Watchers

(Very, very much under construction, this just seemed to fit here best)

The primary definition of a Watcher is someone who intentionally invests time, labor, products, and/or resources to The Watch on a semi-regular basis and ascribe to the core mission of The Watch: To defend the kingdom of Duilintinn, her people, and what she stands for from The Enemy; Keeping The Watch through shared manpower, research, good spirits, and the support of all who would offer it from every walk of life within Duilintinn.

Members come from all walks of life and all ages, ranging from as young as 15 or even underage to as old as retirement age. There are little to no requirements for membership as long as they actively work to aid the mission of The Watch in some way, shape, or form.

Being a Watcher is a unique career in Duilintinn, simultaneously resembling a job, guild, government commission, and self-employment without truly fitting any one of these molds.

A Watch may be stationed at one of the two garrisons or one of the eight outposts

The Garrisons are: Fort Stiofán, and Fort Conchúr.

The Outposts are; Domhainn Outlook, Iolla Beacon, Guardian Spire, Gáire Roosts, Rúnach Hold, Agrona Bastion, Pa'Gille Caverns, Runners' Haven.

Otherwise known as, Green Cloaks

## Official Distinctions

### Government Commissioning

Unlike guilds, which were created by the people and would later use their authority to create ties with the national government of Duilintinn, The Watch was founded and commissioned by King Sean himself in 1599 after the second attempt on his life.

This comes with a variety of benefits, such as a government stipend and budget, increased authority, and a built-in system that handles the majority of the red-tape elements of moving out of your Noble House on your behalf.

On the other hand, The Watch also has to deal with the downsides of being reliant on a bureaucratic government system, such as the slow and overcomplicated flow of information and resources, significant amounts of red tape, and limited communication with those in authority over the organization as a whole.

This detail alone heavily distinguishes The Watch from the majority of Duilintinn’s guilds, which are almost entirely self-sufficient and rarely have to answer to anyone except their members.

### Compensation

With the exception of the Guard Coalition, the vast majority of Duilintinn’s guilds do not pay their members, but rather collect dues. The income of their members comes from the jobs they work, which the guild plays a supporting role by providing job security, additional training, unemployment assistance, etc.

In comparison, The Watch is more like a job than a guild, providing compensation to its enlisted members through monetary pay, housing, meals, and supplies in addition to the benefits offered by guilds. At the same time, however, The Watch also has members who identify as Watchers on a volunteer basis, and thus have other occupations and don’t get paid at all.

### Optional Dual Watch-Guild Membership:

Guilds consider The Watch to be more of a career organization than a guild, so while you cannot be in more than one guild, you can be in both a guild and The Watch.

Being a Watcher is considered a potential way of applying the skills of your guild, like a normal job, but even better because you’re responding to one of the most significant crises to Duilintinn’s people and culture that we’ve yet seen. Most guilds see it as a point of pride to have members in The Watch, kinda like how schools brag about the stuff their students do beyond simple academics.

The exception to this is, of course, The Guard Coalition, which is both a guild AND a job. By contrast, the Mercenary Syndicate is a guild that helps you to get a job in a world full of knights, so if that job is The Watch, yay for you! The Guard is an outlier from all other guilds in this way.

### Underage Opportunities

The Watch has (somewhat accidentally) also evolved to take on a social role in Duilintinn as an early career and caretaker of the kingdom’s next generation. This is distinct from almost every other official entity in the kingdom, which will rarely, if ever, accept a member under the age of 15.

Despite not being allowed to do anything incredibly dangerous until they hit this age of majority, some teens will join The Watch at an earlier age because of the rigor and experience it supposedly would provide. The actual truth of that belief is up for debate, but many ambitious students will still do it anyway. While they are heavily encouraged to do so in the form of a houseless gap year, there is an official legal exception allowing young adults to use Watch experience as a replacement for the mandatory education all children in Duilintinn are expected to receive up until age 15.

In these programs, teens stay with The Watch for a short time (in one of the safer places, like a garrison or coastal outpost) to get a sense of what it looks like when all the houses are working together under the same roof. This would be especially beneficial for those who know they want to join The Watch at some point, kinda like an ROTC program.

This youth Watcher program has been adapted to aid houseless orphans and refugee children, giving them a place to stay, learn about Duilintinn’s culture, and find support as they grow up in an unfamiliar world. It’s near-universally acknowledged that placing vulnerable children in the middle of a war effort isn’t really the best solution to that particular problem, but until a better one has been found, The Watch serves the purpose as best it can.

## Unstated Distinctions

### Identity Formation

Members of The Watch usually identify with the concept of being a “Watcher” to some extent, both as a job and as part of a wider community. They often participate in cultural traditions as a unit, such as putting on holiday celebrations for Watchers within outposts and garrisons, or supporting younger Watchers in their search to find a career and Noble House. This “Watcher Identity” runs deeper than the simple concept of “membership” associated with guilds and occupations, resulting in many Watchers who are extremely protective of the integrity and honor of The Watch. This can sometimes be to a fault, where Watchers become defensive in the face of any criticisms towards the organization.

In particular, Watchers are known to butt heads with the Guard Coalition, which believes The Watch is too disorganized and all-encompassing to hold such authority in Duilintinn. At best, members of the two guilds have a healthy, albeit tense, respect for each other and the roles they play in defending Duilintinn; at worst, an us-versus-them mentality distracts both from their true purposes.

### Diversity of Roles

Unlike most guilds, jobs, or organizations, The Watch is not looking for one specific set of skill sets. The goal of the organization is to fight an enemy that threatens all of Duilintinn’s people by employing every one of the unique talents and experiences they possess. As a result, The Watch employs almost every type of person, from homemakers, to soldiers, to academics, to artists.

