Seleighe Sidhe
The Seleighe Sidhe (see-LEE shee) is one of the oldest organizations in D'hennex, having been created by one of the first Annyri rulers, even before the formation of An-Yneaith. These warrior-wizards and philosopher-bards are some of the finest minds in An-Yneaith and arguably throughout D'hennex, and Annyri curiosity is exemplified in their burning desire to understand the workings of both the magics of D'hennex and the captured Alaran automatons. While most citizens of An-Yneaith do not understand the Sidhe, they certainly appreciate the zealous manner in which the Sidhe pursue and destroy the undead menaces of the Drovinian Reaches, despite their academy’s geographical distance from the swamps.
Contents
[hide]Duties
The Sidhe have several responsibilities, most of which are self-imposed.
First and foremost amongst the duties of the Sidhe is the development of new knowledge and the refinement of understanding of current knowledge. This concerns both mundane and magical knowledge; it is rare for a Sidhe to graduate from the Academy without being able to compose beautiful music or wield a paintbrush skillfully. The Sidhe research new magic through their own experiments and through the capture of other examples of magical entities, such as the "monsters" that roam the countryside—trolls, fey beings, and goblins, for example—as well as the necrotechnical abominations of Drovinia.
This leads to the second duty of the Sidhe: the collection of specimens from which they might further their understanding of the world. The Sidhe method of collection is up close and personal; they enjoy besting magical creatures with their martial and magical prowess and bringing home the relevant pieces of such creatures. They pursue specimen collecting with extreme determination when it comes to Drovinian creations of either necromantic or necrotechnical nature, destroying as much as possible while salvaging the few pieces they believe to be key to understanding their enemies.
The third duty of all Sidhe is to spread the knowledge they have unlocked while guarding others from the dangers of certain knowledge. This is where the Sidhe gain their reputation as philosophers and bards; they typically enjoy telling stories of their past deeds and the deeds of their fellow Sidhe, often attempting to impress upon listeners some sort of moral with each telling. They share their knowledge eagerly with other Sidhe and with many other non-affiliated mages and philosophers, while simultaneously keeping many of their more dangerous experiments and specimens left unmentioned; methods to fight the undead, for example, are openly shared, but experiments dealing with technology are generally left unmentioned.
The final two duties of the Sidhe deal with the automatons of Alaris. A small group of the Sidhe is dedicated to unlocking the mysteries of the technology behind the robotic soldiers from the northeast, while another group provides An-Yneaithan presence at the Alaran Outpost, along with a very small detachment of the Emerald Army. Those who work with the automatons are often the most inquisitive and perceptive of the Sidhe, and some have even begun to develop psionic powers—nearly unheard-of in An-Yneaith—to try to mimic the control the Alaran Mechanikkars had over the automatons. Additionally, while they would never publicly admit it, some small technological devices have been developed by the Sidhe through reverse-engineering of Alaran and Drovinian tech, and a small faction of the Sidhe fully believe it to be appropriate to fight fire with fire, wielding technological devices masked as magical effects and artifacts to combat the undead monstrosities.
Infrastructure
Organization within the Sidhe is somewhat loose and informal. A formal ranking system does exist, following feudal titles: A newly-inducted Sidhe is a squire to a full-fledged Sidhe knight, who in turn is under a baron, who is under a viscount, who is under an earl, who is under a duke. Despite the rigid hierarchy these titles usually imply, the Sidhe are very lax in their enforcement of servitude to those of higher rank, except for the relation between squire and knight, and even that is generally more of a mentor-student relationship than one of real service. These titles have no influence outside of the Sidhe organization, and within the guild are typically used only on formal paperwork. Titles can be given for martial prowess, for magical understanding, for philosophical prowess, for exceptional skill in some particular specialty, or for countless other reasons, as decided by one of the seven dukes or by Lord Kyrah Annyr, although Lord Kyrah very rarely grants Sidhe titles in order to maintain the organization’s independence. Most Sidhe are ranked as knights, and most do not much care about ascending in title beyond that point.
The organization is led by the seven dukes, who act as an oligarchic council. The dukes often allow other Sidhe of any non-squire rank to voice their own concerns and opinions for consideration regarding any major decisions the organization must make, but they have the final say in all matters. The title of duke is passed voluntarily from one duke to the next; at no point is there ever more than eight dukes, with one particular title being transitioned from the old duke to the new duke. In the case of death, if no successor was named, the remaining six dukes choose the new duke amongst themselves.
The Sidhe operate mainly out of the Tower of Ages, a large complex of many buildings surrounding the original Sidhe tower in Annyra. The Tower of Ages includes the original tower, the Annyri libraries and archives, the Academy, the residences of the dukes, exhibition halls, and several laboratories and other small training or research facilities. Most of the libraries and several exhibition halls set up either as seminar presentations or as museums are open to the public.
Emyr contains a Sidhe "embassy", from which the guild operates and make its presence known within the High King’s court if needed.
In addition to the permanent structures associated with the Tower of Ages and the Emyr offices, many Sidhe are often working in the field, either on their own or in small groups. Independent study is encouraged and expected, and as such, once they finish the Academy, most Sidhe travel for some time outside of the Tower of Ages.
Membership
Any An-Yneaithan possessing magical talent can theoretically become a Sidhe, but the group tends to turn down most unsolicited applications. The Academy instructors (generally either well-respected knights or barons) invite most of the future Sidhe into their training. Because of the value the Sidhe place on curiosity, most members of the guild are Annyri, who naturally exhibit strong tendencies to learn anything and everything they can.
All squires are expected to be competent at least at a mortal level with swords, and to exhibit understanding of basic magical skills to defend themselves while acting independently. Once squires have passed their instructors’ inspections, they become knights and can act independently as they please.
Training
Training of squires takes place mainly within the Tower of Ages, particularly in the Academy itself. The Academy pairs squires with knights, who take on a mentoring role with the newly-inducted Sidhe to teach them swordsmanship, artistic skills, and magical abilities. Many squires follow their mentors in style; if their mentor is an excellent swordsman, the squires likely will be as well, whereas a knight who excels at illusions will pass such knowledge on to his students. Squires learn from many different instructors while at the Academy to round out their abilities, but they remain most closely connected to a particular knight, who is both a mentor and a sponsor in many cases.
Sidhe are trained to be able to fight with swords at a level comparable to the mortal soldiers of the Emerald Army, and are often even better than the soldiers. While most Sidhe go on to develop powered skill in swordplay, others might focus mainly on their magic, particularly on the presence and illusion magic with which the Sidhe hold an affinity. Many squires develop their own spells during their time at the Academy; it is almost expected as a final test before knighthood that the squire will be able to best their knight-mentor with some new spell or technique they developed.
Academy training generally lasts for several years. At least one year each is dedicated to swordsmanship, to various artistic disciplines, and to philosophy and history; during the study of these skills and knowledges, magical prowess is also being worked upon, and continues to be the major focus of Academy training past the first few years. Most squires enter the Academy at an age around fourteen and complete their training by twenty.
Once training is determined to be complete by the knight-mentor and other instructors, the Academy’s leader, Duke Dirêve ap Beaumayn, knights the squire in a formal ceremony and bestows upon him a Sidhe sword and the freedom to act as he pleases in the furthering of the Sidhe duties.
Common Techniques
Player Characters
OOC Note: If your character is a Sidhe but is not listed here, or if you believe your character's title to be wrong, please let Tiryst know.
Dante Alighaeri, Knight
Alecto Theophilus, Squire
