"The broad-chested warrior was Sir Leodegar of the Golden Hart, the host's sublime Grail Knight, a paragon of courage and honour in mortal form. Varo let his eyes linger on the knight, suddenly aware of every nick, dent and mud-stain on his own armour and tabard. In that moment he felt entirely unworthy of being a knight of the realm, his manhood held cheap in the face of this perfect warrior."
- —Corentin Varo bears witness to Sir Leodegar.[1]
Sir Leodegar, Grail Knight of Bretonnia[1]
Leodegar of the Golden Hart was a mighty Grail Knight of Bretonnia who served the Lady of the Lake during the reign of King Louen Orc-slayer in the twenty-third century IC.
History[]
Origins[]
"To be so close to the grail knight sent tremors along Varo’s limbs. This was a warrior who had fought the most terrible foes imaginable, who had ridden to glory in battles still spoken of in hushed, awed breaths. A grail knight was the very embodiment of living history, a warrior woven into tapestries of the most epic moments of legend."
- —The awe-inspiring presence of Sir Leodegar.[1]
Sir Leodegar was a fabled Grail Knight of Bretonnia, a towering warrior whose very presence caused other noblemen to question their own purity and prowess. Acting as the champion of Baron Cyricus Carrard's crusading host, he was said to be around three centuries old, having fought at the Second Battle of Ceren Field against the Undead forces of the Red Duke. It was even asserted that Leodegar drove the Vampire Lord into exile within the Forest of Châlons. From that day on, he was followed by a horde of zealous Grail Pilgrims known as the Carnival of the Blood-Kissed Duke.[1]
Such was his skill in combat that Leodegar made even experienced knights such as Corentin Varo look like children in comparison. On the battlefield, he smashed through rank upon rank of his enemies like one of the great Carnosaurs said to dwell in the jungles of the far continents of the New World. His armoured body was a battering ram, crushing those in his path. His fey-touched sword split their ranks, and he could cut down a dozen opponents in mere moments.[1]
Even when mounted on horseback and with him fighting on foot, lesser warriors could not keep up with the Grail Knight. He flowed through his foes like a storm of steel, creating space with devastating blows. His sword shone with the purest light, and none could suffer a strike from such a blade without being slain.[1]
For all his great might, Leodegar nonetheless carried a heavy burden. While he held no regrets for the path he walked, even for a second, and cherished the honour he had been given, there was still a price to be paid for one who had lived so long. He no longer saw people as friends or comrades, only ghosts who stood beside him for a time.[1]
Death and Raising as a Wight[]
"A knight who has supped from the grail is a miraculous thing. They are blessed by long life and powers beyond the ken of mortals. Their blood is radiant with the Lady’s light, and not even I fully understand their place in this world or the next. A grail knight’s spirit is a mighty thing, a terrible thing, one that does not easily take its final rest, not when their task is left undone."
- —The Grail Damsel Alisende, on the holy spirit of Sir Leodegar.[1]
Alas, Leodegar eventually met his end fighting the Undead hordes of lost Nehekhara's Tomb Kings, having entered a vast necropolis seeking to bring down the so-called "Amaranthine Queen." The exact cause of his death remained unclear, though his body was eventually raised into Undeath as a Wight by the great Liche Priest Sebek-Tetu.[1]
Leodegar's Undead form still wore the trappings of his knighthood, and his flesh was dried and sunken beneath the visor of his helmet. However, even in death, there was no mistaking the ravaged nobility of his countenance. Having lost his enchanted sword during his battle against the minions of the Amaranthine Queen, he now bore a mighty Nehekharan khopesh. An evil radiance clung to this blade, the edge rippling with the foul magic of death. The Undead Grail Knight was an abomination, the corpse of a great man denied his final rest.[1]
However, unbeknownst to the Liche Priest, his new champion was not fully under his control, for the holy spirit of Leodegar endured...[1]
A Final Act of Heroism[]
"It was an honour for this ghost to ride with you on the quest, Sir Varo."