### Lack of Obligation/Leaving The Watch

Watchers are under no contract or obligation to remain in The Watch forever. This is in direct contrast to the Guard Coalition, which looks down on people who leave to pursue other careers, considering it a direct insult to every knight in the coalition. On the other hand, The Watch won’t pressure anyone to stay within the organization. This is because The Watch was formed after Duilintinn’s founding, while the Guard predates the kingdom by centuries. Therefore, The Watch abides by Duilintinn’s cultural emphasis on finding one’s place in the world, while the traditions of the Guard Coalition predate this shift in cultural values.

## Watcher Roles

The exact role may vary depend on exactly where a Watcher is stationed, and some roles are more suited to certain stations. Every outpost and garrison has a Raven Master and Rookerers, nurses, cooks, messengers, farmers and folk to run the general upkeep of the place.

Somewhere like the Rúnach Hold and Fort Conchúr will have more soliders, whereas Fort Stiofán would have more archivists and scholars. A coastal outpost will have Watchers who can sail and/or have marine experience, whereas an outpost close to the Western Forest would have more scouts.

At its core, being a member of The Watch simply obligates you to intentionally invest time, labor, products, and/or resources to The Watch on a semi-regular basis with the purpose of aiding this mission. However, the ways in which Watchers perform this duty vary dramatically. One of the defining characteristics of The Watch is its acceptance of members from all walks of life. Whether your skills are based in academics, art, combat, or survival, The Watch will find a place for you.

Please note that this list is not all-inclusive and may be missing other potential roles or subtypes of such roles.

### Field Roles

Field roles are jobs within The Watch that deal directly with the tangible, immediate consequences of The Enemy threat. As the name implies, the brunt of their duties usually take place on the field, rather than working from a garrison or outpost; albeit with some exceptions.

These field roles are also the primary users of sign language in The Watch. Due to the widespread use of sign language throughout Duilintinn, The Watch uses sign language to communicate silently in the field. As a result, almost all Watchers know a little bit of sign language. Their vocabulary mostly consists of words like “go,” “fall back,” and other relevant military terms, but there are many opportunities in and out of The Watch to learn how to sign proficiently.

#### Combat Watchers

Soldiers, fighters, warriors; whatever you want to call them, these are among the most visible and high-risk duties a Watcher can take on. Many civilians primarily associate The Watch with these green-cloaked, heavily armed members who risk life and limb to defend Duilintinn from The Enemy’s monstrous allies. This role often overlaps with the role of Mobile Teams in the form of armed patrols, but also encompasses Watchers who are barracked in various outposts and garrisons of The Watch, training in preparation to leap into action at a moment’s notice. This also covers the patrols around Cordoire.

The War(s) of The Watch have mainly consisted of two types of conflict: raids and skirmishes.  Raids are intentional attacks on a specific target(s), usually a location. Presumably, a raid is a calculated step in the grand scheme of The Enemy’s plan, so these attacks are studied and reported on individually. On the other hand, skirmishes are completely unplanned encounters between Watchers (usually border patrols) and groups of monsters and/or puppets. Since skirmishes are far more common than raids, they rarely warrant their own reports.

This latter form of conflict is why The Watch is not solely staffed with academics. Thanks to The Watch’s border patrols, these dangerous beings are contained outside the kingdom, rather than stalking the countryside to prey upon travelers. In addition, these skirmishes provide important data about The Enemy’s forces. If the academics of The Watch only had information from raids, well, forget the nature of The Enemy’s magic; we’d still be wondering what puppets were.

However, skirmishes rarely indicate anything about The Enemy’s plans; they’re simply far too commonplace and random. Even in hindsight, few raids have ever been meaningfully foreshadowed by the skirmishes that occurred beforehand. The only time skirmishes provide additional clues about The Enemy’s plans is through their sheer volume and intensity. The more skirmishes occur and/or the larger the hostile force, the more of The Enemy’s forces are congregated in an area closer to the border. However, most of the time, The Enemy is smart enough to lie in wait far enough from the border to prevent this from tipping us off to future raids, unless he intentionally seeks to wear out our forces with constant skirmishes.

#### Mobile Teams

Mobile Teams of Watchers exist for a variety of purposes, ranging from research teams who actively search for signs of The Enemy, to border patrols, to first responders, etc. Each team reports to a specific outpost of The Watch, which manages their deployment, supplies, and distribution of whatever they discover. Most mobile teams are assigned specific portions of Duilintinn.

While these teams are at liberty to spend more or less time along a specific section of their route to investigate or stand guard as they see fit, they must remain within their segment of the border. This is because, in order for the outposts to accurately ration and provide the necessary resources to each group, each outpost is carefully equipped to provide for the environments and challenges faced by their own region of the kingdom. Exceptions might be made in emergency situations on a case-by-case basis, but in general, veering too far from your designated area is ill-advised.

For example, imagine if a scouting party of Watchers from the Northern Mountains attempted to resupply at an outpost closer to the Western Forest. Instead of the warm clothing and blankets needed for the rocky northern heights, the outpost would only be able to provide the thin green garments appropriate for forest scouts.

In addition, Mobile Teams are not always able to contact their superiors about their movements. Since these groups are given tremendous leeway regarding what actions to take based on their discoveries, confining specific teams to a specific area prevents anyone from accidentally leaving sections of the kingdom unwatched and unprotected. This is especially important for border patrols, which are our first line of defense against The Enemy’s raids.

When reporting back to The Watch, most Mobile Teams will return back to their designated outpost at regular intervals to relay any information they find, knowing that messengers within the outpost will take care of spreading the word to the rest of The Watch. However, in especially dire situations (such as a raid) a single member of a Mobile Team may ride out alone to alert The Watch as quickly as possible.

Generally, Mobile Teams of Watchers will only stay at an outpost or garrison in order to rest and resupply before returning to the field. While they are still paid during this furlough period, this consistent return to the field is what distinguishes a Mobile Team from a simple one-off expedition.

