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BACKGROUND Vinas Solamnus was a General of the Army of Ergoth , who fought for the Empire until he was sent to subdue a Rebellion in Solamnia . Events there made him understand the true meaning of Honour , and on his way back to Daltigoth , capital of Ergoth, he lead his army in the Rebellion Of The Rose . After defeating the Empire, he spent some time alone Meditating . It is this way he had a vision, in which he thought about an army divided in three orders, each of the three orders associated with a God . The Knighthood was born. THE OATH AND THE MEASURE The ''Oath and the Measure'' are a set of rules, written by Vinas Solamnus and held in over 30 volumes, conducting the life of a knight. In those books it is explained how a knight should react in different situations ranging from peace to war times. After the War Of The Lance , Gunthar Uth Wistan, voted Grandmaster of the Knights of Solamnia, took as his goal to revise the Oath and the Measure, considering such strict rules were the ones that made the Knighthood fall in decay with time. The Revised Measure was presented by his successor, Sir Liam Ehrling, on the year 9 SC. The spirit of the Measure changed from being a strict set of rules to a set of proposed rules, which suggest what the knight should do, but not impose them. The motto of the Knights of Solamnia is ''Est Sularus Oth Mithas'' (''My Honor Is My Life''). BASIC STRUCTURE The Knighthood is divided into three suborders of increasing rank: the Orders of the Crown, Sword, and Rose. Entry into the higher orders requires attainment of rank in the lower ones. Every order is based in a different set of concepts that the knight must understand. The Knighthood is ruled by the ''Grandmaster of the Knights of Solamnia'' and a Conclave, formed by representatives of each order. This Conclave is reunited during certain times in a year to discuss matters concerning promotions, guidelines, information gathering, war councils, talk with allies, etc. The Conclave may have extraordinary sessions if the situation is exceptional. When the Grandmaster dies, the new Grandmaster is chosen between the members of the Conclave. Although the Knight of the Rose is usually chosen due his experience, there is no known rule stating that, and it has been known situations when the Knight of the Sword has been chosen instead. Squirehood During several centuries, the Knighthood only accepted squires coming from Noble Families located in Solamnia . As the empire of Istar grew stronger and their fight against Evil became an obsession, the amount of recruits diminished. This forced the Knighthood to send Spies to different organizations, including the Thieves Guild in Palanthas , looking for people that, if not from nobility, with solid concepts of Honour that may fit in their ranks. Order of the Crown The Order of the Crown is the lowest Order available in the Knighthood. Habbakuk is associated with this Order. As Knights of the Crown, they are taught the importance of self sacrifice and honorable battle. The representative of the Order of the Crown in the Conclave is known as the ''High Warrior of the Knights of Solamnia''. Order of the Sword Kiri-Jolith is the patron deity of this Order. The representative of the Order of the Sword in the Conclave is known as the ''High Clerist of the Knights of Solamnia''. Order of the Rose The ''Order of the Rose'' is the highest rank in the Knighthood. Knights of the Rose have proved themselves in peace and battle, and are taught the importance of justice and right judgement. Due the great requisites for becoming a Knight of the Rose, they are the smallest branch of the Knighthood and are rarely seen in battle except in command roles. In battle, the members of this Order are the most formidable. Due their extreme Faith in Paladine , the patron deity of this Order, they are able to banish Undead by praying. They are also immune to any form of fear. In times before the Cataclysm, Knights of the Rose were able to cast specific minor spells for keeping maps up to date, weapon edges sharpened and the like. The practice became less and less common as the Kingpriest began its Campaign against the Order of high Sorcery. It is unknown if the practice survived the Cataclysm, though. The representative of the Order of the Rose in the Conclave is known as the ''High Justice of the Knights of Solamnia''. For a Knight of the Sword to become a Knight of the Rose, besides finishing the quests the High Justice requests, he must obtain the positive vote of all existing members of the Order. KNIGHTS OF SANCRIST ISLE With the coming of the Dragon Overlords during the Fifth Age, Gunthar Uth Wistan decided the Knights were not strong enough to stop them, and invited the Knights Of Takhisis to discuss the possibility of merging both orders. Miriella Abrena, Commander of the Knights of Takhisis, sent a small party to parlay. Gunthar's idea was to have the Knights of Solamnia absorb the Knights of Takhisis in a single unit, the ''Honorable Knights of Sancrist Isle'', without Orders to differentiate members, only ''Knights of Sancrist Isle'' or ''Knights of Sancrist'', and the single white Moon as symbol. However, the Knights of Takhisis plotted against it, murdering Gunthar Uth Wistan and taking over both Knighthoods. The plot was discovered, the Knights of Takhisis were repelled, and Sir Liam Ehrling became the Grandmaster of the Knights of Solamnia. REFERENCES |
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