The Baronial Shield
The Order of the Raven

From the UESP: In all modesty, the Order of the Raven is a legendary fighting order. They have the honor of having led the battle against the Camoran Usurper and freed half of Tamriel from his tyranny. They remain the vanguards of the Barony of Dwynnen, protecting the entire region. Given their reputation, they cannot admit any but the greatest warriors, the most loyal servants of the Baron, into their order.


Not since the Knights of the Nine has there been order of chivalrous breathren to equal the illustrious Order of the Raven. But the Order dates back further than the Battle of the Fire Waves, the climatic conflict that finally broke the Camoran Usurper's power.

The Order of the Raven was founded in 3E 254, the year in wake of the Battle of Wightmoor. Dwynnen's new baron, Othrok, knew that thought the lich's power over the region was broken, its undead minions might still prowl the forbidding forests in search of victims. So, the sent out a call for warriors to aid in ridding the land of evil. Despite the fame he had won by freeing Dwynnen, only seven brave (though some would call them foolish) knights answered the lord's summons. Each of them was the paragon of their kind, with the Divine in their hearts, a courteous way, a fierce sword-arm. With these knights before him, he drew from ancient Nord legends of the raven, the bird of death, and named his gathered men such so that they would go out and return the risen dead to rest.

The newly formed Order's fame grew and grew until its members numbered in the hundreds; hundreds of the most fearsome, stalwart warriors to ever grace the land of Tamriel. But it wasn't until 3E 267 that the Order would go from famous to legendary.

The Battle of the Fire Waves was the final conflict fought against the Camoran Usurper, and one which proved the Order of the Raven to the continent of Tamriel. The Order's knights, under their leader and lord, had been fighting skirmishes with the Usurper's vanguard. When it became clear that a massive invasion force would soon attempt to cross the Iliac, the Order went to work in securing allies. Unable to appeal to the great kingdoms of Wayrest or Daggerfall, or the deathly ill lord of Reich Gradkeep, Othrok of Dwynnen banded together with the lords of Ykalon, Phrygia, and Kambria, and gathered the largest navy Tamriel had ever seen, equalled only by Uriel V's invasion fleet of Akavir.

Many brave knights died to the Usurper's fell hordes, and by the end of the battle, the Order had been gutted of its chivalry. But for all the knights that fell, heroes rose as well.

Sir Pernel D'Gant

Sir Raymond of Tulune

Sir Arnulf, the Knight of Alcaire

Sir Henri of White Haven

And many more.

Such was the fame won by the Order at that battle that by the end of 3E 269, not only had the Order of the Raven regained its former numbers, but it had more than doubled.

With the advent of United Bretony, however, many of the knightly orders of Greater Bretony are feeling the strain. Those warriors that are capable of joining are recruited into one of the three army groups, and most new members are foreigners, be they Imperial, Orchish, or Nordic. But still the majority remain Breton, with the Divine in their heart, a courteous way, and a fierce sword-arm.

LONG LIVE THE BLOOD OF OTHROK!
***

Faction: The Order of the Raven

Officers:

Morgan FitzGeoffrey, Baron of Dwynnen - Head of the Order

Sathmi Giravle - Grandmaster of the Order

Esquivat d'Cler - First Preceptor

Constantius Porteus - First Companion


Troops:

Knight-Companions of the Order of the Raven(50) - The Knights' Companions of the Order of the Raven are the greatest warrior amongst an order of great warriors. They form the Baron of Dwynnen's Baronial Guard, and never waver from their duty. The requirments to become a member of this illustrious group is greater even than the requirements for entry into the Order itself. One must have served in the Order for a minimum of five years, and have preformed a great service to Dwynnen's baron. Then, one must pass a test put before them by the First Preceptor.

Unlike the knights that make up the majority of the Order, who have a very strict uniform, the Knights' Companions are allowed to use whatever arms and armor they choose. But heavy suits of steel or orchish metal are popular, as are swords and axes along with the traditional lance.

Preceptor Knights of the Order of the Raven (100) - Like most the Order, the Preceptors are fearsome warriors. However, they have put aside their lances to aid in the instruction of new members, and act a priests of Julianos; maintaining the Order's librarys of knowledge. They do not often leave the Chapter Houses, but when they are called to war, they turn out armed in heavy suits of steel armor, and wielding large two-handed weapons. They do not fight mounted anymore.

Knight-Brothers of the Order of the Raven (750) - The standard knight of the Order. Because of the incredibly difficult entry requirments, each Knight-Brother is a fearsome warrior clad head-to-toe is steel and iron plates, painted black. They wield either axes, maces, or swords, and on the charge use their lances.

