Order of Avis

The Order of Avis is a Chivalraic Military Order that was founded in 1128 in the small town of Avis in Lisboagal. Today, all Knights and Vikings from around the Antarctic, both Penguin or puffle, hail to this order.

History
The Order of Avis was founded in 1128 in the small town of Avis by a 12 lone knights who took part in the Reconquista of Lisboagal and Castilla from the Mwa Mwa invaders. Eventually, the Order rapidly grew and was one of the leading groups that helped liberate Lisboagal completely in 1300. By then, the King of Lisboagal made it the national order of the nation, with the Avis Castle as it's headquarters. For their bravery, the High Penguin Confederacy declared that the Order of Avis would become the main Chivalraic Order of Antarctica, with the King of the HPC and the Grand General of the Order in charge. Although the Order started with just knights, Viking warriors were allowed into the order in hopes that they would become more civilized and helpful towards society. Although Chivalry may have came to an end in the late 1400's, the Order continued, with it's Knight members decreasing and the Viking members increasing slightly. It wasn't until the late 1800's that the Order was revived and became popular once more. Prior to the 20th century, the Order of Avis has been involved in about 100 wars since it's beginning- it's first with the Castillan and Lisboagese Reconquista in the 1000's and ending with the Khanz Independence Revolts in the mid 1700's. When Khanzem rose to power in 1913, the Order of Avis declared war on them along with the Good Guys and allied with them, mostly the Vikings doing the fighting. The Order of Avis flourished again during Olde Antarctica and brought the revival of Knight members. During Colonial Antarctica in the 1990's, the Order stayed neutral, stating that the members should fight for whichever side they supported. Today, the Order of Avis is still honored by all Knights and the majority of Vikings in Antarctica.

Divisions
There are three divisions of the Order of Avis: the Knights, the Puffles, the Vikings, and the Commoner Armies.

Knights
Knights were the first to join the Order and are considered the highest of honor. Knights of the Order are highly respected in Lisboagal and Castilla and can lead to higher pensions when the knights retire and to have the opportunities to attend royal events like royal speeches, marriages, funerals, or crownings. Famous Knights in this division are Gottfried Hochstadt from Alemania and Joaquin Capela from Lisboagal. There are several Knights orders that are part of the Order of Avis, like the Teutonic Knights order of the German States. The Knights are considered the higher level members of the Order.

Puffles
The Puffle warrior division was created not long after the Knights since many puffles wished to fight and they wanted to join. The Puffle divisions consist of many different puffle warrior classes, from Knight Puffles, to Viking Puffle, to regular puffles who just wish to serve and fight for the order; they are the most common type of fighter in this division. The Puffle Division has two representatives on the Order's Council. Famous puffles in this order are Piper J. Cub and Leonardo di Tremezzo.

Vikings
Vikings joined the order after the knights and Puffles as brutal warriors who were brought in to become more civilized and kind towards society so they would be effective soldiers, not pirates. Luckily, the Order had an effect on them, and all the Vikings who joined the order became loyal to the common citizen and devoted their lives to fighting the enemies and criminals that wished to threaten civilians and themselves. The Vikings consist of the majority of the order (not counting puffles), although they are not considered to be of the highest class. They are considered below knights and equal to the Puffles but higher than the commoner armies. Famous members in this division are Jock Hochstadt and his deceased step father who was killed in the GSWI.

Commoner Armies
The Commoner Armies are armies from countries that have hailed to the Order. Commoner National armies that are part of and serve the Order are the Armies of Lisboagal, the Army of Castilla, the Army of Frankterre, the Army of Puffle'and, and the Army of Batavia. Despite the national armies that serve the order, there are also some smaller and original militias and small armies that serve the Order. The Commoner Armies are considered the lowest class in the Order, and they are mostly the fighters and the ones always told what to do, no matter if one is a high rank in the commoner army; the only penguin from the Commoner Armies that can have power are the representatives for the Council.

Coat of Arms


The Coat of Arms was created in 1128 by a Knight named João da Lisboa, who was inspired to make this coat of arms after seeing the unique cross shape in the midst of a burnt down building. The Coat of arms is placed on the shields of knights who are hard core members of the order. Other hard core members, like General Hermosa of Castilla, wears the order's coat of arms on a white tapestry that drapes over his armor.

Duties
The Order of Avis is a non-profit organization and Military Order that has sworn to protect citizens from the harms of brutal attacks from enemies. The Order has sworn to keep liberty and order in the Ninja Archipelago as well as all of Antarctica and despises corruption. Besides military, the Order helps poorer penguins and puffles in need, and has donation drives to help provide poor penguins and puffles have food to eat and a decent shelter to live in. Otherwise, the members of the Order are summoned to battle by the Council through the mail and the news.

Ranks
The Order has a set of ranks that applies to all divisions except for the National Armies, where they have their own. Here are a list of them, from lowest to highest.

Member
When one joins the Order of Avis, they immediately become a member. A Member will always stay a member unless if they wish to take part in military activities, which means that they can immediately be promoted to Novice. Otherwise, penguins and puffles who serve the order but do not fight stay as Members and can not go up unless they decide to fight for the order.

Novice
The Novice is the first rank that one starts out as after Member. The Novice can not fight yet but must prove themselves worthy by helping at the Order's charity drives that usually occur in the Ninja Archipelago and assist regular members in battle with ammunition. Once those service hours are complete, one can start training at the Avis Castle in Lisboagal. Once training is done, one is promoted from Novice to Fighter.

Fighter
The Fighter is the most common rank and is where most fighting members end up to be. Fighters are commanded by their higher authorities and can not command anyone except for the Novices, who can assist them in battle. Fighters, as the name suggest, do all the fighting on the battlefield.

Commander
If one is purely a true follower of the order, a fighter is promoted to Commander once they prove to the council that they are very loyal to the order and they usually have to attend and take part of 3 - 5 battles and show characteristics of a true leader. Commanders control one troop or one small army/militia that is not affiliated with any other country of a specific group of Knights, Vikings, or puffles. (However, only a puffle can be a commander of a puffle group)

Captain
Commanders who take part in 10+ battles and show high levels of leadership traits are promoted to the rank of Captain, who can oversee up to ten small armies or troops from the other divisions not affiliated with a country. Captains are usually the candidates to be representatives on the Order's Council.

Council Member
The Council Member is elected by the rest of the Council and is typically a Captain. There are about 15 representatives on the council, not counting the Grand General. the Council Members are also considered Generals and they retain their position for life unless if they are kicked out for misconduct or power abuse. The council members are the ones who debate on declaring war, donating money, etc. The Council also elects the Grand General of the Order, who is typically among them.

Grand General of the Order of Avis
The Grand General is typically a member on the Council who has had several years of experience on it. The General must be very dedicated, generous, and reasonably pure. Council members that have done scandalous deeds in the past are not allowed for this position. The Grand General commands the whole order and tells them what to do and has the final say and can veto the Council's decision if he felt so, but they can override his veto with a 3/4ths vote. The Grand General serves his term for life unless he is kicked out by the Council.

Meetings


The Order of Avis have their council meetings every Saturday in the Avis Municipality, Lisboagal. During a meeting, the order discusses issues like where to donate their money, what is going on in the Antarctic, and they sometimes decide if they should go to war or not if another country of group is a threat to them.

Trivia

 * It is the parody of the Order of Aviz.


 * The Order has taken part in many wars, including some of the Great Snowzerland Wars.


 * The Order will take part heavily in the great war in The Last Stand and invaded Liguria in One Last Hope.