Rings of Honor

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Alex won the vacant Barony in the 2024 End of Winter All-Ranks Tournament by going undefeated. He chose Old Temple as his prize. (link)

Salvador's next challenge came from Hope Naharis, no stranger to the Arena's rings. It also came with plenty of trash talk on the corkboards. As the challenge got underway, Sal signaled that he planned to test Hope. Karma Armstrong stepped forward to do the job, utilizing her intercession grant. It was a fairly even battle through round seven with Hope's early points answered by Karma's. But Hope took off from there, closing out the fight in 1-2-3, defeating the test 5 - 2 in 10 rounds. Fighting through proxy, Salvador then took the ring to face off against Hope. Another close match began with trading points before Hope fought her way to a lead and then to matchpoint, closing things out 5 - 3 in 8 rounds. With that second victory, Hope became the new Baron of Old Temple. She declared renegade. (link)
The duelers gave Hope most of the summer to enjoy the Old Temple barony before Autumn came knocking on her door for her first challenge. Taking advantage of the Overlord's Grant, Autumn had a significant hill to climb in attempting to take the ring away from Hope. With Conner Reid on hand to call, Hope selected a single match format. Fighting with a bullwhip that looked like not much more than a theatrical prop, Hope quickly jumped to a 3-0 lead by the fifth round. In the sixth round, Autumn managed to connect with the flat of her blade for her first point. Autumn quickly doubled it in the next round, but she gave up the trade in turn and it cost her. Coming in high again in the eighth, Hope deftly rolled beneath Autumn's attack and came up with the win. Hope notched her first defense 5-2 in 8 rounds.

The duelers gave Hope most of the summer to enjoy the Old Temple barony before Autumn came knocking on her door for her first challenge. Taking advantage of the Overlord's Grant, Autumn had a significant hill to climb in attempting to take the ring away from Hope. With Conner Reid on hand to call, Hope selected a single match format. Fighting with a bullwhip that looked like not much more than a theatrical prop, Hope quickly jumped to a 3-0 lead by the fifth round. In the sixth round, Autumn managed to connect with the flat of her blade for her first point. Autumn quickly doubled it in the next round, but she gave up the trade in turn and it cost her. Coming in high again in the eighth, Hope deftly rolled beneath Autumn's attack and came up with the win. Hope notched her first defense 5-2 in 8 rounds. (link)

Due to inactivity, Hope was stripped of the Barony. (link)

After winning a cooking competition hosted by the Baron of Battlefield Park, Salvador took their grant to the cork and challenged Wrecking Crew legend and current Baron of Old Temple Myria Graziano to see if he could get a hold of the church. At her request, Salvador brought out quite the spread for her, caller Conner and spectators alike to enjoy – which we all appreciated! Myria opted for a best of three challenge (maybe to provide spectators plenty of time to enjoy the delicious eats), and in an interesting turn of events, each dueler won a match with identical scores, Salvador winning the first match of 5 to 2 in 6 and then Myria winning the following match also 5 to 2 in 6. Thus, things went all down to the third and final match, bringing spectators to the edge of their seats as they moved throughout the ring. Myria was the first to score after two stalemate rounds, but Salvador soon tied things up in round 4. Managing to score in rounds 6 and 7, Salvador held a two-point lead over Myria, but slow and steady seemed to be the course of this match as it wasn’t until round 10 when another score would come, this time from Myria. When Salvador followed up Myria’s thrust with a solid and skilled duck, then a perfect parry over Myria’s double cut, he was closing in on the final prize. A single final thrust was all it took to close the match out with a score of 5.5 to 2 in 14 and Salvador could begin his reign as the Baron of Old Temple! (link)

Sal's first challenge came a few months into his reign from the most recent holder of the Talon of Redwin, Nicole Brock. Nicole held on to her challenge grant through most of the cycle until her challenge, and chose Sal because of the history of the Barony of Old Temple; it was first held by Tasslehofl Momus, who Nicole affectionately called her Papa Tass. The two met in a single duel, and Sal displayed the skill that had earned him many titles and defenses before. Nicole was unable to score a point, and only extended the match one round past 5, as Sal earned a 5-0 win after 6 rounds. (link)

Sal's next challenge came from Colleen MacLeod, who cited that it had been some time since she challenged, and that similarly it had been some time since Sal was challenged. The two met in the ring with some nice catering on the outside and put on a very good showing in a single duel format while trading blows back and forth. In the end, Sal came out with a little better offensive showing than Collie, and defended the title with a 5-4 win in 7 rounds. (link)

With the retirement of both Seaside and Old Temple, the powers that be decided to hold a tag-team tournament to see who would be the next holders of the two vacated rings! Five teams signed up, four teams competed and a Double Elimination was decided. Strategy was used and plans fell apart. Was it luck? skill? cunning? Who knows, but after 7 hours of grueling dueling, one team came out on top; Bold. Beautiful. Who was which... ask them! But in the end, Droet chose Seaside and Myria chose Old Temple!(link)

Myria's first challenge came from Rhys Germain, who had been the recipient of former Overlord Ebon Ilnaren's grant before he was dethroned. Rhys stated that he wanted Old Temple and offered a cordial challenge, which Myria responded to in a less than friendly manner. That would be about all the drama that the challenge would have, as Myria opted for a best of three defense and won the first match by a commanding 5-1 victory after 7 rounds. In the second match, Myria took a 4-2 lead before Rhys battled back to tie the score at 4, but Myria was able to secure the sweep with a thrust, and won the second match and the challenge with a 5-4 score after 13 rounds. (link)

The next dueler who came calling was an old veteran who wanted to see if they still had it: Tasslehofl Momus. In a clash of two of the elder statespeople of the duels, Myria and Tass displayed their skill in a blink and you'll miss it challenge, despite it being a best of three. All three matches were similar in how they went, with an even score for the early portion before one duelist ran away with the duel. First Myria, then Tass, and finally Myria again to secure another defense. One thing was for sure after seeing this match - Myria is not one to waste time. (link)

Ebon's first challenge came by means of Jaycy, who took up the mantle of Hope's bounty to challenge any loyal to Sal. Though why Jaycy chose Ebon.. well, it could be the brief moment that he wavered in his loyalty after seeing all the back and forth going on with the boards. However, when questioned if she wanted to press challenge, Jaycy gave that option to Ebon, asking if he would change his tune and go Renegade. True to his friend, and his pledge, he stayed loyal and chose a single match! That single match saw Jaycy take the lead and had it grow quickly, reaching 4-0 in the first five rounds. Ebon saw his only point in the seventh, but it wasn't meant to be. Jaycy took the win, 5-1 in 8.(link)

