Knights & Mages (The Illustrated Edition)

by Thomas Lim

  6. Order of the Eye

  The reference to the organ of sight in their title is in fact misleading, for mages of the Order seldom, in fact, take much note of what they observe with that sense. The word Eye here refers more to the Inner Eye, as it is often called - the sixth sense. Mages from the Order of the Eye specialize in skills of the mind - clairvoyance; advanced telepathy, telekinesis and pyrokinesis; illusion and hallucination; animal communication and Lower Theugery and Necromancy, in which they commune with animal spirits and ghosts.

  The Eye reference also points to a somewhat disturbing habit of the mages of this Order - when speaking to someone, they never look quite directly at the person, but rather through him, or slightly behind him, and appear to be keenly observing that which no-one else can see rather than the outward appearance of the person. Indeed, they barely notice anyone’s face; they recognize those they know by the familiar thought-pattern. Conversing with a mage of the Order of the Eye can be quite disconcerting indeed, especially when one does not know exactly what they might be seeing.

  * * * * *

  7. The Apprentices of Merlin

  A self-explanatory title. The Apprentices of Merlin are chosen by the archmage at a very young age. Unlike other Orders, members of this privileged group are bestowed their titles at once and are then made to live up to them, rather than earning them in the usual way. This is no doubt due to Merlin’s powers of prescience, enabling him to foresee which Apprentice has the potential to hold what title. High Apprentice is the most highly-ranked title; even this is given prematurely to the bearer’s earning it.

  Although Merlin has been imprisoned for many years now, he is still able to speak to us through an artifact known as the Seeker’s Opal, a large nugget of the precious substance covered with a glowing rune construct. The Opal was, according to Merlin, found in his prison; he cast a spell on it and managed to get it smuggled out, after which it was brought, by unknown means, all the way to the owner of a small curio shop. Along the way the Opal’s spell of telepathic communication had become hopelessly jumbled, probably due to some hack magician attempting to cast the spell, unable to unravel it, and figuring the construct was wrong.

  Many other magicians attempted to put the focus back together, jumbling the runes even more, till finally a young mage found it in the curio shop and managed to solve the puzzle. The Opal was brought to the Guild, and Merlin promptly made the young man High Apprentice, on the spot. The Opal has recently been handed over to another of Merlin’s Apprentices.

  The Mage’s Guild

  Guild mages wear robes which differentiate them from non-guilders. The robes vary in color according to rank.

  Basic-level members wear brown, and the intermediary levels are garbed in ascending levels of pale blue, maroon, indigo and deep blue or black. The Guildmaster wears a complex badge that none of the other guilders are allowed to wear. The location of the Mage Guildhouse is usually a meticulously-kept secret, though it can appear to unskilled eyes when the Guild members need it to.

  The Knighthood

  By Sir Delyus, Knight of the Dolorous Blade

  The knighthood is perhaps one of the earliest established codes in history. No one really remembered when or how knights came into being. Ever since the first armies were formed, the legends have chronicled deeds of velour shown by knights and warriors in battles. Through the ages, the knighthood has undergone drastic changes and divergent, even opposing doctrines of chivalry had been formulated. The Codex of Knighthood in Bretunia is but one of the many codes in the world of knights.

  The legends recorded that two factions came into being during the Age of War as a result of a heavy dispute amongst the warrior class. Many knights began to question the sovereignty of the king. The notion that the kingship be inherited was severely challenged and refuted. Many knights rebelled against this system and tried to initiate Kingship through might at war. Their chant was a simple one: 'The greatest knight shall be king!' Leading this camp at that time was a fiercesome warrior known as 'The Sapphire Knight'. His name was Aventus and was renowned for his exploits in war. But that is another story which I will leave for another day.

  Training for knighthood starts young – best age is seven, although training houses will accept those up to the age of twelve, but no older. The students – also known as tutelaries, generally go through five years of basic training and schooling, including combat, weapons knowledge and maintenance, horsemanship, marksmanship, swimming, field survival, hunting, astrology and metalsmithing. All knights have a basic weapons repertoire of double-handed and broadsword, shortsword and shield, and lance. Every tutelary then chooses to be trained to become proficient in one of the above. After the years of basic training are completed, a tutelary can be accepted as a squire to a knight, and become designates for the three basic Orders of Broken Spear (Splitspar), Dolorous Blade and the Crowned Shield.

  Blacks, Greys, Whites

  We are the Camelot Knights

  When we get into fights

  We’ll punch out all your lights!

  Blacks, Greys, Whites

  We wear steel, not tights

  We protect Bretunia’s rights

  We are the Camelot Knights!

  - campfire song of the Camelot Knights

  Although knights look dashing in battle, but as the song demonstrates, in the end, they are just a bunch of blokes in steel with huge weapons. Those found worthy find themselves received into one of the Three Orders of Knighthood - and the really outstanding ones stand a chance to be granted a seat in the ranks of the Knights of the Round Table. The colors referred to in their song relate to their armor coating and banner colors. All the battalions of Bretunic order take after one of the basic colors of Black, White or Grey. The Round Table knights do not have their own color, but use those of the ruling house.

