Colors: Purple and Blue
Current Guild Leader: Sir Joh Duke, Order of the Blue Cloth, Field Marshal
Requirements to Join: Must join through the Order of the Squire
Requirements of Membership: Keep the Oath of Honor
Majority Composition: Diplomats, Soldiers
Minority Composition: The old nobility
On the Guild Council?: Yes

Back in the olden days of the Torodan Monarchy, the Knights and Nobles had all of the power that the Guilds enjoy today. Despite being overthrown, some of their traditions still survive in the Knight’s Guild. The official purpose of the knight’s guild is to provide and train soldiers and diplomats for Torodan. Unofficially, they also keep many of the old ways of chivalry and monarchy alive. Within their guild, the Guild Leader is always a member of the Order of the Blue Cloth. Unlike most other guilds, where a sense of democracy is present, the Knight’s Guild follows a strict hierarchy, with each Order actually being subservient to another, and the leader is chosen by noble bloodline as in days of old. The guild intermarries with other nations, serving practical functions, both for family lines and diplomatic ties, inside and outside of the guild. There are some rumors that the guild maintains the bloodline of the monarchy, which I could neither confirm nor deny in my travels.

Joining the Knight’s Guild is remarkably easy, and while it can be a good track for those who want to serve the military but do not care for the disorder that sometimes goes with the adventurer’s guild, there is a limited Order of advancement for those who join. All who join, noble blood included, enter in at the level of squire, progressing from Order to Order. If a person of noble blood is to become a diplomat, they are immediately moved to the Order of the Blue Cloth following their graduation from Squire. Those outside of the noble families who advance are able to enter the Order of the Castle, but cannot progress onward to the Order of the Blue Cloth, the highest Order in the organization. As all positions of authority reside within the Order of the Blue Cloth, no one without noble blood has ever succeeded in becoming a Chapter Head, much less a Guild Leader, although members without noble blood can still rise to commanding ranks within the military as a whole.

I was surprised to find that the latest addition to the Guild Council was the representative for the Knight’s Guild. In the past, the guilds have been wary of the Knight’s Guild, not wanting to give them too much power, fearing an uprising of the old monarchy. 1000 years may have been enough, it seems, and the Knight’s Guild has proven its loyalty to the current system of government, at least in the eyes of the current Guilds. They are on good terms with the Mage’s Guild, who have controlled the Guildmaster and thus the officiating branch of the military, and the Adventurer’s Guild, the other form of military, although the latter often comes out in the form of a friendly rivalry between the two organizations. There are voices in the guilds who are cautious of giving the Knight’s Guild too much power, but these are spread out and not in any particular Order.

The Order of the Blue Cloth

Symbol: A blue cloth on a purple field
Current Order Leader: Lady Lyonna Duke, Guildmaster’s Advisor on Foreign Affairs
Requirements to Join: Sponsorship by a current member and passing a test by a review board, must have been a member of the Order of the Castle, Keep, or Dark Steed for at least 1 year, and must have noble blood.
Requirements of Membership: Must maintain oath of chivalry

The Order of the Blue Cloth is the most exclusive Order in Torodan, and one of the most powerful. As with many of the more exclusive orders, there is a code of conduct that is rigidly enforced by the Order, but that is not all. One must have noble blood, either from the old noble families of Torodan, or from one of the other nations of humanity, before one can even be considered for membership. The main families of the Blue Cloth are the Dukes, the Barons, the Counts, and the Knights, all of whom maintain their noble blood nigh to perfection, marrying with the noble families of other countries to keep “peasant blood,” out of the family. While many of the other guilds frown on this, and the fact that these families control the Knight’s Guild (a Duke has always been in charge of the Knight’s Guild since it’s inception) the Guild structure allows it, and there is little that can be done to revoke the charter of the most powerful military and diplomatic guild in Torodan. The Guild Leader is always a male member of the Duke family, and the Order Leader of the Blue Cloth is always his wife. In the cases where one or the other has not been available due to age or Order restrictions, someone of the other 3 families will hold the office of Regent in the Guild until someone suitable is available. To be a provincial, regional, chapter head, or order leader within the Knight’s Guild, one must first be a member of the Order of the Blue Cloth selected by the current Guild Leader. The exception is in the Order of the Dark Steed, which is lead by one of its own, although the Guild Leader still chooses the successor. The Order of the Blue Cloth consists of the military and diplomatic leaders of Torodan, who are more equipped at dealing with both a structured military rule and maintaining ties to monarchal nations than most of the other guilds. After sponsorship and review of bloodline, an initiate must swear the following oath:

“Upon the gods, I (name of the initiate), do hereby submit to the following tenants:
First, the tenant of Fair Play: To never attack an unarmed foe, never charge an unhorsed opponent, never attack from behind, avoid cheating, and avoid torture.
Second, the tenant of Nobility: To exhibit self-discipline, show respect to authority, obey the law, administer justice, administer mercy, protect the innocent, and respect women.
Third, the tenant of Valor: To exhibit courage in word and deed, avenge the wronged, defend the weak and innocent, fight with honor, and never abandon a friend, ally, or noble cause.
Fourth, the tenant of Honor: To always keep one's word of honor, always maintain one's principles, never betray confidence or comrade, avoid deception, and respect life.
Fifth, the tenant of Courtesy: To exhibit manners, be polite and attentive, and to be respectful of host, authority, honor and women
And Sixth, the tenant of Loyalty: To be loyal to The High Church, Torodan, The Knight’s Guild, and the codes of Chivalry, always respect and obey the law unless the law is wrongful, always be kind and never cruel, give mercy to those that ask for it, always be truthful and never lie, defend the Law of Good and seek to stop injustice, have compassion to the weak, frail, and oppressed, and seek to help them in any way, be charitable to others and give to those in need, to always succor women when they are in distress, to love your country, family, god, and uphold them in any way, to always put the needs of others above the needs of yourself, and finally to live a pure and noble life.”

