Chapter 2:

In the Days of Knights

This chapter is dedicated to the film "Excalibur", which is required viewing for anyone wishing to bring "real" knights into a fantasy campaign. Herein, everything about both historical knights and their fantasy equivalents is laid out in an effort to add new layers of depth to your feudal campaign. Hopefully, you'll find this material fascinating enough to make the knights in your campaign more than just a few two dimensional paladin types. Entire countries have been conquered by just a few of these noble warriors, for better or for worse. The classic knight is the holy warrior in search of glory for his god, king, and family. He repels hordes of invaders, drives the heathens back across the waters, and recovers stolen holy artifacts from the minions of evil.

However, history is filled with variations on the theme, and fantasy takes things much further than that. History tells us of the great germanic king Charlemagne who was known as much for his great height (as tall as a modern man) as he was for his skill in battle. Fantasy tells us of warriors like Perseus, Beowulf, Lancelot, Sigfried, and El Cid. These mythical men fought dragons with their bare hands and wore the horns as trophies. Since we are dealing with a fantasy game, these are the knights and heroes which best suit our mold.

Knights are dedicated, almost always to extremes. Lancelot would not give way to a king's army simply on principle, while Don Quixote stepped over the edge and beat up helpless windmills. The dark knights of fiction--Mordred and the legendary Black Knight--also were driven to single-minded goals, and despite their evil cores, often followed the same principles as their good counterparts.

However, in a game where teamwork is more important than solo gallivanting, the single heroic figure can sometimes be lost. This doesn't have to happen. An air of mystery around a knighted character helps keep the campaign tense. Maybe the paladin is hunting for his missing father, or the dragon that burned his village. The campaign should not revolve around this lone quest, as almost all knights look for a "sign from above" for guidance. This plot point can be brought up occasionally, in between adventures focused on other characters.

This enhances the sense of destiny around the knight and adds immensely to the atmosphere of the campaign. In short, knights are supposed to be a special, elite group of warriors. They should be as quirky as your wizard, as devout as your priest, and as cunning as your rogue--but in different ways and for uniquely chivalric reasons.

Knights of Glory

As mentioned before, knights are the elite of warriors. They are always considered to be noble, even if they were not born so, as knighthood is one of the few ways for a person of common roots to enter the nobility. For this and other reasons, knights are accorded the highest measure of respect in the kingdom. If a knight is travelling within his realm or the realm of a major ally, he can stay at any inn he wants for free. In the friendlier of inns, his entourage can stay as well. His crest and standard command respect and trust (unless the family is an infamous one). His word is usually taken as law, for knights are renowned for their honesty, integrity, and honor. In fact, truth and honor are the meat and drink of true knights.

Their armor is clean, their mount proud and strong. A knight's sword is always sharp, and even the thieves give way when a knight comes down the road. Simply put, knights receive all the public respect accorded any noble, and all of the private respect as well. Knights are strong defenders of the people, and are seen as the real power behind the throne. Tales of lone warriors defeating barbarian hordes are always popular at Market Day festivals. And any great battle, no matter how it was fought, or by whom, is always attributed to a great knight, whether he deserves the credit or not.

Knights even get to have their own castles and marry beautiful princesses, usually of their own choosing! Ah, to be big and strong and wear expensive armor. Nothing is Free

Well, why isn't everyone a knight? The answer to that is fairly simple: Not everyone has, as they say, the right stuff. For one thing, knights die a lot. You see, it seems that charging into danger isn't the safest occupation in the world. Thus, knights have very short life expectancies (usually in the neighborhood of one or two battles). The honor thing also seems to get in the way a lot, since a knight won't back down from a fight no matter what the odds are. In such cases, a knight either flees (and disgraces himself) or dies. Because they are known to be stubborn people, they often choose the latter option. When this happens, their armor is brought home, fixed up, and passed on to the oldest son.

Knights must be ready to leave for battle at a moment's notice, whether for god, king, or family honor, and this also tends to make that marriage to the beautiful princess a short-lived affair. Taking orders without question and following a rigid code of warrior ethics tends to make a knight's job a bit of a roller-coaster ride. One minute, you're riding a white palomino to glory, lance in hand, and the next minute your brave war horse has left you surrounded by the great khan and his three hundred angry sons. It's a dirty job, but someone's got to do it...

War horses

While we're discussing some of the good and bad points of knighthood, it's time someone mentioned the knight's faithful side-kick, his war horse. Any knight worth his silver spurs has spent a lot of time choosing, raising, training, and pampering his mount. Whether this is the silver dragon given to you by the elven king, or a real good deal you found at a farm, a mount is often a knight's only method of travel.

