The Witchbane

The Order of the Witchbane, and their allies, are an elite brotherhood of warriors dedicated to mercilessly rooting out and destroying the practices of dark cults and profane sorcery. Their devotion and unwavering purity is a shield against corruption, heresy, and monsters alike. Under the zealous leadership of their Inquisitor, Andrew Lincoln, they will stop at nothing until all evils that threaten Stormwind from within are purged. These witchhunters will stride through fire if need be, their faith carrying them through the greatest of obstacles. Not even death can stay their wrath – indeed, the blood of martyrs only strengthens their resolve and spurs them into greater acts of heroism in the name of the honored fallen.

Investigations
The Witchbane believes themselves to be working in the service of the Cathedral of Light, but they do so without any official capacity. Still, few intervene in their duties for those whom they target are without the protection of the righteous and are in truth the very things many would vanquish. Their investigations lead them upon all roads as they care nothing for the ranks and titles of others. They are a surly and suspicious lot with no qualms of dragging the rich and poor alike from their homes, so long as they manage to slay the guilty. According to the doctrines wrote by their founder, the word of a witchhunter  is of absolute authority and cannot be questioned. 'Proof,' as many denizens of Stormwind demand for, is not something they truly require to pass judgment on the wicked. For this decree, many commoners see the presence of this order as a bad omen and leaving many in fear for their own lives.

Rehabilitation
While all of the order are sanctioned to judge the accused, it is Commissar Vetano who oversees their makeshift dungeon beneath the city streets. In its dank, treacherous depths many confessions have been torn from sinners' tongues and their dark magics exorcised from their bodies. Punishments are immediate and each fit the crime. A glutton may be forced to starvation while a lustful woman cut of all her hair – whatever the witchhunter deems necessary. Once 'rehabilitated,' they are freed and allowed to walk through the city no longer riddled with shame.

In rare cases one may be too far down the path of immorality for redemption. Such tainted souls with their hearts black as coal cannot be allowed to live. These foul begins are marked for death and executed promptly for their unrepentant ways. At the protest of a many Witchbane, this practice has become next to a last resort and only been used a handful of times in the recent years of Stormwind. But when that bell tolls, there is always a readied witchhunter licking his lips at the opportunity to rid the world of one more heretic.

Ebon Blade
In the beginning of the Death Knights' resurgence into society, the Witchbane were at the forefront of putting these creatures down. They cared nothing for their torment or their emotions, seeing them only as puppets of the Lich King to be destroyed. It was not until Commissar Kalarus spoke of mercy and justice did this change. He lectured the Witchhunters on the plights of these paradoxical creatures and went on to offer a more suiting solution. In no way could a Death Knight be punished for his sins, because he has been forsaken by the light. Instead those who do acts against the faith are deported to Archerus and await trial by the hands of their Highlord. Often this comes to little fruition, leaving the order frustrated and with nothing to show for their efforts.

Inquisitor
Unlike the church, who sees fit to appoint many Inquisitors under a High Inquisitor, the Witchbane employs only one Inquisitor. In their eyes he or she has absolute authority. However, to ensure that their leader is not corrupt, it is entirely possible for the commissars to overthrow him.

Current Inquisitor: Andrew Lincoln

Commissariat
Commissar is the term used to designate a faith officer of the order who serves as the Inquisitor's high council. They are tasked with the duty to maintain the belief of members during their investigations and lead them against the forces of heresy. By decree of their leader, they are empowered to use any means necessary to ensure the loyalty and moral purity of their charges, including overriding the Inquisitor himself if necessary, and so are regarded with a mixture of fear and admiration.

Current Commissars: Kalarus Dakari, Vetano Van Der Riet, and Zhuz Lightbender

Branc​hes
The Witchbane's organization was not founded in a single moment. It's many branches, ranks both obscure and important, have all been founded for a need at that time. Some have been abolished, renamed, or even merged into similar structures. As a large group, it is a twisted web of tangled strings with many different mindsets representing different beliefs. Due to their recruiting methodology and the commissars' enforcement of 'faith,' two strong ideologies have had the most impact on members. Firstly there are the zealots that have become lost in their cause and act more as sinners than saints. They come from the bulk of reformed cultists in the order, whose very nature lead them dark paths regardless. Secondly there are those who stand tall above their fallen brethren, wielding the force of justice and are a shining beacon of virtue. They seek to save the city and all its denizens, purifying the foul and creating peace under in the name of the light.

Hunters
Known as 'hunters,' this sect of the order are sworn to defend the very soul of Stormwind, concentrating on the defeat of those enemies that dwell behind the curtain of society. They primarily concern themselves with destroying demons and apprehending the servants of evil. They have pledged their every waking hour to the discovery and scourging of such things, wherever they can be found. Hunters are often battle-hardened warriors, for heretics cannot be cast out through the subtleties of espionage or trickery – only the blessed blade of the light can purify their taint.

Keepers
Knowledge is the chief weapon of a 'keeper,' whose duty it is to act as the magical consult of the Witchbane. The powers they dabble in are often considered too volatile for any mere hunter. It takes a keen tempering to free them of corruption and hinder their studies into the arcane. Temptation is often their greatest struggle and one that could easily bet met with an unexpected punishment. This is the smallest and newest of the branches, formed in light of the overwhelming power of the reformed cultists.

Watchers
The 'watchers' are the most untrustworthy of any branch, only utilized through need more than want. They use trickery and guile in place of traditional methods and are indeed sinners in the eyes of the light. Infiltration if their key weapon, but this is not always through stealth. They pray on the desires of heretics, drawing them in through promises of lust and greed. Only when its too late is the identity of a watcher revealed to the heretic who finds himself with a blade to his throat or in his belly.

Seekers
Under the command of Commissar Vetano, the 'seekers' are handpicked from each of the other branches. They are meant to serve as the internal investigative body of the Witchbane, but have devolved into something else entirely. Seekers are sinister, feared individuals who care nothing for justice and, like their Commissar, often seek any excuse they can to indulge their own needs. Where one would see a miracle, they see heresy – a manipulation of the dark gods. Their work is secretive to the rest and unannounced to the Inquisitor – who would surely put an end to it if he knew.

Recruiting
There exists no set criteria in regards to physical condition for a possible candidate when being selected to join the Witchbane. All that is required is that three trials be passed in the name of the light. There, however, is no proper way of judging these trials and it is up solely to the Commissariat and the Inquisitor to determine when someone is ready to pledge themselves wholly to the order.

Trials
Confession and Penance Those that are impure cannot serve in the Witchbane. Whether by force or by a willing tongue, the initiate must openly confess all of their affronts towards the light, small or large. These sins, which can range in anything from simple gluttony to cold blooded murder, are then paid for in the price of suffering. This can be of the flesh in the form of pain, self deprivation even, or can be of the faith. It is not uncommon for one's punishment to be charitable in nature with no agony outside of feeling the light's warmth.

Training
The training procedure for the order becomes even more rigorous with each coming member. They test their candidate's limits, sharpening a mind where it is dull and strengthening a body where it is weak. Days are spent battling with bone-wrenching excercises, fighting in deadly bouts or mastering their tolerance for pain. Initiates must work with the most esoteric of weaponry and steel their bodies against the corruption of chaos and heresy. Even then, they have only scratched the surface.

Pilgrimage
The final task is a journey of moral and spiritual significance. Typically, they travel to a place that symbolizes great strife in their very persona. Whether it be a shrine of darkness or the deathbed of a fallen relative, the Witchbane always reminds their now calloused recruits the price of failure.

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