Souls of Darkness

Souls of Darkness is the Elite Special Unit of House Caliburnus of Clan Scholae Palatinae.

History

The year was 25 ABY, and the House of Caliburnus was progressing and developing steadily under the rule of Quaestor Impetus. Three battleteams had been implemented, Spirits of the Night as an induction team for the Guardians and below, while the rest found placement in either Nightmare or Nightshade Squadron, the former housing the soldiers, the duellists, the more hardy and battle inclined, while the latter, Nightshade, gave the home to the more Krathly scholars, tacticians, alchemists, and the like. The system worked well for the first few months of her reign, but after a mass scale recruitment drive organised by the twi’lek herself and Iridonian Aedile Xen'Mordin Vismorsus, Arania’s Spirits of the Night overflowed, its size simply inadequate to house the influx of nascent Dark Jedi in the initiation stage of their Brotherhood Career.

Souls of Darkness, the name created by the twi’lek Quaestor as a variant on the other training team of Spirits of the Night, was born as an insignificant unit, simply a place to hold the new journeymen while they made their way around the first stages of their new life in the Brotherhood. Led by experienced leader Horus Blackheart, and later by Thran Occasus, the new team achieved its purpose and progressed members up to the higher Battleteams at a consistent rate. However, things wouldn’t stay that way for long, as a multitude of changes not just to the House, but to the entire clan, orchestrated by Consul Braecen Kaeth, saw every single Battleteam in Scholae Palatinae closed down.

After tensions began to grow between Acclivis Draco and Caliburnus, the two houses found themselves at war. Despite Impetus’ best efforts to mitigate the disagreements and prevent a full scale conflict, a number of injustices committed towards her such as the capture of her students and attempted assassination, the situation became one she simply couldn’t ignore. Just as the Houses lined up for what looked to be a final showdown on Judecca, a mutual threat attacked, causing both houses to temporarily put their differences aside. The very day after, Impetus resigned her post and transferred to Acclivis Draco, leaving Thran Occasus in charge of Caliburnus as Quaestor.

Having seen the attempted assassination of his predecessor, after settling down in his new role, one of the Quaestor’s first moves was to create a personal guard. Thran saw it fitting to revive the team he used to lead, Souls of Darkness, to fulfil this task, but under Thran’s rule the old training team played a far more prestigious role in the house.

Souls of Darkness became an order of the Elite of Caliburnus, only the bravest, the strongest, the quickest, the members of Souls of Darkness became a symbol of what members of the house should strive to be, the epitome of honour, valour, and courage, a symbol that remains to this very day. Led by Cethgus, the elusive initiation into the team flitted into the hearts, dreams and desires of the Dark Jedi, the goal that some day they would be recognised as the Elite of Caliburnus, and defend the Quaestor along with other legends of the House.

Towards the end of the rule of Rasilvenaira, there were a multitude of positional changes within the house, but one thing always remained constant: The presence, willpower and devotion of Souls of Darkness. Now led by Eludajae M'Nar, Souls of Darkness looks only to expand in the already prestigious role, the group of members set to become legendary to the future recruits.

Leaders and members

Roll of Commanders

To come in the next hour or so while exact dates are being researched

Current Roster

Eludajae M'Nar: Commander
Impetus Korin-M'Nar Palpatine: Close Combat (Primary) / Environmental Specialist (Secondary)
Xathia: Technician (Primary) / Demolitions (Secondary)
Corin Nal'kethar: Unconfirmed
Malaki: Flight Leader
Jack "Jackal" Okason: Unconfirmed
TBA: Unconfirmed
TBA: Unconfirmed
Camord: Unconfirmed
Tyno: Unconfirmed
TBA: Unconfirmed
Ylith Atema: Close Combat Specialist (Primary) / Scout (Secondary)

Roll of Proselytes

Ylith Atema - Proselyte of Defiance - May 2008

Eludajae M'Nar - Proselyte of Shadows - April 2008

Jack "Jackal" Okason - Proselyte of Fury - March 2008

Impetus Korin-M'Nar Palpatine - Proselyte of Subtlety - February 2008

Camord - Proselyte of Ice - January 2008

Corin Nal'kethar - Proselyte of Storms - December 2007

Syphoc Rilkel Kaeth - Proselyte of Knowledge - November 2007

Nokkon Wun - Proselyte of Tenacity - October 2007

Xathia - Proselyte of Wisdom - September 2007

Phantom Mandalore - Proselyte of Rain - August 2007

Brent "Archangel" Ligur Victae – Proselyte of Fire - July 2007

Yzarc Rellik – Proselyte of Sapphire – June 2007

Fionn dan Locut'hal - Proselyte of Stone - May 2007

Tyno - Proselyte of Swords - April 2007

Cethgus – Proselyte of Horns - March 2007

Niemand – Proselyte of Erudition - February 2007

Malaki – Proselyte of Retribution - January 2007

Specializations

Specializations are skills or training that a member of the battle team has. These specializations are varied, though all are useful, and important to the success of the missions. The following is the list of specializations. Communications, Sniper, Scout, Combat Medic, Environment specialist, Heavy Weapons specialist, Assault, Vehicle Specialist, Technician, Demolitions Specialist, and Close combat specialist.