Knights are very close to their mounts. A well-trained war horse can be counted on to drag a fallen knight to safety, defend his master's body after a staggering blow, or even return a slumped rider to his manor. A good mount is not only an aid to a knight, but a necessity.

From the campaign point of view, a knight's mount can be a source of drama and personality. Remember that such an animal is known for his unusual intelligence and his loyalty to his master. By giving the war horse a few interesting traits, the DM can add a great deal of color to the knight's life. Pity the poor thief who is caught going through the master's pack by his mount. . .

In Search of High Adventure

High adventure. This is not the crude wenching of such salty warriors as barbarians. No, these are noble quests in search of great treasures and the downfall of vast evil powers--where dragons' hordes are stripped from their evil clutches in conflicts steeped in blood, fire, and steel.

Alright, you probably get the idea. The AD&D game lets you leave the boredom of real life and jump right into the very myths of our past. Note that the classic epic hero has always been a warrior, since wizards never existed, priests don't cast spells in reality, and thieves only adventure when they have to. Unfortunately, that leaves some of the other character classes out in the cold, but that's okay, they have their own ways of achieving glory, wealth, power, and (best of all) knighthood.

Knighthood for Non-Warriors

This brings us to knighthood in general. As most of you technically-oriented types already know, the terms "knight" and "knighthood" have been rather loosely thrown around here. Strictly speaking, anyone can be a knight as knighthood is bestowed by the king upon those who have done him and the country a great service worthy of recognition. While such occasions are extremely common for warriors in times of war, it is possible for any character to become knighted.

It is also true that a real warrior-knight travelling with the party makes such recognition easier to come by, but it is also true that many deserving party members have been passed by at times like this, while the warrior of the group is accorded full honors as if he had done the entire deed alone! However, that is rare. Most knights are warriors raised by the nobility and then sent out on missions of conquest or defense. Freelance adventuring warriors are always considered to be knights errant, privately working for the king all along. All persons knighted get to add the prefix "Sir" or "Lady" to their names. Failure to address a knighted individual in the proper manner is an insult which has, on more than one occasion, led to a challenge. Further, knighthood is hereditary. Thus, a knight's heirs will claim his title when he dies. Non-warrior knights are not likely to be given castles in strategic locations in order to defend the kingdom. Still, they can be granted control over a town, receive a grant of land, or even a position of advisor to the court!

In campaign terms, knighthood is a nice way of taking characters from the position of "low-level wandering nobodies" to "name-level noble members of society worthy of honor and respect." Naturally, such positions are always to the benefit of the king, and are also likely to indicate that the king is now ready to watch carefully and/or utilize his new "resources."

Fealty goes both ways though. While the characters can expect to be the king's errand boy every once in a while, they also earn the right to contact him when things are getting out of hand and they need help. More than likely, the king would want to know about such problems anyway.

Let the knights in your campaign "strut their stuff" as much as they want when things are quite. Remember the old saying, "with great power comes great responsibility." Things will turn nasty soon enough and the would-be heroes will find themselves up to their visors in danger.

The Road to Knighthood

Most knights must be squired to a noble lord or knight, and then trained in the arts of war by their masters. One cannot just choose to be a knight and sign up somewhere. Still, there are other ways to attain the status of knight without this long training process, but they usually involve great risk to one's health and almost foolish bravery. In some campaigns, the DM can choose to assign knighthood to a character at first level, assuming that his training as a squire was completed on the way to manhood, and now the young warrior is ready to step out on his own. However, depending on the campaign, this may not be the best way. After all, where is the great deed done in service to god, king, or country? Face it, at first level, killing an ogre is a great act of heroism, but it doesn't rank up there on the royal top ten of heroic acts, now does it? Also, more importantly, where's the character development? Does the whole story get made up and wasted in 100 words or less on a 3" x 5" card?

It seems more logical to allow the young cavalier or paladin to train until manhood and then be allowed to make his own mark upon the world. Some knights-in-training stay back and train the next group, guard the fort, or take a safe job at home with "Daddy." Those are the NPC kind of knights. They reach name level at the age of 50 and get knighted for "meritorious service in the name of the kingdom," which is a fancy way of saying "he didn't get killed or screw up real badly in all his years."