Knight-Entrants of the Order of the Raven (300) - Trainee knights that have just joined the Order. They are not considered full members, and thus don't have access to the Order's armories or stables. They are capable warriors, but suffer from hot-heads if not watched by a Preceptor. They wear and use a varied assortment of equipment, but chain hauberks of steel enforced with leather tend to be common.

A hand weapon, be it sword, mace, or axe, are very common couple with a shield. They do not use mounts, and fight on foot. They are often lead by Preceptors in combat.

Total Number: 1200

Reich Gradkeep was Anticlere's old name if I recall correctly. I'll put that up in the opening post Verlox.

Argh! I want to start, but I need one of ye ole men to take up on the responsibility of Ykalon-Daenia. If I don't get someone by tomorrow, I am doing it.

Name: Gaston Buckinghouse
Age: 40
Race: breton
Gender: Male
Position: Governor of Ykalon
Skills: speechcraft, shortsword, Hammer-wielding, cooking, blacksmithing
Appearance: A rather spry 40 year old, Gaston Buckinghouse’s hair still retains its natural brown, despite having served as Governor of Ykalon for nearly six years. He is rather well built, with rather muscular arms and a lean stomach. He is known to wear his apron and gloves in public, despite being nowhere near a forge, and some believe this “common man” look helped him win over his much more stuffy looking opponent in his first election.
Items: He wears a necklace with a depiction of an ingot.
Weapons: has both an old warhammer and sword, but doesn’t carry them in public.
Bio: Gaston Buckinghouse is a member of the Freedom’s Choice Party, one of two political parties in Ykalon. The other being the Liberty’s protectors party. Gaston, unlike others in his section of United Bretony, is in fact a loyalist, and leader of the Loyalist movement in the region. He seeks to rejoin ykalon with daggerfall, but finds himself without the political support to do so. He was elected by pretending to be a supporter of United Bretony, and now must work behind the scenes and covertly to achieve his objective. Currently, his loyalist nature is not known outside of the movement, but in the coming months, that may change.

Name: Nicolas Gaerton
Age: 33
Race: breton
Gender: male
Position: Governor of Daenia
Skills: Speechcraft, Axe-wielding, and a tidbit of restoration.
Appearance, A young man by the current political standards of Daenia, Nicolas has very light brown hair placed into a ponytail, and notably features a handlebar mustache. Unlike Gaston, he has become flabby since entering into the political world, and his weight is noticeable, but not at the level of obesity.
Background: Nicolas Gaerton is the son of a logger, who became the poster-boy for the “Republican-Democrat” party by speaking out in favor of liberating Northmoor from Daggerfall. Now that he is the Governor, his war-supporting rhetoric has died down, especially since his party’s regional commander is up for re-election.


Name: Theodore Masterloche
Age: 67
Race: Breton
Gender: male
Position: Regional Commander
Skills: speechcraft, tactics, longsword, and a light affinity for destruction.
Apperance: A short man with a fiery temper, Theodore is quite fit for a man of his advanced age. While no longer “muscular,” he is not plagued by fat like Nicolas, nor the uneven development of Gaston. He bears some light scaring on his face, and his hair line has receded to the back end of his skull.
Bio: A long time servant of Ykalon and Daenia’s military, he was the highest ranking enlisted officer in the military when he ran for election, and his various deeds were well popularized. Now, years after his initial election, his deeds are forgotten, and he is challenged by a new, younger candidate with a fiery passion to rival his own. He is a Republican-Democrat.

Name: Phane Hearthwing
Age:36
Race: Breton
Gender: male
Position: candidate for Regional Commander
Skills: speechcraft, tactics, restoration, longsword, heavy armor.
Appearance, a tall and muscular man, The 6 foot Phane Hearthwing is a physically imposing soldier. He has scars across his chest and back, but none on his face, and his head is shaven.
Bio: Phane Hearthwing is a member of the Freedom’s choice party, and a Loyalist(not publicallyknown). He is challenging incumbent Theodore masterloche for the position of regional commander, and has accused Theodore of stealing from Ykalon farms in order to feed himself and the higher ups in the Republican-Democrats. Like a younge Theodore, Phane’s accomplishments in the military are well published, which has allowed him to even the odds somewhat. He is trailing in the polls.

So can we get this started now?

I may have some difficulty getting on the pc, but heck yea! I'm about to put the OP up!

