Men of the Gauntlet

The Men of the Gauntlet, often shortened to "Skull Knights" based on their banners, are a profane Chivalric Order headquartered in Skull Rock, near Southport in the Frontier Counties of Bastonia. As a profane order they are dedicated to The Enemy, and while long thought extinct and the surviving members simply pretenders to the title, the expansion of the kingdom into the Frontier Counties has lead to the discovery of their nacent strongholds, though they are too few in number to wage direct war with the rest of the Kingdom.

The commanding officer of the Skull Knights is known as its Warlord and is said to be appointed by the Enemy himself. While ultimately subservient to the Enemy, the Skull Knights profess material fealty to the Antebishop of Whiterock.

The blazon of the Men of the Gauntlet is Sable, a closed fist argent, from which they draw their name. High Ranking Officers, especially those who have been knighted, are further entitled to an additional blazon: Party per pale sable and gules, a gauntlet clenched argent bendwise sinister, a skull argent in chief, though most such officers are nobility in their own right and by dispensation carry their personal arms impaled sinister to the order's arms. Bearing arms openly is rare and usually done only in strongholds of the order.

The Skull Knights are few in number, occupying only Skull Rock permanently, though minor bands occasionally occupy other abandoned or concealed positions throughout the Frontier Counties. They are unable to recapture the city of Southport, now held by the Sacred Order of the Vault, knights of San Marino, and are so prevented from a retreat to sea. While not truly besieged, they are effectively surrounded.