadly tyrannosaur, stubborn titanosaur, or devious spinosaur within the ranks of the modern Tahosian cavalry whose taming wasn't contractually aided by the Tansian Lodge. Skorvyr Lodge. The Keep's ideals through the Pantheon of the Wild are pervasive through the culture of the Vaskarr. Many warriors of Vaskyr are hunters themselves, and will often pursue dangerous game for fame and boasting rights. The Keep's arm within the city Skorvyr is perhaps the most spiritual of the Keep's Lodges, taking on the form of a great lodge of worship to the Wild Spirits. While contracts and gold pieces are still present, the signing and exchanging of such is treated with reverence, as completing such a contract is said to please the Spirits. Under Grant Huntress Jora, the Skorvyr Lodge hunts a myriad of creatures, including draugr, frost giants, trolls, and have even been known to possess a long-standing grudge against a kraken. Hunters of the Skorvyr lodge are the hardiest, the most ruthless, and the most savage in the known world, known to endure the harshest injuries and climates for the sake of a successful hunt. Likewise, the lodge's initiation trials and rituals are deadly, and very few hunters live to pass their tests. Commonwealth Lodges. The Karthan Commonwealth has two small Lodges of the Keep overseen by the High Chalice. Both function in tandem with one another, and are located in the Kingdom of Merth's capital of Langsmoore, and the Kingdom of Kartha's capital of Balkwreath. The High Chalice seeks to keep their affiliation with the Keep away from public knowledge, as the Hunters of the Commonwealth Lodges are often hired by the state and the High Chalice Inquisition to hunt perhaps the most devious, nefarious, and darkest creatures of all. The Hunters of the Balkwreath Lodge are often hired to investigate hauntings by malevolent undead spirits, or to pursue infernal beings. Hunters of the Langsmoore Lodge are hired to track and hunt dangerous vampires or werewolves who terrify local towns and villages. They are said to even use the blood of angels to do so. One particularly famous hunter who works for the Langsmoore Lodge is the legendary vampire hunter, Hans Van Richter. Hunters are not bound to live in and around the Lodges they work for. They are encouraged to roam as they see fit. A Hunter of the Langsmoore Lodge may journey to Kitesh in the far east, or Ragnarok in the south, but should dire times call for it, all members of a designated branch are recalled back to their Lodge.The Inner Circle
The Inner circle of the Hunter's Keep is only accessed by those trusted enough by the Lord of the Hunt. Members of the Inner Circle gain access to knowledge of the Keep's true purpose as an extension of the Pantheon of the Wild's more severe influence within the world. Not only that but members of the Inner Circle are considered some of the most experienced and elite Hunters, willing to go to any lengths to pursue their chosen type of game. Many of these Hunters practice a form of Necromancy—blood magic—to attune themselves to the nature of the creatures they predate upon and are more than willing to sacrifice their own vitality and humanity to protect the realms from shadow. These Blood Hunters are often feared or misunderstood, and are driven by an unending drive to destroy the wicked, but are ever vigilant to avoid becoming the same monsters they choose to hunt. The Inner Circle is home to many Blood Hunters, divided into a handful of secretive Orders that guard their cryptic techniques and rituals. One must adhere to one of these Orders to even be granted access to the Hunter’s Bane rite that starts a Blood Hunter's journey, and only once they’ve proven their dedication and ability will the secrets of the Order begin to be revealed. It’s within these small, enigmatic sects of the Inner Circle that the real power of a Blood Hunter is learned. Order of the Ghostslayer. The Order of the Ghostslayer is the oldest of the orders, having originally rediscovered the secrets of blood magic and refined them for combat against the scourge of undeath. Ghostslayers seek out and study the moment of death, obsessing over the mysteries of the transition and how it can become corrupted by unholy powers to rise once more. Tuning their abilities to annihilate such abominations, these zealous blood hunters seek out the sources of such necromantic energies, intent to destroy them wherever they arise. There is a heavy overlap between the Order of the Ghostslayers and the Deathwalkers. Order of the Lycan. Of the many terrible curses that plague the Known World, few are as ancient and feared as Lycanthropy. Once a punishment inflicted by the Pantheon of the Wild upon power-hungry Wildspeakers who strayed into savagery, this curse seeds a host with the savage strength and violent hunger of a beast. The Order of the Lycan is a proud Order who has learned to tame this curse through a ceremonial inflicting of lycanthropy from a senior member. Rathgar Whitefang is the current pack leader of the Order and teaches his students to accept and control these gifts bestowed upon them by the Wild Spirits. Under his tutelage, these hunters harness the power of the monster they harbor without losing themselves to it. Through intense honing of one’s own willpower, combined with the secrets of the order’s blood magic rituals, members learn to control and unleash their hybrid form for short periods of time. Enhanced physical prowess, unnatural resilience, and razor-sharp claws make these warriors a terrible foe to any evil that crosses their path. Yet, no training is perfect, and without care and complete focus, even the greatest of blood hunters can temporarily lose themselves to the bloodlust. Order of the Mutant. The process of the Hunter’s Bane is a painful, scarring, and sometimes fatal experience. Those that survive find themselves irrevocably changed, enhanced. Some found this experience exalting, embracing the ability to alter one’s own physiology through a combination of blood magic and corrupted alchemy. Over decades of experimentation, a splinter order of Blood Hunters emerged, one that focused on brewing toxic elixirs to modify their capabilities in battle, altering their blood and, over time, become something beyond what they once were. They called themselves the Order of the Mutant. Researching their targets to know their strengths and weaknesses, these Blood Hunters can alter their biology to be best prepared for the coming conflict. Order of the Profane Soul. Those who have taken to the Order of the Profane Soul have seen the limits of blood magic against some of the most ancient and cruel fiends and terrors of the world. Unable to pursue beings of such power, creatures able to vanish amongst the nobles without a trace, or bend the mind of the most stalwart warrior with but a glance, this order trusted in their resilience and delved into this same well of corrupting arcane knowledge, making pacts with lesser evils to better combat the greater. While they may have traded a part of themselves, members of this order believe the power gained far outweighs the price, for even infernals now quake when they know they’ve drawn the attention of the Order of the Profane Soul.Order of the Vampire
Of the four Orders that exist today, there once existed a fifth. One hundred years ago, in the times of long hunts and even longer nights, the Hunter's Keep faced some of its biggest threats not from without, but within. The Keep was embroiled in a campaign against a powerful vampire, named Elizabeth Von Drag'houl. Naturally, when facing such a powerful foe, the Keep turned to experts in vampirism to lead the charge; victims of vampirism who used their abilities to hunt those who cursed them. However, the spawn of Elizabeth gradually infiltrated the ranks of the Keep's Inner Circle under the guise of victims seeking vengeance. Others fell to the temptations whispered by Drag'houl's spawn. What transpired afterward were dark times of paranoia and bloody infighting. It was during these times that Hans Van Richter came to the Keep's aid. With his expertise, Rathgar and the Hunters turned the tide. With her death at Endsreach in Greyfell Castle, and a series of gruesome conflicts, the Keep quickly and quietly purged the ranks of the Vampiric Order from the Keep.To this day, the days of the Order of the Vampire are considered a dark period in the Keep's history. To many members of the Inner Circle, it is a reminder of why vigilance and a strict code of honor are needed at all times.
Hunt Well
Founding Date
NC. 352
Type
Guild, Fighter / Mercenary
Training Level
Professional
Veterancy Level
Veteran
Demonym
Hunters
Leader
Leader Title
Location
Notable Members
Grunka
Siren
Sao-Yuun Greymind
Velum Harbridge
Ideology/Religion
Pantheon of the Wild
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