Ordo Mortui

The Ordo Mortui is a highly secretive order of Inquisitors, scholars and soldiers in service to the raven queen, a once prosperous group working out of a grand cathedral, the Torvus Ostium or Grimgate Citadel.

Founded long ago with the sole purpose of destroying any trace of violent undead in the world, doing the work of the Raven Queen as it is wrote in the Codex Expurgo.

After the war of souls, the taboo surrounding magic drove a lot of the necromantic practitioners away, leading the order to go to increasingly more extreme and dubious lengths to get the job done, taking more suspect cases and sending inquisitors further and further afield to cleanse the undead plague, doing what must be done to rid the world of those who mock the domain of the Raven Queen.

The Order it split into three sections, the original Inquisitors, the soldiers of the Secretorum Militant and the learned scholars who tend to the vast archives to inform and aid the inquisitors on their hunts.

Beliefs
The exact beliefs of the Order have changed over time but the core belief in the Raven Queen and her teachings has been consistent. The Undead are the main focus of the organisation but their attitude towards them has changed quite drastically since the initial founding.

Codex Expurgo
The Order follows the writings of the Codex Expurgo, a tome supposedly written by the first seer to the Raven Queen, an enigmatic cleric of Sarenrae who was allegedly contacted by the Raven Queen in his dying days, finishing the text in the moments before his death.

The Codex spells out the duties and goals of the Inquisitors of the Ordo Mortui throughout multiple chapters, detailing the wishes of the Raven Queen, listing the enemies to the living and how they must be dispatched and is the prime originator of many of the chants, prayers and myths surrounding the Raven Queen and zealous work of the Order.

Undead
When it comes to the divine duties of the Ordo Mortui the doctrine states that the Undead must be purged wherever found to quell the mockery of the domain of the Raven Queen yet the order also recognises that not all undead are that way by choice and some may even be of use. For the majority of undead, willing or not, they are simply killed and put out of their misery to be sent into the arms of the Raven Queen but for the select few who show combat potential, repentance or a desire to help they may be brought into the ranks as a Thrall, a servant of the Citadel. They consist mostly of the Undead, be it Vampires, Dhampir or practitioners of Necromantic magic, they aid in menial tasks around the Citadel or depending on their ability and willingness to help will go out on missions with the inquisitors to hunt down their own kind.

If a Thrall is to go out and hunt with an Inquisitorial troupe it must be under multiple protective locks and be accompanied by an Archivist, usually one with more psionic like abilities that is skilled in the suppression of the undead in case anything were to go wrong.

When it comes to non repentant undead however, a necromancer who shows no remorse, the ghouls and vampires who feed off of humans as if they were prey the Codex Expurgo says only one thing and that is that they must be destroyed by any means necessary.

If a member of the order is to be turned into an undead creature or practise dark necromantic magic willingly then they are to be killed and all trace of their bodies erased, if an Inquisitor dies in the field or falls victim to an undead curse they are to be dispatched quickly and painlessly and their Raven Queen pendant and Battle Mask should be brought back to the Citadel if at all possible so as last respects may be paid.

Torvus Ostium
The beliefs of the order are carred out from the Torvus Ostium or Grimgate Citadel, a labyrinthian collection of spires, buttresses and great halls hewn from a black stone situated in a secluded area of Symmeria. Its corridors and halls echo with an eerie zealous chanting and the rhythmic sound of booted footsteps going about their business.

It contains a Grand Hall for the rare occasion in which the Leading Council, the Synod call the three branches of the order together to meet, aisles of antiquated seating and pillars running parallel down its length. The cavernous vaulted ceiling is detailed with intricate murals of battles past down through myth and banners hang from steel bars, bearing the symbol of the Order, a Raven head in sable on a deep Gules field.