#### Messengers

Since The Watch and its network of outposts, garrisons, and messengers between them were created, it has become common practice for citizens to leave messages at these outposts for delivery. These messages will then be delivered for free with other official messages of The Watch to whatever outpost or garrison is closest to the delivery location. This is the fastest and cheapest method of delivery, though The Watch only delivers letters (packages will slow down the messengers). However, they will only take the message as far as the nearest outpost. If a mobile party of Watchers is at the outpost to resupply, they will collect any messages addressed to towns along their route and drop them off at the tavern, but most of the time, the letters will be left at the nearest tavern for the final leg of their journey. As this method of message delivery becomes more common, many people have begun checking for any letters for them at the nearest outpost. As a result, The Watch has accidentally evolved into the kingdom’s closest thing to a post office.

This is yet another example of how The Watch has become a fundamental piece of infrastructure within the kingdom. That wasn’t the original intent when it was created, but now, the kingdom would likely fall apart if The Watch was suddenly dissolved, even if The Enemy was somehow defeated.

Many, if not most, Watchers are part-time messengers! Watchers often do something else and run messages on the side (that’s what I, Emily Keyes, do between writing announcements and cataloging our history!) while others are exclusively messengers and spend all day riding across the kingdom with really important Watch info. Message delivery is a form of hospitality that is integral to the culture of King Sean’s Kingdom (just like reblogs are integral to the culture of tumblr where many, many theorists and JSE fans interact with the rest of the community).

Like all supplies needed to perform one’s duty in The Watch, Messengers are provided with bags to carry these deliveries in. However, many messengers will get their bags enchanted with the bigger-on-the-inside enchantment. There’s usually someone in an outpost/garrison who can do that since it’s so useful, but it doesn’t come on the bag by default since it’s a pain to enchant a few hundred bags at once when they’ll all wear off before they even get handed out anyway.

### Informational Roles

Informational Roles focus on collecting, analyzing, distributing, and preserving information and research that would aid the fight against The Enemy. While most of these roles are typically based within a specific outpost or garrison, exceptions do exist. While it is common for a group of Watchers in Informational Roles to take short-term trips into the field for various purposes, these expeditions are not considered to be Field Roles or Mobile Teams because these trips are infrequent, often spontaneous in nature, and are usually a single step in a larger process that mostly takes place in their home outpost or garrison, rather than the primary role of these Watchers.

#### Record-Keepers

The Watch keeps a mage with the ability to make magical records at every outpost, garrison, and (if possible) with every mobile party of Watchers as well. Thankfully, a wide variety of focuses will allow a mage to use this ability; anything related to truth, justice, messages, sharing, sending, entertainment, knowledge, safety, etc. would almost certainly allow for the record-making magical skill. Many magical skills (such as this one) are known to be so useful and common that experienced mages will teach them novices with applicable focuses early on.

There are also paper records, books, maps, and normal record-y stuff as well. Not only does all of that have to be gathered, but it also has to be stored, cared for, maintained, distributed to those who need them, and then GOTTEN BACK (or replaced).

#### Scribes

Scribes make copies of every major document in The Watch for distribution and safekeeping. In a way, they are the “publishers” of The Watch.

When a Watcher finishes writing something (a theory, report, whatever) that they wish to be accessible in the library or archives for future reference by other Watchers, they give it to these scribes, who generally have an office in these spaces of each garrison/outpost. The scribe(s) will then make copies of these documents before passing them along to messengers, who distribute the “published” copies to the rest of The Watch.

This process is slightly different if a document is time-sensitive (i.e. letters alerting The Watch to recent events). Generally, a Watcher writing a document that they want to send as soon as possible will make two copies: one for a messenger, and one for the scribes.

Thankfully, this process of making multiple copies of a document is a bit easier than it sounds. Various magical and mechanical tools exist that allow scribes to make multiple copies of a document simultaneously.

In addition, scribes will also use their skills to create detailed written descriptions of the audiovisual contents of a Magical Record. This transcription would then be copied and distributed like any other document. This allows the contents of magical records to be easily accessible and guards against their destruction, even if the mage who originally made the record is not available to create magical copies.

However, by far the largest task that scribes undertake is the annual compilation and publication of the large encyclopedic tomes that summarize every major development, theory, and action that took place in The Watch. Every outpost and garrison of The Watch has multiple copies of these tomes in their libraries, creating a streamlined database of information for Watchers who don’t want to spend hours trying to sort through the hundreds of similar reports submitted by their predecessors over the years.

#### Raven Masters

Raven Masters are important, long-term roles held by at least one Watcher at every outpost and garrison. Ravens are The Watch’s fastest form of communication. Much like the telegraph, messages carried by raven are short, sometimes encoded, but make up for their length with the speed at which they can be delivered. Each outpost and garrison keeps ravens for this exact purpose. However, someone needs to manage this process, and that is where the Raven Master(s) come into play.

Unlike Rookerers, who manage the ravens’ daily care, train new members of the flock, tend to injured individuals, and facilitate the coming and going of any messages the ravens carry  and are considered a Support Role, Raven Masters are actually positions of remarkable power and influence. They are effectively a bottleneck through which all urgent correspondence must pass to enter or leave the outpost. Given to the wrong person, this role could be abused with catastrophic consequences. As a result, this role is considered an Informational Role. Only very senior and universally trusted members of The Watch are given this task, with both garrisons and several outposts employing multiple Raven Masters to keep the others in check and share the intense workload.

In addition, unlike many other positions in The Watch, Raven Masters are permanently stationed at their post until their resignation, except under truly pressing circumstances. This means that they live at their outpost long-term, and cannot decide on a whim to deliver messages or attend to personal business elsewhere. The role is simply too important to go untended or risk a less-experienced substitute. For this reason, many Raven Masters are older, with no remaining obligations to their family (or another group) outside of the watch. It’s not uncommon for extended family members to visit an outpost for a short period to spend time with their permanently stationed relative.

