Rings of Honor

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The 5th Ring is believed lost to the rift in 2004

Reign Summaries

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Kalamere Ar'Din (2/7/95 - 4/10/95)
This ring was first held by Kalamere Ar'Din. During the Warlord tournament to select the first Barons, Kalamere met and defeated the Cheysuli warrior, Shar Tahl Yasafel. Shortly after the tournament, Yasafel challenged for the ring. This was the first baronial challenge match and Kalamere was victorious.

Kalamere continued to hold the ring until Xenograg thu-Darelir became Overlord. Xeno had defeated MadMadMax and begun his third reign. Kalamere challenged, claiming that he could not swear loyalty to a man he had never faced in the rings. This was the first time a Baron had issued challenge to the Overlord.

Xenograg thu-Darelir (4/10/95 - 7/31/95)
Xeno became the second to wear this ring when he was dethroned by Kalamere. He held onto the ring for three and a half months before losing it to Iain MacKenzie in his first and only defense.

Iain Mackenzie (7/31/95 - 8/21/95)
Iain was immediately challenged by Juan Sanchez Villalobos Ramirez who took the ring less than one month after Iain had defeated Xeno.

Juan Sanchez Villalobos Ramirez (8/21/95 - 2/6/96)
The next to wear the Fifth ring was Duke Leto of Covington. He took it from Juan by forfeit when he failed to answer the challenge.

Leto Covington (2/6/96 - 4/16/96)
Leto's reign was just over two months when he lost in a challenge to Elijah Basia-Uhr.

Elijah Basia-Uhr (4/16/96 - 6/25/96)
Elijah went unchallenged himself, however he did issue challenge to Overlord Athlstan. When he was defeated in the challenge, Elijah forfeit the ring and claimed he would not challenge for another until Athlstan was no longer Overlord.

Kaprielle d'Argent (8/13/96 - 2/20/97)
After lying vacant for a month and a half, the ring was claimed by Kaprielle d'Argent who took it as her trophy for winning the Warlord's Tournament undefeated. Kaprielle was the Seventh holder of the ring.

Kaprielle's first challenge came from Marius Claudius Lestae', otherwise known as Magnus Centurion. Kaprielle defended her title in a nine round match and continued to hold on to it longer than any before her.

Raiyko Hideo became the Eighth Baron to hold this ring when he ended Kapri's six month reign. Raiyko's challenge in itself was taken as a surprise by many in the Duel of Swords community, as it had been believed the two were somewhat close. Friendship wasn't enough to stand between Raiyko and the title though. The rumors about his reasons aside, he defeated her in an excellent match of steel.

Raiyko Hideo (2/20/97 - 4/5/97)
Shortly after the match, Raiyko was abducted by a slaver going by the name of Aristiri. The details of his predicament are not wholly known, but he was released just one week before he fought his first defense. The challenger was one Billy Ray Karnafexx, self proclaimed cocksure braggart. Once again Billy proved more than able to back up his words in the ring. Perhaps it was weakness from the weeks of enslavement or perhaps he was merely overmatched, but Raiyko could not maintain the pace of the match and fell to Billy's sap-gloved fists.

Billy Ray Karnafexx (4/5/97 - 7/8/97)
It was a month before Billy faced his first challenge. The opponent was Verceterix Gavin Favre, warlord of House Llewys-Lathadoscia. The night belonged to Billy who, in eight fanciless rounds, defeated the would-be baron 5.5-1.

Billy continued to defend without fancies when Xyclone issued what was the second challenge for the ring. The duel was closer than was his first defense, Xyclone taking the lead for a stretch of three rounds in the middle, but the win would go to the Baron.

A renegade under Overlord Dalamar ArD'aumon, Billy went so far as to invite a queue of challenge. Three warlords took up the invitation and were scheduled to duel him in consecutive matches on the same evening. The victims were, in order of challenge, Zaradda Eltorch, Verceterix Gavin 'ur Favre 'il Thorne and G'nort Espelande G'neesmacher Dragoon Talanador. The combined score of all three matches was 15.5 - 6 and Billy walked away with the Fifth ring still on his finger. The night was a spectacle of skill and endurance put on by the sap gloved Baron.

One more defense would have pushed Billy over the record of the time, but the sixth was not to be. Challenger Draven Altruis II went thirteen rounds with the Baron before taking a 5.5-3 victory.

