Guardians of the Wheel

[Kai Wren]

So, there was some questions in chat about the Guardians of the Wheel and a suggestion I write a Guidebook post for them. I threw together some notes to elaborate on how I saw the rough structure and history working from the (incredibly brief) outline in Incognito's history. I thought I'd solicit feedback here for whether this seems viable/workable/good/terribad, and whether there's more people would like to see expanded upon!

The Guardians of the Wheel

Membership: Fluctuates but no more than 50.
Base of Operations: Decentralised
Identifiers: Wheel insignia are popular. Each Initiate is granted a small steel amulet inscribed with ancient runes of fate and destiny.
Notable Members: Master Wen, Incognito

Formed in the wake of the second world war, the Guardians of the Wheel are an amalgamation of several old, small mystic orders which once worked independently to try and guard the secrets of fate. Efforts by the Katanarchists to steal these mystic secrets forced those orders to come together to defend themselves.

The Guardians of the Wheel see it as their duty to ensure that the Great Wheel continues to turn.

Fate, to the Guardians, is a force which has its hand in all things but which does not run smooth. Whilst the story of mankind is one of slow and gradual progress towards a brighter future, evil people – tyrants, dictators, megalomaniacs – can twist the Wheel from its proper course and cause it to turn backwards. It is the sacred duty of the Guardians of the Wheel to ensure not only that the Wheel turns, but that it turns in the ‘proper’ way, in accordance with the betterment of all mankind, for whilst the Wheel has – broadly – been heading in the right direction for a long time now, momentum is a difficult thing to stop, and if it ever changed course, it could all come crashing down just as quickly.

The Guardians are a loose-knit organisation but all share initiation into martial secrets which allow them to literally grasp the Wheel of Fate and manipulate it. The most basic level of this takes the Wheel as it pertains to the practitioner of the art itself at their moment of crisis; turning back an injury or blow that has been struck by a foe and starting again. More advanced students of the art can manipulate the Wheel as it pertains to other people, freeze their own fate within the wheel to extend their lifespan, gain glimpses of the future or read the tracks of the past and legends speak of ancient Masters in this art strong enough to guide the Wheel to favour or hinder entire nations, all in the service, of course, to the greater good of keeping the Wheel on track.

Now that the Katanarchists are on the back foot for the first time in decades, some of the strains in the Guardians are starting to show. They have never been fully unified, and there is a plurality of opinion about how to pursue the end of the great conflict which has guided them this far.

Broadly speaking, these camps fall into four groups.

The Seers believe that it is improper to use the arts of the Wheel outside of times of severe necessity and that it is now safe to return to places of seclusion and safety and wait for the Katanarchists to be broken by the inevitable turning of time.

The Warriors believe that any quarter now will only give the Katanarchists time to find a new angle of attack and that they must crush them quickly, wherever they might be found.

The Guides point out that it was not a Guardian who slew the last great leader of the Katanarchists, and argue that the Guardians have a responsibility to help guide other groups to bring the war to a successful conclusion.

The Quiet have no opinion. They believe that there is now so much momentum taking the Wheel in the direction of good, thanks to the Earth’s many great defenders, that they needn’t do anything and that humanity will soon be ushered into a new Utopian Age.

Ranking in the Wheel is very loose, but can similarly be broken down into three stages.

Initiate – one who has been taught the secret of interacting with the Wheel but who has yet to slay a member of the Katanarchists and thus prove their dedication to the cause.

Guardian – one who has killed for the Wheel, and thereby proven they understand the importance of the mission of the Guardians.

Master – one who has demonstrated true mastery over one of the aspects of the Wheel.

It is expected that those lower in the ranking will obey the orders of those higher in the ranking, but naturally this is not always the case as the different factions do not always respect each other as they should. More experienced and ‘senior’ Guardians also tend to expect obedience from less experienced Guardians despite there being no formal ranking system within that tier.  

Edited March 29, 2018 by Kai Wren