#### Theorists

Theorists is a vague, all-encompassing term that is less of an occupational title and more of an occupational category within The Watch. Specifically, it refers to Watchers who work towards uncovering the many mysteries of this war, such as The Enemy’s plans, the status of the Missing Lords, and the exact nature of the Influence Curse and The Enemy’s dark puppetry.

Theorists have a unique workload that generally cycles between two categories.

The first is their average workload, which usually involves analyzing documentation of old Enemy movements, writing theories based on the patterns they observe and reviewing the theories of their peers. Occasionally, these theories will have implications that will prompt The Watch to take action, but most are unable to be proven nor acted upon without further information.

The second takes place during what members of The Watch affectionately call a “community fire,” which is the chaos of reactions and immediate consequences that results whenever The Enemy makes another move. For Theorists, these moves by The Enemy mean brand new information that brings them ever closer to discovering the truth- or so they hope. Indeed, with garrisons and outposts flooded with theorists who had faded into the background since the previous incident, the resulting avalanche of new theories and discoveries usually grants The Watch a huge advantage against The Enemy in the aftermath.

In return, The Enemy has turned towards psychological warfare against this theorist spirit of The Watch, claiming that our vigilance and attention towards him is what feeds his power and remaining out of sight for long stretches of time in what seems to be an attempt to demoralize those Watchers whose theories and motivation rely upon these cycles of excitement and new information.

Examples of Theorists include strategists, researchers, scholars, investigators, scientists, etc.

#### Bards

Bards have a variety of roles within The Watch. Some primarily create communications within The Watch for other Watchers, in order to tell the story of other garrisons, outposts, and fronts of The Watch to those who aren’t able to witness these events in person and summarize new discoveries and information to those Watchers who aren’t in the theorist circles of The Watch. However, other bards may create storytelling mediums targeting civilians outside of The Watch, perhaps to combat misinformation or to help citizens of Duilintinn understand what is going on. Still others may be attempting to preserve the story of The Watch for future generations, cataloguing the highs and lows so we can learn from these experiences and grow as an organization and a people.

#### Creatives

I could spend all day listing every sort of creative role within The Watch, from artisans to musicians to entertainers and more. However, all of these roles are generally focused on the production of some creative work through a chosen medium.

Within The Watch, these creatives serve two purposes. One, many creatives in The Watch use their skills to catalogue and record events and information for The Watch. Many work as cartographers, illustrators, or concept artists to help others visualize important information such as locations, monsters, theories, etc.

Two, creatives in The Watch are a vital source of morale and hope in these trying times, especially as The Enemy continues using psychological warfare as his weapon of choice against The Watch. Between the personal impact of the Influence Curse and puppets, long stretches of demoralizing silence, and an overwhelming sense of helplessness against a foe with magic that shouldn’t exist, the uplifting, inspiring, and hope-bringing nature of creative work is vital to preserve the spirit of The Watch.

### Support Roles

These people provide an internal service within The Watch itself. There are dozens of roles that keep The Watch running behind the scenes. These people cook, clean, and maintain a garrison/outpost for thousands of Watchers. Some of these Watchers also have other jobs (Nurse Dawn has been seen helping with the washing), but many do these thankless tasks full-time. These roles might not seem glorious or exciting, but regardless, they’re Watchers just like any fighter or thinker in The Watch. The roles below are only a snapshot of how many support roles are required to keep The Watch running.

#### Nurses

Nurses (also called doctors, medics, healers, etc.) are one of those roles that fits into all three categories. Many would consider their job to be  a Field Role due to the direct interaction they have with the tangible consequences of the war against The Enemy, namely in the form of wounds and injuries. Many Mobile Teams are deployed with at least one nurse, though the same is also true of enchanters. On the other hand, many nurses support the research work within The Watch in an attempt to discover better ways to avoid the medical consequences of The Enemy’s attacks and magic, which would classify them as an Informational Role.

However, these are all very specific roles a nurse of The Watch may take. At its essence, the role of a nurse is to take care of the medical needs of Watchers, regardless of whether those needs are a direct result of the war or something far simpler in nature. Watchers are just as susceptible to normal illness, injuries, and health issues as any other person, and nurses of The Watch ensure that these troubles do not prevent The Watch from fulfilling its mission.

#### Farmers

The Watch grows its own crops and livestock in an attempt to be completely self-sustaining, though they can only grow one type of grain and one type of root vegetable each season due to space constraints. Much of what they grow is stored away in preparation for a siege or another famine. Both Fort Stiofán and Fort Conchúr distributed their accumulated resources throughout the kingdom during the Second Great Famine, softening the blow of the first year’s failed harvest. When the famine continued for multiple years, however, The Watch went hungry with the rest of the kingdom. Since then, both garrisons have worked to set aside even more resources to prepare against a third famine, though these supplies would also be used in the case of an enemy siege or some other emergency circumstances.

Farmers of The Watch tend to both the growth and preservation of these goods. Some are part-timers who donate their labor and produce from their own fields, while others work full-time on land adjacent to a garrison or outpost.

#### Craftsmen

The Watch hires several professional craftspeople to work full-time in the workshops and smithies of The Watch. These people produce the various goods that are needed to keep The Watch running, while also repairing and augmenting anything brought to them by a fellow Watcher.  Most of these supplies, such as bags, saddles, paints, quills, armor, etc., are produced in large batches. As a result, they usually look like someone spent a week making a TON of the exact same thing, and then later when The Watch needed more, another person made a batch. So they all have slightly different variations on the same really simple pattern. It’s not exactly artisanal work, yet despite this, these crafters usually take pride in the simple, unique touches that mark a batch of supplies as their own. In addition, these craftsmen will approve and oversee the usage of workshop spaces by other Watchers.

