Sic transit gloria mundi
OUT OF CHARACTER INFORMATION
Intent: Expand on Qadiri.
Image Credit: Here.
Role: Pyromancers.
Permission: Permission for all ArmaTech gear and all other subs made by Laira Darkhold's writer here.
Links: Qadiri, Ashiranism, Shahbânu Semiramis III, Teaching Resilience.
GENERAL INFORMATION
Unit Name: Knights of Azali
Affiliation: Order of Fire, House Kerrigan-Alcori, Siobhan Kerrigan, Firemane (reluctantly), Hazani Jai Bysara, Keepers of Azali's Sacred Flame, Qadiri, Sistren of the Eternal Flame.
Classification: Elemental warriors, pyromancers.
Description: The Sistren of the Eternal Flame are a martial order of Qadiri fire mages who serve the Goddess Azali. Qadiri society has strong theocratic tendencies. Force powers are regarded as a gift from deities, and so those who manifest preternatural powers are seen as blessed. This has given cults such as the Sistren and the Celestial Dragons, a sect of Qadiri aeromancers, a lot of political and economic influence. The Knights are their most well-known warriors. The order expects discipline from its members. The punishments for cowardice, betrayal, desertion, corruption or any acts that would bring the sect into disrepute are draconian.
The order has a long history and persecutes those who sully its name. While the order itself has significant holdings, individual Knights are expected to live frugal lives. This includes giving up any claims to titles and domains if they happen to be of noble birth. Religious principles aside, it is also supposed to prevent the sect from being beholden to a specific noble family, keep a member from having divided loyalties or use her connections to exert influence upon the group. This has not stopped the sect from being involved in Qadiri politics. Indeed, the fire mages have led troops into battle against Qadiri states for political and religious reasons.
The Sistren have reluctantly become vassals of Firemane, but are very independent-minded and still determined to reclaim their old glory if given the chance. The Knights' primary role on the battlefield is that of elemental infantry. Their pyrokinetic abilities enable them to cause a good deal of havoc, especially against dense clusters of enemy troops. In that regard they are a good at dishing out damage and excel at crowd control, especially if they pool their powers. Their skills are helpful for clearing bunkers and trenches of enemies and can function as area denial weapons.
Each recruit has to pass the tests of endurance, courage and antipathy. For the first, a sister heads across the blazing summer sands and reach through a hot fire to retrieve a key. For the second, she has to take up a blindfold and fight one of the Fire Sisters with no sight, then remove the blindfold so that she is dazed by the light. In the third trial, she has to resist the ice and cold of a cryomancer to prove her resistance to the power of the ice, which is the obvious antithesis of the holy flame of the Goddess Azali.
At the end of it she is swathed in a burning robe which she is expected to resist the fire from, and become a true sister. A recruit who manages to pass the trials swears the sacred oath, pledging herself to Azali and the Sisterhood mind, body and soul. "To be a Sister of the Flame is to embrace the fire, to be the fire, not to be consumed by it," as High Mistress Sahali Jai Bysara said.
The Sistren of the Eternal Flame are both a military order and a religious Force tradition, being composed of devotees of the Goddess Azali, the goddess of flames, the desert and forging. Indeed they deviate from Kashari orthodoxy, as they believe Azali is the supreme goddess' younger sister rather than daughter. Centuries ago they were persecuted for this belief. The Knights have an impressive command over pyrokinesis. Indeed, fire itself has assumed something of a religious quality for them. The Force is a flame and the blessed can tap into it. Thus they hone their skills to achieve control over fire and utilise it as a weapon, for it is their blessed instrument of purgation. Fire, heat and light give life, but they can just as easily become an all-consuming storm that annihilate whatever stands in its path. Azali is also the goddess of forging, and so several of the Knights have some skill in imbuement and forging.
True to their name, their temple has an 'eternal flame' that is meant to burn indefinitely. This is called atar, which refers to the Qadiri concept of the holy fire. It is described as the burning and unburning fire or the visible and invisible fire. It is tended to by a dedicated priestess and represents the concept of the divine spark. According to their mythology, the most powerful fire is the one that burns in the presence of Azali, forming her divine halo. She bestows grace upon certain blessed individuals, allowing them to tap into their inner flame. Her fire is sacred and those who can manifest it are especially blessed.
The Qadiri refer to the Force as Zari, which is also their word for spirit or soul. They do not subscribe to the dualistic views of Jedi and treat the Force as a tool rather than as an omnipresent energy field that binds all living things together and has a will of its own. The Sistren regard themselves as a sworn community; a covenant of sword-bearers whose members look out for each other. Thus they train rigorously, for they regard themselves as warrior-priestesses. Their belief that they are blessed by a divine power contributes to them being zealous, dedicated fighters on the battlefield and makes them very tenacious.
