Order of the Citadel

Cavaliers who join the Order of the Citadel dedicate themselves to the defense of a single thing, be it a location, person, or object. They do not do it for any Greater reason such as personal glory (Order of the Cockatrice), loyalty to a sovereign (Order of the Lion), mercy (Order of the Shield), faith (Order of the Star) or chivalry (Order of the Sword); instead, they do it from a simple desire to defend something valuable or defenseless. While this is usually something inherently precious, sometimes it is utterly mundane and perhaps even random, like a bridge, crossroads, or mountain pass. Whatever they choose to protect, in nearly all cases it is either immobile, hidden, or fortified. If the object of devotion is a person, she could as easily be the cavalier’s prisoner as she could be his lover or ward.

Edicts: Cavaliers of the Order of the Citadel take meaning from the sheer act of custodianship. Once they have sworn to defend something, they must set a duration or a goal at which time the devotion ends: “I will protect you until you reach your destination,” “I will keep you here until you love me,” and “I will guard this pass until I die” are all legitimate claims of devotion. They may not allow the object of their protection out of their sight, unless they themselves have barricaded it or hidden it away, and even in that instance they may not be more than 100 feet from it at any time. A cavalier whose object of devotion is lost or destroyed, or who abandons it before the goal is reached, must seek atonement (as per the spell) before regaining the use of his order abilities. After atonement, a new object of devotion can be declared, or the cavalier may re-dedicate himself to a previous object (assuming it has not been lost or destroyed.) Until this happens, the cavalier does not have access to order abilities.

Challenge: Whenever an Order of the Citadel cavalier issues a challenge, he receives a +1 dodge bonus to his Armor Class for as long as he is within 30 feet of his object of devotion. This bonus increases by +1 for every four levels the cavalier possesses.

Skills: An Order of the Citadel cavalier adds Knowledge (engineering) and Knowledge (geography) to his list of class skills. In addition, he may make Knowledge (engineering) skill checks untrained. If he has ranks in the skill, he receives a bonus on the check equal to ½ his cavalier level (minimum +1) as long as the check involves his object of devotion.

Order Abilities: An Order of the Citadel cavalier gains the following abilities as he increases in level.