|Shiroken Tome - Clans of Algoron|
by Sir Rassilon Shiroken
Current Clans
Page Two............. |Justice|
Page Three........... |Shalonesti|
Page Four............ |Wargar|
Page Five............ |Conclave|
Page Six............. |Slayers|
Page Seven........... |Bloodlust|
Page Eight........... |Shadow|
Page Nine............ |Chaos|
Past Clans
Page Ten............. |Talon|
Page Eleven.......... |Eclipse|
Page Twelve.......... |Valor|
Page Thirteen........ |Armada|
Page Fourteen........ |Pirates|
Page Fifteen......... |Gypsy|
Page Sixteen......... |Sarsen|
Apart from the Knights of Gareths Keep, the warriors of Justice are the
strongest concentrated force for the Light in the mortal realm, comprised of
fighters and sorcerers from all walks of life and virtually every sentient
race on Algoron. Yinn crusaders and bakali assassins and ariel priestesses
are commonplace amongst their numbers.
Though their hearts are in the right place, and they maintain a modicum of
order within their ranks, the forces of Justice suffer from a singular flaw.
Their aim is their sole concern, and their methods can range from honorable
to somewhat questionable. Too also, while they can accept prestigious
professions into their fold, such as Invokers from the Conclave or Paladins
from the Knighthood (at least one recorded example exists of such), they
offer no such exemplary trainings themselves.
Justice defeated the Knighthood in the last Clan Wars, fighting an honorable
battle in what is widely regarded as a strong victory for the Light.
Despite their sometimes questionable tactics, they remain our strongest and
most steadfast of allies, and never have we been forced to make war with
them. Our forces mesh well together when we form with Justice to go into
combat, little alteration to our standard tactics are required.
Ancient and sturdy as the trees of their homelands, the elves of Shalonesti
have long gathered in defense of their home with five of their illustrious
Houses. Shalonesti training is rigorous, some of its members spending
decades at it before they enter the fray, and has produced two of the
strongest paths in the known world: the dancing bladesingers and the elusive
eldritches.
The elves are frequently drawn into conflict with their counterparts in
Wargar, making long-lasting alliances with both clans impossible. Also, on
rare occasion, an elven soldier may follow a dark path and bear a crimson
aura, for the Shalonesti hold only a little qualm about such in their ranks.
Although they are our allies, it is forbidden by Knighthood law to work
closely with such individual, such as in a raiding party. Apart from that,
gatherings between the Knighthood and Shalonesti are common, their magical
aptitude complimenting the physical fortitude of their human allies.
Shalonesti is unique in that its default language is something other than
common, a trait shared with Wargar. Thus, it can be difficult to
communicate with them during the heat of battle if not familiar with some of
the basics of elvish.
Under the Mountain where the dwarves make their home, the clan of Wargar is
their staunch shield against the world, a gathering place of the bravest and
fiercest of dwarven combatants. And amongst such a sturdy, durable people
as the dwarves, this is saying something indeed.
The Clan of Wargar also boasts the impressive berserkers called
Battleragers, as well as the gift of Cliath, the Runesmiths. Both of which
add their strength to the already considerable power of the dwarven people.
The runes they place on various armors are only of use to those who have
pledged allegiance to Wargar, and useless to all others. Theirs is not an
enemy to be made lightly. However, their fortitude and courage can also be
their downfall, as Wargar can frequently be led into fights they cannot win,
and often refuse to retreat even in the face of defeat. Battleragers
especially.
In recent years, several Wargarians have been hosts to vampiric entities,
prompting them to be made enemies of the Knighthood. Formidable ones, for
their versatile alignments and sturdy frames. Too also, the dark dwarven
are known for being as innately powerful with sorcery as some elves (though
they dislike the comparison). Standard attacks do not usually foil dwarven
combatants, the best strategy to employ is to cut off their escape and
overwhelm them with superior numbers.
Arguably one of the most peaceful of the Clans, and easily one of the very
oldest (only the Knighthood itself is older), the Conclave's focus is
learning and magic, which generally go hand in hand. The epitome of the
saying knowledge is power, the Conclave are some of the most knowledgeable
and powerful users of magic in the known world. Many kingdom towers have
members who were former Conclave students.
The Conclave is easily the most powerful source of magical energy on
Algoron, and its members benefit from this by greatly increased power and
resistance to spells. As well, they offer four advanced studies that no
other guild in the world can, some of the most devastating magical classes.
Battlemages, Invokers, Necromancers, and Transmuters are four of the unique
studies available to Conclave magi. All of which offer powerful spells to
the Conclave's arsenal.
Magi of the Conclave are fundamentally weak of body, taking them by surprise
invariably can lead to their defeat provided they are kept off-balanced and
unable to concentrate on their spells for either attack or escape. A few
select magi are able to affect almost-healing magics but these are
invariably weak and rarely used in the heat of battle. Too also, while
their goals and methods vary, all Conclave magi wear their allegiance
proudly, and thus are easily identified. Within the Conclave, only the
faiths of Kantilles, Sebatis, and Drakkara are permitted by their respective
towers, though all magi generally worship but a single thing: power.