  After the death of Arthur, David of Cador - the present King Constantine’s father - was the one who reunited Bretunia and rehabilitated it from its trials. As a result, King David was extremely popular, and men flocked to his support, asking to serve him as knights. So large were their numbers - all of them warriors of varying degrees of skill - that King David was able to form a full Order of them.

  He persuaded Arthur’s surviving knights into serving him as teachers and weapon-masters to his new loyal defenders, and hired several scholars as Mentors to educate the knights properly (for, to put it frankly, he had discovered that many of these men were frightfully stupid. It was not their fault - the years of war had taken its toll on the state of education).

  These veterans put together a course of study and physical training that has been expanded upon with each new generation of knights. The King himself headed this order, and called them the Knights of Camelot. He also kept up the tradition of the Round Table, designating a hundred and forty-nine (the last seat was of course filled by the King himself) of the best knights as the Knight’s Assembly, an equivalent of the Guild Councils of the other Orders.

  The Crest of the Knights of Camelot

  All the orders wear the battle-crest of the Knights of Camelot on their cuirasses, a speared Dragon. This badge, first designed by King Chevalis, only came into use during his son King Larenor’s reign. Chevalis did not mean the crest to be used as a badge for the Knights of Camelot.

  His original intention was to commission a painting that depicted the knights slaying a dragon. This was inspired by an incident that occurred in the forests one day while Prince Larenor was out hunting; Larenor had gone in pursuit of a hare that had escaped into the marshes, several knights following him. While they were in the swamp, Larenor’s knights saw a great reptilian creature in the distance, apparently stalking the young prince - at once the nearest knight let fly his spear. The creature shrieked, and Larenor whirled around to see it disappearing into the foliage, a spear-end sticking out of its chest.

  Prince Larenor was convinced the knights had saved him from a dragon, though the knights themselves surmised - and said s
o to the King - that it was merely some large swamp lizard.

  Nevertheless, Chevalis was grateful enough sketch out a drawing and commission someone to paint it. But political matters got in the way, and everyone forgot about it till Larenor himself was King. Upon discovering the sketch again, Larenor decided to use it as a battle-crest, and had it suitably re-designed into a speared dragon; King Uther Pendragon finally adopted it as the mark of the Order of Camelot. Thus did the crest of the Knights of Camelot come about.

  The Bretunic Coat-of-Arms

  All knights of Camelot are required to have the Bretunic Coat-of-Arms engraved on the hilt of their swords. The Coat-of-Arms has origins that predate the Briton monarchy; it is a combination of the battle crests of the warring kingdoms that used to make up the British Isles, when they were finally unified. It consists of a lion on the right-hand side and a dragon on the left, holding between them a red beribboned badge with a wreathed sword bisecting the open pages of a bible.

  A gold banner above is emblazoned with the words `For Honor and Valor’; a second banner below declares `For Peace and For God’. This is also the first part of the Knight’s Oath of the Knights of Camelot.

  The Knight’s Oath (The Knights of Camelot)

  For Honor and Valor

  For Peace and For God

  My soul I deliver

  My arm and my blood

  Unswerving allegiance

  I pledge to my King

  My country, my people

  My life shall redeem

  Plainly spoken, it means `I give my life to my people and my country; I will fight for them and bleed for them, and if need be sacrifice my life to defend them.’

  The Knights of the Broken Spear are the strongest and fiercest of all the Knights of Camelot. The Order came about when one of the weapon-masters commented that some of the students were much more powerful than their peers and should be given different training to take advantage of their natural strength. The Knight’s Council agreed to this, but were unable to decide on exactly how strong the student had to be to join this new Order, until according to the tradition of Bretunic Warriors, the Council Lord suggested that any tutelary able to break a standard-issue spear in two with his bare hands ought to qualify as a member.

  Knights of the Broken Spear (Splitspar)

  by Sir Frederic of Camelot

  A standard-issue soldier’s spear in those days consisted of a length of thick, highly-varnished wood, capped with a polished spearhead.

  The spears were not easy to break, for the wood was old and tough as metal, and would only snap under very extreme pressure. Many of the knights themselves were unable to break the spears, and were dubious about the capability of the students to accomplish such a feat.

  But when the challenge was issued to the tutelage, it was proven that the method of qualification was quite sound – a fair number of youths were indeed able to break the spears. When the list of students for the new Order was finalized, such a collection of swarthy, beefy brutes was never before seen. They were all good-natured young fellows, however, and worked with a will, till the Order of the Broken Spear, or Splitspar, as they prefer to be called, became renown far and wide for producing the strongest, most astoundingly powerful knights ever known. The Splitspar knights are almost inevitably intimidatingly huge, and ride equally gigantic warhorses. Their strength means that they are able to work with the heaviest and most devastating weapons, such as battle-axes and morningstars. Splitspar knights wear black burnished armor, and our insignia is, of course, a broken spear.