Discussion Thread:

http://tesus.prophpbb.com/topic18.html

Wooly, just so you know, I'll have my Illesan sheet in earlier than I said because school is all done for me except for the formalities. Good to have this thing finally up and going.

Illesan, being a large enough city, has taken a few steps away from the feudal rule of Daggerfall to form an oligarchic regime but when it comes to it, they are still a vassal under the Queen of Daggerfall and the two Kings act as the Lords who must answer to their Queen's call if they so choose to.


Name: Leonard de Witton

Race: Breton

Age: 53

Gender: Male

Birthsign: The Lover

Physical Appearance: Generally considered to be a "man's man" by people, he is decently tall at 6'1" and is amazingly toned muscularly for a 53 year old and still enjoys taking part in many athletic past-times like wrestling, running and other "man activities". His hair is long, tamed and silvery white and matched his short, thick beard that covers the entire lower half of his round, tanned face. His nose is long and crooked due to many wrestling matches that have gotten too intense and his left eye is permanently half-shut from a javelin during athletic competition that went terribly awry, though some suspect it was an assassination attempt. The eye is half-shut and partially blind and colored a dull grey while the other one is colored bright green and is full of life and energy. His eyebrows are just as bushy as his beard, and only through meticulous grooming is he able to keep them from growing over his eyes after every time he sleeps.

Apparel (clothing and armor): He keeps his clothes simple but fine and it includes many simple linens of colors like deep purples and blood reds plus many blacks to compliment this. however, to keep up his manly appearance he tries to keep his colors solid without to much design.

When in battle or attending to ceremonial duties that require it, he dons a steel and leather http://www.300spartanwarriors.com/images/259_My_linothorax.jpg, along with steel shin guards and leather boots, plus a helmet like http://www.istockphoto.com/file_thumbview_approve/2653146/2/istockphoto_2653146-ancient-greek-corinthian-helmet.jpg, only silver and plumed with red-dyed horse hair form the top and hanging down to his shoulders. His style of armor is often commented to be too old fashion to be effective but he insists it's simple design and effectiveness work for him.

Weapons: When in battle he wields a short http://www.lyberty.com/blog/2007/03-mar/xiphos_recreation1.jpg with skill.

Misc: He wears one of the two signet rings of the city; the one that signifies his rule as the People's Elected King, and not the King of the Royal Bloodline.

Personality: He is a strong minded and intelligent man, able to think for himself and form an argument in an instant. He is well spoken and has a subtle but good sense of humor that is appreciated when he speaks at citizen Council's as the middle and lower class are rarely given the ability to speak for themselves but he has made a few small, but radical changes to allow the lower classes more choice in laws that get passed in the city. He is religious, but not fanatically though he attends to his religious duties properly and goes to the chapel every Sundas for prayer.

History/Bio: Leonard grew up in one of the richest families in Illesan and was set upon the path for greatness at an early age as his parents put him in classes for arts, literature, philosophy, economics, politics and warfare plus got him reading and writing proficiently at an early age. They were bound and determined to see that he become the elected King of the two King oligarchy in the city and did everything they could, including setting him up with "meetings" with the leading politicians of the city, especially those who shared the like-minded political goals of Leonard's parents.

By the age of fifteen, he was recognized city wide as a sure thing by the time he turned forty to become the elected King and everyone was sure by thirty he would be made a general of the state. By eighteen he was part of the Junior Council, which shadowed actual members of the Assembly of Three Hundred to learn how they operate for later life when they might be elected at thirty years of age. His opinion was highly valued by the two Assembly members he shadowed in the three years he spent with the Junior Council before moving on to take a required (for future politician's) three year enlistment in the military. Sure enough, by thirty he was elected as one of the seven Generals of the state. He went on to prove himself as a worthy leader as the General's were also granted a spot on the Assembly and were generally the more respected members who spoke in the Assembly.

He passed the next ten years, building up his political influence throughout Illesan's small sphere of power. Unfortunately he was forced to wait a further two years as the election for the Elected King were held every four years and it did not fall on his fortieth year. However, two more years only helped to solidify his power and by forty-two he won the citizen election by a landslide though his election by the Assembly didn't go as smoothly as he planned when a group of eighty men went against their initial promises to vote for him. They are no longer in Illesan as the first thing he did as King was accuse them for multiple offenses which included treason, bribery, corruption and conspiracy for murder and had them banished form Illesan.

Now, eleven years later, he is still being elected as the King Elect of the city and still holds the love of the people and the respect of the Assembly, and even more valuable, he holds the friendship of the Blood King, Bernard.


