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The Squire
Description: Historically, a Squire functioned as an apprentice, serving his master both at home and on the battlefield while honing his skills. When his training ended, the Squire became a paladin himself, sometimes continuing the cycle by taking on a Squire of his own.
Occasionally, however, Squires made a career of service. By choice or circumstance, the Squire has spent his life as an aide to a high-ranking paladin, an elder of his church, or a government official. Although never quite attaining the status of other paladins, the career Squire -the type described in this kit- commands respect for his loyalty and devotion to duty.
Role: A Squire performs household chores, cares for horses, and maintains weapons. If he has the appropriate skills, he may also cook meals, repair clothing, or do leatherwork. These functions may be part of his regular duties, or he may take it upon himself to help out; Squires are eager to pitch in when there's work to be done.
Despite their reputation for dedications and hard work, Squires lack the stature of other paladins. They are rarely invited to state banquets or other formal functions, except as waiters or chefs. They never become high-ranking military officers, nor are they even eligible for the honors available to other paladins. (If a Chevalier and a Squire are equally responsible for defeating an enemy army, the Chevalier may receive a festival in his honor and a gift of asic] golden spurs; the Squire may have to settle for a pat on the back.) While commoners respect the Squire, open admiration is rare; unfairly or not, many believe that career Squires have some deficiency that prevents them from becoming full-fledged paladins.
A Squire's party finds him a tireless worker and supportive companion. He graciously volunteers his aid to whomever needs it; he's always willing to repair a torn tunic for a comrade who can't sew, groom the horse of a friend who's too tired to do it himself, or teach a novice the way to hold a shield. He avoids leadership roles, deferring to those in authority positions, but follows orders to the letter. No job is too menial, no request too trivial.
p.62-63

The Votary
Description: Like Divinates, the devoutly religious Votaries are far more militant, considering devotees of "false" religions as the epitome of evil. Additionally, Votaries follow an unusually strict ethos that includes vows of poverty and chastity.
Role: The typical Votary is grim, self-obsessed, and quick to judge. She believes her church is the only true one and is suspicious of all other religions. She behaves with stony civility to priests of other lawful faiths and open skepticism to priests of neutral faiths. Followers of evil faiths, she believes fervently, deserve nothing less than death.
The Votary maintains an ascetic, ordered life. She owns few personal possessions, avoids strong drink, and even declines to eat heavily seasoned food. She disapproves of gaming, dancing, and other entertainment as childish distractions. Concern for personal grooming is a distasteful affectation (and not a requirement of the Votary's ethos). Some votaries leave their hair uncombed and beards shaggy "as the deity intended," devoting only as much effort to personal hygiene as necessary for good health and minimal courtesy. Whereas a Votary is as susceptible to courtly love as any other paladin, she would never consider approaching the person she desires; her passion would likely manifest as guilt and shame.
Many commoners admire the Votary for her dedication and discipline, but some see her as an intimidating, even frightening, fanatic. Her humorless outlook and self-righteousness[sic] attitude tend to discourage close friendships.
p.65

The Wyrmslayer
Description: The Wyrmslayer is the sworn enemy of evil dragons and has devoted his life to their destruction. Battle-hardened and fiercely determined, the Wyrmslayer roams the world in search of the hated creatures. Even the mightiest evil dragons tremble at the approach of a Wyrmslayer, as few humans pose a greater threat.
Only a select few qualify to become Wyrmslayers, with the final choice up to the gods. If a candidate meets the basic physical requirements, he declares his intention to become a Wyrmslayer before he takes his Oath of Ennoblement. As part of his oath, he pledges to destroy all evil dragons, singling out a particular species as his principal foe. The principal foe can be a black, blue, green, red, white or any other evil species prominent in the campaign world. Once a candidate names his principal foe, it remains the same for the rest of his career.
After completing his oath, the candidate becomes a standard 1st-level paladin (as described in the PH). That night, a lawful good deity appears to him in a vision, giving him a quest to demonstrate his courage. Typical quests include:

• Retrieving an egg from the nest of a principal foe.
  Finding and destroying the lair of a principal foe.
  Singlehandedly defending a village from an attack by a principal foe.

