Order of the Companion

As the premier military force of Elturgard, the Companions often act as the nation's face. Above all, the order strives to have all of Elturgard's citizens united, regardless of an individual's religious belief, race, or background. They do this through their fervent belief in the power of Companion. The Creed Resolute specifically prevents attributing the Companion to any one god. Companions also began the tradition of Unity Tributes and were the first to readily adopt the use of Unity Prayers, furthering their commitment to one centralized nation.   However, most of the order's leadership was in fact made up of cultists of Zariel, who sought to use the order's position to infiltrate the highest orders of Elturel's government. While the first two leaders of the order, Cathasach Restat and Thamal Thent, were not Zarielites, they were nonetheless manipulated by the cultists in and out of their ranks, and the cult's hold was secured when the cultist Janfire Mistmore assumed control of the order in 1481.

The Order of the Companion was formed in 1448 by Cathasach Restat, as a reaction to the failure of the Hellriders to prevent the Reign of Vampires and the subsequent appearance of the Companion over Elturel. The Companions were founded to serve as a new knightly order that would keep Elturel same, unified under the light of the the Companion. The principles by which the Companions would swear themselves to were laid out in the Tome of the Creed Resolute, which all Companions had to swear by.   In late 1448, High Observer Naja Bellandi formally authorized the creation of the Companions, placing them above the Hellriders, Elturel's traditional defenders.   In 1449, High Observer Bellandi died unexpectedly, and Cathasach Restat, founder of the Companions, took her place.   For the next several decades, the Order of the Companion often served on the front lines of Elturel's expansion into Elturgard, bringing gifts to neighboring cities and defending them from potential threats.   In the 1470's, the Hellriders were made by High Observer Restat to also swear upon the Creed Resolute, but remained their own separate organization.   In 1481, Thamal Thent, the commander of the Companions, disappeared while patrolling around Boareskyr Bridge with a retinue of Hellriders. Her death was tragic, and following the construction of Fort Thamal, ordered by High Observer Thavius Kreeg, members of the Companions have served there, protecting the area. Some, however, claim the fort exists only as a place to send Companions that are disruptive or question orders too many times. Replacing Thent at the leader of the order was Janfire Mistmore, a friend of Cathasach Restat who had joined the order upon its founding.   However, throughout the order's entire existence, it had steadily been coopted by the cult of Zariel. A true Zarielite, Janfire Mistmore's ascension to knight commander was the final step needed for the cult to effectively dominate all of the upper ranks of the order. Slowly, any non-cultists in its ranks were either cast aside or converted.   The reason for the cult's infiltration became clear in 1497 during the Damnation of Elturel. As the city of Elturel appeared in Avernus, the entire leadership of the Order of the Companion transformed into devils as a result of private pacts made over the decades. With their leaders turned against them, the other members of the order were helpless as their former commanders and comrades cut them down, causing them to rise again as devils to join their ranks, an intended byproduct of the Creed Resolute. This betrayal was echoed in the upper ranks of the Hellriders and these infernal turncoats, led by Janfire Mistmore, became known as the Hell Knights stalked Elturel's streets in the early days of Elturel's damnation hunting down those who swore to the Creed Resolute and their children.

The Hell Knights were effectively stopped in the Siege of Helm's Shieldhall, where Janfire Mistmore was killed by the Lost Star Detectives. The Companion's role in sending Elturel to Hell also soured the surviving Elturians opinions on it and the order as whole.   Following Elturel's salvation in 1498, the story of its damnation, and the role the Companion and the Order of the Companion played in it, spread, effectively ending the order, even before High Observer Alcor Miursa outlawed the organization that same year.