Jaycy's first challenge came by way of the Overlord's grant. And the recipient of said Grant? Why, it was Pearl Fand Ilnaren! But she didn't get to fight to start with. Nope. Jaycy (who was there in the shape of water?) asked her squire, Droet, what he wanted to do, and he decided to test her, and the Overlord, Sal countered! The Droet/Sal match went quickly, and by way of Droet who took the lead and never let up, winning that one 5-2 in 8 rounds. Then it was Pearl's turn at Droet! Droet went off with a storm, and just like with the previous, never let up. What wasn't like the previous is that he didn't let Pearl score, ending it 5-0 in 6 Rounds, leaving (water)Jaycy still with the ring!(link)

Like Hope, Jaycy retired Old Temple when Ebon became Overlord. Her reasoning? She followed Hope. But perhaps there is something deeper... Well, you'll have to find out! (link)

Old Temple was placed as a prize in the 2021 Spring All-Ranks Tournament, which saw twelve competitors enter. Ebon earned the most wins of the night with six, but fell in the finals to Sheridan Driscol. Dris chose another prize, however, and that left the stunned second-place finisher Ebon to claim the vacant Barony as his own. (link)

Caleb's first challenge came from the unpredictable and almost indecipherable Suturi, who won a grant in finishing in second place in the 2021 Madness Tournament. After determining her oddly worded challenge was for Old Temple, Caleb responded and the two met in a single duel. Caleb was as befuddled as many of Suturi's opponents in the tournament, and though he managed to avoid being shut out in 5 rounds, he did fall in the 6th, and Suturi claimed her first Barony with an impressive 5-0 win. (link)

Less than a day after winning the title, the newly declared Renegade Baron Suturi offered up a challenge gauntlet for up to three Warlords to face her. Only one Warlord answered the challenge, and Ebon Ilnaren met the unpredictable dueler in a one shot match. The two kept even during the early rounds, and were tied at 3 apiece after round five. But Suturi and her erratic nature ended up being too much for Ebon to match the rest of the way, and she scored the final two points to secure her first defense, winning 5-3 in 8 rounds. (link)

In her own unique way, Suturi retired the Barony. Sorry, Olaf, I think? (link)

Caleb was one of the first to challenge the loyal baron, Mart, on what we like to refer to as Challenge-tine's Day; all six loyal barons were challenged that day, along with the Overlord, Hope Naharis. When it came time to fight, the challenge was fought in a double-header with Old Market, as partners-in-crime Caleb and his lady, Karma Armstrong, each sought to unseat their respective loyal barons. Mart selected a one-shot challenge, and it was a close one, neck-and-neck throughout the fight. Caleb edged into the lead in round five, going low almost as if anticipating Mart’s movement in that direction. Shifting back to defense, Mart scored once more to bring the fight to sudden death. In the end, it was Caleb who emerged victorious, taking the final point with his double-blades, and the barony. (link)

Mart, a newcomer to the rings, entered the All Ranks Tournament with just one swords duel under his belt and stormed the field with an amazing run to win the tournament and obtained not only the Baron challenge prize and a bump in the recognition of his rank. As the squire of Battlefield park he then issued challenge to the senior Baron of the time, Gloria Blaze. Unusual as a tournament winner but usual for the times, the challenger was tested by the Overlord, Lilith Anderson. Renegade baroness Jaycy Ashleana stepped in for the challenger. The Overlord was defeated in the ensuing duel paving the way for the squire to face Gloria in a single match. The first three rounds alternated score with the Baron disengaging two thrusts in the first three rounds. The Baroness would score a full point to take the lead in round four but in the end the squire would prevail with 4 unanswered points in the next 5 rounds to win the title and defeat the Baroness. (link)

Mart's first challenge didn't come until nearly six months into his reign, when former Overlord and Baron Anubis Karos came calling. Citing the fact that Mart had gone so long without challenge and his distaste for long reigns going without challenge, Anubis wanted Mart to prove himself in the ring. When they met it was a single duel format, and the two were step for step with each other in the early rounds. Anubis took a slim 4-3 lead late in the match, but Mart scored two points unopposed to overtake the challenger and secure the win and first defense of his title, winning 5-4 in 8 rounds. (link)

After winning the previous cycle’s Warlord Tournament, Gloria chose the prize of a test-free grant. When finally issuing her challenge, she looked to Renegade Mairead Harker, not out of malice but in hoping to hold the ring that her friends of eras past and current held as well. As seems to be the Librarian’s fashion, she bestowed a gift to Mairead moments prior to the challenge, which the young Baroness delighted in. She elected to have a single match to decide the victor and Gloria ran up a wide lead by the 7th round of 4.5 to 1, but Mairead worked on closing the gap to score two straight points to 4.5 to 3. Gloria however closed the match with a quick thrust and succeeded in winning the ring of Old Temple. Gloria also announced her loyalty to the current Overlord, Mallory, thus putting all the current barons as loyal to the Overwitch. - (link)

And so the first challenge for Old Temple came and went with Baroness Gloria Blaze never stepping foot inside the ring. With the Overlord issuing a test of worthiness the uphill battle began for Lord Bile; an uphill battle that began heavily in Overlord Jewell's favor. With a quick 2 points gained in the opening rounds of the match, it wouldn't be until the fourth round that saw Bile gain a point on the board after deflecting Jewell's low swing. Though they stalled in the next round, the sixth saw the Overlord once more gain an edge in the match by extending her lead after quickly sidestepping Bile's heated blade — and soon enough it turned to match point after both Overlord and Challenger traded in the 7th round with both high and low strikes. The test of worthiness came to an end in the eighth and final round as Jewell ducked to outmaneuver the more defensive Bile. With an ending score of 5-2 in 8, Overlord Jewell Ravenlock secured the defense of Old Temple. - (link)

