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| Species | Knight of Kael'Ras |
| Order | The Damned |
| Classification | Undead |
| Dominion | Raesian |
| Sphere | Undeath |
| Origin | Knights in service to the Silver Mother who betrayed their oath |
| Lifespan | Inmortal |
| Habitat | Near their tombs |
| Food | Blood |
| Description | Knights of Kael'Ras appear to be desiccated or skeletal versions of what they were in life, wearing the corrupted, discolored armor they had in life. |
| Corruption | When a knight who has made an oath to a Divine of either Alabaster Shield or Fulgent Blossom betrays their oath, they become deeply corrupted. Those who commit a murder or other act of extreme violation are more likely to end up being damned in this way. |
| Esoterica | Knights of Kael'Ras are beings of msawhat. They retain some of the powers they had in life, but not those of qi, the gates, or heavenly essences. Those are corrupted into other powers. In undeath, some learn new arts, especially of the Damaskian powers, blasphemy, sin, arnum, infernum, feirua, self-denial, doom, soul energy, Raesian energy, blood energy, cacophony, spirits, kor, and some emotional resonances. |
| Special Powers | Knights of Kael'Ras cause unease in those who are near them. They have no eyes, having lost them in life (usually to birds or fire). They can, from their tombs, emit a hum that will put victims into a trance. They hunt by sound. They can cause pain with their touch. Their very presence causes fear (forcing victims, hopefully, to scream and reveal their locations). They can control shamblers, grey beasts, and other mindless undead (such as their horses) and are empowered by blood. Knights of Kael'Ras can kill instantly if they have the swords they had in life. Their shields block heavenly essences. Their armor protects them from all mundane weaponry, even if the weapon hits part of them not shielded by the armor. |
| Damnation | Depending on the Divine to whom they were sworn, knights get different powers:
If a knight betrays their Divine not with simple sin but to a specific Divine (or their faith or representatives), they get different powers. These are based on to-whom they betray their Divine:
Other powers are possible in unique circumstances. |
| Necromancy | To intentionally create a knight of Kael'Ras, a necromancer must find a knight who has betrayed their god or manipulate them into a betrayal. To ensure the transformation upon the knight's death, they must perform a ritual (21) using something meaningful to the knight, usually from a family member, their faith, or their liege. The ritual involves burning symbols of all Alabaster and Fulgent religions to boil blood and/or other bodily fluids from the knight or their family or friends, dripping it over the meaningful object, then either burying it on land owned by the knight or in a place holy to their faith. Once the knight dies after this, they must be properly buried; they will rise within 12 days. Controlling a knight requires having something that meant something to them in life, often the same object from the ritual. Summoning one can be done through raw power (16) or by invoking their name during a ritual involving burning a symbol holy to their former Divine. To capture and draw power from a knight of Kael'Ras, one must steal a piece of their armor, their sword, or their shield. |
| Sending | The energies associated with their old faith are the best way to send a knight. They might also be sent if they find redemption in the eyes of their former Divine. |
| Weaknesses | The energies associated with their old faith are especially effective against them, but the gates, qi, and all heavenly essences can harm them. |
| Behavior | Knights of Kael'Ras rest in their tombs, waiting for victims to come by, unless they have fed enough to move about. Some go on to take back the realms they controlled in life. Others find fell Divines or lieges to serve. If a mortal comes near a knight's tomb, they will kill them for their blood. In other circumstances, they are capable to civil interaction with mortals in a twisted form of the chivalric code they once adhered to. Most, however, are cruel and murderous. |
| Dominion Culture | The Knights of Kael'Ras are the military arm of the Raesian Dominion. They have an intricate military hierarchy that is commanded by their Manifest and Marshal. The hierarchy determines their rank in the Dominion and how much territory they are given, how many slaves, how much blood. The most powerful are middle-ranking ruling class, and the weakest are the lowest-ranking members of the warrior class. Most are warrior class. |
| Other Dominions | Knights of Kael'Ras exist within every Dominion. They are a major part of the military of each Dominion, making up a huge swath of their warrior classes. |
| Mortal Interactions | Mortals are mostly familiar with knights of Kael'Ras as either warriors of a distant country (Kael'Ras) or the fate of legendary knights from different faiths/countries. Those living near one know them as figures of horror to be avoided, usually minor lords who have betrayed or warped their domains. |
| Afterlife | The only path to redemption for a knight of Kael'Ras is for them to undertake a quest or do something signfiicant in service to their former Divine. This is nearly impossible. Otherwise, they spend Ages in the in-between before moving on to the Grey Lands, Hells, Evernight, Broken Obelisk, or the Catacombs. |
| Notables | Sir Aganado ibn Tara'hin, Wolfslayer (destroyed); Sir Ezuguin, Terror-Hunter (destroyed); Sir Gabir ibn Tara'hin, the Sword of Grey and Black, Chosen of the Webweaver, Marshal of the Srisian Dominion; Marshal Gheveghen dan Dystan of the Order of the Bones of God, Raesian Knight Manifest, Marshal of the Raesian Dominion; Lady Brinn Rastadan, Knight of the Wilted Flower, Marshal of the Sangarian Dominion; Harama Unsrivanas, Spikebearer, Marshal of the Agikaani Dominion; King Kilroy, Ruler of the Sunken Kingdom, Marshal of the Kaanian Dominion; Nylaer the Blasphemer, Marshal of the Godless Dominion; Qudhun Kaax, Irritoknight-Master, Marshal of the Qhanuum Dominion; Lady Tierna Baellie, Nine Braids, Marshal of the Fellwood Dominion; Phenen Dall'Kabram, Captain of the Fescue Crown, Marshal of the Pandemonian Dominion; Lord Dante Campanello, the Malachite Fist, Marshal of the Campionese Dominion; Nanzo, Sword of Hoary Night, Shogun of the Wapek Dominion; Magnath Dantheran, Lord of the Broken Chasm, Marshal of the Durosian Dominion; Green Carter, Knight of the Bog, Marshal of the Dun Dominion |
| Special Classes | Raesian Knight, Raesian General, Raesian Marshal, Raesian Captain, Raesian Paladin, Raesian Sergeant, Raesian Warrior |
| Sample Stats | PRO 21 ATH 17 STR 19 Shield +5/+5 Armor +9/+9 AWA 16 Sight 0 Hearing 19 WIL 16 ROG 13 Unease Presence 10 Hum 16 Pain Touch 18 Fear Presence 16 Control Undead Beast 16 Instant Kill (Sword) 20 Shield from Heavenly Essence 20/20 or +9/+9 |
GrandGuignol
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