Sir Gawain of Orkney — Knight of the Round Table
At a Glance
- Identity
- Sir Gawain of Orkney, nephew and knight of King Arthur
- Nature
- Human champion, courtly negotiator and fierce defender of his family
- Family
- Son of King Lot and Morgause; brother of Gaheris, Agravain and Gareth; maternal half-brother of Mordred
- Allegiance
- Arthur, the Round Table and the honour of the Orkney household
- Enemies
- Those he holds responsible for his brothers’ deaths; in the final war, Lancelot
- Alignment
- Lawful Neutral — generous to guests but capable of letting vengeance destroy alliances he once swore to defend
- Special gift
- His prowess swells from nine in the morning until noon; the boon fades as the day advances
- Equipment
- Galatine, lance, shield, heavy armour, a green girdle and Gringalet, his horse
- Languages
- Brythonic and the language of Arthur’s court
- Immediate danger
- Gawain demands a meeting with Lancelot and refuses to let Arthur negotiate a settlement
In 1454, a winter track beyond an abandoned gateway opens into the old Arthurian court. Sir Gawain is waiting beside the road at dawn, armour buckled for battle, while a herald carries a final offer from Lancelot. Gareth and Gaheris died unarmed during Guinevere’s rescue, and Gawain has sworn that the surviving knights of Orkney will receive justice. Arthur has ordered him to hear the message. Gawain will listen, but his patience ends when the ninth hour draws near and the power of the sun begins to rise in him.
What Is Happening Right Now?
Arthur’s envoys urge a truce before more families are ruined. A wounded squire has brought eyewitness testimony that Lancelot did not recognise the unarmed brothers he struck down. Gawain refuses to consider whether ignorance can excuse the blows. Across the ford stand men who fought for Lancelot, and every delay makes an accidental skirmish more likely.
First Meeting
Gawain is tall, deliberate and impeccably courteous to strangers. A green girdle lies beneath his mail, deliberately hidden until a trusted companion asks about the scar on his neck. He asks each visitor to declare whom they serve; once he has an answer, he offers bread and warmth even to an enemy herald. His courtesy falters when Gareth’s name is spoken as though the death were a minor accident.
Three Scenes Tonight
- Before the ninth hour: a sworn courier offers evidence Gawain has refused to read, and Arthur wants the document delivered without violence.
- The sealed challenge: a false notice claims Lancelot has agreed to meet Gawain in the field while both camps prepare for battle.
- The girdle’s price: a visitor from a woodland court offers to renew its protection in return for an oath Gawain cannot easily keep.
Appearance and Manner
Gawain wears a blue mantle over silvered armour, with a fur collar suited to the northern roads. He bears a heavy sword and the marks of many older combats. His horse, Gringalet, is a trained mount rather than a glowing celestial creature. The knight speaks well, remembers hospitality given and repaid, and can be a generous host; but anger narrows his judgement as surely as it sharpens his will to fight.
Ambition, Pressure and Private Knowledge
- Ambition: defend Arthur’s rule while preserving the honour of his brothers and the house of Lot.
- Pressure: the deaths of Gareth and Gaheris, his earlier part in the vengeance against Lamorak, and Arthur’s unwillingness to destroy Lancelot for him.
- Private knowledge: very few knights know the timing of the gift that triples his strength toward noon; Arthur knows its advantage in formal combat.
- Flaw: rage can make him mistake refusal to seek revenge for refusal to do justice.
- Offer: an audience with Arthur, the protection of an Orkney escort, Gringalet’s services or safe conduct to a northern court.
Relationships and Allegiances
Arthur is Gawain’s king and uncle, and the source of the authority Gawain most hates to defy. He remembers Gareth as a younger brother who chose mercy over revenge. Gaheris committed their mother’s murder, which Gawain did not celebrate; Agravain pressed the accusation against the queen. Mordred, their maternal half-brother in Malory’s genealogy, waits for the divisions of Camelot to serve him. Lamorak bore the cost of the family feud long before the fall of the Round Table. Gawain can speak warmly of Lancelot as a fellow knight in an earlier year; after the deaths of his brothers, their friendship has no easy repair.
Game Statistics
Gawain is an exceptionally powerful martial knight whose prowess rises with the morning. Galatine is a wondrous sword, but his ordinary abilities are those of a knight and war leader, not those of a cleric or archmage. Only his own sun-given gift changes with the hour.
Sir Gawain — D&D 2024
Medium Humanoid (Human), Lawful Neutral
Armor Class 21 (plate, +1 shield); Initiative +2 (12); Hit Points 187 (22d8 + 88); Speed 30 ft.; Challenge 15 (13,000 XP; PB +5).
| STR | DEX | CON | INT | WIS | CHA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 20 (+5) | 14 (+2) | 18 (+4) | 12 (+1) | 16 (+3) | 16 (+3) |
Saving Throws Str +10, Con +9, Wis +8, Cha +8; Skills Athletics +10, Insight +8, Perception +8, Persuasion +8; Senses passive Perception 18; Languages Brythonic and the speech of Arthur’s court.