In the one wing the noises of the barracks can be heard, smiths hard at work producing weaponry and armour, soldiers suiting up and enchanters blessing the items ready for the hunts ahead. The opposite wing contains the scholars quarters, a place for the permanent members of the order to stay and the studying halls, isolated and warded to keep out the noise of the barracks. The vast libraries tended by the archivists however lie underneath the cathedral, concentric circles of bookshelves are home to vast stores of religious and academic knowledge on subjects such as the undead, necromancy, healing magic and anything else that may prove useful to the order, the artifacts and books becoming increasingly rarer, more dangerous and more restricted as one passes through each concentric circle, going deeper as they get closer to the center.

Grand Master
The leading body of the Order is the Synod, a council that is headed up by the current ruling Grand Master, who leads the order from on high, having tested him or herself both in battle and in study thus proving themselves fit to command every branch of the order.

They must have first risen up through the ranks of one of the three branches of the order and once the time is right be it the current Grand Master stepping down or dying in the line of duty the Synod shall choose who they believe to be the best candidates for the next Grand Master, if a decision cannot be met then the Corvi shall be instructed to commune with the Raven Queen and plead their goddess for a sign as to who should be given the honour.

The Grand Master is then aided in their duties by the remaining members of the Synod, the heads of each of the three branches of the order and three Corvi.

Corvi
The Corvi are seers and supposed listeners in communion with the Raven Queen who belong to none of the branches.

As soon as a member of the church, regardless of branch begins to show signs of clairvoyance or experiences a direct connection to the Raven Queen they are put through rigorous training to become the Somber yet beneficial Corvi.

Not much is known about the training except that very few return unscathed or even return at all, those that do succeed appear different in some way, drained of their former personalities and more distant. It takes an incredible will to be subjected to the trials and come out untouched.

What little is known of the trials is whispered among the students of the order in fear. Weeks of sensory deprivation, fasting and mind altering substances being administered in a number of different ways, through the blood, inhaled in the air and drank through the scarce amount of water left for the prospective Corvi each night.

Those who pass the trials never reveal what they witnessed or went through in any way as if compelled by a greater force not to, once a member has become one of the Corvi they are given their ritualistic garb so as to been seen around the citadel and in honour of the Raven Queen herself, a long cloak of shining black raven feathers over black robes, a mask is sometimes worn to cover the face, the nose of the mask packed with psychoactive herbs to aid with communion.

Archivists
The main and most populous branch of the order is that of the Archivists, a quiet, robed group of usually magically adept scholars who pour over ancient tomes of eldritch knowledge acting as bibliothecaires and tenders to the vast library of knowledge stored in the cold depths of the citadel.

When a student joins the order they join the rank of Archivists so as to study under the tutelage of the scholars until they are ready to advance on into the ranks of the Archivists as an Initiate or move over to another branch of the order armed with the relevant knowledge they need.

Scholars
If a student does stay in the Archivist branch they will eventually move on from being an Initiate and become a Scholar themselves, teaching new students and broadening their knowledge base and whilst the Archivists do not hold a normal hierarchical system like the other two branches respect and power is generally earned through the acquisition and application of knowledge in favour of forwarding the cause of the Order and the Raven Queen.

Archivists
If one has progressed enough they may become a fully fledged Archivist, gaining access to more knowledge and having more freedom to research into whatever subject they wish, generally specialising in one or two subjects at this point, such as the healing apothecaries, the Magi who specialise in combat or support magic such as necromantic suppression so as to join and aid a troupe of Inquisitors or academic pursuits such as the study and reversal, halting or destruction of the different types of undeath that plague the land, it is at this point that the path of the Archivist diversifies the most as the life of a robed librarian and teacher is vastly different to that of an apothecary and even more so that of on Archivist who joins the Inquisitors on hunts for the undead, thus their gear varies from practitioner to practitioner, they are however granted a pendant of a simple large metal circle which almost all Archivists can be seen wearing, the more learned an Archivist the more small concentric circles will be featured in the initial large ring as a representation of the vast library under Grimgate and what level of access they have attained towards the center.