But PC knights-in-training go out and seek little dragons. As they years go by, they gradually allow their increased skills and abilities to guide their sight's higher and higher until they are confronting world-shattering horrors and standing alone against the greatest of foes. Training for levels can be done on the road, as earned by deeds, or by the PC's lord, who gets to keep tabs on him and continues his fatherly guidance over those years. It is also suggested that, in a feudal campaign, the criteria for obtaining a stronghold not be fixed at 9th level. Being knighted, which may or may not come at 9th level, should be the campaign criteria for such an important event. It makes the gift more logical in such a setting and gives the character an obvious reward to work for in his travels and battles. You can become a squire through bribery, by being left on a doorstep, by cooking an unusually good rabbit for a knight, by calling in an old family favor, by being chosen by the High Priest at festival time, or by sheer luck. In any case, the imagination of the DM is the only limit, and as we all know, there is no limit to that.

Questing for Knighthood

The best way (from a campaign stance) to become a knight is by completing a quest. Now, traditionally, quests have involved things like recovering the Holy Grail from Mordred and Morgan La Fey, or throwing a cursed ring into a big volcano. However, unless your PC knight wants to wait until 20th level to be truly knighted, it might be better to stick to something smaller.

What kind of quest might do it? Well, that depends a lot on the campaign. If there is a dragon in the land who is a real nuisance to the kingdom, removing it is a pretty big favor for the king. Maybe that dragon is in a very inaccessible place and no one knows where the lair is, turning that information over to His Royal Highness would certainly be worthy of attention. Perhaps someone important was taken by the beast and the trick is to return the prisoner safely. In short, the perceived magnitude of the deed (i.e. did it make a really heroic tale afterwards) is more important than the experience points earned.

Destroying a cursed object might involve nothing more than dropping it in a regular old run-of-the-mill volcano. Of course, that might still require six months of travelling the high seas at considerable risk. In all cases, try and let the player make the quest choice. Give him or her as many subtle hints, omens, and portents as you want, but the decision should reflect a personal choice of the player, not an enforced requirement. Accomplishing one's objective feels a lot better when it was their idea.

By the way, don't forget to make the trip worthwhile to the other players. Include equally unique reasons to go along, if the usual quest for random experience, treasure, and high adventure doesn't boil their blood. However, stress that this time out, it's the knight's chance for glory. Note that a good DM gives similar chances for the other characters as well, but for reasons that must vary from character to character.

Any Excuse for a Party

Hooray! The deed is done, the beast vanquished, the accursed artifact destroyed! Now what? Depending on tradition, the ceremonies of knighthood can either be a solemn, private affair or just another excuse for a really big party.

In classic English history, knighthood was a solemn gift, bestowed upon the worthy subject with much pomp and circumstance. The church gave its blessings, as did the king. However, in lands where the king isn't quite so stuffy, a royal knighthood is often a time of great celebration. A good ruler knows the political value of associating himself quickly with the doers of brave deeds. Also, the oath of fealty to the king from the brave knight adds to the king's prestige immensely. For purposes of the AD&D game, the following order of events is suggested.

On the day of the ceremony, the capital city and the castle grounds have a carnival-like atmosphere about them. In fact, the monthly Market Day may be rushed or postponed just to take advantage of all of the newcomers attending the ceremony. Such an event is advertised at least a month in advance to get as much of a turnout as possible. It is also not uncommon for the king to waive the Market Tax and provide a pavilion of free food and drink in order to promote a bigger turnout. At high noon, the ceremonies begin with the most powerful local church presiding. The service will be hosted by the local curate at the very least, and may even merit the attentions of a dean or primate. In all cases, the importance of the knight's social status and the greatness of the deed will determine who conducts the affair. In the case of a multiple knighting which involves individuals from different religions, representatives of each faith will attend the service. Usually, the state religion will assume a leading role, but other compromises are possible. Once the blessings and sacraments have been performed, the royal procession begins. The king traditionally taps the kneeling knight on each shoulder, uttering some standard secular blessing. It may or may not have religious connotations, depending on the nature of the campaign.

The knight is then expected to kiss the sword of the king as a symbol of subservience to his new lord, and swear open allegiance and fealty before all present. This continues until all eligible persons are knighted.

Hip hip, hooray! Now the fun really begins. The townspeople celebrate upwards of a week, until all concerned are either drunk, broke, or both. A wise king throws in a fair number of surprises, like free chickens at the market grounds, or a chance to visit the royal stables. If he owns a mount of power, like a dragon or pegasus, he undoubtedly circles the castle and city many times to show off.