Traits
Morning Ascendancy. From the ninth hour of the morning until noon, Gawain gains advantage on Strength checks and Strength saving throws, and makes four Galatine attacks instead of three when he uses Multiattack. His normal attack modifiers and damage are unchanged; this is a deliberately playable expression of his extraordinary morning strength.
Indomitable Resolve (2/Day). If Gawain fails a saving throw, he may choose to succeed instead. His resolve does not protect companions or erase the consequences of his own anger.
A Knight’s Word. Gawain has advantage on Charisma (Persuasion) checks with those who already recognise his sworn authority at Arthur’s court. The effect is social influence, not magical domination.
Actions
Multiattack. Gawain makes three Galatine attacks, or four during Morning Ascendancy. His mounted lance attack below cannot replace an attack in Multiattack.
Galatine, +2 Longsword. Melee Attack Roll: +12 to hit, reach 5 ft., one creature. Hit: 11 (1d8 + 7) Slashing plus 9 (2d8) Radiant damage. Galatine glows with the amber light of Gawain’s solar gift.
Mounted Lance Charge. Melee Attack Roll: +10 to hit, reach 10 ft., one creature while mounted. Hit: 10 (1d10 + 5) Piercing damage, plus 13 (3d8) Piercing damage if his mount travelled at least 20 feet straight toward the target immediately before the strike. One attack only.
Break the Line (Recharge 5–6). Each creature of Gawain’s choice within 10 feet must make a DC 18 Strength saving throw. On a failure it takes 18 (4d8) Bludgeoning damage, is pushed 10 feet and falls Prone. On a success it takes half damage and is not moved. Gawain swings his shield and sword to clear room for allies; this action is not an additional Multiattack.
Bonus Actions
Rally the Fellowship (2/Day). Up to three allies that hear Gawain within 30 feet gain 12 Temporary Hit Points each.
Reactions
Shield Parry. When hit by a melee attack he can see, Gawain adds 3 to his AC against that attack, potentially turning the hit into a miss. He must wield his shield or sword.
Legendary Actions
Advance (1 Use). Gawain moves up to half his Speed without provoking Opportunity Attacks.
Galatine Strike (1 Use). Gawain makes one Galatine attack. He has two Legendary Action uses, regained at the start of his turn; he can take one use at the end of another creature’s turn and cannot use an option while Incapacitated.
Tactics
Gawain challenges opponents openly, defends those under his protection and becomes dangerously relentless when a feud takes hold. Between nine in the morning and noon, Gawain can make four Galatine attacks on his turn and two more through legendary actions after other creatures’ turns. Outside those hours he makes three attacks on his turn and at most two more between turns. His morning assault is significantly more dangerous; witnesses who understand this may urge an opponent to seek cover, parley or delay until noon.
Sir Gawain — D&D 2014
Medium humanoid (human), lawful neutral
Armor Class 21 (plate, +1 shield); Hit Points 187 (22d8 + 88); Speed 30 ft.; Challenge 15 (13,000 XP; PB +5).
| STR | DEX | CON | INT | WIS | CHA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 20 (+5) | 14 (+2) | 18 (+4) | 12 (+1) | 16 (+3) | 16 (+3) |
Saving Throws Str +10, Con +9, Wis +8, Cha +8; Skills Athletics +10, Insight +8, Perception +8, Persuasion +8; Senses passive Perception 18; Languages Brythonic and the speech of Arthur’s court.
Traits
Morning Ascendancy. From the ninth hour of the morning until noon, Gawain gains advantage on Strength checks and Strength saving throws, and makes four Galatine attacks instead of three when he uses Multiattack. His normal attack modifiers and damage are unchanged; this is a deliberately playable expression of his extraordinary morning strength.
Indomitable Resolve (2/Day). If Gawain fails a saving throw, he may choose to succeed instead. His resolve does not protect companions or erase the consequences of his own anger.
A Knight’s Word. Gawain has advantage on Charisma (Persuasion) checks with those who already recognise his sworn authority at Arthur’s court. The effect is social influence, not magical domination.
Actions
Multiattack. Gawain makes three Galatine attacks, or four during Morning Ascendancy. His mounted lance attack below cannot replace an attack in Multiattack.
Galatine, +2 Longsword. Melee Weapon Attack: +12 to hit, reach 5 ft., one creature. Hit: 11 (1d8 + 7) Slashing plus 9 (2d8) Radiant damage. Galatine glows with the amber light of Gawain’s solar gift.