One of the notable members of the group is Hazani Jai Bysara. As the name implies, she is the daughter of the murdered High Mistress Sahali Jai Bysara. Hazani was born into a noble family, but when she was very young she and her mother were shipwrecked. Stranded in the wilderness, they were forced to survive in a harsh environment, with her mother drawing upon her until now neglected Force training. During this time her mother found the faith, praying to Azali for strength and guidance. When Hazani was abducted by bandits, Sahali used her powers to smite the nomads and free her. Both received aide from the Sistren.
Sahali experienced a spiritual awakening and decided to join the sect, renouncing her noble title and her inheritance. This led Hazani in an awkward position at home. She grew up on stories of her mother's valorous deeds and sought her approval, which contributed to her joining the sect. However, Sahali showed her no favouritism. Indeed she pushed her harder than other acolytes. Hazani fought in several battles against Xioquo, Qadiri and pirates. Ultimately, she sided with her mother and the League in the Krolis War, pitting her against Firemane.
Young Hazani has a lot to live up to. Her mother Sahali Jai Bysara was a hero to the Qadiri people and, like with many great women or men, casts a long shadow that her child has found it difficult to escape from. Now her mother is dead and Hazani is expected to carry on her legacy. Moreover, as part of the terms of the rather lenient peace treaty, she is a guest of House Kerrigan-Alcori. If you were feeling unkind, you would call her a hostage. Siobhan has treated her honourably but it is clear that she also intends to use her. However, the young Qadiri is an ambitious girl and determined to leave her own mark.
Hazani believes that not all involved in her mother's betrayal have been brought to justice. Hazani has conflicted feelings about Siobhan. Hazani impetuously engaged the Lady Kerrigan in battle and was defeated. Then Siobhan crossed blades with her mother. If Siobhan had not gone to war against the League, Hazani's mother would not have been murdered. Yet she also avenged Sahali's death. Hazani knows that Siobhan is a ruthless woman who intends to use her as a tool, but at times also shows her affection that borders on maternal. Hazani has realised that in a jungle full of dangerous beasts, it is best to be on good terms with the biggest lion. Though young in years by Qadiri standards, Hazani is an ambitious girl and eager to learn about statecraft, warfare and the outside Galaxy.
Makala Jai Masna is one of the senior Knights. A soldier of Amikaron disgusted by their decadence who sought out the Knights as a martial test and a spiritual test. Makala is a warrior of great skill and peerless honour. She comes from a knightly family with a long tradition serving as Cataphracts, so her defection caused a bit of a stir. She is strongly opposed to Shahbânu Semiramis, the so called 'Sun Empress'. She regards her appeasement of and collaboration with the sky people as craven. To her the sky people are not benevolent saviours and bringers of wisdom, but would-be foreign overlords who look down on her people.
Makala does not blame Hazani for having to work with the outsiders, but has no love for Firemane. She is a godly soldier who fought in the Krolis War and made herself a name battling Firemane and Amikarese troops. She is quite unhappy about the conflict's outcome. She does not like humans much and is not shy about saying it. Moreover, she cannot abide corruption. She is motivated by a strong sense of justice and she has made herself a name enforcing it in the domain of the Sistren. Her form of justice is harsh, but fair. She feels her views are better represented by the code of the Knights. Makala admires Sahali and was drawn to the Sistren by her example. She is still carrying the fallen heroine's torch.
COMBAT INFORMATION:
Unit Size: Medium
Unit Availability: Rare
Unit Experience: Veteran
Equipment:
Armour:
Rifles:
- A280 Blaster Rifle
- SR-2 Magnetic Repeater
- Reaper Plasma Shotgun
- T-21 Light Repeating Blaster
- Energy Bow
- MkII Boltgun
- DC15S Blaster Carbine
Sidearms:
Melee Weapons:
- Vibroknife.
- Force Imbued Blade/Polearm/Spear or Sarix.
- Grenades (various, including frag, flash, stun, smoke, incendiary, thermal etc.).
- APE Boltgun Ammunition
To ensure mobility the Knights forego heavy weapons, especially explosive ones. Safety concerns also play a role in this matter, as while they are experienced pyromancers who have been taught to control their abilities, it is best not to take too many risks. This has implications for situations where they find themselves facing formations of 'heavy' armour units, such as tanks and walkers. In that case they are best paired with more conventional units. Rather than carry a lightsabre, a Sister wields a Force Imbued Blade or a Sarix.