Gloria's second challenge came from Tasslehofl Momus. With King's Grant in hand after winning the Warden of Overlook competition during the 2020 Winter Cycle, Tasslehofl's challenge for Old Temple could be seen as the man trying to regain his old stomping grounds. Gloria's acceptance of the challenge came not even twenty four hours later and the two were set to fight the match in the very same week. The night of the challenge saw both challenger and defender step into the ring without the need of intercessions — and within the first 5 rounds Gloria was able to secure match point within the first of three possible duels; and though the match did go to 9, the Baron gained a foothold in the challenge itself after winning the first match. Match two began and this one began to look much the same as Gloria gained 4 points to 1 against Tasslehofl in 6 rounds.. but the Warden of Overlook wasn't to be counted out yet and turned the tide of battle by bringing the match to a 4 - 4 sudden death in the 10th round. This struggle continued, going from 4 - 4 to 5 - 5 before the quick-thrusting Gloria saw an opening and gained the final point needed to end the match with a 6 - 5 in 15 rounds finish in her favor! - (link)

A single duel decided the outcome of the Old Temple Barony. Mairead Harker started strong and kept that way throughout the challenge, only allowing Gren a single point that came at the end of a trade. As the eighth round came and passed the score of 5 - 1 brought an end to the challenge and Mairead secured the ring and a new budding reign of Old Temple. - (link)

Fresh off a top run in his for House Royal, House Champion (and crowd favorite Good Guy) Gren Blockman used his Test-Free Challenge Grant to test himself against House Steel Champion and incumbent Baron of Seaside, Rachael Blackthorne. With all the honor that would be expected of two Champions, the pair met and matched skill in a Best of Three format. While Rachael has been a solid, impressive presence in the rings on the regular, the wily Ranger emerged victorious after taking the first two matches and securing his very first Barony. - (link)

Won after taking second place in the 2018 Spring Warlord Tournament. (link)

Rachael's first challenge game in the form of Arithon Falessen. The Baroness elected to have Overlord Matt step in on the challenge but Arithon wasn't going to let that get in his way. After 10 rounds and a score of 5-3 Arithon fought his way past the Overlord to step into the ring with Rachael. The fight started pretty equal but in the third round Rachael eased into the lead after side-stepping Arithon's thrust! With that advantage gained she continued on with the next two rounds, gaining a point in each, and securing her first defense of Old Temple with a final score of 5-2 in 5.(link)

The second warlord to try collecting Vael's bounty on Anubis was Kalamere Ar'Din. This wasn't the first time the half elf issued a mercenary challenge to the Egyptian, the two had contested over Battlefield Park years prior, but Anubis took the challenge in stride. Venerable title holders both, there was a grudging mutual respect that replaced any usual pre-challenge barbs. On the night of the challenge, Anubis chose to fight for the ring in a single duel, while naming Jewell Ravenlock his second and Tara Rynieyn his lady of honor. The challenger named Rayvinn to both honors for his side. Anubis took the lead in the opener, a sidestep counter to Kal's aggressive start. Too big a risk in the 3rd gave the elf an opening to bring them back to even though. By round 5 Kalamere began to forge a strong lead and out maneuvered Anubis with feints and defenses to go up 4-2 in the 6th. The slaver got a point back with a devastating kick to the head in the 7th, leaving Kal stunned for a round before he could parry off a thrust n the 9th to complete the win. After 9 rounds, Old Temple (and 10,000 silver) passed to the bookie in a 5-3 finish. (link)
Terry King took the Overlord mantle just before Christmas after being the de facto winner of the Fall Cycle Warlord Tournament and found the cycle's grant still available, so she passed it on to Lilith ex Secundi. Lilith was a renowned Fists fighter and current holder of the Diamond, but held no rank in the Arena at the time. Grant in hand, she set her sights on Old Temple as a low drama, friendly encounter for her first foray into the Swords challenge game. Kalamere was more than happy to oblige and the pair met just as the Fall cycle turned to Winter. The elf was on his game that night, but don't read too much into the lopsided 5-0.5 score he won by. Smiles and pleasantries perhaps, but this was a chess match from the opening two rounds of mirrored moves through the 10th round parry he used to end things and Lilith forced him to use every trick he knew by the time it ended. (link)
Retires the title (link)

Anubis was the second to challenge Aric, and the first who held the rank of Warlord rather than a special event prize. Aric found himself somewhat less prepared when defending against a three time Overlord and 8 time baron. Anubis had the Overlord in his corner as second, unsurprising given her known tensions with Baron Aric, and Tara as his Lady of Honor. Aric had the baroness of Old Market, Lirssa al Amat as both Second and Lady of Honor.. Aric declared it a one shot fight and Anubis took first blood with a high cut opener. The Egyptian scored again in the 5th, after several null rounds, to double the lead. Aric finally got on the board and scored in the 6th and 7th, but couldn't do either cleanly and found himself down 4-2 after a round 7 exchange of cuts. The baron did get a clear point in the 8th when Anubis risked a slash, but then fell victim to the winning sidestep when he got overly aggressive in the 9th. Anubis took the duel 5-3 to become the new custodian of Old Temple. (link)

After winning the barony, Anubis submitted a challenge to the other barons. Face him in a best of three and loser retires their ring. It's not the first time such a thing had been seen in the history of the Arena, though such things haven't always worked out well. Regardless of that, however, none of the barons took the bait. Well, not directly. Rather than challenge Anubis, Sr. Baroness Vaeluthil Whitevale reacted by placing a bounty on Old Temple. Vael offered 10,000 silver, a metric tonne of candy, a valuable secret or an unnamed favor to any duelist to best Anubis and then pledge loyalty to Overlady Jewell. The offer piqued the interest of Terry King and challenge was issued. Anubis, annoyed at Vael's meddling, but respecting Terry's skill, answered the challenge and the two met 10 days later. The Egyptian was first on the board, a low cut to draw blood beneath the challenger's parry. Terry did succeed with the next parry to tie the match, but that would be the last tie score of the night. Anubis would advance the score through the next few rounds and sit on a 4-2 lead after a thrust in the 8th to beat Terry's cut. A bloody round 10 found them meeting in matched thrusts to end the duel, 5-4, completing a first defense for Anubis and disappointing the Sr. Baroness. (link)