Mounted Lance Charge. Melee Weapon Attack: +10 to hit, reach 10 ft., one creature while mounted. Hit: 11 (1d12 + 5) Piercing damage, plus 13 (3d8) Piercing damage if his mount travelled at least 20 feet straight toward the target immediately before the strike. One attack only.
Break the Line (Recharge 5–6). Each creature of Gawain’s choice within 10 feet must make a DC 18 Strength saving throw. On a failure it takes 18 (4d8) Bludgeoning damage, is pushed 10 feet and falls Prone. On a success it takes half damage and is not moved. Gawain swings his shield and sword to clear room for allies; this action is not an additional Multiattack.
Bonus Actions
Rally the Fellowship (2/Day). Up to three allies that hear Gawain within 30 feet gain 12 Temporary Hit Points each.
Reactions
Shield Parry. When hit by a melee attack he can see, Gawain adds 3 to his AC against that attack, potentially turning the hit into a miss. He must wield his shield or sword.
Legendary Actions
Advance (1 Use). Gawain moves up to half his Speed without provoking Opportunity Attacks.
Galatine Strike (1 Use). Gawain makes one Galatine attack. He has two Legendary Action uses, regained at the start of his turn; he can take one use at the end of another creature’s turn and cannot use an option while Incapacitated.
Tactics
Gawain challenges opponents openly, defends those under his protection and becomes dangerously relentless when a feud takes hold. Between nine in the morning and noon, Gawain can make four Galatine attacks on his turn and two more through legendary actions after other creatures’ turns. Outside those hours he makes three attacks on his turn and at most two more between turns. His morning assault is significantly more dangerous; witnesses who understand this may urge an opponent to seek cover, parley or delay until noon.
Sir Gawain — Pathfinder 1e
CR 15 (fighter 15 with the solar gift); XP 51,200; male human Fighter 15; LN Medium humanoid (human); Init +6; Senses Perception +12.
Defense
AC 30, touch 14, flat-footed 28 (+12 armour, +4 shield, +2 Dex, +2 deflection); hp 157 (15d10 + 60, Toughness +15); Fort +15, Ref +9, Will +11; Defensive Abilities bravery +4 against fear.
Offense
Speed 30 ft. in heavy armour (armour training 4); Melee +3 Galatine longsword +29/+24/+19 (1d8+16, 17–20/×2); Mounted +3 lance +24 (1d8+9, ×3; a single mounted charge, triple damage with Spirited Charge); Space/Reach 5 ft./5 ft. (lance 10 ft.); Base Atk +15; CMB +21; CMD 35.
Statistics
Str 22, Dex 14, Con 18, Int 12, Wis 14, Cha 16; Feats Weapon Focus (longsword), Weapon Specialization (longsword), Greater Weapon Focus (longsword), Greater Weapon Specialization (longsword), Improved Critical (longsword), Power Attack, Cleave, Great Cleave, Mounted Combat, Ride-By Attack, Spirited Charge, Improved Initiative, Iron Will, Toughness, Critical Focus, Combat Reflexes, Endurance (17 feats including fighter and human bonuses). Skills Ride +18, Intimidate +21, Knowledge (nobility) +6, Survival +15, Perception +12; Languages Brythonic and French courtly speech.
Special Abilities
Armour Training 4; Weapon Training (heavy blades) +3; Bravery +4. Only Galatine benefits from heavy-blade weapon training; the lance uses a separate attack bonus. Morning Ascendancy (Su). Between the ninth hour and noon Gawain gains +4 enhancement bonus to Strength and +2 morale bonus to Will saves; his Galatine melee attack rises to +31/+26/+21 and damage to 1d8+18 while the gift lasts. These adjusted values are not applied outside the morning hours.
Equipment
+3 full plate, +2 heavy steel shield, +3 longsword Galatine, +3 lance, ring of protection +2, cloak of resistance +2, heavy warhorse Gringalet, the green girdle and a scar remembered from the Green Chapel.
Tactics
Gawain advances before noon and fights as an expert mounted knight or sword champion. After noon he no longer benefits from his solar Strength bonus. A sworn enemy can draw him into reckless pursuit, especially when Gareth’s death is named.
Sir Gawain — D&D 3.5e
Male human Fighter 15, bearer of the morning gift; LN Medium humanoid; CR 16; Init +6; Senses Listen +2, Spot +11.
Defense
AC 28, touch 13, flat-footed 27 (+11 armour, +4 shield, +1 Dex, +2 deflection); hp 145 (15d10 + 60, Toughness +3); Fort +15, Ref +9, Will +11.
