Blackblades



Brotherhood of the Blade. The Dark Winds. Death's Kiss. The Hand. Order of Shadow. The Black Bureau. The Blades. Through the exploits of myth and rumors they have many names. They are the Blackblades.

''“I heard their leader is really a ghost! They walk through walls and assassinate their victims!”''

  ''“Ha ha! No. Their leader is a monster born in a dark corner of the nether. With glowing blood red eyes they slither through the dark like a snake, slicing the throats of Horde enemies.”''

''“Foolishness. There is no such thing as the Blackblades.”''

''“Yea? How do you explain that merchant that showed up dead last week? The guards found in his home a ledger connecting him to a band of bandits stealing Horde supplies, and the merchant selling them back to the Horde for double the price! Then suddenly the merchant is dead in his own home, no one even touching him?”''

''“Bah! It was a heart attack.”''

''“I am not so sure. They say there was strange shadows moving outside the merchants house the night of his death. And they say they found the supposed Blackblade calling card on his doorstep.”''

“Calling card?"

"A black rose dipped in the victim's own blood."

By the Orcs they are known as the Eyes of the Ancestors, or by the learned, individually known as Gul’roks, masters and aspirants of the Gun’thok fighting styles. By the Trolls they are called Deh’yo Tikal, an ancient Zandali phrase loosely meaning “Shadow Tusk”; by the Shu’halo they are rumored to bear the name Anohe Hetawa a Taurahe word meaning “Ghost Walker”. In Pandaria they are The Night Lotus, in Silvermoon the Ilum'nishar. Rumored among forsaken are to be the Deathborne. Even the goblins have a name for them - The Nera Society.

Together they are none of these, and far more than these. They are One.

The tidal sands of leaders, wars and interests for the Horde must always shift, but the Blackblades remain an evolving constant. They are the shadowy, silent tempest that whips the waves into their beach sundering fury. They are the still, invisible calm that rests and prepares the fates of a vast many.

"We are not the whole of the Shattered Hand, but we are Shattered Hand."

The Blackblades are a subterfuge, covert-ops, and skullduggery themed organization with hints of cult-like structure and dark minor-mysticism practices based on and within the Shattered Hand of the Horde. Think of us as one portion of the Hand, a finger of the hand if you will, that acts within the parameters and themes we have decided upon for our interpretation of the Shattered Hand.

''“The Shattered Hand’s influence dominates these lands. We are the Eyes that guide many Hands. We are the veil which covers Kalimdor: The protectorates, the police, the judges, the jury, and ultimately, the executioners. We see all, we know all. ..."''

Primary Objective
The Blackblades have one prime directive - Ensure the survival and prosperity of the denizens of the Horde.

Blackblades are willing to accomplish this continuously sought after goal by nearly an means at their disposal, even through methods which most may consider underhanded, dishonorable, or even evil. Blackblades work within the greater picture of reality, understanding that at times drastic measures must be taken for the greater good. Ultimately, they are an order for the people of the Horde. However, due to their methods their identities are hidden, and even the order itself is something of a myth perpetrated by the actions and rumor mongering of the operatives.

History
To most, He is known as The Farmer - An enigmatic figurehead of considerable power within the Shattered Hand. And it is He that is their cryptic leader. Some even say he is the true leader of the whole of the Shattered Hand. For those who believe the gruesome legends, his name was once Go’shek Ghostface, and among old Orcs or operatives of the Shattered Hand - he is rightly and greatly feared.

A wide assortment of tales, some with multiple versions, chronicle the alleged identity, agenda, and history of The Farmer. One tale among them, however is almost unanimously agreed upon, but even the Blackblades sacred Tome of Truth - the only collection of Blackblade chronicles in existence depicting the correct history, exploits, and missions of the order, warns against taking the order's understanding of the tale of The Farmer at face value.

The Farmer never does business face to face; always through messages, and round-about ways, tugging on the strings of society from the shadows. It is said after his rise to power within the Shattered Hand he become aware of things that even operatives of his order could not accomplish, even lines they could not force themselves over, and it was his desire to build a force within the Shattered Hand which could surpass even the most skilled of his agents.

