Knightly Order

 

Knightly Orders are military Organizations distinct from other militias in that they are usually formed by nations or states to fight in service of a class of nobles. Admission to, and progression within these Orders is typically restricted by Social Status, or even by blood, as those who reach the upper echelons of these Orders become nobles themselves. Typically, Knightly Orders have pretentions to higher ideals, and usually have an official moral code as part of their Charter. These codes are most often simply grandiloquent assertions of fealty to that nobles that created and fund the Order restated as euphemistic moral imperatives.

Usually, when Knightly Orders are formed, it is for a reason, and following a couple of generations or campaigning, a Knighty Order will usually reach its zenith as a disciplined, organized fighting force that indeed exemplifies a moral code. Over longer timelines, however, these Organizations tend to become overrun with pretenders and sycophants who have never set foot on a battlefield, and who use their entitlement to cling to hereditary power.