Command

The Commands of Serpent Isle's Monitor are three competing factions among the knights of the city. They appear in Ultima VII Part Two.

Description
All Monitorian knights are affiliated with one of three Commands: the Bear Command, the Wolf Command, or the Leopard Command. Each of these groups has a single leader, and the government of Monitor is run such that the heads of the Commands take turns acting as Lord of the city, such that no single Command might maintain uncontested power over government. In addition to being named for a totemic animal, each Command is additionally characterized by a specific mark that is tattooed on the faces of its members, and each Command generally adheres to a specific military and political philosophy.

Although unwittingly, the Commands resemble the Order-Chaos-Balance scheme

Bear Command
The Bears favor a reliance on brute, physical strength as warriors and emphasize defense and fortification as long term martial strategies. They are responsible for having erected with walls of Monitor, which were allegedly built to guard against the kidnapping of Monitorian children by goblin raiding parties, and they are credited with having routed the Gurnordir's troops during his historic siege against the city.

The mark given to knights of this Command is shaped like a smooth M and is tattooed on initiates' left cheeks. At the time of the Avatar's adventures on Serpent Isle, the leader of the Bears was Caladin, and the Command was responsible for the defense of a tower near the city of Fawn.

Members of the Bear Command included Caladin, Flicken, Luther, Lydia, Simon, Templar, and Wilfred. The Monitorian Knight Champion, Astrid, also hailed from this Command before her death, and it is probable that Groat, another deceased knight who had been a member of Astrid's patrol, did as well.

Leopard Command
The Leopards consider themselves the "peacemakers" of Monitor, striving to mediate the conflicts that occur between Monitor's three factions by attempting to bring the often conflicting Wolves and Bears into compromise and agreement.

The mark given to knights of this Command is shaped like a cross between a V and a horned animal skull and is tattooed on initiates' foreheads. At the time of the Avatar's adventures on Serpent Isle, the leader of the Leopards was Marsten (although he may have been succeeded by Shazzana), and the Command was responsible for the defense of a tower near Monitor itself.

Members of the Leopard Command included Marsten, Andral, Harnna, Shazzana, Spektor, and Standarr. Draygan, a prospector who could be found in an encampment in the Northern Forest also had once belonged to this Command, as had Flessar, a knight who had been killed on the List Field some time before the Avatar's arrival in the city.

Wolf Command
In contrast to the Bears, members of the Wolf Command typically prize dexterity and cunning in combat and endorse a political strategy advocating for the expansion of Monitorian influence to rest of Serpent Isle. The Wolves were responsible for repairing the Serpent's Highway that crosses over the mainland and for erecting towers dedicated to the defense of non-Monitorian settlements.

The mark given to knights of this Command is shaped like a dimond and is tattooed on initiates' right cheeks. At the time of the Avatar's adventures on Serpent Isle, the leader of the Leopards was Brendann, and the Command was responsible for the defense of a tower near the Inn of the Sleeping Bull.

Wolves go beyond the walls: They rebuilt the highways, added new roads and established the guard towers. They more or less work beyond the walls of Monitor. Wolves are smart, preferring cunning over brute force. Tattoo is an empty diamond shape on the right cheek. Wolves control the Bull tower. They are regarded as the friendliest of the Commands. In Serpent Isle, their leader is Brendann.

Members of the Wolf Command included Brendann, Argus, Cellia, Johnson, Krayg, Lucilla, Renfry, and Shmed. During the course of Ultima VII Part Two, the Avatar would also join this Command.

Trivia

 * It is unclear as to how frequently Command leaders are supposed to alternate in taking on the title of Lord. According to Flicken, the Lord of Monitor changes with each new year. Argus, however, indicates that all three Commands rule the city over the course of a year.