Darth Wiki / Knights Of The Blade

Peace Through Power. Prosperity Through Vigilance.

Knights Of The Blade is a setting created by Captain Chaos, which consists of a vast array of background information and a few interconnected vignettes but has not yet taken form in the public eye. It is the story of one man on a mission- not to mention the massive army backing him up.Said army is called the Sons of the Dagger (It's a dumb name, I know. Maybe the Knights of Haven)?.

What would happen if Occupy Wall Street turned violent? Following an armed revolt against the corporate overlords, a revolutionary faction took root. People from all walks of life signed up for a chance to reshape the world in the image of the common folk, and the faction became a multi-national, incredibly well-equipped, highly-trained, fiercely determined, and all-around Badass Army dedicated to defending humankind and its holdings from threats both foreign and domestic, and generally try to prevent The End of the World as We Know It. They are led by an exceptional warrior colloquially known as the King of Blades, the aforementioned man on a mission, who would lead his followers to the stars on a quest for adventure, discovery and a new home.

When you get the Call to Adventure, it'll be from these guys. It's a tough job, but you get flexible hours and a great benefits package: Through the power of LEGO Genetics, every member of this group, known amongst themselves as The Order, is gifted with superhuman abilities of strength, intelligence, toughness, agility, immunity to disease, and biological immortality. They can be killed, though it takes a herculean effort. Red Shirt Army? Please. We've got no time for such nonsense. If you are a member of the , you are by admittance a badass and have a good chance of being Crazy Is Cool, or at the very least Crazy-Prepared. You've got Powered Armor, big guns, big swords, and if you like, both at once. Or perhaps you prefer two swords? Maybe you've got an axe or a hammer? Maybe you're more the two gun type? Trust me, you're not compensating for anything. Anyone who says otherwise is a Jerkass.

Maybe you're not a fighter. It's cool, we won't judge. Every army needs support staff. Help fight evil by healing the troops, fixing their gear or making science happen. Whatever you do, you're gonna do it damn well, because that's how The Order rolls.

Perhaps these guys sound like a bunch of bland powerhouses to you. Maybe. *sniff* Maybe. But when half the galaxy, including Killer Robots, Lizard Folk, a Horde of Alien Locusts, Doomsday Cultists, anti-superhuman terrorists, a zombie plague and the Gods-know-what-else is out for your bacon, suddenly those boring Invincible Heroes aren't so dull anymore.

You are about to embark upon the great crusade. This is humanity's struggle for survival writ large, but make no mistake, it's going to be awesome. If War Is Hell, then you need hellish soldiers to fight it. The Rule of Cool is your greatest weapon. Space Is an Ocean, and you're The Captain of the Starship Bad Ass. Forget The War on Terror, we've got trained counter-terrorism operatives! Forget the Zombie Apocalypse, we've got flamethrowers and chainsaws! Forget Perpetual Poverty, we've got lots of cash! That Horde of Alien Locusts? We'll we'll roll right over 'em! Forget Chaste Heroes, it's the Free-Love Future! Forget about grim darkness and evil space communists too! This is war, in color! This is an army of superheroes versus everybody! And humanity always wins!

Welcome to the future. You're going to need more ammo.

This... game? movie? book? Who knows. (There's a concept for an Action MMORPG) Whatever it is, it has a Character Sheet.

Knights Of The Blade provides examples of:

• Abnormal Ammo: Various examples of non-conventional weapons can be found, for example, the Ripjack, a weapon that fires saw blades.
• Absurdly Sharp Blade: Order blades are designed to cut through just about anything.
• The Ace: Lord Dagger can come off as this, but he likes to let the soldiers under his command take the spotlight whenever possible.
• Action Girl: Most female members of the Order, excepting civilians and conscientious objectors. Due to this being a Free-Love Future, they also have a better then average chance of being an...

