Tristan Du'lac, An Introduction Options

[ChrisB]

Greetings Brothers,

I shall start by saying it is a honour to have been nominated to stand for this years election, I know some of us including myself are surprised that I decided to accept and stand.

So apparently I'm meant to write why you should vote for me. What my credentials are. Why I'd make a good leader.

I'm not sure you should vote for me. I've absolutely no experience of this kind of leadership. I've no time for politics. If I win, time will tell if I was a good Lord Knight.

All I can say is I always have, and always will give everything I can to the Knights. I know no greater bond, Imrazil and the Knights are everything to me. And I would see them flourish and be everything they can, and should be. If that is best achieved through my learning to lead you as best I can, then so be it.

Hopefully those who have stood in battle with me know what to expect. I will not always be the loudest, but when it matters my voice will be heard. I don't demand respect, I try and earn it. And I will try and make every knight achieve their full potential. And see the land, all lands, protected and well served by us.

I am one of you. If chosen to stand as Lord Knight, that will not change. And as one of you, I will call on my brothers and sisters to aid me in being the best Lord Knight I can be.


If elected I would like to encourage all Knights to Lead by example being the best Knight they could possibly be, in turn allowing each and every Knight to prove time and time again that we are the Protectors of the Land and its people, building the confidence in the people and fellow mercenary's that knowing they have Knights with them means that they will be protected with our lives and our vitae so that others less fortunate than ourselves can feel safe.


I would like to encourage Knights to support other organisations strengthening our ties within the Mercenary community, because I hope being a Knight means as much to you all as it does to me?


If anyone has any questions I shall try to answer them to the best of my ability.



Tristan
Sword of Imrazil

[Sharperoc]

Tristan,

Thank you for your introduction. Whilst we have travelled I believe once before, it is never enough time to get to know someone fully.

The humility within your address is welcoming, however some will take your admission of inexperience with leadership as a fault.

1.) What do you look for in a leader, what qualities should they possess?
2.) What leaders of the Knights have inspired you?
3.) Do you believe the Knights need a leader?

I think on this last year, and many of the successes I have shared with other Knights and Mercenaries from the wider community, however I also look upon my mistakes, and how I have failed and what is to be learned from those mistakes.

4.) What has been your greatest success
5.) What has been your greatest mistake, and how have you learned from this.

As an order, I am saddened by some of the events that have brought our name into disrepute this year, or severed alliances.

6.) What will you do to resolve our broken ties with Legend.
7.) Do you think the response so far has been adequate.


I appreciate that this is a wealth of questions and may take some time to respond to and I thank you for your time.

Kind Regards,
Da.

[ChrisB]

Da,

Thank you very much for taking the time to ask these Interesting questions.

First of all, you are correct some may see my admission of inexperience as a fault, but I am honest and straight talking, and everyone is entitled to their own view and opinions.

I have served two terms as Lord of the Watch, and a term as Deputy Lord of the Watch, but I still believe this does not give the experience needed to be the Lord of our Magnificent Order.

Now I shall answer the questions,

1.) The Qualities I value and look for in a Leader are:

Honesty and Integrity - If a Leader cannot be honest with those who follow him, then how can he expect anyone to be honest with him.
Commitment and The Ability to Inspire - Being able to inspire others is key for focusing one on future goals, and if you require people to work and act a certain way, you are going to have to lead by example.
Communication - Being able to clearly describe what needs to be done is extremely important, If your vision isn't clear to others, you can't expect others them to be working towards the same goal.

The most important part of communicating... a Good Leader is always listening to others, to quote a friend, we are all given one mouth, but two ears for a reason.



2.) Leaders that have inspired me:

I Believe there have been many Knights that have inspired me, not just Lords of our Order, but I shall name Knights that have inspired me.

Xeno - One of the First Knights I met, who became my sword brother and my closest friends, In our early Mercenary lives we were both Men of honour and Followed what is known as the Code of the Cavalier, He helped me grow as a Knight and as a person who followed that Code, Inspiring me to be the most honourable person and stalwart knight that I could possibly be, always being true to your word no matter what the cost.

