Prelude to 495 AD

This is a special entry, in the lead-up to 495 AD and the end of the Uther Period. In two days time, they will fight Octa, Eosa and Eleri, with the future of Logres at stake. As part of climax of the first nine months of the campaign, I've planned three special mini-events. The first is that every player will have some event from the game thus far return, as a legacy for their character - some of them might be able to guess what; others might be a complete surprise. The second is a list of twenty recurring NPCs, some minor, some major, who will return for the final battle against Octa and Eosa, whose fates will be directly in the hands of the players. I can't reveal all of these names just yet - so I'll name half of them!

Sir Barr - A knight of Salisbury, famous for strength of arm and weakness of wit
Sir Bertram - the champion of Leucomagus
King Canan - King of Estregales
Sir Elad - the Marshal of Salisbury, who trained the player knights
Admiral Gwenwynwyn - Leader of the navies of Logres
Sir Helbur - The former squire of Sir Arnulf, who saved the group many times - and may be having an affair with his lord's wife.
Sir Ifan - Leader of the City Guard of London
Sir Leo - Honourable pagan knight of Salisbury
Earl Roderick - The liege lord of the knights of Salisbury
Marshal Talferyn - Leader of the armies of Logres

The third special aspect of the game is a vote. The Gwionite movement of feminist Christianity began as a joke result of a few critical failures and successes on dice rolls, and has evolved into one of the most fundamental parts of our game. The players and I will vote whether Gwionism shall become a part of the mainstream church and compromise its ideals, or whether it will become an independent and heretical movement in conflict with the church. At this point in time, the voting is split fifty-fifty, with four votes cast and three votes still to come! Here is a letter from Sir Esther which one of the players sent me, with their opinion on the fate of Gwionism...

To my Lady Gwiona, Abbess of Amesbury and Servant of our Goddess the Creator

I trust this missive finds you well and in good time. It is a relief to hear that Brother Eilmer has been received positively by our sisters and brothers at Amesbury. I must confess that, when posing the idea of a monastic exchange for the winter, I had my concerns about his unbridled zest for knowledge. I have also been in correspondence with representatives of Kings Leodegrance of Cameliard and Canan of Estregales who send their warmest regards to Amesbury.

The fruitfulness and joy from these relationships are a testament to the wisdom of your teachings of open empathy and compassionate outreach to others. It thus saddens me to hear news attacks on our selfless mission. I had hoped that Saint Dewi would be favourable to the establishment of orphanages, especially in the grip of war and turmoil. Sister Asher, my ears to the ground, has also warned me that others throughout Logres have made moves to check our advance of aid to those in greatest need.

I turn now to your original question. That of whether, heaven forbid, we should be forced to compromise our ideals by enfolding with the mainstream belief or face being branded as heretics. I have prayed and fasted on the issue, consulted teachings from scripture and your own lessons, and discussed at length with my trusted allies. Given my lack of mastery of theology and politics, I am hesitant to express my view for fear of doing more harm than good. However, I shall give it at your request.

It is my humble opinion that we should not deviate from our beliefs and mission. These attacks on our order stem from a narrow and inflexible mindset, from assailants who, in my modest judgement, are more interested in being served that serving others. From my readings, scripture does not conflict with belief in a female creator. Claims of heresy are thus petty name calling, which certainly should not lessen our aims to protect the weak.

Forgive me if my position sounds vengeful. In truth, I am deeply conflicted between the objectives of peaceful coexistence and the sanctity of our belief and mission. By writing firmly, I had hoped to solidify my choice of action in my own mind. My view is that we can still work to avoid this destructive ultimatum. As ever, I submit ultimately to the wisdom of those more learned than myself. Whatever the outcome, I remain a faithful servant of our order.

Humbly yours,

Sister Esther