The Ranger Oath

The Ranger Oath are the words that have been spoken by the members of the Ranger Order for the past 400 years but had changed slightly during the Order's service to the Kingdom of Ostal, namely that their oath named their loyalty to the realm, as opposed to the king, as originally intended by King William II in 1593. When these words are spoken it is usually in presence of the Lord-Commander of the Order, or any of his Ranger-Commanders and spoken within one of the Shrines spread throughout the realm.

The name of the Rangers, the Grey Rangers, refers to the state of the world they live in. The world has never been black and white, it is always painted in shades of grey and like the world, the Rangers will not always adhere to a black and white morality, but instead are always willing to adhere to a more practical and morally grey approach.

Meaning

"There is no higher honour than serving the realm."
With this the candidate states that the realm will be at the forefront of their motivations and actions as nothing else outdoes serving the realm.

"Through my work, our people will be secure. Through the security of our people, we will advance."
Here the candidate states that the people of the realm come second, their security second only to that of the realm and the Ranger's actions are to be aimed to first the protection of the realm and secondly to its people.

"As we advance, we shall rise higher and higher and we will bring peace, stability and order to our homelands."
Having said this, the candidate thus pledges that the advancement of the people, and thus the realm, is the path with which they want to achieve their goals of peace, stability and order. But this also states that the homelands, not just that of the Ostalians, but also those of Wandermere, Dragonbay and the Reach, all are part of the realm, and that those too should be protected and advanced.

"I, [name of the candidate], hereby forfeit my family and titles and pledge my undying loyalty to the realm and the Ranger Order."
The candidate forfeits whomever they were before becoming a Ranger, promising that their future is pledged towards the safety and advancement of the realm, and thus stating that the realm is more important than their family and whatever place in society they had beforehand. Lastly they pledge their undying loyalty to the realm first, and the Ranger Order second, meaning that the Ranger Order is not the realm, merely its protector.

"I will be your Grey Ranger."
The last thing the candidate says before becoming a member of the Ranger Order. Here they state that they shall be "your" Grey Ranger, referring to the realm itself and promising this in front of the Guardian Spirits.