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BIRDS OF PREY Section.
The Birds Of Prey
was formed on April
28, 1997. The founding members were Tellerian Hawke, Aloysius Von
Hildebrandt,
and Jerrin DeMorg. Below is an excerpt from our original charter, which
will bring memories rushing back to a lot of us who were there. For
those
of you who found this page by surfing, and are not quite sure what The
Birds Of Prey is, I suggest you visit the Amtgard website first. Once
you know what Amtgard is, what I am
about to say will make perfect sense. The Birds Of Prey is an Amtgard
fighting
company, mercenary guild, and household, all in one. Our purpose is to
protect and serve our homeland, which is known as The Kingdom Of The
Wetlands.
We are a group of dedicated souls, whose ranks include warriors, mages,
healers, monks, and more. We stand for honor and excellence in all
endeavors.
So without further adieu, I present to you a brief history and
structural
outline of The Birds Of Prey:
The Birds Of Prey
Henceforth,
from this 28th
day of April, Nineteen Hundred And Ninety-Seven, and on, let it be
known
that the Amtgard mercenary guild, household, and fighting company known
as The Birds Of Prey has officially and formally recognized its members
of origin; all those deemed to be members of origin have the honor of
being
among the first to ever wear our colors and to bear our standard onto
the
field of honor. Be it known that these members shall always hold with
us
a position of honor, respect, and good will. The members of origin
consist
of three groups: The first of these being known as The Founding
Fathers,
the second of these being known as Origin Craftsmen, and the third
being
known as The First Brood.
THE FOUNDING FATHERS:
THE ORIGIN CRAFTSMEN:
THE FIRST BROOD:
Ah, the
memories of that first day... The Modern Day Birds Of Prey
Well, first
of all, we've gotten
a lot bigger since those early days. Despite the fact that some of our
"Origin Members" have gone on to pursue other interests, we have never
failed to march onwards. Always in our mind, is our commitment to honor
and excellence in all endeavors. And with each passing day, that
commitment
has grown stronger. And our commitment is not the only thing that has
grown,
either. Our membership has grown as well, and continues to do so. As a
result of our rapid growth, the rank system within our guild has become
more divirsified. The old rank system of nine ranks has been replaced
with
a new system consisting of 18 ranks in all, including two honorary
ranks.
If you would like to see a detailed listing of the rank system, follow
this link.
Our
Modern Day Charter: Preamble:
From the
ashes of what once was, it is
sometimes
necessary to begin anew, to build something stronger that that which
came
before it, something new that will stand the test of time, and prevail
where the old did not. This then, is the phoenix rising; this is the
beginning
of that new thing. This is the reformation of The Birds Of Prey; and
this
time, our claws are bathed in flames, the flames of strength and
longevity,
the flames of a bird who will not die so easily the second time around.
A bird who has forged an alliance with the fire, and fears it no more.
Article One: Powers Of The Charter
This charter
shall be effective on Friday,
September
11, 1998 @ 11:59 PM. This charter is binding to all Birds Of Prey
members,
and is the supreme law of The Birds Of Prey, even over the authority
and
judgement of The Grand Order Of The Osprey. (Hereafter referred to as
“The
Osprey” for the sake of brevity.) The first three articles of this
charter
can never be changed in any way. This is to ensure that the principles
upon which The Birds Of Prey was founded are never tainted or swayed.
