Knights Archive
Kingdoms and Castles; Passions and Dreams
"We all might be the same under the armor, but we're born with something special inside us. You gotta take that thing inside you and bust it out, make it yours, 'cause you're the only person who can."
The tavern patrons all sat huddled as close as the tables and chairs would allow, captivated by the storyteller in front of them. They told stories of adventure and heroism, song and poetry, a tribe of Elves in the forest and of Valkyr hunting game in the North. Much like everyone in the tavern, the storyteller was a Knight. A bard clad in a mix of colorful fabric and glistening armor that clinked and clanked with each wave of their hand. Bringing the patrons into a trance of wonder, inspiration, and a desire to hear more.
The few Knights around them in the marketplace erupted in cheers and applause when the child began to laugh her heart out, her eyes filling the night air with light. All while her father picked her up and smothered her in hugs and kisses and laughed along with her. She had found it. And it was clear to everyone what was happening. It was the sight of a blacksmith hammering away at her
anvil that made her feel this way. Something about the clanging of metal, the sparks that flew off in all directions with each strike, perhaps even the warm glow of the forge that illuminated the night. She knew it was something she was meant to be.
The city of Dawngrove was home to a guild notorious for their reliability when it came to quests. “A wizard who practiced Flames, a fighter who mastered swords, a cleric who healed their wounds, and a bard who slew with chords.” This is how the Silversong Guild would introduce themselves to those who would ask for their stories. Despite its glaring corniness. The four of them had been friends for as long as they could remember, and the numerous adventures they had gone on was a testament to that. They’d always return home every few months, arms wrapped around giant bags of loot and riches to share with the patrons of their favorite tavern. To them, everyone deserved at least one mug of ale.
Evolved from humans, Knights are the most diverse ancestry in Oniran.
After finding their greatest passion, usually at a young age, their bodies will morph, adapt, and evolve to best express it. They call these passions Affinities, and although
they often overlap, no two Knights are ever the same.
Passionate and Capable
To put it simply, a Knight’s Affinity is a manifestation of their greatest passion. The true origin of Affinities is unknown, but they've been around long enough for Knights to fully integrate them into their culture and society. Almost every Knight discovers their Affinity at some point in their life, while some later than others, it’s most common to discover it during childhood. No matter what it is, your Affinity is something to take pride in.
Since the ways Knights can evolve are almost endless and cannot be controlled, identifying one can get confusing quickly. Fortunately, enough consistencies were found between types of Affinities and their evolutions for three classifications to be made:
Craft Type
- Any Affinity that revolves around professions, tools, weapons, etc.
- Evolutions of this type usually aid in whatever the Affinity is, focusing practicality over cosmetic.
- They often take the form of things that people would not otherwise have attached to their bodies.
Ex: A Forge Knight could evolve with metallic skin, amplified strength, or an eternal fire burning inside them. Maybe even all three.
Magic Type
- Any Affinity that revolves around the pure magical energy of the world.
- Evolutions of this type are typically unpredictable and come with either little physical changes or many.
- It can range from Knights made of rock or fire to Knights that can cast spells unique only to them.
Ex: A Skeleton Knight can literally evolve into a skeleton. Stabbing them would be impossible and they wouldn’t have to eat or drink.
Beast Type
- Any Affinity that revolves around all living things found in the wild.
- Evolutions of this type usually reflect the animal, monster, plant, or environment.
- Knights with a Beast type Affinity tend to be the most diverse when it comes to evolutions.
Ex: A Bunny Knight can evolve with all the qualities of an actual bunny, even it's diet. This can vary greatly depending on the plant or animal.
Diverse in all things
Names
Knights are named after their Affinity, usually either something related to it or some specific aspect of it. As a formality, "Knight" is usually the surname. However, it's not often that the formality is used as it can get repetitive quickly. In situations that are extremely formal, such as meeting with royalty, they can be referred to as "Knight of the _____"
These names can also change in cases where an Affinity ends up being much more specific as they grow up. If a Forge Knight learns they prefer to make weapons they can change their name to Weapon Knight.
For obvious reasons, this can get confusing extremely fast. So another way to refer to Knights is through the Guild they are a part of, i.e. “Tank Knight of the Dragonheart Guild”. (Although they usually aren’t as verbose as that)
Guilds are extremely useful for differentiating Knights of the same name since Affinities have a high chance of overlapping. "Blade Runedom" and "Blade Leafwater" are completely different people.
Guilds
While it’s normal in most cultures to consider your friends as part of the family, Knights take this one step further. In places like Stonewood, where Knights make up the majority of the population, groups of friends will form legitimate families. These groups are called Guilds.
