Far up in the high north where the cold is said to be able to kill any common man lies a small land occupied by a group of independent people known by few as the Archonians. They are a strict people when it comes to outsiders and their views of life if one were to question it. They value death just as much as life itself and would one cheat death it would be their duty to deliver death to them. And so the Archonian Order was made between the families of the north, together they would send out parties of their most able warriors and assassins to seek out any threats to the circle of life.
The Archonians do not seek war, they do not have an army but their warriors, both men and women are trained to withstand any threats. Without the fear of facing death they will do their part when facing what they were trained for. They do not bend the knee to any Kings, Queens, Emperors or any kind royalty that may try to control their people, they only follow their own leader known as the Archon and rather than sitting on a throne the Archon is more likely standing among his warriors or hunters.
The Archonians values their lives highly but with the harsh environment in the North causing an ever-increasing death ratio, death had become a regular occurance. Over time they began to worship death as a singular entity, a Godess, who would one day come forth and claim their lives as her own. The unrelenting icy grip of Northern Elyria caused the Archonians to truly understand life, as well death.
The Archonians began to accept the inevitable, that death cannot be stopped, with this understanding they began to take a stand against unnatural beings that had managed to somehow achieve “immortality”; for it stood against everything they had grown to believe. Although some would say that eternal life would be a great, wonderful gift the Archonians instead see it as an insult; to cheat death herself. Following the discovery of these unnatural beings they began a quiet, yet mighty crusade throughout the realm in order to hunt down such beings and to force death unto them, one way or another. The Archonians follow Elyrian rumours and tales, for simply claiming to be immortal is in itself an insult worthy enough to unwillingly summon the punishing hand of the Archonian Order,
Dying is an honor for the Archonians yet forcing it onto oneself isn’t, in fact it’s the very opposite; Death will know when the time is right. The Order look after one another well and are very kind and generous amongst themselves; for a content life allows one to truly comprehend death in her beautiful, ruthless entirety. The bravest of the Archonians are said to enjoy life the most and, if worthy, walk with death herself once they reach their end of days. The Archonians have several phrases among their people, the most notable are, “You’re never alone but you’re on your own,” which means that death will always accompany them, watching, ready to see them through any eventuallity. "Death is not a punishment, it is a release,” is a very literal phrase that has been used by House Devanon for many generations and is something they say to both themselves and to their enemies.
Although the Archonian Order may simply come across as a cult fascinated by death, they see a much larger picture of the realm they live in. They pledge themselves to stop and eliminate anybody who seeks immortality as they believe that it would pose a threat to every living thing; and those who turn a blind eye share the same penalties of that very crime against nature.
The Archonian Order hasn’t had a publicly known military presence in their recorded history, despite there being a small number of texts citing several military achivements and events within their history, the age and authenticity of these scripts remains uncertain; even to the present day Archonians themselves. One such script cites the Archonian Deathguard, which is hinted toward being a fully fledged army during it’s prime, created with the idea of besieging towns and cities under the influence of immortals in mind; with their leader, the Primarch, leading the way.
All Archonians are combat trained to varying degrees and all stand ready for battle. Every day miners, blacksmiths and farmers make up the majority of the Archonian combat forces which consists of various different forms of duty.
- Ranger, Those who focus on ranged weaponry and tracking skills.
- Warrior, Those who focus on melee combat and brute strength.
- Specialist, The role for those who focus on aiding in other ways i.e. using siege equipment, medicine brewing, mounted combat and supply gathering/making.
The hierarchy within the Archonian Order is quite strict, while the Archon's word is somewhat nailed down as law, each head of every family has the title of Hierarch. They decide what goes and doesn't within their own families when it comes family matters but together the Hierarchs work to unite the families and keep their homes safe from infighting. Just beneath the heads stands the Arch Nobles, known to be the strongest and wisest within each family. Highly respected among the Archonian people.
While they do not have an army nor seek war with outsiders their is a very unique title for when the time of war does arrive at their lands and that is for a Primarch to be chosen. One who would act as a commanding figure for military efforts and would stand next to the Archon in rank. Another unique title is Archmage, for those who are loyal and can wield the arcane arts. The Archonians are very suspicious of such powers to begin with and would most likely kill anyone who would claim that they could wield it.
Name: House Devanon (Ruling House)
Head: Archon Drax
Motto: "Death is not a punishment, It is a release"
Speciality: Extraordinary warriors (Death Dealers) and architects.
Views: Drax and his family will greet death when it arrives, until then they will expand their family and domain throughout their lives. Drax main targets are people who seek to become immortal, in his eyes it’s an abomination and should not be allowed for anyone to achieve. In their eyes someone who achieve immortality also acquire time as their greatest weapon who can simply outlive their foes and justice which makes that a threat to many things.
