Lady Alicia of Frickham, former paladin, sits quietly and alone in the common room of the Bottle and Jug. Her strawberry blonde hair lies neatly braided over each armor plated shoulder, each festooned with a single raven feather. Her blue eyes are half closed. She has drawn a beer, but not caring much for alcohol -- a leftover, perhaps, of her training -- she nurses it slowly. She hasn't come to drink.

Her weapons of choice are ready -- her father's longsword, her lochebar axe, her daggers, her crossbow. But here she does not need them. It is why she likes this place.

A gnoll approaches her table -- like her he is heavily armed and armored, although his weapons are at peace. Despite his clawlike feet, his step is quiet. He is holding the upper arm of a misshapen elf and pulls him toward her.

"What've you got, Tig," she says to the gnoll.

The beast looks at her with his surprisingly steady yellow eyes. The fangs slur his words, but she has come to understand him well enough.

"Dis is Firouz Quicksilver, Lisha," he snarls. "Of de Lower Ward. Silver's a Knight O' the Post, plane touched. He no ledderhead dough. Asked me about joineeng. I test him. He pass."

Alicia's eyes open fully, exposing her guests to their unexpected brightness.

"A knight of the post? Are you sure about this one, Tiger?" she asks evenly. "We don't have a lot of cutters of that persuasion among us. They . . . tend to not keep their promises."

Tiger is about to say something, when the scurvy elf interrupts. "I always keep my word," he whispers. "Always."

Alicia raises an eyebrow at that. [Not afraid of me, that's for sure. I believe him too. Good.]

"Do you have a job, Silver?" she asks.

"I make my own way. Don't owe nobody no money. Don't take what I shouldn't." The elf's eyes are mismatched. One is blue, the other black. One leg is shorter than the other. His back is humped.

[Poor berk isn't gonna be much in a fight . . . still there is more to it than that anyway.] "So, how's the jink get to your pocket, Mr. Silver?"

The elf stares right into her eyes, even with Tig still fastened to his forearm. "I peel the pikers that have earned it off me. That's how." He is expression is unchanged. He is unapologetic. He also looks hopeful.

She reaches into a soft felt bag at her belt and pulls out a raven feather. "You know what this means?"

"Lady, that's what brought me here," answers the elf, brightening.

Alicia smiles at him.

"OK. Let him loose Tig. I'll give him the screed -- but looks to me like he is already as much one of us as the next featherhead."

The gnoll snarls and roughly releases the elf's arm. Then he slaps him none to gently on the back. "Ven ya done vid de Lady, come over and I give you de tumble to de rest of de mates dat roost here."

The elf nods, but does not look away from Alicia.

"Here Silver," says Alicia, kicking out a chair. The elf slowly twists his body into it, although he looks more uncomfortable than when he was standing.

"When you take this feather, you become one of us. When you are one of us . . ."

"You will be my brothers and sisters," the elf says quietly. "I hold your lives in my hand, and you hold mine in yours. I do not abandon my own goals, but I know that there is no greater truth than that of our bond. So shall I be true to myself, and thereby serve all that wear the token, and overcome forever the misery of slavery and tokenism. We shall stand and fall together."

Alicia raises her eyebrow again. "Not bad, elf. Did Tig teach you that?"

"No. I keep my ears open for things that sound right to me."

Alicia smiles at that. "You must be well-lanned then. Do you know the house rules?"

The elf shakes his head. "Don't get in here much."

"Simple. Don't touch the raven-man's bird. The bird's as much of part of us as you are anyway, so you might as well let it go where it wants and eat what it wants. Second, don't interfere with the Fivers -- unless asked, of course. Some of us have pulled a little duty." Alicia thinks about her own tour in the Abyss. She wouldn't wish that fate on anyone. "And most importantly -- do not touch the raven-man's lover. And I mean touch in every sense of the word that you can imagine."

The elf snorts. "As if. Lady, the girls ain't in line for Silver, and I like it that way. I pay for it when I need to and I got the jink."

"I am not talking about just sex, Silver. Don't touch her. If she so much as gets a hair out of place, the raven-man can come down on the body that done it pretty hard."

"Okay, okay, I get it. I'm not slow."

"So I see. All right, you're in. Congratulations. I shouldn't have to say more - but you being a knight of the post and all -- I will. Don't get scragged. A bunch of us will likely end up in the dead book during the ride trying to get you back."

Silver smiles at her. He has a nice smile. "And let everyone down? Scragged . . . heh, heh. Not me."

