Karrigan'Xalda
Daughter of the Karishzar
OUT OF CHARACTER INFORMATION
Intent: Expand on the Light Side Xioquo.
Image Credit: Here.
Role: Light Side mystics.
Permissions: Access to Firemane gear since I'm the owner and Liavondra is a Firemane ally. ARGH gear available to Firemane per this thread. Permission for all ArmaTech gear and all other subs made by Laira Darkhold's writer here and here.
Links: Firemane, Twilight of the Goddess, Seekers of the Sky, Banishers of the Night.
GENERAL INFORMATION
Unit Name: Defenders of the Sunstar Realm. Or the Defenders for short.
Affiliation: Liavondra, Xioquo, Seekers of the Sky. Their queen Liavondra is a vassal of Firemane.
Classification: Mystics.
Description: If the Banishers of the Night are the sword, the Defenders of the Sunstar Realm are the shield and the mind. The Banishers are a martial organisation paladins who defend the innocent and smite the wicked in service of the Light. They focus on martial pursuits. By contrast, the Defenders unearth the mystical secrets of the Force or power of the spirits, as the Xioquo call it. Instead of becoming blademistresses, they focus on cerebral Force skills. They are the healers, researchers, mystics and seers of the Light Side Xioquo.
However, they do not pursue these paths out of mere academic interest. Like all members of the Seekers of the Sky, they are obligated to use their powers for the good of the Xioquo nation and to further the Light. They are quite explicitly a Xioquo group created as a response to Xioquo problems. They also serve as priestesses. The Seekers accept both Force-Users and Non-Force-Users instead of being aloof space monks. For millennia Xioquo society has been steeped in the Dark Side. Hence the Light Xio believe that they must spread their beliefs to the common people if they want to make a lasting impact and heal the wounds successive tyrants have inflicted on the nation.
They revere the Light, which they see as the embodiment of law, justice and harmony. This contrasts with Myrou's anarchy, injustice, greed and discord. Overall they can be characterised as Lawful Good. Like most Xioquo, the Seekers still revere the spirits. Indeed, they believe they are channelling their power when they use what others would call the Force. They regard the Light as a saner, healthier way to do so. The beliefs of the Defenders are also influenced by animism. They started as an underground movement of exiles who hid in the darkest parts of the Underealm to practice their faith in secret. They have a strange form of nature worship going on considering there is not much life deep down, but as true children of the soil they revere the mother earth. A few of the Defenders have taken an interest in alchemy and manufacture items imbued with the Light Side of the Force.
All members of the sect are Force-Sensitive Xioquo. Like the Banishers, the Defenders reject the idea that being a Light Sider means being meek or passive. The Light needs warriors, not conclaves and submission. A follower of the Light should exhaust other avenues before fighting, fight proportionally to the circumstances and for a just cause. War should not be waged for self-aggrandisement or vainglorious ambitions, but sometimes they are necessary. When they are deployed into battle, they should do their best to minimise loss of innocent life but fight to the finish. Those who shirk their duty to stand up for what is right are treated with scorn.
The Defenders support the warriors in combat through healing, defensive powers and support abilities. They also propagate the teachings of the Light among the Xioquo people. Literacy is low among the Xioquo, so the Defenders try to do their part to improve the education of the common people. By and large, most of the Defenders were renegade priestesses, and thus are more educated than the average Xioquo. They also provide healing to those in need of it. Through contact with the outside world, some Defenders have learned how to craft holocrons and now use this to pass on their teachings. Any new acolyte who comes to the Defenders is vetted carefully and must go through a series of trials to prove their commitment. Some of these tests are a bit manipulative, but the Light Xio want dedicated believers who will remain true to their beliefs even when it is inconvenient for them instead of fairweather friends who turn tail on the first sign of danger or place material gain over the greater good. The Light is not the easy way, but the right way, and it is all too easy to succumb to temptation. Hence the Defenders must be vigilant.
