The Monument of the Crusader is a life-sized statue of a Paladin Crusader from the Order of the Red Hawk, found just outside of the order’s Keep in the Capital City of Telestra.
The concept for the Monument of the Crusader was created in part by Kevin McNab (Vancouver, British Columbia) as part of his ‘Foot Knight package’ backer reward from the 2014 Realm of Strife Kickstarter Campaign.
The statue is fashioned in the likeness of a Centaur named Kal Emdar, one of the famous Heroes of the War of The Twin Terrors, who was slain at the Siege of Necrodark. The inscription below the statue reads:
“Let the sacrifices of so many brave heroes remind us all, that darkness can not stand before the light.”
The statue itself was carved by the renowned artist Sir Adrian Fornell from a block of pure white marble veined with garnet, in honor of the Order of the Red Hawk’s well known Red and White banner. The Centaur is carved in a stately pose, with his mighty hammer held at the ready in one hand, while the other is outstretched in a proclamation of blessing over the city. It is said that the arms and armaments the statue depict are those rumored to have been carried by Crusader Emdar during his final battle with Deathlord Archibald.
Though the monument is relatively new, many legends regarding the statue have already formed among the common people of Gant. Most popular among them is that any one who touches the hammer of the Crusader will receive a blessing from the One God, whom the Crusader faithfully served. There does appear to be some truth to this rumor, though Sir Adrian Fornell professes that there is nothing out of the ordinary with the statue and it was not crafted in the presence of anyone other than himself, so it is unclear exactly how the statue came to be a source of blessing.
Touching the marble Hammer has a chance to grant a random Blessing (based on the level of the person who touches it) for up to one week. Whomever touches it must roll versus the Difficulty of the random blessing to see if it is actually granted.