#### Enchanters

In addition to the mages who use their magic to perform specific roles directly related to the pursuit of The Enemy, The Watch employs hundreds of mages who use their magic simply to keep the garrisons and outposts running. Specifically, mages who cast the enchantments used by The Watch on a daily basis.

Due to the nature of enchantments, these mages have to either remain near the enchanted object(s) or constantly re-cast these enchantments as they wear off faster due to distance. As a result, some of these mages will constantly be traveling with groups of other Watchers in order to keep wards and enchantments active for the group, while others will remain in a single location for extended periods of time.

In addition, these enchantments are in high demand and may be extremely taxing, so few mages who cast enchantments for The Watch will have magical energy left over for other magical duties. However, many of these mages also spend time doing non-magical tasks to aide The Watch (or other tasks in their life outside of the organization). As a result, while these mages are largely tied down to a single location/group, they have a surprising amount of free time besides casting and re-casting the enchantments they are responsible for.

Some of these enchantments are directly related to the hunt for The Enemy, i.e. enchantments that detect The Enemy’s magic, protective wards on the garrisons and outposts, upkeep of enchanted library tools that allow for the production of records and reports, etc. However, others are far more mundane.

For example, every garrison and outpost of The Watch employs mages who cast stair accessibility enchantments for Watchers with mobility struggles. Watchers who need this accommodation can visit one of these mages at their station near the stairs, who will cast the enchantment on their shoes and/or other mobility aid. While the regular upkeep of an accessibility enchantment like this is an important and vital part of running The Watch, it does use a lot of magical energy, so it’s only available to people who would significantly benefit from it, not just because you don’t feel like taking the stairs.

#### Rookerers

Rookerers are people who work in the rookeries of Watch outposts and garrisons. They take orders from Raven Masters to help care for the ravens of The Watch. In addition, they tend to the hawks, which are kept in a separate corner of the rookery and used for hunting and scouting by some Watchers.

Mages who have abilities to speak with animals and gain their aid have discovered that ravens are extremely intelligent and are extremely willing to aid any cause that might hurt The Enemy or aid those who they consider a friend. Why ravens hate The Enemy so much is unknown, although some think it has something to do with The Enemy taking up residence within the Western Forest. If you can find a willing raven, they will fly a message for you, and The Watch has a TON of them. However, ravens can only carry very short, light messages, approximately the size of a quarter-page of parchment at the most. It’s the equivalent of a quick text or telegram for this kingdom. Ravens are kept at every garrison and outpost for this purpose, and you can often find someone just on a streetcorner with ravens who you can pay to send your message, like a roadside payphone or something.

#### Stable Masters

The Stable Masters keep the horses of The Watch fed, sheltered, healthy, and in incredible shape. The small fee Watchers pay to use these steeds is what funds this work. Additionally, Watchers can pay a similar fee to board their own horses under the care of the Stable Masters.

#### Cooks

The Watch employs several cooks at each outpost and garrison to provide three meals a day to the Watchers who are living on-site or passing through. While The Watch tries to be self-sustaining by keeping their own livestock and fields outside of the garrisons and outposts, they only grow one type of grain and one type of root vegetable due to space constraints. Therefore, ingredients are also purchased for cooks to produce three meals a day for Watchers at outposts and garrisons.

## Income, Compensation, and Benefits

In addition to the standard benefits offered by most guilds, The Watch provides compensation to its enlisted members through monetary pay, meals, housing, supplies, and facilities. This allows members to be almost entirely reliant on The Watch if they wish, and differs heavily from most guilds and jobs, which usually offer some, but not all of these elements to their members/employees.

It should be noted that volunteer watchers are not considered “enlisted,” and thus are not paid monetarily by The Watch for their services. However, they do have access to the forms of compensation that relate to their services as a volunteer, such as the facilities and supplies of The Watch needed to complete their role.

### Monetary Pay

Enlisted members of The Watch get paid based on how much time they serve. The income for a full-time Watcher is enough for a Watcher to afford anything they might need during their service to The Watch, including housing, with a bit extra to spare, kinda like a stipend.

### Food

The Watch tries to be self-sustaining by keeping their own livestock and fields outside of the garrisons and outposts, but they only grow one type of grain and one type of root vegetable due to space constraints. They also eat a lot of potatoes because they are very good for you and very easy to grow. Standard fare in a Watch outpost is dense bread and a stew made of whatever food is available locally.

The bread is very heavy, dry, and probably a bit stale, but you get used to it pretty quickly, especially because herbs make everything better. Now, if Watchers were in a situation where they had no more herbs to bake into the bread? I mean, they would eat it (they’re not stupid) but the complaining would probably be loud enough to hear from Haneul.

Depending on the region, the stew could contain meat from the most recent hunt, fish from a nearby body of water, or even livestock if they’re lucky. Vegetables and starches would be extremely variable, but odds are, potatoes are somehow involved.

In order to cook enough food for an entire outpost or garrison, massive pots of stew are cooking on low heat in the kitchens at all times. Instead of set mealtimes, Watchers are expected to wander down to the kitchens when they get hungry, where they will be given a bowl of stew from one of these pots. Much like a modern crock-pot meal, these stews can be left largely unattended after the ingredients are cut up and put on the heat, allowing the cooks to focus on the far-more time-intensive process of baking bread and preparing dried rations for patrols. Hot water is almost always sitting over the fire for tea, and Watchers who want to cook something specific can use the kitchens if they don’t get underfoot.