Some of the Defenders may be closer to Grey than fully Light, but they do not accept those who draw upon the Dark Side. Unsurprisingly, they have a strong rivalry with the dark Xioquo witch cults. As a result, they are best kept away from them. The Defenders see the dark side cults as a vestige of a grim past the Xioquo must move away from if they want to join the community of nations and become a truly free people that walk into the future with their heads held high. They do not like the Daughters of the Destroyer, a Xiqouo cult that worships Siobhan Kerrigan as the Karishzar. This can produce some awkwardness since it was Siobhan who put Liavondra, nicknamed the 'White Queen' by detractors due to her Light Side beliefs, on the throne. The new monarch is also the patron of the Defenders. Xioquo politics are complicated, to say the least.
The Light Xio are eager to establish contact with other Light Side groups so that they can learn from each other. The Xioquo are new to the Light and had to set up their training programmes from scratch, so they know they have a lot to learn. However, they are unwilling to compromise their values and adopt beliefs that are wholly at variance with Xioquo needs. The Defenders are aware of Jedi and have been able to get in touch with some Jedi groups, but what they have seen has not impressed them. It is pertinent to note that the Defenders and indeed the Seekers as a whole do not subscribe to a code that prohibits killing an enemy. Nor would they say that they will not kill an unarmed opponent. After all, an enemy may only be feigning to be helpless, such as a certain Sith Lord from centuries ago. They believe in not killing a helpless opponent without due cause, arguing that there is a grave difference between helpless and unarmed.
The mystics wear armour when they wade into battle. Outside of it they don grey or white robes. The Defenders of the Sunstar Realm are led by a Light Xio witch named Xio'Tarkuz. Trained as a priestess, she was part of a sect of renegade Xioquo witches and exiles who sought refuge in the darkest parts of the Underealm, emerging after the defeat of Myrou. She went a little crazy during her isolation, communing with the spirits via some mushrooms found in the caves. As a result, she is more than a little eccentric. However, she has a strong commitment to the Light. She has embraced the teachings of Queen of Lia, but is more of a mystic than the rather down-to-earth monarch. Despite her eccentricities she is a charismatic presence, who is skilled at propagating the new religion to her flock.
She is suspicious of those who once supported the ancien régime and now claim to have seen the Light. She will not turn turn them away, but makes them go through a series of trials that are designed to break down their ego, force them to face their true self and gauge their commitment. Those who belonged to privileged families are often given deliberately humiliating tasks akin to those slaves would have performed for them. She defends her somewhat manipulative methods as necessary, for many supporters of the old order are still at large and seek to worm their into the confidence of the new régime so that they can ascend into positions of power and one day turn back the clock. She practices a form of mother earth worship, which she sees as compatible with venerating the Light. For the Light is life, while the Dark represents oblivion.
COMBAT INFORMATION:
Unit Size: Medium
Unit Availability: Unique
Unit Experience: Elite.
Equipment:
Armour:
- Fully covering robes, with a Warden Cloak, hood, tunic, mask and gloves. Mask contains a rebreather and other standard equipment to protect themselves against sunlight as well as chemicals while providing an air supply. In combat they may add a light cuirass made of plastoid or similar alloy, as well as gauntlets and vambraces.
- Force Imbued Blades or Quarterstaffs.
- Combat Vibroknife
- Force Pike
- Dart Rifle (variable chemical payload)
- ACS-207 Cryoban Gun.
- Sonic Stunner
- Renegade Blaster Pistol
- Sonic Disruptor
- Shatter Pistol
- SP-2
- Hard Sound Gun
- Holdout Bolter
Misc:
- Grenades
- Utility Belt
- Meditation Band
- Taozin amulet
- Holdout Blaster
Such a constellation would rob them of their biggest advantage. Due to the nature of their powers and their relationship with the Paladins, a Defender will often be paired with a Banisher. This allows both groups to complement each others' strength and weaknesses. The Defenders stress teamwork and discipline. Gloryhounds and daredevils are frowned upon, for pride and vainglory lead one into Darkness. Xioquo are naturally stealthy and the Defenders wear armour that enhances their stealthiness, as the Reflec negates most sensors. They have a preference for light armour, which gives them mobility and aids in sneaking, but is less good at tanking.