Masters
Those that become well versed in their chosen branch of learning can attain the rank of Master in that field, Archivists, Inquisitors and Soldiers alike come to the Master Archivists to glean any knowledge they may need for upcoming missions or to report back on experiences they may have had in the field and cannot fully comprehend themselves.

Masters generally continue with the same attire they had when they were an Archivist so as to best suit their work but their concentric circle pendant is replaced by that of a simple solid circle pendant so as to represent their more extensive base of knowledge and more complete access to the great library, the pendant is often plain but can sometimes feature a simple engraving of a raven and nothing else.

Lord Erudite
Their representative on the Synod being the Lord Erudite, the intellectual leader. Usually adept in multiple schools of magic and most certainly having an almost impossibly encyclopedic knowledge of the information kept in the libraries, the Lord Erudite is hand picked by the Grand Master once they have reached an almost perfect level of expertise in these fields. Having no need to go out and fight the Lord Erudite usually holds the position until a very old age, gaining indefinable amounts of knowledge along the way.

Inquisition
The original branch of the Order is the Inquisition itself, the largest and most recognisable of the three. The Inquisition handles most of the work in the field and is the foreboding face of grim determination that the general populace has come to know and most likely fear, their appearance is generally rather similar yet they tend to use a wide variety of different weaponry and items depending on their combat style.

They are also the branch with the fewest members, the elusive and far flung work of an inquisitor tends to lead them to working alone or in very small groups resulting in a rather high turnover rate to keep a wide enough watch over as much land as is possible with as few inquisitors as possible.

As stated an Inquisitor tends to act alone for the most part but can be assigned to a troupe on more specific missions. These troupes are generally made up of one Chief Inquisitor, two to three regular Inquisitors and around the same number of Acolytes, trainees preparing for the task of venturing out on their own.

Acolyte
Once a student chooses to the path of the inquisitor they will start out as an Acolyte and must accompany a troupe out into the field until a Chief Inquisitor can recommend them for promotion at which point they can be sorted into a more permanent troupe that compliments their personal combat style and partake in pre-planned missions or wander the continent on solo missions.

They are not armed to the fullest extent so as not to waste enchanted or specialist gear should the Acolyte fail but they are given the bare essentials to be able to fight the under wherever they may be found, including one or multiple charms of the Raven Queen, a basic weapon of their choice such as a sword or a mace, not blessed like an Inquisitor's weapon but bathed in holy water so as to give a similar effect, a separate canteen of holy water, a healing kit and a single vial of poison should things fail and all is lost.

Inquisitors
Ordinary Inquisitors, the most abundant rank in the inquisitor branch and those who follow the Codex Expurgo most closely during their missions were the first of the order to exist and are the most recognisable members of the order to this day still, although their gear, weaponry, items and tactics varies greatly depending on their prefered combat style and assuming they are not attempting to go undercover the outfits they don share similar motifs throughout, including many references to the Raven Queen, through insignias on clothing, engraved pendants, wax seals and stylised pieces of gear. They often also tend to wear multiple layers of long clothing so as to strike the balance between being prepared for combat by having spaces for quick access to their inquisitorial items and not having to wonder around the countries in full combat ready plate or chain mail, although some do still prefer this approach.

Whatever armour they may choose be it discrete or full combat ready it will surely be emblazoned with the insignia of the Raven Queen as well as other adornments to celebrate her, bird bones, raven skulls and black feathers can be worn as decoration or jewelry to show allegiance.

They also stand out through the wearing of their large brimmed capotain hat, leading villagers to shut up their windows and doors when they see its large top appear on the horizon, due to this some Inquisitors prefer to forgo the hat and instead wear a more traditional tricorn or open helm so as not to look so obvious, the inquisitors that do continue to wear the full regalia of the traditional adherent of the Grimgate citadel tend to be of the mind set that with the Raven Queen on their side they are doing a goddess’ work and have no reason to hide their presence even though their work and the nature of it itself may be of utmost secrecy.