In short, make it an interesting affair, full of fun and celebration, but don't forget the adventuring possibilities. Such events are field days for thieves and troublemakers, and if the party starts trouble, they might have to help clean it up afterwards. Also, as such events are announced in advance, an opposing army amassed nearby (that had remained undetected) surely takes the chance to attack the ill-defended capital, hoping to strike a single killing stroke. Such an attack is certainly dishonorable in the extreme, so make the land and lord in question an infamous one. However, such an attack is likely to be a random, haphazard affair, and the players might play a major role in turning back the impetuous invaders. If they do, then they earn even more fame and glory. If not, the townspeople are not going to be very pleased about the lack of protection, let alone any unplanned-for change in leadership.

Demi-Human Celebrations

Okay, so the humans get drunk, sing a little, and chase members of the opposite sex, but what do other races do at such occasions? While the dwarven and elven versions of chivalry and knighthood are discussed later on, this seems the best place to describe non-human celebrations.

Elven Parties

The elves get drunk, sing very well, and chase members of the opposite sex. They take a very light-hearted approach to the ceremony, as they see such spectacles many times over their long life spans. No disrespect is intended. In fact, nothing is more respected than an elven protector.

The wealth spent on such affairs is enormous, but many of the decorations have been used before. Gem-laden strings of mithral wrap the trunks of trees, and gleaming shirts of mithral armor come out of storage for the occasion. Elven parties last for weeks, and little is accomplished during such high festivals.

Dwarven Parties

On the other hand, the Dwarves get drunk, sing rather badly, and chase members of the opposite sex. Dwarves take such signs of glory very, very seriously. The high ceremony is attended only by a few and involves a blood-bonding between the lord and his new vassal. Dwarves know war is a serious matter, and glory attained in war is worthy of the highest honor. However, after the solemn ceremonies are over, the dwarves go crazy for a few weeks just like the elves. Visitors trapped in the dwarven caves during these times may be overwhelmed by the wildness of such a normally solemn race. Still, few who have ever lived through a dwarven celebration will ever experience anything like it again.

The Chivalric Code

The chivalric code is the set of ideals which all knights are expected to follow to the letter. How-ever, this code of honor and truth often causes a lot of conflict for both the knight and those he travels with. While these guidelines have been presented in many ways in previous AD&D rules books, and they have also been reprised in the AD&D 2nd Edition "Complete Fighter's Handbook", space has prevented a detailed accounting of the reasons that such a code is followed, and what the many consequences of failure might be. Herein, the code of chivalry is detailed with an eye to playability in a feudal campaign.

Medieval Code of Chivalry

A knight must cheerfully perform any noble service or quest asked of him. If any person or item is placed in his care, a knight must defend, to the death if necessary, his charge. Naturally, any task incompletely accomplished is a sign of physical weakness and spiritual failure.

A knight must perform military service to his lord whenever asked and must show courage and enterprise when obeying his lord. This is the very heart of the feudal ideal, and forms the backbone of medieval military organization. A knight regards war as the "flowering of chivalry" and, therefore, a noble enterprise. For the knight, battle is the test of manhood, and combat is glorious. A knight's first goal as a warrior, therefore, is the personal achievement of glory in battle. Without glorious deeds in times of war, a knight is considered to be nothing more than a fancy mercenary, having wasted years of his life training for ultimate failure. A knight must defeat all those who oppose his cause in battle. Note that slaying your enemy is not always the best way to make your point. Driving off an invader with a great show of force allows tales to be told, rumors to be spread, and keeps someone alive to warn against further invasions.

A knight must choose death before dishonor. Why live if one must live in disgrace? Much like bushido, the samurai's code of honor, the knight is supposed to die before surrendering his charge. However, while a knight who blindly charges the barbarian horde may seem ludicrous, the ultimate result is the same, honor is served. A knight must show respect for all peers and equals, honor all those above his station (social class or rank), and scorn those who are lowly and ignoble. A knight does not aid the ill-mannered, the coarse, the crude. This applies to goods and services as well. A knight does not use equipment which is badly-made or inferior, as he chooses to fight on foot before riding a nag. A knight must show courtesy to all ladies (also see "Maid to Fit"). Women are frail things to be protected. They are to be cherished and honored, watched from afar and never handled roughly.

A Modern Code of Chivalry

Some of the positions held by classic knights make it difficult to play a fantasy knight correctly. After all, much like the samurai warrior, a true knight would only just get out on his own before he had already headed off in search of the evil high king across the sea. This makes for very one-sided adventures (annoying the other players immensely) and very short life spans. Rolling up a new knight every level is nobody's idea of fun. Here is a modified code which might be more functional in the typical AD&D game.

