Highguard leadership

Most Highborn live in or near one of the chapters, the great walled settlements, that are spread across the plains that surround the river Couros. hey are fully functional communities incorporating families and individuals from all walks of life, but who share a common set of beliefs in the form of a creed.

The chapters were born during The Revelation, when the people rejected corruption and hungered for virtue, yet this was a time before the Synod and there were many conflicting views about the nature of virtue and of visions granted by liao. Each chapterhouse offered the promise of salvation, enlightenment and protection from corruption and wickedness encapsulated in their creed. The nature of a chapter’s creed varies but the broad theme was to state the shared beliefs, and purpose, of the chapter – and how they held to virtue over corruption.

Some chapters held to a single Virtue, and some even to a single Paragon, such as the Scions of Atun. Others, such as The Illuminated Soul, took a broader approach, welcoming all forms of virtue but requiring those that dwelt there to be transparent in all aspects of their lives so that deception and wickedness had no place to hide. A smaller set focussed their creed on a purpose or calling, such as The Arrows of Truth, whose creed speaks of their calling to hunt and slay dangerous creatures that have escaped the Eternal Realms. Even in the age of the Imperial Synod, there are many chapters who hold that their way of living is superior to The Way, which is for weaker hearts who are at greater risk of faltering.

Each chapter chooses one of their own, called an Exarch, to provide the chapter with civic and moral leadership. The Exarch is most commonly the one who best embodies the chapter’s creed, unless the creed states otherwise. For this reason, priests and those who have been schooled in philosophy and faith are particularly well suited. For a Highborn to seek training as a priest is to put themselves forward for consideration as a potential leader. Highborn history clearly shows the perils of choosing a leader who is not virtuous, so they make no apology for placing this criteria above any other.

In the days before the Empire, the Exarchs were subject to the approval of the Assembly of the Virtuous, a body formed of the prominent priests and theologians from every chapter, to ensure that chapters were led by devout individuals, but that power lapsed generations ago. Now only the most important Highborn appointments such as senators and generals come before the Synod for ratification.

The holy city of Bastion is the religious centre of the nation. Every chapter maintains a hostel of some kind here, so that members who make the pilgrimage to the capital have somewhere to stay. At one time the Assembly of the Virtuous, would meet here regularly to decide the business of the state. The Assembly of the Virtuous was used as the cornerstone for the Imperial Synod, becoming the Highborn Assembly wholesale, and spreading the mandate to watch for any sign of moral decay in the soul of the Empire.

The Highborn Assembly selects Senators and similar by interrogation. Candidates come before the Highborn Synod where they are expected to answer questions designed to assess their mortal rectitude. The Synod does not exclusively select priests to high office, but it is clear that those who have priestly training have considerable advantage in answering the moral dilemmas and philosophical questions put to them. After examining the candidates, each member of the Synod secretly votes to indicate which candidate they felt was least trustable. The candidate with the least votes against them is then declared the winner. If two or more candidates receive equal fewest votes, then all other candidates are eliminated and a final round of voting takes place.

Most political business moved to the Senate after the creation of the Empire so those members of the Highborn Synod interested in politics now meet when the Imperial Court meets, the better to appoint Highborn Senators. Bastion is no longer the political capital of the Highborn Nation, but it remains the spiritual home of the Way of Virtue and pilgrims from all over the Empire travel here.