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...