The Warders are an elite cadre of knights in The Black Rose Society, comprised of a painstakingly-selected group of uniquely talented warriors.  They take an oath of service for life, swearing to serve The Company, The Lady, and The Free Peoples until death.  Their motto, “For all the points of the compass, there is but one direction, and time is its only measure” sums up their generally fatalistic philosophy.  They are often given missions either too sensitive or too dangerous for the regular Society operators, who tend to be fairly talented themselves.  Their life expectancy has been so short since their inception at the Battle of Westergarde that it is said Kironius Mengst visits each before they take the oath and asks their blessing to kill them.

    Each Warder is issued a suit of armor magically created by the company wizards out of a special black alloy originally developed in a collaboration between Dwarven and Elven artisans; this full plate and chain suit is lightweight, almost silent to move in, and provides an incredible level of protection.  On their more difficult or grim assignments, they’re known to wear a skull design in black and white face paint.  They are also issued incredibly large and willful black warhorses specially bred for them in Westergarde.

WS	BS	S	T	AG	Int	WP	Fel
+40	+40	+20	+20	+30	+10	+20
A	W	SB	TB	M	Mag	IP	FP
+2	+8

Animal Care, Intimidate, Ride, Animal Training, Common Knowledge (Southlands), Common Knowledge (Northlands), Dodge Blow, Read/Write, Secret Language (Battle Tongue), Speak Language (Southlands), Torture

Fearless, Lightning Parry, Marksman, Quickdraw, Rapid Reload, Resistance to Magic, Sharpshooter, Specialist Weapon Group (any two), Stout-Hearted, Strike Mighty Blow, Strike to Injure, Strong-Minded, Trick Riding, Very Resiliant, Warrior Born

Warder Armor (ALL7), Best-Quality Weapon, Warder Warhorse, Warder Cloak w/ Society Epaulets, Warder Paint Sticks and Solvent

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    Several thousand years ago, Terain Sharin’we, the most renown swordsman of the Elven people, commissioned a team of artisans to create for him a hundred exquisite magical katanas.  With these special weapons he founded a new martial school, known as the Etu’sauri, or Blade Dancers.  Each of the hundred students of Sharin’we then took on one apprentice to whom the blade would go to upon their convalescence or death.  Thus, the line of the Etu’sauri carried on through the centuries.  In a few cases the lines were broken and the swords fell into obscurity, some in private collections and others simply lost, but for the most part, a majority of the original hundred Etu’sauri swords are in the hands of trained masters.

    It is considered extremely unwise to carry an Etu’sauri sword unearned.  Etu’sauri are honor-bound and driven to punish those who do with their lives, retrieve the sword, and continue the lost line of the blade.

    Etu’sauri are considered by all as the penultimate masters of their art.  They are universally renowned, respected, and feared.  It is considered a worthwhile scholarly pursuit in many circles to study and track the various lines of Etu’sauri, much like one would study heraldic devices, and stories have been told of entire armies surrendering when faced with an Etu’sauri on the field.

    It is rumored that the swords themselves contain powers above and beyond their exquisite craftsmanship.  Stories are told of of one or two “bastard” or “hedge” lines of Etu’sauri – masters who received little or no formal training from the prior wielder before receiving the blade but who still possess many of the talents of a formally-trained master.  The reality is that when Etu’sauri masters die with their blades in-hand, the blade becomes infused with their spirit, adding that master’s knowledge and experience and making it available, in some small way, to subsequent wielders.

WS	BS	S	T	AG	Int	WP	Fel
+25		+15	+5	+30		+10
A	W	SB	TB	M	Mag	IP	FP
+1	+4			+1

• Deflect Missiles: The apprentice can deflect slow-moving projectiles (including arrows and quarrels) with a successful parry.

Wooden Etu’sauri practice sword (Blunt, SB-1, Defensive, Best Quality +5)

Etu’sauri Sword (SB+1, Impact, Defensive, Armor Piercing, Precise, Exquisite Quality +10)

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    The Knights Leopold are the personal guard of the Emperor and royal family.  They are responsible for the security of the palace and any place the royal family may visit, including providing security for visiting dignitaries.  Each member of the order was required to complete at least an apprenticeship at the Collge Arcanum in Teribain before earning their distinctive mithril armor.  They were renowned through all the lands for their quiet competance and dedication to their duty.

    They were thought to all have been slain defending the Emperor at Aidan’s Crossing at the time of the Kisharan invasion, but it’s possible that some of their number remain and may even be recruiting new knights.

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Sniper

WS	BS	S	T	AG	Int	WP	Fel
+25	+25	+10	+10	+30	+20	+10	+20
A	W	SB	TB	M	Mag	IP	FP
+2	+4

Concealment, Disguise, Gossip, Scale Sheer Surface, Shadowing, Silent Move

Flee!, Excellent Vision, Marksman, Master Gunner, Mighty Shot, Rapid Reload, Sharpshooter, Specialist Weapon Group (Gunpowder and Engineer), Strike to Injure, Sure Shot

Northlands Long Rifle, Rope and Grappnel