Lothar Almann of the Order of Sacred Scales

[Meizter]

The young men gathered in the town square as the sun rose, the morning dew still on the grass and the dampness of the night slowly fading away along with the darkness. They stood there in silence, watching the sun rise above the horizon. All was silent, even though people normally would be bustling about beginning the chores of the day this morning was quiet. From the houses people watched the young men in the town square, whispering quietly together almost fearing to disturb the sight before them. The men were all dressed in simple white robes, the hoods drawn back so they could face the sun openly and a blade at their side as they had been instructed. Those who were able to see their faces from their houses noticed that they looked weary, but still there was an air of resolution about them, resolution and determination, as if nothing should sway or move them at this moment. Then a lone figure also dressed in robes moved into the square. It was Jenotas, the Rofireinite judge whom had taught them. He stood before them and watched each of them closely for a moment, as if trying to determine if weakness was present in them. He then spoke in a loud and clear voice, perhaps his voice was not really louder than normal conversation but in the still of the morning it sounded loud. “Today you stand here to take the oath of the paladin of Rofirein” he began. “Your last day has been spent in prayer and fast, to show your will and commitment to our Lord.” “Hold out your blades now and recite the oath of the paladin” he said and made a solemn gesture to the young men. All those who were taking the path of Paladin drew their blades and held it before them, the tip to the heavens, and as with one voice they spoke. “I shall believe all that Rofirein teaches, and shall observe all his directions. I shall defend the Church of Rofirein with all my might. I shall respect all weaknesses, and shall constitute myself the defender of them. I shall not recoil before my enemy. I shall make war against the Infidel followers of Pyrtechon without cessation and without mercy. I shall perform scrupulously my duties of Justice, in line with the Teachings of the Church of Rofirein. I shall never lie, and shall remain faithful to my pledged word. I shall be generous, and give largess to all that have need. I shall avoid avarice like the deadly pestilence and shall embrace its opposite. I shall keep myself chaste for the sake of her whom Rofirein has chosen for me to love. I shall only step foot in Temples dedicated to Rofirein and his Holy allies, unless my enemies seek sanctuary in an unholy temple, in which case it is my duty to cleanse the place of their filth. I am a Paladin of Rofirein, one of his beloved few. I will remember this in all that I do. As one of the few Paladins of the Holy Order of Rofirein, it is my task to root out evil, injustice and tyranny wherever I may be.” Then the last of the men joined the choir “Together we shall defend the Church of Rofirein and those who cannot defend themselves. Together we shall stand until we draw breath no more. We are each others family and no other family shall we have but our father Rofirein. I do not own, what worldly possessions I may carry belong to my brothers and to those in need. I shall never keep a secret from my brothers; our knowledge shall be as one.” They fell silent and sheathed their blades as Jenotas moved forward. From a pouch he withdrew a holy symbol of Rofirein and placed it around the neck of each man as he said to him “You are now a servant of our lord Rofirein, go onto the world and serve him well” As he hung a symbol around the neck of the last of them he took a few paces back and bowed to them, and they to him. The Order of the Sacred Scales What The Order Stands For As the Dark Ages descended on Layonara people saw how fragile their way of life was. What at first was regarded as a simple difficulty, something all were used to, quickly became chaos, when the eternal night drew ever closer. The cold touch of the winter withered away the crops and left the land dead, the former farmers began roaming the lands as bandits and thieves, disguising themselves as adventurers and tainting the names of heroes. The image of the former life was slowly fainting as people were forced to abandon their dead villages and scavenge the frozen fields for food. Many saw that their deities were helpless and turned to the darker side, the time they lived in ordered them to take without asking... Yet not all were weak before the hard times of the Dark Ages and by accident, or perhaps by divine intervention, five young men met at what was still a civilized hamlet. During times of chaos there are always those who think they can prevail and turn their life into paradise, but these men were different. They all had the reckless courage that so nicely illustrates young men, but they also had faith, faith that so many had lost. They believed in law and true justice, order that would bring salvation to all. Their hearts belonged to the Great Golden Wyrm, Rofirein. They shared a path and fought for a shared dream. They became brothers blood and faith. They became the Sacred Scales. They strive to act as symbols of the warmer times, a beacon of hope for a bright future wherever they walk. To banish the darkness that has covered the world as their goal, they fight to restore the order that was lost. The Sacred Scales walk from village to village and revive them one by one. In each hamlet they often not only take upon the tasks of healers or lawmen, but also work besides the people as carpenters and bricklayers, showing trough their own actions that even in these harsh times need not to turn into animals but rather by working together, trough law and order build a future free of cold and suffering. Their solemn promise to return when ever there is need, the knowledge that they are not forgotten is what gives people the