Draven Altruis II (7/8/97 - 8/5/97)
Draven reigned for just under a month before meeting Jeffrey Oakenshield in his first defense. A three-time baron, Jeff had proved his skill many times in the past and did so again this night. The duel was far from easily won, however. Both duelists were determined and both fought with the prowess of several warlords. After a bloody thirteen rounds, it was Jeff who came out victorious with a score of 8-7.

Jeffrey Oakenshield (8/5/97 - 8/22/97)
Jeff defended this ring against Duke Adonai Uziel in what appeared to be a grudge match, shortly after Jeff had joined House Lathadoscia. Few details are available, but the match ended with Jeff as the victor.

Skyler Jackson Chamberland was the twelfth Baron to wear this ring, defeating Jeff in a fine match that was, unfortunately, overshadowed by the dwarf's retirement.

Skyler Jackson Chamberland (8/22/97 - 9/5/97)
Despite Skyler's fine performance against Jeff, it was his indifference to alignment that brought on his first and only challenge. G'nort Espelande G'neesmacher Dragoon Talanador, issued challenged, claiming that a Baron should never ask the Overlord what his alignment should be.

The match was over before it hardly began. Six rounds into it, G'nort scored the final blow and took the ring with his 5-1 victory. Thus, G'nort was the thirteenth Baron to wear the Fifth ring.

G'nort Esplanade G'neesmacher Dragoon Talanador (9/5/97 - 11/27/97)
By luck or skill he won, but whichever it was fled him soon after. G'nort lost his next fourteen official matches, finally claiming the ring cursed, and gave it to his wife, Princess Ariana Dragoon Talanador. Never once did he win a match while wearing the ring.

This did not bode well for him, as challenge had already been issued by Lupton est Dracoern, who had sworn once before never to let G'nort hold a Baron's ring if he could prevent it. When the day of the match came however, it was not G'nort but Overlord Dalamar Ar'Daumon who stepped into the ring, interceding on behalf of his friend and loyal Baron. Renegade Baron Daegarth Mithmellon stepped in on behalf of the challenger, but to no avail for Dalamar took the match.

Disgusted with the intercession but determined, Lupton entered the ring against Dalamar, and again the Overlord won out, allowing G'nort to hold possession of the ring that much longer.

Errol Faline's challenge for the Fifth ring came from unusual circumstances. His true issue was with the Overlord, but as Dalamar faced challenge upon challenge of his own, Loyal Baron G'nort agreed to accept the challenge instead. As had become the pattern with Dalamar, he interceded on behalf of his Baron, and Daegarth championed the challenger. Daegarth's loss gave Errol the opportunity he'd wanted from the first: to face the Overlord. Dal went down beneath the determine man's blade, as did the Baron after him, and Errol became the fourteenth holder of the Fifth ring.

Errol Faline (11/27/97 - 2/10/98)
The first challenge to the new Baron came from Sartan, as a question of worthiness. The duel itself was short, painful, and tense, by the end settled by a single stroke of the blade. That stroke belonged to Errol, and the Renegade proved his worthiness in the only way possible, the ring.

One week later the Baron was defending again, this time in a que against two prior holders of the ring: Leto of Covington and G'nort Dragoon-Talanador. In an odd twist, it was another member of Covington that stood as Errol's second, as he did not have one himself. At this time the Baron began to show signs of illness, collapsing in the midst of the duel. Despite all, he came back from a 4-2 deficit to win. How he might have fared in the second match of the que was never to be known. G'nort withdrew his challenge for personal reasons.

Errol's next two challenges were also a Renegade que as he faced both Valmion of Questrion and Damon Black on one night. Against Valmion there was no question of his command of the duel. He defeated the former Overlord 5-0 in seven rounds. His next defense was much closer, and the illness he suffered from more pronounced. But despite collapses and weariness from the prior match, Errol defeated Damon in the end to become one of the few Barons to defend, without intercession on his behalf, his title four times.

Errol never had the opportunity to defend again. His illness drove him into a coma soon after that defense, and he willed his ring into the safekeeping of the previous Baron G'nort, to decide the proper course of action for it.

Lucian (2/10/98 - 4/1/98)
The Fifth ring went up as a prize in the Warlords Tourney and after a long, hard fought battle against his peers, Warlord Lucian came out the King of the Hill and the fifteenth holder of this, the Fifth Ring of the Duel of Swords.