Article Two: Leadership
The Birds Of Prey shall be led by The Osprey, whose word on any matter is final, with the exception of the first three articles of this charter, which shall take precedence. The Osprey does not have the power to change or challenge the first three articles of this charter in any way whatsoever. However, articles four and higher are subject to modification, creation, or deletion by The Osprey. The first Osprey of the newly reformed Birds Of Prey shall be Tellerian Hawke. His commission shall begin Saturday, September 12, 1998 @ 1:00 PM. All holders of the title of Osprey hold this position for life, which includes actual “real world” death, as well as persona death as recognized by the officially sanctioned rules of Amtgard. Upon the death (either real or persona) of The Osprey, then the person pre-designated by him to be his replacement shall be promoted to the rank of Osprey. By pre-designation, it is meant that The Osprey must document his replacement selection on paper, in front of at least two witnesses who are Birds Of Prey members in good standing, and all three persons (The Osprey and the two witnesses) must sign that document. If no such person was ever pre-designated, or if written proof of this designation cannot be produced within 3 days of The Osprey’s death, then the Birds Of Prey member who holds the highest rank at that time shall assume the mantle of Osprey. If there exists more than one person of this highest rank, then the choice between them shall be left up to a guild-wide general vote. This vote requires the presence of 66% (2/3) of the total membership of The Birds Of Prey in order to be considered official. The winner must have a 2/3 (66%) majority vote from all members that show up to vote. The vote must be conducted openly, by a show of hands either for or against each given candidate, and the result must then be documented on paper and signed by all those members who voted. The Osprey can also choose to voluntarily retire, at which time he must name and document his replacement in the manner described above. When an Osprey retires, he is granted the honorary title of Grand Order Of The Elder Eagle. (Hereafter referred to as “The Elder” for the sake of brevity.) The Elder has no authority or decision-making powers of any kind, except those granted to him by this paragraph of the charter. The Elder remains a Bird Of Prey member for life, or until such time as he sees fit to resign his membership in The Birds Of Prey voluntarily. Death, and voluntary resignation are the only two ways in which The Elder can lose his membership in The Birds Of Prey. The Osprey does not have the power to revoke the membership of an Elder. If the Elder in question is guilty of a crime against any section of this charter, The Osprey may choose to prescribe any punishment that he sees fit, as long as such punishment does not involve the revocation of The Elder’s membership. The Osprey does have the power to suspend an Elder’s membership for a period of up to six months for serious (treasonous) offenses. Note that The Osprey cannot prescribe two or more consecutive six month suspensions for the same offense, although he may suscribe up to one six month period for each separate treasonous offense. Treason is defined as deliberate and malicious acts made by any Birds Of Prey member, which seek to undermine, corrupt, destroy, or otherwise harm our organization. The Osprey
shall preside over all Birds Of
Prey decision-making
processes, and his judgement in these matters shall be final, with of
course,
the exception of contradiction of said decision by the first three
articles
of this charter. The Osprey has it within his power to allow the guild
to vote on a given issue; it is also within his power to veto any such
decision that is the result of such a vote, if he so chooses. The
Osprey
is not required in any way to attain member consent before making a
given
decision on any given matter. If he does seek member consent, it is his
choice to do so, and his choice alone.
Article Three: Organizational Structure
The official
home and place of origin for
The Birds
Of Prey shall be The Barony Of Ravenswood. (Jasper, TX.) The Birds Of
Prey
is an Amtgard organization. The purpose of The Birds Of Prey is as
follows:
The Birds Of Prey shall therefore be considered to be An Amtgard-Based Household, Mercenary Guild, & Fighting Company, all in one. The code of honor of The Birds Of Prey is as follows:
Article Four: The Guild Law Arcanum The rank
system and guild law edicts from
the old
Birds Of Prey shall be allowed to stand, except in those cases where
they
conflict with the provisions of this charter, or conflict with the
wishes
of The Osprey, who has the power to change and / or modify the rank
system
and guild law edicts when and how he sees fit. Ranks shall no longer
carry
voting power, since this charter clearly states in Article Two that The
Osprey shall preside over the decision-making process. New guild law
edicts
effective with the enactment of this charter are as follows:
The laws and edicts listed in Guild Law
Arcanum (both present and future laws & edicts) shall be considered
to be part of the Fourth Article of this charter, thereby causing them
to fall under the authority of The Osprey and his judgment. This
concludes the new
charter
of the reformed Birds Of Prey. Guild Level Entitlement
In The Birds Of Prey, one of the most prestigious awards that a member can receive is guild level entitlement. There is only one title available in The Birds Of Prey. This is the title of GUILD DEFENDER. It is awarded to those few members who stand apart from the rest, those members who set the standard for other Birds Of Prey to follow. These members exemplify what it truly means to be a Bird Of Prey. They are our ambassadors, for they truly represent our guild and all of its ideals. The title of Guild Defender is accompanied by a patch which the member wears on a special belt favor. The patch, which is pictured below, is based on the Army's ROTC patch, because like an ROTC trainee, Guild Defenders are those who demonstrate exemplary leadership qualities. The ROTC patch is also shown, for comparison, to the left of the Guild Defender patch. On the Army ROTC patch, the lamp stands for the pursuit of knowledge, and higher learning; The helm is symbolic of the ancient concept of the warrior scholar; and the sword is a symbol of courage, gallantry, and self-sacrifice which is intrinsic to the profession of arms. On the Guild
Defender patch, the hawk's
head stands
for the member's loyalty and adherence to our code of honor. The
Wetlands
standard embodies the guild's undying loyalty to The Kingdom Of The
Wetlands
and the ideals upon which it was founded. The sword is symbolic of our
vigilance, to both protect and to serve, no matter how high the
sacrifice.
It also represents our unyielding desire for justice and fairness.
Current Recipients Of Guild Defender Title Casey Jones, aka Draxx
Styx (On 11-10-1998)
Ed Foster, aka Lord Master LeUrick Forrestall (On 02-11-2006)
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