U:VII:P2:Guide To Knighthood
Title: Guide To Knighthood
Author: Graeme of Monitor
Courage is in thine heart; if thine heart is not in danger of being pierced by a blade, then thou canst not fight with courage. Courageous men choose as weapons the sword, hammer, mace, and axe. Be wary of those who wield these weapons well, for they are fierce foes. Be also wary of those who weave spells, for they have no courage, and the cowardly weave webs of deceit, lies, and trickery. Courage manifests itself on a battlefield, and the side whose courage is greatest, regardless of numbers, shall emerge victorious. A courageous man knows that one can leave the battlefield only two ways: By eliminating all of the enemies or in death. A man whose life thou hast saved, or who hath saved thine, can be trusted the rest of thy life.
A knight must never work toward personal goals in lieu of the goals of his Lord. Courage is not only taking sword up against his foe; it is the courage to admit to and remedy his own shortcomings, and if it happens that the knight is wrong, he must have the courage to admit as much. A knight must know, beyond the martial skills of the weapon of his fancy, the art of tactics, as it may some day come to him that the lives of his fellow knights may be decided by his tactical decisions.
Any knight who betrays another will never be allowed to take up arms again. A knight who perpetrates such a wrongdoing is no knight; he is like unto the goblins he once warred against. Courage is separate from stupidity; there comes a time to run and regroup in some battles, but only those which are unwinnable.
