Hi everyone! This is the fourth installment of my Obscure Eberron Lore series, highlighting little-known elements of the Eberron campaign setting only found in obscure corners of canon. Today, I’ll be featuring the Sovereign Swords, a seemingly virtuous independent militia outlined in Dragon Magazine #412.
“These are desperate times. Refugees strain the resources of our cities and villages. Brigands and crime lords prosper at the expense of honest folk. Hope lies in the Sovereigns, but they cannot act alone; we must be their swords! Boldrei has charged us to defend the hearth. Aureon calls on us to uphold his laws. Join me, and they will give you strength.” —Sentinel Marshal Harkan d’Deneith
The Sovereign Swords are an extraordinary group of vigilantes who perform great deeds across Khorvaire; many believe they are living instruments of the gods of the Sovereign Host. The militia was formed just days after the Mourning. Harkan d'Deneith of the Sentinel Marshals stood on the steps of Sentinel Tower in Karrlakton, Karrnath, and called his brethren to serve a higher purpose. He claimed to have received a vision from the Sovereigns themselves, demanding that those with strength of arms and character use those gifts to defend the innocent. In the wake of the Mourning, all of Khorvaire was in danger, and the Host needed swords.
While only a few Deneith mercenaries joined Harkan that day, soon the actions of the Sovereign Swords spoke for themselves, and their legend grew quickly over only a few years. Wherever people were suffering, the Swords arrived just in time. Always courteous, and always knowing exactly what the problem was without being told, the Swords swooped in and saved the day. Physical threats like bandit raiders and roaming monsters were fought off by force. But the group also handily dealt with problems that couldn't be resolved by the sword. Injuries and plagues were healed. Damaged buildings were repaired or even redesigned. Riots and feuds were quelled, as officers and priests mediated and found solutions that benefited everyone.
Today, there are approximately one hundred members of the band, split into three platoons that operate throughout the Five Nations, supplemented by a handful of individual Sentinel Marshals. The supernatural power and wisdom possessed by each member of the Sovereign Swords is truly remarkable. Guided by Boldrei to communities in need, blessed by Aureon with the wisdom of the mediator, and emboldened by Dol Dorn and Dol Arrah to fight injustice, these vigilantes each seem to possess the power of the gods. Divine magic does rarely grace a select few among the faithful of the Five Nations, but some skeptics find the arrival of an entire adventuring band of such saints to be truly unbelievable.
As they should. For these divine heroes aren't entirely what they seem.
Most of these soldiers truly believe the Sovereigns are the source of their power and guidance. They really do receive visions in their dreams, and these visions do help them bring relief to those who suffer. However... those visions do not originate from the gods. They are crafted by the quori of the Dreaming Dark.
The fiends of the Dreaming Dark watch and manipulate the world through the dreams of mortals, seeking to permanently stabilize their plane of Dal Quor. They conquered Sarlona long ago, psionically transforming the populace of Riedra into their dreamshaped subjects. They accomplished this by first causing a long period of strife and suffering over centuries of dream manipulation. Then, a select group of heroes guided by visions arrived when the situation was at its most desperate. These powerful heroes had all the answers, and the populace enthusiastically handed them the reins of power, laying the groundwork for what would become the Unity of Riedra. But in truth, these heroes were pawns of the Dreaming Dark, if they weren't actually Inspired hosts of the fiends themselves.
A subset of the Dreaming Dark is engaged in the same tactics today in Khorvaire. After a century at war, the people of Five Nations are eager to feel the presence of the gods and are receptive to easy solutions. So when the selfless Sovereign Swords arrive in the nick of time to save a town from being destroyed by bandits, the townsfolk cheer them and sing their praises, spreading their legend... even though the same entity who granted the Sovereign Swords their power and visions also likely caused the bandit problem in the first place. The quori work their foul manipulations in communities just before the Swords arrive, heightening tensions and pushing troubled individuals over the edge.
Most of the Sovereign Swords are mere pawns. Their powers are actually psionic in nature rather than divine, but neither they nor most of the folks they interact with realize this. The greatest champions of the Swords are vessels of great immortal spirits—celestials, the soldiers believe—who advise and strengthen the soldier, and even take control of the vessel's body in times of great peril. Of course, these spirits are not celestials, but quori. Harkan d'Deneith is one such vessel of a quori spirit, and is utterly convinced that the spirit is an angel of the Sovereign Host. And finally, the mighty kalaraq quori known as Lashtaqala* (see note below) has planted mind seeds among a few select individuals of all ranks of the Sovereign Swords; these mind-seeded victims have had their personalities completely replaced with that of this great kalaraq, and directly and consciously scheme to coordinate the actions of the militia behind the scenes.
When looking for an opportunity to use the Sovereign Swords in your game, consider whether they will appear as allies, rivals, or enemies. Their relationship to the player characters can even rotate through these roles throughout the campaign. Also consider these hooks:
- A psi warrior player character might begin the campaign as a member or former member of the Sovereign Swords. Perhaps they receive a vision that truly is from the Sovereigns, warning them of the threat posed by the band and charging them with exposing its secrets.
- A devout player character begins to receive visions in dreams that push them to work with the Sovereign Swords to solve a problem. Is this quori manipulation, or do the short-term goals of the Swords and the devout character's faith actually align?
- A member of the Sovereign Swords, perhaps Harkan d'Deneith himself, becomes a close ally of the party, or maybe has been a friend since before the Mourning. The party learns the truth of his possessed condition. Can they find a way to convince their friend of the nature of the quori spirit and exorcise it? Can they banish the fiend without killing their ally?
* Note: I have changed the name of the kalaraq quori to Laqatesh in my game, since "Lashtaqala" is just "Ashtakala" with an "L". Keith Baker really likes the "ashta" sound (Ashtakala, kalashtar, Jhorash'tar, Kashtarhak, 'Aashta), as well as the "kala" sound (Ashtakala, kalashtar, duur'kala, Ghaash'kala, Karakala, Calabas). Could you make an argument that the similarities are intentional? Sure. Ashtakala is a city of fiends, the quori are fiends, their language is probably similar to Abyssal. But sometimes it's worthwhile to adjust and differentiate these names to make things less confusing for everybody at the table.
Next time: the I.W. Society!