The Order of Dragon Knights is humanity’s most feared and revered knightly brotherhood. Stationed near Castle Ardentia, they serve as the kingdom’s ultimate weapons — knights infused with the unstable magic of demon-cores, crystalline vessels of demonic essence materialized from the Veil. It was the Dragon Knights who drove back the worst monsters of the frontier, allowing the Crimson Standard to carve settlements beyond the Wall. Yet their very existence unnerves many, for their strength is borrowed from powers no mortal was meant to wield.
- Discovery of Demon-Cores – A century ago, the Mage Guild learned to materialize demonic power from the Veil, crystallizing it into orbs known as demon-cores. Each one is a prison of essence, a fragment of a demon given form.
- First Infusions – By binding these cores into knights through rune rituals, the Guild created the first Dragon Knights. Survival was rare, but those who endured gained sorcerous strength and resilience enough to fight the frontier’s horrors. Their victories secured humanity’s first foothold outside the Wall.
- Dragontyrant – Supreme commander of the Order, rumored to bear the mightiest demon-core ever bonded.
- Scalebearers – Veteran knights commanding companies, their bodies marked by runes and scars of infusion.
- Corebound Knights – The fully bonded, wielding demonic sorcery and martial mastery.
- Initiates – Aspirants undergoing infusion trials. Many perish, while others mutate or go mad.
- Power Harnessed, Not Feared – Demon-cores are dangerous, but survival requires their mastery.
- Dragons Reborn – The Knights see themselves as successors to the Dragon Lords, but loyal to humanity, not tyrants.
- Discipline Above Corruption – Constant training, rituals, and brotherhood bind their wills against demonic whispers.
- Trial by Fire – Enduring the core’s infusion is itself the final proof of a knight’s worth.
- Castle Ardentia – The Order is stationed near the royal palace, both guardians of the crown and subjects of close scrutiny.
- Frontier Campaigns – Dragon Knights spearhead purges, driving back trolls, wyrms, and greater beasts so that Crimson forts and villages can rise.
- Veil Sites – They seize newly created demon-cores from Mage Guild rituals or from rifts, claiming them as sacred relics of their order.
- Crown of Thalossa – Both shield and threat; the king relies on them but fears their power.
- Order of Dawn – Deeply suspicious; the Dawn views them as corrupted heretics.
- Order of the Crimson Standard – Revered allies; without the Dragon Knights, Crimson expansion would fail.
- Order of Last Light – Respect mixed with dread; the Last Light fears demon-cores might one day spawn plagues as great as Gloomdeep.
- Ashen Vigil – A grim camaraderie; both orders embrace corruption to fight greater horrors.
- Mage Guild – Uneasy partners. The Guild birthed the infusion rituals, but the Knights now hold too much independence to control.