Then the subtle actions and methods of one troll in particular within the Horde's military caught his attention. The Farmer having sent his best spies to watch this troll they relaid intell reports, sometimes often explaining how the troll managed to slip away from their watch without their understanding of how he had done so. The Farmer dug deeper and discovered that not only was this troll a member of an ancient order of trolls, the Deh'yo Tikal, who worked in similar methods liken to that of the Shattered Hand, but he was also a Master of one of it's sects. An order of trolls so ancient, secretive and proficient in their crafts that not even he was previously aware of their existence. And so it was unto this that the fabled Farmer sought to recruit this troll who had drawn his intrigue into the Shattered Hand and have this troll build him a unit of the Hand's most elite, teaching others the minor-mysticism methods he utilized. This troll, Githnij who came to be known as "The Butcher" due to his scalping and extracting the hearts of his enemies on the battlefield, agreed.

Yet, The Farmer did not stop there. Having placed Githnji in charge of leading this unit the troll brought with him the teachings of his ancient order, yet The Farmer pondered other such methods to empower his operatives and began looking to the cultures of the Horde for similar such knowledge of subterfuge. He sent his most trusted of agents to delve into the forgotten elusive past lessons spanning Azeroth and Outland to bring them together in one unified order of covert operatives.

The Farmer's agents went to the eldest of the Tauren and discovered the nearly lost to time ways of the Anohe Hetawa, which have given rise to some of the Tauren's superstitious hunting beliefs, yet when practiced in earnest reveal more mystical understandings of shadowy tactics.

They went to uncharted tombs and hidden alcoves of Outland and unveiled timeworn and tattered manuscripts in orcish calligraphy of the Gun'thok fighting styles and deceptive methods to gain an advantage over ones foe. These too exemplary of mystically empowering the practitioners through forms of taboo Gun'thok ancestor invokings.

Even the forsaken had something to offer in knowledge with their Lightslayers and Death Stalkers.

Indeed The Farmer sought out knowledge and tools to utilize from every culture of the Horde. And so any denizen of the Horde be they Blood Elf, Goblin, Troll, Orc, Tauren, Forsaken, or Pandaren is capable of joining the elusive order of the Shattered Hand's elite, The Blackblades.

Codenames
Just as Githnji is known as "The Butcher," all Blackblades have a code name, gained upon membership, by which they address each other during times when their identities should be concealed such as during missions and meetings. Code-names are either chosen by the new Blackblade themselves or assigned to them by the their fellow operatives.

Encrypted Messages
It's a little something that adds an extra level of skullduggery entertainment for those of the Blackblades. While it is not mandatory it is encouraged for Blackblades to use encrypted messages to be deciphered by the recipient in IC mail. In particular messages pertaining to mission assignments, status reports, intell delivery, and other information relaying purposes.

The code key is simple so as to not become a nuisance. For those who RP as a Blackblades all on the same page, all Blackblades using encrypted messages should refer to and use the same code key.

Hand Talk
This is simply RPing within the Blackblades of its members using hand signals to communicate without talking. Useful for when on missions, and when there is a need to communicate in secrecy. The ‘hand talk’ itself is something that Githni has utilized before and he's bringing it to the table to contribute to the inner-workings of the Blackblades. The hand talk has a RP background of being derived from old Troll hand signals commonly used, but not exclusively, by Deh’yo Tikal.

Enhancement Ritual
The ritual, known among Blackblades as "The Three Fold Path," is to enhance three aspects of ones character: mind, body, and spirit. The knowledge of the ritual is the Blackblades' culmination of Anohe Hetawa, Gul'rok, and Deh'yo Tikal ancient hunting and warrior practices involving medical plant use and mysticism.

