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Description

The Ashen Wardens, also called The Ashwardens or simply Wardens, are a collective of censors and paladins who roam Aravale and the greater continent of Eryndor in search of monsters and abominations believed to be creations of The Unmaker.

They are maintained by The Church of Eight where they recieve their training, blessings and equipment.

They are unlike typical Knights of the kingdom as they do not inherit their station through noble blood or being sworn to by highborn nobles. Instead their authority and power comes from the Church, their vows and rituals, especially The Rite of Flame are what seperate them from an ordinary life.

Purpose

The Ashwardens exist purely as a sword of the Church, they attack all corruption that threatens order of ordinary life.

Duties often include

• Hunting undead and necromancers.
• Destroying infernal and otherworldly creatures.
• Investigating suspected supernatural corruption.
• Cleansing cursed ruins, tombs and battlefields.
• Containing dangerous relics or magical contamination.
• Assisting settlements overwhelmed by creatures beyond the ability of local guards.
• Recording and reporting unusual monstrosities to the Church.
• Pursuing Wardens who have deserted, been denounced, or become Lost.

Appearance

Wardens kit is simple and not precscribed for each solider, it is culturally normal for each warden to decide their own path when it comes to how they go about their cleansing.
Many wear simple iron or steel armour given to them by The Church during their successful completion of The Rite of Flame

They always carry and wear a ceremonial deep red cloak often the only fine possession a warden will ever own and it is sacred to them.

During a revoking of a wardens duties it is commonplace for the cloak to be taken as a sign that that warden has been stripped of their duties and disgraced in the eyes of The Eight

Lifestyle

"Food and Ale from the sower, Lodging from the hearthkeeper, no more and no less or else the witness should take out my gluttonous eyes". - Brother Arcole

Traditionally, Wardens are expected to live modestly, taking only what they need to eat, sleep and maintain a sharp edged sword. It is almost entirely belief that would keep the wardens behaving this way.

Any excess payments, wealth or treasure that is found if it does not serve the wardens mission, must be donated back to the church as a form of service to give back to that which was given to them.

In recent times, the relationships of wardens and their sponsors have become strained. Wardens are soldiers of an expiring war, most people of the realm feel that the time of The unmakers hounds of war are over and wardens are lost souls wandering the plane before waiting to be taken to The Stranger. They see that large portions of Eryndor have grown considerably safer than once before. And the church increasingly redirects resources that used to flow to wardens into The Sentinels of Eight and hospitals, education and other religious foundations.

Some wardens see this as the end of their days, others as their job has been done properly and proof their sacrifice was worthwhile.

Recruitment

The recruitment of The Aswardens has changed considerably since its inception.

Originally during periods of widesread supernatural threat, the order could draw heavily from adult volunteers, soldiers, survivors and relgious devotees. Anyone who lost greatly from creatures of The Unmaker would willingly enter the order despite knowing the costs.

As threats have diminished, so too has the number of volunteers into the order. The modern order increasingly recruits from the pool of children who have been raised by the church, oprhans, and poorer walks of life who have been given a second chance through this service.

Church raised children are 'technically' meant to choose their own path, in practice many have spent their childhood being groomed for the warden service before being offered meaningful alternatives.

The Rite of Flame

The ritual that transforms a candidate from trained warrior into a fully empowered Warden.

It takes place inside Eversaint at a temple devoted to the wardens, the rite is difficult, expensive and irreversible.

Sacred trees cultivated around the church are harvested to provide material used during the ceremony. Their bark, sap and ash form part of the closely guarded ritual.

the exact workings of this process are passed from senior priest to senior priest and handed down over the years. During the ceremony the candidate is stripped of all symbols and clothing except that of a simple robe of plain linen with a necklace bearing The Eightstar. Sacred oils is poured over their head and ash from the sacred tree is rubbed covering their entire upper face. Priests say prayers of protection, courage and strength between ancient chants spoken in Oldtongue.

