**The Adamantine Arrow** Virtue untested is worthless. This truth is hidden by a Fallen World designed to aggressively and insidiously destroy enlightenment. The Lie oppresses souls, crushing them under somnolent burdens. Beyond the Abyss lies the ideal perfected self, a concept that can only be embodied by struggling against the Lies. Everyone is involved in this struggle, leaving the Awakened as the only ones aware they’re embroiled in a universal conflict. Every Order practices offensive and defensive occult techniques, but the Adamantine Arrow internalizes the metaphor of eternal war as principle. More than that, they seek to serve as soldiers and generals in this war, fighting to maintain their magic. Arrows are the guardians and wardens of the Pentacle, warriors of the Diamond, fighting against stagnation and complacency. They typically hold a majority of non-leadership roles in Consilia and Convocations (and no few Assemblies), as community-oriented duties find fulfillment within their philosophy. Above all else, their magic calls for dedication: striving for a chosen goal against meaningful opposition. **The Adamant Way** Created by millennia-worth of treatises from dozens of cultural standpoints and containing a multitude of philosophical schools, the Way can be divided into five precepts — the Hand — just as five fingers make a fist. The metaphor is simple: Hands are the primary gates for the sense of touch and the means to work one’s will; they create or destroy in equal measure, translating human desire into physicality. * Existence is War * Adaptability is Strength * Service is Mastery * The Supernal //is// the Self * Enlightenment is Honor **Mysteries** Arrows look for Mysteries that threaten their charges, seeking to understand malicious magic with superior knowledge and craft intent to better end the threat. They seek to aid other Diamond Orders in the often-perilous experience of investigating their own Mysteries. Alternately, an Arrow will swear oaths to uncover a secret, proving dominance with self-mastery by pitting herself against a singular foe. An attractive Mystery for an Arrow involves a test or contest of his skill; Arrows are disappointed when the Fallen World gives up its secrets too easily. **Magical Symbolism: Attack and Defense** The Arrow doesn’t consider all wars to be martial, but more often than not their symbolism relies on weaponry, tools that extend power in the realm of physical combat. In a philosophy based on eternal war, a weapon must be at hand at all times. Arrow tools favor the sword or the pistol, two weapons that have no other use than to take a life, though this is more a preference than anything else — after all, adaptability is strength, and anything than can be wielded as a weapon by the average person has a place in Arrow symbolism. Besides armor and other protective gear, charms that protect the user from physical or spiritual harm also feature prominently among Arrow tools — amulets, dreamcatchers, bandolier bags. In the ideal Awakened society postulated by the Diamond’s Atlantean symbolism, the Adamantine Arrow embodies //Ungula Draconis//, the Talon of the Dragon: righteous warriors who fight to keep the flame of human power alive in an age of darkness. **Order Rote Skills** * Athletics, Intimidation, Medicine