Factions and Organizations (Sylfaen Supplement)

Sylfaen is filled with intrigue between opposing groups, factions and guilds, in a constant battle for dominance. Here will be detail the more important groups that shape history in the world of Sylfaen.

Historical

Guardians of the Seal

Tasked with the mission to protect the three seals that guard an ancient god, preventing him from consuming this world, the guardians of the seal were vital to ensure the protection not just of Tyr, but from this and other worlds.

Active

Imperial Army of Tyr

The imperial army of tyr is the greatest military force in the whole world, and the main reason, alongside with the Magisterium and the War Mages, for the success of the empire. The Imperial Army is subdivided in the following subgroups: The Expeditionary Forces, The Imperial Infantry, The Emperor Paladins, The War Mages and the Imperial Navy. These orders will be explained down below:

The Imperial Infantry

The main force of the imperial army, these are highly trained footsoldiers of the empire. They are recruited from a very young age, due to the Law of Service, that determines that each family in an imperial city must offer a son or daughter to serve the empire as a soldier. The family must provide resources in form of special taxes to pay for the training and armament of the soldier. In return, any family member that serves after that one retire or die may use the same armament, since it becomes a family heirloom, kept by the empire until another family member becomes a soldier.

Hierarchy

The hierarchy in the imperial army mixes nobility and meritocracy as methods of rewarding ranks to the soldiers.

Militiaman. The lowest rank is that of a Militiaman. When a family doesn't have enough money to pay for a family member training and equipment, they can turn him into a militiaman instead. They are lightly armored and unskilled soldiers, who make the bulk of the imperial army. Each imperial soldier, regardless of age, is considered a militiaman as long as they are able to hold a weapon, but they are divided in two groups: professional and unprofessional militiaman. Professional ones are recruited in a very young age trained in the local fortress every year, and are semi-professional soldiers. They don't receive a salary, but are paid for missions when recruited. They are mostly armed with a longbow, a studded leather armor or chain shirt, and wield a shortsword. unprofessional militia are commoners who use any weapon they can get their hands on.

Footsoldier. Footsoldiers are the core of the imperial army, and the true first rank in the military hierarchy. They usually start their training at 9-10 years old, being taught military history, combat, strategy and the basics of commanding. Footsoldiers receive a salary, since they are permanent troopers, and also 5 percent of any pillage from enemies, divided by their superiors, split amongst all footsoldiers. They have as armaments scale mails, a longsword, a light crossbow, a metal or wooden shield and a spear.

Footsoldiers must serve for 25 years before being allowed to retire. They can retire earlier if another member of their family becomes a footsoldier, but must return to service if their full service time hasn't ended if that family member dies.

Squire. A squire is a footsoldiers chosen by a knight to be trained as a knight. In addition to their normal footsoldier duties, they must take care of a knight's armaments and horse, train in horseback riding, heraldic and oratory. Each knight will often choose a Knight when they want to assume a position of command becoming an officer, or when they want to retire.

A knight will also be the squire patron, paying for their training and equipment when they become a knight themselves.

Knight. When a squire training is completed, they become a knight. Becoming a knight is a great honor, since a knight becomes part of the small nobility, gaining rights to a small plot of land for themselves, releasing their families from the duties of military taxation, and gaining great prestige. Usually a knight will be assigned a land under the domains of a lord of the five houses, which is both a blessing and a curse, since after earning that land, they become subjects of that lord, being obliged to come to his aid when required.

For a soldier not inclined to a position of command, becoming a Knight is the top of the hierarchical ladder, and a dream for many young boys that enter the imperial army. Some knights are members of specific knightly orders, although is not a requirement, and most knights aren't part of an order. Knightly orders usually exist to achieve a specific goal, and any knight with sufficient reputation and a good motive may require the funds and authorization to create a Knightly Order. For more details on existing Knightly Orders, look at the specific section below.

A knight's equipment is the following: a melee weapon of choice, a shield, a plate armor and a lance.

Lieutenant.

Captain.

Commander.

Warlord.

Military Organization

Law and Punishment

Black Fangs

This milenar organization existed way before Tyr even existed, created by the first humans to learn the dragon tongue, but who morphed and evolved through the centuries to the current form. The black fangs believe in restoring the glory to the Draconic Empire, reinstate the Age of the Dragon Lords.

Sons of the Whisper

Also known as the Adepts of the Everchanging Flesh, the sons of the whispers are worshipers of Ghauran, the Shapeless, and the All-Seeing Eye, a being made of flesh and eyes, in constantly movement and change. The members of this cult tend to be proficient in alchemy and transmutation, and operate as spies, trying to nod the powers in Daear for their own vile purposes. Most high-ranking members of the cult are shapeshifters of some kind, with many doppelgangers and changelings amongst their ranks.

The main objective of the sons of the whisper is to break the Three Seals, the magical locks who impede the arrival of Ghauran on the world. To achieve this objective, they look for artifacts such as the Crimson Codex, who have the positions of the seals listed, and the rituals needed to break them.

They are called sons of the whisper due to the ability most members from the cult have from hearing voices in their head, commanding their actions, voices of Ghauran that mark them as his chosen.

The sons of the whisper are known to work in tandem with demon worshipers of all types, and even to help them with either patronage or direct help. The reasons why the followers of Ghauran have any interest in helping the denizens of the abyss and their followers remains a mystery.

Fists of the Tempest

When the Schism of the Guardians of the Seal happened, some of their members remain fighting against the demonic forces who threaten Daear, regardless of the risks posed to their own lives. They were led by a legendary knight of the seal called Heiran, or the Tempest Knight, a mythical hero turned god by the Macadian faith. He kept his fight against the forces of the abyss until his death, and others follow his example, keeping the true goal of the Guardians of protecting the world from demonic influence by relentlessly hunting demons and their followers.

Currently, the order numbers are sparse, mostly scattered through the continent, and some even think that the order have died completely. However, there are those who keep fighting to protect the very empire who betrayed them from the corrupt influence of demons.

Broken Storms

When the guardians of the seal were destroyed, without the power of their deceased god besides them, and with the crescent threat of demonic invasion afoot, some guardians chose to take desperate measures to hunt demons. The Broken Storms devised methods to harness the power of demons, using against themselves. Their current leader, Dayna the Faceless, have been playing a dangerous game, by summoning a powerful demon imprisoned in the ruins of Castle Greenmore, the new headquarters for the order.

The Magisterium

---

Back to Main Page → 5e Homebrew → Campaign Settings → Sylfaen