A Roleplay Guide to the Faith Militant

[Burnsider 4542]

A Roleplay Guide to the Faith Militant

 

Table of Contents

• What is the Faith Militant?
• Roleplay Purpose
  • Defenders of the Faith
  • Enforcers of Canon Law
  • Seekers of Lost Relics
  • Purgers of the Ibleespwan
• Roleplay Niches
  • The Legion of Light
  • The House of Nicolites
  • The Knights of the Martyr

 

WHAT IS THE FAITH MILITANT?

 

For every organization on LOTC, there must be people prepared to defend it. Nations have their armies. Guilds have their warriors. Noble houses have their retinues. The Canonist Church has the Faith Militant. There is a long tradition of peaceful priests being protected by stalwart knights. However, the Faith Militant is more than simply bodyguards. They have a roleplay niche all their own, separate and distinct from other militaries and house guards. 

 

The Church of the Canon is the faith held by the majority of human characters on the server. They worship the Creator, whom they call God, and devote themselves to the study of the four divine scrolls, written by the four Exalted, humans with an especially close relationship with God. A roleplayer’s guide for the entire church can be found here: 

 

The Faith Militant of the Canonist Church can be any number of militant monastic or knightly orders that are approved of by the High Pontiff of the Church. The current leadership of the Church of the Canon has decided on a singular order, encompassing both a militant monastic group, an army of faithful soldiers, and a cadre of knights. This is the Order of Saint Nicolas the Martyr.

 

 

ROLEPLAY PURPOSE

 

Defenders of the Faith

 

The Faith Militant are the Defenders of the Faith. This makes them the personal guard to all priests, monks, and various clerical members of the Church of the Canon. However, it also extends far beyond that, for the Faith Militant are the defenders of the faithful entire. Wherever there are faithful Canonists under threat of attack by heathens, heretics, the excommunicated, or even the misguided zealot, there will be a member of the Faith Militant there to protect them. It was in this role that the Faith Militant was first founded in this world.

 

The original knightly order for the Church, the Order of the Black Sepulchres, was founded when pagan humans were raiding and killing the faithful throughout the realm. After being soundly defeated by the barbarians who worshiped hedonistic gods, the nine remaining members of the original Faith Militant came together to form this order, swearing to each other.

 

“There is not halt, there is not stop,

we cannot hinder and resign.

We must pay a debt for our slain brothers,

we Band of Nine.”

 

The Faith Militant can often go and defend the faithful when politics and treaties would prevent others from doing so. If a new convert in a heathen nation is being hunted for being an apostate of the heathen faith, soldiers of Canonist nations may be reluctant to help the convert for fear of breaking treaties or being the start of a war between nations. The Faith Militant cares not about these things. As they operate purely from the authority of the Church which largely stays neutral in politics, they would be able to assist without care for political reprisal.

 

Enforcers of Canon Law

 

The Faith Militant is also in charge of enforcing Canon Law among the Canonist realms. Canon Law, more formally known as the Codex of Ecclesiastical Laws of the Church of the Canon, are the rules that members of the faith are expected to follow.

 

Those that break these rules may be investigated by the Auditor of the Tribunal and his inquisitors. However, it is the Faith Militant that is in charge of bringing those who have broken Canon Law to trial, either willingly or by force. Canon Law is not generally about temporal punishment, but about bringing the impenitent to confession so that they become truly faithful again. That said, for exceptional crimes or exceptionally violent offenders, the Faith Militant must do what it can to protect the rest of the faithful from the offender. In the most extreme cases, that can and does include burning the heretic at the stake.

 

Seekers of Lost Relics

 

 

The Faith Militant are the seekers of lost relics. Due to the end of the old continents, pillaging by foreign invaders and thieves, and former unscrupulous clergymen, many of the ancient relics are no longer in the church’s possession. As holy warriors, it is the duty of the Faith Militant to venture into dark places and strange lands to find these lost relics. These missions can take multiple forms, but they take their cues from popular fiction such as National Treasure, Raiders of the Lost Ark, and finding Pieces of Eden in the Assassin’s Creed series of games.

 

Purgers of the Ibleespawn

 

 

The Faith Militant seeks out to destroy the Ibleespawn. These creatures of darkness corrupt the earth and the people in them. It is the duty of the knights of God to purge them from the lands and send them back to Iblees and the Void. They seek out the Heralds, Azdrazi, and dragonspawn. They purge the undead, the Xionites, and the Ibleespawn. They quest against the vampires and those irreparably corrupted by Voidal magics. The Faith Militant will find many unlikely bedfellows in this quest, often pairing up with organizations outside of the Canonist faith in order to take down these threats to the whole of the realm.

 

ROLEPLAY NICHES

 

The Legion of Light

 

The Legion of Light is the army of laymen that are part of the Faith Militant. They are the Order of Saint Nicolas’ men-at-arms from which knights of the Order are eventually recruited. These men swear the oath of office, known as the Oratio Fidelis, in front of their brethren and serve for terms of seven years. Exceptional members of the legion will be inducted as armigers, or officers, of the legion. These armigers will eventually pass through the five rings of trials to show their dedication and skill. Of those who pass, the most dedicated and pious will be selected to complete a knightly quest for induction as Knights of the Martyr.

 

The Legion of Light is the perfect place where you begin in the Faith Militant. Many will never choose to progress from here, as the requirements of the knights and monastics proves too great a burden for them. This allows players to have a temporary home in the Faith Militant, never swearing lifetime oaths, only seven OOC week oaths. Those exceptional armigers may be selected to carry the banner of the Faith Militant into battle or bear the Grandmaster’s shield or sword.

 

The House of Nicolites

 

 

For the remarkably pious members of the Faith Militant who see service in the Order as an extension of their service to the church, the House of Nicolites may be the ideal choice. These militant monks and nuns became part of the Faith Militant because they believe that it is their duty as monastics to protect the church and the faithful over other peaceful, scholastic pursuits. The Nicolites are also the healers of the Order, many of which operate in field hospitals during the battles the Order participates in.

 

The House of Nicolites is the ideal place for those who wish to participate in the Faith Militant while being more than simply laity. These monks and nuns swear lifetime oaths and are ordained into the church. They have duties separate from that of the rest of the laity in the Faith Militant, and often form their own abbeys and monasteries, led by an abbot. 

 

The Knights of the Martyr

 

 

The Knights of the Martyr are the leaders of the Faith Militant, steadfast defenders of the faithful. They swear lifetime oaths to the order and are forced to give up their name, titles, and claims in order to eliminate all other distractions and obligations in their life. Many take on names of martyrs or saints in history as given names, while taking a Flexio surname as a sort of epithet or sobriquet.

 

The process to become a knight is very detailed. The candidate, upon completing their knightly quest, must live a year in poverty and prayer, dressed only in sackcloth. At the end of the year, he is given ablution, anointed in holy oil by members of the priesthood, and draped in the black cloths of the Order. They are often bestowed a relic of the order to personally protect.

 

There are many positions of leadership among the knights of the Faith Militant. Each member of the Faith Militant’s leadership takes on a specific mantle of duty, whether it be the destruction of unholy creatures, the protection of the clergy, the training of the armsmen and armigers, the retrieval of lost relics, or leadership of the Legion of Light. At the head of the Faith Militant is the Grandmaster.

[Guzr 2049]

Very well done. Good work :)

As a Holy Knight that doesn't get much time to play anymore I'd definitely recommend it