The Shadowed Order

Overview

The Shadowed Order is a sinister secret training institute, hidden away in the (not as) secret The Shadow Castle. Set up by the powerful and cunning gnomish wizard, Beefwehluhngtun upon his departure from Janyoo-uhree (read Hope in Janyoo-uhree to find out how that went down), The Shadowed Order is still only around two years old.   Beefwehluhngtun had always dreamed of ruling Venari with an iron fist, a heart of stone, and a fiery temper. When he inherited The Shadow Castle from his aunt (who was as despicable as he is), his sinister plans began to take shape. The Shadowed Order was born, a training ground for his most loyal and ruthless followers, destined to become his right-hand minions in his quest for domination. The trouble is, none of them realise it yet.  

Location

The Shadowed Order lurks in the darkest depths of the castle, far below even the dungeon's dankest corners. It's a place where sunlight fears to tread, shrouded in perpetual darkness, hidden from prying eyes. A small band of fearsome Cryptlickers guards this forbidden realm, ensuring that the Order's secrets remain forever buried.   The classrooms look like any other (with the exception of the deadly weapons, body parts, cursed objects, and multitude of discombulated souls). The mundaneness of the classrooms is intentional, as it brings a sense of normality to the Order and the lessons. With the help of this environment and Beefwehluhngtun's spells and enchantments, students are left feeling calm, collected, and ready to learn.  

Faculty

Lessons are conducted by three main people:

• Beefwehluhngtun
• Grymmbolt
• Drain

The use of demons as teaching staff has prompted even higher security. If those living within the walls of The Shadow Castle were to find out about the demons living and working beneath them, there would likely be a mass panic, even with Beefwehluhngtun's numerous spells and enchantments in place. The plan has always been for The Shadowed Order and the demons to be revealed, but only when the time is right, and the success of total domination is assured.  

Training Regime

Training is split into three main areas:

• Torture
• Combat
• Necromancy

Torture

Every aspiring dark lord needs their minions to be well-versed in the art of torture, and things are no different for Beefwehluhngtun. Torture skills are largely taught by Drain, a lesser daemon from the Abyss with a love for anything with a sharp, pointy blade. Drain specialises in techniques that make use of fear, pain, and disfigurement, and leave the poor tortured soul wishing for death. Sadly, a fair number of those tortured by The Shadow Order rarely meet the true death, due to the Order's knowledge of necromancy. There are occasions where Drain is allowed to go 'full demon'. In these instances, there is not enough of a person left to resurrect. On occasions like this, Drain is allowed and encouraged to make weapons from their bones.

Combat

Not one to let anything go to waste, Beefwehluhngtun uses his students existing knowledge to teach combat, with students teaching each other their most efficient moves. This has led to the previously rare fighting style known as 'deathgrip' to be taken up by people other than ogres.

Necromancy

Necromancy is Beefwehluhngtun's speciality and, while he has been careful not to giveaway all of his secrets, he has ensured that some knowledge of raising and controlling the dead has been passed onto his most favoured students. This skillset is taught by Grymmbolt, a demon currently enslaved by Beefwehluhngtun.   Knowledge of necromancy is protected, with students only remembering how to use these skills while they are loyal to The Shadow Order.  

Additional Security Measures

Upon exit, the minds of the students are altered with magic, so that they only remember the lessons learned and not what the Order is actually for. Beefwehluhngtun doesn't see this as paranoia, but as necessity. He can't risk his plans getting into enemy hands.