Returning to Tarentum mid-crusade, Dox had a great impact immediately. All three rounds that he participated in, Dox destroyed the competition in gaming. Earning himself 2 Gold Novae, out of only 3 entries exclusively in gaming; Dox is a force to be reckoned with. For this, I would like to thank him with a Dark Cross for his efforts in the Dark Crusades on behalf of Tarentum. Thank you.

I always say, and truly respect those that fall into this, that a leader is someone who fights from the front-lines. For people to respect you and follow you, they need to know that you will lead the charge, you will be there beside them, and most of all you won't stop being there if the line is broken. Anshar has done this time and time again for Tarentum. He has came back to the front anytime the shit gets heavy. and he's there at the drop of a hat. He has sacrificed his own personal goals, I will always remember the time he resigned as Headmaster for our sorry lot, and constantly put Tarentum ahead of himself. And it doesn't seem to matter what is going on in his own personal life at the time either, come hell or even a mid-Crusade move; he'll be there and he will be out front. It's getting to the point where its only a matter of time before we change our name to House Anshar. This past year has been no different. When Tarentum started the Dark Crusades, Anshar held Quaestor at that time and had the terrible burden of trying to motivate our sorry lot to action. And while, unfortunately, Tarentum was slow to the occasion; Anshar didn't let it slow him down. For the first three chapters of the Crusades, Anshar led the house in each chapter as highest participant with little contest. Things seemed to change for the House in the second phase, with more and more members waking up - many at the plea of Anshar whom wasn't even Quaestor anymore but still remained a key leader of Tarentum. This is the kinda of thing I have always admired of Anshar and tried to follow; remaining an influential leader even after giving up the position. However, Anshar never let up on being the highest participant; the house just tried keeping up with him. This as even evident in the brief Crusade break for the Independence Games this year where Anshar once again lead the house in participation, and also in competition won and earning himself the title of one of the IG Champions.

Participation aside, Anshar's guidance and leadership has always been one of our saving graces. First leading the House as a whole as Quaestor and then concluding the Crusades as BTL of Jen Kaari; Anshar has been in a leadership position for the majority of the Crusades. Through these positions he has inspired others to participant and better themselves, help guide people through events and challenges, and even served as a much appreciated voice on the Tarentum Summit helping Scion and myself make Tarentum a better place. And yet, considering all this his support never slumped even when the closing date for his home was moved up and he and his wife moved to their new home in the middle of the last round.

I can't even imagine what Tarentum would look like today if it hadn't been for Anshar, and this past year has further solidified his place as one of Tarentum's greats. In recognition of all he has done, from being Quaestor for Tarentum's start in the crusades and BTL at the end, being our highest participant in both Crusades and IGs, being an inspiration for all of Tarentum, and of course his constant humility (If for no other reason than he said he didn't want any awards); I believe Anshar deserves to be recognized for all this effort with a Sapphire Blade.

I love Frosty's type of leadership. Lead from the front, not the back. His time as BTL of KoT aside for a moment, his participation as a member over the Crusades has been more than welcomed. Frosty is a gamer, through and through. My entire time knowing him, I have always counted him that way and he proved it in the last three rounds of the Crusade by always having a participation point in gaming. But that over looks how much gaming he has done, by my count he has earned 214 Clusters of Fire since August. Not only has this been towards Tarentum's Crusade efforts but he is a dedicated, key member of the TOR guild and representing Tarentum in that field. Additionally, he has placed in the top three for every Tarentum gaming competition in the last 5 months, from mobile to flash games. And the topper, he won 1st in October's Gorefest. He's one of Tarentum's many resident gamers, and he's always is leading the pack.

However, Frosty doesn't just game. In fact, he more than often gets out of his comfort zone for the betterment of Tarentum. Participating in trivia and misc events. just to get more points on the board for us; Frosty even was a member of Tarentum's 3rd place finish in Ashsa Ree's Run-on. I wouldn't be surprised if this is why Scion choose him to head the Knights of Tau, had I been Aedile at that point and involved in the conversation; hands down Frosty would have been my choice. His message is consistent in that he both pushes for members to do what they love, even helping lead and coordinate the groups into this, while at the same time he motivates them to do what they can for the House. His guidance as Tarentae has been greatly appreciated as we try to turn things around in Tarentum. And he always has a great sense of reason he brings with his input. For all this things, I believe Frosty more than deserves a Steel Cross in recognition of what he has done for Tarentum in just these last few months. Thank you Frosty, and congrats!

It's never easy leading a unit into a conflict, that much can be plainly stated. To lead one through a downfall, that takes strong shoulders. To see one through three, and I can't think of anyone that won't begin doubting the group at that point. Jason however never has, a constant and incredibly vocal boost for morale was always pushed by Jason over the Crusades. Examining old emails on the house list, Jason very much was Tarentum's cheerleader; always trying to rally it as the House's Aedile but he didn't limited it just to the side lines. His participation in the first phase was meant to be supportive, as he managed 4 entries in two rounds despite his limited time. Even after stepping down as Aedile, Jason remained around to try to boost morale and even tried to get in what entries he could in the very last round when we made our final push. If it wasn't from his encouragement, I don't think tarentum would have done better than it had. For this reason, I believe Jason should earn the Anteian Cross and our thanks for the efforts he made in the Dark Crusades.