La Orden Faction Information - Printable Version

I. General identification

Naming convention:
[{+}]Name.Surname or Rank.Surname for fightercraft
[{+}]BO-Shipname for Gunboats and Transports
[{+}]MNS-Shipname for Heavy Capitals

Tag: [{+}]
ID: Outcast ID
IFF: Outcasts

II. General Information

La Orden Hospitalaria de los Caballeros del Pacto de los Sitios Sagrados de Malta y la Sacro Santa Verna, also known as "La Orden" or "Los Caballeros", is an exclusive, yet not secret, religious order centered on Malta that reveres the Nomads as the physical manifestation of both the spirits of deceased Outcasts and various spirits and deities from a pantheon. They are also a vast charity organization for Maltese civilians and citizens.

La Orden are often unintrusive to Maltese life and everyday operations in and around Omicron Alpha, often serving as priests or honor guards for various events, as well as holding their own rituals and ceremonies, many of which are open to the public. However, in matters concerning sacred sites, graves, or the spirits themselves, La Orden has been known to react decisively and mercilessly.

The expansion of La Orden's military capability began near the beginning of the general decline of spirituality in Malta and was greatly hastened after the Slave Revolt, in which many of said slaves had been beneficiaries of La Orden's charity. La Orden's exclusive nature keeps the numbers of their force limited, however, their obsessive nature trains them into formidable fighters, and the closeness of their brotherhood makes for trusting, cooperative crews.

III. History

La Orden began shortly after the first pilgrimages to Santa Verna, as a charity to enable the less fortunate to carry out their own pilgrimages. Members of powerful families would undertake a unique vow of poverty, pledging their wealth to La Orden, which would in turn use that wealth for general purposes. La Orden itself functioned as a family, not unlike the greater families of Malta, but their unique obsession and focus on religion and social work rarely put them at odds with the families, and they were left relatively undisturbed.

Though there were many religious groups and orders, La Orden had a key difference: while most groups rose and fell quickly, fed by trends and starved by the same, La Orden remained small for a long time, having a steadfast core of individuals that grew gradually. La Orden's membership rarely experienced extreme fluctuations, which resulted in many other religious groups eventually being subsumed by La Orden.

This gradual, steady progress continued for centuries, and by the time of the Slave Revolt, La Orden was a majority of Santa Verna's population, which only magnified the tragedy of the loss of Santa Verna at the hands of slaves, who were often beneficiaries of the charity of La Orden. Much of the higher leadership of La Orden died during that incident. elevating the former Maestro de Ceremonias Lucas Cardoso to the position of Senor Caballero, leader of La Orden.

IV. Doctrine

La Orden is primarily concerned with the faith regarding the spirits and Malta's society. Their primary concern is the defense and purity of the Outcast sacred sites, including Santa Verna and the Zonas Sagradas, Corsica Shipyard, and the debris field and graveyard left in the wake of the Slave Revolt. Members of La Orden are quick to imprison and hold trials for Outcasts who disrespect or desecrate sacred sites and will simply execute outsiders who do the same.

In recent years, after the traumas of the Slave Revolt, La Orden has begun moving outside of Omicron Alpha regularly, striking against Outcast enemies behind the idea that the best way to defend Malta's society is to destroy its enemies first.

Their most controversial doctrine, however, is their attitude towards Nomads, commonly misrepresented and subject to misinformation from both sides of the argument. La Orden often seeks to align itself with the Nomads wherever possible, however, it does this with measured caution and fear. Nomads being recognized as a pantheon of gods and ancestral spirits has both positives and negatives. There are gods of Justice and of Mercy, but there are also gods of Trickery and of War. The spirits of your own family are among them, as are spirits of families that may have hated you. Above all of this, the point of view of a spirit is impossible to comprehend.

In the same manner, truly infected individuals are viewed as chosen prophets of the spirits, and will take on the aspect of the spirit that chose them. This may turn one into a violent and mischievous troublemaker, or a kind and benevolent guardian.

V. Objectives

Short-term: Defend the day to day life of Malta and her people by any means necessary.
Medium-term: Ensure the health and tradition of Outcast society, guiding and forming it into the best version of itself.
Long-term Guide every Outcast possible through a good and virtuous life, so that when they ascend to spirithood they become kind and graceful gods instead of hostile and vindicative ones.