At this time, the initiate obtains the title of Sir or Lady, depending on gender, and is now a member of the Order of the Blue Cloth. Should any member, at any time, be accused by another member of the Blue Cloth of breaking their oath, they will immediately be held for review by the Knight’s Guild and, if found to be in violation of their oath, will be ostracized from the guild and stripped of their military rank and title.

The Order of the Dark Steed

Symbol: A black horse’s head on a purple field with blue trim
Current Order Leader: Sir Roland Baron, Order of the Dark Steed, General of the Army of Torodan
Requirements to Join: Sponsorship by a current member, must be a member of the Order of the Blue Cloth or the Order of the Castle, other requirements
Requirements of Membership: Unknown

When an investigation of nobility, either in Torodan or beyond, is needed, the Order of the Dark Steed is called upon. Though officially registered with the guilds, the Order of the Dark Steed has only one official member, the rest of its members acting independently as members of the Order of the Blue Cloth or the Order of the Castle. All trials of oathbreakers are said to occur within the Order of the Dark Steed, and the Dark Steed has been blamed for dozens of crimes against the people of Torodan and other nations, although not a single rumor has been substantiated against it or its members, who are not officially listed in any documentation. Officially, the Order Leader of the Dark Steed has the authority to strip any member of the Knight’s Guild, including the Guild Leader, of his rank, authority, and privileges, leading to rumors that all of the Order Leaders, Provincials, Regionals, and some say even Chapterheads being members of the Order of the Dark Steed, although I seriously doubt that their power runs so far as that. Though I find the theory to be unsubstantiated, I cannot actually state that it is untrue, as I found no members of the Order of the Dark Steed in my travels. I am sure that the Dark Steed maintains records somewhere, but having been unable to find them, it is impossible to know who is truly a member and who is not.

The Order of the Castle

Symbol: A grey castle on a purple field with blue trim
Current Order Leader: Sir Alen Duke, Order of the Blue Cloth, Representative of Torodan to the nation of Campaigna
Requirements to Join: Sponsorship by a current member, must be a member of the Order of the Squire or the Order of the Keep for at least 1 year
Requirements of Membership: Must enter into a squire-ship under a member of the Order of the Blue Cloth

The Order of the Castle is the diplomatic arm of the Knight’s Guild, where most future diplomats receive their training. Maintaining a system of squire-ship, those in the Order of the Castle must find a member of the Order of the Blue Cloth to squire under. Due to the high privileges granted by this Order, many who cannot advance to become part of the Order of the Blue Cloth stay in the Order of the Castle as “career squires.” While technically under the control of another, those who take this route and can be trusted to do a good job are sometimes given independent positions as diplomats, either while the member from the Order of the Blue Cloth is away or, occasionally, on a permanent or semi-permanent basis. While some military leaders come out of the Order of the Castle, this is not usually the case, most members with a future in the military moving straight from the Order of the Keep to the Order of the Blue Cloth, although for diplomatic reasons more than one gifted “commoner,” has found his way into the Order of the Castle as a high ranking military official.

The Order of the Keep

Symbol: A grey keep on a blue field with purple trim
Current Order Leader: Sir Patrick Oler, Order of the Blue Cloth, Admiral of the Navy of Torodan, Captain of the Crescent Moon
Requirements to Join: Sponsorship by Order Leader, minimum rank of Sergeant in the Army or Navy of Torodan, must be a member of the Order of the Squire for at least 1 year
Requirements of Membership: Must maintain military service under the army or navy of Torodan

As the Order of the Castle is to diplomacy, the Order of the Keep is to the military. While technically of lower rank than the Order of the Castle, the Order of the Keep takes center stage on military matters, its members controlling the army, and to some extent the navy, of Torodan. In the army, 45% of the military leaders of Torodan of Sergeant rank or higher are members of this Order, with 15% belonging to the Order of the Blue Cloth, 25% belonging to the Adventurer’s Guild, 5% the Mage’s, 5% the High Church, and 5% other guilds and organizations. While most of these leaders are of the rank lower than that of Lieutenant Colonel, the Order of the Keep never having had a member of higher rank than Brigadier General, the Order of the Keep contains within it most of the command structure of the Torodan army, giving it a large amount of power despite being without any real authority. The Order’s Leader, Sir Oler, is cousin to the Guild Leader of the Mage’s Guild, and the two have a strong relationship and, if rumors are correct, each holds a deep trust in the other’s abilities and confidences.

The Order of the Squire

Symbol: A grey tower on a blue field with purple trim
Current Order Leader: Lady Tyrina Count, Order of the Blue Cloth, Lieutenant General of the Army of Torodan
Requirements to Join: Open recruitment, must undergo 6 months of military or service training (3 gold for training session’s basic equipment)
Requirements of Membership: Must maintain service as required by the Order of the Squire

The bulk of the Knight’s Guild lies within the Order of the Squire. Originally created for those who were to squire to members of the Order of the Blue Cloth, the Order of the Squire has given that responsibility to the Order of the Castle, which formed from portions of the Order of the Keep and the Order of the Squire 129 years ago. These days, the common soldiers of Torodan, almost all soldiers of less than Sergeant Rank, form the bulk of the Order of the Squire, with a few members of the old noble families going through the Order as a necessary part of training for the higher orders. Despite its large size, the Order of the Squire has almost no power within the Knight’s Guild, a fact that is understood by its members as a part of the command and control structure of the guild.