(Notable characters who are Hesan Knights: @Sir Alaric Rochefort , @Sir Lorenz Rochefort , @Sir Otto Rochefort , @Marshal Erwin Stahlbrand, @Sir Wilhelm Falkenhayn, @Sir Maximilian Kesselmark, @Lady Anneliese Kesselmark, @Sir Dietmar Fichtenhain, @Sir Meinfried Reuch, @Marshal Vexhelm Draunt, @Sir Bernhard Eckehard, @Sir Ortwin Kesselmark, @Sir Siegfried Hohenfels)
A Knight of Hesa is almost always noble in birth, as young men of nobility are incentivized to become a knight. If the knight to be is of common birth (rare), they must be officiated by a knight of noble baring. A Hesan Knight has taken the oath of bladewake. The Hesa’s mythic worldview is one born from violence: the gods are soldiers, and creation itself is a battlefield. The knighting ceremony is solemn and sacrificial in tone. It does not celebrate honor or chivalry in the romantic sense, but rather consecrate the knight as a weapon forged in memory of divine warfare.
Hesan Knights are also called: Knights of Bladewake, Knights of the War Covenant, Red Knights, Imperial Knights or simply Knights within Hesa itself (Since it is the only recognized order in there).
Hesan Knights are @Knights of the subclass Hesan Knight
Schietelhau - A menacing technique of a Hesan Knight directed at the heart and mind of the opponent
Hesan knights wield a Sword of Bladewake. This weapon has a unique runic inscription placed upon it during the Ceremony of Bladewake. These swords are made from material from Kharburg in Ismark and are embued with runic magic by the Council of the Wound. The steel is dark in appearance. The runic inscription is red, and glows when the sword is used. Hilts and pommels are often trimmed with dusk-gold and onyx. Swords of Bladewake can vary in size and shape, and can get very elaborate, especially when commissioned by a major noble house.
Examples include: @Sword of War's Memory, @Sword of the First Soldiers, @Greatsword of the World's Battlefield , @Sword of Star Sparks , @Zweihander of the Sky's Wound, @Sabre of Wound Oath
Hesan Knights are distinguished by their deep red plate armor, often trimmed with dusk-gold and onyx. The trim and polish varries, depending on use and funds of the commissioner.
@Hesan Plate Gauntlets
@Hesan Knight's Chest Plate
@Hesan Knight's Plate Sabatons
@Hesan Knight's Plate Helmet
@Hesan Knight's Cruisses
Held at dusk beneath a torn banner representing the sky’s first wound. The ceremony takes place on scorched stone or blackened earth—symbolizing the battlefield that birthed the world.
Ash Anointing: The knight is marked with ash across the brow and chest, signifying the breath of dying stars and the burden of memory.
Bestowing the Sword of Bladewake: The knight presents their old blade to the officiant (often their own father), who inspects it for wear—proof that it has tasted struggle.
A new blade is given to the knight, crafted from the finest Hesan steel and obsidian of @Kharburg. The shape of the blade chosen by the knight and forged before the ceremony takes place.
Next, a Woundbearer from the Council of the Wound inscribes the new blade with a runic devotion, usually words picked from the Oath of the Hesan Knights or the Hesan story of Creation. The runic inscription might say, "To bleed without glory" or "By the ash of the stars and the silence of gods", etc. Examples of these runic blades are @Zweihander of the Sky's Wound, @Sword of Star Ash, @Greatsword of Dying Breath, @Greatsword of the First Gods, @Greatsword of the World's Battlefield and @Sword of War's Memory.
Blood Echo: A shallow cut is made on the knight’s palm, and the blood is smeared on the hilt. This binds the knight to his new blade and the cosmic wound of creation.
Witnesses: Silent. They do not cheer or applaud. Their presence is a reminder that war is never truly over.
I was not born. I was broken into being.
I swear by the ash of stars and the silence of gods:
To stand where the world splits.
To bleed without glory.
To wield my blade not for self-pride, but for memory.
Let my breath be smoke. Let my soul be steel.
I am the wound that walks.
The sky tore open.
Light spilled like blood.
The first gods were not lovers.
They were soldiers.
They split the mountains with their blades.
They burned the oceans to smoke.
The stars are the sparks of their dying breath.
The world is a battlefield that forgot its war.