The Organization

The greatest assassination group in all of Ea

Operations and Tactics

The Organization are known as the most effective and tenacious killers, most effective spies and saboteurs, and best underworld agents that can be bought, bar none. No wall is thick enough, no bodyguards tough enough, or safehouse hidden well enough to keep them from their prey, and they take little notice of social or political status, seeing all marks as equal if their client pays the price.
Contacting the Organization can be a tricky proposition, as there are no direct channels. Those in search of their skills must spread rumors among the lowest, most criminal members of a given society and wait to be contacted by a representative...or, more commonly, Perform a sacred rite known as The Sanguine Sacrament and whisper The Shadow's Prayer, which will invariably draw their attention...however, they never respond to Sacraments performed to lure them out, and in fact such creatures are known to become their next targets. Whether this is simply because of an extensive spy network or because of some magical or supernatural means on their part to spy on potential clients, is unknown. Rarely, those who have a strong grudge against someone, or who wish to achieve some revenge themselves, are contacted by a member of the organization out of the blue.
They do not always take their payments in treasure, often accepting favors or the promise of future collaboration with the organization in lieu of gold. This makes some prospective clients nervous, as they never know what price The Organization will ask. Even those who think they are receiving a bargain, later find out that they are paying a very high price indeed. Whatever the final payment turns out to be, it is never negotiable.
Once they have accepted a contract, they will stop at nothing until their target is dead. As they have contacts in nearly every government, guild, religious group, or criminal enterprise in both the Eastern and Western Continent, there is nearly no piece of information about a target that they cannot discover. Once their victim's location is discovered, no magical disguise, simulacrum, or decoy can stop them for long. They also make sure that once a target has been killed, he remains dead. Through magical and mundane means, they keep track of the status of all targets, and if a person is resurrected, they pursue him until he is once again deceased.

The Sanguine Sacrament

As the primary means of contacting The Organization, the Sanguine Sacrament is a profane ritual one can perform that is rumored to send one's request straight to the ears of The Organization itself...it is commonly seen as an evil, profane thing in most civilized areas, and thus most who wish to perform it so as to grab the ear of The Organization do so in secret.
Materials:

• A heart from a creature or animal freshly killed no less than two days before the ritual's initiation.


• 1 Liter of fresh blood no more than two days old.


• A piece of parchment, vellum or other material with a written version of your request.


• A drop of your own blood, part of your skin, and a fistful of your own hair.


• One fresh fruit cut into four pieces.


• One lit light source.

Ritual:

1. Use the liter of fresh blood to draw a circle on the ground exactly 3 feet in diameter, writing your request in blood along the inside edge of the circle. And drawing ten lines from the outside to the inside.


2. Place the heart in the center of the circle, where the lines converge.


3. While chanting your request out loud, drop your own blood, skin, and hair beside the heart, while placing the request atop the heart.


4. Still chanting, squeeze the juices of the fresh fruit over each of the ten lines of the circle.


5. Snuff out of the light source and drop it in the ritual circle, and speak The Shadow's Prayer.

The Shadow's Prayer

O Shadow most dark, Shadow most eternal,
send your agents unto me, to hear my request most infernal.
An unholy deed I ask on this darkened night,
A task for your children, and a deal to strike.

Structure

Due to the secrecy of The Organization, next to nothing is known of its inner workings, but it is surmised to have leadership of some sort. From what little is known of their workings, there are several rankings within The Organization, noted below:

• "Voices" are the members of The Organization who speak to outsiders, those who seek to hire them, and any other creatures as a given situation requires. They are charismatic and full of guile, but never show a single patch of skin and are almost universally incredibly off-putting and strange. They often come and go silently and without notice, and many are unable to realize they have come or gone at all. They are always seen fully covered, with ceramic masks that display various inked-on faces depending on their mood. They are not known to have serious combat abilities, but are believed to hold a high position with The Organization.


• "Hands" are the most numerous body of The Organization, and are believed to consist of the Assassins, Thieves, Thugs, and all manner of illicit workers hired on by The Organization. They are, it is assumed, the ones who carry out most of the contracts the group undertakes. They rarely interact with outsiders directly, and are mostly silent, implacable killing machines.


• The Organization is known to be led by a shadowy council known as the "Kornara", a council made up of the most elite and dangerous killers, assassins, and thieves in the entire world, all loyal overlords of The Organization as a whole, and to The Shadow Lord that rules above them. There are only ever 10 members on this council, but this number has fluctuated over the eons, and has reached as little as 4 and as large as nearly 20, depending on the time in question. This council is believed to rule The Organization, and make most of its day to day decisions...they are known only by their titles to the outside world and to the rest of the group at large.


• Finally, The Organization is led by a figure known as "The Shadow Lord", or "The Lord in Shadows"...this figure goes by a title much like the Kornara which they lord over, and is the final authority over the entire shadowy group.

The titles of the 10 current Kornara and that of the Shadow Lord are listed below.

• Current Shadow Lord: Shadow Lord Blackheart


• Bloodhunter
• Phoenix
• Skinwalker
• Lawman
• Gourmand
• Voidstar
• Machinist
• Titan
• Archon
• Meatmaster

Public Agenda

While even the existence of The Organization is a well-kept secret, to those who know of them they have no other agenda than the acceptance of coin for the carrying out of any shady or underworld job under the sun. Assassinations, Beatings, Robbery, Espionage...all of it and more falls beneath The Organization's Purview.

Assets

The Organization is a guild of the most elite and superb Assassins in all of Ea, and their assets are assumed to be on par with a large kingdom...though the specifics of their assets are wisely kept well-hidden from prying eyes, many assume their resources to be nigh-infinite. Thanks to the nature of their work, they also have inroads and connections to nearly every major political figure and person of note in the known world...so there are few places that are beyond their all-seeing gaze.

History

The history of The Organization is unknown, but they have been around as far as any can remember. Their origins, if such a record exists, are a well-kept secret.

Death Comes Silently.

Founding Date

Unknown.

Type

Guild, Assassins

Alternative Names

The Formless Guild, The Stygian Band, The All-Seeing Blades

Demonym

Blackband

Manufactured Items

• Malsivith Yrd, The Blade Tenebrous

Related Items

• Malsivith Yrd, The Blade Tenebrous

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