An Inquisitor may use any weapon available to them that they wish to to get the job done and whilst things such as halberds and greatswords are far from commonplace it is not unknown, the general level of weaponry wielding by an inquisitor however consists of a side sword, rapier, saber, mace or warhammer with either a small shield, hand crossbow or a firearm in their offhand, this tends to lead to a quicker more dextrous fighting style, mostly out of necessity.

An inquisitor may also use any magic that is available to them to aid in the fight against the undead as long as it does not offend the doctrines of the Raven Queen.

Their fighting is also complimented by a tactical inclusion of items to help dispatch the undead, as well as the holy water, healing kit and vial of poison supplied to the Acolytes it is not uncommon to find an Inquisitor carrying on them stakes, smaller knives for close combat, more extensive healing kits and in rarer occasions more complex alchemical solutions, explosive charges such as molotovs or gunpowder bombs or even a variety of herbs to aid them on long solo treks, such as relaxing agents to help sleep and psychoactive stimulants to aid them in combat. One thing common to all members of the Order but used primarily by the Inquisition is the ascetic mask, a stylised horrific visage designed to intimidate enemies and create a sense of unity under the Raven Queen among the various branches of the order, they can take many different forms, design varies between wearer but all of them serve to act both as a piece of armour to conceal the wearer and a psychological weapon, sometimes very literally as many of the masks worn by members of the inquisition are blessed by Archivists with enchantments to invoke intimidation or fear in the enemy's heart.

Chiefs
A Chief Inquisitor fulfills much the same role as an ordinary Inquisitor when it comes to task, location and gear but their main difference lies in authority, where as a normal inquisitor is more likely to be travelling alone or sometimes belonging to a small troupe a Chief Inquisitor will more than likely be in charge of a small troupe of Inquisitors and Acolytes, spending time on specific missions rather than roaming the land in search of the undead.

This inherently gives them more power than a usual inquisitor but also restricts their freedom in how they can go about missions, having to spend more time reporting back to the Citadel than the other Inquisitors, reporting back on missions, picking up new information or recommending a normal inquisitor for promotion.

If a Chief Inquisitor is however too far removed from the Citadel to report back they will go to the nearest Warden and have a message sent back so as they can move on with their Troupe.

Due to this more dedicated troupe dynamic they tend to work better in group fights and can get more done than a single Inquisitor on their own, meaning their authority during a mission must be respected absolutely for the safety of the entire troupe.

Whilst it is possible and can be quite a common occurrence for an Inquisitor to travel in a troupe under a chief inquisitor for only one or a few missions it is generally considered better practise if a more permanent troupe can be set up consisting of the Chief Inquisitor and two to four ordinary Inquisitors. Acolytes are sent to these permanent troupes to be trained and prepared for solo work or to go on to a troupe of their own and so it falls upon the Chief Inquisitor to be a competent tutor as well as combatant and leader.

Wardens
The aforementioned Warden is the most stationary of any of the Inquisitors, as due to the large area that the order must cover with relatively small numbers it is impractical for Inquisitors to return to the citadel after each mission and this is where the Warden comes in.

The countries are divided up into smaller separate wards by the Citadel and each Ward is looked over by a Warden, a skilled Inquisitor who has either requested or been forced into a more stationary life, their new job is primarily to keep an eye on the surrounding area for any possible undead threats that may arrive and squash them or enlist the help of Inquisitors or troupes who are passing through their ward for help, standing one hierarchical level above the chief inquisitor they wield quite a bit of power but take a more passive role in the running of the order, instead acting as checkpoints across the countryside that any Inquisitor or troupe that may be in need can visit. If an inquisitor needs aid with an undead threat, requires knowledge on the surrounding area or needs a message sent to the Citadel or another Ward they will go to the Warden, each Warden lives in a village of their choice in their ward so they are easy to track down and locate and has his or her own unique stamp and access to carrier ravens and for more important circumstances the other worldly Psychopomp Nosoi, messengers of the Raven Queen herself.

