Alissa's Chosen

Alissa's Chosen are a secretive order of The Church of Alissa. The order trains orphans from a young age to fight against Vampires and other supernatural threats, The Church formed the order soon after the death of Alissa in order to prevent another massacre and to keep an eye on the shadows that stirred in the heart of The Northern Forests.

The Order is looked upon somewhat unfavourably by the Noble houses of Vassalward who see it as an unnecessary expenditure to train people of low birth to do something that they could do themselves, however, The Royal family and The Church have been steadfast in their ruling that the Order remains as it always has.

From the start of their training the apprentice is given their own crossbow, this weapon is the defining feature of an Alissa's Chosen, each is unique to it's owner and while members of the order may use any other weapon alongside it, a Chosen will nearly always have a crossbow with them whether they fight with swords or daggers (some apprentices opt to swap their crossbow for a traditional bow and arrow).

The apprentices live a life of strict routine while training, their days are split into learning history and scripture that deals with Vampires and various other beings, combat training with the crossbow and with any other weapons they wish to be proficient at, general exercise and then quiet meditation before the evening. Apprentices are then assigned a mentor and taken into the Northern Forests in order to learn the lay of the land and to learn vital survival skills for staying alive during long periods in the dangerous woodland.

Once their training is finished there is a small service where the apprentice takes his vows to protect the Kingdom and the Faith. They are then given their uniform, the unique long black coat and hat are the defining feature of Alissa's Chosen and while The Order permits minor modifications and additions such as sashes or similar it is rare that the Chosen will deviate from the uniform unless under circumstances in which they cannot wear it (for example if the apprentice was given an assignment that required them to be in disguise).

Due to their focused training, freshly appointed Chosen tend to be more introverted and quiet whereas the more seasoned members of the Order tend to be more lenient and welcoming to outsiders. Alissa's Chosen are also granted a King's Decree of Free Travel when they are appointed which allows them to travel beyond Isgrin's Wall, they will often assemble a party of Scholars and Hedge Wizards to assist them on the journey.