The quest must be completed within a specified time limit, usually 1-2 years. If the paladin fails to complete the quest, he remains a standard paladin forever after; he can never become a Wyrmslayer, nor may he choose another kit. If he completes the quest, the deity grants him the special attributes described below; the paladin is then a Wyrmslayer. The Wyrmslayer retains the same level he had as a standard paladin.
Role: Just as the Ghosthunter is obsessed with destroying undead, so it the Wyrmslayer obsessed with killing evil dragons. Nomadic and restless, the Wyrmslayer spends most of his time searching for his nemeses. Even Wyrmslayers formally affiliated with governments or churches have unusual freedom of movement; their superiors know that Wyrmslayers function best when left alone.
Though preferring to operate by themselves, Wyrmslayers will join adventuring parties if their travels take them through dragon territory. A Wyrmslayer fulfills his fealty obligations as well as any paladin, yet he may withdraw and brood if he goes too long without engaging his principal enemy. His eagerness to battle evil dragons impresses some as courageous, others as foolhardy. No one, however, doubts his resolve.
p.66-67

All kits above reprinted without permission from:
Swan, Rick. The Complete Paladin's Handbook. Random House, 1994.

On the Pell
By J. Clements

Against a Stake
One of the simplest training tools for practicing strikes in Renaissance martial arts was the pell. The pell was an ancient training device for practicing swordplay and training soldiers in arms. It typically served as a practice target for striking with a shield and a wooden sword. A pell is something like the Medieval equivalent of a boxer’s punching bag. It consists of an ordinary wooden post or tree trunk planted firmly in the ground. A pell might be man-height and roughly six to twelve inches in diameter.

This essay continues and provides historical citations (the "Poem of the Pell" from the 15th century Knghthode and Batayle) on the value and methods of individual practice to martial ability (some of which may be helpful in describing your character's style of combat).
http://www.thearma.org/essays/pell/pellhistory.htm

The twelve "chief rules in love":
I. Thou shalt avoid avarice like the deadly pestilence and shalt embrace its opposite.
II. Thou shalt keep thyself chaste for the sake of her whom thou lovest.
III. Thou shalt not knowingly strive to break up a correct love affair that someone else is engaged in.
IV. Thou shalt not choose for thy love anyone whom a natural sense of shame forbids thee to marry.
V. Be mindful completely to avoid falsehood.
VI. Thou shalt not have many who know of thy love affair.
VII. Being obedient in all things to the commands of ladies, thou shalt ever strive to ally thyself to the service of Love.
VIII. In giving and receiving love's solaces let modesty be ever present.
IX. Thou shalt speak no evil.
X. Thou shalt not be a revealer of love affairs.
XI. Thou shalt be in all things polite and courteous.
XII. In practicing the solaces of love thou shalt not exceed the desires of thy lover.

The whole list:

