Virtue's Seeds

The Way Forward
Look around you - what angers you? What saddens you; or leaves you guilty? What can you improve? You have the will and the skill to change the world.

You are already legend, simply by being in Anvil. What will you do now, to make this world better?

We are called to recognise the shared path that we all walk by the Way of Virtue; and in doing so, we are asked how will our actions benefit the Empire? Do those actions support a cause we are committed to; do they make something that will last – will we change the face of Creation for the better?

I challenge all then who read this to think for yourselves, and to choose your future.

We are here to reshape ourselves and the Empire into something greater than it was - to leave this world better than when we arrived. We will return and return until our spirits are content that we have made an impact; so - what do you want to do?

You have the drive, the hunger to affect the world to come to Anvil and be part of the greatest gathering of heroes in the world. If you choose when you come here to sit by the fireside and sing, then know that everyone who walks by hears your voice and rejoices the more for it. If you take up arms beside your swordmates, then you do so in glorious company.

Knowing now that you can change it, the next step is: how?

Tell me how you will change the world.

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Virtue's Guidance
What is Virtue? Virtue is everything that causes us to try to achieve something. True Virtue is distinguished from False like this: It is active, a banner calling for change and growth. It is internal, relying on no outside motivation. It is a process, not an ending.

Here is a suggestion for how to recognise True Virtue as opposed to False:

If you are in a forest, with no clear path onwards - a Labyrinth, maybe - then True Virtue gives you strength to choose your way. Ambition bids you pick a direction and strike forward, in the knowledge that you can achieve something in moving. Courage lets you face your fear, overcome your inertia, and walk into the dark. Loyalty knows that your fellows have travelled this path before and will come after; you can trace their footsteps. Pride says that you are enough and more than enough to face the darkness. Prosperity knows that through hard work you will reap the reward. Vigilance bids you look around and forward, moving towards the threats, not away. Wisdom says choose a path, and see what happens.

False Virtues do not help here - Anarchy bids you be free, but... from what? Hate gives you a fire, true; but you cannot hate the emptiness, and it gives you no motive onward. Peace asks you to calm; Hope to sit still. Love requires an object, and that focus may be far behind. Vengeance is useless when you are faced only with a blind decision.

True Virtue helps us travel. If life is a journey, then we choose our own goals - but the way to get there is easier through True Virtue. It is a trod through life; a lantern in the dark and a beacon on the Way.

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Behold Virtue!
What is a virtuous action? Anything. Any action can be virtuous, and any can be unvirtuous.

How, though, is thus: through conscious choice and planning. The Signs of the Paragon give us understanding of what broad goals are helpful to our spirits individually and as a human whole. As long, then, as we take as our objective something that will lead humanity to Ascension and to the future beyond the Labyrinth, we have a plan, an aim in Virtue.

Thereafter, we must decide how to achieve this; breaking down our goal into achievable steps. We plan for each step; Ambition reminds us that tree by tree a forest is cut down. We decide what those trees, those steps are; and we plan for how to achieve them.

Next, we act, bearing in mind what the cost for those actions will be. Morality here is a price we must decide on; whether it is better to act one way or another in service to a greater goal - but that decision is for each to make for themselves. The only thing certain is that we must act, to make the world a better place.

After we take these actions, we then review the outcomes: be they good or bad, do they take us closer to our aim? If they do, then we can continue on our way, step by step; and if not, we must instead reconsider.

To the last, then: we step onward, and begin the process anew - in Virtue.

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Exemplary Direction
Many people say "I want to be an Exemplar" - or a Senator, a General, a Throne. This is not how Virtue works, nor will it ever be. Instead, though, we say "I want to change the world for the better."

Virtue is about acting; choosing to do something. Being something is a tool, not a tick-list achievement - there have been poor Senators before now, or poor Grand Masters, put in power as a compromise or through political machinations. If your goal is such that you can use an official position to further it, then so aim; but always, we look to use the authority of the role for a greater good, not simply gain a position for its own sake.

Exemplars, though, and Paragons, are named after their deaths for the example they offer us. We build our future on legends; we are inspired by tales of Glory and Heroism, knowledge of the bargains made that bring strength to all parties, of perfection in art and in skill. It is well enough to say we admire one who yet lives for their actions, but we cannot know someone's tale and the true impact of the whole of their life until they have left it and are waiting to be reborn or to walk on through the Labyrinth to the mystery on the other side.

If you seek to be Exemplar, instead of treating the Signs of the Paragon as a list to achieve, instead, choose how you want to change the world. Make something better of the Empire, of humanity around you; and in so doing, the Signs will be made clear without you needing to arbitrarily state them. Your actions will be Inspiration; will show your Benevolence - can be your Legacy.