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Disclaimer: I have written this content as part of the background of a character I am playing in one of our campaigns. Since I consider it somewhat interesting, I decided to share it with you people. This is a work of fiction and is not part of the Paizo canon, but it is originally intended for the Pathfinder Official Campaign Setting, though it could be with minor changes ported to any fantasy setting. I do not own Paizo-created content within this work (Taldor, Arazni, Iomedae, Knights of Ozem...). You are free to use this content, but if you repost it, please add a citation of authorship.
So without further ado, enjoy the possibly most stuckup order of Iomedaean knights!
The Order of Knights of Our Lady the Inheritor a.k.a. Taldan Whiteshields
Motto: For Justice, for Valor and for Light
History
The history of this order is as disputable as of any organization of this age, but the Whiteshields claim to trace their lineage back to the Taldan Grandmaster His Divine Holiness, Saint Cassius the Stalwart, Beacon of the Inheritor who by the legend stood with Iomedae herself during the events of the Shining Crusade. There is a number of miraculous deeds of valor that they claim that their progenitor, at he time a Knight of Ozem, performed. Among them was advising against summoning Arazni in his wisdom, saving Iomedae's life on several occasions, and being personally involved in the imprisoning of Tar-Baphon. In spite of being asked to stay as their leader after Iomedae's ascension, Cassius insisted on returning to his beloved land of Taldor, but of course not before helping the Knights of Ozem establish their position at Lastwall – in fact, asking the Whiteshields you would learn that the very reason Lastwall still stands against the forces of evil is Saint Cassius's strategic genius. In 3827 AR he returned to Oppara and invested all of his earnings from the Crusade into bulding a glorious temple just a few miles outside of the city. After teaching his first eleven disciples (The Eleven), Cassius peacefully passed away of old age in 3841. His will, when it was read, spelled the Final Vows of the Knights of Our Lady the Inheritor that every Initiate wishing to become a Knight still recites today.
The disciples of Cassius, also known as The Eleven, then continued to lead the Order to great prosperity within the time of their generaton. Eleven subdivisions opened accross Taldor and they managed to attract many members of high nobility within their ranks, significantly increasing their wealth. They continued to be known as very trustworthy and reliable providers of protection and ever vigilant guardians against evil. In the revolt of Oppara in the beginning of the fifth millenium, they helped to quell the uprisings, but very soon their attention turned to the south as Quadira took advantage of the inner instabilities of Taldor to invade. For the 524 years of the war, the Whiteshields stood among the most elite defenders of Taldor. But while they managed to fight off the Quadiran threat, the dreadful news that Cheliax managed to wrestle its independence while they were defying the Quadiran scimitars reached them. Even though the Knights opposed the signing of the truces, with Cheliax as well as with Quadira, they submitted to the will of the government and sought no further conflict after the peace was made. Still, both Cheliax and Quadira remain among their bitter grudges.
As the power of Taldor dwindled and its society slowly began its way down the path of decline, so did the most glorious days pass for the Order. From about ten thousand, their membership was slowly reduced to just about one thousand Knights and Initiates over a few centuries. With no more wars to fight and no more great evils to defeat, some of the them left for places where glory in battle was easier to seek, such as Lastwall. Some went to travel and seek out a life of adventure with like-minded people. Still others offered protection services to travellers or merchants. Those that stayed mostly turned to the business of safekeeping and banking to support the Order. What was originally a noble intention became rather lucrative business. Still, the decline of the world around them was not kept outside of the Order's splendid walls, and not even the Knights cold escape corruption. In the times during the past century, it was not unheard of for the Knights to amass significant wealth, unofficially hold estates, secretly keep concubines or even families, drink, gamble, and pursue a number of far less than holy activities.
Things changed just about thirty years ago when the most recent order Grandmaster, His Divine Holiness Letholdus Chelmsford of Cassomir, Beacon of the Inheritor from the time of his joining only known as Brother Jacob, took office. What was before a relatively permissive environment became a strict monastic-military institution with zero tolerance for any noncompliance with the Vows. Within just a decade, the membership of the order was reduced from over a thousand to just over a hundred members. Many of them were cast out by Jacob himself for their transgressions, but even more of them quit as their lives of relative leisure, freedom and comfort turned into a routine of religious fanaticism, military discipline, and an endless internal crusade against all forms of sin. Many claimed that this man would ruin the Order completely, but those few fanatics that stood with him claim that he is bringing upon a new era of glory and righteousness, comparing him to Saint Cassius himself. If the Church of Iomedae looked with moderate disfavor upon the Knights for proclaiming themselves Iomedae's ordained priests without the Church's blessing before, Jacob's strategies upset a lot of their members and only increased the tension between the two organizations. Even more so because Jacob himself used to serve as a priest within their ranks, then shamelessly accused them of corruption and joined the Order instead. But unlike many years ago, the hundred or so Knights fanatical enough to continue their training under Grandmaster Jacob's iron fist don't quite have the numbers to stand against the Church of Iomedae itself...