Well over a month passed before Lucian faced what was to be his only challenge, from a warlord known only as the Dueler or the Nameless One. They met in the Annex for a swift and bloody battle, and after 7 rounds the Nameless One emerged victorious, 5 - 1.

The Nameless One (4/1/98 - 7/31/98)
Though not bitter about the loss of the ring, Lucian stated to all his intent to win it back. Within a month he had his opportunity, and fared little better in challenging the Nameless One for the ring than he had defending it against him. In six rounds the Dueler completed his first defense, winning 5 - 2.

No further challenges came to the Nameless One, and after a reign of exactly four months he retired, hoping the next holder might be able to give the time and dedication to the ring and the Duel of Swords that he no longer found himself able to give.

Morgan le Fay du Cornwall (8/25/98 - 11/29/98)
That dueler was Morgan le Fay du Cornwall, second-place winner of the third quarter Warlord Tourney. The Lady le Fay accepted her ring with an abundance of honor, respect, and grace, claiming it on behalf of the many honorable duelers who had held it before her, and declaring herself Loyal to Overlord Dalamar.

It was almost time for the next Warlord Tourney when the Baroness le Fay received her first challenge, from the Warlord Cletus Ganderfald. The Overlord Dalamar interceded on behalf of the Baroness, and two Barons stepped forward with intent to champion the Warlord, Seamus MacDonnaugh and Var Medici-Giovanni. The Warlord chose by coin toss which man would defend him, and the toss went in favor of Baron Var.

Dalamar faced off against his once-loyal Baron, and took an early lead which Var was never able to overcome. At the end of eight rounds, a 5-3 victory for the Overlord set Cletus against Dal. The Warlord proved himself in style, however, removing Dalamar from his path with a perfect shutout. His duel with Morgan was much closer, however. The Baroness took an early lead, but was never able to extend it far, and in the end Cletus overcame it to win 5-4 in six bloody rounds, becoming the eighteenth holder of the Fifth ring.

Cletus Ganderfald (11/29/98 - 1/17/99)
Months past before the Baron received challenge, this from Warlord Verceterix Gavin Favre. Typical of the Warlord's past challenges, he kept this one on an understated tone, avoiding the political havoc that reigned over most challenges. There was nothing understated about the way the Warlord fought, though. The Baron was never able to overcome the early lead taken by Rix, and at the end of nine rounds a new Baron took possession of the Fifth Ring with a 5 - 2 victory.

Verceterix Gavin Favre (1/17/99 - 2/3/00)
Baron Favre's first challenge came at the hand of the Warlord Methous. When the two met in the ring, caution ruled the early part of the match, and several rounds passed scoreless. But caution faded quickly and greater daring took the points, and in the end the Baron retained the Fifth ring by a 5 - 2 victory in ten rounds.

Next to bring challenge against the Baron was Warlord and former Overlord Valmion. Though still cautious, the Baron took more risks in the early part of this duel than his last, and the early points went to him. Though the Warlord fought hard and made up much of the distance, the Baron continued to score by slow measure as well. His low cut in the final round retained him the title Baron with a 5.5 - 3 score.

From that point until his one year anniversary, Favre went without challenge. After, however, came the Warlord Gunthar O'Dwyer to test his hand against the Baron. The match was neither swift nor simple, neither man giving ground to the other. Not until the eleventh round did one take the victory, and with a 5 - 4 score, Gunthar became the twentieth Bearer of the Fifth Ring.

Gunthar O'Dwyer (2/3/00 - 5/4/00)
Lupton est Dracoern has frequently stated the importance of keeping one's word, but in this particular case it was something he felt unable to do. Though G'nort Dragoon-Talanador was currently Baron of the Ninth, and though the oath earlier mentioned in this History was still in effect, the Warlord turned his earned peer wins in for the right to challenge Baron Gunthar. Perhaps, though, his need to remove Gunthar was not as urgent as he thought, or perhaps higher forces do not look well upon the breaking of an oath, no matter the circumstances around the breaking. Whatever the case, Lupton was unable to carry his convictions to victory. Gunthar defended, and defended well, with a 5 - 3.5 score in eight rounds.

After a little more than a month, Gunthar lost his ring, not in an issued and fought challenge, but in an unofficial, private bet with Barons of the Fourth and Sixth, Jesse Troyan and Damien Mortis respectively. A lesson learned, and at high cost, on placing the fate of public honor and worth on the line for a bit of fun.

