Faction: Order of the Balance

[Angel]

Information to be stored in the next few posts so that Eiron, co-owner, can edit it freely.

[eiron]

Anyone interested in joining or just curious, PM either me or Angel.

Alignment: Netural

Goals:

The Order of the Balance, as the name suggests, values balance above all else. They seek to maintain a stable relationship between the forces of good and evil, not allowing the strength of either side to outweigh the other. They behave in a somewhat religious manner, believing that it is their divine right to administer balance, through force if necessary. They act outside the normal constraints of other factions, assisting or interfering with either side’s goals in order to maintain balance.

The reasoning for this attitude can be explained by the following quote:

In this world, trophies fight. They know nothing but fighting. Fighting is the sole reason for their existence. Being turned back into a trophy, being unable to fight, is much like death. Those are the rules of this world.

But...

When someone...or something...breaks those rules, the world will pay a terrible price.

This is the law of the Smash Universe, passed down by Sakurai himself. The Order believes it is their divine mandate to uphold the balance between destruction and creation, between good and evil. They believe that they are enforcing the wills of the Master and Crazy Hands, and their symbolic representation of the world.

Due to this, at various points in the story they may switch sides unexpectedly. They do not ask for permission to give assistance, they just carry it out. They are mysterious and are forbidden to give out information to any non-members, and information is also controlled in the group depending on the members rank. They prefer to operate from the shadows, pulling strings and avoiding direct force. They think of themselves as a guiding influence, not as an organization bent on control.

While the overall purpose of the Order is to maintain balance, each member carries his or her own views on how and why this should be accomplished. As such, there is some friction in the organization among the higher ups.

NOW. While the Order has its own set of agendas and goals that members must adhere to, we also want this to be an inviting environment for all who join. A place where people can work together to advance each other's characters within the story. We hope that this can serve as a place where members can improve their writing, their roles within the RP, and their ties with each other.

History of Creation:

The Order has existed for some time, but felt that its involvement was unneeded. With Crehavos’ rise to power, they felt that direct intervention was necessary to tip the scales back. These events forced a change in leadership in the Order, and now authority is divided between Eiron and Kaimu.

Smashers in Organization: Angel (Kaimu), Eiron (Eiron), Starprincess ( Nadia-RP5), Souryaku (Souryaku-RP5), Steele (Steele-RP5), SLEaman (Ai Yanaihara-RP5), hkdmz (kune)



Ranking System:

Basic Structure-The basic structure for the Balance of the Order can be thought of as a pyramid, with ascending ranks gaining more and more authority and access to information. However, the Order is led by the Prescient Senate, which represent the different desires and ideals of the Order as a whole.

There are two ranking systems within the Order. First, there are the STANDING RANKS, which denote how much authority is weilded by a member within the organization. Second, their are DIVISION RANKS, which determine the member's role within the Order. A member's formal title is determined by simply combining the two, Standing Ranks preceding Division Ranks. For example:

Member X has a Standing Rank of Mantic and a Division Rank of Omen. Member X's title is Mantic Omen X.

Neophytes have no Division Rank, and Acolytes only use their Guide Ranks to identify themselves. For instance:

Member Y is a Neophyte. Member Y's title is Neophyte Y.

Member Z is an Acolyte and a Sentinal. Member Z's title is Sentinal Z.

Eyes are the total exception to the ranking rules. See their description below for elaboration.

Vectors are refered to only by their Division Rank, but only while they are serving as a Vector.

Standing Ranks-

Neophytes-All new members to the order start out as Neophtyes. This serves as a tutorial and trial period for the member. During this time, the new member will recieve instruction on the Order and will be given an evaluation, which will help determine where they will serve within the organization. Upon completing the Neophyte stage, new members will discuss with their Vectors (instructors) what Division they will be placed in. Neophytes have no Division Rank.

Acolytes-Normal members. These are members who have passed their training as Neophytes and have been fully immersed into the Order. They are assigned to serve under a Mantic, and report directly to their assigned officer. Acolytes' titles are simply denoted by their Division Ranks.

Qualifications for promotion: Member seeking rank advancement to Acolyte must have passed the Neophyte turorial period succesfully.

Mantics-Officers. Mantics are members who have distinguished themselves from the other Acolytes and proven themselves as leaders. Mantics will be tasked with leading the Acolytes in various ways, whether it be into battle or as instructors. Mantics and their men serve under their assigned Vatic commanders, and report directly to them.

Qualifications for promotion: Member seeking rank advancment to Mantic must currently be an Acolyte. Member must have distinguished him/herself with quality posting, ideas and actions that improve the Order in a meaningful way, and an understanding of the Order's workings and goals.

Vatics-The Vatics are the generals of the Order of the Balance. They have not only proven themselves as leaders, but have furthered the Order's goals in significant ways. Vatics wield incredible power within the orginization, and command the Mantic Officers. They have wide access to information within the order, and their opinions are given special consideration. Vatics serve directly under the Senate, and report directly to the Senate as a whole-not individual Prescients.

