The history of the Grand Hoboknight Order, as penned by Scipio the Scholar, its onetime Grand Master.
In the glorious early days of its beta, the idea of clans for Warband had not yet seen serious discussion. The first clan to make its mark on our game's history was the Knights of Description. Founded by Sero the Cruel, the KoD (identified by their naming trend, NOUN_the_ADJECTIVE) consisted mainly of outspoken and recognized Warband beta players, such as Pawncakes, Darkness, and Sero himself. They had little organization and even less ambition, but they were the first unifying force to affect Warband players.
The KoD represented everything that was wonderful about the Warband beta. By nature they were courteous and welcoming, inviting new waves of players into their beloved game, and several into their own ranks. One of the latter happened to be an unknown newbie by the name of Scipio. On the other hand, many of the Knights were extremely vocal testers; and hot debate filled the chat logs. There was alway something new to discuss; some recently added feature, glitch or troublemaker. Many of the most highly skilled players were Knights, always competing for the top of the scoreboard.
Though they made enemies, it is undeniable that the KoD had a profound effect on our community, this forum, and especially the game we all love. However, all good things come to an end. Many of the most prominent Knights have been absent since mid-beta. Sero himself, the founder of KoD, went missing. And the KoD were never a true clan; more a loose coalition of camaraderie, intelligent discussion, and casual gaming. And we liked it that way. But inevitably, the clan drifted apart, and from its remains sprang two new clans; each embodying an equal and opposite side of the KoD, who spawned them. These two clans were nobody Knows (nK) and the Grand Hoboknight Order.
Our best friends and biggest enemies, the nK, were made up mostly of highly skilled and competitive former Knights of Description. They quickly made a name for themselves with unmatched prowess in Warband combat, and their reputation in that regard remains untarnished. They were the catalyst that launched the US competitive Warband scene. The Hoboknights also took a part in that regard, being nK's opponents in the first clan match ever scheduled.
The other group that sprang from KoD's waning is that infamous and vibrant mob of eccentrics, our own Order. The original Hoboknight triumvirate consisted of the snarky, unflappable Gabeed the Hoboduke, Pawncakes, the valiant and incredibly skilled Hobochampion, and myself, Scipio the Scholar. Ah, the fun we had! Our name comes from an early beta running joke, and such humor became a Hoboknight trademark. We immediately became widely recognized for our chattiness and bizarre behavior. We ran around in our ragged Rhodok garb while the faction was still extremely underpowered, wielding spears while they were still an ineffectual weapon. We filled the chat with entertaining (or annoying, to the uptight and lowbrow) conversation of every kind, from deeply intellectual debates to capricious comedic ramblings. In the rapidly changing world of Warband beta, this was an attractive reminder of the early beta to many players, and our numbers gradually grew to include beloved characters such as McQuaid, a former KoD, and Faranox, a newbie at the time.
The original Hoboknights were loved and respected by the entire community. Because we spurned the competitive scene in favor of good humor and fun-seeking, we made many friends and few enemies. The majority of us were highly involved testers, and we played our own part in shaping the development of Warband gameplay (especially the Rhodok faction). We spoke our mind on everything, particularly the competitive drama of the time, and our say was respected.
Around the time of Warband's official release, the Hoboknights went through some rocky changes. Our membership tripled in a matter of weeks due to our good reputation and popularity, and was continuing to grow in leaps and bounds. Many of the new recruits took their own spin on our quirky humor, particularly a controversial little gem that is now referred to as HOBOSPEECH, and suddenly our reputation with the rest of the community became damaged. Hoboknights began to be regarded as annoyances rather than entertainment, simply because the eager new recruits just didn't get "the big joke". The Hoboknight order itself was originally a satire in itself, formed to mock the uptightness of the competitive clan scene at the time. We were trying to make a statement; that Warband was most rewarding when drama was kept to a minimum and laid-back fun was everybody's goal. But to the new recruits, it was all a delightfully meaningless game.
Gabeed, Pawncakes and I began to discuss how we could reign in the new recruits, before we became a laughingstock. At this time, I began to wield a great deal more clout in the governing of Hoboknight affairs, for better or for worse. I began pressuring Gabeed to set rules and regulations in place, and we began to crack down on our members, trying to protect and preserve the Order we had come to love so much. The Order has been reformed and reformed again since then, each new change making us less like our original spontaneous selves, and more of an organized body. More content to go back to his carefree ramblings than to captain a rolling ship, Gabeed resigned leadership of the Hoboknights, and I became Grand Master of our order. I made sweeping changes to the order of things, and tried my best to keep our wonderful old traits alive in an evolving clan structure.
Let the reader judge whether my pushes for more organization were prudent; I maintain that the Hoboknights would have destroyed themselves from within long ago without my changes. Inevitably, our original luster was lost, but I believe that organizing, though thereby diluting our characteristic qualities, was the only way to keep the Hoboknights alive; if not in true spirit, at least in name.
Looking back, every action and change we have made has been an attempt to get back to those glorious days of early beta, when a small, social band of good buddies laughed their way through battle after battle, carefree and content with good company and strong camaraderie. I now realize that those days are gone, never to be restored, and I am simply glad I was there to enjoy them. I cannot bring beta back, and I feel that the last reminiscence of it that remained in the Hoboknight Order disappeared with all the original Hobos who I once spent so much time with. I no longer feel comfortable in my own Order, as fond as I am of our new generation of players. This is why I have resigned as Grand Master, and gone my own way.
The closing of this dear old HOBOTHREAD symbolizes the passing of an era; the last breath of the original Grand Hoboknight Order. To the remnant I say this: I have passed down to you the Hoboknight name, and as much of its original character as I could preserve. Take it, and go do glorious things! Let go of the past, where I am stuck, and make the future yours! You have my blessing and heartfelt well-wishes.
With love and pride,
Scipio, called the Scholar, one-time Grand Master of the Hoboknight Order in the memory of the Hoboduke Gabeed, and past glories