Inquisitor Dominus
The branch representative on the Synod is the Inquisitor Dominus, a position handed to an experienced inquisitor whose job it is to organise the missions and assemble Troupes.

The Inquisitor Dominus has to be very knowledgable on all aspects of hunting the undead, combat and how to lead a group as far flung and secretive as the Inquisitors, due to this they are normally a former Chief Inquisitor, or more likely a Warden who is still active enough to be considered for the role of Dominus, as it requires a good deal of work. They tend to be aided by a cabal of hand picked Inquisitors in this task to work as their eyes, ears and hands when they are too busy, these will usually be simple assistants but it is not uncommon to find a mage or hunter from the Secretorum or the Inquisition doing the work of an Inquisitor dominus.

The Inquisitor Dominus tends to keep their preferred style of gear when they take the position but due to necessity tend to have it all custom made for aesthetic appeal so as to stand out amongst ordinary inquisitors, often wearing long deep red garments adorned with many wax seals, pendants and other military and religious honours.

Secretorum Militant
The final branch is different as it is not wholly controlled by the Order, as the order relies heavily on secrecy and subterfuge they have no real need for a consistent standing army, in the case that such a thing is needed however they have the assembled forces of the Secretorum Militant.

The soldiers that serve under the Secretorum Militant itself belongs to the nation of Symmeria so as to stop a radical militarisation of the Order within the borders of the country should such an occasion arise and to keep produce and other supplies needed by the order as low as possible, making sure their Inquisitors are equipped as well as possible.

The soldiers are recruited from the normal Symerrian army and can be called back to fight for their country at any moment. Along with the Branch leader and the recruiters there is a small group of warriors known as the Corvus guard, heavily armed and decorated sentinels that help protect the citadel and its members on a daily basis, they see very little actual action in combat but train rigorously on a daily basis in case a direct attack on the citadel should take the Order off guard.

Recruits
One of the few groups that belongs truly to the Secretorum Militant is a small group of recruiters, people that scout the ranks of the Symmerian military for individuals suitable for serving the Citadel and the Raven Queen, either through zealous determination to a cause or exceptional skill in combat.

If the chosen accepts their invitation they become a Recruit in the Secretorum Militant and are put through a grueling regime of training for a few months to adapt them to battling the undead as opposed to normal adversaries.

Their gear is very basic as very little is supplied by the Order whilst someone is still going through the training process so hard leather over a quilted gambeson with small sections of plate allows for the best protection without having to outfit each troop, for weapons they will learn the basics of the spear, swordsmanship, archery and have a short introduction to weapons such as axes and hammers.

Soldiers
Those who are recruited and go through the training become Soldiers for the Secretorum Militant, an honour on top of the service for the Symmerian military.

Once they become a fully fledged Soldier of the Sect they ordinarily stay situated with their brothers and sisters in arms in the barracks, a secluded location in one of the wings of the citadel, containing a well armed store of blessed armour, draped in magically consecrated glyphs and an assortment of holy weaponry.

The gear they receive is much sturdier than that of the recruits, it is not the finest gear in the Citadel but it is at least closer to a set of half plate to offer more protection.

At this stage of progression the soldier has also usually chosen a specific weapon of choice and will either be a spearman, archer or swordsman and will have started working towards mastering their weapon of choice, although they should be familiar with all by now.

The best of these soldiers become Captains who help in recruiting and training and each lead as small company of 50 to 100 soldiers into battle, their armour is much more likely to be that of full plate with more signifiers of the Raven Queen on it, as well as the Symmerian Wasp to show their allegiance, enchanted and warded and they will be armed with enchanted and blessed weapons.