strength to walk forward, trusting that even in the darkness the Protector looks after them all. Forming of the Order Everything began in a small village named Ramfall, tucked away among the vast planes of Caitlin, far from the religious struggles and wars of Layonara. It was a home to a small community – simple men of average lives who strive to keep their home warm, their family safe and their hands full of work. The only link with the world was the trade route that passed nearby and connected the east and the west of Rilara. The route kept the village safe as there were always merchants and their armed militia around that helped the villagers repel the smaller bandit groups, the larger ones had no interest to trek so deep into the continent. A nearby community of roughly 30 people was not as lucky. Even more isolated than Ramfall, it lived its separate life, hoping to evade the troubles of the Dark Ages. They meant no harm to none and thought that nobody would touch them. Yet no one was safe in the world filled with envy towards all whose life even distantly resembled happiness. Soon the inevitable took place - a small band rushed into the village under the cover of the night. They quickly breached the doors and stabbed the men in their beds, then they lit the houses and in a matter of minutes the hamlet disappeared in flames. The women of the village were ridiculed by the bandits, taunting them to stand up and defend themselves when their men weren't protecting them. The raiders did not seek loot, the act of destruction and massacre in itself seemed to cause unhealthy pleasure to them. In roughly fifteen minutes it was over, nothing was left standing, the raiders gone, taking a victim along as a trophy. The people of Ramfall saw the flames rise above the nearby village and men of the village decided to head out to aid the neighbors. Among them were the seeds of our Order. They were friends among each other, having lived back to back since birth. Like all young men they were fearless, forced to bury their lust for adventure in the everyday routine. As such they were quick to use the opportunity that had arisen. Upon arrival in the morning they were unfortunate not to find any of the bandits, their young hearts filled with disappointment they nevertheless tended to the wounded, asked about the last night and in time began to rebuild the destroyed hamlet. They were unbelievably content with what they did, even if it was still the same work, but they managed to get away from home, they were alone, facing a possible foe – it was a noble adventure! In a few days time a mad woman stumbled into the village, she looked beaten, hungry and babbled something all the time. She was the victim that was dragged out of the hamlet, in time people managed to make sense of her words. The attack was the work of a group of female followers of Pyrotechon, who tried to convince the woman to join them, driving her insane in the process and releasing her as unwanted weight. The poor victim managed to remember that the servants of chaos were now camped not far from the scene of the crime, fully sure of their safety. The men of Ramfall discussed this and in the end they decided to act to apprehend these murderers. Under the cover of the night they sneaked into the small campsite of the Pyrotechonites and managed to capture them their sleep, then dragging them into the village they had destroyed. It did not take long for emotions revenge and punishment to fill the hearts of people when the women of the village cried curses at the criminals. Soon axes were brought out and men prepared to hand down the harshest of justice. It was at this time that the young boys spoke up, pleading people not to lower themselves to the level of criminals and proceeding to shame the mob with words of wisdom. Grown men, stunned by what they heard, soon agreed to hand over the criminals to the authorities. Some say that at this moment Rofirein first smiled upon the future knights. In a week’s time a group of local militia, led by a traveling judge of Rofirein came to Ramfall. This encounter was a surprise on all of the sides - the boys standing in awe in front of the knights, the judge staring at the boys with a surprised look as if not believing the story told to him. The judge was in fact so fascinated by the event that had taken place that he wished to stay and teach the boys the ways of Rofirein, as well as training in the knightly ways, law, lore and principles of healing. He did not want to take them away from Ramfall, as they were a lot more useful where they were - in the center of simple men and life itself. Soon the stories spread, villages lying further away asked for their aid in times of trouble and the boys were forced to travel longer and longer. Seeing that he has become more of a problem than help by now, the judge announced their education complete and blessed the creation of The Sacred Scales! Code of Arms of the Scales Most members carry with them an impressive number of arms and armor. According to the orders of the Golden Blade and the strategy devised by him, members can choose offensive heavy weaponry, a defensive combination of a shield and a lighter weapon and even ranged arms. All members are elite warriors able to adapt to the most difficult battle, such flexibility topped with discipline, skill and centralized command makes them a feared force. Some members choose the path of unarmed combat, the enemies soon realize that the fist is often more dangerous than the blade. These members are even more versatile that the regular Sacred Scales as they are able to both fight with high efficiency and remain hidden when information behind the enemy lines is needed. The armor of the Sacred Scales is usually a combination of two colors. The first being black or red, to symbolize the Dark Ages and the suffering that the order battles, and the second either white, light blue or silvery to symbolize hope and a bright future.