History and Philosophy
The Oathbound, having been founded just under two years ago, are the newest of the sects on the Outer Planes. As such, they are also the smallest - numbering not quite a score of members. In spite of these two factors, the group still has a fairly sound, and potentially unique, philosophical outlook. However, it remains to be seen if the sect can survive the passing of either its current leader or its source of inspiration.

Despite being such a new sect, the Flock has a rather divergent history. The origins of the group lie in two separate, but linked, sources. The link between the two sources is a resident of Sigil and a member of the adventuring company The Fivers - an Athasian gladiator called Killraven. Half of the sect's history can be traced to a common experience of the bulk of its members. These beings - originally known by the derisive nickname of "the Featherheads" - were nothing more than followers of Sigil's gladiatorial combat circuit. At that time, Killraven was a popular and successful competitor of the sport. The Featherheads were those spectators who had become vocal fans and strong supporters of the Athasian. Although they had a common background - all of them considered themselves as outcasts and outsiders and thus readily identified with Killraven - and all followed the gladiator, after a fashion, the group did not have the spark of philosophy required to become a sect until the Featherheads met up with the other branch of their history, the Lady Alicia of Frickham (who is the sect's founder and current leader.) She encountered these sports fans through her own experience with Killraven. It was this ex-paladin who gave the group vision beyond Killraven's fights and turned them into a sect. (See below for Lady Alicia's history.)

The Oathbound are probably one of the more unusual sects in existence. One reason is that the group's central philosophy was introduced after the core of its membership had already come together. Another is that while the sect was founded because of one person (Killraven), that person has no involvement with the sect and is only vaguely aware of their presence. A third reason is that the sect started in Sigil, the home turf for the factions. In addition to all of that, the sect hasn't yet been recognized as such by either the factions, the other sects, or even the Ravens themselves.

The philosophy of the Flock has three central tenets. The first states that if a being is to have any hope of surviving in the multiverse he must be true to himself. One cannot live life trying to please others or live up to their expectations; a person should live according to what their heart tells them to be true. The second tent of the Oathbound is that friends and family are important - more so than one's self. If you are true to yourself, the friends that you make will be true and loyal. By declaring someone a friend, you have given them an oath that you will help and support them, no matter what. The final tenet of the sect is that amongst friends everyone is equal. Certainly, some people can do things that others can't, but no one is worthless and to be ignored. This philosophy also helps to set the Oathbound apart from the other sects and the factions. It is one of the few philosophies that addresses a primarily internal meaning as opposed to defining the point of the external multiverse.

Sect HQ
Being a new and rather informal sect, no one place can be considered an official base of operations, a place dedicated to the ideals of the Oathbound. However, that is not to say there isn't a location where the sect gathers its strength. The Flock uses the Bottle and Jug tavern in Sigil's Hive Ward as their unofficial headquarters. It is a convenient meeting place more than an actual base of operations. While this is partly due to the fact that nearly all members of the sect are residents of the Hive Ward, it's mainly due to the presence of Killraven. Whenever the Athasian gladiator is in Sigil, he spends most of his time here.

Allies and Enemies
Even though the sect is exclusively present in Sigil, it has very little interaction with the factions. This is partly due to its newness, but is mainly due to its very limited sphere of influence and membership. However, being a sect, members of the Oathbound are able to find common ground with several of Sigil's factions. The Featherheads will grudgingly admit to admiring the Harmonium's sense of unity, but otherwise they generally despise the Hardheads as they are the ones most likely to antagonize the sect members. The Featherheads also share some similarities with the Fated (make a living by what you get) and the Ring-Givers (share with others). In general, none of the factions are considered enemies (except, perhaps, the Harmonium - but this is based more on occupation than philosophy). However, they tend to view the Sensates as frivolous. They also take a dim view of the Doomguard and the Anarchists. Both these groups are dedicated the destruction of things, while the Ravens are trying to build something.

Membership
While there are no real restrictions on joining the sect, most of its members tend to come from the lower social classes, the downtrodden, and those who are discriminated against. In some sense, the sect is similar to the many thieving "schools" that appear and disappear in Sigil (a group which is united mainly by the presence of a charismatic leader). At its core, the Oathbound are a family. While everyone can go their own way, the group is what's truly important.

Advantage and Disadvantages
There are no additional disadvantages for joining the Oathbound - the members usually have enough problems of their own. The main advantage of becoming part of the Flock is that the members now have a relatively large network of friends and resources that they didn't have access to before. It is now much easier to get the chant on the street, as well as find someone who has a needed talent. Also, those members who were really desperate prior to joining gain an increased sense of self-worth and personal value. They feel like people again.

