The Warrior Caste

Not selected at birth or in very early childhood, Dhe'nar warriors are usually the children who show no obvious signs of magical abilities. By the age of four or so, however, they (or their guardians) can choose for them to try for the Warrior Caste. Ferocity and fearlessness are the two traits most highly sought; as adults, Dhe'nar warriors tend to be touchy, cocky, aloof and vicious. Being passed over for the "power" castes seems to leave in them a smoldering inferiority complex which exhibits itself often in an overt bravery to the point of recklessness on the part of the warriors, as if in proving themselves again and again to be incapable of fear, they might offset their deficiency in the eyes of the Priesthood and Warlock Castes.

Training begins in a yearly competition known as the Dhar'draghta'a, or Death Selection. The would-be warriors are brought to the central square of their village or, in Sharath, the central cavern of the mountain fastness. A selection of small clubs, knives, hooks, hammers and razors is buried in a pile assorted refuse. The children are brought to the meeting place and removed, forever in many cases, from the care of their parents or guardians. Priests, whom the would-be warriors will ultimately serve, take over and, in a solemn ritual, adjure them to simply survive the day. They are instructed that this is the only opportunity they will ever have to raise their hand against another Dhe'nar. From this point forward, all that survive are brothers and sisters in arms, and must learn to count on one another in battle and in life. They are then directed to the pile of buried weapons, and told to arm themselves if they can and survive for four hours. The number of weapons is usually half the number of children present.

Far from being an absolute blood frenzy, as one might expect, the ritual usually results in the intended warriors learning quickly that to survive, they must be smart and immediately band together, selecting amongst themselves those whom they would stand beside in combat. Thus the life of the warrior in Dhe'nar society is played out in miniature. Comrades in arms are their only defense against the world. They are ever at the direction of a seemingly disinterested Priesthood, and their choices in life are immediate, deadly, and require as much insight as those of the other Castes. Inevitably, some children do not survive. Some retreat from the field to the safety of hiding (and obscurity and worthlessness forever in Dhe'nar society), and some emerge bloodied but victorious, weapons in hand and comrades around. These children move on to the next part of their training.

The young warriors spend their next fifteen years as slaves. They are cast in amongst the slaves of the Temple, but marked by their Dhe'nar blood; they become immediate targets for the furtive retaliations of the other slaves there. Thus do they learn absolute bonding with their kin, and with their warrior comrades. At this time in their lives, they are in a position lower than that of the children of the dark dwarves, and often find themselves in mortal combat with these children. Being stronger, more durable, and in many cases just as vicious, the dark dwarven children present a formidable opponent for the young Dhe'nar warriors. Again, learning is emphasized here: Dhe'nar are not as strong as dwarves or giants; to survive, and to excel, they must be smarter, more cunning, ever more remorseless in their pursuit of power and victory. The children also learn, at this time in their lives, the ways of the Temple and the society they will ultimately serve. From the age of six on, they are given daily instruction in hand-to-hand combat, but are never allowed to touch weapons. That is a privilege they have not yet earned, and by the age of twelve they hunger for it.

From twelve on, they are given instruction in the care, cleaning, sharpening and maintenance of all sorts of weapons, from crossbows to halberds. They are taught the use of these weapons in essence, but none specifically. That will come later. Until sixteen, they are generalists. Then comes the ritual of Sia'dhar Hesa'ach: The Choosing. Some warriors carry a latent, but not stellar, ability to use magic; some do not. During the Sia'dhar Hesa'ach, the Priesthood extensively tests each young warrior for this ability. Those with it will be sent to different training as Esleash Eldha'a, the Dark Scouts. Testing for strength, loyalty, dexterity, ferocity and intelligence are also done at this time. These tests will result in the young warriors becoming candidates for the religious order of 'flach ri G'kna'a (the BladeWed), or for Khadesh Liastha'a (shadow warriors). Those with no special abilities but many desirable qualities go to the Kodom 'Sleoth, the Guardians. The vast majority are, of course, Guardians.

From sixteen on, the pure warriors of the Dhe'nar are given a weapon of choice. It will be that with which they have demonstrated ability, and may be a any weapon, ranged or melee. No allowances are made for breakage or use. They must maintain this weapon under whatever circumstances for the next four years, for they will not get another. With this, and a shield, they are taken from their daily tasks at all hours of the night and day and sent on small missions, alone or in groups, with specific objectives. These may range from simply killing a hobbit to escorting a convoy of vegetables to sacking and burning any pitiable wretch who has mistakenly taken up homesteading on Dhe'nar lands. They are almost always observed, however stealthily, by one to four members of the Priesthood or the BladeWed. Failure to achieve the objective, loss of a weapon or a comrade, or failure to obey the sometimes strict and unreasonable rules of the engagement results in severe disfavor on the part of their trainers. Particularly frowned-upon are those offenses which involve fear, failure to follow orders, and failure to back up one's comrades. Bravery, obedience, and loyalty are strict requisites for the Guardians. They are rarely in a position to use self-determination in matters of strategy (this being done ordinarily by BladeWed or the Priesthood), so its nascent rise is swiftly put down.

After four years of constant daily training, combined with their status and duties as slaves, sleep deprivation, and the ongoing missions, the young warriors that remain are hard-bitten, determined, loyal, brutal, skilled in the use of weapons and molded as tools for the Priesthood and the society. In the Blade Rite, or G'kniasha'a, they are graduated as members of Society and of their Caste, with limited rights and responsibilities, and their youngster weapon is taken away and ceremonially burned in holy fire. They are given by the Priesthood a new weapon, and assigned to a Tesachta'a (ten-warrior group) or Dzevachta'a (a hundred-warrior group) for further, ongoing training in tactics, other weapons, ceremony, and specific duties.

Sometimes, during their training in their unit, they are sent out on field work, long term assignments, or extensive self-development missions far afield. These, and their rise in rank to leader of one variety or another (each unit has a slightly different organizational structure) depends, of course, on their own abilities and limits of power. Many have risen to become great champions, sometimes chosen by empaths as their personal warriors, or have become great tactical and strategic leaders of the Dhe'nar people.