General Leonardo Tassadar De Lorenzo (5/30/00 - 8/8/00)
The Retired Fifth was one of three rings available for the Second Quarter Warlord Tourney, and the last of the three claimed, by Leo De Lorenzo. The new Baron followed the example of Jeff Oakenshield with the Sixth, claiming Loyalty to Avery until a new Overlord was officially named.

Three months and two Overlords later, Leo retired the Fifth unchallenged. Releasing it as a prize for the upcoming Warlord Tourney, he also stated his intent to participate in that Tourney and win back the Ring he now set aside. Less than a month after retiring it, Leo proved to be as good as his word, placing second in the third quarter Warlord Tourney and claiming the abandoned Ring once more.

General Leonardo Tassadar De Lorenzo (8/29/00 - 9/21/00)
This time, he would not wait the long months without challenge, or even long weeks. A Warlord who's only identity was given in his challenge notice as The Blindfold Proxy gave the Baron a match to remember. For the entire nine rounds of the match the dueler without voice or name held the lead over Leo, and claimed the Fifth as his own with a 5 - 3 victory.

The Blindfold Proxy (9/21/00 - 3/8/01)
Early into his reign, the Blindfold Proxy announced that the establishment he represented, the "Blindfold Arena", would be holding a duel to the death between two competitors. The winner of this match would be awarded, among various other prizes, the Fifth ring. The winner of that match was the longest man to ever hold the Fifth ring, Verceterix Gavin Favre. After the ring had exchanged hands, the Blindfold Proxy vanished from the Arena. The Duel of Swords staff eventually held him in forfeit of his ring due to his inactivity in the rings. It was requested of Verceterix that he return the Fifth ring to the DoS staff, which he did mere days before the Warlord Tournament was slated to begin.

General Leonardo Tassadar De Lorenzo (3/13/01 - 10/4/01)
General Leonardo Tassadar De Lorenzo was no stranger to the Fifth ring or to placing high in Warlord tournaments. In the three Warlord Tournaments he participated in prior, he had claimed a prize in all three. Twice that prize was the Fifth ring. Thus, when the first quarter (of '01) Warlord tournament rolled around, nobody was surprised to see Leo place as high as he did. This time however, Leo finally broke his own curse for finishing a runner-up. In the final two rounds of the tournament, Leo defeated Verceterix Favre twice to be declared the winner. As his prize, he selected to once again wear the Fifth ring, declaring himself loyal to Overlord Lucian.

Seven months into his reign, Leo faced his first challenger. It came in the form of former Baron, Drey Starke. Leo chose to meet Drey in a rare one-shot duel. Leo took the first point in the match, however it would be the only lead he saw. After a quick eight rounds, Drey left the ring with the Fifth ring on his finger. The new Baron of the Fifth seemed divided as he aligned himself Neutral to the Overlord before realizing this was not an option. His alignment was renegade to the Overlord after the dust settled.

Derek (Drey) D'erest Sanchez Starke (10/4/01 - 1/23/02)
Drey would quickly use that Renegade status to challenge Overlord Seamus, but fell to his blade.

Drey's first defense of the Fifth would come not long after his failed bid for the mantle. Sgt. Lorance Sneggle issued his challenge with no ill malice towards Drey, but rather out of his belief that everyone should be challenged periodically. Unfortunately for Lorance, the match was not much of a challenge for Drey, as he promptly put Lorance in his place with a nine round victory, and a score of 5-1.

It didn't take Drey long to set his sights higher again. Shortly after Lorance's challenge, Drey pressed a challenge to the Mantle. Drey would once again lose in his bid to become Overlord, but in this instance, he would also lose the Fifth. After being bested by a man named "The Hood" in the Test of Worthiness, The Hood pressed his right of immediate challenge right back at Drey. With a 5-2 in ten rounds victory, The Hood became the newest Baron of the Fifth.

The Hood (1/23/02 - 2/6/02)
In a move that surprised many, The Hood declared Renegade to the man he had just defended, and then days later, issued his own challenge for the crown.

The surprises would not end there, however. On the night of the challenge, Sartan acted as if he were filled with anger at the Hood. Sartan began strong, opening up to a 4-2 lead, but could not hold it as the Hood rallied back in eight rounds to claim victory, and the crown. Following the match, the Hood revealed his true identity to be the long absent from the rings, Dalamar Ar'Daumon. Sartan accepted the Fifth ring, and declared himself loyal to his long time friend. It was a night none there would soon forget.

