Keeper

The Guardian is a step at which the Giant's path finally turns from attack to defense. The difference from the Dawn Paladin is not one of nuance: in terms of toughness and strength it is like an adult beside a child. The Guardian holds back the bullets of a steam rifle, and in the wars of the steam age he can be killed only by concentrated heavy-caliber fire.

His own ability is called exactly that — Protection. Dropping to one knee and driving his sword before him, the Guardian raises two unbreakable invisible walls on both sides of himself and takes upon himself the damage meant for those nearby. If he fully abandons attack and goes into defense, almost no one below the high Sequences can break through him — regardless of what the enemy strikes with. One of the few exceptions is the Reapers: they are capable of passing through the Guardian's protection.

The second trait of the step is quiet but important: the Guardian does not yield to illusions. It is impossible to deceive him with a vision or a mirage, and everything he received earlier — the Dawn Sword, the Hurricane of Light, resistance to the otherworldly — at this level already strikes any creature.

The advancement ritual repeats the essence of the step: to become a Guardian, one must find someone one wishes to protect, and protect them for no less than a year. Here strength is granted not for victories, but for the responsibility one has accepted.