Pangard

The Pangard is an alien religious union of 3 races - Engi , Han-Larn, and Yizith. The “Three Kindreds” as they are called, are united by a common reverence of “the Oracle.” The workers and farmers of the Yizith Hives make up the majority of Pangard society, followed by the knightly and aristocratic Han-Larn, and the pious Engi who make up the majority of Pangard’s clergy and academia. All three kindreds are considered equal in rank and importance to Pangard society. Their leaders (the Han-Larn Marshals, the Yizith Queens, and the Engi Vicars) all sit on the High Council, who consult with the Oracle, and guide the many peoples of Pangard in their worship of the divine Star-Maker, the following of Pangard Doctrine, and daily life aboard their great space station, The High Temple. Pangard society is divided into many “Houses”/”Tribes”, each consisting of a Yizith hive (led by a Queen), protected by Han-Larn knights (led by a Marshal), with both ministered to by a congregation of Engi (led by a Vicar). When the Gathering is called, every tribe sends their three leaders to vote for the High Council. In this way, Pangard retains a federal structure, but also integrates the three kindreds at a fundamental level.

Structure

Pangard society is split in many different "Houses", each house having all three kindreds represented among its population, though in differing proportions. Each House thus has three leaders: a Yizith "Queen," her Han-Larn "Marshal," and her Engi "Vicar." How these positions are filled can vary from House to house, but generally, the Queen is the oldest/most senior mother among the Yizith, with almost all Yizith in the house being related to her in some way. The Queen generally chooses the Marshal of her house, usually selecting the most experienced and galant Knight among the Han-Larn. The Vicar on the other hand, is usually chosen by the Engi of the House via vote, and ordained by the Oracle herself, a practice steeped in tradition. All Houses, no matter how big or small, send their three leaders to “the Gathering of the Summoned,” a huge voting assembly and celebratory festival in one, and is always a very festive, jovial occasion, filled with feasting and tournaments. At the Gathering, all the Houses choose 12 leaders from each kindred to represent Pangard as a whole. Thus the High Council has 36 members: 12 Engi Vicars, 12 Han-Larn Marshals, and 12 Yizith Queens. By longstanding tradition, no one House can have more than 1 seat on the High Council at a time, so 36 individual Houses are represented at any one time. The method by which candidates are chosen can vary greatly - a simple vote, great debates, negotiations, political deals, marriage alliances, and even games & contests have all been used in the past. Once all members are nominated, the makeup of the council must be approved by a simple yes-no vote by every Pangard citizen. The High Council is the highest authority in Pangard - it leads the people of Pangard, and consults with the Oracle on how to best fulfill the mission of Holy Unity bestowed by the Star-Maker. It is also responsible for dispensing justice for crimes severe enough to go beyond one House's jurisdiction. The High Council usually serves for 7 cycles, before a new gathering is called by the Oracle. In times of great crisis, the High Council will present the "Sash of Unity" to the Oracle. The Sash itself is just a piece of cloth, branded with the emblems of all three kindreds - it serves as the founding document of Pangard. Having been given the Sash, the Oracle will choose a an individual to be "Marshal of All Pangard," sometimes called "Grand Marshal" or "the Paragon." What guides her choice, only she knows, but from the moment the Oracle places the Sash upon the Paragon's shoulders, to the moment she takes it off of them, they has complete authority over Pangard, given command of all the Houses and Orders and the resources they have at their disposal. It is for this reason that they are chosen only in times of great need - usually times of such great need, that most die performing their chosen duties, the Oracle relinquishing the Sash from their corpse.

Military

The Pangard possess no one standing military - rather, it possesses a number of diffrent martial and political organizations called "Orders," each with its own unique purpose and reason for existence. While every Order was an independent unit, pursuing its own goals and objectives, all ultimately answered to the High Council. Sometimes the juristiction of Orders could overlap, leading to conflict between them, usually settled by knightly duels between champions. Example Orders:

Order of - created in the aftermath of the first war with the Sarn, they are dedicated to hunting down and purging the old foe from the universe
Order of the White Dwarf -
Order of Rangers - created from the remnants of the Colonial Rangers after the colony joined Pangard, they're primarily scouts and explorers

At the same time, each House possesses its own force of knights, levies, castles and ships to defend their own territory and population. There is also the occassional Knight-Errant, an independent warrior with their own retainers, who simply wanders from cause to cause, in service to no one. Unlike many human militaries, there is no meaningful distinction between service branches, such as an "army" or "navy." Commanders can conduct ground operations as well as starships, pilots, seeing their crafts as instruments of personal glory, were permitted to join those knights on the ground, and all knights are trained for operations on land, sea, air, and space. Of the 3 kindreds, Han-Larn are the primary military caste, their Knights make up the majority of military forces, with significant numbers of Yizith and Engi serving as shock infantry or support roles such as engineers and medics.

Religion

The Pangard belief system can best be described as Panenthiest - the Pangard believe that the universe was created by a benevolent entity called "the Star-Maker" or "Maker," or sometimes just "Creator." Believing all things are made with purpose in the Star-Maker's grand design, the Pangard believe all things contain at least some spark of the creator within them. The Pangard believe that the ultimate destiny of all things is to be in harmonious union with the creator, and by extension with one another, a "Holy Union," a concept known as pan'gard, from which they get their name. The Vari, an extremely advanced and poorly understood alien race, are held to be the messangers and servants of the Star-Maker. Long ago, "the Oracle" was sent to the warring kindreds to call them to live in pan'gard with one another, and she remains an important leader and guide to the Pangard to this day. Later in their history, the 3 Kindreds would be joined by a 4th - a colony of humans from aboard the Raven. The presence of all 4 prophecized kindreds caused the previously dormant High Temple to activate and awaken, being in reality a massive, living creature. It revealed that the true purpose of the Pangard was to travel the universe in search of an entity called "the Uplifted Serpent." Little is known for sure about this entity, but it is said that Pangard's ultimate destinty lies with him - some mystics believe him to be capable of achieving true union with the Creator, true pan'gard, and that upon finding him, all 4 kindreds will ascend to a higher state of existence. Whatever the case may be, the Pangard now travel the cosmos in a Great Journey, exploring and discovering with fanatical zeal in the hopes of finding the object of their hope.

Tenets of Faith

The 9 Tenets of Truth Often recited as the basic tenets of Pangard doctrine, they were originally pinned by Saint Spheniscidae in the 5th cycle of Pangard and accepted as good teaching by the 1st High Council:

The Star-Maker created all things, and all things were made good
The Star-Maker loves all creation. All things are made for the good of one another
Goodness can seem cruel to those without wisdom or selflessness
Evil is that which corrupts good things outside of their created purpose
To separate from the Star-Maker is thus the greatest evil of all, for the created purpose is union with the creator
Evil must be resisted with Truth, Kindness, Love, Unity, Perseverance, and Faith. Lies, Violence, Hatred, Greed, Apathy, and Despair bring only destruction and harm
To explore, build, create, beautify, teach, and uplift - these are righteous endeavors, pursue them with fervor
The Oracle is a messenger from the Star Maker. Listen to her well
All 3 kindreds, sing and rejoice in the light of this Temple, and praise your creator in Unity and Love, in Pangard