The Mountain Sentinels

Duties

• Keeping the five passes into the Realm open and safe in all seasons
• Winter rescue on the mountains and the four resorts
• The guard of Charter Square and the Warden's House
• Escort of the High Warden on the First Descent and the last run of the season
• The torches of the Winter Solstice walk

Strength and command

The Sentinels number 120, in five companies, one for each pass. They are commanded by a Captain appointed by the High Warden, and the Warden of the Passes directs their winter work. Every Sentinel is a Luxian citizen and a skier of the first rank; the entrance test has been the same since the 1890s, a timed descent of the Cinder from summit to Purgnar.

Uniform

In summer, dark green with the gold lion on the shoulder. In winter, the red and gold ski suit of the Realm, worn since the first lift opened in the 1950s and instantly visible against snow. The Sentinel's badge is a single mountain in gold.

The Sentinel's oath

Sentinels take the Oath of the Mountain like every citizen, and add one line: "Where the pass is, I will be." A Sentinel who completes twenty winters is named a Warden of the Pass and keeps the badge for life.

History

The Sentinels were the first institution of the Realm, formed by Zevi the Great from the pass keepers of the five valleys before the Charter was written. Their first duty was to keep the road open for the councils coming to Valdoria in June 1723.