Should enemy troops have Force-Users in their ranks, the Defenders will focus on neutralising them. The Xioquo mystics are very experienced in fighting Dark Force-Users, as these represent their primary foes. Defenders are chosen not just for their strength in the Force, but their commitment to the Light, self-discipline and ability to remain calm under pressure. Xioquo society is a harsh one and most of the Defenders used to belong to those who were oppressed by the old order. This makes them loyal and extremely difficult to scare or manipulate. They have strong mental shields and precognitive abilities.
The Defenders adhere to a code of conduct in battle. Thus they will not murder a helpless opponent. However, this does not translate into them being naive or unduly trusting. Should an enemy seemingly give up, they will make sure that the surrender is a sincere one instead of leaving themselves open. If need be, this will be assured through use of a stun bolt, stun cuffs and an energy cage. The Light Xioquo do not have a no kill code and understand that there are foes who cannot see the Light and are deserving of death. But wanton murder of a helpless foe is prohibited.
Force Abilities (Force User Units Only): All Defenders are potent Force-Users, with a skill set similar to that of Jedi Consulars. n battle they will use healing, protective powers and support abilities to aid their allies. To be precise, they focus on Force Healing, Malacia, Protection Bubble, Force Valour, Earth Shaping, Force Meld and can summon Force Illusions. This allows them to protect, heal or boost their allies and inflict harm upon their enemies.
Strengths:
- Light Side mystics. The Defenders have a strong Force connection, are very disciplined and dedicated.
- Strong support force.
- Support unit, not frontline assault troops. Lack conventional anti-armour or long-ranged weapons. They also do not have integrated heavy support such as combat vehicles.
- Ysalamiri and Voidstone deprive them of their biggest advantage in combat, as they focus on the Force over conventional combat skills. This particularly pertinent since they are lightly armoured.
A few years ago, the idea of a Light Side Xioquo, let alone a whole sect of them, would have been as absurd. Yet the Seekers of the Sky are a Xioquo religious organisation dedicated to the Light. No matter how monolithic a race may seem, there are always some who buck the trend. In the case of the Seekers, it all started with a disgraced noblewoman called Liavondra. It is doubtful that anyone expected this woman to rise to become the second Queen of the Xioquo people. She was born into an ambitious noble family.
Xioquo society was built upon bloodshed, the Dark Side and slavery. A small clique of noble families used terror and propaganda to keep the under classes in line. Many Xioquo were kept as slaves. Xioquo society had always been steeped in the Dark Side. For centuries, the drows were governed by a ruthless mageocracy where only those who pursued the path of Darkness ended up on the top. Thousands laboured as slaves to serve the whims of the mistresses who sat on the top of the pyramid. The disobedient were brutally punished and often sacrificed in ghastly rituals to power war machines or be turned into abominations.
Generations of Xioquo were raised to worship and fear Mystra or, as the Xio knew her, Myrou. She was (correctly) regarded as the mother of their race. Though the dark oddess had slumbered in a tomb for millennia, it was believed that she would one day awaken to lead them to conquer Tygara...and judge her children. Believing that Tygara was theirs by right, the Xioquo warred against their neighbours and rivals, the Qadiri and Vashyada. While the technologically most advanced of Tygara's natives, their low population, incessant power struggles and the constant need to be on their guard against slave revolts kept them from fulfilling their potential.
Then the old order came crashing down when Firemane and its allies conquered the Underealm and defeated the armies of the ancien régime. Myrou was awakened by desperate matriarchs in a bloody ritual. But she turned out to be a mad goddess who cared nothing for her people, consuming those she found wanting to fuel her power. She was slain by Siobhan Kerrigan and her allies. In the aftermath, Siobhan made a Xioquo renegade called Lia Queen. Though born a member of the aristocracy, Lia had rejected the ways of her peers and embraced the Light, which made her a dissident. Having been saved from execution by Firemane, she agreed to cooperate with the outsiders, with the goal of bringing about a better future for her people.
Some, maybe a majority, hated what they saw as a traitor who had been placed over them as their overmistress by the invaders. The queen initiated a bold reform programme to break up the old caste system and patronage networks. However, the collapse of the old order left a spiritual vacuum. This caused a proliferation of cults. One of them was the Seekers. They were founded by Lia to spread her teachings and lead her people to the Light.