Sirac - Sirac and Myself have had countless discussions over the years and he has inspired me to never be afraid to question others be it actions or intentions.


Gimly & Tidus - I met both of these Legendary Knights on my First Muster with the Knights, their prowess in battle, how they controlled themselves and others in the heat of battle, They Inspired me to be like them, to want to be a Knight that New Knights look up to and look to when things are getting tough, to be a beacon of light when things seem the darkest.

Tai - Much like myself Tai always came across as a very quiet and unassuming person, But he led the Knights with assured authority and confidence while staying humble.

Rufus - He Inspired all around him, when things were darkest Rufus was the one to bring the calm, when he became Lord Knight, he Transformed from the self proclaimed Lord Trouble Maker to a Fine Lord Knight, He Inspired me because watching him I believed people can change and you can be whoever or whatever you want to be, you just have to believe in yourself.


3.) I do believe the Knights need a Leader. To be an example. To listen. To help. And every so often to make the difficult decisions that have to be made. It’s probably the least enviable position in the knights, or at least it should be.

4.) I Do not believe I have particularly accomplished anything of any great note on my own, any success has always been with the aid of others, But being nominated by my peers to have the opportunity to stand for Lord Knight I would have to say is probably as great a success as any.

5.) Along the path to where we are now, there are many mistakes we all make, I cannot think of anything specific that stands out from others, but it is very important to learn and adapt so that we are better equipped to deal with situations or events should they happen again.

I am always saddened to hear when our name is brought into disrepute or alliances become severed, but the role we play in protecting those around us will always have an adverse effect on others, people will always try to tarnish the Knights of the Land, The important thing is how we conduct ourselves, and as long as we hold true to our vows then we shall always have the support of others.

6.) I was not there when the incident in legend occurred, I would need to sit and talk to all the Knights present on that muster to gain a true understanding of what went on that day, The information we have brought to us was from the Master of Embers who has given a single statement but offered no response in turn when his statement was answered by the Lord Unity.


But obviously once all the information has been gathered I would then seek to respond with better understanding and knowledge to what needs to be done, But I will say that decisions will not be made rashly I would seek council from others to ensure decisions made will be to the benefit of all.



Regards,

Tristan

[Sharperoc]

Thank you for your reply Tristan.

I believe many of your fellow Knights, and indeed those that nominated you now and those that entrusted you with the watch already see many of the qualities you value in a leader within you.

I hope that their support may go some way to answering some of your own doubts.

Regards,
Da

[Hulud]

Commitment, for me, is the quality that must be expected of any Lord Knight above all other things.

There are Knights amongst us whos commitment I would question and in most cases, I am content to leave that to the Knights senior hierarchy to deal with, however, when it comes to the Lord Knight and the time for elections then it becomes all of our duty to challenge and question.

I've known you long and well enough Tristian to already know the answer to this but I will pose it to all the prospective Lord Knights.

Is there anything in your life be it a deity or organisation that you could ever find yourself more committed to than the position of Lord Knight, when push comes to shove and you find yourself in that impossible position, forced to make the impossible choice is your knights oath stronger than any other oath you may hold?


Valentine
Knight of Battle

[ChrisAndrews]

Couple from me:

What do you believe the most important Virtue is?

Why shouldn't we vote for you?

Who would you vote for and why?

Tertius

[Will]

Lord Tristan,

As Lord of my order, I see you, and you exemplify the best of a great many of the qualities that I would see in any Knight, but most importantly of the Watch; stalwart, loyal, brave, determined. The rock in the storm. On your qualities as a future Lord Knight I have absolutely no doubt.

That said, I believe fervently that the Lord Knight should want it. That the desire to take on that role should burn in them with a passion, that they can give their all to the Order for the time that they serve.

Do you stand because of a fire in your soul that burns for this destiny, or through a sense of duty; that you feel you "should"?

Thank you, and my admiration to you regardless.

Ace-Tren

[Fionamullin]

So where do those of us who believe but can't commit fully but at least hang about if you get what I mean, where do we count?
I'll die to defend you all, but what about me?
Angela
I thought part of the team

[ChrisB]

Commitment, for me, is the quality that must be expected of any Lord Knight above all other things.