Structure
As there is only one Order building and location left of the former eleven, the titles of Grandmaster and Order Master (leader of a particular Order division) are nowadays synonymous in practice. Opposite of the Grandmaster is the Grand Cleric, an official emmisary of the Church of Iomedae within the Order. Even though all members of the Order, Knights as well as Initiates, are claimed to be fully ordained priests of Iomedae by the Order, the Church of Iomedae still demanded for a representative of theirs to be present within every Order division to oversee the Grandmaster's work and advise him in spiritual matters. With the exception of a few, most Grand Clerics have been very unpopular within the Order. Most Grand Clerics keep a team of Acolytes, and within the Church of Iomedae, being placed within an Order of the Knights is thought of as a form of puishment. In spite of the Grand Cleric's presence, the Grandmaster is by every tenant of the Order directly under Iomeade herself and holds very little responsibility to the Church.
The Grandmaster names a council of traditionally eleven Elders who are usually among the oldest and most dedcated members of the Order. Every Elder names his own traditionally eleven Knight Captains. As the numbers of the Order are not measured in thousands anymore, this rule is ot realy observed, and often instead of eleven there are far fewer Elders, as well as Knight Captains per Elder.
Bellow the Knight Captains are Knights, the fully sworn members of the Order that have taken their Final Vows, which typically happens between the ages of 25 and 30, but it can happen earlier or later, depending on an individual's dedication. Nowadays, any transgression against the Vows by these Knights is met with very severe punishments and penances or expulsion from the Order.
The lowest on the Order member hierarchy are Initiates. In order to receive membership, one must make a commitment to prove themselves worthy of taking the Vows, and that is usually done on the threshold of adulthood. This is done in a ritual called the Initiation. Those that dedicate themselves to the Vows must prove that they are able to take them by follwing them for several years prior, typically about a decade. In spite of their transitory position, very few Initiates ever decide not to take the Vows, and so they are counted among the Order membership just like Knights. They are also fully ordained priests of Iomedae even though that is disputed by the Church in many places. In fact, to any outside observer, the difference between a Knight and an Initiate s very hard to see.
Before becoming Initiates, the candidates typically spend at least a few years living in the Order. These are called Cadets and are not considered members of the Order. The most typical age at which children enter it is 8-12, even though they accept children as soon as they are able to take basic care of their own needs. The ritual of accepting one for training is simply called the Joining.
Not only do the Whiteshields not accept females within their ranks, but they do not even allow them to enter the Order compound. This applies to the Grand Clerics and their Acolytes as well. It is not unusual for a Witheshield knight to not see a single woman save for the images of Iomedae for his entire life at the Order, if he does not embark on any missions. They are also very wary of accepting nonhumans, even though this is open to discussion and bargaining on the prospective nonhuman Knight's sponsor's end.
Besides members of the Order, the building also has a support staff the size of which has significantly decreased. This consists of various workers, combatants, craftsmen and other associates. This staff used to outnumber the members at least three to one, doing most of the mundane work required at the Order including cooking, cleaning, laundry, crafting, maintaining gear, preparing ceremonies, and so on. Now there is only a handful of these people left, and the vast majority of work falls on Cadets and Initiates.
Outfit and Combat Style
The typical Knight is clad in full plate, and Initiate in banded mail armor, supplemented with chainmail coverings where plates can not be used. Under the armor they wear clothing that is always white, as is their tabbard that bears the insignia of Iomedae's sword in crimson. They wear full helms, on top of which the Grandmaster wears a golden plume, the Elders wear crimson, and the Knight Captains blue. On their backs they wear a knee-length cape, as purely white as their clothing, with a crimson trim at the bottom that is about 3 inches wide. Most Knights pride themselves on the whiteness of their clothes that symbolizes their purity and virtue and work on maintaining it.
They are armed almost exclusively with a longsword and heavy steel shield that is painted white and bears Iomedae's insignia like the tabbard.
The Knights are often mounted, but they practice mounted as well as infantry combat styles, and any fully ordained Knight is expected to be a master of both.
The Knights' combat style has been developping for a millenium and has gone from efficient combat moves to an elaborate art that sometimes resembles a dance more than it does combat. There are dozens of combat forms that the Knights learn to perform by heart, most of them having little to do with actual combat. Often in the role of protectors and defenders, a large portion of their technique focuses on the shield and defensive manouvers, although there are also techniques that employ the shield as a weapon. Watching a trained Knight fight is definitely a feast for the eyes, but the effectiveness of their combat is often not on par with its beauty, especially when their opponent uses unexpected, dirty moves that they have no training in countering.