However, their abilities are rather flashy. Power use makes them rather obvious targets for snipers and bombardment. Furthermore, their specialisation makes them far less effective in very cold environments, as it is extremely difficult to utilise fire magic effectively there. Using their powers in such an environment would be quite draining for them, especially since Qadiri are not used to a cold climate. They would be at their strongest in a volcanic hothouse like Mustafar or a desert world like Tatooine, but far less useful on an ice ball. On the elemental front, ice and water are the obvious counters to fire. Voidstone and ysalamiri would either weaken their powers or deprive them of them altogether, thereby robbing them of their biggest advantage over opponents.
Careless use of their abilities can also make them a danger for allied troops, which is why they must be deployed intelligently, lest their attacks backfire. They forego heavy weapons, as carrying anti-tank/air missile launchers or grenade launchers could be quite hazardous given their specialisation, while rotary cannons and the like would impair mobility. This has implications in pitched combat. Being infantry, they are vulnerable to air and artillery strikes. To a degree, they rely on their pyrokinetic skills to give them heavier firepower. If this does not work out, they could be in trouble.
Force Abilities (Force User Units Only): The Knights are a unit of elemental infantry, who focus on energy absorption and elemental fire shaping. Their pyrokinetic abilities allow them to perform feats such as generate or manipulate fire and heat. They can summon powerful blasts of flame, heat objects by touch, absorb and channel heat as well as summon flashes of bright light to blind or disorientate foes. Under the right circumstances, they can manipulate lava and wild fires.
Another relevant ability is the equivalent of a Force power called Tapas, which enables them to remain warm even in cold environments, an aptitude for Tutaminis and Force Weapon. They can also enter a Force Meld to boost their strength and enhance coordination. Their Force Sense abilities are well-honed.
Strengths:
- Crack unit composed of Qadiri Force-Users.
- Focus on pyromancy. Their elemental abilities are extremely potent.
- They are an infantry force and lack support forces such as armoured fighting vehicles, gunships etc. Forego heavy weapons such as missile launchers, rotary cannons and so on.
- Reliant on the Force for heavy firepower. Depriving them of or mitigating their access to it takes away their biggest advantage.
The Knights of Azali are one of the premier units of the Sistren of the Eternal Flame, a martial Qadiri sect and chivalric order. The Sisterhood's existence predates the foundation of Firemane by several centuries. In contrast to the Eldorai, the Qadiri have always been chronically divided into a variety of states large and small. No single ruler has ever been able to unite the Qadiri under her rule. Even Amikaron, the largest state on Tygara, was a bewildering collection of smaller entities, feudal states each jealous of their rights and customs. Many times one state had risen up and tried to expand its power.
The roots of the Knights lie in a Kashari cult that subscribed to beliefs declared a heresy by the Kashari Church. While the Qadiri regard Kashara as the supreme deity, they recognise over gods and goddesses beneath her. One of them is Azali, goddess of fire, the desert and forging. For orthodox Kashari Kashara is the creator deity. The faith was something the Qadiri took very seriously. It was an object of intense, meaningful and honest devotion. This could spawn great works of learning, art, humanitarian relief and law, but also drive its adherents to commit horrible acts of violence. The forebears of the Sistren espoused the belief that Azali was the younger sister of the Great Goddess Kashara rather than her daughter. This was obviously heresy since Kashara was the creator. If she had a sister she must have had a mother. Therefore this could not be. For their heretical beliefs, the cultists were declared heretics by the Amikarese Empire, the largest Qadiri state on Tygara. They had to flee to the mountains to escape persecution at the hands of Church and State.
It was an arduous march through the desert, as the sea was closed to them. Many perished on the way. However, the survivors found the mountain's top plateau. The cultists were pursued, but held their ground and defeated their attackers several times. They were then to be starved out but a rare rainstorm gave them water and under cover of night the cultists slipped down what was now Traitor's Fall and attacked the camp of the Amikarese. Calling upon Azali's flame, they killed many of the Amikarese soldiers by surprise. After this their enemies withdrew, and left them battered but alive.
To the survivors, this day showed that their cause was blessed by Kashara and Azali. They vowed to follow the true laws of the Goddess, and guard the Goddess' flame. From now on they were the Sistren of the Eternal Flame. Their warriors became known as the Knights of Azali. Over the coming decades, the knightly order expanded out by a mixture of carrot and stick, taking nearby settlements under their wing by providing protection in exchange for food and the right of conscription. In essence, it was a typical feudal protection racket. Those who refused to pay the tithes were made an example of to incentivist them. However, the Sistren proved popular enough since they were mostly good to their word and passed judgements in accordance with legal precedent and local customs. At the same time, their small mountain fort grew into a veritable fortress. The Citadel was their home, their temple and a place of training.