• Always Chaotic Evil: The Horonic Tide, a Horde of Alien Locusts genetically-tailored for combat and ruled by a Hive Mind. At least, that's the general theory.
• Applied Phlebotinum: Brand-Malevich Pulse-Wave Generators and Determinite plating. See Minovsky Physics below for how they work.
• Arc Words: Ascension. What is it? How do we get to it? What happens when we do? Humanity fought an "Ascension War" to determine whether we would go to space as a free people or as a forcibly unified empire. A number of civilizations before us have ascended or come near it. Most have suffered, and none of the ones who have are still around to ask. If humanity manages to reach the next level, we may be the first to do so without dire ramifications.
  • The ancient vorgoths conquered the galaxy, the secrets of robotics and probably death itself, and yet their empire mysteriously vanished at the apex of their power.
  • The velocites liked to go fast, and one day they went so fast that they left this reality and probably aren't coming back. All that remains of them are strangely-designed highways on a single, dusty planet, meticulously maintained by automated drones.
  • The novator got close, but then tore their own civilization apart in a galaxy-spanning civil war. They exist now as a fragmented, tribal society, only some of which even bother to talk to outsiders.
  • The ozzarians were a Higher-Tech Species on their way up when they suffered a catastrophic alien invasion that blasted them back to the stone age.
  • The ikarans succeeded in creating "ascended beings" and were subsequently destroyed by them. Only a few of their "Created" remain, and most of them would rather wallow in sorrow or aimless rage then contribute to anything.
  • The eidola seemingly attempted to do so and horribly failed, and were so warped by the experience that they really, really don't like talking about it.]
  • Other races, like the vectra, the pyroth and the guarach, are not as well established and their path to ascension remains to be discovered. Chances are, they'll need our help.
• Artificial Limbs: Of the cybernetic persuasion. Part of the enhancement process involves making human physiology more receptive to such.
• Asskicking Leads to Leadership: Promotion in The Order depends as much on combat and tactical skill as leadership or strategy.
• A Super-Soldier Is You: In the MMORPG. Each class has elements of the basic archetypes (tanking, healing, damage dealing) so class choice is more about combat style then role. Each class also has an Awesome Backpack with various abilities. Classes include:
  • Skirmisher: The Blademaster, but not pure melee. Best class at melee fighting, faster then the Destroyer and more damaging then other melee attackers. Uses a suped-up Jet Pack that they can use to body check enemies.
  • Knight: The Archer and Buffer. Essentially an "Officer" class. Effective at keeping enemies at bay and augmenting his team's abilities. Uses a pack that can massively increase his fire rate.
  • Enervator: The Debuffer and Mezzer. Uses chemicals/elemental attacks. Has a pack that can immobilize his enemies.
  • Demolisher: The Area of Effect Nuker, uses explosives/ attacks with explosive force. Uses a pack that dispenses bombs.
  • Destroyer: The Scrapper/Archer. Slow, but has heavy weaponry. Good for breaking and holding defenses. Has a pack that lets him deploy, becoming immobile but gaining massive firepower.
  • Warsmith: The Beastmaster, can also be the The Minion Master or The Turret Master. Good for supporting offenses and defending choke points. Has a pack that can repair buildings.
  • Paramedic: The Premptive Healer and Curer. A fast Combat Medic. Has a pack that can resuscitate fallen teammates.
  • Marksman: The Archer, deals much higher single-target damage then the Knight but less effective against groups. Has pack that lets him jam enemy targeting systems, reducing incoming damage for friendlies.
  • Rogue: The Backstabber. Less effective in open combat then the Shock Trooper but has a cloak pack and can distract enemies, functioning as an Avoidance Tank.
• Awesome Personnel Carrier: Among others, the OVR-997A "Overlord" troop transport. It features a small cannon turret and a front-mounted ramming plate enhanced by an electromagnetic field.
• Badass Army: If this trope had a book, it would be titled Knights of The Blade.
• Badass Biker: Lord Dagger and many members of the Order's armored corps, The Black Riders.
• Badass Long Coat: Standard-issue for all officers.
• The Battlestar: The Super-Battlecarrier Somnium, a one-of-a-kind vessel so powerful, populous and massive it is really more of a mobile fortress then a ship. And it has a Wave-Motion Gun that sucks in lines before unleashing it's fury.
• BFG: Standard-issue Order firearms are usually this, in comparison to current real-world service guns. They use a potassium-based, high-explosive propellant (as opposed to low-explosive smokeless powder used in current guns), giving them both reddish muzzle flares and impressive volume.
