Thursday, March 19, 2015

Belts of the Eternal Flame

David "Sir Oliver Quickfists" Martin







1. What year were you awarded your white belt?
I was knighted in 2009 at Green and Gold at the END of Saturday night, after the koef meeting and night quest.


2. Who administered "the punch" and-- be honest!!--did it hurt?
I was punched twice, once by Veros and once by AEston.  As for hurting, let’s just say it turns out AEston has a pretty boney fist.

3. Whose belt did you wear until you got your own, and how was this significant for you?
I had the privilege of wearing two different knights’ belts.  The night of my knighting Sir Wil’s belt was used; later we would swap it for Sir Pyr’s.  Both are significant.

Sean (Sir Wil) has been a friend of mine since I first started in ‘97.  He was the president of SMAS (WPI club that does The Realms) at the time and helped facilitate a fair amount of my early Realms experiences…including pulling together the first WPI Newbie Night Quest and being the Big Bad Guy for said quest (and I think every year since).  His belt heraldry is an NPC goblin mask and it there because of his dedication to NPC/staffing/helping at events.  Something I also highly value and wish to promote.  I can only hope to give back to the game half as much as he does.

As I mentioned, we swapped Sir Wil’s belt for Sir Pyr’s at a later date.  On a practical level, this was done because Pyr, as a KoR, had two white belts…so I could return Wil’s to him.  From a position of import though; Pyr was my direct Liege Lord and King of Chimeron at the time.  Chimeron, the nation I have served in one capacity or another over my entire realms career.  Additionally besides that Steve (Pyr) was my friend and had been my Knight until elevating me to the Avatars of Chimeron.

4. Please describe your own belt's heraldry.
On the surface my belt’s heraldry is a Red Rowan Branch on a Black Field (pointed at the top & bottom like a diamond), edged in Red….with an additional Red & Black stripe offset above & below.

5. Why did you choose that heraldry to represent you?
My belt’s heraldry is an amalgamation of a two IC creations of mine.  Each holds special significance to me and shaped and defined my role in the greater community of the Realms.
Chronologically, the first being the “Order of the Red Branch”; a Knighthood I was instrumental in creating through years of questing and IC tasks.  This was done by way of a plot started by Kathy Journeay (Queen Meg) near the end of my Newbie year.  The purpose of the plot had been for the participants to create a new Knighthood through in-game action.  I then served as the Order’s elected Knight Commander until finally stepping aside at the Black & White Masquerade in 2013.

The second creation being the banner of the “True Court of Fae”, which would become the pinnacle of my Realms career.  Through plot, my first character (Owen) was revealed to be “Owen ap Cuchulain”, the True King of Fae.  This heralded in the “Rights of War” chapter of Fae Plot (followed by the final chapter “The Bedlam War”).

I didn’t want to use either heraldry directly; as by the time of my Knighting, Owen had been retired to “NPC” status as the King of Fae.  None of my other new characters had claim to either of these symbols, nor had they yet existed long enough to draw on for other options (all but one having been created to serve in the wake of Owen’s retirement).

6. Who did the artwork on your belt?
Leanne (Lady Faelin) did the heraldry for me as a personal gift between friends who had shared many of the experiences of my journey to that point.

7. What do you remember most about your knighting?
Only two people spoke.

AEston waxed eloquent for a good long heartfelt while.  Really told a bit of my history, both good and bad.  He tried to……

Then Jarrod Marshall spoke.  He was short and to the point, saying AESton pretty much stole all the thunder on “this person” but that he still wanted to step forward.  He expressed how long this has been coming, that we’ve had some differences over the years but that they were always for the better, and my deserving etc. (or something like that…things get really foggy once your name gets called)
I remember this the most, because of how AEston told his story (though I don’t remember exactly what was said any more) and how Jarrod, whom I’ve always looked up to (though oft from the opposite side of the field), stepped forward off the cuff and offered his welcome.  I don’t really know how to put it.  I guess what’s important is that it means something to me, and I know it…

8. What does being a KoEF mean to you?
Ahh the real crux of these questions…being a Knight of the Eternal Flame…….

What BEING a KoEF means to me is that of a great honor.  It’s recognition for years of toil, service, and a commitment to this community.  It is something I take great pride in every time I am able to dawn (sp???)  the belt.

To me what it takes to BECOME a KoEF is:
Across the Realms Community, on the field and off, you need to….
Be a leader: be someone others look to for advice, guidance, tutelage
Be a role model: be someone that others look up to, take after, and strive to emulate
Serve: NPC often, marshal, staff & throw events, teach.  It’s easy to always play; however, this game survives on the efforts of volunteers and the giving of their time.
“Command” respect, don’t “demand” respect…and be sure to know the difference.

Remember, KoEF or otherwise, you should be a knight long before you are ever acknowledged as one.  You should strive always to be a knight; getting knighted doesn’t magically make you a knight.  And if this doesn’t make sense… seek me out to talk about it.



Photo by Angela Gray