Communications specialization is the man (or woman) in charge of relaying messages to and from elements of the command structure and the team, as well as signaling, and decoding of enemy messages. They have extra equipment on their back: a long range miniature communications array, a large datapad with specialist programming to assist with cracking codes, and signal recognition, and a video-audio recording system, to allow for target recognition, reconnaissance, and range finding.

Sniper specialization requires a high level of marksmanship skill, coupled with steady nerve, and light and ease of movement. They are used for taking out specific targets, guards, sentries, or sighting targets, surveillance and reconnaissance. They have extra equipment: a DH-112 sniper rifle, with silencer, and infra-red laser marker, improved optical visor, and specialist servo-assisted armor to allow for quieter movement.

Scout specialization is the understanding and use of different techniques of tracking and reconnaissance. The Scout is most commonly the Point man on the ground, as he can track a target by subtle signs in the area around him. The Scout is also the survival specialist, knowing what you can and cannot eat, as well as where to get fresh water. The Scout and the Environment Specialist work closely together, to allow for more accurate information collection and survival techniques.

Combat Medics are men and woman who have received extensive first aid training, as well as minor surgical training, to allow them to administer quick, and excellent assistance to any member of the team who has been injured in battle, be it a sprained ankle, or a laser bolt to the chest. The extra equipment is obvious: A medical backpack, full of all the different items he might need during an operation, such as bacta packs, and a roll of surgical instruments, along with a hardened datapad to assist with diagnosis, and treatment.

The Environment Specialist’s job is exactly as his title says: He knows exactly what to expect in the environments they would be encountering, and if he doesn’t, he knows how to find a way around it. He and the Scout work close together when it comes to survival and tracking the each environment. The Specialist also has another important job. If there is an area or world with an extremely hazardous atmosphere, or problem surrounding it, for example a high-radiation area, the Specialist is required to complete this mission or part of the mission himself. He is the usually the only one with this sort of experience.

The Heavy Weapons Specialist is the main destructive force in the unit (except for the Demolitions Specialist of course). Equipped with the mighty DLT-19 Heavy Blaster Rifle, which fires rapidly, with high powered bolts, a Heavy Weapons Specialist can take down speeders, and speeder bikes, and can have a devastating effect on buildings, and personal. He also has a program in his Heads Up Display to allow for easier targeting, and threat determination.

The Rapid Assault Specialist job is to be the first one through the door in any situation. He has to assess the situation, and designate targets of highest threat in seconds. Specialist programming in his helmet assist with this, and a high-speed connection between him and the rest of the unit spreads the information quickly. The Rapid Assault Specialist is equipped with T-21 Rifle, which is considered a very good light repeating rifle. He is also equipped with detachable thigh guards, and stronger chest and leg armor to protect him.

A Vehicle Specialist’s primary role is to maintain and use the small fleet of ground vehicles that the unit has been assigned, as well as assisting the technical specialist with major repairs when needed. He is equipped with a technical datapad with all the schematics he could need, as well as manuals on the use of various craft, whether they were brought with, or ‘procured’ during the mission.

The Technical Specialist is in charge of maintaining all the equipment that the unit has with them, be it a simple malfunctioning commlink, or the hyperdrive on the Transport. Either instance, he is in charge of repairing, or jerry rigging a solution. The technical Specialist is also in charge of slicing computers, and other various activities that fall around this category. A special datapad used for slicing, as well as repairing equipment is issued to this Specialist.

A Demolitions Specialist needs to be someone with a feather touch and nerves of steel. Their job is to manufacture or build explosive devices, set them, then set them off. It also helps to be a bit mad. Another function of the Demolitions Specialist is bomb disposal, to remove bombs from where they ought not to be. This Specialist has various tools needed for building explosive devices, as well as a small store of explosive material.

Close Combat Specialists are usually buff, and worn men and woman, whose sole specialty is to defeat his or her opponent in close combat be it with a knife, or just hands and feet. While this specialization isn’t commonly employed, this specialist must also keep the rest of the unit trained and fit. He or she is also the physical and mental officer of the unit, making sure everyone is fit and healthy of the body and of the mind.

Armour

File:SoD-2.jpg

Souls of Darkness Armour Set.

The armor that the unit wears has many different functions. The most important of course, is protection. The armor gives similar or better protection against blasters than common Stormtrooper armor, and nearly full protection against ballistic weaponry. While the thigh plates have been removed to save space, and increase speed and agility, the fibers of their combat pants are woven with a stiff synthetic material to be resistant to most forms of martial attacks, but are mostly useless against ballistic or blaster attacks.

Another function of the armor is also a protection based function, but protecting against the environment. The basic set of armor can filter out most toxins, and is water tight, with a small air tank built in with a one hour supply of air.

Lastly, the helmet has several improvements. The visor is auto-shading, so when a flash bang grenade goes off nearby, for example, the trooper isn’t totally blinded. The helmet can also deaden the sound of said grenade, and most sonic weapons. There is a small holocam just above the wearer’s left eye, which sends recorded information to the communications specialist’s equipment to be analyzed later if needed.

Trivia

Currently, membership in the Souls of Darkness is earned by being named the member of the month for House Caliburnus.