History of Dark Knighthood
Fiction: This page is a work of fiction by chaostrom
It began with the first war of the gods. Mortifer rose against Valpurus for supremacy, and they were joined by other gods. Legifer, chosen by Valpurus, and Atavus were the first to aid Valpurus. Infuscor and Cruentus, though they weren't agreeable, joined Mortifer. Loricatus, though he would have liked to join Valpurus, was forced to stay neutral, forging weapons and armor for all. It was at the height of this war, that the artifacts came to be, for the gods soon found themselves in a stalemate, so they got underlings to battle for them. These underlings were weak, puny mortals, so they gifted them with artifacts and aid when they prayed. Valpurus elected a High Priest, and gave him the Justifier. Legifer asked for an explosive mace to be forged. Cruentus, to spite Loricatus, suggested to Mortifer that he create a deadly mace himself, because Valpurus had Justifier and Mortifer had nothing. So, calling upon Infuscor, Mortifer imbued the Neerc Se-ulb with the destructiveness that was his very nature. The Justifier was still very mighty though, so the chaotic gods sought various ways for their underlings to defeat the High Priest. Infuscor came up with thunder hammers. Cleptia got Saal'thul and whips of thievery. Scabies, chameleon whips. When Sophos asked for Vermis, Infuscor asked for Mjolak. All this kept Loricatus very busy.
After a while, there came a brief reprieve, a lull in the course of the war, the eye of the storm. During this time, many mortals, seeking protection, became devout worshipers. Some of them were named champions, a parody of the High Priest of Valpurus. It was during this time, that the Order of Dark Knights came to be. The first Master Dark Knight was given the Neerc Se-ulb, and he wrought much destruction with it. A powerful man, pride was his undoing. Believing that none could defeat him, he sought out the High Priest and gave battle. At first, it seemed to be going his way... until his mace-arm was severed. Mortifer was enraged at the loss of Neerc Se-ulb, and when he managed to reclaim it, he vowed that no mortal should wield it unless he was become a champion of Mortifer, which was harder now than it was before, for Mortifer had lost what little trust he had in man. The second Master Dark Knight, the son of the first (for in the beginning titles were inherited) vowed that he would have vengeance against the High Priest, and led the Dark Knights to victory after victory, for few remained steadfast in the beats of the battledrum of Cruentus, and those few fell to Mjolak in the hands of the Master Dark Knight. Before long, the Justifier met Mjolak, and, the High Priest being of venerable age, fell to the mind-numbing shockwaves of Mjolak. It seemed that Mortifer had won, but wait! There was a glow, and the High Priest returned to life! He gave a mighty shout of prayer, and behold! Inlux the Archangel of Valpurus came to earth in a flash of light, and flaming sword in hand! For while Cruentus was busy with the Order of Dark Knights, the lawful gods secretly commissioned Loricatus to forge flaming swords, and Loricatus had made nine of these. The lawful archangels each received one, and Valpurus kept one for himself, a mighty blade of valpurium, +10. The Dark Knights were routed, but now the secret was out, and Infuscor, through Mellis, managed to secure the other two flaming swords, and they were given to the third Master Dark Knight, Xinroch was his name. He did what no mortal achieved before, the friendship of the mages of Infuscor and the Dark Knights of Cruentus, and in this time the Dark Knights became smarter, and the mages stronger.
Xinroch was highly successful in his campaigns, and it was during his life that the Order of Dark Knights truly flourished. Xinroch made good use of mages, for now that they were tougher, they were no longer restricted indoors, and a few always accompanied the Dark Knights when they went to battle. Even Ischaldirh, champion of Infuscor since the beginning of the war and a true advocate of "mind over matter", saw good in this, for now they had a greater range of studies. Especially the testing of new spells and formulae on enemies encountered. This also allowed necromancy to come into its own right. However, Xinroch was still a mortal, and over time he aged, and weakened. Finally, when he was slain in battle, they put him away and set his second-in-command to guard his tomb, awaiting an appropriate moment to be reborn. One of Xinroch's flaming swords was lost, however, so the mages crafted a shield for him. That devastating battle was not the last in the war, yet it signaled the end, and soon open war ceased.
The Order of Dark Knights weren't finished, however. When the High Priest of Valpurus founded Attnam and Attnamese conquests began a few decades later, many of those enslaved sought freedom and vengeance, and found it in the Dark Knights. Neerc Se-ulb being in the possession of Mortifer, Mjolak (along with most semi/artifacts) lost in the war, a flaming sword in Xinroch's lifeless hand and the other lost, the Dark Knights turned to a more militaristic approach, and adopted the long swords of the Cossacks as the primary weapon. Decent damage, good reach, not too hard to master and easily mass produced, it became their standard weapon and remains so to this day. Grand Master Dark Knights, however, seeking the glory of the First Masters, sheathed their long swords and picked up other weapons.
The present Grand Master Dark Knight, Golgor Dhan, is a man of unknown age. His birthplace is unclear, but it is known that he was originally a guard of Attnam. He maintains a guard's appreciation of large swords, and is an expert with the largest swords in existence - two-handed scimitars. He has trained with those to the point of wielding them single-handedly, and delivers slashes with a zealous ferocity also carried over from his guard days. Of the First Masters, he is most like Xinroch. Although he disdains anything but straight forward one-on-one combat, he sees the usefulness of the mages.