Awarded the Overlord grant for the Summer Cycle of 2016, Aric raised some eyebrows by going after a loyal baron rather than one of the two renegades. Current baroness, Red UrThorne, was especially unhappy with the choice and accused Overlord Matt Simon of colluding with his champion to remove her, rather than simply re-aligning her to renegade himself. Tensions were high when Aric and Red met to settle the challenge, a surety that were she to defend, the baroness would be quick to set her sights on the Overlord's mantle to avenge the slight. The fight was tight through the first 5 rounds, Red having a momentary lead before giving it up but then tying things again with a circ. parry and setting the score at two a piece. Aric took control at this point, however, scoring unanswered points in the sixth and eighth before engaging in a brutal exchange of thrusts in the tenth to conclude the challenge 5-3. Aric claimed the title and becomes the third of the barons to earn their title via grant. (link)

With all barons called out as part of the 2016 Trick or Treat grants, Aric found himself facing Cane Devillier. This was interesting given Cane's close association with Lirssa, the baroness of Old Market and Aric's girlfriend. Historians can't be entirely sure, but figure there could be a bit of interesting gossip around this piece of intrigue. Unsurprisingly, Aric named Lirssa as both his second and lady of honor, while Cane named no second and chose to honor Empress Overlady, Jewell Ravenlock, which we will note, again, a bit of surprise given Jewell and Lirssa's relationship. We begin to wonder if Lirssa's friends were trying to tell her something. Regardless, the baron chose to move forward in the best of three format and it was a good thing for him that he had. Cane came out strong and won the first duel 5.5-2 in a short 6 rounds. He had taken a lead in the 3rd and never looked back. The second duel of the series saw Aric finding his rhythm and putting up a 5-2, 9 round win to bring the match even. Duel number three was even more lopsided, going nearly unscathed en route to a 5-1, 7 round victory that cemented his win and right to hold on to the Old Temple ring. (link)

Two baronies were available in the Warlord Tournament held for the Spring Cycle of 2016; New Haven and Old Temple. Red won her first two duels before losing a close one to Jewell and dropping to the losers bracket. She then won two more to make it to the final and face off Hope Naharis. Hope remained undefeated on the night, defeating Red 5-4 in 10, but that still left Old Temple to be claimed as consolation when Hope decided on New Haven.

As Overlord, Nayun banished all loyal barons to renegade and called forth their challenges. Matt Simon was the first to step forward and the pair fought just after Christmas. While two others had lined up behind Matt, Nayun would never get the opportunity to face them. After a 5-4, 11 round, victory Matt ascended to the Overlordship and handed Old Temple over to Nayun. (link)

Nayun's first challenge came from Melanie Rostol. By now an old hand at the challenge circuit, Mel had lost her last barony (Battlefield Park) to technical forfeit around the Winter holidays. With the mandatory wait time before becoming challenge eligible passed, she came after Nayun to retake a barony she had held back in the Fall. The Baroness elected a one duel affair and they proved to be very evenly matched. After three changes of lead, they found themselves at a 4-4 tie after Melanie's 9th round sidestep. The Baroness was on point in the 10th, deflecting the challenger's high cut and striking the final blow to win 5-4 for her first defense. (link)

There would be no second defense for Nayun, as she retired the barony in mid April. Her attention called home to Yasuo, she relinquished the ring to the next warlord's tournament and someone who could actively maintain the manor. (link)

Upon becoming the 105th Overlord, Harris D'Artainian issued a bounty on Renegade barons and Matt became the second warlord to take him up on it. It's not entirely clear if either of the takers actually wanted to support Harris or if they just wanted to take his money from him, though it certainly seems more like the latter. Matt must have wanted that cash pretty bad because we would be absolutely dominant in the single duel match against Sabine. He gave up a point in the first round, but then scored clean in the five to follow to win the bout 5-1 in 6. (link)

As a somewhat odd way of arranging to see her friend whom she'd not met up with in some time, Sabine issued challenge to Melanie to call her into the rings. They met to fight in single duel format and the match was close all the way through. Either tied or with Mel in the lead, it wasn't until the 13th round that Sabine ducked a parry to take her first lead of the night. In the very next round she caught Mel's thrust with a counter to take the barony in a 6.5-5 finish. (link)

The Summer Cycle Warlord Tournament of 2015 saw 8 Warlords enter, with the standard Overlord challenge available, but also holding two baronies as prizes. Melanie Rostol defeated Jewell Ravenlock in the 3rd round to secure a spot in the final via the winners track, then met up with Jewell again at the end after the blue haired fae took the losers track. Melanie was unable to take another win in two attempts to defeat Jewell and so took 2nd place overall in the event. When Jewell claimed the Dockside barony, Melanie also skipped over the Overlord challenge and took Old Temple. (link)

Anubis Karos, highly decorated warlord and infamous slaver, was the first to challenge Kimone for Old Temple. With a surprsing lack of bile or drama between the two, they met roughly two weeks later to fight a one shot title match. The baroness was first in the lead and held a 2-0 advantage after the 2nd round, and maintained a 3-1 lead up through the 8th. Beginning in the 9th, however, Anubis went on a scoring streak and took 4 consecutive rounds to take a 4.5-3 lead. A high cut from the Egyptian in the 14th secured a 5.5-4 win and a new reign as the baron of Old Temple. To the horror of the citizenry, Anubis turn rights of use over to Tara Rynieyn. (link)
Matt Simon was the winner of the 2015 Madness tournament, taking honors and a baronial challenge right. He used this right to call out Anubis and make a claim for Old Temple. After winning the Arena's annual top tournament it seemed Matt would be unstoppable, but Anubis proved that not to be the case by taking the first duel in this best of three encounter. Matt turned that around in the second duel, however, and split the series one duel a piece, both winning by a score of 5-4. In the 3rd and final duel, Anubis put on a much more dominating performance, holding Matt to only 2 points and securing his hold on the barony with a 5-2 victory. (link)
The next to challenge Anubis was Vaeluthil Whitevale. Challenger and Baron met once more in a best of three series, though this one would take only two. Allowing a mere 3.5 points combined in the two duels, Anubis claimed 5-0.5 and 5-3 victories over the faerie warlord, keeping himself and Tara firmly in control of Old Temple district. (link)
Less than a week after his defense against Vaeluthil, and despite having also defended against Matt Simon in the same cycle, Anubis was found to be no longer eligible to stand as Baron of Old Temple, having failed to participate in regulation dueling for the entirety of the Spring. (link)

Kimone had been the 100th Overlord of the Arena. When bested by Claire who become the 101st in a 5-3 performance, Kimone took over the vacated barony of Old Temple. (link)

