Phoenix Assembly
Nearly seven hundred years ago, the primordial flames of Kaliban wrought havoc on those who couldn't live in accordance with it. Mortals not aligned with the shamanistic ways of controlling the elements struggled to expand their civilizations or populations, each clan or tribe being reduced to ash under the chaotic elements that roamed the land. An expanding clan of humans who hailed from the Kelseth Valley feared their inevitable extinction to be caused by these flames and sought the wisdom required to prevent this tragic fate. Upon making a bargain with an oracle atop the peaks of Mount Aphelion], the flames of the land were driven back and rendered unable to step foot in Kelsarian territory. The kingdom prospered and rose to rule the upper half of the continent, kindling peace and prosperity throughout their lands with bountiful harvest and growth. However, an outbreak hundreds of years later led to the mighty kingdom being felled from the inside, individuals within the land combusted into flames as their bodies became possessed and consumed by those fires they were sworn to be protected from. In need of preventive action to this curse, the 14th King of Kelsarius Adraxus Kelseth forged a solution to the problem. The greatest arcane minds and talents of his land would be united under a common goal: the eradication of all elemental chaos within his borders. Rising from the ashes of their fathers and sister's transformations these mages would be dubbed the Phoenix Assembly, and would utilize the pyromancy the commoners grew to fear in an effort to stop the flames that burned for the Kingdom's downfall.
The assembly would take the empire to new heights of power and expansion. Upon learning of a way for pyromancy to affect those with natural immunity to it, these mages used their magic as both a deadly weapon against elementals and an intimidation tactic to the common people. In the centuries since, the Phoenix Assembly has subtly ingrained itself within most facets of the Kelsarian government, becoming a force of political and military power that many say could rival the king himself. This reality is not lost on the royal council, and tensions often simmer between the assembly and the Crown. The pyromancers of the assembly are known for their extravagant lifestyles and intimidating history of political and economic control, and much of the populace mistrusts them, though no one dares to cross them or the king. Mages of the assembly wander throughout the empire with little fear of argument or resistance.
Goals
The assembly plays the long game, working to subtly increase its power across the empire and beyond. Popular decisions are often publicly presented as the will of the assembly, while conflicted issues are tailored to seem purely the “will of the Crown,” driving a wedge between the two bodies. While they're goals may have been virtuous at first, their ranks have mostly been driven to a lust for power after the outlaw of all magic within the Kingdom except those used by them. The assembly seeks to write history to favor its members as the architects of modern law and culture, with the eventual goal of subverting the power of the king, turning him into yet another puppet of the assembly’s goals. Assembly mages believe that only they have the knowledge and talents to truly guide the empire into greatness. Aside from political matters, the assembly remains focused on destroying any and all elementals created through spontaneous combustion. Despite this however, this noble effort has taken a backseat to the political power they crave. Without these flames to use as a common enemy and boogeyman for the common folk, the power of the assembly would be rendered moot. Therefore they keep their purpose mostly by the wayside unless necessary, while they may destroy these elementals who overtake the bodies of their citizens, the end goal of destroying the root cause of this curse has been cast to the wayside.Relationships
The assembly has worked directly with the king and his chamber for so long that the two factions have become deeply intertwined, frustrating both of them. Though they rely heavily on each other, every smile and agreement barely conceals an undercurrent of venomous loathing. Some members of the assembly feel that it is far too soon to overtly challenge the Crown, while others believe it would be foolish to miss the opportunity the war is creating. The assembly has established itself as the more forward-thinking face of the empire to the outside world, with the archmages of the assembly going out of their way to upstage the Crown at every diplomatic opportunity, all “in the name of the king.” Most foreign officials happily deal with the assembly instead of the Crown, preferring the assembly's forward thinking attitude as opposed to be stuck in the past. The assembly ensures that such meetings are recounted to the king with embellished tales of their diplomatic success.Structure
The assembly ruled over by the king's steward of civic influence, who oversees the propaganda and public safety of the kingdom. Beneath him answers divisions led by powerful archmages (the number of these sects varies on the severity of combustions, however most of the time the amount is relegated between four and six divisions). Within the sects of the assembly, each company also contains a duo of high inquisitors, a large amount of standard inquisitors, and a rare number of exorcists.
The inquisitors, both high and standard ranks, are in charge of general public safety and domestic affairs. They act out as the elite of the elite within stationed outposts or guard patrols, and squads of them are often sent out during incidents of combustion. In addition to protecting life within the walls, they also act as foreign ambassadors and enforcers. Outside of the kingdom they are how many neighboring kingdoms interact with Kelsarius, especially so when it comes to high inquisitors which are the assembly's judges, juries, and executioners regarding domestic and foreign affairs. Each inquisitor is in some capacity a pyromancer or able to effectively combat the primordial elementals found across the continent, however most high inquisitors are nearly equal to those above their station. Many citizens of the kingdom fear these public agents as at any moment they can find themselves on the other side of their flames if they show signs of combustion or treason.
Unlike the inquisitors, exorcists are for the most part not common knowledge within the kingdom or outside of it. If high inquisitors are the assembly's public judges and executioners, exorcists are a clandestine organization of arcane assassins and enforcers in the service of the Cerberus Assembly. Their operatives bear no official title, but are referred to in hushed tones as “scourgers” by those that know of them. Whenever an archmage of the assembly needs something done without arousing suspicion or making a scene, an exorcist is dispatched to eliminate the target or to make them submit to their will. Exorcists are few and far between, most of them being forcibly enlisted at a young age through the assembly's arrangement. However these enforcers came to exist, they operate in small numbers per division and their pyromantic abilities in some cases even outshine the archamages or steward they answer to.
Basic Information
Type
Military, Inquisitorial
Training Level
Elite
Veterancy Level
Trained
Ruling Organization
Notable Members