On rare occasion, priests and armsmen and others have been permitted special
status within the Conclave. These acts as healers and guardians for the
physically weak and largely faithless magi.
Conclave's place in the world and allegiance to other clans is constantly
changing because of its three guiding leaders, as is the Knighthood's
relationship with the Ivory Tower. Even when at war we are reluctant to
fight our fellows of the Light (though we shall, if we must) and equally so,
even when at peace we refuse trade with the Ebony Tower. Thus,
understanding our exact current stance is recommended before engaging the
magi.
Once known as the Dragonslayers, they emerged following the splitting of the
continents with a single intension: to hunt and kill the most dangerous of
all creatures on Algoron. The dragons. Upon the discovery of vampires in
the world, the Dragon was dropped from their Clan name, and they began to
hunt any and all unnatural creatures as they emerged. Demons, Angels,
Balanx, and later Giants and Abhorrants were included on their grand list.
They have survived countless attempts to destroy their organization,
including the destruction of their keep, but have returned time and time
again. Some do it in the mad delusion they are doing the world a favor by
purging it. Others join for the sport of such large game hunting.
Similar to Justice and Bloodlust, the Slayers permit anyone with their
warped view on hunting to become a part of their pack, enabling a diverse
gathering of skills and mindsets, as well as faiths, to meet together.
Despite their hatred of unnatural creatures, they hold no hatred for the
limited races displaced from Tropica, and freely welcome orcs, bakali, and
even ariels into their stronghold. Special training is available to a
select few to become dragonslayers, who make impressive warriors under the
correct circumstances.
Because most other organizations revere and have strong ties with
supernatural creatures, the Slayers are almost universally reviled and
hated. Plus, making enemies of such beings... Beings of immense power...
Is never generally the wisest of moves.
Once known as Malice, Bloodlust was not so much created as it was spawned, a
gathering of murderers and monsters who wanted to gather together simply for
the sake of bigger battles and more fighting. Building a makeshift Dungeon
to house themselves, Bloodlust collects some of the worst rabble from
Algoron and unleashes it upon its unsuspecting citizens and unprepared
clanners. It has been crushed and defeated many times but, like evil
itself, proves difficult to fully destroy.
Like Justice, Bloodlust cares nothing for methods so long as their goal is
met, and thus have no qualms about welcoming non-humans or questionable
professions into their ranks. If anything, they revel in such. Thus, their
abilities are a wide mix, and since they are constantly fighting with most
of the world their survivors tend to be some of the scariest, most
experienced killers the world has ever seen. They have no qualms about
cutting down the inexperienced or ganging up on lone wanderers or even
throwing in their lot with others of questionable nature. Whatever earns
them a kill is worth it, to their minds.
The Dungeon is like a force of nature, relentless and dangerous and chaotic.
It is linked only by a common goal of bloodshed and mayhem, and thus is
countered by those of the Light and its disciplined soldiers. Bloodlust
also makes no distinction when it comes to whom it fights, and the only clan
it does not openly war is Shadow, though they are not very strong allies.
Founded by a rogue Shay Kayen, Shadow rose to power with unexpected
swiftness, quickly becoming a small but elite Clan with power of its own,
and a formidable enemy to the people of the world. Their members are all
united under a single cause, fulfilling the Prophecy of Necrucifer, in which
the gods of Light and Twilight will all be destroyed and the world claimed
by the Master of Evil.
It is an evil opposite to the Knighthood of Gareth's Keep, for its soldiers
are disciplined and well-trained, and as utterly dedicated to their goal as
we are to ours. Their training of physical and spiritual has given rise to
Shadowknights, arguably just as powerful as our own paladins.
Like the Knighthood, though for different reasons, Shadow does not permit
nonhumans to join its ranks, and only pure-blooded humans are accepted
members. They are a very proud clan, fond of being overly dramatical in
their recruitments and boastful. This pride can be used against them, as
can their allegiance to darkness for they hold few allies in this world.
Too also, their elitist recruiting make their numbers small.
The youngest Clan in the world, Chaos was in the works for many years by the
deluded and vocal followers of Malachive, until finally enough funds and
bodies were amassed to begin their formal creation on Tropica, the site of
the Godsons initial conquest and devastation. They then began to formally
declare their war against the servants of the divine, which is most anyone
with a reasonable degree of sense. Moreover, they war the divine
themselves.
Like the Slayers, Chaos holds no racial, alignment, or class restrictions,
permitting anyone deranged enough with their idea of "freedom" to join. As
such, their groups are some of the most eclectic and powerful in the world,
since no single defense or protection can work against them, and in general
no weakness is shared amongst their members, though as a general rule they
lean towards the side of darkness.
Chaos has no structure, no ranks save two, those who follow, and the single
one who leads. Thus, in-fighting and squabbling over position is frequent
amongst its mayhem-causing members. At the moment, following this false
freedom offers no singular benefits, no Anarchists or Wild Mages have arisen
from their ranks, but rumors spread fast as wildfire. Right now Chaos is a
wild card in the War of the Gods.