Followers:

Robert Julius (Imperial, Male, 29): Robert is the Imperial bodyguard hired by Leonard. Though tasked with protecting the King, he has become a close friend and personal advisor to the King. He is just like any average Imperial as he stands at 6'2" and is well muscled and weighs 200 pounds. his hair is cut short and you can barely tell that it's a dark shade of brown because it is so short and his eyes match his hair in color and are hard, intelligent and calculating. He laughs at others jokes but rarely cracks jokes of his own and is very serious but friendly and not shy. He is highly courageous and should Illesan come to war, he has already been made charge of Leonard's bodyguard force as well as his Master of Horse (as King's can take dual-control form the other seven General's in times of open war and each has a second in command called the MAster of Horse. The seven General's than answer to the Kings and their MoH). He wears full plate armor when in battle and fights with kite shield and broadsword with extreme skill and ferocity.

Astina (Breton, Female, 38): Astina takes the role as the primary of Leonard's mistresses and the closest thing the man has taken as a wife, though no marriage has been officially made. They have sired two son's and a daughter in their eighteen years together and their oldest at 17 years of age, is being groomed similar to his father and is soon to be named to the Junior Council once he turns eighteen. Astina is tall, slender and rather plain looking though she could still be considered attractive by many. Her blond hair is cut shorter than her mates, and her eyes are a deep brown. She is no warrior and no mage but does have an inclination to alchemy and has a small, but well stocked garden of exotic plants and ingredients to help further her studies. She is possibly the most influential woman in the city and often advises Leonard but often advises against him as well.

Harrold Wingwardaen (Breton, Male, 59): Harrold is defined as the court mage of the city, though no such position really exists. He is regarded as the most prominent mage in the city however, and so he is granted residence in the castle as well as a spot on the Assembly without actually having true noble status (which is required to be voted onto the Council). He is a withered and frail old man who has the energy of a young lad. His tan skin is heavily wrinkled and he walks with a noticeable hunch. His head and face are devoid of hair, which seems to have gone to his ears where large white tufts of it grow from. His mastery of Illusion and Mysticism have given him a mystic way of talking and many have suspected him of using his Illusion skill to further his gains in politics. He seems to only wear a set of bright yellow robes adorned with purple and red stick figures that seem like they were drawn by children. Though technically not loyal to anyone, he has developed a close friendship with Harrold and the two often work together politically.

Daric de Witton (Breton, Male, 17): Daric is the eldest and favored son of Leonard and Astina and though technically a bastard son, his father, who does not plan on officially marrying Astina, has legally adopted the boy as his son to allow him to be eligible to join the Assembly of Three Hundred as he is part of a noble family of the city. He is the "strong, silent, and dark" type of handsome with short, jet black hair tousled messily on his thin, dark-skinned face and with dark brown eyes that match his mother rather than his father. Being trained for a future as as leading politician and King, he is strong both mentally and physically and stands impressively at 6'1" already. He favors philosophy and politics more than warfare but is no stranger to battle and prefers a thin, long sabre when in battle as well as leather lamellar armor black like his hair and covered with golden designs.




Name: Bernard Wingfield

Race: Breton

Age: 47

Gender: Male

Birthsign: the Warrior

Physical Appearance: Bernard is a decent physical specimen gone to seed as his once proud six foot frame is slightly bent and his once muscular body has rounded out to include a fair sized belly and slacking muscles. He is by no means weak however, but merely out of shape and can still best men in arm wrestles but no longer hold any dominance in the actual wrestling ring. His thin black hair makes a "horse-shoe" pattern around the outside of his head, just above his ears while the top and front are completely bald and "shine with pride" as some say. His handsome face is slightly rounded and fattened now and his eyes are baby blue and somewhat squinty and dark. His eyebrows, like his hair, is virtually non-existent, which gives him an almost comical look from his once good looking face. THe most hair he has is in the form of a chest length beard of thick, full black which is his remaining pride of his body.

Apparel (clothing and armor): He enjoys many fine things, and though he isn't "haughty" he loves to dress finely, if not a little flamboyantly. He wears many extravagant designs in many bright or dark colors and enjoys his variety of brightly colored hats. Some people have questioned his "manliness" because of the way he dresses but it is simply to hide the fact that he has lost his previous good-looks.

His armor consists of a chainmail hauberk covered by a white tabard depicting a fox in front of a red diamond (his own symbol) as well as steel greaves over his black pants and leather and steel boots. The hauberk now fits tightly over his large stomach, despite several expensive adjustments to add more rings. He refuses to buy a new piece of armor because he refuses to admit that he is gaining a lot of weight.