As part of the feudal contract, the Sistren secured the right to induct Force-Sensitive youths into their order, who were drafted into the Knights. Their agents scoured settlements for young recruits blessed by the inner flame of Azali. For Qadiri families, it was a mark of prestige to have a Force User in the family. It was particularly attractive for low class Qadiri, as it offered them a ticket out of crippling poverty. Slaves who manifested Force affinity were drafted by the temple and could thus be set free. However, it also broke family units apart.
The order had to defend itself against several crusades. Change in government and orthodoxy eventually rehabilitated their order and they were more free to recruit members but they were still wary of becoming part of any Qadiri state, though they managed to establish ties to sympathetic clerics in Krolis, where the Saoshyant, the nominal head of the Kashari faith, resided. The history of the forebears also left the Knights with an enduring antipathy for the Amikarese Empire.
The Knights made themselves a name as mercenaries and holy knights, fighting against the Xioquo, the 'hereditary enemy' of the Qadiri. To the Sistren, waging war against the 'Dark Ones', who often launched slave raids against Qadiri settlements, was an obligation from the Goddess. If the pursuit of this holy mission also bolstered the prestige and wealth of the order, that was just a sign of her divine favour. But the order generally refused to fight order Qadiri unless attacked or their interests were threatened. This helped bolter their popularity. Of course, certain High Mistresses could get creative when it came to determining whether something threatened the order's wellbeing and those of its vassals.
It was Sahali Jai Bysara who led the knightly order to new heights of power in the modern era. Once she had been a spoilt, carefree noblewoman. But she underwent a religious awakening when she and her daughter were shipwrecked en route to Mansura. Abandoned by the crew and forced to flee, the two were lost in the desert. Sahali had to protect her child, calling upon her rusty combat training to defend and hunt. However, dehydration and malnourishment soon caught up with them. When her daughter grew sick, she prayed to the Goddess for deliverance. Her prayers were heard. The two were eventually saved by Sistren who were on patrol and drove away the bandits pursuing them.
Sahali and her daughter Hazani were able to return to civilisation. But Sahali's had undergone a spiritual rebirth. From now on she had a new calling. Thus she gave up her titles, forsook her wealth and joined the Sistren as an acolyte. However, she did not stay at the bottom for long. Her zeal and combat prowess impressed her fellow Sisters and intimidated their foes. Stories about her fighting desert bandits and Xioquo raiders found their way back home. In a battle between the Sistren and a neighbouring Qadiri state that coveted some of their land, Sahali distinguished herself by rallying infantry that had been shattered by a Yazgid cavalry charge.
It was said her sword caught fire in this battle as she channelled her power. She achieved gained renown when she slew a kraken in a fight with the Xioquo, blinding it with a blast of light before thrusting her spear through its mouth, saving countless captured Qadiri in the process. After passing the trials of fire, she joined the Keepers of Azali's Sacred Flame. This exclusive sect was an elite within the elite. Sahai was now one of the youngest mistresses of the order and commanders of the Knights.
She achieved infamy through her response to the Defiance of House Sassanal. Parisa Jai Sassanal was the head of a Qadiri house that illegally occupied territory the Sisterhood as sacred ground. She also claimed the right to invest clerics of the Temple of Azali. A cleric who had been deposed by Parisa sought refuge in the Citadel, where the Sistren granted her sanctuary. The high lady insisted that she was exercising her rights as mistress of her domain. Thus attempts at diplomacy and gentle persuasion were rebuffed by her. Indeed, one of the ambassadors was seized and later executed by the Sassanals.
The High Mistress of the Sisterhood had succumbed to disease and it was in doubt whether she would survive or if a conclave might be required to choose a successor. However, Sahali unexpectedly took the initiative, refusing to tolerate the temerity of the House of Sassanal. Despite hazardous weather conditions, her forces marched on the residence of the Sassanals. The march was so sudden that Parisa had no time to rally her banners, though she sent out messengers. Nonetheless, she met the Sisters and their retainers in battle with her household forces. The two hosts clashed and she was forced to retreat behind the walls.