Faithfulness

A knight must be true to his god. Any lack of faith is a sign of spiritual weakness and immoral character. In the event of an area of uncertainty, the knight should seek out a priest of his faith and request guidance. In the case of minor transgressions, the knight might be assigned a task to show his desire to make amends for his misdeeds.

Loyalty

A knight must be true to his country and his king. The entire kingdom would collapse should the oaths of fealty be dissolved. Be loyal to your lord, and your vassals will learn from your example. Be disloyal, and beware every time you turn your back.

Respect

A knight must be true to women or those who are less fortunate than himself, and honor those who have achieved greater glory for their god and country. Those who lie, cheat, and steal are beneath contempt as they are honorless cowards.

Honor

A knight must be true to one's self. Only your god and you know if you have been truly honorable, and lying to one's self can only lead to the further corruption of lying to others. All lies, no matter for what cause they are told, are dishonorable. It is better to not provide an answer at all than it is to deceive anyone for any reason. This includes shading the truth or lies based on the omission of facts. Any intent to deceive is considered a lie.

Valor

A knight must be true to his profession. A warrior who is a coward is not a warrior at all, but a worthless retch in armor, preaching lies to all around him. You cannot earn respect in such a manner, and you cannot keep a clear conscious by retreating from glory. It is better to die for your cause than to surrender it. If a cause is not worth fighting for, then war is to no avail. A challenge, especially to single combat, is always the best way to achieve valor and glory for your cause.

Maid to Fit

A short note is needed here to discuss the role of women as knights. Women, especially these days, play in a lot of AD&D game campaigns. Now, in a classic medieval setting, women got to oversee the knitting, or the temporary command of the castle while the lord was away--hardly a great role-playing experience. However, with a little work describing a female knight, we can get an idea of some ways around the rather sexist codes of chivalry.

Since you are unlikely to be playing with major chauvinists in your game, once the female knight has "proven herself" in the eyes of her fellow warriors things should go rather smoothly and the problem is solved. Otherwise, chauvinism will be a constant campaign problem. Instead of seeing all women as things to be put upon a pedestal and admired, a female knight sees all women as allies, and has a firm grasp on the real behind-the-scenes working of a kingdom and a castle. Female knights get to use cunning and diplomacy to greater effect in such a campaign.

However, if there are enough women to support a guild, they can either have big chips on their shoulders (as a result of overcoming outright prejudice) or they might just have earned a fair measure of respect from the general populace. Female archers are particularly formidable for they tend to spend more time perfecting subtle movements than raw physical power.

As seen in heroic fantasy, female warriors are just as powerful as the men, but stress different things about combat. While a male barbarian lord is capable of splitting a skull with his axe, a female knight might prefer removing that head in a more surgical fashion, by passing her blade through the throat.

Falling from Grace

A lot has been made of the power of the chivalric ideal to control one's destiny and outlook on life. In fact, it is expected that the code chosen be followed to the letter, even to the point of extremes--like single-handedly charging the ancient red dragon when there is no hope of success.

However, as is bound to happen sometime in a knight's life, he may "fall from grace." Even a momentary lapse of will can cost a knight dearly. It cannot be emphasized how much a breach of trust and faith it is to fail to perform honorably. However, there are degrees of failure, and not every transgression is a world-shaking event. In order below are some of the punishments common in such circumstances, and the level of transgression required to receive said punishment.

Loss of Personal Honor

A knight who has shown minor cowardice in battle (by avoiding a battle, etc.) or who has offended a lady, has suffered a loss of personal honor. He has been marked as spiritually impure, and the DM is encouraged to inform the knight that he is now displaying tendencies towards neutral or evil. The player should be informed of this change, and such failures become idle gossip in the kingdom very quickly. Further failings will result in an actual alignment change and force the knight to deal with all the negative effects of such transformations. Recovering from such a transgression often involves nothing more than a courageous stand in the next battle, or championing said lady in the upcoming tournament. While the stain is not permanent and alignment can return to normal, further transgressions, even if normally only minor, are now treated with even less tolerance and might cause the loss of one's family honor (see below).