When Claire challenged Kalamere, Morgan le Fay became the 4th Overlord to intercede on his behalf and for the Test Of Worthiness. Renegade baroness, Aya Hayashibara, stepped in to champion Claire, or perhaps just to thwart the Overlord, and fought the Right to Challenge. Morgan was first on the board, but Aya was quick to tie the match and then follow through to take the lead. A low cut in the 7th gave the renegade a 5-3 win and set up the challenge as between Claire and Kalamere. Baron and challenger were evenly matched in this back and fourth affair. The elf was out to a 2-0 lead at the start, but the Claire tied the match and moved to a 2 point lead of her own by the 6th. Then it was Kal's turn again, scoring twice to tie the match at 4 in the 9th. The 10th, however, went Claire's way. Her high cut caught Kalamere before he could dance out of the way, securing the 5-4 win and the ring of Old Temple. (link)

While Overlord intercession hadn't worked out for Kalamere when Claire challenged, it went much better for Claire when Melanie Rostol came looking to take her ring. The Overlord at the time was Gren Blockman. The only renengade under Gren was Aya, who had helped Claire in getting the barony in the first place, so it was perhaps not all that surprising when noone showed up to fight the Right to Challenge on Melanie's behalf. Melanie, for her part, started the Test off strong; moving to a 3-0 lead by the 5th round after a pair of successful parries and a biting high cut. From the 6th round on, however, the match belonged to the Overlord. Scoring in 5 of the 7 rounds to follow, while not allowing another strike from the challenger, Gren completed a defense of his loyal baroness by score of 5-3 in 12 rounds. (link)

Cory Havoick issued challenge to Claire, but stated that he would rescind this should the runner up of the Warlord Tournament wish to challenge her instead. It turned out that was the case, so Cory withdrew. (link)

Red 'ur Thorne took second place in the Fall Cycle Warlord Tournament of 2014 (link) and earned a baronial challenge free of intercession. She elected to issue this challenge to Claire and her hold on Old Temple. It took all of a week from the time the challenge was issued to the time the pair met in the ring; a speedy challenge with little fanfaire. The match itself was likewise a swiftly completed affair that lasted only 6 rounds. Red was able to land a clean thrust in the 2nd and a trade of cuts in the 5th, but overall the night belonged to Claire. After that trade in the 5th, the baroness danced nimbly aside Red's slash and struck with a counter to end the duel at 5-2. (link)

Claire's next challenge came from Erin Dunbridge. The long time warlady and prior holder of Old Temple, was looking for a new home and thought her old mansion would work splendidly. Claire offered to put Erin in touch with her real estate agent instead, but Erin seemed insistent and so the challenge went forward. Erin might have had a bit of rust to knock off before she went title hunting though, as Claire absolutely had her way with her. The Baroness put up a 6 round shutout to keep Old Temple for herself. Hopefully she gave Erin that agents card once the match was completed. (link)

The challenge to follow would be issued by Claire, rather than to her. With Kimone Kidd holding the Overlord title, Claire decided it was time she take another run at acquiring that one for herself. In the interim, Sabine Gabrielle issued challenge to Old Temple (link), but Claire would prove victorious over Kimone and never need face her. (link)

When Rakeesh challenged Candy Hart for the Overlord title, Candy tested the baron and placed Ticallion Carter in his path. As a renegade baron, the liontaur was entitled to his own champion and reached out to Kalamere Ar'Din to face Tical, knowing the warlord's long held opinion against the Test as applied to Barons. The fight between champions was a long affair and though Ticallion never held a lead, he kept it close or tied for the entirety. Tied 4.5 each after the 15th, Kal trapped a thrust from the Overlord's champion to close out the duel and put a halt to the test against Rakeesh. In the main event Rakeesh took the Overlordship from Candy, 5-4 in 11, and award the barony to Kalamere for services rendered. The elf and now ex-Overlord were never particularly close, but this challenge and Kal's meddling was the the spark that trigger a lasting feud between them. (link)
Kalamere put himself in the way of another Test of Worthiness not too long after, though this time in opposition to Rakeesh and his plans to thwart Rand alTan's challenge. Facing Xanth in the Right to Challenge, Kal and the Overlord's champion were tied through 7 before the elf took control. A 5-4 victory in 10 rounds set up the direct challenge for Rand who would go on to defeat Rakeesh to become the 92nd Overlord. (link)
The first challenge to Kal's hold on Old Temple came from Nayun in the late Spring. Rand elected to intercede on his loyal baron's behalf and took the ring to face Nayun, but instead found himself dueling Mur Ollavan. Mur beat Rand handily, allowing only 1 point from the Overlord, to give Nayun a shot at the ring. Tied at 3 after the 7th, the Baron landed a low cut in the 8th and danced around Nayun's parry in the 9th to score the winning shot. (link)
Terry King issued challenge that Kal accepted after waiving the loyal baron's right to need defend but once per month, but was ultimately ruled invalid under the rules. (link)
When Hydra season rolled around in 2013, with its challenge and title incentives, Candy Hart decided it was time to make Kalamere pay the debt he owed her. A win might have made Candy feel vindicated and diffused the grudge. Kal even getting in the ring with her might have helped matters. Instead, Overlady Ellisa Morgan did all the defending. Joku Shoya, renegade baron of New Haven, stepped in to fight the Right to Challenge, but Ellisa landed a thrust in the 10th round to win 5-4 and force the Test of Worthiness. The fight against Candy was less close. Leading throughout the fight, the Overlady took a 5-2 win and successfully defended Kal's right to hold the ring. (link)
Candy took another shot at Kal in early August, while Hydra was still going on. No Overlord intercession or Right to Challenge fights this time around, Kal elected to face her in single duel format. Candy took first blood in the fight, trapping a thrust in the opening round. That was the only success to be had by the challenger however. Kalamere landed a dagger in each of the next 5 rounds, dancing around her circular parry in the 6th to complete a 5-1 defence. (link)
After Hydra finished up, Kal was left alone for a few months. It wasn't until the end of November that Apple came looking for the ring. With no delay, they arranged to meet the first week of December to settle things. Apple held to the banner of Beat Down with Nell Holliday as her Lady of Honor and Jin Sin as her second. Kal's Lady of Honor was Candy Hart, sort of. A disruption in the Nexus had carried an alternate Candy to RhyDin. The local Candy was not pleased. As his second stood Overlady Teagan Rielea, who took it upon herself to issue the Test of Worthiness. With no renegade barons in attendance, Apple had no option but to face the Overlady head on. For the second time of his reign, Kal's hold on the barony was successfully defended by the Overlord. Teagan made short work of the challenger and took the 6 round win by score of 5-3. (link)
It was once again several months before Kalamere found himself under challenge. After Jake Thrash won the Madness Tournament of 2014 he had two challenge grants to distribute, one of which he handed to Kruger Allen (link). A little surprised to find himself under challenge via a grant award from his friend and neighbour, the baron took it well enough and attempted to form a wager with "The Anvil" over the outcome, but things got a little weird when, for his part, Kruger wanted Kal's squire, Jewell Ravenlock, to take him to the lands of the Fae. The pair never came to acceptable terms on the wager, but did meet up to fight this best of three match. Kal took the first in a commanding 5-1 finish, but then gave up a 4-3 lead in the second to allow Kruger a 5-4 win to tie the series. The challenger took a 2-0 lead in the final duel advanced that to 3-1 after a trade of thrusts in the 4th. Kruger looked to have the baron on the ropes, but the elf was able to mount a comeback. Scoring in rounds 6 through 9, Kalamere turned it around and took a 5-4 win to secure his continued hold on Old Temple. (link)

