Approved NPC The Nether Knights | The Swords of Typhojem

[AMCO]

Spoiler

OUT OF CHARACTER INFORMATION

• Intent: A mystical addition to the Sith repertoire and a potential encounter in the upcoming GA Invasion of Korriban.
• Image Source: Darkfall Purge System by benedickbana; Shireeee......Bagginssssssss... by WolfDog-ArtCorner.
• Role: Temple Guardians, Bodyguards for High-Ranking Sith or Kissai, Ritualists, Special Forces, etc.
• Permissions: N/A
• Primary Source: Prosperian Soulstones | Sith Necromancy

GENERAL INFORMATION

• Unit Name: The Nether Knights (Secular) | The Holy Order of the Swords of Typhojem (Cabal)
• Affiliation: The Sith Order and the Cabal of Typhojem | The Primyn Group
• Classification: Possessed Constructs
• Description: Individualised constructs forged from Sarassian Iron or Tal'Beskar and controlled by a fallen Sith or daemonic spirit bound to a Soulstone at their core, the Nether Knights resemble droids or golems more than a military unit... to the casual observer. Only a fool would assume the shell to be central component, however, for it is the malevolent minds within that elevate them from "just another automaton" to a match worthy of a Jedi... or fellow Sith. Only rarely seen beyond the dunes of Sacred Korriban and its like except in service to high-ranking Kissai Priests or Sith (typically Sorcerers), few have faced these relatively-recent creations in battle and fewer still have survived to tell the tale.

COMBAT INFORMATION

• Unit Size: Small
• Unit Availability: Rare
• Unit Experience: Elite
• Equipment: Sith Warblades, Sith Talismans (Typically Shield and/or Concentration), ritual aids, etc.
• Combat Function: The Nether Knights enter battle much like they did in life, though demon-fuelled Knights may behave more... erratically; without the frailties of the flesh, however, they are more inexorable by far, their wills tempered by clarity of conviction (assuming they volunteered for such a fate) or a study binding courtesy of the Order's Sorcerers. All but the most strong-willed tend to lose some individuality over time, further binding them to the Sith Order at the expense of mental flexibility.

STRENGTHS

• Dark Prowess: It is not common steel that drives the Nether Knights forward, but the bound soul of a fallen Sith or a daemonic spirit drawn from the depths of Chaos. While individual aptitudes may vary (brutal swordsmen and cunning sorcerers being the most common, though demon-fuelled constructs can be... strange), all command the Force to some extent and none are slowed by the frailties of mortal flesh.
• Mad Artistry: The Nether Knights are not droids from a factory-line or their fleshy human analogues, but walking pieces of depraved artistry, their steel-wrought forms shaped to suit their individual skills and traits, though usually conforming to a roughly humanoid form.

WEAKNESSES

• Hearts of Darkness: Driven inexorably forward by the Dark Side of the Force, the surest way of destroying a Nether Knight is through the purifying radiance of the Light (though more dakka works just as well); they are weakened by Ysalamiri and the like, but hardly incapacitated. Force Abilities and the like would, of course, be as weakened/nullified as they otherwise normal.
• Sword and Sorcery: The Nether Knights are, to exactly no one's surprise, not exactly at the forefront of technological development - expect swords and sorcery, not armoured vehicles and rocket launchers, though a few exceptions do exist.

HISTORICAL INFORMATION
The Sith have a long and proud tradition of eccentric automatons and disturbing the rest of the dead, but the Nether Knights go above and beyond in both categories, binding the souls of slain Sith (and the occasional demon, when the Sorcerer is feeling bold) into specially prepared suits of armour/droids-of-sorts, which are often individualised, but may be made for a specific "office", e.g., the protectors of the Kissai Council.

Pioneered through the personal projects of Darth Prospero and his bloc within the Primyn Group and perfected with the involvement of both conventional Sith and some of the Cabal's more eccentric ritualists, the Nether Knights are... suitably eccentric.

Too fragmented too have established much in the way of common traditions, despite being considered an "Order" on paper, Nether Knights are rarely seen in groups larger than 1-3, though as many as a dozen demon-possessed Nether Knights have been known to be deployed as the spearhead of important offensives or on other assignments where carnage is needed and the fragile fleshy bits of Sith Knights are a disadvantage.

 

[Judah Lesan]

AMCO

Overall, this is a good submission. I like the idea and the concept you’re running with. That being said because this unit has been created for the express of use in PVP in an upcoming invasion are constructs themselves going to be submitted to the factory?

Whether you do or not has no bearing on whether I can approve this submission. I am only pointing this out because I personally feel you need to submit the actual construct.

Another note under WEAKNESSES:

You mention that Ysalamiri barely incapacitate the constructs, but you’ve equipped them with items that are meant to enhance force use. Please expand on this weakness for clarity sake.

Thanks!!

 

[AMCO]

Judah Lesan

You raise some good points, so let's see here!

The easiest fix was the whole Ysalamir and such thingy - added a second sentence to clarify that any Force Abilities would be as weakened as normal. The reason the constructs themselves don't just fall over? I find a random lizard being able to unmake Sith/demon-possessed constructs a bit... silly.

Hopefully, that should be sufficient.

As for why they are not linked to a Factory submission, I was working on one but it just sort of fell flat. The closest fit would be droid, I suppose, but it's hard to do anything concrete there since they can vary in size/weight and lack any techy parts. My intent is that the spirit is the important part, with the bodies just being something that coincidentally contains them; fancy, probably, but no special features worth speaking of.

This does mean they don't have resistances per se, but neither does "statues possessed by Sith spirits", "generic armour", and the equivalent. I reckon it just means people have to be reasonable - are they hardy? Yeah, probably. Blaster-proof? If they were, it'd be mentioned. Indestructible? Definitely not.

 

[Judah Lesan]

AMCO

This conversation is why I HIGHLY AND STRONGLY SUGGEST you at least have the factory submission up and in live judging before using this unit in an invasion. At this point it’s a guessing game, and a factory sub would save you the headache of a possible report later.

Trying to look out for you‘re idea in the front end

That being said we could do a couple things. Since this was submitted before the invasion begins you can use it per rules. So:

1. I can leave this open and you can drop a factory sub and link it here

or

2. I can approve this and you can do a sub mod later if you decide to go with a factory submission (did I say I highly recommend it).

Let me know what you’d like to do. Obviously we can just approve the submission also... but since there is some time before the invasion begins I thought I’d give you some options.

 

[AMCO]

Judah Lesan

Again, you raise some good points; I reckon I'll still go with option 2, though. I've never really had any of my submissions reported, so I chose to believe that people are able to interpret purposeful ambiguity as a reason for storytelling and not a transparent excuse for bad roleplaying.

If not, I'd offer to eat my hat - but alas, I don't own any hats.

To be clear, I would have made a submission if these were standardised, but they're not; the armour and droid templates are woefully ill-suited for something so... variable. These could, after all, be hulking warriors, slender sorcerers dancing about, or even (rarely) imposing demon-fuelled beasts. Wrangling the Factory to try to fit that into a single submission seems like more work than it's worth - and likely to unnecessarily complicate matters.

 

[Judah Lesan]

AMCO

Like I said I’m just highly suggesting

But let’s get this approved.

[APPROVED]