Guardian

Warriors who have achieved mastery of their skills will have developed not only a personal style of fighting that they favor, but also the uncanny knack of altering their style to counter the actions of their opponent. Those who reach this level in their profession may seek the great honor and rank of Guardian.

A Guardian fears no enemy, nor would he hesitate to attack those who would harm the Order. He is a skilled tutor, able to convey knowledge of the intricate subtleties of melee fighting to his students. As an opponent, a Guardian is an extraordinarily dangerous foe.

Qualifications

Each candidate for Guardian must hold the rank of Defender. He must have achieved grandmaster status in at least four mel\ee-related skills, one of which must be tactics. He must have a current, active squire who is challenging for, or has attained, the rank of Knight, and he must seek approval of the Captain of the Guard and the Guildmaster, Avatar, or an Archon.

Time in Rank

A Guardian may not challenge for a more advanced rank for a period of four weeks from his installation as Guardian.

Responsibilities

Each Guardian is expected to teach others the fine arts of becoming deadly in combat. A Guardian may be expected to rescue guildmates from precarious situations, to serve and train those new to the guild, and to occasionally lead or assist in expeditions such as guild hunts or guild events.

How to Obtain Rank

Once a Defender has satisfied the time requirements and obtains permission to challenge, he will fight an existing Guardian who has been selected by the Captain of the Guard in a best-of-five ranking match. If he beats the existing Guardian, he is granted title. In some situations, an Archon or above may grant the rank without winning the match, for example if the candidate has proven himself the equal of other Guardians.

Title

The honorific chosen at the time of Knighthood will be retained, with the new prefix "Guardian of". 

Loss of Rank

This rank cannot be lost short of demotion by the Captain of the Guard or above.