Claret Orders

Centuries ago, a high cleric of an oppressed township made secret pacts with a creaturel of the old blood, a member of the Crimson Court itself, hoping to gain enough power to repel the aggressive Ecclesiarchy. However, he failed to understand the terms of the pact made — he succeeded in his mission, but his people paid a terrible cost. The church was indeed repelled, but it was because the lands of the ___ were brimming with the reviled and undead. The common folks hid in their homes, and the ___ grew unhallowed and gray. In this brief era of terror, a humble priest of the Ecclesiarchy named ___ prayed for a way to protect his brotherhood, his people, and the lands they called home. Upon experimentation and eldritch magic, the curse of the old blood itself blessed him with the ancient secrets of blood magic. ___ trained his most trusted friends and hunters in the techniques of hemocraft, and they sacrificed a portion of their humanity in exchange for the power to defend the church's livlihood. This marked the origin of the Claret Orders.
Using their forbidden skills, the Claret Orders managed to seal away the source of this dark deal, exterminate the high cleric of torturous form, and clear the countryside of the evil that pervaded it. Unfortunately, before the Claret Orders could be celebrated as saviors, the armies of the church swept into the freshly purged Marrow Valley and crushed the forgotten township.
The church's high clergy blamed the Claret Orders for inviting eldritch abominations into the Marrow Valley. While some knew the truth and tried to clear their name, it quickly became clear the Claret Orders were no longer welcome in their own homeland, in their own organization. Even more disheartening, after the conflict the Ecclesiarchy utilized a strain of the old blood that ___ immunized to empower soldiers of the church, just under their jurisdiction. ___ and his troupe of blood-tithed warriors went into hiding. Even in the face of such opposition, they never stopped protecting their lands from the shadows, seeking and destroying evils that emerged from the scars Lunarym's fall.
The orders have spread to the outskirts of ___ and beyond. They maintain small keeps to train new generations of protectors who are willing to take the Hunter’s Bane and embrace their inner darkness to combat the outer darkness in the world.

Goals

The creed of the Claret Orders asks its followers to commit their lives to hunting monsters that threaten the sanctity of life and joy. While the sacrifice is great, the reward is the continued existence of purity and good in the dying land of Lunarym. The orders strive to protect those who cannot protect themselves from the terrors that go unseen by their noble lords and ladies. Most take little credit for their services, beyond means to live and travel. Some have strayed, using their skills to amass a fortune or falling afflicted to the dark powers of the land, but the heads of the orders deliver swift justice unto fallen hunters who stray from their oaths.

Beliefs

• The Claret Orders are your family. You watch out for it, and it watches out for you.
• A hunters calling is to protect those who can't protect themselves from the monsters of the dark. Never forget this truth.
• Too much power leads to corruption, and the abuse of the old blood in particular must be closely monitored.

Relationships

The existence of the Claret Orders is largely rumor and myth in most places, even more so than folk tales of the hunters themselves, as the orders have no alliance with or allegiance to any standing government or group. The Ecclesiarchy is well aware of their presence and makes a point to ignore their heroic deeds while publicizing misdeeds of those few hunters that succumb to the corrupting influence of their powers.
Some splinter orders have traveled beyond the boundaries of the empire, seeking more welcoming folk and more unique challenges in lands across Lunarym. Still, no matter where the guardians of the Claret Orders travel, they know they will never be free from the hatred of those that misunderstand them.

We are born of the blood, made men by the blood, and undone by the blood. Stand against the old blood.

Symbol of the Claret Orders

Basic Information

Type

Secret, Brotherhood

Training Level

Elite

Veterancy Level

Decorated/Honored

Organization Ranks

Claret Hunter

Claret Jaeger

Claret Director