The Knights of Asperath

OVERVIEW

The Knights of Asperath are an extremely secretive group of nomadic warrior-priests that wander the Asperath, a desert held holy by the Knights. Extremely little is known about them, even by their support network of desert-dwellers. Sightings of these Knights by outsiders are rare, and rarer still are sightings unaccompanied by destruction or death.   Most Knights travel completely alone, guided by the god Asperath to complete her will, frequently involving destroying settlements of evil in her desert or driving out outsiders who seek fabled treasures. Other Knights act as guards for said treasures, most notably the Heart of Asminanth, a giant gem of holy energy that is prophesied to power the armor of Asperath's angel, Asminanth.   One of the few things common among all Knights is the fact they all died before becoming a Knight. A combination of their armor and the desert itself sustains their bodies and minds, keeping them in a limbo state between life and death. (See "Religious Beliefs" for more information) [section:][section:][section:][section:][section:]

APPEARANCE

Every Knight is gifted with a set of armor, blessed by Asperath herself. The armor enhances the Knights' strength and, in some cases, grants the wielder supernatural abilities, although the exacts of these abilities are not documented and vary widely. Notable attributes of every set of armor is the backpack, which houses the main energy source for the armor, and the faceplate of the helmet, which is made up of one thick metal sheet, folded at a square angle around the Knight's face. This plate completely blocks out the Knight's vision, meaning that they are effectively blind. (See why in "Religious Beliefs") Other aspects of a Knight's appearance can vary, but their armor is a complete set, offering some form protection on every part of the body. Many also wear scarves, cloaks, or other pieces of cloth to maintain a more humble appearance, but none cover the helmet in any way.[/section][/section][/section][/section][/section][section:][section:][section:][section:][section:]

RELIGIOUS BELIEFS

The Knights do not say they have religious beliefs; rather, they say that they are the only people to live in perfect harmony with the true god, Asperath. They view their existence as a kind of materialized afterlife, due to their paradoxical state of life and death.

Basic Religious Tenants

Nearly all of the Knights' beliefs boil down to "Follow Asperath's command." This is due to their constant and deeply personal contact with Asperath, which also means that their beliefs are not recorded, merely repeated orally. These beliefs are said in a few statements: Death before life
Life before death
Patience in Life
Action in Death The meanings of these statements is intentionally vague, meant to be guiding principles rather than a set of rules to follow, the logic being that if you know Asperath and her will, these principles will be all you need to accurately enact her will.

Death of Self before Life

This tenant refers in part to the physical death required to become a Knight (See "Becoming a Knight of Asperath"), but also more directly to the practice of no longer identifying with the old self. Knights do not answer to their original names, but rather all of them go by Asperath, as an indication of their complete and total faith. They have no identity outside of Asperath herself, and "die to themselves" for her sake. The tenant is said first as the highest tenant of a Knight of Asperath: to put to death one's identity before indulgence in what is called life by the rest of the world. It also is the representation of the Knights' first assignment: Judgment of Justice. The Knights are brought to areas within the desert to judge the people there, and then enact Asperath's justice. "Death before life" in this sense means that death is given to those who value their life above others; in other words, it is the job of the Knight to bring justice to the selfish and the proud.

Life before death

This tenant states the Knights' value of others lives above their own. It is the second greatest value because they believe the world and its people to be created by Asperath. To allow the undeserved death of anything (human or otherwise) is a failure to protect what is Asperath's. This manifests itself as a prayer over the hurting. This prayer will sometimes result in a miraculous healing of the pain, and sometimes will only be a feeling of calm and peace within the afflicted. This phrase also represents the Knights' second assignment: Judgment of Mercy. Asperath does not call all sinners against her to be put to death; she offers mercy to those really trying to follow her commands, even if they don't realize it is her they are following. When a Knight is brought to an area to judge, some are given mercy, the Knight will guard and provide for their journey to a safer location, usually one of the scattered communities of Asperathian priests.

Related Religions

The Knights are not the only followers of Asperath. There are small communities of worshipers scattered throughout the desert, usually called Asperatans. Another religion from the same area of the world is the Church of Asteroth. They worship Asteroth, Asperath's brother, but does not acknowledge the divinity of Asperath; rather, they declare her a demon that leads people away from the life of comfort they are meant to live.[/section][/section][/section][/section][/section]

Becoming a Knight of Asperath

Becoming a Knight of Asperath starts with being a follower of Asperath to begin with. The exact way that you follow Asperath can be varied, but Asperath calls certain followers to be Knights. When called, they are led to the desert (sometimes forcibly) and are met by an existing Knight. This Knight begins training the follower in their ways, leading up to the cataclysmic event in which the trainee dies, usually an extremely honorable death, and finds themself resurrected in the Desert in their new armor. Their training complete, they go out into the desert to follow the will of Asperath.