Cooks in The Watch are also responsible for preparing the dried/preserved food for the Watchers who travel back and forth between the garrisons and outposts, such as patrols, scouts, messengers, researchers, etc. These rations usually include dried meats and a dense variant of herbed bread. Since traveling food usually has to be dehydrated in some way, cooks in The Watch usually have at least a few large batches of these rations slowly drying out in the ovens as they prepare other meals. While this is very similar to how daily meals are made for Watchers who aren’t traveling, traveling rations are in too high demand for cooks to simply allow Watchers to grab some when they feel like it. Instead, the Watcher will inform the cook of the length of their trip and receive a specific amount of rations based on that information. If the trip passes through another outpost or garrisons, the Watcher will only receive enough food to reach that location and will restock their rations there (unless the journey is time-sensitive).

When a big feast happens, or any other big events that require extra cooking, the cooks basically go “okay, if y'all want a party, y'all need to help cook” and get all the watchers who normally don’t do cooking to pitch in and help. It’d be a big bonding thing and a much-needed reminder for some folks that The Watch isn’t just made of thinkers and fighters.

### Housing

Housing is available at the outposts and garrisons  to any and all Watchers who wish to avail themselves of it.

### Supplies

Depending on what you do in The Watch, they’ll provide the things you need to do it. Most of these supplies, such as bags, saddles, paints, quills, armor, etc., are produced in large batches by The Watch’s craftsmen, so they usually look like someone spent a week making a TON of the exact same thing. While there are slight differences between individual batches, most supplies all have slightly different variations on the same really simple pattern.

### Facilities

Watchers have access to all services offered within The Watch, such as enchanting, workshops, stables, libraries, bathouses, and almost anything else you could think of. Some of these services are free, while others come at a significant discount for members of The Watch.

#### Stables

The Watch keeps fast and strong Messenger Horses at every outpost and garrison. For a small yearly fee, Watchers have the right to grab a horse from the stables at an outpost or garrison whenever they need them. If the horse is killed or hurt during the ride, the Watcher has to pay the Stable Master for the damage. For a similar fee, Watchers can board their own horses with The Watch under the care of the same Stable Masters.

#### Workshops

Professional workshops are manned by members of The Watch whose roles require such facilities. However, these spaces are also accessible to enlisted  Watchers of all skill levels.

While most Watchers will simply commission something they need from the professional craftsmen working in these workshopes, some Watchers with an interest in a craft or a project that requires a special skill might wish to use the facilities themselves. Generally, they have to demonstrate that they know what they’re doing (especially for the smithing) or that they want to offer their time as an extra pair of hands and are willing to listen to directions. However, if the craftsperson on duty approves, a Watcher who isn’t a professional craftsperson can use the workshops as well.

#### Bathhouses

Each outpost and garrison has one or more bathhouses for Watchers to use. While bathhouses seem like a luxury item that only exist in cities and large towns, sanitation was a top priority when renovating the outposts and garrisons to be occupied by hundreds of Watchers at once. The same guilds who constructed rudimentary plumbing in other areas of Duilintinn (The Order of Stone and Ocean Men) were recruited for this task during the three years between The Watch’s founding and implementation.

With the exception of Fort Conchúr, all bathhouses were built in their own dedicated structure on the ground\*. In Fort Conchúr, these bathhouses were built into the preexisting structures underneath the outer ramp and keep, most of which had already been repurposed for living quarters. Beyond the materials used for the structure itself, these bathhouses are more or less identical regardless of the architectural variation between the outposts and garrisons.  They are not designed with luxury or relaxation in mind, but efficiency.

A usual trip to the bathhouse starts with a Watcher stepping up to a rope attached to a self-refilling bucket of water. Depending on how hard they pull the rope, a Watcher might sacrifice water pressure for more length of time under the “tap,” so to speak. This quick shower is meant to wash away any surface-level grime before they step into the bath, where they use the soap provided, before finally stepping up to another rope to rinse off with fresh water from another bucket.

Privacy is not a priority in the bathhouses of The Watch. While there are partitions between the shower-buckets, they exist more to control the splash so that most of the water ends up on you and not spraying out on everyone else like a sprinkler system the second it hits the top of your head. Since the baths are an adaptation of the public bathhouses found in large cities, they obviously aren’t very private either.

However, there are a few separate spots in the bathhouses that are actually completely closed off, intended for people who really prioritize privacy for whatever reason (religious, personal, medical, heck idk some people are just shyer than others) and are willing to wait ages if there’s a line. You’re still expected to wash just as quickly though (heck, even more so if there is a line).

The bathhouses are not divided by gender. Since Duilintinn, as a culture, is not concerned with gender roles or binary, gender-divided bathhouses would feel overly complicated and unnecessary. Moreover, the efficiency with which you’re expected to wash up prevents most people from looking where they shouldn’t be, and if someone did try something inappropriate, there’d be other people around who would be equally willing to knock some sense into them.

*\*This detail sounds really stupid unless you know that at least half of the structures in the Gáire Roosts outpost are treehouses.*

## Where Would my Watcher be Stationed?

Where a specific Watcher works within The Watch depends on a wide variety of factors, including regional location, role, and housing preferences.

### Location

Regarding location, most Watchers would prefer to work within their chosen Noble House.  After all, Duil citizens are encouraged to pick a Noble House because they feel most comfortable in the culture there, so most Watchers would probably want to stay nearby! However, this is not a universal rule. Some Watchers might request to be in a garrison or outpost further from home if you want to travel or test the waters regarding a potential House Switch. In fact, many young people join The Watch as a way to experience the cultures of several Noble Houses before making their first House Switch!

### Role

Additionally, some Watchers may need to work at a specific location in order to pursue their role within The Watch. Each outpost and garrison has its own unique niche, from the research opportunities within the Western Forest for Watchers at the Gáire Roosts Outpost to the intense maritime skills needed at Iolla Beacon. Others may request to move to a new location in order to follow the action as new developments arise in The Watch. Meanwhile, while Mobile Teams of Watchers are limited to a specific region of the kingdom, their very nature means that they are constantly packing up their tents and moving from place to place.