Loss of Family Honor

Outright cowardice in the line of duty that does not result in the loss of the battle or the striking of any women, are the sorts of things that not only incur the penalties stated above under "Loss of Personal Honor", but also can have long-lasting effects on the offending knight's entire family line. Besides flagrant alignment violation, the knight's liege-lord is fully within his rights to repeal the oaths of fealty sworn from such an obviously dishonorable character. The revoking of lands, the freezing of assets, and the bitter scorn of the general populace are usually humbling enough to the fallen knight. Some fallen knights choose to repent their sins through the performance of some great quest, or by entering into a monastery where, after serving their god for many years, penance might be granted. Other knights might opt to renounce the same titles they have lived by, having had a more permanent change of heart, and become knights-errant, or rogue knights.

Loss of Royal Honor

Now, the knight's crimes are getting serious by anyone's standards. The knight has fled the scene of a battle, demoralizing his forces to the point of turning the course of the battle, or the knight has harmed or slandered a lady of noble birth--a chaste daughter of the realm! Including all of the punishments detailed under the "Loss of Personal and Family Honor" sections, the knight and quite possibly his entire family line is likely to be banished forever from the kingdom. As enemies of the realm, and to save the face of the ruling lord, the knight risks imprisonment or execution if he returns.

Nothing short of saving the king's daughter from the clutches of ultimate evil can win back the fallen hero's lands. By default, since they no longer have any lord to serve or lands to represent, all such knights become rogue knights. This knight's family crest becomes a beacon of distrust that haunts him the rest of his life. Heinous Crimes Against The Gods or The King This particular category is the most serious because such things do not occur accidentally. Such heinous crimes are premeditated and all the more despicable. This type of crime is distinguished by the fact that it must be so awful that the knight in question's alignment is now irrevocably shifted to "evil". Using our progressive examples, this time the knight has actually led his lord's forces into an ambush, turning sides and helping to slaughter his own men, or the knight has captured, ransomed, and possibly even killed the king's own daughter.

Now, all of the penalties discussed above are just for starters. This horrible criminal's life is now forfeit. Banishment is proclaimed, but hardly necessary, as the culprit is no doubt long gone after the deed. His crest, should he remain bold enough to present it, attracts bounty hunters and loyal avenging knights until the scoundrel is caught and brought to justice. Such a knight is the worst kind of rogue, a Black Knight, and this is the kind of man great chivalric villains are made of.

Rogue Knights

Now, you can use the above guidelines to keep your knights in check or to build a better history for your noble houses, but there are other ways to utilize the rogue knight's life. What if it's a frame-up? How do you proclaim your innocence when no one believes you? How can you challenge the knight who framed you if you have already been banished from the kingdom? Do you start a new life, only to return decades later to right the wrong, or does the knight get the chance to challenge before the king? And what if the framer is of much higher level that of the framed? If you die defending your honor, then you'll be considered guilty, and if you fail to challenge, then you are also assumed to be guilty.

And what about the problems faced by men like Sir Robin of Locksley (Robin Hood)? His lands were taken by an evil usurper to the throne while the true king was held captive across the sea. Which king do you serve and which is the most honorable road to travel? Do you dare fight your old comrades? As you can see, knights and rogue knights make not only the best NPCs, but also add spice to any PC background story. Better yet, the DM can throw such a curve into the campaign as it is running, causing all sorts of great role-playing opportunities.

Heraldry

Every knight or noble worth his castle has a family crest or banner. In fact, once a new noble is knighted, a banner bearing the family heraldry must be sent to the king's castle where it is hung proudly in his great throne hall, another sign to all visitors of a king's vast wealth and power. While every noble has a coat of arms, this section is specifically tailored to warrior knights in particular. As their standards are the most colorful and meaningful, they offer the best examples of the great art of heraldry. However, any noble can bear a coat-of-arms, and any important personality (PC or NPC) can have their own personal etched rune, wizard mark, or identifying glyph, and these guidelines can be used by any person interested in adding just a little bit more flavor to their fantasy persona.

Standards

Most notably, a knight's standard appears in five places: on his armor, his shield, his lance-banner (when leading a charge to battle or shown at the beginning of a tournament), on a large banner or flag flying high above his castle, and on his private signet ring (which is used to leave an impression in sealing wax on letters and legal contracts).

The standard can include anything from the favorite flowers of a knight's lady to the depiction of the knight's most hated enemy or heroically vanquished foe. In classic medieval history, the objects placed on the standard usually had no apparent meaning to those outside the family. Often that secret was not passed down to the next generation of the family either, making things very confusing indeed if a genealogy is attempted. However, for our purposes, it really adds very little to the game if such standards are useful for nothing more than identifying the enemy during a foggy battle. For all players interested in adding some color to their characters, some more thought is required.

