Oakenguard

Oakenguard coat of arms

The Clans of Zogaz

Lairon

The Brangrove

Dundrasil (Formerly)

More?

A Subset of The Alliance. Formed near the beginning of the Third Era to contain the Extraplanar invasion in the country now referred to as Balseign. The Oakenguard is made up of the Wallguard (Mainly referred to as just Oakenguard) made up of a collective of soldiers taken from each allied country and a force of Rangers managed individually by each of the nations who patrol the lands of Balseign scouting and interrupting any plans to break the border.

The Oakenguard as a whole aren't treated with more respect than any other person, especially in the years following the activation of the Cloaking Spell, as common folk aren't informed of the work done within the zone and such hold a view akin to "what have you been doing this whole time?" Those who gain the rank of Veterans or gain the Oaken prefix are the only ones exempt from this view as they have put the work in to prove themselves. To counteract the negative view people have of the Oakenguard they make sure the stories that do get out are heavily romanticised.

## Structure

The Oakenguard has no central stronghold or capital, instead each Oakentower functions as autonomous and independent outposts governed by a council of the allied countries.

The Oakenguard follows a naming convention: Any ranking officer that receives a special commendation takes on the 'Oaken' prefix. Eg: Oakencaptain, Oakenofficer.

At higher ranks, ie. General or better, there is generally only one at a time in that rank. The tower associated with that officer is expected to specialise in the skills of these elite personnel. The tower at Bardos, for example, houses the Oakenspy and has subsequently become the 'capital' of intelligence activity within the Oakenguard.

## Towers

The Oakentowers that surround Balseign represent a minor role in the protection of the enemy border. It is the towns and farms that have cropped up around them in service of that goal that truly do the lion's share. From these towns comes the armour, weapons, and food needed to keep a tower fully functional. These towers serve to do more than just train and deploy troops, they also serve as office space for legions of administrative and intelligence staff.

Perhaps most importantly towers function as an enormous magical focus for a team of Magi. Within each tower one such team resides, taking shifts and casting around the clock as part of a great magical network with their neighboring towers. The tower observatory is inscribed on every available surface with runes. Together all of the towers cast an almighty cloaking spell, the proportions of which are indescribable. This spell convinces the very fabric of reality that Balseign and Daveworld are on separate planes of existence. Aditionally, this spell inhibits teleportation and sending through the barrier.

In fact any creature that shifts planes from within finds themselves unable to access Daveworld magically at all without physically crossing the threshold. It is in this way that the legions of Balseign have been unable to gain a foothold in our realm.

The spell was invented in a great hurry and is imperfect, the ward intended to keep the bad within also keeps the good without. Without any means of remote observation or communication special ranger squads were formed to spend time inside the bubble, keep an eye on the goings on and the completion of dangerous assignments.

## Record of Current Major -Oaken and their Location

### Oakenspy (Head of Spy Network)

Currently located within the Bardosian Tower. Their tower has been assigned as the Capital of Intelligence Activity. Any information gained through the Spy Network is organised through him.

### Oakengeneral (Leader in Military Effectiveness)

Currently located within the Western Brangrove Tower. This Rank is designed to shift depending on the reports of each Tower during Summits, being given to the General providing proof of the most success within Balseign by Strike Force Teams.

## Wallguard

Oddly named, as the border of Balseign has no wall to speak of, only the edge of the Cloaking spell to show where is ours and theirs. Regardless, deploying from the Towers and holding the line in case any enemies manage to break the boundaries of the spell. Think of it akin to WW1 Trenches where 90% of the time you're doing nothing except being prepared in the case of enemy attacks. Despite the sedentary behaviour of the position they are still considered some of the best trained soldiers on the continent, constantly being put through drills when not on active duty. They won’t be told as such but they are essentially an excessively trained meatwall designed to delay any invaders long enough for the Magi to do their work and repair any hole or break in the Cloaking Spell.

The Wallguard are given an option to take either Half Plate or Splint Mail (as Full plate is too expensive) upon deployment, as well as being given a variety of weapons and shields to help each soldier fight at their peak performance

## Rangers

***Note***: Ranger Player Class ≠ Oakenguard Ranger

Ranger Divisions are small, specially trained groups sent through the barrier into the lands of Balsiegn for years at a time. They could be sent in for a multitude of reasons, simple scouting, elimination of enemy forward bases, direct assaults on the devil population, and the most dangerous of all trying to find and disable the portals open all throughout the lands to the Nine Hells. There are between one and five divisions out at any point in time from each fortress, each one sent out in a staggered fashion to try and keep the intel fresh.

Ranger Divisions are split into 3 groups

* The Spy Network: These groups operate primarily outside of The Zone, attempting to intercept attempts to sabotage the cloaking spell from the outside
* The Intel Teams: These groups are sent into The Zone and scout out Balseign, reporting enemy camp locations, potential FOB locations, and the Enemy's troop numbers and such. They heavily prioritise stealth over any attempts at combat
* The Strike Force: These groups are the ones sent into The Zone, using information sent back by the Intel Teams to find and take down enemy camps, close freshly opened portals and thin out the Devil population.

