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Welcome, traveler, to Jenji Pass.

I know. The view is not very welcoming. I don't blame you for trying to suppress that shiver. These black peaks can give even grizzled veterans the jitters. Out here, the sun does not merely shine. It bakes and burns this land with a vengeance. At nights, the bones chatter with biting cold. There are no trees to relieve the eye, nor any peaceful streams or rivulets. Just bleak rock and sand and black ridges rising into the infernal sky.

The Jenji Pass is the sole passage through the Black Ranges - our northern wall. The Black Ranges are our natural defence against the twisted kirits who live on the other side.

For centuries, us humans and the kirits lived blissfully unaware of each others' existence. They were content to remain in their deserts, squabbling among themselves, and we were content to remain in our lush plains, squabbling among ourselves. But then, our squabbles ceased temporarily. We found ourselves united under the great Empire after years of war and political maneuvers. We discovered [i]saa[/i], the power of the soul. We used it to become powerful warriors and we forged this vast empire that stretches from the Black Ranges in the north to the Sea of Storms in the south.

In our greed and complacency, we poured through the Jenji Pass in large numbers, hoping to lay claim to the vast rugged plains north of the Black Ranges. There, we met our match. We unwittingly united the kirits against us, and they came at us like waves of fire and death. The kirits had discovered a dark power of their own, the one they call [i]mesaa[/i]. They forged weapons of death with [i]mesaa[/i], disfigured their bodies to tap into hidden strengths, and routed us. They chased us all the way back to the Pass.

There, thankfully, we held our ground. For ten years, we ravaged the land with [i]saa[/i] and [i]mesaa[/i], before the kirits decided to return to their homes. It was not a retreat. It was an unspoken armistice. A temporary lull.

Since then, this Pass has become the center of the Empire's attention. A garrison was built and towers were constructed in the twin peaks. Bone Castle was erected as the command center of this border garrison. Today, we call it the Deathwatch Guard.

The Deathwatch is a garrison, a training ground, a killing unit and the symbol of human resilience. Not a month passes by without a kirit incursion. But not a single kirit has ever crossed the Pass, thanks to the Deathwatch. They are men and women who are not merely great fighters, but also strong souls. They are trained to stand with steely resolve against any hordes that may pour through the Pass. They are trained to tap into their [i]saa[/i] and use it in combat. They are our first and final line of defence against the kirits.

[b]Layout of the Deathwatch Guard[/b]

Like all permanent military establishments, the Deathwatch is also a self-sustaining village. Situated near the Jenji Pass, Bone Castle serves as the nerve center of all activity and authority. It is a heavily fortified castle built with black rock from the mountains. Even the sporadic farms are within the castle walls.

Besides the Castle, the Deathwatch mans the Jenji Gate built across the Pass, and the two towers built atop the twin peaks straddling the pass. These are the Tower of Ravens and the Tower of Vultures.

The nearby town of Wolfbridge supplies the Castle with necessities regularly.

Within the Castle, there are extensive training grounds and stables. There is also a vast weapon-smithy in the basement. The Castle boasts a large supply of weapons and a huge armoury.

[b]Command hierarchy[/b]

At the top is the General of the Deathwatch and he is assisted by five Commanders of the Guard. Each Commander commands five divisions and each division is headed by a Captain of the Guard. A typical division is about five thousand soldiers strong.

[b]Weapons and armours of the Guard[/b]

Melee weapons: Swords (single and dual wielded), maces, halberds, spears, lances (for mounted knights)
Projectile weapons: Bows (shortbows for mounted cavalry archers, longbows for archers), throwing axes, javelins
Armour: Largely lamellar. Archers wear padded leather. Knights wear heavy plate.

[b]Joining the Guard[/b]

Every month, groups of recruits stream into Bone Castle. The Castle makes no distinctions of age or gender and will take in anyone who has the will to fight. In the Castle, the recruits undergo a rigorous training for three years. During this time, they also work as the maids and servants, as farriers and blacksmiths, as stablehands and pages.

