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THE BERENY BUGLE BIG INTERVIEW

THE MAN WHO WALKS WITH GODS

Baron Amdral Gettleman, Dei Eligere of the Dei Vigilare,

speaks to our Poldoon Correspondent Ernie Pyle

Dateline: 20-10-517


It is just over a year since Baron Amdral Gettleman became Dei Eligere, leader of the Dei Vigilare, the religious order dedicated to achieving the will of the Gods of Light, following the sudden and rather mysterious resignation of his predecessor Dese Sanberligne. In that time he has gained a reputation for his uncompromising faith in the Gods.


The ancient texts of the Dei Vigilare proclaim of the Dei Eligere “Behold this man! For when the Gods do walk with mortals, they do so with him!”


As well as the being Dei Eligere, the Baron also holds the Estate of Pilgrim’s Keep on the Kingdom’s eastern border. The Bereny Bugle’s Poldoon correspondent Ernie Pyle journeyed to Pilgrim’s Keep to ask the Baron what it is like to walk with the Gods.


Baron Gettleman, many thanks for agreeing to be interviewed by the Bereny Bugle and for taking the time to speak to me.


Baron Amdral Gettleman: The pleasure is all mine. As I noted to you when you arrived, Pilgrims Keep is in one of the remotest areas within the Kingdom, and we rarely have the opportunity to speak with members of the press.  So, I welcome this interview.


Q: To start with, both the Order of Selador and the Dei Vigilare have declared a 'crusade' against the dungeon known as the Abyss. But is such an overwhelming response really called for when the dungeon has, so far as anyone knows, been deserted for hundreds of years? Can it really pose that great a threat to Bereny when compared with the very real threats from Helltroops, goblins, etc.


AG: Dei Vigilare best serves its purpose in helping to protect  the Kingdom when we seek to uncover and confront threats before they manifest and emerge. I consider The Abyss to clearly fall within that category because, based upon the reports I have received, I consider it to be an emerging threat to the Kingdom.


With regard to the goblins, Dei Vigilare was at the forefront in helping discover and destroy the Emperor in Crimson within the depths of King Slime's Keep, which - until so discovered - was an unknown threat to the Kingdom.  It was the destruction of the Emperor in Crimson that enabled King Slime himself to be defeated outside of Poldoon and help the defenders there relieve the siege. As a consequence of that success, the unified, disciplined goblin forces under King Slime devolved back to the rabble that is the norm for goblins, and - at least presently - to present no greater threat than it ever has been.


With regard to the Helltroops, His Majesty the King and others have destroyed all within the vicinity of Crownheart, and - at least presently - that threat has been addressed. On the other hand, advance contingents of Dei Vigilare and knights of The White Tower at The Abyss have reported that the place is not deserted and is the scene of at least some level of active daemonology.  In view of the appearance of Helltroops within the borders of Bereny, any place connected with the blasphemous practice of daemonology must be explored and eliminated as a possible source of, or contributor to, such daemonic incursions.  I consider this so important that I have placed our Vox Primus in charge of the mission to The Abyss.


Q: You have spoken many times against the desire of some vampires to be accepted as citizens of the kingdom. Why do you have such a strong objection to this?


AG:  Dei Vigilare fully shares the opinion of His Grace, the High Priest, and the Church of Bereny on this matter. Stated simply, the nature of the vampire and its 'manner of sustenance' will ultimately corrupt even the most goodly of souls housed within such a form. In our view, no vampire is capable in the long-term of resisting corruption and degeneration into evil.


Q: But surely it must be a good thing that they have come 'into the light', as they put it?


AG: The proper thing for any vampire to do who truly wishes to "come into The Light" is to release its soul, while it still has goodly aspects, from the corrupted form in which it is housed and seek the forgiveness and acceptance of The Gods of Light.


Q: Why does the Kingdom need the Dei Vigilare when it already has the Church and the Crusading Orders?


AG: Dei Vigilare was founded at around the same time as King Lionel established the Church of Bereny.  While Lionel also oversaw the transformation of those called Holy Warriors into Crusaders, there was no unified structure lead by Lord Crusaders of only six Orders until 100 years later under the reign of King Eustace I.


The first Dei Eligere of Dei Vigilare was Princeps Pius, who fought with the forces of Lionel during the Time of Thunder. After King Lionel defeated the Daemon King, Princeps Pius organized Dei Vigilare from members enlisted out of the ranks of the surviving defenders. This means that Dei Vigilare is one of the oldest of the organizations that transformed into what we call "guilds" today.


Why did Princeps Pius form Dei Vigilare when King Lionel at the same time was establishing the Church of Bereny?  The simple answer is that the Church of Bereny was intended to be an institution of Priests, while Dei Vigilare provided a means for other pious individuals to work in holy unison to assist in the protection of Bereny from evil.


Q: Some have said that it is almost like you are setting yourself up an alternative Church leadership to that of the High Priest. What are your views on High Priest Morgut's leadership of the Church?


AG: I believe that High Priest Morgut is an inspiration to all who are truly devoted to the cause of The Gods of Light. I pray that the Church of Bereny will be blessed with his leadership for a great many years to come.


With the exception of a handful of sad situations prior to the tenures of myself and the two Dei Eligeres who preceded me, Dei Vigilare has typically deferred to the judgment of the High Priest on matters of divine or spiritual nature. So, I see neither duplication or conflict.


Q: Your predecessor as Dei Eligere suffered some sort of breakdown, possibly caused by nervous exhaustion, and hasn't been heard off since. Is she alright?


