Abbot and his Champion displaying their skills
Among the Nyss corrupted by the dragon’s blight, the swordsmen were the first to answer Everblight’s call. Many lost their sense of self, unable to comprehend what compelled them to hack apart their kin. Their hollowness aligned naturally with the meditative discipline of sword mastery, allowing them to evade the horror of their actions by concentrating solely on their skill. They turned emptiness itself into a form of spirituality, embracing an emotional void to achieve absolute perfection with the blade. Those who fully embraced this murderous meditation have since become the greatest blade masters of their race. These are the Abbots, both feared and respected within the Legion for the absolute calm with which they execute a variety of atrocities.[1]
The abbots have achieved something akin to a state of enlightenment, gaining a recognized ability to fight with utter dispassion and grace. The monks of the blade have attracted devotees from among the most skilled and disciplined swordsmen. Abbots and their students venerate not a god but the pure abstraction of the blight and the refinement it brings to their flesh. The best students are called champions, some of whom have learned to immerse themselves so completely in their art that they can perform the astonishing task of fighting with two claym ores in tandem.[1]