The Gold Standard - Merit, Diligence and Virtue

[Hierophant]

The Gold Standard: Merit, Diligence and Virtue
Penned by Eamon Bronzegate

In following my treatise on the League of Gold based around one of its pillars and tenets of merit, I ponder the words though only feel taken by charge to expand upon my thoughts and in stubborn cause, given Oro Konthaz still has not made his thesis public beyond the Tower of Q'tolip, to make my stand here and now of my vision of what the League stands for.

When I say make my stand, I mean to say that I will no longer stand by and hesitate when my League is challenged, nor when insidious influences claw its way into its halls, twisting the gilt of our Gold Standard. I will speak up in the Assembly, I will defend my words and I will not waver; for I have put bountiful thought into them and have not penned them hastily, but through long and arduous separation of heart and mind. This is what I believe the League of Gold stands for; and this is what I, Eamon Bronzegate of the Gold League and of Warad the Wanderer, stand for.

The League of Gold stands for three things; Merit, Diligence and Virtue.

Merit is the foundation of the league, in that a governing Legate of Gold ought to be leading in a meritocracy. What that means in my eyes, and it could mean many different things to others, is that no matter your birth, your wealth, if you at least follow a diligent and virtuous life and aspire to craft, to teach, to do great or worthy deeds then you are deserving of merit, of recognition.

Even under the League of White, there will be a refugee whose face is forgotten and will never see himself rise - even if he may have had the most eloquent of voices to sing in the hearths - for they deal in the masses, and for that they do not truly know the people. They toss them a fish, but it only feeds them for a day; and they do this on the daily. You teach them how to fish, and they will feed themselves. That is the stark difference between us, for both our tenets bear noble intentions; only one has any sense and realism, while the other the idealism for a hundred Lily supporters each. But ideas do not feed people, ideas do nothing until they are put into practice by hands that are capable.

Diligence is the backbone of the league, and the driving force behind the Gold Standard. Only through hard work and honest labor will you succeed in this world, alongside virtue, for nothing in this world is neither worth it to be rid of it and dignity both. It is not enough just to survive, for we have done so already; we are the ones who live, but we remember the ones who do not. Nothing is more infuriating than remembering such indeed, and then to see a man waste away his precious life shooting Scorch into his veins. I would know, because I was one of those men for a brief time until I sought redemption amongst rivalries and the loss of good men whom I called dearest friends. You see, I have lied before, I have lied to many of you before to your faces, but I am weary and I have changed my ways. I've found my purpose, and I only seek to help others find theirs and see this city prosper. See this city strong. There is only one way to live true, and it is to live it honestly and live it diligently.

Finally, we come to Virtue, the lesson of the league that keeps us humble even as coffers swell and egos soar. Virtue is many things but most of all it is the ethic of a good person, an honest person. One who is pious and treats his neighbors well, who treats others as he would like to be treated and who cares for the future of his people and his home, but most of all, cares for himself; takes care of himself, and does not let himself fall to temptation, avarice or cruelty. This is what keeps us young in our mission to see the holy site of Ephia prosper and reach its heights, and so too, its people. This is done through ensuring the Voiced are educated, stamping down upon the common evils of bribery, usury and purchased citizenship; establishing a militia among the common folk with wage and sundry to feed their families, for soldiers always in need and the Janissary spread thin, and we've little craft to spare where the finest are not already worshiped. We are to build a city upon these things we cherish and practice, one set in stone upon the Gold Standard of Merit, Diligence and Virtue. It will not be built with greed, but virtuous creed.

That is the Gold Standard, and that is what I believe the League of Gold stands for and why it is the only league that truly stands to uplift Ephia's Well and its people both, to see them the envy of the Great Ash Desert. If you've read these words and they resonated with you then I urge you to follow in the late John Syter's footsteps and set aside your adventuring in such heaps, so you may join our League of Gold and be given the recognition you deserve, to aid in our mission of uplifting us all.