Dragons were the focus of this clan, not as enemies as the Slayers held to
be true, but as a source of admiration and emulation. Talon held a
singularly unique place in their structure near the very top. Beside their
leader, they held a place for a single dragon to be a part of their Clan.
Talon laid claim as the strongest allies to the dragons, arguably the most
powerful creatures in the world. Thus, their dragon riders were greatly
feared. Like the modern day Slayers, they accepted a wide variety of
species and ethos into their ranks, divided into three divisions. If memory
serves, they were Claw (the Light), Scale (the Twilight), and Fang (the
Dark). The leader of Fang or Claw could be the overall ruler of the
organization, depending on what type of dragon was the current ward of the
clan. This would affect the overall stance of the Clan in regards to its
wars and alliances.
However, this mix of ethos and paths led to much in-fighting and arguing.
Like the Conclave, a direction that satisfied all members was near
impossible to find, and in the end, the Clan splintered and then fell to
pieces, its dragons departing for other venues and its members reabsorbed
into other clans.
Founded by a rogue Knight, Eclipse was a well-organized enemy of the Light
for many years. In modern terms, they were a mix of Bloodlust and Shadow, a
plethora of chaotic creatures but united under a semblance of order and
discipline. At least initially. However, their leadership changed hands
many times, and each time they regressed a little more into little better
than stupid savagery and mindless violence.
This was especially true when its infamous last leader took charge, Highlord
Zayl, a yinn warrior with no love of the founding race. A purge began to
remove all humans from Eclipse, but this was met with harsh resistance, and
instead was answered when Shay Kayen formed Shadow. When the dark
knighthood came to power as a guided force of evil, Eclipse fell out of
favor with Necrucifer and the dark gods, and its members quickly fled in the
ensuing chaos, many for Bloodlust, but a select few deemed worthy were
permitted to join Shadow. Now Eclipse is little more than a dark memory and
a ruined keep.
Another breakaway of the Knighthood, Valor was founded by those who found
our laws to restrictive, but remained true to the core ideals of truth and
honor. An early image of what would one day be called Justice.
Similar values were found in Valor, in that its focus was the Light and all
that was good in the world, but its methods could become highly questionable
if the chance arose to destroy more evil than good in a single strike. It
allowed a wide mix of members, some of whom were regularly in conflict with
another. Many Knights, unable to handle the rigid discipline of the Order,
tended to join justice to seek the easy way of fighting evil. Accordingly,
they had two divisions, one of which was even called Knights. Specifically,
the Knights of Chivalry. Their other order was the Lord of Saints. These
functioned much as the Lance and Shield do in our own order.
Valor did not have the strength to endure, and its members slowly began to
vanish or depart for better places to focus their talents, many of which
pooled together later to form Justice. In the end, Valor continued to hold
the line as long as it could, but they were ambushed in a battle against the
rising Shadow, and utterly devastated.
In the old days of Algoron, when the continents were split in two and the
oceans formed, a Clan arose of swashbuckling heroes who called themselves
Armada. This was something of a misnomer, as they only had one ship, and it
was rarely put to use. They were a force for good, however, who by land or
by sea worked to save the downtrodden and combat evil.
During the Cataclysm, Armada was destroyed, their docks ruined, their ship
sank. Rumor has it they were destroyed by the Pirates shortly before their
own fall. Those members who did not drown tried to find new ways to find
purpose in their lives.
Since the construction of the Archangel, the Knighthood have largely taken
over their role as protectors of the high seas.
In the old days of Algoron, when the continents were split in two and the
oceans formed, a Clan arose of murderous villains who called themselves
Pirates. They were little better than Bloodlust with a dreadnaught, and
frequently were the enemies of honest merchants and travelers as much as
they were the forces of Light.
Just prior to the Cataclysm, the Pirates were notorious for attacking
Malachive when he first entered the realm of Algoron. In retaliation, he
crushed their port and destroyed their ship, along with many of their
members. Those who did not quickly fell in with Malice, and later
Bloodlust, in order to continue to slake their urge to destroy.
Their role has since been filled by numerous smaller organizations of
buccaneers and rogues, but evil lacks the impressive show of force it once
had on the oceans of Algoron.
Prior to the days of Chaos being formally organized, those with a will to
fight and a desire to be free tended to flock the wagons of Gypsy, who had a
simple creed: go where they pleased, when they pleased.
Anyone could and would join their ranks, though kender were perhaps the most
numerous Gypsies. Although they had no official policy for such, they were
known for housing many vampires amongst their ranks. The goals of Gypsy
were genuine in their desire for freedom. They had no grand plans of
conquest, just free trade and interaction across the world.
During the Cataclysm, the Gypsy wagons were burnt by Verminasia, and their
members scattered to the four winds.
Shrouded in mystery, little is known about the Disciples of Sarsen, save its
existence in old records.
Rumors concerning Sarsen are many and myriad, that it was a collection of
mystics and manatonics, that sorcerers and druids with unique goals gathered
together to see them present. That it had links to an ancient and more
powerful force than the Gods of Algoron. That it served some greater
purpose than Light, Twilight, or Darkness.
But cold, hard facts are few and far between. Particularly concerning its
fate. It may yet still exist, hidden away from the world.