Brethren!

Today is a good day for the DB. After a long, long time of working and deliberating on this colossal undertaking, the Dark Covenant has finally been ratified! The rules within are now our official governing code.

To become ratified, the Covenant needed to gain a three-fourths vote from the members of the Grand Electorate (Consuls and Full-time DC members). As of now, 16 of 18 members have voted yes, and I expect the final two to vote yes as well. The Clans were unanimous in their consent.

I think it may be hard for some people to figure out why this is a big deal; many of you don't remember or didn't know at all the situation under the Emperor's Hammer. I think Xanos put it best recently when he said that the rule of Ronin and Astatine could be put to one word: absolute. That was what we left to escape - the absolute rule without regard to the membership. That's what this Covenant moves to further cure.

When Firefox and I talked before he left Grand Master, the one thing he made me promise him that I do was to set up processes for the removal and appointment of Grand Masters. It was not an easy task. We have debated the issues within the Covenant inside and out for over a year. After three major revisions and countless small revisions, the Covenant is finished.

This is a testament to the members that contributed to the task: you all stuck with it and got the job done. I can't tell you how much I appreciate those who went through the drafts with fine-toothed combs, told me the issues and helped me resolve them. This includes DC members, Clan Summits and other members alike. I did a brief count: 257 emails hit my inbox since March on the subject and I can't tell you how many IRC convos we all had. Those of you who helped in this: you know who you are and you should be justifiably proud of this release.

If you haven't read the Covenant, I suggest you do. Please direct any questions on it to me.

http://covenant.darkjedibrotherhood.com

Lord Jac Cotelin

Grand Master