Runescribe Order

The ancient **Runescribe Order** is one of the oldest and most respected institutions in Mount Alba. Its origins stretch back to the days of Kragg, grandson of Lain the Ancestor God of Mining and the Forge himself. And for this reason they're also named ***Kragg's Folk.***

The Runescribes were the first to reconcile both steel and magic in combat, working the combination into powerful spells and runes of power. For this reason they quickly ascended to the be every king and High King's closest advisor, sometimes friends and bodyguards and soon grew to hoard the world's knowledge.

## **Overview**

The Runescribes have always numbered a few members, and their numbers greatly diminished, both in quantity and power, following the War of the Eggs. However those remaining are a force to be reckoned with. Often related, Runescribes sire families of their own and each carries on his family's traditions, weapon of choice, domain of expertise and magic. Powerful individuals who spent no less than dozens of years of harsh and unforgiving apprenticeship under their forebears or their mentors, Runescribes know countless years of hardship and decades of roaming the known world in search of its secrets.

In battle, Runescribes are often keys to shift the battle in their allies' favour. Masters of the axe, hammer or sword, they dampen enemy forces before they wreak havoc with their magic. Older Runescribes know hundreds of years of experience under their belly and it is said when, with weapons and armours of their own crafting, they feel the rage of battle, their weapons, and those of friendly forces around him, begin to glow and radiate heat as if remembering the forgefires from which they were created. This aura of power is last recorded to be brought by Grand Runescribe Snorri Lysthår, which was so effective it drove the Dwarves in an unending fury against the Noldorin.

## **Hierarchy, Code and Initiation**

Every Runescribe is equal in each other's eyes, and even though often from different clans and families, they all owe each other a vow of brotherhood and alliance. Apprentice Runescribes stand at the foot of the hierarchy but are regarded with great esteem by Dwarven society, or so is the case before they depart for the **Path** and leave Mount Alba. For once an Apprentice is finally initiated by his mentor, either his forebear or a fellow Runescribe, his first test is to forge weapons and armour of his own crafting. To test his gear and sharpness, he's driven to duel his mentor in utter darkness for two nights, not given a second of relief. If judged worthy, the initiated and new Runescribe is given a fortnight to feast, gather his belongings and depart his clan and family for the Path. The Path is the never-ending quest the Runescribe goes to, exploring the world, integrating new societies and hoarding the world's knowledge, facing new foes and ultimately, fulfilling the one exploit that enters his name in the annals of history.

The **Grand Runesribe** is traditionally the High King's closest advisor and strongest Runescribe and so regarded as a superior. However, the last Grand Runescribe vanished into memory as did the last true High King of the Dunlain and Snorri Lysthår is the last to occupy such rank. The key to Dwarven advance in Noldor, he fought bitterly against his Elven magic pairs in the hundreds and eventually vanished, never to be seen again.

Above all, the legends of old speak of **Runelords**, the greatest of Runescribes. Equal to kings and of the noblest descent, sometimes from Kragg himself, these elder masters served as advisors, judges and symbols to all the Dunlain in the days of old. Although encouraged to produce heirs of their own, Runelords were said to be a suspicious lot that jealously kept their knowledge and power, mistrusting anyone to duplicate what they had under their bellies and so many powerful Runelords were lost over time simply because they could find no one they considered worthy enough to gain their innermost knowledge.

A few Runelords were recored in the archives, for most, if not all withdraw from the world, sequestering themselves away to learn the deeper secrets of the world and perhaps create a few of their own, further diminishing their numbers as their names become legend. And so it is rumoured that the oldest and greatest runelords do not die; rather, after too long without hearing from them, the most capable of the Order would find the lord’s work area, to find nothing there but his final works, and carry on his legacy from that moment onward, this rumour drives every Runescribe to set his ultimate task the search for a Runelord.