Sartan (2/6/02 - 10/19/02)
Sartan's first challenge came eight months later from Warlord Chris Graziano. After a few days with no response from the Baron, word finally came that he no longer wished to go through the motions. Thus, he retired the Fifth and the matter of Chris' challenge was sent to the Baron's council. After hearing the Warlord's wishes, Chris' peer wins and right to challenge were returned to him, and the Fifth awaited the next Warlord's Tournament.

Andur Salsinger (12/10/02 - 4/9/03)
The winner of the Fall 2002 Warlord Tournament was Andur Salsinger. He went undefeated to claim the Fifth ring as his prize.

Andur's first and only challenge came from Warlord Harris D'Artainian. Harris had recently retired the Seventh ring and wanted to stir things up by challenging Andur. Andur elected to settle the match in a single duel format that stretched to a full twelve rounds. The match was close, but in the end, Harris had just enough left in his tank to pull it out. The final score was 5.5-4. Following the match, Andur retired from the sport.

Harris D'Artainian (4/9/03 - 4/9/03)
Minutes after defeating Andur for the Fifth ring, Harris retired it to the next Warlord's tournament.

Shakira (6/5/03 - 10/30/03)
By virtue of placing third in the Spring Warlord tournament of 2003, Harris was forced to once again take hold of the Fifth ring. However, he did not wish to hold it, and as such, once more retired it. The staff of the Duel of Swords felt this action made a mockery of the titles and of the tournament. Due to his actions, Nycholas ruled that Harris would be unable to challenge for an entire cycle, nor participate in the next Warlord's tournament. This decision however was overturned a mere four days later, and the ring was placed in the hands of the one who finished directly behind Harris, Cat Shakira.

One of the options Nycholas considered before simply giving the Fifth to Shakira was to have her duel a best-of-three match with Deluthan Ev'rt, who finished directly behind her in the tournament. As it turned out, Deluthan was the first to bring challenge to Shakira, shortly before the next Warlord tournament--although his challenge letter was a rather disconnected one, reminding no one of these events and looking more like a page torn out of his personal journal that was simply titled "I Challenge Shakira." Shakira met Deluthan in a single-shot duel to settle the challenge, and after a long first six rounds which saw Deluthan leading 1.5-0, Shakira began a rally, clawing her way to a 5-2.5 victory.

Quickly following in Deluthan's footsteps was Cassius Maximus, who in his challenge notice called Shakira a disgrace to the sport for the manner in which she acquired her ring and for her apparent lack of presence in the Arena since. Again Shakira decided to settle things in one duel, and defended her ring much more convincingly than her first defense with a 5-1 win in seven rounds, despite a disembodied voice placing a curse on her performance moments before the duel began. Following her victory, Shakira announced her intentions to challenge the Overlord, whoever it happened to be at the time.

After Max Quinlan Blue ascended to the rank over Overlord, Shakira kept true to her intentions and challenged for the mantle. She was victorious over not only Max, but also a Test of Worthiness. Max accepted the Fifth after defeat and aligned himself renegade.

Max Quinlan Blue (10/30/03 - 4/23/04)
Usually Baron challenges are the under card when being fought on the same night as an Overlord challenge, however when Arithon Falessen challenged Max, it was the exact opposite situation. This challenge was fought following Shakira's defense of the crown over Cletus Ganderfald. It was only fitting that this challenge should take place on the same night as Shakira's defense, as Arithon was challenging Max to prevent him from pressing challenge to Shakira after the Warlord Tournament.

Those who stayed for the second challenge of the evening saw a rare overtime match that decided the fate of the Fifth. After an arduous fourteen rounds, Max was able to keep his claim on the Fifth with a strong 6-5 victory.

Next to challenge Max was Harris D'artainian. Once again the match was scheduled and fought very quickly. Within a few days of the challenge being issued, Warlord and Baron met in the ring. The Baron relied on adroit defense near the end of the duel to notch is second defense with a score of 5-3.5 in twelve rounds.

After an unsuccessful attempt to remove Overlord Shakira from the throne, Max Blue left the Fifth vacant until the next Warlord Tournament. It was rumored Max entered into a wager with Anubis Karos, Baron of the Third, where the loser would retire their ring. However, it was only the winner of that match who ultimately retired their ring.

Very little is known about the fate of the Fifth ring. After being taken through the rift by Michelle Montoya, it is rumored that she left it with the Wizard Bakar in Naxarth. It can only be obtained by completing a series of tests.