Weapons: He carries a silver greatsword into battle with him. It is highly ornamental but still effective in his hands, even though he hasn't used it in ages in real battle.

Misc: He wears one of the two signet rings of the city; the one that signifies his rule as the King of the Royal Bloodline and not the King Elect.

Personality: He is a strong leader and an intelligent man but he is rather lost sometimes when decisions need to be made and sometimes he ends up supporting the one that seems more popular rather than the one that is best for the city. He also tends to look to assistance from Leonard more often than naught and many have made jokes at the Kings expense about how free his mind really is. Though considered a bungler, he is a good man, who can also please a crowd to a certain degree and has a decent sense of humor that is more crude than some nobles would like to hear from the mouth of their King.

History/Bio: Being born the first son of a King, his future was laid out before him before he could even speak. Naturally, as son of a Lord, he was given the best training and teaching around in all things that were considered necessary for a King, including fighting, economics, politics and philosophy. His life was full of nothing but the best but his parents were careful not to pamper him so that he wouldn't be "stuck up" when he inevitably became King of the land.

By twenty he was part of the Junior Council, though he only stayed on for one year before moving on. He never joined the military as a regular soldier but for eight years he was an under-commander of the army, and by thirty he was automatically made one of the seven General's though he couldn't take a place on the Assembly of Three Hundred because he was a crown prince. At thirty-five, his father died of natural causes and he succeeded him on the throne. This all happened one year before Leonard began his streak of Kingship and until that time, he remained fairly passive as he sat on on of the two King's seats on the Assembly.

Followers:

Yvonne Wingfield (Breton, Female, 32): Yvonne is the married wife of the King and the only lover he has ever known, which is very unlike for a lord. She is short at 5'2", but thin and her long brown hair flows down to her waist. Her face is long, slender and pale which makes her light green eyes shine out like lights. She is a quiet, unassuming girl who was brought up in a high class family and the King took an immediate liking to her when she was 14. Obviously, her father was all for having his daughter marry a King and though she wasn't too fond of Bernard at the beginning, they have since fallen in love with each other. She is not a force politically, or is she skilled with a blade or able to wield magick. SHe simply tends the gardens, entertains company and strokes her husbands ego with such extreme skill to make him feel better about his decisions.

Dathman the Warm-Blooded (Nord, Male, 37): This large Nord is the "bodyguard" of Bernard and is defiantly more physically imposing than his counterparts bodyguard. His long, Nordic blond hair falls freely and messily down to his shoulders and his blue eyes are like ice. He is taller than your average Nord at 6'11" and packing an impressive 285 pounds of muscle into his frame. His size however does not exactly match his intelligence and he can be a little slow witted at times abut this makes him easier to control figures the King. Unlike Leonards bodyguard, Dathman is not called upon to be a Master of Horse because of his lack of intelligence and the fact he is not well spoken. He always wears a thick steel scale hauberk and fine furs or lines (depending on the weather) and wields a deadly looking claymore which he keeps strapped to his back.

Charles Wingfield (Breton, Male, 17): Charles is the first and only son born to Bernard and Yvonne, making him the heir to the throne of his father. His father, seeing change coming upon the Iliac has raised him in a very different way, almost like he was raised but more extremely. The boy is nearly devoid of all luxuries outside of eating well and medical care and his training is pushed more to the martial way of life, learning warfare and all things to do with battle. The boy however has taken it upon himself to learn the finer parts of politics when he realized his father was neglecting these things and by spending a lot of time with old and wise politicians to learn the art of public speaking, deceit and all those good things. Physically, he is a fine specimen as should be expected from his intense training and his lack of unhealthy treats and pampering. He stands at 5'11" and is muscular and weighs 160 pounds already. He favors a short gladius as a weapon and prefers lighter chain armor than plate. He is fairly handsome too with short, blond hair and with his fathers sky blue eyes. his intelligence is impressive for his age and his mind is calculating and always looking for weakness.

Is it too late for me to sign up as Koegria? I just got back from vacation, or else I would have done so sooner, but hopefully it's not too late for me to catch up Thanks, I'll start looking through all this and organizing everyone so I can get a clear picture of what's going on. Looking forward to a second try

Though I had thought we were scaling down the size of the RP... Oh well, whatever works.

Yea Darkom. Just get on msn and I'll lay things out for you.

I have to make another military guy for Anticlere. He should be posted up soon. I'm back also, so I will post today.

http://www.gamesas.com/index.php?/topic/1097461-united-bretony-the-hills-and-the-highlands/