Role-playing
Most members are of the typical "street rat" archetype. They are poor, and generally despised by the rest of society. Among their fellow members, they are very friendly and supportive. To everyone else, they are at best cautious; at worst, hostile. The Featherheads are quick to defend any of their members, regardless of personal cost. Additionally, all members of the Flock are perpetually in awe of Killraven, Lilah, and the rest of the Fivers (in that order). If a member of the Oathbound hears that Killraven or Lilah need something, they will do their best to provide. And, above all other things, a member of the Oathbound always keeps his word - always.

The Leaders
Lady Alicia of Frickham (Human/planar/female/ex-paladin [fighter]/Lawful Good)

Alicia first met Killraven through the greedy and self-interested actions of his fellow Fivers, Rogan of the Fated and Chakan of the Doomguard. At one point, the Fivers were low on funds and accepted a job as messengers for an unknown patron. They were to deliver a letter to a succubus named Chiryn who lived on the first layer of the Abyss. While they were in her tower, Rogan discovered that on of the Major Arcana for the Tarot Deck of Many Things was present. Having been fooled by the fiend's hospitality, Rogan assumed that he could easily come back and steal the Card from the tower. He convinced Killraven and Chakan to help him do so. The Doomguard, in turn, managed to convince the government of Excelsior - the gate-town to Mt. Celestia - to "loan" a few paladins to accompany the three Fivers on a mission to the Abyss to "smite some evil". Naturally, Chakan and Rogan cared nothing for these holy knights and fully expected to use them as a disposable distraction that would allow them to slip in and steal the Card. The Lady Alicia of Frickham was one of those paladins.

As is the case with nearly all things in the Lower Planes, the tower and the succubus were not as they appeared. The small group encountered much stronger resistance than they anticipated, which led to the repulsing of the strike force and the death of all but one of the paladins - Alicia. She was saved because of direct action on the part of Killraven. While it was obvious that the paladins were acting as rearguard to let the Fivers escape, Killraven turned back and pulled Alicia out of the fiends which were about to kill her. Such selfless actions on the part of an obvious atheist and heathen introduced the first cracks of doubt in her faith. Upon returning to Excelsior and witnessing the uncaring response to her companions' deaths on the party of the city council, her faith shattered. She renounced her paladin status and left the gate-town, heading for Sigil to try and find Killraven and follow him instead, as he obviously understood what loyalty and keeping one's oath meant far more than her supposed superiors.

However, once in Sigil, she lost her nerve to openly approach Killraven. Instead, she took to following him and watching his activities. Alicia soon realized that while Killraven did not need a fallen paladin tagging on his heels, his ideals and beliefs should be shared with those who needed them the most - the outcasts of society, those who were abandoned or ignored because they were different, or expendable. So she quietly began working in the Hive Ward of Sigil, seeking out not those who needed such help, but those who wanted it. Those who could understand the importance of what Killraven stood for. While doing so, she encountered the Featherheads - the fans of Killraven's pit fights. The ex-paladin sensed in them the desire for help that she sought. So, Lady Alicia approached the group and was quickly able to bring them over to her views. As a result, the Oathbound was officially formed as a sect.

Tiger (Gnoll/prime/male/ranger/Chaotic Good)

As is the case with nearly all of the Oathbound, Tiger is an outcast amongst his race. In his case, the reason is that he was not raised by gnolls, but by a human ranger. Tiger's tribe had made the mistake of taking to pillaging human villages. Naturally, these settlements pooled their resources and hired a band of adventurers to come in and solve the problem - permanently. The group's scout, a ranger by the name of Corin, saved Tiger from death as he was only a newborn cub. Surprisingly and in defiance of most experiments of this sort, Corin was successfully able to raise Tiger as a son and keep him from giving in to his bestial nature and returning to the ways of evil. Unfortunately, this meant that Tiger was now unable to fit into two societies - any gnoll would view him as weak and kill him, while the "civilized" races would always view him with suspicion since he was a "monster" and therefore different.

Tiger was brought to the planes by an arcanaloth. The fiend thought it would be amusing to use the similar appearance of the two races to sow some confusion amongst an adventuring group made up of both planars and primes. The gnoll managed to survive being used as a doppleganger and soon made his way to Sigil. It was only a few hours after his arrival in the City of Doors that he first met Lady Alicia of Frickham.

They met when she pulled him from one of the ward's numerous ooze puddles, saving his life. A few days later, Tiger returned the favor when the gnoll came to her rescue from a street gang she had offended. They soon became friends, and he eventually pledged himself to her cause. With the founding of the Oathbound, Tiger has become Lady Alicia's second-in-command, and essentially the co-leader of the sect.