Swords of the Lady

The Swords of the Lady, commonly called the Lunatics, were a fanatical knightly order devoted to the goddess Selûne the Moonmaiden.

Membership
The order was led by a handful of crusaders, mystics, and silverstars and comprised clerics, druids, rangers, and mystic wanderers.

Dress
The Lunatics were known to dress all in white, with pants, vests, boots, gloves, and long flowing cloaks. They also wore all-covering cloth masks, with only eyeholes to show their features and symbols of the moon in silver on their foreheads.

Activities
Their actions were widely regarded as strange and eccentric, and people thought them mad, hence their nickname, "Lunatics". They were wild and joking and treated battle as a fun game. They carried weapons, but might not use them, instead fighting unarmed. They seemingly enjoyed creating havoc. They were utterly unpredictable in their tactics, but not without purpose—they might suddenly jump out of a window, but then use telekinesis to drag their foes out with them.

However, when the Swords of the Lady responded to threats from the goddess Shar the Nightsinger, they acted swiftly, logically, and ruthlessly.

These zealots were ready to die for their faith. However, thanks to their close association with the church of Selûne, death was usually temporary.

They could travel great distances in a short time, suggesting the order commanded teleportation magic or had access to a network of fey crossroads and backroads.

History
They were an ancient order, having existed during the time of the empire of Netheril, which fell in.

During the Time of Troubles in the Year of Shadows, 1358 DR, four Lunatics operated at the House of the Moon temple in Waterdeep, together with a new mage member, Luna. They ambushed Onyx and Timoth when they infiltrated the temple seeking Luna and evidence on the false avatar of Selûne. The Lunatics pushed the pair down the stairs and hurled them out of the temple before trying to subdue them within a forcecage. Vajra and Kyriani came to their rescue, and the group defeated the Lunatics. They caught Luna, thinking she was Shar, Selûne's divine rival, and unmasked her, and were shocked to find their brainwashed friend Luna, while the false avatar of Selûne was in fact Shar herself.

They were still active in the mid–14 century DR.

Background
The Lunatics are likely based on the historical notion that foolish, crazed, epileptic, or mentally ill people were affected by the moon, in the condition called lunacy, and such people "lunatics". Indeed, the word means "of the moon" or "moonstruck". Regardless, there is no proof, in our world, of this lunar effect.

A more direct inspiration may be the comic superhero Moon Knight, also a knight in service to a moon god; also wearing white clothes, cloak, and mask; and also unpredictable with an apparent mental illness.

Appearances

 * Comics:
 * Advanced Dungeons & Dragons
 * vol. 3, issue 21: "Phases of the Moon: Third Quarter: Lunatics"