Knighthood

Knighthood is a coveted status among many, but a rare few are able to achieve knighthood. Knighthood comes in different degrees, with 1st degree being the lowest, and 5th degree being the highest. The leader of each region of Valtoria has the power to grant knighthood to a person, but they can only do so once. If a person has been knighted by the leader of each region in Valtoria, they are a knight of the 5th degree. There used to be a 6th degree before the War of the Fallen Angel, but then the Spire was destroyed, reducing the highest rank to 5th degree. The 6th degree made a return when Bleakwater was established as a region, but then it was eventually stripped it's status of being a region, once again reducing the maximum degree to 5th. Knights are usually soldiers in a noble houses army, given the title of knight for doing something heroic or important in battle or service to them, but rarely there are some people not part of their armies that get knighted for doing something notable for their region.

Since each noble house is in charge of granting knighthood individually, some are harder to obtain than others. The easiest region to earn knighthood in is the Roselands, House Cantell often awards knighthood to those that perform great charitable deeds, requiring no combat skill or bravery at all. On the other hand, becoming a Knight of the Winterlands is extremely difficult. While House Falcon was in charge, they never handed out knighthood to anybody unless they completed the challenge at Anfel, making it the rarest and hardest to obtain knighthood.

Being a knight of the 5th degree is extremely rare, and only two men in the entire continent are knights of the 5th degree. Griffin Hardhand is technically a knight of the 6th degree, having earned his knighthood in Bleakwater before it was no longer a region. He was a soldier in the War of the Bare Rocks, earning a lot of prestige. After he ended his service in the war, he bounced between regions, serving the noble houses for some time, earning the status of knight in each region. Eventually he decided to join the Iron Falcons, basically exiling himself from nobility and knighthood. Griffin Hardhand is largely considered the strongest warrior in the world, and a modern day Sir Roberts. The other knight of the 5th degree is Oliver Oakthorn, the heir to House Oakthorn. He was awarded knighthood in all 4 regions except the Winterlands for being a a hero of the first in the Falcon Rebellion, and after the rebellion he entered the arena in Anfel, earning his fifth and final status of knight. The most prestigious knight in all of history was Sir Roberts, who was a knight of the 6th degree, knighted in all regions of Valtoria, including the spire.

Currently, most experts debate who the strongest warrior in the world currently is. Most have Griffin Hardhand ranked as the strongest, with many disagreeing on whether or not Oliver Oakthorn or Kellan Kensley is in second place. Other Strong contenders for strongest warrior include Sarlamin, an elf who was the first member of the Disciples in Iron that won 25 consecutive battles in Anfel many years ago. Dull Kullell, the leader of the Order of the Eclipse, who destroyed Henry Haddock's army and castle with a single punch during the Bleakwater Rebellion. The final contender is the Lord in Iron himself, as he fought Eldrax the dragon head on in the Battle of Skullrise Pass, but if he truly is a god, than he would be disqualified from the list, as a god would easily overpower any mortal, and the list for strongest warrior is meant to be mortals.