Traditional families still exist of course, Knights still have parents, siblings, and the like, Guilds are just much more common. Not to imply that families are looked down upon, but Knights often seek out new relationships with others and it’s unlikely you’ll meet one without a friend.
Guild names are up to the members themselves, sometimes they want to have a theme uniting each of their Affinities, sometimes the Knights couldn't care less and the name is picked at random, and sometimes they just want their Guild to sound cool.
Some Guild Names: Steelguard, Graywell, Stormflayer, Runedom, Dragonheart, Morningforge,
Leafwater, Silversong, etc.
Leafwater, Silversong, etc.
“Blood is a bond that can never be broken, but the friendships you forge can still be stronger. Because friendships are forged by you."
Stories of Friendship
Knights are friendly and cheerful people. They love discovering new things, even things as simple as exotic foods and different styles of clothing from other cultures. The moment they're born they're like sponges that soak up the world around them, influencing their Affinity, their relationships, and the stories they tell.
When a Knight does something they do it with utmost passion, because of this, they tend to take things to the extreme. Whether it be a quiet life in the comforts of home or a life of action and adventure, Knights will commit.
Knights cherish the bonds of family and friendship, but arguably the most important aspect of their culture is their love of stories. Whether it be true or just a legend, the adventures that a mercenary tells you about in a tavern, the bedtime stories used to lull children to sleep, or a simple campfire song on a chilly winter night.
"There are 3 things any sane Knight wants in their life, in my opinion at least. An adventure of their own, friends to share it with, and a story to tell afterward."
The consequences of evolving
There is a glaring difference between pride and superiority, and that difference is taken seriously.
Long ago, when Affinities first began to appear, the humans that were once the underdogs of Oniran found confidence in their new power. This soon grew into overconfidence and contempt. Because of this, the more aggressive groups sought to conquer the world that once oppressed them.
However, after internal conflict amongst themselves, this never became reality. In the present day, Knights have grown from it. Behaviors like narcissism, superiority complexes, and using your Affinity to take advantage of others are heavily frowned upon and sometimes even met with hostility.
While Affinities are far from being a recent phenomenon, Knights are still the youngest race in Oniran. In the present-day, there is little conflict between Knights, Elves, and Valkyr. In the past, however, this was a different story.
Subjecting a Knight to prolonged isolation is completely forbidden, even as a punishment for the worst of crimes. Complete and utter isolation will eventually turn the Knight into a shell of a living being, figuratively and literally a zombie.
Any and all evolution will reverse completely, they lose the ability to use magic, any color or light from their bodies turn gray, and they lose all sense of emotion.
Raising a knight in isolation, while different, is just as harmful. A Knight raised in isolation will quickly become corrupt. For some unknown reason, they still discover an Affinity early on, however, the Affinity is seldom something pleasant.
The cause for these circumstances is completely unknown, it’s theorized that something related to the magic that first led to Affinities came with this drawback. Regardless of what causes it, it’s considered a fate worse than death.
Dress for the job you want
Self-expression is extremely important to Knights and most will personalize their clothing in a variety of ways. It’s the norm for them to take pride in their Affinity, and the clothes they wear are a reflection of that. In fact, in places like Stonewood, it's just as easy to get armor as it is to get clothes!
Naturally, it depends on the individual. Some might customize their clothing or armor to take full advantage of how their bodies evolved, but some might prefer to focus on appearance, letting their clothes do the talking for them. For Knights, the line between practical armor and armor that only really serves as a cosmetic is paper-thin. You'll just as soon see a large hulking Forge Knight wearing anvils as pauldrons as you would a small Arcane Knight covered in Runic Gear and wearing simple robes.
The majority of everyday fashion is simple, a flashy suit of armor or long enchanted robes is seen as either a sign of wealth or great pride, or it could also be seen as incredibly pretentious. Either way, that Knight will be the talk of the town, whether it be in a positive or negative light.
The Knights in Stonewood, having vast varieties of color when paired with their clothing and armor, made each street look like a river of all the colors of the rainbow to anyone looking down from above.
Story always loved to try and guess what the affinities were of particular Knights he took interest in. In contrast, Bomb simply liked to admire, keep to himself, and focus on not being overwhelmed by the bustling crowd around him.
Becoming the Spellbook
You’ll often find magic users in Oniran wearing armor and accessories with runes inscribed within them, Knights are no exception.
Runic Gear is not just a decoration or a boast of what magic they use (except for when it is), these accessories are actually completely necessary for casting spells. Wizards in Oniran essentially become the spell-book with the runes they wear.
Wizards are only as capable as the number of Runic Inscriptions they have on their person. Spells must be carefully considered when going on any sort of adventure or quest, since more spells mean more equipment to carry with you.
Wizardry
Knights see magic as a skill, one to be learned, innovated, and mastered. It's treated as an intellectual art and is taught and used in various colleges around Oniran. This practice is called Wizardry, and it is further classified into several schools of magic.