Parisa's sister and some knights were captured. They were initially not too bothered by this, as they expected to be ransomed. This was custom when highborn were taken captive. But instead Sahali used them, along with other captives, as human shields and positioned them ahead of her advancing army, forcing the besieged to decide whether to fire on them or not. Many of them were cut down. After raining fire and brimstone down upon the defenders, the Knights and their levies stormed the city. The Knights were the first through the breach. Parisa and her inner circle barricaded themselves in their villa.
Having sent messengers, they hoped for reinforcements to turn the tide. But Sahali ordered her followers to burn down the villa, for in her eye an example had to be made. As Sahali told her daughter, "They have been found...impious by the will of the Goddess. The only fit punishment for the apostate is fire, Hazani." The villa became a death trap as the flames engulfed it. By the time they receded, House Sassanal had been obliterated. Sahali ordered her soldiers to salt the earth the villa had been built upon. Her actions were immortalised in a song. It is said that when one of Parisa's vassals approached the ruins, Sahali sent a musician to sing it to him. He bent the knee and she pardoned him. Though the brutality of her measured drew censure, order was restored. Later the conclave elected Sahali as the new High Mistress.
She led the Sisterhood in battle once more when the Xio cast their covetuous eye upon Krolis. The Amikarase Empire was engaged in a struggle over the succession. Meanwhile, the incumbent Saoshyant had offended many Qadiri states by trying to enforce ecclesiastical privileges that had been flouted by many of the secular rulers. Sahali, her daughter and a small escort of knights happened to be in Krolis on pilgrimage when a Xioquo invasion fleet advanced upon the city. Krolis was too far away from the citadel of the Sistren for reinforcements to arrive in time.
Once word of the approaching invaders reached the city, panic broke out. However, the Saoshyant kept her nerve, appointing Sahali as the commander of her forces. The battle ended in victory for the defenders, though the victory was hard-fought with many casualties. The Sisterhood does not like to talk about how their leader enlisted Khaimari corsairs to aid the defence. The battle had profound political repercussions. Several Qadiri states banded together to form the League of Krolis.
The arrival of the 'sky people' brought profound changes to Tygara. Sahali and many of her peers distrusted the humans of Firemane, rightly regarding them as foreign imperialists. But they also sought to adapt their technology. The Citadel's defences were upgraded with modern weapons and foreign instructors were hired. The Sistren fought alongside the sky people during the campaign against the Underealm to bring the Xioquo to heel. However, when the Saoshyant died, Shahbânu Semiramis tried to impose her own candidate.
The League of Krolis opposed this, as did the Sisterhood. Two conclaves of clerics elected two different Saoshyants, both of whom denounced the other as a false one. Semiramis petitioned Siobhan for aid, reminding her of their old alliance and the fact that she had never broken her word. Somewhat reluctantly, Firemane's autocratic leader decided to support her. Sahali declared for the League of Krolis, and the Sistren readied for war, rallying their warriors and levies at the Citadel. The League fought a successful, but costly guerrilla campaign against the foreigners and their allies.
However, Sahali was pushed into fighting a pitched battle by her allies. The Knights fought bravely, burning and slaying many Firemane soldiers and Amikarese soldiers. The Qadiri managed to crash Siobhan Kerrigan's transport with a sandstorm. A vanguard of their Knights fought their to the crash site and battled Siobhan's personal guard in a brutal fight. Sahali herself engaged Siobhan in a duel and destroyed her lightsabre, but was eventually beaten and forced to retreat. The battle ended in defeat. The rebels found themselves beleaguered. Divisions appeared in the ranks of the League. A cabal of aristocrats, fearful that a protracted war would bring only ruin to them, conspired to end the war and seek terms with Lady Kerrigan. The scorched earth campaign had taken a toll on their holdings. Ironically, they had been the ones who had urged the League to meet the allies on the battlefield. The conspirators betrayed and murdered Sahali.
Her head was presented to Siobhan, but she was disgusted by the betrayal and eprsonally executed the ringleader. The others were put in irons and sent back to the Sisterhood, along with Sahali's remains so it could be given a proper burial. Siobhan personally accepted their surrender and treated them honourably. Rather than punish them as 'rebels' like powerful elements at the Amikarese court demanded, she pardoned the Sistren. While the peace treaty was favourable to Semiramis, the new Saoshyant was a compromise candidate since Siobhan did not want her vassal to get too powerful. However, the Sistren had to swear an oath of fealty to her. The fire cultists were allowed to maintain their traditions, including worship of their own gods. The sect was respected, so Siobhan recognised that they could be used to liaise with other Qadiri and recruit people to her cause. But she also took hostages, including Sahali's daughter, who became her 'ward'.
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