Editing The Dresden Files RPG (section)

=====Knights of the Cross=====
Somewhat parallel to the Church are the Knights of the Cross, chosen individuals who wield a trio of swords made with the nails used to crucify Jesus. Each knight and sword represent one of the three final virtues espoused in 1 Corinthians 13:13 - Faith (Shiro/Fidelacchius), Hope (Sanya/Esperacchius) and Love (Michael/Amoracchius). Every knight is a paragon of the virtue for which the sword they carry is named, and the swords are immensely powerful divine artifacts when used in defense of their respective virtue. Contrary to what might seem intuitive, Knights of the Cross don't have to be Catholic or even religious; all they have to do is have sufficient inner strength and the belief that the weak should be protected and evil should be opposed. There are only at most three at a time, and they have a very high turnover rate. Not only do they fight next level apocalyptic stuff, which means casualties are common, most Knights only hold their title for the duration of one mission or task; of all the Knights in history, career Knights are very much the minority. The three serving Knights at the opening of the series are on the far right end of that bell curve: one having served for a few years, one for about two decades, and one being an old man who served since his youth. The three swords they wield have been reworked and reforged throughout the years, so they've carried other names and forms. Amoracchius was once called Excalibur, Esperacchius was once Durendal, and Fidelacchius was once Kusanagi. It's implied more and more strongly as the series goes on that the Knights are all descended from ancient kings. 

*'''Michael Carpenter''': A family man, Catholic, building contractor, and Knight of the Cross, wielder of the longsword Amoracchius (also known as "Excalibur, that's fucking EXCALIBUR?!"). A loving husband and father of seven, he's what happens when the [[Paladin|holy-warrior archetype]] is written right. Unlike most portrayals of religious types (particularly members of the Catholic Church), the author decided that religion didn't automatically make you into an abrasive dick, taking into account that organized religion has actually had some positive effects on human history, like the establishment of charities and medical aid when everyone else was espousing social darwinism. Harry sees him as a friend and something of a worthy authority figure, seeking to gain his approval, knowing that if someone as good as Michael Carpenter likes him, he can't be all bad. He's been given the moniker "Fist of God," which should give you some indication as to his combat prowess. He's also an honest-to-God paladin, using what Harry describes as "True Faith" to create a few NOTmagic effects throughout the series, such as causing vampires to burst into flames from touching him, dispelling a mental illusion, and driving away a swarm of demons, though Michael would insist that all these were God's doing, not his. Descendant of Charlemagne, the first Holy Roman Emperor and conqueror of much of Europe.
**'''Charity Carpenter''': Michael's beautiful yet intimidating wife. A caring, if occasionally overbearing, mother who is honestly quite badass in her own right when her children and husband are in danger. Not a Knight or an Angel or anything; just a strong, smart, caring woman who happens to be a skilled blacksmith(Michael wears Kevlar-lined chainmail into battle that ''she'' made). She openly dislikes Harry because her husband always jumps to help him when he needs it, putting him in danger (note: Technically not a Knight or part of the Church, she could fit no less than five different categories in this list, so we threw her here).
**'''Molly Carpenter''': Michael and Charity's eldest child. Harry's known her since her early childhood. When she reached her tweens, she started getting more and more rebellious towards her admittedly strict mother. This and a '''SPOILER''' incident eventually culminated in her turning goth, dropping out of high school, and eventually leaving home to live on her own. The rest of her (and the rest of Michael's family's) story is '''SPOILERS'''.

*'''Sanya:''' An agnostic soldier of good and amateur philosopher who grew up in Russia, wielder of the sabre Esperacchius (also known as Durandal). Despite all the stuff involving angels and the like that he deals with, he's an atheist (or at least an agnostic), his argument being that the beings he meets could just as easily be extraterrestrials or non-divine supernatural creatures, or that he may be hallucinating everything. He's notably one of the more practical Knights, being more willing to be aggressive, use unconventional tactics, and use modern weaponry. Being a black man who grew up in Russia, he grew up a minority and became bitter and lost because of it, resulting in more than a little bit of shade in his past. These days he's a warrior of light and a generally good dude, and unlike the other Knights he manages to retain a healthy sense of humor. He and Harry are buddies. Descendant of An-Nasir Salah ad-Din Yusuf ibn Ayyub, known to the most in the west as Saladin, an ancient king who founded the Ayyubid dynasty and who retook Jerusalem from the Crusaders. 

*'''Shiro Yoshimo''': An elderly Japanese man and wielder of the cane-katana, Fidelacchius (also known as Kusanagi-no-Tsuruki, it's a weird bit of "did not do his research"/"popular myth" here as Kusanagi technically predates the usage of katanas in Japanese history, but as it hasn't been seen by mortal eyes for the last 1,500 years or so, it can be a katana because that's Japanese and we have no clue what it really looks like at all). A genuinely selfless man and a total badass, whose skill in combat was compared by Michael to Mozart's skill with music. While he's technically a Baptist (a technicality involving a misunderstanding at an Elvis concert) he still thinks like a Shintoist in a lot of ways. While all Knights seem to be really, ''really'' lucky when it comes to guessing things, Shiro seems to have a borderline precogniscient ability to predict events; presumably he gets a pointer or two from the Almighty, or maybe he's just really observant. Descended from Sho Tai, the last king of the Ryukyu Kingdom in what we now call Okinawa.