"Warden" is a title of sorts, rather than a singular group or guild. Knights who have forsaken their vows, or those who refuse to accept their lordships, often become Wardens. Their oath is simple, yet a binding sacrament that all Wardens follow:
I am a Warden
I forsake my claims, my titles, and my nobility, instead vowing to never rest until all of Tania is safe. I vow to fight all enemies, be they natural or otherworldly, until my dying breath or until Tania is free of their evil. I will aid my brothers who bear the title of Warden, forsaking my own goals to preserve their lives. I will raise my sword in service to my King should he ever call for it, and I shall lay down my life for his. This I swear.
I forsake my claims, my titles, and my nobility, instead vowing to never rest until all of Tania is safe. I vow to fight all enemies, be they natural or otherworldly, until my dying breath or until Tania is free of their evil. I will aid my brothers who bear the title of Warden, forsaking my own goals to preserve their lives. I will raise my sword in service to my King should he ever call for it, and I shall lay down my life for his. This I swear.
Most Wardens hire themselves out as mercenaries, sellswords, or bounty hunters all across Peranda, though they rarely, if ever, leave the continent. Some Wardens have gathered into guilds of sorts, though these often only last a short time before disbanding for various reasons.
Wardens are often feared by locals, who almost superstitiously believe that they are bad omens. "Death follows a Warden," is a widespread saying used to refer to any sort of bad omen but originated with the Wardens. Since they often kill or capture someone when they ride into town, sometimes without explanation, many people think that they are kidnappers or raiders since their true story isn't widely known.
The Wardens are in constant conflict with the Cronehunters, an order founded by King Thanis Greymoor hundreds of years ago to hunt users of Blood Magic and necromancers. Eventually, the order expanded to hunt anything that their Grand Master deemed "unnatural." In this way, they clash with the Wardens because their missions are often the same, but the Cronehunters resort to brutal, even barbaric methods to achieve their ends. In recent years, their quest has expanded even more to hunting non-humans of any sort (excluding Orks, who are protected by the Scorpath Accords).