Intel and Strike Force Ranger divisions are made of 5-10 specialists usually containing at least

1x Captain

1x Communications Officer

1x Navigator

1x Medic

1x Forward Scout

A Ranger’s Expedition can last up to 5 years before they are called back. They can volunteer to be sent immediately back upon returning but can not be unconditionally drafted within a two month period unless there is an emergency that only that team is trained to solve. Within this two month period they are permitted to go back to their hometowns, or even travel for short times provided they return before the period ends, but most of the troops stay at the garrison at their local tower instead. A team surviving their third Expedition without multiple casualties or mission failure (as well as the roughly 9-15 years of experience) grants them the rank of Veterans, marked by a set of knots on the shoulder of their uniform.

Rangers sent into Balseign aren’t designated a compulsory uniform other than a provided Chain Shirt for protection, though most gravitate toward a particular outfit that has since been nicknamed the Ranger's Gear/Outfit. It consists of tall leather boots over dark trousers, a regular long sleeved shirt, the provided Chain Shirt, a leather Tunic, and finally either a long coat or Cloak depending on the mission or personal preference (The coat conforms to the body more, not interfering with movement, and has pockets; the cloak protects better from the elements, helps with stealth as well as obscuring the body, giving a slightly higher chance of an enemy’s strike to miss. Note: all flavour, doesn't actually change stats.) Though the Chain Shirt is provided, Rangers are given freedom to purchase or modify their own gear. It is not unusual to see armour plates sewn onto the outer coat, or smaller armour accessories such as Bracers or Armoured Boots added to the ensemble. Even those who favour this more armoured approach are always light enough to not risk hindering mobility.

### Rangers and their Roles

Rewrite most of this when you find/make up the relevant information.

### The Strike Force

These groups are the ones sent into The Zone, using information sent back by the Intel Teams to find and take down enemy camps, close freshly opened portals and thin out the Devil population.

Due to the nature of their enemy, and the Cloaking spell's lock on planar shifting it is extremely difficult to permanently kill the Devils within the Zone, and thus the Strike force instead use a more psychological tactic to thin out the enemy forces. When fighting they make sure to brutalize their enemies, which after repeated events thanks to the Devil's rebirth in the Nine Hells has shown to lead to Devils choosing not to return as to not experience an encounter with the Oakenguard again. This method is not entirely effective however, as some Devils are significantly harder to break than others, and those that have broken can still be forced back out by their superiors.

#### The Captain

The leader of the Division. I lost my notes on this role.

#### The Communications Officer

The Commuications Officer usually doubles as an assistant to one of the other roles. At exactly 7am a member of the Wallguard steps through the Barrier into Balseign and receives messages sent by the Communications Officer. If a Ranger Division misses communications three times in a row they are listed as Killed in Action. Usually a Wizard, sometimes a Cleric. All have the Keen Mind Feat.

#### The Navigator

Also functions as a Cartographer, Especially in the Intel Teams. Their job is to get the team where they are going while making sure the maps they have are up to date.

#### The Medic

This role is usually taken by a Cleric. Their job is to simply keep everyone as healthy as they can be. All Rangers are trained in some form of first aid in case of emergency but Medics are fully trained in both Surgery and Magical methods of Healing.

#### The Forward Scout

Much like the Wallguard, poorly named. Though in regular travel they do function as a Forward Scout they also fill a few more roles. They are the member of the Rangers who are put through the most martial training (closely followed by the Captain) and function as the Dedicated Fighters in non combat teams. When a Strike Force team is forced to retreat the Forward Scout finds a choke-point and leads the team through, doing all they can to hold the enemy back via that choke-point until they receive a Message from the Communications Officer that they are safe, wherein if they are still alive they disengage, lose any tails and rejoin the rest of the Division.

### The Spy Network

These groups operate primarily outside of The Zone, attempting to intercept attempts to sabotage the cloaking spell from the outside. The Spy Network is the only of the Divisions to have less than 5 Rangers on a job at a time.

### The Intel Teams

These groups are sent into The Zone and scout out Balseign, reporting enemy camp locations, potential FOB locations, and the Enemy's troop numbers etc.

## Update Notes

**Things that should be updated, not things that have been updated**\*

* General Edit/Grammar check
* Clans of Zogaz should probably be removed from list, they're too busy fighting eachother. Dwarves would be part of the alliance and have no Tower so they can claim the one in Zogazi Lands.
* Actually finish writing the Ranger Roles, then re-edit to fit a consistent template
* Rewrite Veteran paragraph (top of page)
* Establish and Integrate "Oaken" Prefix (Bardos has Oakenspy, maybe give each other set a specialty? or at least 2 or 3 other "Oaken")
* Generally establishing names for various aspects such as the name for the Cloaking spell, its border, and the area within (Cloaking spell, The Barrier and The Zone respectively?)