Generals
Once a captain has reached a certain level they become a General, Generals are in charge of a battalion made up of around five companies. The exact number of soldiers in the Sectorum Militant changes quite regularly, from anything between a few hundred to over a thousand as in the same way that the Citadel can pick its recruits from the Symmerian military Symmeria can in turn call upon the Sectorum Militant to rejoin the regular army in any time of need.

The Generals are generally pulled back from the front line after showing an aptitude for advanced battlefield strategy and are tutored on the subject as quickly as possible due to the amount of men they shall be leading, the armour they wear varies a lot more than that of the soldier or captain and displays the insignias of their allegiance openly. Bolts of red cloth and polished metal plate mail allow them to stand out on the battlefield, serving as a booster to morale for their men.

They have the best protection enchantments and wards on their gear and carry the finest custom forged and enchanted weapons so as to strike a more imposing image.

Imperator/Imperatrix General
The representative on the Synod is the Imperator (Imperatrix) General, an exceptionally skilled fighter and tactician and one of the only members of the Sectorum Militant to be wholly part of the order, they run and maintain the Secretorum Militant with the aid of the Citadel and act as the connection between the ordinary Military and the forces of the Order.

They are easily recognisable by their ostentatious armour and weaponry which, whilst not fully practical serves as a status symbol to show the power of this particular soldier.

To become an Imperator or Imperatrix General you must have made your way through the ranks of the Secretorum Militant up to the level of General, the current Generals then take a vote to choose the best amongst them and if it is agreed upon by the Synod they shall join and become a fully fledged member of the Order.

Founding
The Order began in when a necromantic cult of Orcus arose in a small hamlet of Symmeria, killing and raising anyone who dared enter the village, Wulfa Morio, an ex military general of Symmeria rounded up a small militia and hunted them down.

The idea of hunting the undead was not foreign at this time as the yet to be named Codex Expurgo had already been penned some years before and had gained some following, one of them being Wulfa himself. Pleased with his work the Raven Queen communed with him, making him aware of her ideals and offering him aid if he were to be one of her instruments on the mortal plane, agreeing he set up a guild, becoming the first Head Hunter of the Hunters Covenant, his son eventually taking up the leadership of the organisation after he died in his sleep in 12 years after its formation.

The leadership of the Covenant stayed in the Morio family for 6 generations before the ruling body of Symmeria granted them land to build on and the support to start a more legitimate organisation that hunted down any rogue undead that commit crime in Symmeria and thus the Ordo Mortui was born.

The Reformation
The order was now split between the newly created Inquisitors of the Raven, lead by Morio and the supporting sect of scholars run by the democratically appointed second in command, Aldred Wyne, the ruling of the Order however stayed under the control of the Morio’s for 3 more generations until Waylon Morio died without an heir, the Order falling into the hands of Aldred who radically reformed the processes by putting a more hierarchical meritocracy in place and putting a larger emphasis on knowledge over purely hunting, changing the face of the organisation forever before he died 23 years later a period now known as the ‘Wyne Reforms’, ‘The First Reformation’ or simple ‘The Reformation’.

The organisation continued this way, changing in only minor ways for many more years with a few exceptions such as the emergence of Silas Yates the martyr, leading a battalion of soldiers into battle before sacrificing himself in a particularly dangerous battle with the undead, leading to the formation of the Sectorum Militant and some time later the discovery of the first Corvi, solidifying the Synod as the ruling body of the Order.

Ichorous Crusades
Then in the year ---, Sevrin Vane came to power, an incredibly skilled but ruthless leader who began the period in Ordo Mortui history known as the Ichorous crusade. The opinion of the Inquisition in the eyes of the public began to drastically change as more and more brutal methods were utilised in the fight against the undead, many innocents were captured and tortured or never seen from again and the Order became a zealous dictatorship only ending when an uprising, led by the former Inquisitor Dominus, Orland Marin, and his followers fought their way through the loyalists to the sanctum where Sevrin had hidden, the two fought and Orland managed to land a fatal blow but had sustained heavy injuries and died later on in the care of the apothecaries, saving the order from Symmerian intervention and possible dispansion.