AG:  I was at Pilgrims Keep tending to the affairs of the estate when those events happened far, far away at Icehaunt.  I will share with you that I received a letter from my predecessor, which had been drafted prior to those events, in which she outlined her belief as to what was transpiring, what she expected her future to be, and that she had arranged for me to be appointed as her successor to be Dei Eligere. I believe that she is still alive, although I also believe that she is no longer on what might be called the 'mortal plane of existence’.


Q: So there is definitely no truth to the (no doubt scurrilous) rumour that when she started raving about visions from the Gods, the DV had her locked away to keep her quiet?


AG: I can assure you that Dei Vigilare did nothing to secure or constrain her as the result of those events.


Q: Many think the influence of the DV was important in getting the edicts against wearing the symbols of the Dark Gods issued. Do you consider that a significant victory?


AG: I believe that the record is very clear that both the Church of Bereny and Dei Vigilare were repeatedly unsuccessful in trying to persuade the Crown to prohibit the wearing of symbols of the 'dark gods' (which, by the way, are powerful daemons and not 'gods') on spiritual grounds.  It was not until forces pledged to the 'dark gods' of the antithetical heresy revealed themselves as being part of an alliance which openly waged war against Bereny, destroying Meadowbrook and laying siege to Poldoon, that the bearing of such items, along with similar items related to King Slime's goblins, became prohibited by the Crown.


Importantly, that prohibition is not based upon the spiritual grounds advocated by Dei Vigilare, but on the grounds that such actions are seditious from a civil perspective. Dei Vigilare certainly applauds that prohibition, to the extent that it goes, but obviously would prefer that the prohibition be based upon 'broader grounds' and clearly be intended to be permanent.


Q: So what is next? Would the DV like to see the old laws that outlawed necromancy restored?


AG: It is well-known that Dei Vigilare was gravely disappointed when the late King Mark III decided, only a few years ago, to lift the long-standing prohibition on the practice of necromancy. Dei Vigilare believes that, just as the practice of daemonology weakens the barriers between our mortal plane and the Daemonrift (and it is those barriers that are all that precludes a wave of daemons invading Myriad), so the practice of necromancy weakens the barriers between the Realm of the Living and the Realm of the  Dead - another barrier which ought not be violated.


The views of Dei Vigilare on this matter are not limited to practices by necromancers alone, but to the use of any necromantic device or practice by other individuals. For example, such a use or practice likely resulted in the unleashing of The Reaper upon Bereny in the fields outside of Hasjan.


And, what of the undead forces of Lexor and Count Kainen which have relatively recently emerged as a threat to the Kingdom?  And what of the surge in the unprecedented appearance of Cold Litch Kings and military-like units of undead in the Northern Forest?  Coincidences? Dei Vigilare believes not, although I confess that we do not, yet, have sufficient evidence to prove a ‘cause and effect’ relationship between necromantic practices and these events.


Q: With the losses at Castle Kainen and the Abyss, recent events have inflicted a severe toll on the DV's membership. Were these losses justifiable?  


AG: The loss of any of Gods' Vigilant is justified as long as the loss was in concert with revealing, compromising, or defeating a significant threat to the Kingdom.  In that regard, our losses at The Abyss thus far have been justified.  Sadly, all members of the Dei Vigilare mission to the Castle of Count Kainen were slain. Thankfully, the Dei Vigilare Ring evoked the Will of The Gods of Light to assure no remains of any fallen Dei Vigilare could be transformed into any of the forms of the undead.


While the losses at the Castle were great, I believe that those departed Gods' Vigilant did distract and somewhat weaken the Broods which overwhelmed them - which I believe in part helped enable the measured degree of success that has been achieved by others at that site to date.


Moreover, there is an experienced group of Dei Vigilare in the depths of the dungeons below Pendleton Keep under the direct leadership of our Discipulus pro Vigilance; and I have reason to believe that there is a connection between what they are finding in those dungeon depths and the Castle of Count Kainen.  So, it would be premature to say that the mission of Dei Vigilare at the Castle necessarily has ended, let alone ended in failure.


Q: Have these losses had any adverse effect on recruitment of new members?


AG: I am pleased to note that, even with these casualties, the number of Dei Vigilare is at the highest it has been in recent history.


Q:It is said by some that you took up the leadership of the DV reluctantly, and would have preferred to have only had the  responsibilities of an estate baron to worry about. Is it a severe  burden, being Dei Eligere?


AG: Due to the remoteness of Pilgrims Keep, the proper management and protection of the estate has always been a full-time job.  I will admit that I was greatly surprised when I learned that my Predecessor desired that I follow her as Dei Eligere; and that I prayed on this matter for some time before agreeing to accept ‘The Helm’.


As I mentioned earlier, the role of Dei Vigilare is to vigilantly search for the nests of festering evil which endeavour to secret themselves in dark places - in order to detect and confront those before they emerge to threaten the Kingdom. That is a great and solemn responsibility when paired with the responsibilities of properly managing and protecting a remote estate like Pilgrims Keep.


While serving as Dei Eligere does impose a significant burden, it is a burden worthy of being borne; and I will continue to fulfil the responsibilities of Dei Eligere as long as The Gods of Light deem me worthy.


Baron Amdral Gettleman, Dei Eligere of the Dei Vigilare, thank you for your time.


AG: You are more than welcome. May The Gods of Light guide and protect you throughout all your travels.

See Also


02-08-517 - Order of Seledor crusades to the Abyss


07-12-516 - New Dei Eligere heads into The Abyss


12-08-516 - Dei Eligere quits after 'vision from the Gods'


Dei Vigilare

(external link)