Members of this rank: Kaimu, Eiron

Qualifications for promotion: The requirements for member advancement to the rank of Vatic is strict. The member must currently be a Mantic. Quality posting, insightfull ideas and actions, and a pefect understanding of the Order are prerequisites. The member must also have distinguished him/herself as a Mantic, not only through the qualities listed above, but with quanitative and qualitative accomplishments within the RP itself which further the Order and its goals.

Prescients-the Prescients are the highest ranking members of The Order of the Balance, and compose the Senate. They are the guiding voice of the Order, and are keepers of the Order's vision for the world. They have total access to Order information and their orders supercede any other rank.

Qualifications for promotion: Member seeking advancement to the rank of Prescient must currently be a Vatic. Contributions to the Order must be exmplary. Promotion to be decided by existing Prescients.

*NOTE*

As of now, both Angel's character Kaimu and my character are serving as Vatics for the purpose of the story, with the Senate being composed of NPCs. As such, we will decide all promotional matters.

Division Ranks

These serve to show a character’s role within the Order. These are independent of the Standing Ranks above.

Sentinals-The Order's elite guard, they protect the School of Order. Sentinals are under direct control of the Senate. Aside from defending the school of Order, they are deployed to protect or occupy strategic locations that are of value to the Order, but are not used in attack roles-for the most part. Sentinals are also used to bolster other factions that Order is currently aligned with. Members who become Sentinals will likely be sent to join members of other factions for extended periods of time. During this time period, they follow the orders of whatever faction they are serving, unless the Order states directly otherwise. Uniform colors-Light blue and red.

Sought Member Qualities: Members who wish to still be able to RP with friends in other factions would do well to consider applying as a Sentinal, as the possibility exists for deployment to assist said faction. Keep in mind though that the Order switches sides periodically to keep balance. Should this occur while a group of Sentinals is bolstering another faction, they may be required to engage their friends with little to no warning. Members must not question orders or show any pity. Members will NOT be asked to stay and guard the School of Order, as that less interesting role will be handled by NPCs. However, should the School come under attack, Sentinals with have more battlefield authority than any other Division, and will be the primary instrument of defense.

Characters in this Division: Kaimu (Vatic)

Omens-The Order's elite forces, tasked with providing direct interference to the other factions to influence world events. Omens operate in various ways, depending on the size of the operation. A single team may be inserted, led by a single Mantic, or several Teams may work in tandem, each with their own officer. A Vatic may be dispatched as well to provide overall direction. Omens are used as the Order's primary offensive arm, and do not work in tandem with other factions for the most part. The are more likely to simply act on their own, unless special strategic or numerical advantages can be gained by collaborating with a friendly faction. For the most part, however, Omens are used to attack factions currently unalligned with the Order, and operate independantly. Uniform Colors-Dark red and blue.

Sought Member Qualities-Characters with a love for battle would do well among the Omens, as they exist for the sole purpose of engaging in conflict. However, because the Order may switch sides during a conflict, Omens should never gain a special dislike for their current enemies, as they may end up fighting side by side in the future.

Characters in this Division: Nadia, Sour

Eyes-The most specialized of the Member Divisions. Members serving as Eyes will be placed on a special black list, only available to certain Vatics and the Senate. While they will posess formal ranks and titles like all othe members, Eyes will only be refered to by code names. They will serve within the other factions, serving as spies and carrying out special covert missions. Eyes will always act to maintain their cover, and act outside the restrictions of the Order. They recieve commands telepathically through an advanced comunications system within the School of Order, which cannot be intercepted. Vatic Eyes do not usually engage in field operations, but manage the flow of information and operations from afar.

*NOTE* All members wishing to serve as Eyes must PM their requests to either Angel or myself. Preferably before posting in any public area about their interest in joining. Existing members, should they wish to become an Eye, must also PM their requests.

Sought Member Qualities-Deception is the name of the game. As an Eye, members would be tasked with acting and posting as if they were not part of the Order at all. Stealth must extend beyond the character and become a conscious part of any posts or comments. All Eyes will be refered to only by codenames, which will be assigned via PMs, as will the method that Eyes will supply information back to the Order, which MUST be done within RP posts if the Order is to recieve the information. A single Eye may go by several codenames, and Eyes almost never know the identities of other Eyes. Additionaly, members may find themselves wondering exactly why all this is necessary. After all, everyone can read the posts of other members, even if they were posted by someone in an opposing faction. However, Eyes allow the Order to gain the information within the context of the story itself, providing a canonical and justifiable reason for knowledge they otherwise wouldn't have. Furthermore, Eyes may be required to send information or take actions that directly impede or endager the members of the faction they are embedded in. Eyes must be prepared and willing to unquestioningly execute their orders, regardless of the consequences to others. This is arguably the Order's most important-and demanding-Division. Utmost diligence and discipline is required, and positions will not be given out without careful consideration.

Characters in this Division: Eiron (Vatic [identity concealment not required])

*NOTE* Because of the isolation from the rest of the Order that Eyes experience, members with some experience in the RP are preferred, or people with two characters. Both Angel and I want the Order to be a welcoming community to newer members, but Eyes really can't experience that.