The royal standard is born only by the king, his squires, and his personal knights, guards, and army. However, some kings require at least a portion of their standard to be included somewhere in the standards of any sworn vassals, noble or knighted. In such cases, the king's symbol is something simple and easily recognized, like a sun, moon, lion, single bar, background color, or even a dragon, which is easily incorporated into any lesser standard. Before a campaign is begun, at least the king's standard should be described to the characters, as his followers are to be treated with the utmost care at all levels of adventuring. The standards of any neighboring allies and enemies and the local noble manor should also be determined before play commences fully. If the DM is using the option of waiting to knight his warriors until they have become worthy of the honor through great deeds, then the knight-in-training must bear the standard of his lord until he has earned the chance to create his own noble line. Otherwise, players should detail their family crest and history during the character creation phase and submit this to the DM for approval and inclusion into the campaign. In particularly large kingdoms or worlds where there is an emperor, it is possible for a newly knighted warrior to have more than one required symbol in his standard, making the customizing of his own standard a difficult one. It is now readily apparent why the Heraldry skill in the Players Handbook becomes useful. With this skill, it is possible to deduce another knight's allegiances, family history, and record of previous deeds or crimes. It also becomes equally apparent why the DM needs to whip up some of this information beforehand! Use it to drop hints about an ancient weapon known to be wielded by a famous, or infamous, knight. It also comes in very handy during a tournament. In any case, the exact nature and meaning of the standard is left up to the character and the DM. Below we present two examples, one from history and one from fiction, to guide the DM in this matter.

Richard the Lion-Hearted

Richard the Lion-Hearted, renowned king of England, bore a "lion rampant" (i.e. attacking lion) upon all of his noble devices. This symbolized his strength and aggressiveness in battle. While there is no real lion in Richard's past, the symbol of the lion was based on his deeds as a young man, his large stature, and his skill in battle. While some standards bear little resemblance to the historical perception of some knights, Richard's was eminently appropriate. Since then, many of England's kings have followed Richard's example and have incorporated lions into their standards. In an AD&D game, thousands of animals and monsters, both good and evil, can be utilized in a similar fashion.

Lancelot Du Lake

Lancelot, as portrayed in the film "Excalibur", bore an embossed picture of the Holy Grail on his chest as a symbol of his search for perfection. It was legend that only the truest knight, perfect in all respects, could find the lost Holy Grail. While the existence of the Grail can be doubted, it is not its reality that is important, as the Grail was a visible symbol of something that was not visible to the knights: perfection. Such symbolism can add greatly to a PC knight's coat-of-arms.

The King's Standard

As an example of incorporating the lord's standard into one's own, imagine that the great overlord's standard is a gold dragon. If a king under him has a silver dragon, intertwining the two dragons is a standard rich in artistry and symbolism for a feudal environment. If the king uses the symbol of a stone tower to remind people his castle has never fallen to siege, the emperor's gold dragon can be spread out behind the tower, indicating that the tower is protected by a greater power as well.

Altering the Armor Further

When knights spent more time dressing themselves for war than actually fighting, they continued to alter their armor in decorative ways. One of these ways included modifying the helmet to resemble something in the knight's standard, like a hawk's beak, the wings of a pegasus, or the fangs of a vampire. Another alteration involved the outer appearance of the armor. While it is customary to paint the noble standard on the armor, it can be quite an elaborate affair. Molten precious metals like silver and gold can be used like paint at such times. However, someone who has such funds available usually goes to the trouble of embossing his standard more permanently. This includes actually denting and shaping the armor in and around the symbol like a bas-relief sculpture. This can then be augmented by gems, precious metals, or anything else the knight desires. Since this increases the value of the armor, and the expenses to repair it once damaged, only the very wealthy prepare their battle armor in such a fashion. Usually, a second set of armor, not suitable for combat use is prepared for special occasions and high ceremonies, like weddings, knighthoods, and councils of war. Even the very armor itself can be modified slightly, to look more rounded or sharp, depending on the effect desired. Some things, however, speak louder than any crest of standard when it concerns one's armor. Any knight walking the land in a suit of blue-green metal embossed with runes of mystic power is not to be taken lightly.

Demi-Human Knights

Knighthood and the Code of Chivalry are primarily states of mind and occupations chosen by the person in question. In fact, adapting knighthood to other demi-human societies can add a lot of spice to the campaign, and a great deal of depth to some non-human societies. Following the guidelines presented in the two examples below, an ambitious DM can throw all sorts of curves to his players.