There are also a significant number of “part time” Watchers, who spend part of the year with The Watch and part of the year at home. Watchers with families can bring their children and/or partners with them to their garrison or outpost at their digression (though this isn’t exactly ideal, as will be described shortly), can volunteer at an outpost close to home, or can decide to only volunteer with The Watch for part of the year. The short-term nature of this role may affect where a Watcher decides to stay; for some, they may wish to live closer to home for ease of commute, while for others, they may feel more comfortable travelling further, knowing that they’ll return back to their Noble House for a significant portion of the year.

### Housing Preferences

Finally, housing preferences will affect where a Watcher decides to work. Mobile Teams of Watchers will live in tents for most of their time working in The Watch, while those who live in a garrison or outpost full-time would stay in the living quarters built for those locations.

However, unless a Watcher has a job in which they have to stay at their post full-time (of which the only ones that come to mind are Raven Masters and members of Mobile Teams), most Watchers prefer to commute between their preexisting place of residence and their post in The Watch, rather than live at the garrisons or outposts themselves.

The reasons for this are pretty straightforward. First of all, the living quarters of these places are NOT built with families in mind. Like, at alllllll. They’re either too small or too communal for anything remotely resembling family living. Even without kids, a couple would have trouble making it work in most of the garrisons or outposts unless they were okay with sleeping apart and having basically no privacy to speak of. Best case scenario, you’d get one of the double rooms in Fort Stiofán that has two beds instead of a window, but even then… look, those combined chest-mattress beds are not wide enough for two people to share comfortably, and the wooden partitions between the living quarters in Fort Stiofán are definitely not soundproof. I’ll leave it at that.

So immediately, the main portion of the population who can feasibly stay in the garrisons or outposts full-time without making some significant lifestyle sacrifices are single folks. And even then, not everyone is willing to live full-time in that sort of environment. Unless you’re really dedicated to the job or like being in the garrison or outpost 24/7 enough to put up with the cramped quarters, most people would definitely prefer to commute. That’s one of the reasons why there are lots of towns in the areas around most of the garrisons and outposts.

However, all of those empty rooms are definitely still needed. In times of crisis or intense suspense, many Watchers will opt to stay overnight for several days, weeks, or even months until they are sure that the main threat has passed, rather than waste time travelling back and forth. Others will cycle between staying in a garrison/outpost and staying somewhere of their own over the course of the year. It just depends on the person.  One final note: yes, a large percentage of the Watchers that we have created for this AU are stationed full-time in a garrison or outpost, but you have to remember; The Watch consists of thousands of people. The handful of characters that we have created reflect only a fraction of that total population, so I don’t want you to think it’s unrealistic to make multiple Watchers living in a garrison/outpost based on the statistical sample size or whatever.

## Identification

Enlisted Watchers are easily identified by their green cloaks. However, these cloaks are fairly easy to reproduce, and Watchers are not obligated to wear them, so each Watcher also carries a letter of certification with a bunch of stamps and signatures that confirm their membership with The Watch and a magical record of the owner's face. The Watch keeps records of their members, so these letters can be replaced if lost, but it's a bit of a hassle. Basically, it's a fantasy driver's license.

### Origins

Unfortunately, The Watch didn't have this identification system when it was first established, and, like most security measures, it was written in blood.

In the early days of The Watch, most people were far more worried about protecting the garrisons and outposts from agents of The Enemy than ordinary citizens. Somehow, in the midst of planning for constant patrols, guard towers, spells detecting The Enemy’s magic, and other such security measures, it didn’t occur to anyone that it was shockingly easy for an ordinary person to just wander into a garrison or outpost without being noticed.

In fact, this was encouraged. Both garrisons and many of the outposts were making extra revenue to sustain The Watch through passing non-Watchers who spent their coin in the workshops and taverns outside of the main building(s). Groups of citizens would regularly volunteer their time at an outpost or garrison for a day or two. Family visits to full-time Watchers were extremely common.

Moreover, it was incredibly difficult to tell the difference between a Watcher and a non-Watcher. The Watch provided its members with a green cloak, yes, but the design was easily copied and Watchers were not obligated to wear them. There are thousands of Watchers in Duilintinn, and thanks to the constant travel in and out of the garrisons and outposts, there’s no way to recognize whether that group of three heavily armed, angry-looking fighters arriving at 2 am was a threat, or simply one of the returning night patrols.

And one night (approx. 1604?), at Fort Conchúr, that is exactly what happened.

Unlike Fort Stiofán, the living quarters in Fort Conchúr are located outside of the central keep, featuring hostel-like rooms with several bunks that anyone could just fall into as needed. As a result, the doors to these rooms were unlocked. They were guarded, of course, but again, the living quarters in Fort Conchúr are not assigned; you just show up and find an empty bed. Assuming the group of strangers was fellow Watchers heading to bed, the guard on duty let them pass without a second glance.

The good news was that they didn’t get far. Fort Conchúr’s living quarters are set up like this to accommodate the constant activity of Watchers working at all hours of the day, so many of the Watchers inside were still wide awake. Some hadn’t even removed their armor yet. Five Watchers were severely injured before all three attackers were killed or incapacitated.

Thankfully, all five injured Watchers eventually recovered from their injuries. The two attackers who survived the initial response by the surprised Watchers both resisted medical care and died soon afterward, refusing to explain their actions.

An extremely in-depth investigation proved without a shadow of a doubt that the detection spells around Fort Conchúr had not failed, and that these people were not suffering from the Influence Curse or any other form of The Enemy’s magic. To this day, we don’t know for certain why the attack happened. One of the most common theories is that they sympathized with The Enemy out of hatred for or disillusionment over the kingdom, but for all we know, they could have been completely unrelated to the war.

