Guardians' Guild; Fort Garland Chapter

~Always On-Duty. Always Vigilant. Always in Pairs. Always the First Line of Defense.~

"Well, back home to Fort Garland, of course."

A Member of the Guardians' Guild speaks the words and then he magically arrives in the Summoning Chamber in the depths of Castle Garland; it is nearly time for his Guard Shift. He makes his way down the hall to his private room, unlocks the door with his key and finds the gear he left here last time still where he left it; he dons his armor and weapons belt, sheaths a short sword on his right hip but leaves the 'frog' on the left open. Lastly he pulls on a tabard bearing the Coat of Arms of the Guardians' Guild before he exits the room, locking the door behind him.

He heads back towards the Summoning Chamber then enters the room on the right closest to the Chamber; the Sigil Guards' Office. When he enters the large well furnished office, a pair of Castle Guards sit to either side of the door, Members of CHAD; both stand as he enters, nod to him, then sit back down on their tall bar stool looking seats. Before him, an Officer of the Castle Guard sits in a heavily padded chair behind a heavy wooden desk; he does not look up from what he is working on. A large tome lies open on the edge of the desk furthest from the seated officer; a Sign In Roster for Guard Shift. The Sigil Guard walks over, takes up a pen off the desk and signs in next to his pre-printed name a little over halfway down the page. He sets the pen down and looks to the Officer who is now looking at him; the two nod to each other silently... the Officer goes back to drawing in his sketch book, the Sigil Guard makes his way to the magical door leading to the Sigil Chamber.

As he enters the Sigil Chamber with its natural-looking cavern ceiling complete with stalactites, its smooth stone floor looking like shaved-off bedrock, and its glowing blue Sigil in the center of the Chamber illuminating the whole place with an eerie light, he is once again amazed by it all. But mostly he is still amazed that the entire chamber is filled with breathable water that does not impede movement nor make his clothing or gear wet; though he could feel the cool water on his skin and a slight sense of pressure and wetness, it was more like being in an environment of cold damp air. He looks to the glowing Sigil for a moment, reveling in its beauty and power, then nods his head respectfully to the Sigil before turning around to face the two other Sigil Guards sitting at a small table near the magical door. The two of them stand, almost in unison; one stretches and yawns, looking tired, the other draws a green bladed long sword and approaches the newly arrived Sigil Guard; she switches the sword to her left hand, lowers the blade to cross her body horizontally at the chest level, grips the green blade with her right hand in an overhand grip about a foot from its tip then thrusts the sword towards the newly arrived Sigil Guard.

"Your Shift Begins. The Sword is yours. You must Bear it until the next Guard arrives. You are the Summoner. Always On-Duty. Always Vigilant. Always in Pairs. Always the First Line of Defense."

"My Shift has Begun. I accept the Sword. I will Bear it until the next Guard arrives. I am the Summoner. Always On-Duty. Always Vigilant. Always in Pairs. Always the First Line of Defense."

The newly arrived Sigil Guard extends his arms at chest level with palms up to accept the Sigil Guard Sword. He then accepts the proffered sheath from the Sigil Guard, sheaths the Blade then slips it into the 'frog' on his left hip, securing it snuggly. The tired Sigil Guard yawns again and waves a silent goodbye as he heads for the magic door, his 48 hour Shift ended, he exits silently. The other Sigil Guard smiles and stretches before sitting back down at the table to open a lunchbox, withdraw an apple then takes a bib bite. The new Shift Leader walks the perimeter of the chamber, looking into all the dark areas, looking at the slight pulsing pattern of the Sigil's glow, watching the water's currents for changes... all as he has done before. This is not his first rodeo.

Guild Coat of Arms

A Heater Shield of Azure with a Chevron of Vert bears two Gauntleted Fists of Argent in the Azure field below the Chevron's peak; one on the Dexter holds a Sword with a Blade of Vert pointing to the Sinister, the other on the Sinister holds a Dagger with a Blade of Vert pointing to the Dexter below the Sword's Blade. The Shield is draped (top and sides) in a Lily Garland, has a Rampant Griffin of Vert to either side, and atop is a Visored Helmet of Argent facing to the Dexter bearing a Plume of Vert as its Crest. A pair of Ribbons across the bottom, one atop the other, read: “Always On-Duty. Always Vigilant. Always in Pairs.” “Always the First Line of Defense.”

Notes: The Chevron in Heraldry: Represents the 'roof of a house', derived from the French word 'chevron' meaning rafter. It signifies protection. It was awarded to a coat of arms as a 'reward to one who has achieved some notable enterprise.' The Lily in Heraldry: Traditionally, it is said to signify perfection, light, and life. The Griffin in Heraldry: Symbolizes watchfulness and courage - and also guards treasure.

Personal Notes: When I chose the design and elements, I did so for my own reason and without fully knowing the meaning and significance of it all... so I looked it all up and that is what you see in the Notes above. However, I chose the Lily Garland to signify Lily Lake and Fort Garland, obviously. hehe. The griffins I chose because I personally like griffins. And the Chevron I chose because it signifies my time in the military. And the colors I chose for a couple of reason, mostly personal. But I was surprised to find they had different names when used in heraldry. Cool.

Leader & Member Roster

Guild Leaders (9)

• Raphael (Founder), Fitz, Colette, Rodak, Argile, Kip, Carl, Kevin, Marko.

Adventurers' Society Members (14)

• Raphael#, Slugger, Fitz#, Wrecker, Reggy, Colette, Runner, Gunner, Candy, Kole, Olive, Elmer, Dr. Len, Gadget

Arco Boys Members (60+)

Original Acro Boys (7)

• Rodak (Leader of The Arco Boys)
• Argile
• Kip
• Pipil#
• Chuck
• Fred
• Stan

Original Fort Garland Dwarves (10+)

• Unnamed

Original Indian Hills Dwarves (40+)

• Unnamed

Fort Garland Citizen Members (?)

• Carl$
• Mayor Kevin$
• Marko Doyle$
• Others (?)

NOTE:

• # denotes Bearer of a Sigil Guardian Sword.
• $ denotes Unofficial Membership; has NOT signed the Charter or Summoning Book, but HAS Walked the Sigil.

Guild Benefits & Resources

Castle Garland Services & Equipment

• Private Secured Room on Secured Level of Castle; The Guardians Level
  • Permanent Room by Choice, Key to the door, Secured storage when away, never shared
• Access to the Sigil and Summoning Chamber (Transport to and from the Castle)
• Access to most of the Castle (minus other's private rooms and CHAD Restricted Areas)
• Access to Training; Martial, Magical and Other
• Access to Knowledge; Castle Library (Librarian?) and Castle Personnel
• Access to Medical Services and Personnel
• Access to Daily Meals, Special Order Meals & In-Castle Catering for Meeting & Events (advanced notice must be given)
• Access to Weapons and Armor (limited)
• Access to Troops (limited)
• Access to a Teleporting Arch to Liaison Office in Fort Garland?

Fort Garland Services & Equipment

• Access to Castle Garland Liaison Office
  • Liaison Officer can set up meetings with Castle Leaders and Personnel, Guardians' Guild Leaders & Personnel and by extension, the Adventurers' Society.
  • Access to Teleport Arch to Reception Area of Castle Garland?

Arco Station & Retreat, Alamond Services & Equipment

TBD