Old temple having been retired by Tass, it was once again offered as a prize in a Warlord Tournament, this time for the Fall Cycle of 2012, along side the barony of Dragon's Gate and the customary Overlord Challenge Grant. Ten duelists showed up for the event and found Rakeesh, who had won through in the winners bracket, facing off against Nayun who took the long road there after a first round defeat at the hands of Rix Favre. Nayun took the first duel to put herself on even footing with the liontaur, but Rakeesh won the next one to take the tournament win. Old temple was his chosen prize. (link)

Marric Dorsvle was the first to challenge Rakeesh, who readily accepted. He was, however, somewhat less punctual in his arrival the night of the challenge. Appearing an hour late, the liontaur looked to have already been in combat before even taking the ring. To his credit, Marric waited patiently and allowed the challenge to proceed without instead refering the matter to the Baron's Council. If Rakeesh looked somewhat the worse for wear before the match began, the 17 round marathon certainly couldn't have helped matters. He did prevail, however, landing a high cutin the final round to win 5.5 - 3.5. (link)

To award the Winter Cycle Grant, Overlord Candy Hart called for a tournament to be held on Overlord Isle, inviting duelists of all ranks to enter. Thirteen duelists answered and fought it out in single elimination style, with Jay Capistrong defeating Lean Choi in the final to earn the price. (link) While Jay looked great in the tournament, the skill he showed there did carry fully over to the challenge ring. He was first to score, but all in all the night belonged to the baron who took a 5-3 in 8 round victory in this one shot challenge. (link)

Rakeesh would not again defend this barony. Instead he issued challenge to Overlord Candy Hart and ascended to become the 91st holder of the mantle. (link)

Nayun having abdicated the ring, it became available in the Winter Cycle Warlord Tournament of 2012. The tournament drew just four contestants, but saw Tasslehofl prevail over Teagan to take the top prize. Passing on the Overlord challenge, he chose the barony of Old Temple.

The first challenge to Tass came from Harris who had apparently draw his name from a hat. The pair were well matched, though Harris held a two point lead and the win in sight after he sidestepped in the 7th and advanced the score to 4-2. Old man Tass fought his way back and saw the match tied first at 4.5's and then at 5.5's. A thrust in the 15th round beat the Blue Haired One's high cut and finished a successful defense for Tass. (link)

Tass continued on as the Baron of Old Temple for over four months without challenge. Delivering the ring and key to Old Temple maonr to Norah in an envelope left on her desk, Tass retired his title and from the DoS altogether. (link)

The Trick or Treat challenges of 2011 awarded challenges on a first come first served basis to any active duelist ranked below warlord, as long as the challenge was issued on Halloween. Nayun, a grand master at the time, claimed the challenge as to Old Temple and moved forward to test her skills vs. Rhiannon. What was scheduled to be a best of three match needed only the first two duels and a grand total of 14 rounds. Except for 2 rounds in the first engagement, Rhi just couldn't find the lead. Nayun wrapped up both duels with 5-3 wins and took the ring. (link)

Nayun then challenged Overlord Ellisa Morgan and made it past the Test of Worthiness thanks to Shadow's help in Right to Challenge fight. She went on to lose the title shot in a 5-2 finish, however, and afterwards relinquished her hold on the barony y retiring the ring. (link)

The Barony of Old Temple was left vacant after Aya ascended to the title of Overlord and the ring was offered as a prize in the Winter Warlord Tournament of 2011. Rhiannon Harker battled her way out of the Loser's Bracket and faced Evan Rush Rynth in the grand finale. After defeating Evan twice, 5-1 in 11 rounds and 5-3 in 8 rounds, she opted to accept the Barony as her prize. (link)

Red ur'Thorne was the first to challenge Rhiannon, looking for a rematch after have lost to her in the Warlord Tournament that granted the ring. They fought in a best of three match, with Rhi bearing a four colored banner representing Ireland and Greece, with Red's a silver cross upon a field of black. The first of the duels was by far the closest, having a tied score for 4 of the 7 rounds. Rhi broke the 4-4 tie in the 7th with a sidestep and counter to take the first. The second and third duels were both lopsided, 5-1, victories; Red took the one in the second, but then Rhi took the final to complete her defense. (link)

The next challenge came from Xeric Mues, but Rhi wouldn't need to step into the ring for this one. Overlord Ellisa Morgan was on hand to defend her loyal baroness and Xeric had no one on hand to step in on his behalf. It was a short and one sided duel. Xeric managed to score on a trade in the first, but could otherwise do nothing to get in the Overlord's way. Ellisa dispatched the challenger 5-1 in 7 rounds. (link)

Having proclaimed herself to be the best female duelist in the Arena, Maria soon found herself face-to-face with another woman who sought that title, Aya Hayashibara. After accusing the Warlady of squandering the grant Maria had given her to challenge then Overlord Imp, a single duel was the decided upon method to determine who would walk away with the title and the Barony. The challenge was settled in six quick rounds with the ladies trading points in three of them to bring the final score to 5-4 in Aya's favor. (link)

