The Covenant of Steel

"With a raised sword and a gauntled fist, know that you have only the illusion of a true Guardsman. Even in peacetime there are great evils that would beset our lands, and against these, we are both the first and last line of defense. It is a great burden that we must shoulder - often without the glory or gratitude of our wartime armies, and many are not prepared or willing for this to be the case. For that purpose we have the Covenant; a test of will, of wits, and of fortitude. But it is also a test of dedication. Of brotherhood. It is how you truly become one of us; and in so doing, you will know that as you may give your life to the Imperium and still be forgotten by it's citizens, you will be forever immortal in the memory of the Guard."

-Tyros Brightmist.

Summary
The Covenant of Steel is a pact of brother- and sisterhood taken by all Blackguard initiates. Before a guardsman may swear their final oath and complete the Covenant there are three "trials" which they must undertake. These trials are all challenging and difficult in their own ways, but this is also the purpose as they ensure a remarkably high standard amongst those that succeed. Having not yet completed your trials involves a great social stigma amongst your fellow guardsmen, and it is not until afterwards, when the new recruit has endured what the others once endured, that they are truly welcomed into the fold.

While the Covenant causes many recruits to break, and has lead to a handful of deaths, it ensures a ruthless loyalty in the organizations' ranks. Dessertion, treason, corruption and similar problems are practically unheard of, and when they are uncovered, the offender is swiftly dealt with. The few times that this has happened, the guardsman in question has simply disappeared. The rumour being that they have been dragged off in the night, to be buried alive by their former brothers and sisters.

The Trial of Fortitude
On the first trial, the recruit is given a nerve toxin which they are required to drink. The consequence of imbibing the toxin is an immense and overwhelming pain - often described as if the body were on fire. The initial pain ebbs down after a few minutes, but the recruit will feel the aftereffects for estimately one to two full day, often feeling sore and/or suffering from intense headaches.

The purposes of this trial are many. First of all, the nerve toxin is known to increase the person's pain threshold as the toxin actually kills off or causes some of the recruit's nerve endings to degenerate. Secondly, the pain is said to be so intense that the recruit later tends to discard the thought of capture and torture by enemies as laughable in comparison; the thought is simply not as terrifying now that they have experienced the worst there is. Lastly, many guardsmen refuse to drink the toxin, or they are broken by the pain and give up all aspirations of joining the guard. This is seen as an effective way of weeding out cowards and those weak of will and conviction.

Ultimately, this trial seeks to explore the recruit's limits, and make him or her realize that all their fellow guardsmen have endured the same. Only they can understand what it was truly like, and this is intended to create a bond and/or understanding that was not there before.

The Trial of Adversity
The second trial is preferably taken once the recruit has had a chance to recover from the first. In the Trial of Adversity, the initiate is pitted to fight the most recent recruit to have completed the Covenant before them. Usually this Guardsman has already had a chance to take part of the organization's hard training, and they also wear all their issued equipment whereas the initiate wears regular clothes or merely the most basic protection. The initiate is pretty much expected to get disgraced and beaten up badly in this trial, and that is also the point.

Upon completing this trial, the recruit has earned his or her black armor, and they are expected to learn the importance of being well-equiped for combat. Furthermore, they will have seen first-hand the skills of a guardsman in action, and they will know just how high the standards are that they must live up to. The Guardsman who fought the recruit in this trial will later on usually be their main sparring partner, so the new recruit can see for himself just how much progress they have made since the first encounter.

The Trial of Blood
Before this trial is undertaken, the recruit must have chosen a weapon for himself. Once that is done, there are two ways in which the trial can unfold:

-One: If the Guard is keeping a prisoner sentenced to execution, it will be the recruit's task to take this prisoners' life.

-Two: If the former is not an option, then the recruit is taken out into the plaguelands and pitted against Scourge.

The point of this trial is that the recruit displays his or her willingness to kill on orders of the Guard and the Imperium. As they seal the Covenant in this way, the blood of their kill also baptizes their weapon, and afterwards the recruit is expected to give their weapon a name.

The Guardsman's weapon is considered their most prized possession, as upon their passing or retirement from the Guard, their weapon is hung on the barracks wall to symbolize that the Guardsman will be forever remembered by his comrades. The weapons of the most famous and legendary guardsmen become almost mythologized and revered, and often the Captain of the Guard may point to a weapon on the wall and tell his men about the bravery of the person who once took it in defence of the Imperium that they too serve even to this day.