The empire of Montgarde is a large, varied nation whose edges have continuously expanded due to the never-ending war of conquest being fought on its fringes. It extends all the way from the deep south, where the rain rarely falls on the sandy dunes, to the far northern snow-capped mountains -- and everything in between. Fields, forests, plains, tundra, rivers, lakes, cities. Montgarde has it all.
While its armies fight the enemy without, a small group of dedicated men and women combat the enemy within. Commanded by the Emperor and consecrated by the Faith, they are the watchers in the dark. No one escapes their scrutiny, be it low-born vagrant or wealthy, connected noble, and no monster is too dangerous for them to hunt. This is a story about two such remarkable individuals.
Locations
Maldoror is the capital city of Montgarde, located in the heart of its territory, and the largest city in the empire. Many noble houses and aristocratic families make their home in the city's center, and tens of thousands of poor peasants live in the slums that surround the city. The central setpiece of Maldoror is the Imperial Palace, home of the Emperor and the imperial court. It's rivaled by the church's High Cathedral. The black cells of the Templars, where they lock up all the heretics, are located beneath the Cathedral. The Academia is located near the Imperial Palace.
Irem Kopt, also known as the Labyrinth City, is a city located in the opal expanse. It is an ancient and little-understood city surrounded by a vast sandstone maze within the grey area of what the empire possesses and what it still desires. It is a strategic linchpin, guarding both the untrod lands to the south and holding a port beside the bay of drowned ghosts. Its people are a mishmash of cultures left from old invasions, and it has no official religion, instead supporting an indefinite number of competing cults and allowing the most effective to survive. Many have tried to take Kopt. But the only certainty in the desert is that no one holds the Labyrinth City for long.
Factions
The inquisition, commanded directly by the Emperor and consecrated by the Faith, exists to hunt down all of the threats that besiege the empire from within. This includes heretics (those who seek to undo the power of the Emperor), monsters, extremely dangerous criminals and foreign spies or assassins. The existence of the inquisition is publicly denied by the Emperor but the ruling aristocracy is well aware of their presence. Uneducated peasants know of the inquisition through folklore and scary, campfire stories, but many don't believe them. Inquisitors are mostly recruited from promising Academia students and officers of the Imperial Armies.
The inquisition is far from a unified front. Its individual members enjoy spectacular amounts of autonomy, both in how they carry out their work and in their ideologies and faith. Most inquisitors recognize that, while none are official, there are several factions within the inquisition.
Puritans are inquisitors whose principles align with the concept of puritanism, obviously – in Montgarde, this means a strict adherence to the rule of law. They do not use magic or overstep the bounds established by the manifold Imperial decrees that have been issued over the centuries or the nation's constitution. They are primarily witch-hunters, focusing on persecuting Abominations, sorcerers and other, obvious offenders of Imperial law, like murderers. Most of them are atheists that do not recognize the authority of the gods or the Imperial church. The current leaders of the inquisition are primarily puritans. Gregor Nykerius belongs to this faction.
Unorthodoxi are inquisitors who believe that working outside the boundaries of the law is allowed, and sometimes even necessary, in order to properly fulfill the prime objective – the eradication of the enemies of mankind. An oft repeated mantra of unorthodox inquisitors is 'the end justifies the means'. They freely (ab)use the power of magic, though often in secret, and operate with even greater independence than the average inquisitor. Some of them might not report back for years on end, or even leave Montgarde to pursue their enemies abroad. Puritans consider them dangerous. An unorthodoxus, in turn, might say that puritans are merely 'unorthodoxi waiting to happen'. They tackle the most dangerous creatures and warlocks with boundless enthousiasm, fearlessly risking their lives and their sanity for the cause. Some inquisitors derisively call them 'radicals' instead. They might still be believers of the Imperial church or privately worship different gods entirely.
Ecclesiasts are fervently religious inquisitors that align themselves closely with the Imperial church, and believe in the rule of the gods. They are a small but vocal minority within the inquisition that base their political clout on their cooperation with Templars and other religious groups within Montgarde. Ecclesiasts and puritans famously do not get along, but the ecclesiasts' greatest rivals are the dominants. They might employ magic but only if it's sanctioned by the Imperial church. Some of them become Templars eventually but most of them stay within the inquisition, as they have greater power within Montgardian law. They wish to usurp the puritan leadership. Paladin Eritreas was once an ecclesiast.
Dominants are also disdainfully irreverent of the rule of law and instead dedicate themselves entirely to the rule of the Emperor. They focus on persecuting the Emperor's political enemies within Montgarde. This includes regents and lords who seem too ambitious, republicans and zealous church officials. Their rivals are the ecclesiasts as their political goals completely oppose one another. Where a puritan might refuse an Emperor's command if it goes directly against the constitution – like the murder of innocents – a dominant will swing the sword without a second thought. Most dominants belong to noble families trying to curry political favor with the monarchy. Dominants might have unorthodox tendencies, but they are never ecclesiasts, and they look down on puritans for being ignorant of the great, political game.
Unorthodoxi are inquisitors who believe that working outside the boundaries of the law is allowed, and sometimes even necessary, in order to properly fulfill the prime objective – the eradication of the enemies of mankind. An oft repeated mantra of unorthodox inquisitors is 'the end justifies the means'. They freely (ab)use the power of magic, though often in secret, and operate with even greater independence than the average inquisitor. Some of them might not report back for years on end, or even leave Montgarde to pursue their enemies abroad. Puritans consider them dangerous. An unorthodoxus, in turn, might say that puritans are merely 'unorthodoxi waiting to happen'. They tackle the most dangerous creatures and warlocks with boundless enthousiasm, fearlessly risking their lives and their sanity for the cause. Some inquisitors derisively call them 'radicals' instead. They might still be believers of the Imperial church or privately worship different gods entirely.
Ecclesiasts are fervently religious inquisitors that align themselves closely with the Imperial church, and believe in the rule of the gods. They are a small but vocal minority within the inquisition that base their political clout on their cooperation with Templars and other religious groups within Montgarde. Ecclesiasts and puritans famously do not get along, but the ecclesiasts' greatest rivals are the dominants. They might employ magic but only if it's sanctioned by the Imperial church. Some of them become Templars eventually but most of them stay within the inquisition, as they have greater power within Montgardian law. They wish to usurp the puritan leadership. Paladin Eritreas was once an ecclesiast.
Dominants are also disdainfully irreverent of the rule of law and instead dedicate themselves entirely to the rule of the Emperor. They focus on persecuting the Emperor's political enemies within Montgarde. This includes regents and lords who seem too ambitious, republicans and zealous church officials. Their rivals are the ecclesiasts as their political goals completely oppose one another. Where a puritan might refuse an Emperor's command if it goes directly against the constitution – like the murder of innocents – a dominant will swing the sword without a second thought. Most dominants belong to noble families trying to curry political favor with the monarchy. Dominants might have unorthodox tendencies, but they are never ecclesiasts, and they look down on puritans for being ignorant of the great, political game.
The Templars are the militant branch of the imperial church, the Faith. Their official role is to protect churches, cathedrals and other ecclesiastical locations and officials, but their activities extend much further than that. The power of the Faith is built on the idea that everyone believes, so non-believers and apostates are seen as threats. The Templars keep tabs on such individuals and work to undermine their authority. The inquisition contains a disproportionate amount of atheists, leading a bitter rivalry between the two factions.