Dionis Aldyn, the Imperator general of the time, under authority of the Symmerian government cleared out the rest of the citadel of the Sevrin loyalists and the order was placed under the jurisdiction of the state for 3 years before Orien Marin, the younger brother of Orland was chosen as the new Grand Master and the autonomy of the Order was returned. The Sectorum Militant stayed under control of Symmeria however, each new Imperator General appointed by the state to stop another tragedy from happening in the future, the revolution and its following acts have been named the Second Reformation or the cleansing, by general consensus, being the second time that the Order has had to clean up its ranks.

Current Day
Orien is still the current Grand Master and through fear of history repeating itself has placed a considerable amount more regulations upon the Inquisitors and their missions, weakening the Order but slowly returning the trust of the Symmerian people, his current Synod consists of Alannar Taria as Lord Erudite, an exceptionally gifted young elf, Ergo Vex, a by the book Inquisitor Dominus and Morelia Grey as the judicially appointed Imperatrix General, the order now having to build itself back up to its former glory.

Relations
Symmeria is the closest large ally of the Order, though it has been an unstable relationship at times. The order effectively works as a guard for the undead, finding and killing any rogue undead or necromantic practitioners who break the laws of Symmeria and to a lesser extent, the surrounding lands.

Over the years though, especially during incidents such as the Ichorous Crusade when they have crossed the line and began killing any undead they come across Symmeria has come close to intervening, current day however they have limited their own power a lot and become more accepting, keeping to the extermination of dangerous undead and going as far as allowing necromancers and undead from Symmeria to join their ranks.

✝ Cleric of Sarenrae (Unnamed)
The first real adherent of the Raven Queen, wrote the book that would later be named the Codex Expurgo which gained a small following and would later become the cornerstone of the Ordo Mortui.

Their supposed communion with the Raven Queen suggests that they may have been one of the first seers which we now call the Corvi.

Their name was lost to history but their legacy remains.

✝ Wulfa Morio
The creator of the Hunters Covenant that acted as the foundations of the Order. His initial fight against the Cult of Orcus could be classed as the first hunt. Successive generations of the Morio line all did their part to forming the Order into what it is today including overseeing the construction of Torvus Ostium, the Grimgate Citadel.

✝ Aldred Wyne
The man who could be considered the first Archivist. He was good friends with Waylon Morio and took control of the order after Waylon died without an heir, taking it in a more academic direction. A reform to make the order less violent and impulsive and put measure in place that considered the bigger picture of how the undead can be stopped at their root source rather than just killing them on sight.

His research also went into discovering and understanding the Corvi, now a great help to the Order that had once been a mystery.

These eventual discoveries lead to the first Synod, a head inquisitor, head archivist and three Corvi.

✝ Silas Yates ‘The Martyr’
Known as the martyr for his brave defense of a village on the outskirts of the country, he took a rag tag band of soldiers and formed them into the first proper military force that the Order had seen, his sacrifice was a turning point in the war against a necromantic cult that had been slowly advancing forward.

This was the formation of the Secretorum Militant which became a strong voice in the order, influencing many of the decisions of the Synod.

✝ Sevrin Vane
The tyrant ruler who, using the Secretorum Militant took control of the neighbouring villages using the fear of the undead that the people felt to get away with it, commanded the inquisitors to begin random house searches and continue with a no questions asked style interrogation of villagers, framing the Order as a brutal regime in the eyes of the citizens.

He appointed an Inquisitor by the name of Orland Marin to be Inquisitor Dominus and named himself Grand Master of the Order, taking full control of the Ordo Mortui before dying at the hands of Orland.