Elven Knights

Elves follow the code of chivalry to the letter, except when it comes to battle. Elven life is too precious to be squandered needlessly against lost causes. When they do sacrifice themselves, it is only for the greatest good of the elven kingdom or in defense of their companions. In short, elves as a people avoid war whenever possible. They prefer to depend on politics to settle disputes, and are far less aggressive than most of the other races in an average campaign.

Elven knights place a high regard for the ceremonial aspect of chivalry, as well as respecting their peers and superiors. However, they are quick to the point of snobbery in showing contempt of those beneath their station and those of ignoble ideals. To their credit, elven knights place no weight on class differences in such judgments, just on personal character and reputation. Since women are equals among men in elven society, the respect elven knights show for women is more courtesy than outright adoration. Importantly, while the majority of the elven cavalry is comprised of male elven knights, most elven archer companies contain a majority of women.

Elven knights almost never wear plate armors, but prefer more lightweight, flexible armoring made of fine chain. As elves preferbattle within forested environments where they can rely on their natural adeptness in such surroundings to give them an added edge, they consider plate armor too noisy and bulky for such maneuvering. It is important to note that magi-cal elven chain mail is only given as a gift to worthy men and women who have honored themselves in the defense of elves and elven lands. It is rare, but not unheard of, for non-elves to earn such a gift if their deeds warrant it. Non-elves are never taught the secret of making and enchanting elven chain mail.

Magical elven chain can be found in treasure hoards, of course, but if knowledge escapes of its recovery, elves are sure to converge on the discoverer with offers for the suit's purchase. A reasonable price is offered, and any person who does not sell their prize, is hounded for many years until death takes the short-lived mortal, or until a better price is reached. The elves will not give up the quest, as they see the common use of such a great prize tends to lessen its overall value and significance for all others. Also, the elves do not want untrustworthy armorers to get a hold of any elven chain mail, lest they manage to discover its secrets through magic or research. Such a discovery by outsiders would risk war.

Elven knights that choose to wear plate armor (very rare) always make them look like they were made from mithral. A highly polished coating of the shiny silver metal is applied almost like paint to the armor, and the suit then gleams and shines in even the most indirect lighting. In fact, the greatest of kings or the richest of knights often take their armor to the elves for such detailing once it has been purchased.

Dwarven Knights

Dwarves take their warring very seriously indeed, and their views on war and honor would make any visiting samurai warrior proud. Dwarves, in stark contrast to the elves, would rather die in glorious battle than any other way. It is even said that dwarves always lair near a dragon or a large colony of giants just to keep a steady scenario of conflict going. To their credit the dwarves are always ready for war. In fact, during the numerous battles between elven and dwarven forces, it has always been the elven kinship with animal and plant life that has kept them one step ahead of their dwarven enemies. The elves always seem to have enough time to get ready for a battle, no matter how well the dwarven forces try to conceal themselves. As mentioned earlier, the dwarves take the ceremonial aspects of their idea of chivalry very seriously, but keep such things rather private.

The "respect for women" notions are pretty much ignored by a rather chauvinistic male dwarven hierarchy. In a society geared for war and hard work in the mines, there seems to be no glory available for the little ladies. Now, that is not to say that dwarven women are mistreated. That is far from the truth. They are given equal rights and protection under all laws, and dwarven marriages are ones of partnership, not obedience.

The dwarves like to make their armor heavy, plated, and black. Almost without exception, all dwarven-sized armor is actually made from dwarven forged iron. A dwarf will not wear armor forged by any other race, for their pride is quite strong and their codes of honor very exacting on such points.

While elven armors require constant repair if they are to remain attractive, dwarves place less value on appearance and more value on defense. Dwarven plate armor is treated as "plate mail +1", but is almost 50% heavier than human plate. This means that a dwarven set of plate armor (sized for a 4' tall dwarf) weighs just about as much as a human set of plate (sized for a 6' tall knight).

Unfortunately, dwarves rarely make their armor for humans, and do not know how to make either field or full plate armors. Their own limbs and joints do not have the mobility necessary to make a functional set of those full-body armors, and so the dwarves will have none of it. Just like the elves, dwarves don't teach non-dwarves their metallurgy secrets. Dwarves dwell extensively on their own version of heraldry, based on the personal histories and family genealogies of the entire dwarven race. Dwarves are remarkable at remembering long list of names, and spend a great deal of their lives memorizing details about everyone they ever see, meet, or hear about.