• BFS: Actually Averted in the case of most Order troops, since, well, using a very large sword gets in the way of using a very large gun. However, played very, very straight by certain individuals.
• Black Cloak: As part of the general theme of Dark Is Not Evil, a fair number of Daggers will wear these, especially when it's rainy or windy out.
• Bio-Augmentation: Some Daggers engage in this beyond the basic enhancement package. Changes can range from altering hair or eye color, all the way to extra limbs or natural weaponry or defenses, such as bone blades or electric organs. It alters the individual at the genetic level and is primarily chemical, but surgery, cybernetics, psychotherapy, mental conditioning and intense training fill in the gaps to create a balanced, multifaceted and most importantly, safe and repeatable approach to creating a Super-Soldier.
• Bird People: The novator, one of many Precursors of the setting- but one of the only ones that survive to this day. They are a mix of this and Space Elves of the "Enlightened Mystic Race" variety: They have the hollow bones, the feathers and the wings of the former, but also humanoid facial features, pointed ears, and powerful psychic abilities, particularly those of The Empath. They are communal, exceedingly long-lived, and maintain a rich tradition of song, dance, poetry and theater that goes back thousands of years. One particular confederation of tribes, the "Star Children", maintain a close alliance with The Order. Other tribes can be civil, reclusive, standoffish and occasionally outright hostile to humans.
• Brain/Computer Interface: Most Daggers have a microcomputer installed in their heads called an infolink, which provides them wireless communication, storage and interstellar web-surfing.
• Cthulhumanoid: The mar'koss, from Neptemos, a A planet of solitary hunters. They make expert trackers, bounty hunters, mercenaries and poison-makers. They also rather like knives.
• Custom Uniform of Sexy: Order uniforms are designed to subtly emphasize the most prominent features of both sexes. In addition, their wearers are permitted to customize them to various degrees, dependent on personal preference but bound by a few firm but flexible guidelines.
• Crapsack World: Only upon closer examination. The Order, fresh from the most brutal war in its history, simply doesn't care. They aim to put the galaxy's shit back together, by force where required, and are willing to take other species along for the long haul towards interstellar peace.
• Cyborg: Almost every Dagger has cybernetic implants, mostly subtle ones like the subdermal "infolink" computer and N-Wave Amplifiers, but some have more obvious ones like Artificial Limbs or Electronic Eyes.
• Dark Is Not Evil: The Order's default color scheme is red-on-black. Their founder wished to "take back" these colors, once the colors of the Nazis and other terror groups, and restore them as the colors of passion and of space- and the discoveries that awaited us.
• Deflector Shields: In the form of electromagnetic emitters placed strategically throughout a suit of Powered Armor or vehicle.
• Earth That Was: Subverted. In the wake of the Ascension War there was a mass exodus of surviving populations from Earth. Because of this, the environment on the whole is actually on the recovery. The eventual result of this is that Earth really will become as it was, a verdant paradise, before the rise of human civilization. Due to their longevity, many Daggers will be around to witness this.
• Eat the Rich: Open resentment of major corporations, their ownership of politics, and their old, fat, white masters finally reached a boiling point. In a desperate bid save not only their own livelihoods but the economy of the entire world, the people of the former United States revolted, and the Anti-Wealth Riots began. From the fires of this unrest rose a ragged precursor of what would become The Order. Their founder, a visionary warrior, gave a voice to the starving masses, armed them, and directed their wrath in targeted strikes against corporate holdings. When the dust settled, the little man controlled the West- under soft-spoken, Vermont-born, blue-collar President Robert Springs. To wit, Wall Street was renamed Kochs' Folly.
• Energy Weapon: The Order makes use of various energy weapons, mostly lasers and plasma weapons, with the occasional Lightning Gun. On the whole though, they prefer ballistics.
• The Engineer: Individual examples found elsewhere aside, the Mechanists are all about this trope. Collectively, they are the Order's technology wizards. Some design, others create, still others repair - on or off the battlefield. They all know their shit, and can very easily wreck yours. Where they are on the scale from Machine Empathy to Technopath depends only on their cybernetics. Whether you've got burnt toast or a full-on Phlebotinum Breakdown, just look for these guys and their stylish red cloaks.
• Everything Sensor: Standard issue.
• Faster-Than-Light Travel: Of the "portal" variety. Thanks to the Kearndy-Brand Transpace Field Distortion Device, or "warp drive", ships may enter the "Bleed", which is proportionately much smaller then "real" space. There is a danger zone around planets and other stellar bodies, which cast "reflections" in the Bleed around which it's strange, reddish energy flows pool.
• A Father to His Men: Implicitly encouraged, subtly required of Order officers.
• Free-Love Future: Communal living is standard practice among the Order. This arose largely from that. Their founder espouses it.
• Fun with Acronyms: SOTD for Sons Of The Dagger. For bonus points, their previous title: SFAPE, or Soldiers For A Peaceful Earth. That one didn't last long.
• Gatling Good: Man-portable, vehicle-mounted, mech-mounted in groups... the Order is not short on rotary guns.
• Good Is Not Nice: The Sons of the Dagger's core objective is the preservation of the human species. Towards that end, wherever they appear, The Order will combat any threat by any means available. They constantly seek to better the standards of living for the human race, and represents us in extending offers of friendship and partnership to other races. Anyone who actively subverts or goes against those goals is in for a world of pain.
• Great Offscreen War: The Ascension War, a civil war between members of The Order loyal to its founder, the Lord of Blades, and renegades under his greatest general, Barton Locke, over how to form a One World Order (see below). The conflict devastated both sides and much of Earth's society and more then thousand years later, humanity is still living with the war's effects.
• Green-Skinned Space Babe: Blue-skinned, rather. The vectra, a proud warrior race that is almost entirely female, like to fight with spears and possess a tail, enlarged forelimbs for digging and the ability to eat their food (and their enemies) whole. They're from a terribly frigid world and have to wear thermal suits in human-normative temperatures. They are brash, adventurous and intensely physical, sort of serving as the "Space Dwarves" to the novator's Space Elves. They get along well with humans. Very well.
• Lightning Bruiser: The Order's combat philosophy, and the fighting style of most of its soldiers, with notable exceptions. Within reason, The Order will always use maximum force against a recognized threat, using combined-arms tactics, orbital support, superior technology and sheer determination to utterly devastate enemies.
• Long-Runners: This setting has existed in some form since 1997.
• Hell-Bent for Leather: Order uniform jackets and coats, as well as other articles if desired, are made of a synthetic leather substitute. Off-duty wear varies wildly, of course.
• Heroes "R" Us: Though unusually large for the trope, having one entire planet to themselves and many smaller colonies and bases.
• Hollywood Silencer: Bah. Who needs silencers when your gun uses explosive propellant?! Well, the Order's black ops troops, but that's beside the point.
• Humans Are Psychic in the Future: Though this was brought about artificially via Magic Genetics.
• Humans Are Special: Yes, but it's more like People Are Special. The Order recruits members of other species with no qualms whatsoever. We've all had a tough time of things, but we all have room to improve.
• Humongous Mecha: Referred to as simply "mechs" for the time being, as they currently lack their own moniker. Order mechs are broadly divided into two categories: "Fighter" Mechs, which are humanoid Motion-Capture Mecha, and "Fire Support" mechs, which look like bipedal gun platforms a la BattleTech or Chrome Hounds.
• Intangible Man: The eidola, ghost-like beings that wander the galaxy. They're attracted both to ancient ruins and to centers of activity, and like to amuse themselves by observing the doings of more solid beings, but very little is known about them: Why they're intangible, why their bodies appear wracked and ragged, and why, if you ask the right question, they appear to be so very, very sad. They'll crush your heart or fry your brain if you threaten their friends or the innocent in front of them, otherwise they're about the friendliest folks you'll meet.
• Immortality Begins at Twenty: More or less. The enhancement process is engineered to halt aging past a generalized margin, with the results being different for everyone, so most Daggers look anywhere from 18 to 30. Those who were altered later in life retain their general appearance, though they lose artifacts of aging such as age lines, discolorations, hair loss and physical handicaps such as arthritic joints.
• LEGO Genetics: The key element of induction to The Order involves a horrendously complicated genetic modification process that entails the chemical alteration and replacement of many genes with superior variants. The result is a Super-Soldier with most of the elements of the Flying Brick power set, with immunity to aging and disease.
• Living Forever Is Awesome: It has its ups and downs, but most Daggers agree that this is largely true.
• Lizard Folk: The tajermok clans, savage warriors and cunning opportunists who, centuries ago, once enjoyed great power as a member of The Shadow. They have since fallen upon harder times. Though not Always Chaotic Evil, they are as a rule ill-tempered and self-serving.
• Magic from Technology: The enhancement process had the unforeseen beneficial side effect of mutating the brain to develop a new set of pathways that, when consciously employed, enable various Psychic and Elemental Powers. Though every Dagger has the potential to be an esper, not all of them use it regularly since doing so requires extensive training and augmetic surgery even beyond what a Dagger would normally undergo.
• Magitek: Some examples. As detailed under Psychic Powers below, Dagger espers expend bio-energy using their powers, as one would doing any other physical or mental activity, only at a far greater rate then the human body could ordinarily handle. The enhancement process gives them greater natural reserves and faster recuperation, though this sometimes isn't enough, so there are technological aids. A neural implant can help focus and project N-Waves, while also helping to prevent accidental firings brought about by otherwise ordinary thought. A cybernetically-linked bio-electric "power cell" can allow an esper to operate for longer, while a device such as a specialized gauntlet or weapon can allow an esper to focus an N-Wave through their body and outwards from the device, engaging more of the body in the process and alleviating some stress on the brain while also generating stronger effects.
• Magnetic Hero: Lord Dagger in particular, but The Order as a whole makes a concerted effort to recruit anyone they can. Qualifications for joining include a willingness to do good, prior experience in kicking ass, hope, a dream of better times, and/or sheer, dogged determinaton.
• Multinational Team: Members of the Order come from all over the world- and other worlds, besides.
• The Men First: Always. To do otherwise would be unthinkable.
• The Musketeer: Members of the Order often carry a melee weapon of choice in addition to firearms.
• Minovsky Physics: Two: Brand particles, when agitated, most often with a particle accelerator called a Pulse-Wave Generator, give off enormous amounts of electrical energy. Vorvick particles are used to treat metal such as steel or titanium in a zero-gravity, high-heat environment to create Determinite, a nigh-indestructible material, used in everything from simple bolts and screws to spacecraft armor plating.
• Nebulous Evil Organization: The Dark Claw, a group with comparable resources to The Order but no where near the numbers. They make up for this with questionable ethics, unswervingly loyal minions and liberal experimentation with biological and chemical weaponry. Their ultimate goal was to establish an imperialist dictatorship in Europe under "Greater Prussia", but were driven off Earth and into hiding.
• No Poverty: In The Order, and in some novator tribes. The Order is well aware that other human nations cannot or will not ascribe to this, and actively exploits that fact by donating resources to those in need to undermine the power base of those who control their supply. It also manufactures all its necessary items in-house, to ensure no government or business can try the same against them.
• Nuclear Weapons Taboo: In-universe. A ban on nuclear weapons and other scorched-earth tactics is mutually enforced by the The Order, the Citizens of the Earth League (a United Nations style organization that moderates between the human stellar nations) and their non-human affiliates.
• Omniscient Database: The Archive. It's THE Magical Database of everything, everywhere, everywhen.
• One World Order: Catastrophically Averted. The founder of the Order wished to form a Federation, while the greatest of his generals, Barton Locke, believed that the founder should rule as The Emperor. This issue was so divisive it led to a civil war, now called the Ascension War, which collapsed global society as we know it now. Though the loyalists triumphed and freedom was preserved, the surviving members of The Order left Earth in self-imposed exile. When the rest of Earth followed, it was as before- a patchwork of factions and countries. What changed was that there was now an independent body that would look out for the lives and livelihoods of the common citizenry against the interests of governments and corporations, with the power to defend them militarly were necessary.

• The Order: To such an extent that The Order actually refers to itself as such.
• Planet of Hats: In lieu of the Standard Fantasy Races, in the MMORPG you are always a human, but can choose your planet of origin: Earth, Venus, Mars, the Galilean moons, Titan, and so on.
• Pro-Human Transhuman: The Order as regards to the rest of humanity. The idea is to protect them from threats both foreign and domestic, and guide them back to a peaceful path should they get rowdy. Though the enhancement is mandatory for anyone who joins the Order, joining is itself voluntary and the enhancement isn't forced on the rest of the species, many of whom are content with being Muggles. Notably, most asked accept the call or even jump at it
• Powered Armor: Depending on their battlefield role, every Dagger is issued a custom-fitted suit of powered armor made of Determinate plating over a flexible bodysuit that incorporates the same material in its weaving. Suits typically include an Everything Sensor, Instantaneous peer-to-peer communication, an internal climate control system to ensure comfort, magnetic clamps to enable Sticks to the Back, Deflector Shields and Stat-O-Vision.
• Proud Merchant Race: The Trader's Guild, founded by novator but now made up of many species, who have made themselves the standard in interstellar commerce and trade.
  • The Merchanites, a race of sentient machines left over from an ancient war. Once quartermasters to their cruel vorgoth creators, they are now solitary wanderers, collectors and hawkers of junk, supplies and rare artifacts, and aggregators of information.
• Proud Scholar Race: The novator, of the mystic type, though this applies most accurately to the Star Children. Once, the race on the whole were Warrior Poets, but a devastating civil war fractured their society and their principles. No novator tribe now maintains a standing army out of ancient tradition, and career warriors are rare.
• Proud Warrior Race: Straighter examples exist among the alien races, but in general, The Order embraces strength and battle prowess, in deference to the old world's emphasis on personal wealth and interpersonal guile and deception. However, other values include compassion, generosity, knowledge, wisdom, honesty, forethought, and virility of mind, spirit and body.
  • The Inheritors, a group of novator tribes whom in ancient times believed that the galaxy should be ruled by the novator alone.
• Planet of Hats: Generally speaking, the following holds true:
  • The Order: Selfless, brave, resourceful and determined.
  • novator: Wistful, melancholic, wise and deeply spiritual.
  • tajermok: Arrogant, cunning, quick to anger and strong.
  • vectra: Haughty, sensual, agile and promiscuous.
  • boros: Inquisitive, calm, protective, and do not quickly forgive or forget.
  • pyroth: Brash, excitable, industrious and hardy.
  • eidola: Mysterious, curious, skittish and emotional.
• Psychic Powers: Daggers are capable of these thanks to the enhancement, see Magic from Technology above. The brain of a Dagger is capable of transmitting a neural pulse outward from the physical body in the form of a "Nightwind Wave" or N-Wave. Your Mind Makes It Real, though not in the sense of that trope: The effect the N-Wave has depends entirely on what its sender wanted it to do. The potential of the ability is as staggering as it sounds, but is limited by several key factors, not the least of which being human imagination. If you cannot think of it, then you cannot make it happen. Like any bodily function, this effort requires an expenditure of energy and "Espers" have to take care to stay well-fed and energized.
  • The novator evolved similar abilities naturally.
• Rank Scales with Asskicking: Pay keen attention to the ranking insigna on a Dagger's uniform. It's directly proportional to how badly they can kick your ass.