Training involves both physical and mental. Apart from weapons training, the recruits are taught to focus their mind and channel the [i]saa[/i] - the power of the soul. By channeling this power, an individual can vastly augment their natural talents. Marksmen will aim truer and further; swordsmen will dance with a fluid grace amidst foes; knights will power through enemy charges with ease. [i]Saa[/i] increases stamina and endurance but channeling it for too long can result in exhaustion and sometimes even a burn out. So the recruits are taught control as well as usage.

At the end of three years of training, groups of recruits are sent beyond the Pass with a Guide. Guides are veterans of the Pass who know the lay of the land better than most. With their help, the recruits have to bring back tokens of their bravery - in the form of kirit clothing or the pelt of the nasty [i]grulm[/i] (a predator that roams the lands beyond the Pass - a big, leathery creature with one eye). If successful, the recruits are inducted into the Guard. On failure, they have to undergo the training again for another year before trying again. A recruit is allowed three tries before he is automatically inducted into the Guard.

[b]The Kirits[/b]

The kirits are a race inhabiting the harsh and rocky plains beyond the Black Ranges. They are a tall, slender people with flat noses and flaring nostrils. They have pale skin with scarcely any fat. The kirit women are largely similar to the males but are noticeably shorter. Though they have mammaries, they are not as pronounced as the human women's.

The kirits existed as nomadic tribes for much of their history, warring and trading. The mountains of the northern plains are rich in iron and copper, and the kirit mine these and trade among each other when they are not squabbling over tiny rivulets and streams. Water is the most precious thing to a kirit and will kill for it.

For centuries, a chosen few among the kirits practiced the art of channeling [i]mesaa[/i], the power of the mind. Where [i]saa[/i] is the force of life, [i]mesaa[/i] is the force of nothingness. Where [i]saa[/i] is light, [i]mesaa[/i] is the absence of light. Usage of [i]mesaa[/i] tended to disfigure the body and eat away at the skin (while prolonging life) and was strictly controlled among the kirits. But the Human Invasion changed all that.

When we invaded the kirits, they were ill-prepared but not ill-equipped. They have worked metals for longer than we have known them, and they infused in their weapons the essence of [i]mesaa[/i]. Powerful blacksmiths dwell within the caves of Mount Kardum, hammering away while channeling [i]mesaa[/i], creating weapons of death that arms the armies of the kirits. Even a touch from one of these metals will prove fatal.

Since our invasion and subsequent standoff, the kirits have banded together - not in the political sense that we know of, but in a more tribal federation type of way. They are not a single political entity, but the chiefs cooperate in the face of human threats. Their army acts as one during war, but the various tribes are independent to raid during peacetime. Hence, the frequent incursions in the Pass.

A kirit soldier typically wears lamellar armour but made of a strong alloy. Since the kirit skin is very sensitive and thin, they rely heavily on their armour. They usually wield heavy weapons like scimitars, war hammers and heavy axes. Recent reports reveal that the kirits have succeeded in taming the nasty [i]grolm[/i] for use in battle.

Within the ranks of the kirit army are generals who can channel [i]mesaa[/i] during battle. This gives them a sharp sense of sight and enables them to go on a killing rampage. These kirit soldiers are called Dreadlords by the humans. In any skirmish with the kirits, the first job of any company would be to identify and kill the Dreadlord.

[b]Rules[/b]

[list]
[*]If you want to start as a fully inducted Deathwatch Guard, you cannot be younger than 30[/*]
[*]Your character application must contain the following: Name, Age, Sex, Race, Physical description, Character strengths, Weaknesses, Skills (both combat and non-combat), Personal history[/*]
[*]Your character will 'level up' based on how well you roleplay. If I find you getting stronger without logic, you will be penalized[/*]
[*]If playing human, you cannot use a kirit as NPC in your post. And vice versa.[/*]
[*]Kirit names are usually single words and have hard consonants.[/*]
[*]Unless specifically stated, kirits are speaking in human language. They can choose to speak in their language, which not many humans understand.[/*]
[/list]