Paragons-Members specializing in countering the forces of darkness. Paragons fall under the direct control of the Vatics and the Senate because of their natural imbalance towards the forces of good. During periods where the forces of darkness are the Order's primary enemy, Paragons are used as elite shock troops, forming the nerve center of the Order's military operations. During periods where the Order is alligned against the forces of good, Paragons are deployed along side Sentinals and Omens. No matter what the Order's orientation is, several Paragon members are arranged into special teams of healers and other support roles. These teams may be inserted into an Omen task force or dispatched to assist a friendly faction. Uniform colors-White and black, with white predominate.

Sought Member Qualities-Characters with a strong sense of justice will do well in this Division, as will kind hearted characters. Characters proficient in the healing arts would be welcomed additions. Combat roles also abound, as there are plenty of opportunities to cast down the wicked as well.

Rakes-Members who specialize in countering the forces of light. Rakes are also controlled directly by the Senate and the Vatics because of their imbalance towards darkness. This is the most strictly controlled Division in the Order, as members may be naturally inclined towards mischief and disharmony. However, Rakes tend to be the Order's most powerful members because of their dark origins, and they can often be used as elite shock troops regardless of the Order's current alliances. Rakes also carry out assassination missions, and other covert operations that need less subtlety than the Eyes provide. Uniform colors-Black and white, with black predominate.

Sought Member Qualities-Characters with a passion for battle are welcome to become Rakes, as are any characters with demonic states or ancestory. Be expected to recieve some of the Order's tougher combat assignments, but also to be kept under a tight leash.

Vectors-Vectors are special instructors who teach and test the Neophytes. Members of this group can overlap with other groups. Vector is only included in a member title if it is the only Division Rank that member posesses. Uniform Colors-Beige and dark green.

Sought Member Qualities-Members must be at least of Mantic rank to act as a Vector, and must be considered extremely well versed in the Order's ways.

Locations:

The School of the Order:

The faction's main base, a large building like formation with a solid base, slightly floating just above a great ocean. It is stationed on the same planet as the SSS HQ, but to the far west in a somewhat warm climate. It is not visible to eye from afar, and is accessible only after reaching a certain place in the water, where suddenly everything is right before you in view. Some believe that this is due to a holographic effect they have, replicating the area around the base the base to seem just like the surrounding land. The buildings ontop of the structure are painted very metallic looking colors of white, silver, light purples and light blues.

No one from the outside knows how these people managed to seemingly get a such a structure above the ground in the ocean, or how they managed to perfectly hide such a thing. This suggests an extremely advanced level of technology.

After taking a small staircase up into the area, you walk into a beautiful garden entrance with a the main building in view. This entrance area serves as a waiting area too. Plenty of beautiful benches and lovely scenery while you are waiting to be approved to enter.

Once admitted, the main building is very spacious and well-kept. Everything is very clean and orderly and nicely landscaped. There is a beautiful park right outside the area, and is a causal hangout spot for people when they are not in classes or on missions.

Inside the building there are alot of area's for all necessities of life. Food courts, Various Good Stores, Libraries, Training Rooms, Dormitories, Classrooms, Plenty of Meeting Rooms and Empty Rooms to be used for various purposes. The main area also doubles as a place where large-scale announcements could be given due to its size.

Clothing/Items Specific to Faction:

Pictures to be added. All uniforms are exactly the same at the base level, regardless of rank. Advancing in rank only adds to the uniform-members do not get new designs. The color of the uniforms is different for each specialized groups within the Order, but they always-or almost always-made up of two opposing colors in equal or near equal measure.

Uniforms differ slightly by gender. Female members may wear skirts instead of leggings. Also, male uniforms utilize sharper edges and designs with darker colors. Female uniforms have softer edges and designs with lighter colors.


Secret Techniques: To be added.

Member applications:

Of course, the more people interested in joining the better, but several character traits are especially sought after.

-The character must have a vision. The Order isn’t interested in mindless battle or gaining glory, but in transforming its ideals into reality and upholding their philosophies. Expect just as many battles to take place with words and thoughts as with blades and magic. As such, a character’s strength and power is less important than their cleverness and style.

[bobsnicket]

This is awesome. Cool names, thorough descriptions. And Bob Snicket would absolutely hate it.

[ManOfSteele]

Ok, I love you. I would like to point out right now that Steele (The good one after RP4) would like to join plox

[eiron]

I'm glad you two approve. ^^

Adding Steele to the list of members now.

[ManOfSteele]

Thank you ^.^

I'll sort out my rank and such when I actually join in the RP

[smashbro]

omg, wtf?!? So you guys are all doing an anti-Snicket movement? good to neutral?!?

[eiron]

You should totally join.

[ayame]

Don't believe him!!! They're all evil!!!

[eiron]

You will pay for your lack of vision.

[kunekune]

I know you said to PM you in order to join but it seems someone else joined through a normal post, and so would I.

May I join with my character hkdmz? It's not fully approved yet but I'd like to be in on this :3

[eiron]

Of course. You've been added to the member list. Welcome aboard.