Amidst all this, the Defenders of the Sunstar Realm came into being. They originated in a group of Xioquo exiles who had fled into the darkest parts of the Underealm to escape the ancien régime and practice more wholesome rites. These were not explicitly Light, but not dark either. They also revered nature, venerating the mother earth. Isolated from the rest of Xioquo society, they were regarded as heretics by the old order and faced the constant risk of persecution. Moreover, the Underealm was a dangerous place with many natural hazards. Little grew down there, so supplies were scarce. In spite of all these difficulties, the cult survived.
The seers among them received a vision of Myrou's rise - and of her demise. Once they received word that the primeval Xioquo had been slain, the cultists returned to civilisation. There they found that the old order had been overturned. A new Queen sat on the throne - the second in the history of the Xioquo - and she preached a new faith. When they came to the upper levels, Lia spread the new message of the Light to them. Not all of the witches were ready to embrace the new way. But those who did formed the core of a new cult, the Defenders of the Sunstar Realm.
The Xioquo needed peace, food and freedom. But they also needed exemplars. Individuals who could show them that there was a different path. One that stood for peace, good governance and law and would show them that the Light was strong instead of meek. To this end, Lia and her allies founded the Banishers of the Night, a martial order of paladins. The Defenders would serve as their more cerebral counterpart. Rather than focus on bladework and physical combat, they would study the mystical aspects of the Force. However, rather than being reclusive hermits, these sages would be ready to draw upon the power of the Light to smite those who wished the Xioquo harm and upset the Queen's peace and the Queen's justice.
The Light Xio witches agreed to this proposal and were integrated into the Seekers of the Sky. Xio'Tarkuz became their leader. Though eccentric, she was strong in the Force and dedicated to the Light. Getting the order up and running was not an easy task. The Xioquo had few precedents to draw upon. Some who tried to join the group were opportunists who believed membership could raise their status. Others were infiltrators. Thus stringent trials were instituted to separate the committed from the unsuitable. Like their martial counterpart, the Defenders turned to the underclasses for recruits, as there was little love for the ancien régime there. However, practictioners of the Dark Side were still a strong presence in Xioquo society. Indeed, dark cults had arisen that worshipped Siobhan Kerrigan and her power. Relations between these dark Xioquo witches and the Defenders were poor. To the Light Xio witches, these sects were a reactionary throwback to a dark past the Xioquo needed to move on from. They regarded them as old wine in new bottles.
The order was also targeted by Xioquo militants who still worshipped Myrou and other insurgent groups that stood in opposition to the new régime. To these Xioquo, the Defenders and those like them were race traitors. Thus the Defenders militarised. They proved themselves in engagements with insurgent groups and dark cults. Ironically, these insurgents now sought refuge in the dark pit of the Underealm the ancien régime had once banished dissidents to. The Defenders' knowledge of the deepest levels of the Underealm proved invaluable, as they were able to navigate its dark, monster-infested tunnels. Thus they were able to drive out a dark Xioquo cult called the Blood Wraiths. This was a sect of necromancers who worshipped death and sought to attain mastery over it. To this end, they bound spirits to their will and raised the dead as servitors. The Defenders were particularly zealous in combating them, for they regarded their dark sorcery as a perversion of life. They foiled an attempt on the part of the Wraiths to unleash a horrible plague.
The Defenders also showed their mettle when the savage Kraal, a race of marauding lizardmen, assaulted the Underealm. The Kraal attack forced the devotees of the Light and the Daughters of the Destroyer to work together, as Firemane had only left a small occupation force due to having to respond to attacks elsewhere. The cooperation was a difficult one. Nonetheless, the Defenders played their role by using illusions to sow chaos among the invaders while using their defensive abilities to shield their ones and steel their hearts against the dark magic the Kraal shamans employed.
In time, the Defenders made their first tentative steps into space. The Xioquo wanted to escape the confines of the Underealm. Thus Firemane provided them with ships and advisors so that they could make their way into the stars. The Seekers sought to discover new worlds to settle on and establish contact with friendly Light Side groups. The Light Xio established a presence on the worldship Firemane had given the Queen.
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