Mistryl Shadow Guard


 * Car'das shook his head. "Your people don't want justice, Shada," he said, an infinite sadness in his voice. "They never did."


 * -Timothy Zahn, Vision of the Future

The Mistryl Shadow Guards were an elite group of all-female Human mercenaries, sent from their home planet of Emberlene to earn money in support of the devastated communities of their world. The Shadow Guards history was a long and tragic one, full of deception, greed, anger, and destruction, beginning long ago, with the loss of Emberlene.

Appearance and Biology
The Mistryl Shadow Guards are normal, Human females. They possess the normal, Human variances in physical traits of an athletic specimen.

History
The Mistryl Shadow Guard was an elite order of warrior women trained as mercenaries, who were sent off their home planet to earn money to send back to feed and clothe the devastated community of their world. Their history was a long and tragic one, full of deception, greed, anger, and destruction. Throughout the Galaxy there were few who equaled the Mistryl in cunning, guile, combat skills, or bitterness. It all began long ago, with the loss of their planet Emberlene, but their burning desire for vengeance never died.

The history that was taught to rising Mistryl warriors was somewhat different from the true history of their homeworld. From birth, the citizens of Emberlene were taught that many years ago, while the Empire was still young and early resistance had not been crushed, Emperor Palpatine ordered the destruction of Emberlene, using it as an example of defiance against the Empire. Emberlene had been a rich planet, full of splendor and beauty, and had made it firmly apparent that they were ruled by no one but themselves. Fearing the planet's growing power and prestige, the Emperor sent his forces to destroy Emberlene as an example to those who thought they could escape the rule of the Empire. Since that time, the Mistryl hired themselves out as mercenaries, to earn enough money to support the millions of refugees left after the planet's destruction, and loathing the Empire's role in the disaster. Though when that loathing gets in the way of a job, they often conveniently forgot this animosity...

Only the history taught to the citizens and the Mistryl wasn't the true history of Emberlene, and only the Eleven Elders of the People knew what really happened. Three years before its destruction, Emberlene used its might and wealth to go on a conquest rampage. They subjugated dozens of worlds in their sector, capturing and ruling them with ruthlessness. They plundered their wealth, and destroyed anything of value that they couldn't take with them. They left the people of these worlds in a broken, shattered mess, and then moved on to their next target.

The remaining planets in the sector decided that they could not stand idly by and let the armies of Emberlene roll over them effortlessly. The governments of these worlds pooled their resources and hired a mercenary army to serve them against Emberlene. In a single strike against Emberlene, the mercenary army devastated the enemy forces and reduced the planet's superstructure to rubble. Ensuing firestorms and air strikes against populated areas effectively ended the Emberlene threat, doing to their people what they had been doing to the rest of the sector over the past three years.

With their home planet in ruins, millions of refugees to feed and clothe, and their once bright dreams of conquest erased by the mercenary army, the Eleven Elders soon became infused with a bitter desire for vengeance. They began training a group of elite warriors, whom they named the Mistryl Shadow Guards, as mercenaries to be hired out, as well as special forces for the now-demolished planet. The women of the Mistryl became the most deadly warriors they could be, in preparation for their futures supporting the planet's poor, and rooting out the conspirators who facilitated Emberlene's destruction.

Hierarchy
The Mistryl warriors often work as mercenaries, but above all they are loyal to the Eleven Elders of the People, who both created the Mistryl and are former Mistryl themselves. These mercenaries began training at a very young age in preparation for their future of "civil service" to the peoples of Emberlene. Each Mistryl warrior was unique in her own way, and some took to certain skills better than others. One thing that remained constant, however, was that through their years of training they were all accomplished and deadly warriors.

Government
The Eleven Elders of the People were the council which controlled the actions of the Mistryl organization. Composed of founders of the Shadow Guard (and a few newly-raised members from the ranks of the Mistryl), the Eleven Elders were all skilled warriors themselves. They were women who had trained hard and served their people, as well as harboring that burning anger for those who brought down their power so many years ago. Some of these women were even members of the Emberlene government that began that streak of conquest so many years ago, though most had been replaced by rising Mistryl warriors as Elders died or stepped down. The Elders made all the major decisiong concerning the Mistryl as a council, and also dictated honoring and/or punishment among the ranks of the Shadow Guard.

Notable Members

 * Cai
 * Paloma D'asima
 * Pav D'armon
 * Vrisa D'armon
 * Shada D'ukal
 * Karoly D'ulin
 * Manda D'ulin
 * Naradan D'ulin
 * Kithra
 * Myranda M'ryi
 * Sersi M'ryi
 * Tanda M'toya
 * Loruna Scathe
 * Shana
 * Sileen
 * Jahryssa S'tal
 * Selene S'tal
 * Dunc T'racen
 * Variise

RPG D6 Stats

 * (Note: Mistryl Shadow Guards are normal humans with Story Factors attached. Only with GM discretion, may a Near-Human or other species be allowed to be a Shadow Guard.)

Homeworld: Emberlene

Attribute Dice: 12D

DEXTERITY 2D/4D

KNOWLEDGE 2D/4D

MECHANICAL 2D/4D

PERCEPTION 2D/4D

STRENGTH 2D/4D

TECHNICAL 2D/4D

Special Skills:

Shadow Arts Martial Arts: Through special training, a Mistryl Shadow Guard learns the Shadow Arts Martial Arts skill. For every 1D that a Mistryl improves his or her Shadow Arts martial arts specialization, that character gains a special maneuver. See the entry Mistryl Shadow Arts Martial Arts.

Story Factors:

Loyalty: The Mistryl Shadow Guard are loyal to their order and people of their homeworld. Although they hire themselves out as mercenaries and bodyguards, any profits they make are sent back to provide relief for the refugees of their world.

Thirst for Revenge: The Mistryl Shadow Guard harbor a burning desire for repaying the destruction onto those who were responsible for the devastation of their homeworld. The primary target of this is the Empire.

Move: 10/12

Size: 1.5 to 1.9 meters