House Ailurus
by Moonflower
0 Tomes 2 Tourneys
House Avis by Misades
0 Tomes 1 Tourney
House Chiroptera by Dani Adventures
1 Tome 0 Tourneys
A salmon pink banner with a white rabbit head in the center. Text:
House Lapin by Dani Adventures
2 Tomes 4 Tourneys
Meles Minor House Crest by Shyredfox
0 Tomes 3 Tourneys
House Mollusca by Dani Adventures
1 Tome 2 Tourneys
House Sauropoda by DaniAdventures/ShyRedFox
1 Tome 1 Tourney

Bodyguard

I protect the Crown and those who wear it

A Bodyguard is an elite royal guard, dedicated to the personal protection of a House Leader, House Heir, Regent, or Seneschal. It is their job to protect their leader from threats to their person, particularly against The Undead Horde.  

Game Mechanics:

Bodyguards protect the House Leadership from undeath in a Word War (November event.) If the Wheel of Misfortune selects the person the Bodyguard is protecting, the Bodyguard is taken by the Undead in their place. If more than one Bodyguard protects a given person, dice are rolled to determine which one of that person's protectors "dies."

Qualifications

Royal Bodyguards have spanned a broad range of skillsets, but in general, they tend to have combat or security training, or both. Occasionally, they are selected for their training in intelligence gathering, cybersecurity, or other similar skills. They must be Literomancers. They must also volunteer, by the terms of The Treaty of Monte Carlo.

Requirements

A Bodyguard must be demonstrably loyal to the House and/or House Leader they serve.   There are only five official Bodyguards allowed for any given House at any time, by the terms of the Treaty of Monte Carlo, although each Bodyguard may command their own small security unit with up to five other Literomancers in each unit.  

Game Mechanics:

Each House may only have up to FIVE Bodyguards in total for the purposes of game mechanics. Different positions within the House Leadership are entitled to different numbers of Bodyguards:
  • House Leader: up to four, the maximum permitted in any position
  • Regent: two maximum
  • Seneschal: two maximum
  • House Heir: only one
  • No PCs (player characters) can be part of the Bodyguard "sub units". Any literomancers in these positions are strictly NPCs (non-player characters.)

    Appointment

    A Bodyguard's authority is granted directly by a House Leader. Even if they wish to serve as a protector of another significant House member, it is the House Leader who makes the appointment and decision.

    History

    Each Bodyguard unit of the Great Houses has their own individual history that is beyond the scope of this article, some dating back thousands or even, literally, millions of years. Although there is likely a great deal of mythologizing among the Houses, it is historically documented that some of these protective Royal Guards have existed since at least the Middle Ages.   Much debate has taken place among the Houses over which of them established the new tradition of Royal Bodyguards, but literomancy-focused historians generally cite Owsla Captain James Woodwright as being the first to offer his protection to a modern leader of the Great Houses, with Owsla Commander DM Stretch being the second. While House Sauropoda and House Mollusca make claims of their Bodyguards being much older than even the Owsla — and that is almost certainly true — it seems that by the outbreak of The First Word War, Sauropoda lacked the numbers to maintain Royal Guards, and Mollusca had disbanded the tradition.   Following The Treaty of the Great Houses in 2021, the Great Houses signed The Treaty of Monte Carlo, limiting the numbers of their Bodyguards with the goal of not sparking a literomantic arms race between them, or creating concerning military build ups between Word Wars.

    Bodyguard Units

    WIP
    This article is a work in progress, and may be subject to changes.
    Streamer
    This article is part of a series related to streaming the Game of Tomes. For more information, see Streaming Game of Tomes.
    Missing
    Status: Location Unknown
    Deceased
    Status: Deceased Character
    Retired
    Status: Retired Character or Article

    House Meles

    Meles Minor House Crest by Shyredfox

    House Ailurus

    House Ailurus
    by Moonflower

    House Avis

    House Avis by Misades

    House Chiroptera

    House Chiroptera by Dani Adventures

    House Lapin

    A salmon pink banner with a white rabbit head in the center. Text:
    House Lapin by Dani Adventures

    House Mollusca

    House Mollusca by Dani Adventures

    House Sauropoda

    House Sauropoda by DaniAdventures/ShyRedFox

    Undead Horde

    Undead Horde by Dani Adventures

    Awards and Honors

    Gold and grey logo with book and text
    A badge or medal of a book - the Iron Tome - on a navy background. Text:
    Defender of the Realm by Misades
    A shining gold medal with a silver ribbon, showing a design of a laurel wreath with stars overhead. Text: Warden of the Risen Shore, and in a circle beneath, July 2025
    Warden of the Risen Shore medal by ShyRedFox
    Type
    Magical, Professional
    Status
    Active
    Form of Address
    Usually something similar to a military officer, with variations depending on one's House (ie. Captain Woodwright, Major Wayfinder, Commander Stretch)
    Alternative Naming
    Royal Guard
    Equates to
  • The Brocktrees (House Meles )
  • The Casters (House Avis )
  • The Ferals ( House Ailurus )
  • The Inkies(House Mollusca )
  • The Knightwings (House Chiroptera )
  • The Owsla (House Lapin )
  • The Raptor Squad (House Sauropoda )
  • Source of Authority
    The Leader of the House they serve
    Length of Term
    Until killed, retired, or dismissed
    First Holder
    Reports directly to
    Related Organizations
    Related Professions
    Related Military Formations
    The Treaty of Monte Carlo
    Document | Nov 29, 2023


    Cover image: by Canva

    Comments

    Please Login in order to comment!
    Powered by World Anvil