  “The Splitspar Knights are who we are

  We smash up people near and far

  We’re also lovers without par

  The Splitspar Knights are who we are!

  The ladies think we’re great and grand

  The finest men of all the land

  We lay our women well all night

  When morning comes, we’re off to fight!1

  The Splitspar Knights are who we are

  We have ladies near and far

  Our enemies tremble from afar

  The Splitspar Knights are who we are!”

  - Campfire song of Splitspar

  Knights Long ago, some clever dude decided that he had seen enough great big fellows wasting their time beating up on skimpy ones, so he declared that any student of the knighthood who manages to break a spear with his bare hands was eligible for specialized training, hence its origins. To put it simply, the Splitspar Knights are huge hulking blokes. Throw a brick against their chests, and most likely the brick will break into pieces and with a cough, they would probably mutter, “What was that? Did someone caress me?”

  Training Motto: “This is pain! O how we looove PAIN!”

  The training for the Order of the Broken Spear is enough to make a grown man cry, which it has – many times over. The trainers are called Torturers by their tutelary. From Dawn till Dusk, the tutelaries go through extensive physical training bearing weights. The Chief Torturer roars at them to eat, sleep, bathe and piss wearing the weights or ‘go and join the Galans’. At the end of the training, a Splitspar Knight is expected to swim – and in great time – in full armor, control war horses so huge, heavy and fierce and do unimaginable feats – while enjoying these exercises thoroughly.

  Splitspar Weapons, Armor and Tactics

  I once asked a Splitspar Knight what his battle tactics were. He gave me an insane grin (all the more insane on a man seven feet tall, two feet wide) and said, “Splatter brains!”

  To elaborate: The Splitspar Knights are trained to take the lead in any head-on charge, and brutalize a path into the enemy’s ranks to break up their formation. ‘Brain-splattering’ is in fact a preference – they use enormous heavy weapons, favorites being war-axes and morningstars, designed mostly to split and sash skulls. They ride horses that look – and act – like giant hammers and wear ominous black armor, carrying black shields depicting a broken spear.

  Their reputation of being a bunch of really nasty fellows adds to the sheer power of intimidation they exude. I personally think the smell also adds to the effect. Sweating copiously while crowbarred into layers of steel and riding horses the size of small houses tends to produce a certain powerful aroma, especially when one starts adding the variety of spilled blood, guts, gore and what have you…

  Order of the Dolorous Blade

  by Sir Devon of Camelot

  The Knights of the Dolorous Blade are the most pious of the Knights of Camelot, and make religious studies a part of their curriculum. They place great emphasis on the benefits of a sound mind and a pure heart in battle - never is a Knight of the Dolorous Blade ruffled, no matter what happens to him; never does he give in to moments of impulsiveness. Knights of this order are calm and methodical in everything, including combat, drawing strength from their faith. We wear silver steel armor; our crest is the most artistic among the four orders, depicting the Herald of Elohim holding a sword, blade pointing down, in clasped hands – in the shape of a cross. Today the Dolorous Blade is the second most prestigious warrior order in Bretunia, apart from that of the High Knights of the Round Table. Student knights who make it into the Dolorous Blade are considered among the best instinctive fighters in the world.

  “Dolorous Blade Knights do not sing;

  We don’t have to – we just win.”

  - Taunt of the Dolorous Blade Knights

  It is said that the students of the Dolorous Blade are taught not to smile. In effect, this is true – the Knights of the Dolorous Blade have an inhuman composure that cannot be ruffled by flood, fire or earthquake. They are expressionless, mild-mannered and unassuming. If they attack or kill, they do so without a word and without stopping to say ‘excuse me’. In short they are very, very unnerving people.

  Training Motto: “Elohim willing, we will kick your butt!”

  The training of the Dolorous Blade is somewhat on the mystical side. Generally speaking, students of the Dolorous Blade go through a much less ph
ysical time than the other two Orders, instead their training has a much more intellectual slant to it.

  To put it quite simply, the Dolorous Blade tutelage emphasizes leadership and tactics – with a great deal of time spent on learning how to construct and break sieges, war strategies and the like.

  Dolorous Blade Weapons, Armor and Tactics

  The knights of the Dolorous Bade generally favor broadswords, and a medium-sized-sized kite shield bearing the emblem of a Herald of Elohim holding a blade pointing down - a symbol of the Elohimic faith. Dolorous Blade Knights ride horses as stoic and well-trained as themselves, and are generally used in siege and ambush situations, for which other knights grudgingly regard them as leaders. They also possess medical fieldcraft, enabling them to aid the fallen during battle. Psychological warfare is their forte, and being expressionless can be remarkably effective. The Dolorous Blade Knights wear light armor, highly polished. The leadership sometimes dons a white cape, tunic and plume during ceremonies.