Aya was challenged by Tass for the barony, but the match would never come to pass. Overlord Imp retired the mantle and a tournament of barons was held to fill it. Aya came out on top and became the 86th Overlord. (link)

Xanth's next challenge would come from Warlord and vocal Wrecking Crew member, Maria Graziano, who wanted to be a Baroness but did not want to challenge another woman. Xanth met the challenge with his usual pleasantries, but when the time came to do battle, it was the Warlord who was the dominate one. In the 8th round, she lunged into the Barons ducking form to secure victory, the score of 5-1. (link)

After defeating Xanth 5-1 in 8 rounds, The Barony of Old Temple enjoyed a relatively quiet period of no challenges. It wasn't until the Baroness herself called upon others to challenge her that someone stepped forward. The first was recently returned Warlady Red ur'Thorne that was answered with Maria's normal amounts of pleasantness. The matches were close, both of them. The first one was taken by the Baroness, and the entirety of this match was close. The lead changed a few times, only to be tied up shortly thereafter. In the End, the Baroness took it by the score of 5-4. The second match started with the Baroness taking the lead, then the Warlady dominated the next several rounds, reaching match point by round seven on a trade of blows. But then, the Baroness showed why she earns the praise she does, by coming back by scoring in three of the next four rounds to take the match by the score of 5-4 in eleven rounds. (link)

One month and one week later, Max would face his next challenge from Warlord Xanth Van Bokkelen. Max did not fare well at all in this challenge, as they met in a single match with the Warlord dominating from start to finish, defeating the Baron 5-1 in 6 rounds to become the new Baron of Old Temple. (link)

Immediately after defeating Max for the Old Temple Barony, Xanth declared himself loyal to then Overlord Anubis Karos. He then took of residence in the Rhydin Public Library and threatened mortal death upon any who trespass. This caused a rather public uproar and many protests in regards to the shutting down of the services of the library. The Governor, Seraphim Knights and other keepers of the peace demanded the return of the library to public status, which the Baron agreed to do. The First challenger Xanth would face would be noted as hardly a challenge. It came from Grand Master Squire, Neo Eternity of the Seraphim Knights. The claim of the challenge was not because of the library incident, but because of the wish to deprive the Overlord of a Loyal Baron. Whichever the reasons, the Overlord would not lose a Loyal Baron as Xanth dominated the entirety of the Single Match and won by the score of 5-0 in 8 rounds. (link)

Xanth's next challenge came from Warlord Tasslehofl Momus. Without surprise to anyone, Overlord Anubis Karos stepped in to test the Warlord, and Baroness Jaycy Ashleana stepped in to intercede the test on behalf of Tasslehofl. In fourteen hard fought rounds, the Overlord was able to overcome the Baroness, defeating her with a lunge in to gain victory 8-6.5 and allow him to test the Warlord. Tasslehofl appeard to have no trouble at all with the apparently exhausted Overlord, and dispatched him with relative easy, the final score being 5-2 in 9 rounds. However, the plan appeared to be to tire out the challenger, because when the Warlord stepped in to face the Baron, it was the Baron who held complete control for the duration of the match, even having gained the lead of 4-0 in 4 rounds. Xanth seemed to ease off on his tactics at this point, even allowing the Warlord to gain two points before finally stepping around Tass' defense to secure the final point in the 10th round, 5-2. (link)

The third and final challenge from came from Max Blue, and the Baron chose a single format. This match lasted a full 15 rounds before the Warlord used a pair of simple defenses to secure the victory, 5-4 in 15 rounds to become the new older of Old Temple. (link)

After Max defeated Anubis 5-4 in 15 rounds to become the new holder of Old Temple, it was ironic that he would be Max's first challenge opponent. How Max would have fared in this challenge is unknown, as the Overlord at the time, Teagan Rielea, decided to test the Warlord and defend Max. Teagan fought and defeated Anubis by the score of 5-3.5 in 10 rounds to allow Max to hold onto the title that much longer. (link)

The only challenge Kheldar would face after claiming the Barony of Old Temple in the Spring 2009 Warlord Tournament would come from Anubis Karos, who claimed he swore to challenge the winner of that tournament prize. Karos did not want to have it said of me that he is nothing but bravado and wind, and so again swore to take the title from Drasinia. Kheldar offered a best-of-three format, but was unable to hold Karos off, being defeated strongly in the first match and putting up a strong effort in the second only to fall short of his defense, 5-2 and 5.5-4.5 were the final scores. (link)

Five days after becoming Baron of Old Temple, Anubis was issued challenge by Overlord Grant recipient Salvador Delahada, a relatively newer face in the Arena who has shown promise. Anubis accepted the match with his usual grace and pleasantry, which is to say severe verbal abusiveness, as Karos is nothing if not colorful. In the first match, Salvador put up a decent fight, even gaining match point before dropping the next two. Anubis quickly dispated the swordsman in five rounds in the second match, only allowing a point in a trade of cuts as he defended his title 5-1. (link)

An interesting set of events followed that challenge. Warlord Guill Fortis again issued a challenge to Anubis (link), and shortly thereafter, Overlord Tasslehofl Momus awarded Warlord Alais d'Nitesong Sidhe the Challenge Grant. Due to the rules of challenge at the time, the Grant was ruled as wasted through no fault of the recipient. Alais chose to challenge Anubis and was placed as second in the challenge Queue. (link) Shortly after that challenge was issued, Warlord Max Blue issued challenge to Anubis as well, and for the first time in a long time a challenge queue was created. (link)

Anubis's first challenge to Guill came and went quickly, as the Baron chose a single format, easily dispatching the overmatched Warlord in ten rounds by the score of 5-2. (link)

The second challenge match, from Alais, was far more exciting and even epic at one point. The Baron chose a best-of-three format, and in the first match defeated the challenger by a respectable 5-3 in 9 rounds match. The second match was one of the best fought matches in years in the Arena. The Challenger held the lead throughout most of the match, which lasted Twenty long rounds before she was able to defned her way to victory, defeating the Baron 6.5-5.5. But whatever energy the Warlady held appeared to have disappated as the Baron pulled on his reserves to handily defeat her in the final match, 5-1 in six rounds, the challengers sole point coming from a trade in the last round. (link)

