Knight of the Realm
From Lexicanum
Knights of the Realm are Bretonnian nobles who have proved their skill and chivalry by completing an errand as a Knight Errant. They form the backbone of the army of Bretonnia.
Becoming a Knight of the Realm
Once a Knight Errant has proved himself worthy of his station, he is confirmed as a Knight of the Realm. Knights of the Realm make up the bulk of the nobility of Bretonnia and command great respect both for their station and for the deeds they have performed to reach it. Upon his investiture, the knight is given the responsibility of administrating a domain – generally a few acres of land, a village and a castle. As the common folk in the domain are bound to the service of the knight, to work his land and pay their taxes, so too does the knight swear fealty to the higher orders of nobility. A Knight of the Realm is duty-bound to defend his people and his land until death. As a noble trained in the arts of battle, a knight is expected to defend himself and his domain against minor threats without assistance from others. If the situation is more desperate, the knight may either marshal the peasants of the village to fight with him, or instead shelter the commoners in his castle until help arrives from neighboring domains. Above all, a knight is required to maintain the standards of knightly honor, obeying the strict tenets of Bretonnian chivalry. Amongst the most important of these is to respond to the call to war, when he will fight alongside other knights, not as a rite of passage as he did as a Knight Errant, but as duty required by his station. For a knight there is no greater shame than to fail in these responsibilities, thus betraying the chivalric code. If he does so, he may be stripped of all titles and rights, and be banished from the realm until he can prove himself once more.
Pegasus Knights
Some of the richest Knights of the Realm can afford to ride to war atop the back of a majestic Pegasus. Most Pegasus Knights hail from around the border city of Parravon, hard on the slopes of the Grey Mountains where many of their noble mounts can be found. These creatures are difficult to capture and harder still to train, but once they are they make loyal and powerful mounts. Accordingly, to own such a beast is the ultimate symbol of wealth and success for their owners, but in truth a Pegasus is also a great practical boon for any knight fortunate enough to acquire one. A Pegasus is stronger and faster than even the mightiest warhorse, easily able to crush a man’s skull with its flailing hooves and cover great distances swiftly. Indeed, in the more wild and inaccessible domains of Bretonnia there is real merit to a steed that is not prone to becoming mired in mud or entangled in thorns. On the battlefield, small groups of Pegasus Knights will group together, often outstripping the rest of the army as they search for honorable combat.
Notes & sources
Warhammer Armies: Bretonnia (6th edition)