Offense
Speed 20 ft. in heavy armour; Melee +3 longsword Galatine +26/+21/+16 (1d8+13, 17–20/×2); Mounted +3 lance +24 (1d8+9, ×3; single mounted charge, tripled damage with Spirited Charge); Space/Reach 5 ft./5 ft. (lance 10 ft.); Base Atk/Grapple +15/+21.
Statistics
Str 22, Dex 14, Con 18, Int 12, Wis 14, Cha 16; Feats Weapon Focus (longsword), Weapon Specialization (longsword), Greater Weapon Focus (longsword), Greater Weapon Specialization (longsword), Improved Critical (longsword), Power Attack, Cleave, Great Cleave, Mounted Combat, Ride-By Attack, Spirited Charge, Improved Initiative, Iron Will, Toughness, Combat Reflexes (15 feats: Fighter 15 and human bonus). Skills Ride +20, Intimidate +21, Knowledge (nobility and royalty) +10, Spot +11; Languages Brythonic and court speech.
Special Abilities
Morning Ascendancy (Su). From the ninth hour until noon Gawain gains +4 enhancement bonus to Strength and +2 morale bonus to Will saves. His Galatine attacks become +28/+23/+18 and the damage increases to 1d8+15 while the boon lasts. The boon does not grant spell slots or alter the normal fighter feats.
Possessions
+3 full plate, +2 heavy steel shield, +3 longsword Galatine, +3 lance, ring of protection +2, cloak of resistance +2, the green girdle, a court signet and Gringalet, his trained warhorse.
Tactics
Gawain fights with measured aggression until an insult to his family draws him away from prudence. The rising morning makes him extremely dangerous; at noon the magical strength leaves him, as it does in Malory’s account of his duel with Lancelot.
Running Gawain
Let Gawain’s virtues and failures both matter. The guests he has fed and defended can appeal to his courtesy, but promises alone may not turn him from a blood feud. He will usually grant an enemy a chance to speak. When the hour draws near to noon, his confidence becomes dangerous; afterward he must face what he chose when strength was greatest.
Five Encounters
- The morning challenge: Gawain asks for a formal duel at nine, while a wounded herald begs the party to postpone it until testimony can be heard.
- A Green Chapel bargain: a fey messenger asks Gawain to return a girdle he promised to exchange but chose to conceal.
- The king’s order: Arthur commands Gawain not to pursue Lancelot into a village that has already sheltered refugees.
- The brothers’ witness: a squire who saw Gareth and Gaheris unarmed fears that telling the truth will enrage both sides.
- The noon tide: Gawain’s strength rises as a causeway floods, leaving the party to choose between joining his duel or saving riders trapped below the bank.
Six Adventure Hooks
- A sun-marked sword fragment appears in 1454 and opens a narrow path to the morning of Gawain’s last challenge.
- A keeper of the Green Chapel asks the party to retrieve a broken promise before a year and a day expire.
- Gringalet returns without his rider, carrying a letter addressed to Arthur.
- Agravaine’s surviving allies have forged a witness’s account of Lancelot’s attack; Gawain demands it be examined.
- An Orkney retainer plans to kill a helpless servant of Lamorak, claiming Gawain has approved.
- King Arthur asks the party to carry one final peace offer across a ford Gawain will defend until noon.
Equipment, Travel and Law
Gawain bears Galatine, shield, lance, armour, the green girdle of his testing and the trained warhorse Gringalet. His authority over fellow knights comes from Arthur and custom, not from a supernatural power to compel honour. Travellers on the hidden Fey road from 1454 enter an older season of Camelot, when the northern houses still dispute who must answer for their dead. A sealed challenge may be lawful, but it cannot justify the seizure of an innocent family or the ruin of a town.
Deeper History
Gawain is one of the great knights of the earliest Arthurian tradition, celebrated for courtesy and service yet repeatedly drawn into feuds. In the Middle English Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, he accepts the Green Knight’s beheading challenge, stays with Bertilak and hides the protective girdle offered by Bertilak’s wife, then confesses his failure when the Green Knight reveals the test. In Malory, an extraordinary gift strengthens Gawain from the ninth hour until noon; even Lancelot must endure his strongest attacks until the gift ebbs. After Gareth and Gaheris are killed unarmed during Guinevere’s rescue, Gawain’s desire for vengeance helps break Arthur’s alliance with Lancelot. The hero who once risked his life to keep a promise comes to threaten the kingdom for the sake of a grievance he cannot release.
Related People and Places
Arthurian characters · Arthur · Lancelot · Gareth · Gaheris · Agravain · Mordred · Lamorak
Sources and Artwork
- Malory, Le Morte Darthur, Book XX, chapter XXI — Gawain’s morning strength and duel with Lancelot.
- British Library, Cotton MS Nero A X/2 — manuscript of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight and its illustrations.
- Malory, the rescue of Guinevere — the separate deaths of Gareth and Gaheris.
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