There are Knights amongst us whos commitment I would question and in most cases, I am content to leave that to the Knights senior hierarchy to deal with, however, when it comes to the Lord Knight and the time for elections then it becomes all of our duty to challenge and question.

I've known you long and well enough Tristian to already know the answer to this but I will pose it to all the prospective Lord Knights.

Is there anything in your life be it a deity or organisation that you could ever find yourself more committed to than the position of Lord Knight, when push comes to shove and you find yourself in that impossible position, forced to make the impossible choice is your knights oath stronger than any other oath you may hold?
Valentine
Knight of Battle

Thank you for the Taking the Time to ask Questions Valentine.

As Imrazils Vessel there is no deity or Organisation that I would ever be more committed to, I do not need to be Lord Knight for that to be the case, Nothing is stronger than the Oath I hold with the Knights of the Land.



Tristan

Sword of Imrazil

[ChrisB]

So where do those of us who believe but can't commit fully but at least hang about if you get what I mean, where do we count?
I'll die to defend you all, but what about me?
Angela
I thought part of the team

Angela,

Thank you for taking the time to ask questions and voice your concerns.

I believe I mentioned this in my opening introduction.

I have always been a believer in that if you are with us then you are WITH US, never have I abandoned a single person due to the fact they were not a member of the Knights of the Land.

even when out on mercenary missions I have always tried to defend those around me to the best of my ability, and will always continue to do so.


Tristan.
Sword of Imrazil

[ChrisB]

Lord Tristan,

As Lord of my order, I see you, and you exemplify the best of a great many of the qualities that I would see in any Knight, but most importantly of the Watch; stalwart, loyal, brave, determined. The rock in the storm. On your qualities as a future Lord Knight I have absolutely no doubt.

That said, I believe fervently that the Lord Knight should want it. That the desire to take on that role should burn in them with a passion, that they can give their all to the Order for the time that they serve.

Do you stand because of a fire in your soul that burns for this destiny, or through a sense of duty; that you feel you "should"?

Thank you, and my admiration to you regardless.

Ace-Tren

Ace-Tren

As I always have and always will speak plainly and honestly, I don't believe Lord Knight is ever a position one person should have an overwhelming drive to be, there are so many well deserving Knights.
I Personally stand through a sense of duty, being Lord Knight was never anything I strived to be, but it will always be the biggest honour I could ever hope to achieve.


Tristan
Sword of Imrazil

[ChrisB]

Couple from me:

What do you believe the most important Virtue is?

Why shouldn't we vote for you?

Who would you vote for and why?

Tertius

Thank you Tertius,

As Price has already stated all of the Virtues are equally important, how and when they are best embodied depends on the circumstances.



Reasons to not Vote for me..... Maybe as Ace-Tren questioned because I am standing out of a sense of Duty to our Order and not because I have burning desire to be Lord Knight that some may feel is needed to take the position.



Who Would I vote for:


All of the other people standing for Lord Knight are deserving of their nominations.


Gimli - Gimli Needs no Introduction, He has always been the embodiment of what it means to be a Knight, he has been successful as Lord Knight on previous occasions and I have no doubt he would be a success time and time again.


Price - Price is a Knight who has undergone persecution and hardship and has had the drive to over come his past to turn him into a fine Knight deserving of his nomination.


Darren - Darren did a very good Job last year as Lord Seeker, and has sacrificed much for the benefit of others, he has over shadowed the man who he was by the Knight who stands before us as a nominee for this years Lord Knight, he has been active this year and I believe everything he would do will be a benefit to out great Order, and for this reason it would be Darren who I would vote for.


Tristan
Sword of Imrazil

[Will]

Thank you Lord Tristan

Ace-Tren

As I always have and always will speak plainly and honestly, I don't believe Lord Knight is ever a position one person should have an overwhelming drive to be, there are so many well deserving Knights.
I Personally stand through a sense of duty, being Lord Knight was never anything I strived to be, but it will always be the biggest honour I could ever hope to achieve.
Tristan
Sword of Imrazil