Saving the world on a Sunday afternoon
IC: Welcome to the GuardsTo our newest Guard,
Congratulations on stepping up to form part of the heavy infantry of the Kingdom of Exiles. You join brothers and sisters in arms, standing firm against whatever the enemies of our nation can throw at us, wagering your life that you can stand up to them longer than they can to you. You are the first ones into conflict, and you are the last ones out. You may lead, or you may follow – equal honour lies in both.
Oaths
As a Defender of the Kingdom, you swear to defend and protect with your life all citizens of the Kingdom, never to flee combat when it places a citizen in danger, and to take and follow the orders of your superior officers. It’s hard, giving your life so others can live – don’t swear it if you can’t do it.
Skills
The Guards specialise in training you in skills that enhance your ability to endure punishment: Advanced techniques with armour and shields, allowing you to turn the strongest of blows that would break civilians in half; physical toughness, allowing you to better resist hostile magical and divine attacks that would otherwise knock you out, paralyse you, or even set you on fire.
Military patrols also tend to be commanded by the ranking Guard, and the guild will provide support to those who lead patrols by choice or obligation, or who wish to be considered for commissioned officer status later in their career.
Organisation
The Guards form part of the Defenders of the Kingdom, and follow its command structure. A Guard starts out as a Private (simply referred to as ‘Guard’), but as experience is gained, they can rise through the non-commissioned ranks of Lance-Corporal, Corporal and Sergeant, up to Lead- and Master-Sergeant when appropriate. Alternatively, Guards with an aptitude and willingness for command can apply for commission at an appropriate juncture, undergoing assessment for commissioned ranks of Lieutenant, Captain and so on.
See you on parade, soldier,
Guard Captain T’Anan Elwood
None at present.
None at present.
The full rules for The Guards can be found under:
Player Rules – The Kingdom – Guilds – Defenders – Guards
The Guards are the heavy-infantry of the Defenders, following the Defender command structure and focusing on melee combat. Sometimes, pressing the assault is necessary, but other times, the Guard must fight defensively, ‘keeping aggro’ and allowing less robust party members to attack with impunity. The Guard must also always remember their sworn oaths: Where citizens are in danger, the Guard must protect them, at up to and including the cost of their own life. Once engaged, if innocent lives are at stake, a Guard cannot flee combat unless ordered by a superior. Guards are often put in command of military patrols, so if command is not what you want for your character, the Guards may not be the guild for them.
When choosing to play a Warrior, you have several choices. The Guards are for characters interested in being part of a larger structure, who can adhere to military discipline, and who are happy to try commanding patrols. Your character might be from a military family, or a criminal drafted into the military as probation, or a civilian inspired by something awesome another Guard did for them. They may be poor, with the Defenders offering a steady job, room and board, or rich and idle, seeking a challenging distraction. Or something else entirely. As a Guard, pretty much any background is on the table, as long as they can fit into the military structure.
As a Guard you can quickly build up armour skills (including shield usage) and both Toughness and Life are cheap to buy. This makes it easy for the Guard to be the most physically robust of the characters on the patrol, so the Guard is expected to be the tank. Even if they are not dealing the most damage, they should be able to take the most punishment and still keep going.
Guards are hard to put down in melee combat. Focused on defence, their build is designed to take significant punishment and keep standing. In purely physical contests, they are very formidable on their own. However, TL is not only physical – a Guard’s main weakness is that they find it very hard to generate powered armour or damage on their own. Without the assistance of other party members to empower them, they will be in trouble against enemies that hit for magical or divine damage, or who are immune to normal damage (such as incorporeal beings or powerful undead).
Things a Guard would know: