Sic transit gloria mundi
OUT OF CHARACTER INFORMATION
Intent: Expand on the Order of Fire. This is a resubmission of a previously approved unit.
Image Credit: Here. Kalsifer by Fetsch on Deviantart.
Role: Force Warriors.
Permission: ARGH gear available per this thread. Permission for all ArmaTech gear and all other subs made by Laira Darkhold's writer here and here. Firemane obtained a supply contract that allows it to use Fire for Effect gear here. CD-X Cryptologic Key available for Firemane per this thread. Permission to use Tricks of the Trade submissions here.
Links: Firemane.
GENERAL INFORMATION
Unit Name: Excubitors.
Affiliation: Siobhan, Firemane, House Kerrigan-Alcori, Order of Fire.
Classification: Force Infantry.
Equipment:
Armour:
- Centurion Battle Armour. Commlink uses CD-X Cryptologic key.
- ACS-207 Aerosolblaster
- ACS-208 Wrist Ion Beamer
- ACS-207 Cryoban Gun.
- Wrist Bolter
- ACS-208 Wrist Charric
- ARGH Wrist Flamer
Sidearms:
- Cylix Bolt Pistol
- FWG-5 Flechette Smart Pistol
- Magnetic Revolver
- Sonic Disruptor
- Hold-out Bolter
- Renegade Model 557
- Uproar Blaster
- MSD-32
- Grenades
- Misc equipment like Grappling Hooks, Force Focusing Visor. Firemane Force Suppression Devices.
- Combat De-Ionizer.
Not all Order of Fire members serve in a military capacity. A skilled telepath may be trained to use their skills as an interrogator or negotiator. Someone who is good at making things grow may wind up in the research division as a botanist, supervise agriculture in a planetary settlement or an arkship or join the exploration corps. Someone with a skill for piloting will be taught to improve their abilities through the Force. However, the military branches are the heart of the Order. It defines itself as a martial organisation that follows military discipline. The Excubitors exist within this framework. All members of the group are required to be combat veterans who have proved themselves on Firemane campaigns. They treat the Force as a source of strength, glory and victory, not an energy field that controls their destinies.
The group is heavily militarised and Excubitors are expected to conduct themselves as soldiers. This includes obeying their superiors and not illegally commandeering military forces and corporate resources. As is the case with many Order of Fire formations, the Exubitors have a dual ranking system. Thus every member has an Order rank and a military rank. They are issued robes, but these are rarely worn in the Order of Fire outside of ceremonial occasions. Outside of combat an Excubitor tends to wear a olive green Firemane uniform with the Order of Fire symbol on their chest. This is standard for members of the Order.
Members of the group carry lightsabres. This is not universal in the Order, as it has several specialised branches that focus on conventional weapons rather than the iconic glowstick or use physical blades. However, the Excubitors concentrate on sabreplay. Purple, orange and yellow sabre crystals are common. They also utilise the distinctive lightsabre-pike. This is partly inspired by the utilisation of Sarzmigar polearms by the Angelii, partly by the Knights of Zakuul, who often wielded lightsabre-pikes in combination with battle shields. Crossguard lightsabres are preferred to conventional ones, as they grant better hand protection and allow a sneak attack. The standard uniform of the Excubitors is the Centurion armour, a suit of Phrik armour that is awarded to Firemane elite troops. This, as well, as their use of lightsabres and skill level, ensures that the Excubitors will never be a large unit.
Unsurprisingly, Siobhan Kerrigan takes a personal interest in the unit. Several of its members have been trained by her. Candidates for the group are often proposed by a senior Master of the Order. They must undergo harsh training in hostile environments such as Raevana or the depths of the Underealm. It is aimed to test their endurance, combat skills, initiative, tactical abilities and mental strength and push them to their limits. It also involves being subjected to a battery of mental assaults from a cadre of mentalists.
The Excubitors are geared towards frontline infantry action, often acting in concert with Firemane shock troops. Cross-training with other Order of Fire units and regular Firemane army formations is common. Though strong on its own, the Order does not operate in a vacuum. Its adepts will usually be deployed in concert with army units composed of Non-Force-Users. Firemane encourages its soldiers to display initiative in battle. This also extends to writing frank after-action reports, analysing what went wrong and what could have been done better.
COMBAT INFORMATION:
Unit Size: Medium
Unit Availability: Unique
Unit Experience: Elite
Combat Function: The Excubitors are a unit of Force warriors who combine a strong Force connection with a martial ethos and military training. They are battle-hardened veterans who have been inducted into the small unit after proving themselves in several engagements. They are selected for their martial prowess as well as their loyalty to the Order of Fire, Lady Siobhan Kerrigan and House Kerrigan-Alcori. These factors make them a formidable fighting force.
However, they are warriors enhanced by the Force. Formidable warriors, but still. They will require support forces, especially in pitched combat. They do not command tanks, operate heavy artillery or snipe enemies at a distance. They carry melee weapons, sidearms and wrist weapons. In other words, not weapons meant for combat at great distances. Depending on the terrain, this can very problematic, especially if they have been deprived of their Force powers or their enemy is simply too far away for their Force techniques to be practical. Thus they are susceptible to long range bombardment. They can lead a charge to seize a trench, an enemy bunker or similar, but would do best to have other forces backing them up. This is especially because they are a small unit and thus cannot appear on the battlefield in large numbers.
The Excubitors are very skilled in lightsabre combat. To ensure better hand protection, they favour crossguard lightsabres over conventional ones. Alternately, they carry lightsabre pikes like the Knights of Zakuul. In terms of powers, they are proficient in offensive and defensive applications of Telekinesis, Force Stasis, Tutaminis as well as using the Force to augment their body's capabilities and utilising Battlemind. They are skilled in elemental fire abilities, being able to harness the element of fire to burn, blast or blind enemies. Their training gives them good mental defences. Several of them are skilled in Force drain.
The Excubitors are a broadsword, not a scalpel. If they go up against a mixed force of Force-Users and Non-Force-Users, they will focus on taking the former out of the game. They can also use their lightsabre skills and telekinetic barriers to protect themselves and their allies against blaster fire. If they are deployed in concert with Order of Fire specialists, such as witches, elementalists or the Silencers, they will shield their allies and hammer their enemies close-up, taking advantage of whatever breach the specialists have caused. In the case of the Silencers, this would be dampening or negating the abilities of enemy Force-Users, while witches might have sowed chaos among enemy forces through use of mental attacks.
Strengths:
- Elite Force warriors. Composed of battle-hardened veterans skilled in small unit tactics, combat and the Force.
- Very skilled lightsabre duellists.
- Focus on melee and close quarter combat.
- Lack heavy weapons.
HISTORICAL INFORMATION
The Order of Fire is first and foremost a martial order. Above all its members as soldiers, who draw upon the Force as a tool to prevail over their enemies. They draw inspiration from a variety of sources such as the Imperial Knights, the Angelii and the integrated force model implemented by Omega Pyre during its glory days. Siobhan Kerrigan was heavily influenced by her experiences in Omega Pyre; an organisation she served in as a field officer and later commanded. Rather than robes, she wore battle armour and instead of purely relying on a lightsabre and Force powers she also used a rifle. She fought alongside common soldiers, learned to use military tactics and had superiors to answer to. This was a model she applied to the Order of Fire after its foundation.
Their lightsabres would be weapons they utilised to smite enemies in battle. They would avoid the cognitive dissonance of regarding themselves as 'keepers of the peace, not soldiers', yet being forced to fight in wars. To them the Force would be a source of strength, honour and victory. They would be e expected to act in accordance with the orders of their superiors and further the interests of House Kerrigan-Alcori, the ruling family of Firemane Industries. In that regard the Order of Fire was intended to have more in common with a military unit than a religious order.
The Excurbitors were a logical step in the development of the Order, which boosted a variety of special units and suborganisations that were meant to support the ventures of Firemane and aid their Non-Force-Using comrades in arms. In terms of ability and training, one could broadly compare the Excurbitors to Jedi Guardians or Sith Warriors. Rather than provide combat support such as the druids of the Circle of Yarkul or the Force Suppression specialists from the Silencers unit, they were meant to take the fight to the enemy. Thus their training focused on an unrelenting offence and resilience, but also on gaining an understanding of small unit tactics and cooperation with Non-Force-Using soldiers.
The Excurbitors only accepted veteran Order members who had proved themselves in battle. Award as well as veterancy were taken into consideration when selecting candidates. A candidate must have fought in at least three campaigns, faced enemy fire at the front and be under thirty-five years of age - or whatever the equivalent is for alien races that age at a different pace than humans.
Many used to serve in the Fireguard, though members from other Order branches were also accepted into their ranks. In addition to honing their combat prowess, they were also trained in small unit leadership and tactics. However, they must still obey the chain of command. Thus an Excurbitor with the rank of Lieutenant would not be able to override a Non-Force-Using Major because military rank trumped the ability to swing a lightsabre or shoot lightning. However, their abilities made them useful force multipliers on the battlefield and they were taught to integrate their preternatural abilities into an overall battle plan. By contrast, lone wolf actions were frowned upon. The Jedi's methods during the ancient Battle of Geonosis were held up as an example of how not do to things.
Part of the training process for an Excurbitors involved being pit against two senior Masters of the Order, one after the other. These duels were designed in such a way that each recruit faced Masters with contrasting skill set. For instance one might face a duellist such as Colonel Leonina Varkathras first, then an elementalist such as Tempest or Elpsis or a mentalist like Nima Tann. Those who are considered extremely promising have the good fortune of being pit against the Grandmistress herself. Duels with Siobhan Kerrigan were always 'interesting' because the Lady had a habit of turning them into OSHA nightmares.
To steel their minds against mental intrusion and manipulation, especially in the case of capture, the Excurbitors must also endure harrowing interrogation sessions where mentalists try to force their way into their minds to torment them or extract information. This teaches them endurance and ways to protect their minds. An intense survival course in inhospitable territory was also part of the programme. The Order considered the extremely dangerous planet Raevana to be particularly suitable for this, though Terax and Tash-Taral were also visited for this purpose. Those who made it through training join a very small, but exclusive group. They also received a suit of Centurion battle armour, which was awarded to them in a formal ceremony. They were paid extremely well and enjoyed generous benefits.
If Siobhan goes into battle, the Excubitors accompany her. This makes them a bit of a prestige unit. However, they are not limited to fighting at the side of the Lady. They can also be put under the command of senior Masters of the Order such as Colonel Varkathras or Tempest. The Excubitors saw actions in several conflicts. Elements of the unit fought in the battles against the Xioquo to overthrow Mystra, battling drow dark side adepts and alchemised monstrosities. They were also part of the Firemane strike force at the Battle of Castameer that helped take down the Omega superweapon, and later fought at the Battle of Kaeshana. They participated in the Krolis War, fighting at Siobhan Kerrigan's side when she battled the League of Krolis, an alliance of rebellious Qadiri states.
More recently, the Excubitors engaged Rogue Sith forces in combat. A Sith warlord's forces had been raiding Firemane assets near Arkas. Bashani Jai Hazia, a Qadiri naval commander in the services of Firemane, was tasked with removing this problem. This was her first big mission. Some in the admiralty were reluctant to give her any ships because of racism, as they maintained that Qadiri should stick to ships with sails and oars. However, she ambushed the Sith in the nebula. To bait them, she laid a trap in form of a fat convoy. However, the transports were empty except for explosives. The Firemane task force struck once the raiders had taken the bait. A mixed Firemane force composed of Excubitors and regulars used a frigate to board one of the Sith cruisers once its engines had been crippled, allowing the Firemane flotilla to focus fire and eliminate the other enemy cruisers. The Excubitors led the charge of the boarding party, battling Sith warriors and sorcerers in close quarters. Althoguh outnumbered, they were able to prevail over the enemy through teamwork and coordination. They were able to fight their way to the bridge and commandeer the vessel. The success helped solidify Bashani's position, proving that Qadiri did not need oars.
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