✝ Orland Marin
The older Marin brother, Orien had always been critical of Sevrin’s actions but Orland didn’t see the danger until it was too late, leaving his post as Inquisitor Dominus when he realised what part he had been playing in a tyrannical dictatorship, only returning with a force of inquisitors to fight their way through Sevrin’s loyalists and kill him himself but sustaining what would be fatal injuries in the process.

Dying in the care of the apothecaries shortly after appointing his younger brother Orien as Grand Master

Orien Marin
The careful younger brother of Orland, appointed Grand Master after the deaths of the then grand master Sevrin and his brother Orland, reluctant to take the position initially he only gave in out of respect for his brothers dying words, that he feared anyone else who took the position may continue Sevrin’s reign of terror.

Still the Grand Master to this day he has hamstrung a lot of the branches of the order, putting laws in place to ensure the Grand Master must still answer to the Synod before appointing a new Synod so he can begin his work reforming the Order.

Alannar Taria
A young studious elf and friend of Orien, incredibly young by elven standards to be taking the position of Lord Erudite but he has so far filled the position perfectly, his vast intellect has helped Orien out many a time and his age ensures that he should be there to help out the next few generations of Grand Master also.

Ergo Vex
One of the loyalists to Orland who fought alongside him against the Sevrin loyalists and current Inquisitor Dominus. Chosen for his adequate skills in combat and incredibly by the book approach to running the Inquisition.

Morelia Grey
The current Imperatrix General, a strong willed silent woman chosen by the Generals of the Secretorum Militant, under the command of the Symmerian government.

An incredibly formidable fighter and straight to the point strategist, she wears the ornate plate armour of the Imperatrix General even though shows of ostentatious style make her uncomfortable, instead preferring to keep her head shaved and wear a cloak around her armour whenever possible.

Other Named Members
Zalmon Tamar

Son of a dangerous necromancer, Uriah Tamar, having suffered in childhood due to his father's necromancy and the untimely death of his brother he only took up white necromancy before finding the Ordo Mortui who took him in and trained him.

Silent and untrusting he prefers to get his work done and get out, even if he has a tendency to go overboard at times.

Zephaniah

An inquisitor and a Dread, from an initial look she is a quite unassuming if a little delusional but she is feared amongst the other inquisitors due to her reputation in battle.

She uses psionic powers to enhance the fear in her opponents minds, mentally transforming her entirely plain mask, her opponents bodies and the environment around them into gruesome shifting visages of rotting flesh, maggots and gaping dark chasms, filling their mind with screams and wet tearing noises as she quietly dispatches them from the shadows with a thing rapier blade and a few daggers.

The reluctance of the other inquisitors to work with her comes from the seeming reckless abandon in which she uses her psionic powers, affecting everyone around her, allies as well as enemies.

Markolf

A jovial Chief Inquisitor, known for taking on and training new Acolyte’s at a quick and effective rate, his unconventional tactics of using more plate mail and a hammer in battle make him quite the leader to follow into the fray.

✝ Septimus

A member inquisition and hunter for the past Inquisitor Dominus, somewhere along the way he was lost to the order, falling to a curse of undeath and attempting to stop the party that Zalmon was travelling with, not expecting to be quite so handedly outmatched he was dispatched quickly but is a worrying sign that things are not quite as ideal as they could be during this turbulent time of cleansing and reformation in the ranks of the Ordo Mortui.

Roland

The mysterious 'Roland' travelled for miles and crossed borders to find those still loyal to the Ordo Mortui in its most troubling times.

Kron

Another one of the faithful members of the Ordo Mortui, a goblin who has spent his time in tyrannadis and the tower learning his gunslinging abilities.

Fovos

A sarcastic Psychopomp Nesoi who runs a lot of errands for the Wardens of the Order, he ends up delivering a lot of Zalmon’s messages to him, whether it be through crafty planning or just bad luck on the part of Zalmon.

The bird has an annoying knack for getting under Zalmon’s skin as much as possible.