Order of the Knights of Dalmasca



The Order of the Knights of Dalmasca is the armed forces of the Kingdom of Dalmasca in Final Fantasy XII. It was originally under Basch fon Ronsenburg's Captaincy until his supposed treason, and Vossler York Azelas until he retreated to aid the Resistance. The Order play an integral part in Dalmasca's political strategies and status before the events of the game.

Notable Members

 * Basch fon Ronsenburg - Captain of the Order until his supposed treason in the year 704.
 * Vossler York Azelas - Captain alongside Basch and in his absence before he joins the Resistance.

Temporary Members/Allies

 * Sir Forz - General of Nabradia, placed as a spy within the Neo-Rozarrian faction.
 * Reks - One of the remnants of the knights following the Battle of Nalbina.
 * Rasler Heios Nabradia - Fought alongside the Order in the counter-attack on Nalbina Fortress.

Neo-Rozarrian Threat
In the wake of the Neo-Rozarria Faction rising and becoming more active, the Order sought out the help of Nabradia, and placed Sir Forz as a spy within the faction in order to monitor their movements. Through Forz, they learnt of an assassination attempt on King Raminas B'nargin Dalmasca was currently underway, and would lure the faction's members out of hiding. The faction planned to sneak into Raminas' bed chambers with help of their own spy, Marchioness Argas and stab Raminas whilst he slept. Unknown to the faction, the Order took Raminas and hid him in a secure room on the night of the planned attack, and instead, their Captain, Basch, lay waiting under Raminas' bed sheets.

Despite an unexpected interference from Princess Ashelia, the night went to the Order's plan; Argas made to stab Raminas, only to have Basch leap out of the bed and cut her arm off. The Order of the Knights of Dalmasca then stormed the room, lead by Vossler, and took the remaining faction members prisoner. The Neo-Rozarrian movement was defeated, but the Archadian threat was still growing on the horizon.

Final Fantasy XII
With King Raminas' assassination attempt foiled, the pro-Rozarrian faction in Nabradia abandoned subtlety and instead rose up in open rebellion in the year 704. The Archadian Empire, under the pretense of restoring order in the country, responded by invading Nabradia, and after dispatching Rozarrian troops headed for the capital, Nabudis, where - after a great battle - the city and the surrounding area were destroyed in a massive explosion of Mist, by Archadian Judge Zecht under Doctor Cidolfus Bunansa's order.

Knowing that Dalmasca would be next, Basch led the Order of the Knights to fight the Empire at the siege of Nalbina Fortress, joined by Lord Rasler. The battle began well, with the defenders using a combination of unmanned kamikaze airships filled with oil, the use of flaming arrows, and a chocobo cavalry charge to wipe out the Archadian vanguard. However, the main body of the Archadian army soon arrived, bolstered by the presence of two Judge Magisters. While the Order fought the army, a small task force under Judge Zargabaath teleported into Nalbina Fortress, intent on disabling the paling. Although Rasler was reluctant to disengage, he eventually listened to Basch's counsel and hurried back to Nalbina, but the damage had been done. The Archadian army, hot on their heels, were able to attack and enter the fortress before the defenses were fully prepared, and, with their attention divided, the Order were unable to prevent the task force from disabling the paling. With the odds stacked against them, Basch again suggested a retreat, but Rasler believed they could hold out longer. However, this proved to be a fatal mistake; an arrow went straight through Rasler's exposed neck, killing him, and severing the Royal House of Nabradia. Basch took his fallen lord and retreated to Rabanastre with the remnants of the Order.

Some time later Archadia and Dalmasca met at Nalbina to discuss a peace treaty. However, the heir to the Empire, Vayne Carudas Solidor, wished to press further and conquer Dalmasca, and hatched a plan to assassinate Raminas. Vayne leaked rumors of assassins to the Order, and Basch led a force to Nalbina Fortress, along with Vossler. Encountering too many enemy groups, Basch rushed to Raminas, while his forces - including Vossler and Reks - stayed behind to fight the Archadians. In King Raminas' chambers, Basch was attacked from behind by his twin brother Noah. With Basch incapacitated, Gabranth killed the King whilst impersonating his twin brother. The plan was successful; Basch was blamed for Raminas' death while the peace negotiations fell apart and Archadian forces took control of Dalmasca. Basch was found guilty of incitement of sedition, the assassination of King Raminas, and high treason. Archadia then publicly announced that they had executed him.

Afrer Basch's treason, Vossler retreated into the underground to help Princess Ashe with the Resistance. It is unknown what happened to the Order's Captaincy after these events.