• Marriage is no real excuse for not loving.
  He who is not jealous cannot love.
  No one can be bound by a double love.
  It is well known that love is always increasing or decreasing.
  That which a lover takes against his will of his beloved has no relish.
  Boys do not love until they arrive at the age of maturity.
  When one lover dies, a widowhood of two years is required of the survivor.
  No one should be deprived of love without the very best of reasons.
  No one can love unless he is impelled by the persuasion of love.
  Love is always a stranger in the home of avarice.
  It is not proper to love any woman whom one should be ashamed to seek to marry.
  A true lover does not desire to embrace in love anyone except his beloved.
  When made public love rarely endures.
  The easy attainment of love makes it of little value; difficulty of attainment makes it prized.
  Every lover regularly turns pale in the presence of his beloved.
  When a lover suddenly catches sight of his beloved his heart palpitates.
  A new love puts to flight an old one.
  Good character alone makes any man worthy of love.
  If love diminishes, it quickly fails and rarely revives.
  A man in love is always apprehensive.
  Real jealousy always increases the feeling of love.
  Jealousy, and therefore love, are increased when one suspects his beloved.
  He whom the thought of love vexes, eats and sleeps very little.
  Every act of a lover ends with in the thought of his beloved.
  A true lover considers nothing good except what he thinks will please his beloved.
  Love can deny nothing to love.
  A lover can never have enough of the solaces of his beloved.
  A slight presumption causes a lover to suspect his beloved.
  A man who is vexed by too much passion usually does not love.
  A true lover is constantly and without intermission possessed by the thought of his beloved.
  Nothing forbids one woman being loved by two men or one man by two women.

Painstakingly accurate historical epic that has Norman knight Heston (Chrysagon), in charge of an 11th-century Druid community**. He exercises his right to claim bride Forsyth (Browyn) on the night of her wedding, and she then falls for the knight, refusing to leave his side. Seeking vengeance, Farentino (Marc), the son of Druid leader MacGinniss (Odins), foments an all-out war between Heston and Heston's covetous brother (Stockwell) (Draco). Despite the impressive scope of the battle scenes, The War Lord, based on a stage play by Stevens, is an intimate drama. Still, the sure-handed direction of Schaffner and the credible performances of Heston et al are well complemented by Morross's driving, Stravinsky-like score.

In the same year, Jacques de Lalaing began his famous Feats of Arms. These were pre-arranged, "friendly" duels in which the combatants fought in full armor with sharpened weapons of war. The combatants agreed in advance on the terms of the combat.

The rules of the combat were laid out in a document called the "chapters of arms." The conditions laid down by Sir Jean de Boniface were as follows: The combat was to begin on horseback, continuing until one of the combatants broke 6 lances on the other. The lances were to be of equal length. The horses were to be separated by a barrier, no more than 5 feet in height. After this, the combat was to continue on foot in full armor. The foot combat was to begin with each side hurling spears or "throwing-swords."* Thereafter, the combat was to continue with polaxes, swords, and daggers. The combat would end when one of the combatants touched the ground with his hand, knee, or body, or when one of them surrendered. Neither party was to affix any spikes or other "evil device" to his armor, nor was either party to carry any magical charms designed to influence the outcome.

Early on in the combat, Jacques used a disarming technique, knocking the polaxe out of one of Jean's hands - but the Italian knight quickly recovered his weapon, and resumed the fight. Jacques struck Sir Jean such a blow that it nearly turned him around, but still the fight continued. Finally, Jacques disarmed his opponent entirely, striking the polaxe out of both his hands.

On the same day as his combat with Thomas Que, Jacques de Lalaing announced his intention to accomplish a pas d'armes (passage of arms). In this type of encounter, the knight would usually issue a challenge at large, and take on all comers for a set period of time.

Demi-Human Knights
Knighthood and the Code of Chivalry are primarily states of mind and occupations chosen by the person in question. In fact, adapting knighthood to other demi-human societies can add a lot of spice to the campaign, and a great deal of depth to some non-human societies. Following the guidelines presented in the two examples below, an ambitious DM can throw all sorts of curves to his players.

Elven Knights
Elves follow the code of chivalry to the letter, except when it comes to battle. Elven life is too precious to be squandered needlessly against lost causes. When they do sacrifice themselves, it is only for the greatest good of the elven kingdom or in defense of their companions. In short, elves as a people avoid war whenever possible. They prefer to depend on politics to settle disputes, and are far less aggressive than most of the other races in an average campaign.

Elven knights place a high regard for the ceremonial aspect of chivalry, as well as respecting their peers and superiors. However, they are quick to the point of snobbery in showing contempt of those beneath their station and those of ignoble ideals. To their credit, elven knights place no weight on class dierences in such judgments, just on personal character and reputation.