- —The final words of Sir Leodegar[1]
When the noble knight Corentin Varo and the Grail Damsel Alisende encountered the forces of the Amaranthine Queen, Sebek-Tetu sent forth his deadly champion to slay them. What followed was a desperate battle as Varo struggled to stay alive fighting Sir Leodegar, for the Undead Grail Knight fought with the memory of his power. His skill, even as a debased echo, was simply astonishing. Leodegar's speed, poise and lightning fast reflexes confounded his opponent.[1]
Varo was soon cast down, bested by the corpse of the greatest swordsman he had ever known. However, before Leodegar could land a killing blow, the Grail Damsel Alisende stepped forth. Placing her hand upon Leodegar's chest, she ignited the divinely-blessed soul trapped within his decaying body, restoring his full independence.[1]
Sebek-Tetu, having watched all this occur, began to panic as Leodegar approached him. He screamed in protest, but his words were in vain as the Grail Knight's blade swept down and split the Liche Priest from collar bone to pelvis. The shorn halves of the Liche collapsed with a shrieking explosion of magic, and the weight of stolen millennia finally wrought havoc on its flesh.[1]
Such was the awesome power that Sebek-Tetu wielded, that a pillar of dark light geysered out into the sky from the fury of the Liche's demise. It pierced the sky like a blade, drawing with it the spark of animation that moved within each warrior of the Amaranthine Queen's army. Thousands of the Tomb King's skeletal warriors fell in the moments after the Liche's death.[1]
Sir Leodegar turned away from his killing work and returned to stand before Varo and Alisende. A fading spectral outline of the incredible knight he had once been overlaid the revenant his body had become. Then, with his duty done, Sir Leodegar of the Golden Hart's ghostly form drifted away...[1]
Heraldry and Appearance[]
True to his name, Leodegar bore the heraldic symbol of a rearing golden hart upon a field of green and black, and the image of the horned stag woven upon his chest often gleamed like fresh sunlight.[1]
A large and powerful warrior, Leodegar was resplendent in his surplice of gold and green. The exquisitely crafted links of his mail and the polished gleam of his plate were a stark contrast to the armour of lesser knights. He had long iron-grey hair that was held from his face by a circlet of bronze with an ivory stone at its centre. No statue of kings had ever had such a sculptural countenance, his symmetry perfect and nobly balanced. The knight's eyes were deep violet pools that seemed to drink in the available light, and his allies often fought the urge to drop to one knee before this sublime warrior. The sensation of being near him was like seeing a storm gather on the horizon or watching a mountain wolf prowl at the timberline: thrilling yet undeniably dangerous.[1]
Wargear and Abilities[]
"Varo saw Sir Leodegar leap from the back of Xiphos to land atop the towering serpent. Almost too fast to follow, his sword smashed down in a mighty cleaving blow. It sundered the undead knight’s shoulder guard, tearing down through its collarbone and ribs all the way to its pelvis. Its fleshless face screamed without voice, and the crown of dark metal at its brow blazed with loathsome magic as it fought its bearer's dissolution. Sir Leodegar twisted his sword in the wound, its graceful edges agleam with light, as though drawing power from the very sun to burn away the enemy knight's foulness. He wrenched the blade to the side, tearing it free from his foe's body, and looping it around in a masterful decapitating strike. The crowned skull flew from the undead warrior's neck, and with its destruction, the magic binding the towering serpent-construct's form was broken. The hideous monster fell apart like a statue toppled by conquering barbarians, no longer a terrifying creation of ancient necromancy and dark stonecraft, just a ruin of broken rubble. Leodegar vaulted clear of the disintegrating construct, landing with poised grace in the debris of its death."
- —Sir Leodegar slays an elite champion of the Necropolis Knights.[1]
Leodegar was the greatest warrior within an entire army, having supped from the Holy Grail and taken on its supernatural power. Such was his might, that even the fearsome Red Duke fled from him.[1]
- Leodegar's Sword - Forged from starmetal, the blade wielded by Sir Leodegar was an enormous longsword. Awesome power was bound within this sword, a magic so primal that it had existed before the gods had even wrought mortals into existence. It was truly the weapon of a demigod.[1]
- Xiphos - Possessed of an unearthly intelligence, Xiphos was an immense midnight steed that was said to be nearly as old as Leodegar himself.[1]
Sources[]
- 1: Lords of the Lance (Novel) by Graham McNeill