In the aftermath, The Watch implemented a system of documentation that included a certificate of membership that Watchers carried with them at all times. The garrisons and outposts are still largely open to the public, but Watchers have to show this document to a guard at the doors before being allowed to enter areas exclusive to The Watch. It’s not a perfect system, but the certificates are complex enough that it would be a lot harder for someone to walk in unnoticed.

## Hierachy

There are no official rankings in The Watch. It’s one of the critical differences between the Guard Coalition and The Watch, and one of the reasons why the Coalition looks down upon The Watch so much. They see The Watch as a disorganized mess of civilians sticking their noses where they don’t belong and getting involved in everyone’s business in their attempt to play detective/hero.

Instead of formal ranks, there is a sort of unspoken seniority among Watchers. These roles don’t have any official titles, but for the sake of explanation, I will be defining them in terms of “Recruits,” “Members,” and “Seniority.” There are also Volunteer Watchers, who fit in none of these categories.

### Recruits

A Watcher is considered a “recruit” until they find their niche in The Watch. Upon joining The Watch, Watchers are expected to find this niche by offering their services to the section of The Watch that handles such things. Once settled into their role, they are no longer considered a recruit.

For example, if a knight joins The Watch wanting to fight, they’d go up to the other soldiers in The Watch and ask if they can tag along and help. Often this “helping” involves very basic tasks and errands at first, giving the newbie time to get a sense of the culture of The Watch and the unspoken seniority ranks. After some time, people would start trusting them with more important tasks. Eventually, the requests from the older Watchers would sound more like “hey want to come with us on a patrol,” rather than the “hey go run this errand for me” from earlier, indicating that the young knight has silently ranked up from a newbie to an equal among those Watchers.

While it’s implied that most Watchers will find their niche within the first few weeks, some people figure this out faster than others. For example, Bard Keyes spent nearly seven years puttering around The Watch before she finally found her niche and would be considered a full-fledged Watcher.

This is especially true of younger Watchers. Most young Watchers are automatically considered recruits until around the age of 18 to 20 since young, growing brains are unable to find their niche until they’ve matured into a better understanding of themselves.

### Underage Watchers

Most Watchers are over the age of 15, but The Watch will take in anyone who wants to help. However, no one is sending a child into a battle or scouting mission, especially considering what we’re up against here. Despite not being allowed to do anything incredibly dangerous until they hit 15, some teens will join The Watch at an earlier age because of the rigor and experience it supposedly would provide. The actual truth of that belief is up for debate, but many ambitious students will still do it anyway, often in the form of a houseless gap year. In these programs, teens stay with The Watch for a short time (in one of the safer places, like a garrison or coastal outpost) to get a sense of what it looks like when all the houses are working together under the same roof. This would be especially beneficial for those who know they want to join The Watch at some point, kinda like an ROTC program. This youth Watcher program has been adapted to aid houseless orphans and refugee children, though all acknowledge that placing vulnerable children in the middle of a war effort isn’t really the best solution to that particular problem. Again though, no Watcher under the age of 15 is being deployed to face The Enemy in any way; most will barely leave the garrison or outpost except to take trips to the local town or city.

Members

While I use the term “Members” just to have a title for this section, there’s no official term for a Watcher who is no longer a recruit, but lacks any significant seniority. That being said, you could argue that most Watchers have at least some level of seniority; and that it’s the amount of seniority that matters. This is in part why none of the authority roles in The Watch have titles or named “ranks,” since the process of taking one of those positions is so vague and gradual.

### Seniority

The people with the most seniority and respect among The Watch are those who end up giving orders when the time calls for it. These Watchers command troops during battles, coordinate patrols on a daily basis, and give other Watchers assignments if need be. However, these “orders” are always structured more like requests. The Watch as a whole is made up of people who are passionate about their role as a Watcher (otherwise they wouldn’t join; there’s no obligation to stick around), so most “orders” and assignments go something like this:

> Respected Senior member of the Watch. "Okay so we need someone to do this-"
>
>

> Four or five different Watchers in the vicinity, simultaneously. "I'LL DO IT!"
>
>

"Seniority” isn’t an indication of age or time in The Watch, but an indication of the respect one has earned from your peers. That’s why people follow their orders/requests when the situation calls for it; not because they command authority over other watchers, but because other Watchers trust and respect their experience and reputation.

Occasionally, this “unspoken” ranking system will lead to miscommunications, where Watchers are unaware of the respect and authority that others have granted them.

### Volunteers

Some people can’t or won’t join The Watch as an enlisted Watcher, but still want to help. These people will donate their time, energy, or resources to The Watch by visiting the various outposts with supplies, comfort items, and volunteers to help clean, cook, or make repairs. These volunteers offer a nice break from the monotony of keeping the watch in an isolated location, and many regulars are considered honorary Watchers by those they aid. Obviously, these Watchers aren’t paid, nor do they answer to the unspoken hierarchy within the enlisted forces of The Watch. They simply give what they can, when they can.

## Known Watchers

Emily (Novel Evelein) Keyes

Katrina Emerald

Ivy Paris

Gus Graham

Mags Greenwood-Paris

Fiona Flannail

Alf Powell

Dawn Elizabeth Hatch

Vio Stormcaller

Wren BaceSpider

Róisin Spewraith

Morgana Spewraith

Conner Spewraith

Leila Abdi

Roux Ker

Meredith Russ

Bri Stotch

Ermis Driscol

Fay

Luci Morningstar (unsure)

Alex Johnson

Autumn E. Green

Winnie

Maria Portman

Jen Quillan

Sloane Reid

### Other Affiliated Folk

Addragh Hall

Melody Black

Everrel Mayorial

Kai 'Cosmic' Rai

Viera

Noxx Harding

Truxier Oakwood

Pan Mellis Empanda

(I went through the Watch Roster for this and anyone under affiliated did not outright state they were a Watcher. Of course I might be wrong, list can be changed)