(If you haven't noticed by now, Knights like to classify basically everything)
- Evocation
- Enchantment
- Conjuration
- Illusion
- Divination
The Core Elements of Oniran are Nature, Fire, Water, Life, and Death. By combining these five, Magic can take the form of any element or effect you can think of.
While Weed's clothing doesn't particularly allude to his Affinity, the Runic Gear he wears take full advantage of Weed Wind-Style magic.
Spells like Gust of Wind, Wind Wall, Cloud Control, Control Winds, etc.
Although it might not actually be wind...
(It's not)
What began as me having some fun redrawing a
manga panel quickly turned into
"Hey, what does Knight magic actually look like?
manga panel quickly turned into
"Hey, what does Knight magic actually look like?
Autumn Stroll
"The two made their way along the trail as the morning light poured in through the leaves, which were blooming with the fresh colors of Autumn. Story was busy admiring the forest around him, often getting distracted and running into the occasional branch or stray rock. Bomb simply kept his eyes to the ground."
Reading Time: 14 min. (2800 words)
Affinities
Society
Fashion and Armor
Wizardry
Facial Characteristics
A consistent number of Knights also grow up to have a different form of legs, a kind of peg leg or stump starting just under the knee with a variety of thicknesses.
Table of Contents
Origin/Ancestry
Humans
Lifespan
100-120 years
Average Height
5-6.5ft
Average Weight
125-250 lbs
Body Tint, Colouring and Marking
Knight’s skin, eyes, and hair can be any color. Usually, these colors share some kind of correlation but Knight’s with completely random color palettes aren’t unheard of.
Knight’s eyes, tears, blood, etc. also tend to glow. Exceptions to this are rare, but always possible.
The most recognizable part of a Knight is their eyes. Not only do they glow, but they come in limitless different shapes, sizes, and quantities. Some have two dome-shaped eyes, some have four triangle eyes, some have ten round eyes dotted all over their face, and some might not even have eyes!
When it comes to features like scars, freckles, birthmarks, etc, their colors completely depend on the Knight. Sometimes these features glow, but that also differs.
Almost every Knight's face is some variation of this at the very least, but it all depends on their Affinity and how they evolve as they grow up. You really never know, some Knights don't even take their helmets off!
Also this is a completely original Knight who isn't based on any other character in any anime at all.
Anatomy
A completely average and unevolved Knight, usually those of a magic type, share the anatomy of their human ancestors.This aspect changes the most depending on their Affinity, even for Knights of the same Affinity.
A consistent number of Knights also grow up to have a different form of legs, a kind of peg leg or stump starting just under the knee with a variety of thicknesses.
Bomb
Bomb is an Introverted Knight, they do exist. He usually only opens up to his friends in the Runedom Guild and worries he might come off as unapproachable for others. It’s not that he hates everyone, far from it, he just prefers quiet company and a fresh cup of coffee.
Age
Knights reach maturity in their late teens and into their early twenties. An Affinity will usually be discovered as early as 4 or 5 and as late as 10, and some few might not find it until later in their life.
It’s usually obvious when it happens, their eyes glow way brighter than normal and they draw attention with a burst of chaotic childlike laughter. The tricky part is finding out what caused it.
It’s usually obvious when it happens, their eyes glow way brighter than normal and they draw attention with a burst of chaotic childlike laughter. The tricky part is finding out what caused it.
"It’s usually crystal clear what a young Knight's Affinity will be. Blade’s mother was dreadfully aware of what it was when he ran out of the house and into the forest with a knife, laughing and glowing the entire time. It took her all day to chase him down!"
Story
Story is an intellectual with a bubbly and energetic personality. Often being the voice of reason in his guild despite being the youngest.
Knight Clothing
Tabards, Gambeson, and Tunics are the most common articles of clothing and are considered casual wear. You'll usually find them in bright and vibrant colors like Strawberry here.
Imp Knight
Imp is a great example of someone who's completely focused her skills on magical combat, as with most of the Dragonheart Guild.
Despite this, it'd be unwise to consider a Wizard without their Gear as weak. The sheer amount of Spells a Wizard might need is more than enough to build up some serious muscle.
In contrast to her Weed loving friend, she's well equipped with Flame-Style spells.
Related Sauce
All the art is made by me unless labled otherwise!
This is a very charming article! I love the idea of people being so passionate about something that their bodies reflect the concept. Their social nature is admirable, and so is the fact that they have grown beyond superiority complexes and similar flaws. I also like the way you formatted this article and break it up with quotes, images and annotations. Great work overall!
Creator of the Kaleidoscope System and the planet Miragia.
Thank you so much, it really makes my day to hear that!