• Rule of Cool: What to blame if you notice that some part of the science doesn't work. Also governs just about everything else. Anything that isn't may be covered under Rule of Sexy or Rule of Fun.
• Seen It All: Living for as long as a Dagger does means seeing a whole lot of bad stuff happen to good people, usually without reason. A Dagger's greatest foe is not death, but rather doubt in themselves and their ability to defend the common folk. Some face this struggle daily. The Awful Truth of a cruel and uncaring universe can be too much for one person- but that is why you must look to those around you. You are never alone.
• Serial Escalation: Question. Exactly how many Humongous Mecha, Military Mashup Machines, genetically-engineered Action Heroes and Action Girls, awesome methods of travel, badass longcoats, large weapons, breasts and hams, Always Chaotic Evil Hordes of Alien Locusts, snark, and One-liners can one possibly fit into a single World of Badass? Answer: not nearly enough.
• Status Buff: In the MMORPG. Each class's Awesome Backpack provides a passive buff, and each class has other buff abilities.
  • Shock Trooper: Movement and attack speed.
  • Knight: Accuracy.
  • Ennervator: Status effect resistance.
  • Demolisher: Damage.
  • Destroyer: Ammo regeneration.
  • Mechanist: Boosts shield strength.
  • Paramedic: Health regeneration.
  • Marksman: Stealth detection.
  • Rogue: Critical hit chance.
• Straight for the Commander: Attempting to do this to an Order officer is a bad idea.
• Subspace Ansible: Interstellar communications involves beaming transmissions through the Bleed, to cut down on travel time as one would with a ship.
• Subspace or Hyperspace: the "Bleed". If Space Is an Ocean, then the Bleed is an undercurrent that runs beneath the surface. Entering it is referred to as "going under", as with a submarine in a regular ocean. Unlike "real" space, it has streams and eddies, and coalesces around the "reflections" of physical bodies in our reality. The name comes from its odd reddish color and the fact that it "bleeds" into our reality at specific points, otherwise known as wormholes, where it can be entered without the use of a warp drive. contrary to what the name might suggest, it's not particularly scary.
• Super Hero Origin: Back Story wise, all Daggers share the same origin- the enhancement serum. In the MMORPG however, players would be able to choose an "origin" of sorts, not unlike in City of Heroes. The idea is you how your abilities manifest is different. Your class determines your fighting style, but your origin determines what actually constitutes your attacks. An Enhanced Enervator, for example, would use a chemical thrower to inflict status effects, while a Mage Enervator would use N-Wave abilities to do the same, essentially "curses" or "afflictions".
  • Enhanced: The "natural" character. You don't have the specialist abilities of the other origins, but you have a wider array of weapons and gear to choose from.
  • Changed: You have mutations from your enhancement or voluntary biomods, giving you Natural Weapons and abilities, which can include Elemental Powers or parts of the Anatomy Arsenal.
  • Augmented: You use a lot of cybernetics, up to and including integral weapons and technopathic abilites.
  • Gifted: You have mastery of N-Wave Physics, granting you Functional Magic and specialized gear.
• Superpowerful Genetics: Sort of. Daggers born through ordinary sex are monitored from conception for any unwanted genetic variation or developmental flaws. Some positive traits are inherited, others are specifically selected for by chemical conditioning, as they would be when altering an ordinary recruit. If you would not be born with a beneficial characteristic your parents had, then you will be given it anyway.
• Super-Soldier: Everybody. They have the standard Super-Soldier power set, in addition to Psychic Powers, and do not age. They are raised from birth in nurturing, communal living environments, and are taught to help and depend on not only parents and siblings but everyone they know, engendering the Order's core principle, unity, in their mindset. Essentially, in addition to super-powerful physical and mental traits, they are also super nice, and The Power of Friendship may as well be an actual superpower where The Order is concerned. Beware the Nice Ones, however, as this same unity makes them a lethal fighting force.
• Sword and Gun: Look for the commonplace machine pistol/sword combo.
• Travel Cool: Every Order vehicle is designed to meet every qualification imaginable, fusing battlefield superiority, bleeding-edge technology and sheer style. They typically come with an Everything Sensor, Deflector Shields, dedicated comm. hubs for efficient communications, and redundant components for all critical systems.
  • Cool Car: Many members of the Order keep a personal vehicle that they customize and arm to the teeth. First prize probably goes to the Mastadon, an obnoxiously over-designed vehicle that serves as Lord Dagger's personal transport.
  • Cool Boat: Most Order watercraft, but first prize probably goes to the Battlecarrier Muspellheim, a two-stage vessel bristling with weaponry and with carrier hulls grafted to either side of the ship's aft. The front half can seperate from the rear to become the rocket-assisted high-speed battleship Ares.
  • Cool Plane: Most Order aircraft. Most are capable of transitioning to spaceflight, typically by folding up their wings (or rotors) and switching to alternate propulsion systems. A few craft are not capable of true spaceflight but can be hot-dropped into a planetary atmosphere and use thrusters to adjust their trajectory.
  • Cool Ship: Most Order spacecraft. They generally resemble maritime warships, and classified as such, and are generally designed to hold their own in combat against numerically superior forces until reinforcements can arrive.
  • Tank Goodness: In abundance, from various standard sizes to the appropriately named "Goliath" Super-Heavy Tank, which deploys APCs from within itself and possesses an on-board munitions factory. Several features of current generation tanks are automated in Order ones, such that crews are much smaller, typically consisting of only a driver and gunner.
• True Companions: The core principle on which The Order is based. United in purpose, in life, in war and in peace. And often in other ways...
• United Nations: A Fictional Counterpart: The Citizens of Earth League, formed in response to the failure of the UN to prevent World War III. It largely performs the same things as it's predecessor, with a few key additions. Any member nation is officialy under the protection of The Order and any member nation that attacks another is subject to censure and sanction in CEL and retaliatory attack by the The Order. This threat has largely rid the Earth of armed conflict, though debate and lingering hatreds remain. They also enforce the global ban on nuclear weapons.
• The Usual Adversaries: The Horonic Tide, some tajermok clans.
• Up Through the Ranks: The only way to advance in any career in the Order, especially the military. The Order firmly believes that experience is the best teacher, and that the perspective one earns as a young warrior serves well when one goes on to command them.
• Warrior Poet: Some members of the Order, although Cultured Badass is also commonplace. Certain novator admire this aspect and see in the Daggers their former selves at their best.
• Weaponized Car: This wouldn't be a Captain Chaos work without them.
• Who You Gonna Call?: In the event of a supernatural threat, please contact your local Order outpost.
• Weapons and Wielding Tropes: Pick one. It'll fit somewhere.
• World of Badass: Only begins to describe it.
• World War III: The Ascension War.