The Spring Cycle tournament of warlords for 2009 was won by Guil Fortis, but he declined to claim a prize and left both the Overlord challenge grant and barony of Old Temple to the 2nd and 3rd place participants. Kheldar, who had won throw to the final but then dropped two to Guil, was the first runner up and selected Old Temple as his prize. (link)

Teagans next challenge came from Warlord Erin Dunbridge. This one came about because the Overlord at the time, Drey Starke, chose her to test challenge Tormay Eludes. Teagan then stepped in against Erin and easily defeated her. Using this as the reason for challenge, Erin came out strong and defeated Teagan to take the title of Baron of the Old Temple. (link)

Erins first challenge came not to her, but from her. She quickly issued her challenge to Overlord Tormay Eludes. The Overlord had little trouble in the best-of-three matchup, holding Erin to 4 points in two matches. (link)

How she would fare in any challenges to her was left as unknown, for though Warlord Jaycy Ashleana issued challenge to her, three days later the Baroness cited several personal reasons for retiring the title and leaving Rhydin. A Barons Council was convened to decide the path of the challenge, and it was decided that Tormay Eludes would step in to face Jaycy for the right to the Old Temple Barony. In a single match format, the Overlord denied Jaycy becoming Baroness by the final score of 5-4 when he lunged under her high attack in the 9th round. (link)

Overlord at the Time, Roland Sal Roa, decided to hold a Tournament of Champions for the prize of the Overlord Grant. He called upon all Barons to pick a Champion and as Overlord Champion, chose the Talon of Redwin. It turned out that the Talon of Redwin proceeded to defeat the more experienced members of that tournament, and won the right of the Grant. Teagan Rielea was that champion, and used the grant to issue challenge to the Baron of Old Temple. (link) Over a week had passed since Teagan issued challenge to Horatio with no response, and the Supervisor at the time declared him in forfiet. A Barons Council was convened and they appointed Warlord Sartan as champion. In a two matches, Teagan outlasted Sartan and took the title of Baroness of Old Temple by scores of 5-4 and 5-2 before declaring her Loyalty to the Overlord. (link)

Teagan's first challenge came from Warlord Anubis Karos. Teagan chose a single match format and outlasted the Warlord, defeating him by slashing through his defense, and then disengaging from combat stylishly in the 9th round and sealing the match by a 5-3 score. (link)

Nearly a year would pass before Rena would have to face a Warlord to defend her ring. That Warlord was Horatio Benvolio MacBeth. Having been forced to pull out of the first ever DoS Madness tournament due to injuries after winning his bracket, the winner of the tournament, G'nort Dragoon Talandor, offered Horatio the grant prize he had taken. Rena opted for a best-of-three format and the two engaged in battle. Their first match was methodical, taking a full eighteen rounds to complete with Rena coming out on top, 5-3. The second match found Horatio taking a quick 4-0.5 lead after a mere six rounds. But the Baroness proved her mettle, bringing the match to sudden death in round ten. The next round went to Horatio and the second match was settled 5-4. The decisive third match was the shortest of the three. It found the two deadlocked at four points apiece after eight rounds. But just like the sudden death situation in match two, Horatio pulled through to become the newest Baron of Old Temple, winning 5-4 in nine rounds. (link)

Horatio's first challenge came from Warlord Magnus Eques of Polaris. Horatio eagerly accepted the challenge and requested it be fought quickly, with Magnus agreeing to do so. It was then fought in a single match format, with Horatio successfully defending his title by the score of 5-3 in 10 rounds. It was noted how this challenge proceeded quickly with a minimum of fuss. (link)

Tass did not receive a challenge until after the spring 2006 Warlord Tournament had passed. Rena Cronin claimed second place and the right to challenge a Baron of her choosing for her strong performance in the tournament. (link) Tass handily took the first match with a seven round, five to two win, however Rena was quick to bounce back with a dominant five to one, nine round victory. In the rubber match, Rena rallied back from a two point deficit to defeat Tass five to four in eight rounds and claim Old Temple. (link)

By virtue of placing second in the winter 2005 Warlord Tournament, Tasslehofl Momus claimed the Barony of Old Temple and declared his loyalty to the Overlord. (link)

Tassleholf's first challenge of his reign came from sultry Warlord Kaja Adair. This was Kaja's second attempt to capture the ring, and proved more fruitful than her previous attempt. This was no surprise however, considering the official's report for the challenge contained the following description: "Ever notice when she ducks like that those low rise pants kinda go lower?" Being the known rogue that Tass is, he was just as charming after his defeat as he was before the match began. The final score of the twelve round match was in Kaja's favor, five to four. (link)
Kaja's first challenge for the Old Temple came from Max Blue. (link) However, Max's challenge was withdrawn after he was awarded the Dockside Barony for services rendered to Grayson MacLeod during the Test of Worthiness in his challenge to Damien Mortis. (link)
Kaja's first defense of the Old Temple stewardship came by way of the first ever challenge for title by Rakeesh Sah Tarna. The issue of challenge with the arranging of the preliminary details all began cordially enough until the action started in the challenge ring on the fourteenth night of the month of November. Immediately the current reigning Overlord, Anubis Karos, decided the liontaur Rakeesh needed as stout a test as possible if he were to attain his first title in the sport and stepped to the ring before the Baroness could step forward to defend her title. The Baron of Dockside, Max Blue, at the request of the challenger Rakeesh stepped in to try to derail the Overlord's intentions. After eleven rounds the Baron of Dockside was able to best the Overlord by a margin of victory of three points to allow Rakeesh to proceed straight to Kaja without further interference. With a wicked slash upon Kaja's defenses Rakeesh was within match point, but after a couple stalled rounds the Baroness rallied three points in a row to retain the right to steward the Old Temple for a bit longer. (link)
Nearly three months later, Rakeesh came knocking on the Baron's door again, however he withdrew his challenge shortly after issuing. (link)
Only a month later, Rakeesh challenged Kaja yet again. However, this time, he did not withdraw it. After a week with no word from the Baroness, the matter was sent to the Baron's council. The Council elected to strip Baroness Kaja of her ring and place it as a prize in the upcoming Warlord's Tournament. (link)

Tass was the holder of the 1st ring when the DoS Commission acquired and distributed the baronial manors. The fourth to select his property, Tass picked Old Temple and the old abandoned church as the manor house. (link)