Rituals
Every prospective Knight, with very rare exceptions, begins his training as a Cadet. Then, following his advancement in skill and dedication, he can take part in rituals elevating him in te Order hierarchy. Every man living in the order, from Cadet to Grandmaster, may address each other as Brother, but the formal titles of the higher officials are supposed to be added.
The Joining - Cadet
The Initiation - Initiate
The Vows - Knight
The Accolade – Knight Captain (Title: Illuminated Captain)
The Reverence – Elder (Title: Reverent Excellency)
The Exaltation - Order Master (Title: His Exalted Holiness)
The Apotheosis – Grandmaster (Title: His Divine Holiness, Beacon of the Inheritor)
Vows
This Vow is a part of the knighting ceremony of every new Knight, and cements his membership in the Order for the rest of his life.
Final Vow of a Knight of Our Lady the Inheritor
-
I, (full name and title) hereby solemnly swear,
My Master and all of my Brothers my witnesses,
Before Her all-encompassing Light,
That I shall honor the vows I am about to speak
With perfect care and adherence.
I shall break them neither to advance my means,
Nor those of my allies,
And not even to avoid my own demise.
For anything that dispatches a True Believer,
Shall only deliver him into Her embrace eternal.
-
I hereby relinquish my every claim to nobility,
All of my worldly possessions,
Every allegiance save for that to the Order,
And submit my will entirely and with no reservation
To that of my Lady, and through Her,
My Master who is Her Beacon here on the material.
-
In Her service I shall forever abandon my every desire,
Other than to spread Her Light and Glory,
And to serve the Order of her army
To the very best of my ability and beyond.
In this, I shall follow these tenants
For as long as I live.
-
Poverty:
I shall not wish for honor, glory or fame for myself,
For all the Honor, Glory and Fame are Hers to have.
I shall not wish for wealth or influence,
For all the wealth I possess is the Light within my soul,
That no amount of riches can parallel.
-
Purity:
I shall not strive for joys of the world,
For food, drink, leisure or games,
For I may never idle in place of Her service.
I shall especially avoid all substances that cloud the mind,
And may impair my composure.
-
Chastity:
I shall guard myself against every corruption and temptation,
That of body, mind, or soul.
The bond I share with Her my only attachment,
I shall turn my hand, eye and heart away from all others
Faithful to none but Her Light for the rest of my life.
-
Protection:
I shall dedicate all of my mortal life and my every effort
To protecting the weak and those in need of protection.
Standing before them, sheltering them from all evil,
And vanquishing it from within the souls of those unfortunates
Who have been caught within its vicious grasp.
-
Charity:
I shall always help the helpless and uplift the fallen,
And I shall only keep what material possessions I require
In order to fight in Her honor,
Sacrificing all other means granted to me
To the welfare of those less fortunate than I,
For mine is the ultimate fortune of Her Grace.
-
Loyalty:
I shall give my complete allegiance to the Order,
Putting no will, not even my own, above it, at no cost.
My obedience to the Master of my Order will be without question.
Always honoring and serving all of my betters, friends and allies,
but above all, the Order that made me.
-
Bravery:
I shall abandon all fear, for there is nothing I stand to lose.
Only looking forward to the day I can join Her in the Heavens,
No evil that stands in my way shall move me,
And I shall not rest until it has been banished.
-
Should I honor and uphold these tenants,
And always keep my Holy Vows,
In face of temptation, adversity, evil and corruption,
I humbly pray that my soul be delivered to Her Mercy,
To be judged by its every merit.
But should I ever dare to break any of its commandments,
I give myself to Damnation and Suffering,
For ever and ever until the end of Time.
-
Prayers
In addition to the vows, all members of the order recite the Acts of Iomedae several times per day and meditate on each of them regularly. On top of the Acts themselves, they also have a few prayers to utter before any major action, training, meal, task, sleep, or any other act they consider as deserving of a divine thanks or blessing. Here is one of them.
Daily Prayer
Glorious Mistress of righteous battle,
Thou art the Light of my sword and my heart.
Blessed be thine closest servants,
Jingh, Peace Through Vigilance, and Saint Lymirin.
Blessed be thine Eleven Acts of Valor,
And thy divine ascension.
Blessed be the great Shining Crusade,
And the victory to which thou leadest.
I beseech thee, Inheritor,
With all that is good within my mortal heart,
Lead me as you have thy knights,
To spread the Light of thy Sword
And let no danger or temptation
Lead me from Justice, Valor and Light.