VI. Ranks

La Orden's leadership structure is based off of a series of interlaced geometry, beginning with a triangle and ending with a heptagon.
The Triangle; Leadership:

Senor Caballero, Leader of the Order
Caballero Meyor, Leader of Spiritual Matters
Caballero Menor, Leader of Social Matters

The Square; Advisorship to the leaders:

Diacono Meyor, right hand to the council for spiritual matters
Diacono Menor, left hand to the council for spiritual matters
Mayordomo Meyor, right hand to the council for social matters
Mayordomo Menor, left hand to the council for social matters

The Pentagon; Functional offices:

Orador, public speaker
Tesorero, collector and keeper of wealth
Limosnero, distributor of wealth
Escriba, keeper of records
Maestro de Ceremonias, leader and officer of rituals, ceremonies, and other such things.

The Hexagon; Interface with the Caballeros and the general public:

General del Cielo, main point of contact for Religious matters.
Teniente del Cielo, secondary point of contact for Religious matters.
General de la Humanidad, main point of contact for Social matters.
Teniente de la Humanidad, secondary point of contact for Social matters.
General del Guerra, main point of contact for Military matters.
Teniente del Guerra, secondary point of contact for Military matters.

The Heptagon, the seven virtues that define a Caballero of La Orden:

Familia. Above all things is family. Family gives you life, and when you die, family will give you eternal afterlife as a spirit. La Orden is a second family, and you must strive to honor both your first and second families.
Santidad. Sacred objects, places, saints, and the sanctity of yourself. Make yourself holy, so that when you become a spirit, you will be a righteous god. Defend what is holy, because your stewardship of what is holy determines the state of your home in the afterlife.
Cortesía. Be courteous in all things, even unto your enemy. As a soldier, bring swift and painless death to the enemy. As a civilian, be kind to those you know and those you do not know. Your kindness prepares your soul for the afterlife, so that you will be a kind god to the children of Malta, the same kind god that you desired in your own youth.
Fraternidad. There is nothing more fulfilling than being a true brother, a defender of your own, a steadfast one who can be relied on. Brotherhood makes us strong, and carrying that brotherhood into the afterlife will strengthen the people of Malta, bringing the spirits close to them.
Fidelidad. There is no poison worse for society than betrayal. Betrayal brings the wrath of the spirits, and when a betrayer moves onto the afterlife without correcting their ways, they bring suffering and tragedy to both Malta and the spirits. Always be faithful, always keep your word and any promise that you make. This will keep Malta healthy, and keep yourself fit for the afterlife.
Pureza. The purity of self, purity of society, and purity of nature are the pillars of Malta's life and value. Outcasts were blessed with a long age so that they can work as many flaws as is possible out of themselves. Cardamine purifies the soul, so much that the soul leaves the body when Cardamine is taken away. Purity, and the cleanness that flows from it, is what keeps the spirits holy.
Malta. Malta is the birthplace of holiness. Before Malta, nothing was truly sacred. From Malta's heart, and from the souls of her people, the spirits flow. In the distant future, all will be spirits, and therefore the final end of all things is Malta as well. Defend Malta by any means, at any cost, and Malta will in turn defend you.

Every Caballero of La Orden swears oaths to these virtues, and so these seven virtues represent every member of La Orden.

VII. Diplomacy

Allied: Outcasts
Cooperation: Golden Chrysanthemums, Lane Hackers, Liberty Rogues, Junkers
Sacred: Nomads, Wild
Tolerance: Freelancers, Zoners
Suspicious: Blood Dragons, Vagrants, Wendigos, Gammu AI, Everyone Else
Hostile: Coalition, IMG, The Order, The Core, Bounty Hunters, Technocracy, Xenos, Hogosha, Farmers Alliance, GMG
At war: Corsairs, House Lawfuls, Crayter Republic

VIII. OOC Information

I just thought it was neat. I had a lot of help from @Zephyranthes on this, even if, despite her protests, I did make it unnecessarily Byzantine. Though, I did end up going with the oath of poverty idea so maybe that makes up for it idk. If anyone thinks this idea is interesting, I'll put together a discord and we can get organized. Feel free to ping or message me on Discord or DM on forums.

A faction discord has been created, since it seems people might be interested.