The candidate is asked questions and swears vows and an oath before brothers, priests and The Eight.
They swear to protect all who cannot protect themselves.
To preserve life where it can still be preserved.
To act responsibly with the power they have been blessed with.
Travel wherever duty requires.
Endure fear and hardship without surrender.
Give all material possessions to the church.
Seed no children.
Share no love beside the love for their gods.
Accept that all must eventually face the stranger and wardens must take the long walk.

All the oathes and vows are sworn before The Witness as faith is the biggest bond for wardens to continue to perform their duties.

The Cost

The rite of flame is considered a blessing, but to many it can be seen as a curse.
It damages the body permanently in scarring and marked flesh.

Wardens gain additional resilience, reflexes, and strength, that a normal human does not possess and can even sense the abominations of The Unmaker.

These gifts come at a cost to the vitatlity and fertility of the person involed, reducing their expected lifespan to 30-40 years before the invevitable amnesia sets in.
The wardens also become infertile.

Ashing / The Last Vigil

Ashing is the term used to describe the inevitable set in of amnesia like symptoms the wardens begin to experience.
Additionally the wardens sometimes unexpectantly enter fits of deep rag e and sudden impulsivity that has no explanation.

Ashing makes Wardens particularly dangerous and vulnerable, which is when they are sworn to take The Last Vigil, which is a suicide mission involving the warden taking themselves into the heart of darkness, usually a dark forest, a deep cave or similiar infested area to fight until they are destroyed and taken to meet The Stranger.

Among Wardens, it is regarded simultaneously as duty, death and a sacred privilege.

Some wardens accept the last vigil, others do not.

Desertion and Judgement

A Warden may abandon the Church, but they cannot undo the Rite of Flame.

Because of their powers, knowledge, deteriorating condition and the dangers associated with the Ashing, the Church treats desertion as an exceptionally serious matter.

Wardens who flee service are pursued.

Those who surrender may be returned to the Church for judgment. Those who resist are often killed during their capture.

The order commonly distinguishes between several categories.

The Denounced

Wardens formally accused of grave misconduct, corruption, unlawful killing, collaboration with monstrosities or betrayal of their vows.

Deserters

Wardens who abandon their duty, flee Church oversight or refuse lawful summons.

The Lost

Wardens believed to have deteriorated beyond reliable judgment, succumbed to the consequences of the Rite, vanished while compromised, or otherwise become a danger to themselves and others.

Whenever possible, such Wardens are brought before the Church rather than simply executed.

Their case is heard under the authority of the Witness.

The Church considers judgment important even where guilt appears obvious. Testimony is heard, deeds are recorded and the actions of the accused are formally acknowledged.

A Warden who violently resists capture, however, is unlikely to be afforded that opportunity.

A traditional order given to those pursuing a deserter is:

Bring them before the Witness if they will come. Bring their ashes if they will not. - Father Anders

Reputation

To many ordinary people, the arrival of an Ash Warden is both reassuring and frightening.

They are living evidence that someone is willing to confront horrors most people would flee.

They are also evidence that something nearby is serious enough to require them.

Stories of Wardens saving villages, cleansing tombs and destroying abominations are common throughout Eryndor. So too are stories of excessive zeal, mistaken judgment and settlements that were burned because a Warden decided the corruption could not safely be contained.

Most communities therefore receive the crimson cloak with a mixture of gratitude and unease.

Culture

Old warden culture used to treat the ash warden role like an apprenticeship of sorts. Young wardens would travel with a mentor who taught all relevant skills the warden would need to know, from how to craft herbal potions from the nearby available grasses, to which weapons best suits killing a Alygrr.

As time has passed and the introduction to services like Knights and Mercenaries has begun. Alongside the decrease in abominations around the realm. The demand for ash wardens has dropped, and with expensive running costs, training and the ritual all eating out of the churches budget for the wardens, things are not what they used to be.

Many wardens in the current time are under resourced and under trained. The 'apprenticeship' is no longer provided to many wardens, most of whom are left to essentially self teach the skills as they go