Order of the Grove
The Order of the Grove is an organization that trains and teaches individuals who want to become protectors of nature and civilization. They train individuals to become Rangers or Druids, based on their preference.
Although their organization is not entirely secretive, it is unknown to most outsiders, who consider druids and rangers to be loners. They form part of a society that spans the land, ignoring political borders.
A prospective member is taken into the society, trained in their ways, and inducted through secret rituals and tests, some of which so dangerous that not all who take them survive. Only after achieving some level of competence is the individual allowed to strike out on her own into the vast and wild lands.
Although their organization is not entirely secretive, it is unknown to most outsiders, who consider druids and rangers to be loners. They form part of a society that spans the land, ignoring political borders.
A prospective member is taken into the society, trained in their ways, and inducted through secret rituals and tests, some of which so dangerous that not all who take them survive. Only after achieving some level of competence is the individual allowed to strike out on her own into the vast and wild lands.
Structure
After an individual is trained and inducted, reaching the level of Autumnreaver, they can choose to be assigned to a specific region, acting as a Protector of that region. Some individuals become so isolated that they have never seen any new high-ranking members of the society or participate in Order meetings.
The Order has the following ranks, from lowest to highest.
All members recognize each other as brothers and sisters. Members can be identified by a silver ring, in the style of a tree trunk. A ring is only earned after reaching the rank of Autumnreaver and completing various tests and training.
Depending on the situation, the Grove Protectors Order is also known as the "Protectors", "Nature's Chosen", the "Order".
Depending on the situation, the Grove Protectors Order is also known as the "Protectors", "Nature's Chosen", the "Order".
- Springwarden
- Summerstrider
- Autumnreaver
- Winterstalker
- Master of the Wild
Public Agenda
Believing that nature's health depended on a precarious balance, The Order believed that the four elements of the natural world - air, earth, fire, and water - must be prevented from ever gaining advantage over one another, lest the world become dominated by the forces of the elemental planes.
Likewise, The Order believed nature exists outside of civilized conceptions of good, evil, order or chaos, instead seeking only to maintain a natural state of being which most of the civilized world cannot or will not understand.
But though druids may have accepted cruelty in nature, they abhorred that which was alien to it, violently opposing the existence of aberrations and undead, both of whom were affronts to the natural order.
Powerful sentries of the natural world, The Order were often seen by outsiders as primal controllers of the wilderness. However, although they drew great power from nature, they do not see themselves as masters of the wild but rather its servants, much as a cleric might serve a god or a knight his liege. To one that claims of power over the wild was something that only those lacking a proper understanding of nature could profess. This is a belief that a lot of young students start out with.
The primal power that druids drew upon came to them not through control, but through a spiritual unity with the forces of nature. This distinction was, however, lost on most.
Not all Rangers and Druids form part of this society, but those that do, are sworn to follow the ideals and goals of the Order. These are:
Likewise, The Order believed nature exists outside of civilized conceptions of good, evil, order or chaos, instead seeking only to maintain a natural state of being which most of the civilized world cannot or will not understand.
But though druids may have accepted cruelty in nature, they abhorred that which was alien to it, violently opposing the existence of aberrations and undead, both of whom were affronts to the natural order.
Powerful sentries of the natural world, The Order were often seen by outsiders as primal controllers of the wilderness. However, although they drew great power from nature, they do not see themselves as masters of the wild but rather its servants, much as a cleric might serve a god or a knight his liege. To one that claims of power over the wild was something that only those lacking a proper understanding of nature could profess. This is a belief that a lot of young students start out with.
The primal power that druids drew upon came to them not through control, but through a spiritual unity with the forces of nature. This distinction was, however, lost on most.
Not all Rangers and Druids form part of this society, but those that do, are sworn to follow the ideals and goals of the Order. These are:
- Preserve nature in all its forms.
- Control civilization's expansion.
- Protect civilization from the dangers of nature.
- Recognize that nature encompasses more than just forests.
- Agree that magic should not be used for mass destruction.
- Warn against the use of magic on a grand scale for fear of unexpected side effects.
- Present a united front to the outside world.
Type
Guild, Professional
Alternative Names
The Order
Parent Organization
Subsidiary Organizations
Location
Notable Members
Comments