The body enhancing effects derive from a Gul'rok rite where the operative drops into their eyes the liquid of a closely guarded secret plant extract concoction which boost the athletic performance in the areas of endurance, agility, speed, and reflexes. The ancient Gul'rok "clan" would often ingest this concoction before setting out on operations against the orcs' enemies on Dreanor such as Ogres and Gronn, in order to give them an edge against the formidable foes.

The mind enhancing effects derive from a Deh'yo Tikal ritual, which originated with the Jungle Trolls of the Gurubashi Empire. The Deh'yo Tikal ritual uses voodoo magics imbued into a foul tasting dark brew made from the root of the stranglethorn plant to make one's senses more acute giving the imbiber keener vision, accuracy, stronger sense of smell & hearing, reducing sensations of fear and doubt as well as nearly negating the flight response in the Fight or Flight instinct. However, this voodoo infused brew while granting the mind these boons also bring on a mild "trip." While under these influences it is not commonly reported that the imbiber experiences any audio or intense visual hallucinations, it is however often described as the world feeling distorted, time passing irregularly where moments alone in the wilderness can feel like hours, and a noticeable body numbing sensation.

The portion of the ritual that gives gifts of the spirit originate with a nearly lost and forgotten Anohe Hetawa hunting practice where groups of the "Ghost Walker" hunters gather in a sweat lodge before a big hunt and in turn have an elder of the order prick their necks with a barb coated in the mind altering venom of a snake which is only fed mice that in turn were only fed a hallucinogenic cactus. The ritual is symbolic of the necessity and cycle for life to fed on life, and the hunter's understanding of this before setting out to hunt. Through this process the hunters are gifted the minor clairvoyance of a more receptive sense of danger, intensified "gut instinct" which often help with how to move in the wilds so as not to be detected and where to look for game. As well it is said this ritual grants the spirits' blessing for a good hunt free of bad luck. When the venom enters the blood stream participants sometimes report a feeling of euphoria, and often a feeling of heat as if their blood is on fire. Other side effects include experiencing brief visual imagery of shapes and forms in the flicker of fire, flashes of light such as a break in an overcast sky or sunlight glinting off metallic objects.

The Creed
The Blackblade tenets are the code; their creed by which they live, work, and die. The Creed, like many qualities of Blackblade teachings and practices derives from another source. In this case the Blackblade's creed is directly taken from the Deh'yo Tikal's own creed.

Nothing is True; Everything is Permitted Nothing of what anyone says of how we should be or act is true for Blackblades. We exist outside the realm of our cultural norms. Everything that is possible is permitted. A Blackblade must free their mind from the shackles of conformity and allow themselves to become what others would think impossible.

Do What is Necessary for the Greater Good You must be prepared to forsake notions of honor. We take on the burdens that others can not, or refuse to. We do what we must to ensure the survival of our people. If taking the life of one that would be viewed as innocent by others is necessary, you must be ready to do so. At times you may be ordered to commit a dishonorable action. If needed to maintain the animosity of yourself and the Blackblades, do not hesitate to do what you must.

Remain Discreet; Deception is your tool We are artisans of War. Understand that warfare is deception. Be unseen. Learn how to mask yourself among the crowd, and hide in the open. Develop aliases and enough disguises to fool the most observant. We are all things, and yet we are nothing. That is why we persevere. Our work is done, and then forgotten. That is why it endures. We are hidden, but are always present. Our essence is shadows and whispers. Due to the nature of our work we must not reveal to any our operations. Dishonor is our burden, and we carry it in secret. Even if this means deceiving others within Horde. Many in our society praise shamans for being spiritual leaders. Others consider the warrior’s path with axe and sword more noble, but never forget that battles, even wars, are won on the backs of those with more specialized, more subtle skills.

Never Compromise Your Comrades Your actions must never bring harm to the Blackblades. A Blackblade must never openly commit an action or say anything that could be tied back to the Blackblades. A Blackblade will take their own life before they risk giving up anything that might bring down their fellows.

Ritual Chant
A chant the Blackblades recant during their initiation ritual.

Brother to brother, you honor the code. Blade to Blade, into the fold. The shade forever, until our blood runs cold.