Since women are equals among men in elven society, the respect elven knights show for women is more courtesy than outright adoration. Importantly, while the majority of the elven cavalry is comprised of male elven knights, most elven archer companies contain a majority of women.

Elven knights almost never wear plate armors, but prefer more lightweight, flexible armoring made of fine chain. As elves prefer battle within forested environments where they can rely on their natural adeptness in such surroundings to give them an added edge, they consider plate armor too noisy and bulky for such maneuvering.

It is important to note that magical elven chain mail is only given as a gift to worthy men and women who have honored themselves in the defense of elves and elven lands. It is rare, but not unheard of, for non-elves to earn such a gift if their deeds warrant it. Non-elves are never taught the secret of making and enchanting elven chain mail.

Magical elven chain can be found in treasure hoards, of course, but if knowledge escapes of its recovery, elves are sure to converge on the discoverer with offers for the suit's purchase. A reasonable price is oered, and any person who does not sell their prize, is hounded for many years until death takes the short-lived mortal, or until a better price is reached.

The elves will not give up the quest, as they see the common use of such a great prize tends to lessen its overall value and signicance for all others. Also, the elves do not want untrustworthy armorers to get a hold of any elven chain mail, lest they manage to discover its secrets through magic or research. Such a discovery by outsiders would risk war.

Elven knights that choose to wear plate armor (very rare) always make them look like they were made from mithral. A highly polished coating of the shiny silver metal is applied almost like paint to the armor, and the suit then gleams and shines in even the most indirect lighting. In fact, the greatest of kings or the richest of knights often take their armor to the elves for such detailing once it has been purchased.

Dwarven Knights
Dwarves take their warring very seriously indeed, and their views on war and honor would make any visiting samurai warrior proud. Dwarves, in stark contrast to the elves, would rather die in glorious battle than any other way. It is even said that dwarves always lair near a dragon or a large colony of giants just to keep a steady scenario of conflict going. To their credit the dwarves are always ready for war.

In fact, during the numerous battles between elven and dwarven forces, it has always been the elven kinship with animal and plant life that has kept them one step ahead of their dwarven enemies. The elves always seem to have enough time to get ready for a battle, no matter how well the dwarven forces try to conceal themselves.

As mentioned earlier, the dwarves take the ceremonial aspects of their idea of chivalry very seriously, but keep such things rather private. The "respect for women" notions are pretty much ignored by a rather chauvinistic male dwarven hierarchy. In a society geared for war and hard work in the mines, there seems to be no glory available for the little ladies.

Now, that is not to say that dwarven women are mistreated. That is far from the truth. They are given equal rights and protection under all laws, and dwarven marriages are ones of partnership, not obedience.

The dwarves like to make their armor heavy, plated, and black. Almost without exception, all dwarven-sized armor is actually made from dwarven forged iron. A dwarf will not wear armor forged by any other race, for their pride is quite strong and their codes of honor very exacting on such points.

While elven armors require constant repair if they are to remain attractive, dwarves place less value on appearance and more value on defense. Dwarven plate armor is treated as plate mail +1, but is almost 50% heavier than human plate. This means that a dwarven set of plate armor (sized for a 4' tall dwarf) weighs just about as much as a human
set of plate (sized for a 6' tall knight). Unfortunately, dwarves rarely make their armor for humans, and do not know how to make either eld or full plate armors. Their own limbs and joints do not have the mobility necessary to make a functional set of those full-body armors, and so the dwarves will have none of it. Just like the elves, dwarves don't teach non-dwarves their metallurgy secrets.

Dwarves dwell extensively on their own version of heraldry, based on the personal histories and family genealogies of the entire dwarven race. Dwarves are remarkable at remembering long list of names, and spend a great deal of their lives memorizing details about everyone they ever see, meet, or hear about.