Order of the Thorn

Order of the Thorn

(Hellknight Orders)

Fortress

Citadel Demain, Egorian, Cheliax

Leaders

Lictor DiLavos

Source: The Infernal Syndrome, pg(s). 66–67

The Order of the Thorn, founded by Lictor Aligois Thels in 4609 AR, was one of the five first Hellknight orders. It was based in Citadel Demain near Egorian, Cheliax. An early ally of House Thrune, it was effectively destroyed in 4635 AR during the Chelaxian Civil War by the Order of the Pyre, which besieged Citadel Demain for weeks before both sides were destroyed in a massive inferno.

History

Thels succeeded Hellknights founder Daidian Ruel after Ruel disappeared in Calistril of 4589 AR. In Kuthona of 4609 AR, Thels reorganized the Hellknights into five orders, each capable of independent action: the Orders of the Chain, Gate, Pyre, Scourge, and Thorn. The Thorn assumed command of Citadel Demain near Egorian.

Chelaxian Civil War

In Arodus of 4634 AR, the Thorn captured a spy in Citadel Demain and opened talks with House Thrune as a result. After a disastrous massacre of Thrune agents by Hellknights of the Thorn soon after in Rova—a folly borne of a misunderstanding between their leaders, who were attempting to meet—Lictor DiLavos of the Thorn reconciled with Agahman Thrune in Neth. The site later became known as Parley Circle in honor of their meeting.

By Abadius of 4635 AR, Agahman Thrune had swayed Lictor DiLavos into agreeing that the rule of law relied on peace in Cheliax, and DiLavos called a meeting of the Council of Lictors in Pharast of 4635 AR to lobby for the Hellknights to propose an alliance with House Thrune. After intense debate, the Hellknight Orders of the Chain, Gate, Scourge, and Thorn allied with the Thrunes in Gozran of 4635 AR, which led to feuds between them and other Hellknights who supported the reigning rulers. The Order of the Pyre refused the alliance, and its Lictor Ihonudayn quit the meeting altogether.

The Order of the Pyre initiated the Siege of Demain in Arodus of 4635 AR, cutting the Thorn's forces in half and killing Lictor DiLavos. The Orders of the Chain and Scourge joined the siege in support of the Thorn, and nearly two weeks after the start of the siege fighting reached its head in Rova. Facing the Pyre's imminent defeat, the defiant Lictor Ihoundayn lit a fire that becomes an indiscriminate inferno which killed Ihonudayn and hundreds more Hellknights, including most survivors of the Order of the Thorn. The Pyre were also decimated, the fire destroyed Citadel Demain, and Lictor Ihonudayn's head was piked in the citadel's ruins.

Notable members

• Lictor DiLavos, leader of the Thorn as of its destruction, and wearer of the Ebon Thorn until his death in 4635 AR during the Siege of Demain
• The Foresworn, a graveknight of the Thorn imprisoned at Citadel Gheradesca

Legacy

The Order of the Scourge defeated the Order of the Pyre at Citadel Krane by Lamashan of 4635 AR, without any loss of life. Citadel Demain was rebuilt after the siege, and the Order of the Scourge relocated its base to Demain in 4639 AR. Rumors about the whereabouts of DiLavos' Ebon Thorn armor remain popular among both Thrune loyalists and their various dissidents and opponents, though political concerns have stymied attempts by all sides to locate the legendary suit of full plate.