[Meizter]

Lothar Almann

Class: Paladin
Race: Human
Alignment: LG
Age: 18
Diety Rofirein

Lothar grew up in the small village of Ramfall, the only son of Gregor and Ilsa Almann.

Gregor was the head of the village militia and still is to this day. Of course militia work was something he did when he did not have to work the fields as the village had no need for a full time militia. Gregor always told the young Lothar how important it was to be skilled in arms. Not only to defend one self, but to defend those one cares for and in the case of the militia also those whom one is responsible for.

Lothar took this to heart, and he practiced every day with his father, the long sword, the bastard sword, spears, and halberds and so on. Each day when he had finished his exercises he would talk for a while with his father about the discoveries he had made, if any, with the weapons. “You must know your weapons well lad” his father always said. From time to time Lothar did complain about why the need for so many weapons, wouldn't a simple blade suffice, but he was told time and again that if he was standing in the midst of combat and his blade fell from his hand, he should be able to pick up anything from the field of battle and use it to defend himself and those he was bound to protect.

Farm work was not really something that Lothar found interesting, he of course did his chores and helped where he could, but he did not feel any passion for it. While he worked he often pondered how the world was, what he had heard from travellers passing through the village or the occational bard. There was so much injustice and wrongdoing out there it seemed, and he often dreamt about setting out doing good deeds to help.

Lothar first learned of Rofirein from a travelling Rofireinite whom he met when travelling with his father to Fort Himlad. Here they met the priest who was bound for Karthy and Dregar and the walked alongside each other for a while. The priest spoke much of Rofirein and what he stood for. Lothar listened intently and could not help but ask questions time and again, much to the annoyance of Gregor who thought it improper to bother the clergy with trivial questions as those Lothar posed. They parted ways in Himlad but a small seed had been sown in Lothars mind on the road there, a seed that would prove to grow strong over time.


Appearance
Lothar seems a normal young man for his age with short dark hair. He walks at with an even gait seeming fairly relaxed at all times, although one may notice his muscles tensing if he walks by what could turn into a situation. His eyes seem ever watchful of his surroundings following the moves of those around him, yet he never seems to stare at anyone in particular.


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1. I have read the information on Rofirein and I will play Lothar as a faithful paladin of Rofirein to the best of my abilities.

2. Lothar believes that the law is what holds the land together, without law to uphold order there is nothing, hence he has devoted himself to Rofirein to do his to keep things in check.

3. Lothar wears as heavy armor as he can afford to protect himself as much as possible and by that helping him to protect others and uphold the law. He carries a bastard sword, the weapon of Rofirein, as well as an assortment of other weapons, including a blunt weapon.

[Talan Va'lash]

Approved with the same note as Ed's, that the Sacred Scales are not an official order (such as the Knights of the Wyrm) and thusly have no special priviledge, status, or influence beyond that which would be extended to any other beginning Paladin or Cleric of Rofirein.