The Gauntlets of Steel are a disciplined knightly order devoted to the service of Torm, headquartered within the Cathedral of Torm in Eisenwehr. They embody unwavering duty, righteous judgment, and the enforcement of just order within Altdrachen and beyond. To them, service is the purest form of devotion—each fulfilled duty strengthens Torm’s divine presence, while failure diminishes it.
Members of the order are trained as both soldiers and arbiters, tasked with rooting out corruption, enforcing lawful conduct, and standing vigilant against moral decay within the Empire and beyond. They operate with precision and authority, often acting alongside the city watch or independently when corruption festers beyond official reach. The Order is not directly aligned with the Arethian Empire but due to their devotion to just order, they often have the same goals.
Their doctrine emphasizes discipline over blind obedience. While they uphold law and hierarchy, they are taught to question unjust rulings through counsel and reform rather than rebellion. Traitors, oathbreakers, and those who deliberately undermine order are dealt with swiftly and without hesitation.
The order is organized into disciplined ranks known as Gauntlets, each led by a Steel Marshal. At the head stands the High Gauntlet, a figure of both martial authority and spiritual leadership within the Cathedral of Torm.
“Salvation may be found through service. Every failure of duty diminishes Torm and every success adds to his luster. Strive to maintain law and order. Obey your masters with alert judgement and anticipation. Stand ever alert against corruption. Strike quickly and forcefully against rot in the hearts of mortals. Bring painful, quick death to traitors. Question unjust laws by suggesting improvement or alternatives, not additional laws. Your fourfold duties are to faith, family, masters, and all good beings of Colldria.”
Knights of the order wear polished steel armor marked with the gauntlet symbol of Torm. Their gear is functional and unadorned compared to other knightly orders, reflecting their belief that duty outweighs vanity. Grey or deep blue cloaks are sometimes worn to signify rank. @Gauntlet of Steel Grey Cloak for initiates and low ranking members, @Cloak of Stalwart Steel for high ranking members.
Among soldiers and citizens of Eisenwehr, the Gauntlets of Steel are respected—and often feared—for their uncompromising sense of duty. They are known to investigate corruption within both civilian and military ranks, making them powerful allies but dangerous enemies.
The Gauntlets of Steel serve as enforcers of disciplined order within the capital, ensuring that law is upheld not just in word, but in spirit. In a city rife with political intrigue and hidden corruption, they stand as one of the few forces willing to confront rot wherever it takes hold.
A solemn ceremony of remembrance for all the fallen who died for just causes, while guarding others, or in the holy service of Torm. After prayers and a huge feast, Order members go at dusk to the graves or battle sites where departed ones fell or now lie, light special candles, and pray through the night, recounting the deeds of the fallen to Torm so that none who fell may truly be forgotten. Torm often sends comforting dream visions to order members on this night-but it is said among the faithful that if one sees Torm's death in a vision, it means that person's death in his service in the coming year. This ceremony typically happens throughout the year following the death of a high ranking member.
The True Resurrection celebrates Torm's rise anew to power and is a joyous feast and revel where laws are set aside just for this one day and night so that order members can stray from their principles of law and order once a year. Most use this opportunity merely to shock others by speaking freely or by letting go of their rigid principles for one night—but a few every year employ it to bring vengeance down on someone (for example, a noble protected against all physical punishment by the laws of a realm but who ordered others mutilated might himself be mutilated on the night of the Resurrection). Torm traditionally sends inspiring visions into the dreams of all his faithful in the sleep that follows this festival-and grants the Loyal Boon to a few, as a mark of his appreciation for their outstanding service: A new prayer is placed in their minds, granting them one chance to cast a new spell they would otherwise not be able to cast. This ceremony typically happens once per year chosen by the High Gauntlet.