Templar’s creator Xing weighs in with his bold opinion: “Without the Templars and Rebel Penguin Federation, there is no modern-day community”.
The Templars and the Rebel Penguin Federation’s existence over the last few years has shaped the community in both unseen and seen ways. Despite the two having a fierce rivalry as some of the most dominant armies in the community, they continue to pave the way for future generations.
Many would shrug off this opinion as something laughable, but it has a lot of credit and meaning behind it. Generally speaking, both armies shaped the earlier 2017-18 Club Penguin Rewritten army community and set precedents that evolved into today’s community. An example of this would be the Rebels’ use of veterans and legends. This set a precedent in its own way, influencing other armies to create a “call to arms”. The Templars also set a precedent by declaring wars almost constantly, setting the standard of what community activity within the community itself should be.
Part I: The Essential Archetypes
Both armies resemble a bygone age that many people in modern armies today were not around for. The year 2018 was quite a tumultuous and community-changing year. Both the Templars and RPF, alongside their allies, fought a World War stemming from Elmikey’s coup from the RPF leadership in December 2017. Due to this conflict, both armies became centrepieces and trendsetters within the community at the time.
RPF in January 2018
During that World War, the modern community was founded with the arrival of both armies to Club Penguin Online. With their arrival at CPO, Waterkid/Riley started up the CP Online Army League, and the stage was set for years to come. With an established Top Ten, tournament, and league, both RPF and the Templars had inadvertently started what may be the most disastrous innovation in the community since Elmikey’s ‘GarysHood Runescape’ auto-typing in 2013.
The World War solidified what both armies would become later down the road. The Rebels would be seen as the elitist army – the one always at the top, oppressing the other armies. Yet, the Templars and their allies (Elite Guardians, Pizza Federation, etc.), who were a part of the Red Dawn Alliance, were seen as the resistance and the resemblance of the wider small army community that had immigrated from Club Penguin Rewritten in early 2018. Hence, from that World War onwards, any army seen opposing the Rebel Penguin Federation would in theory become the successor to the alliance that the Templars had helped create immediately after going to war with the RPF.
Moving forward from that World War, the thought of the big bad RPF mostly resurfaced around the summer of 2019 on CP Rewritten with armies such as the Elite Guardians teaming up to declare war upon them but eventually losing to their Strike Force as the Rebel Penguin Federation was not entirely invested yet into the ‘CP Armies: The Game‘ map. As for the Templars during the summer of 2019, it was more or less the same.
The Templars still assumed the role of fighting against the elite. They largely fought the six-army alliance known as the National Armies Alliance in June of 2019 which had notoriously included the Pirates (post Epic101’s departure). They also fought armies supported by Club Penguin Online’s administration such as the Help Force, Redemption Force, Light Troops as well as the Pirates.
Templars vs Pirates in June 2019
To summarize, both armies are the essential archetypes of the Populous vs the Elite. Or: the common man against the established order. The Rebel Penguin Federation appointed itself the established order while many armies had taken inspiration from the Templar’s stand vs. the RPF in July 2018 and continued its spirit.
Part II: The People vs. the Elite
More recently, we have seen the collapse of the Black Ice Alliance. This alliance of the RPF, Ice Warriors (and Dark Warriors) was widely hated amongst the community for being the established order and causing division. Yet, a familiar face was at the head of the resistance to it: the Templar army.
The community’s desire to rid corruption and its modern state originates from World War 7 – the Templars and Rebel Penguin Federation. Without Templars or RPF, there would be no modern-day community.
There would be no stand against the established order. Although some may contradict this point with, “Well, the Elite Guardians could’ve stood up to the RPF”. That is an entirely valid point, if EGCP was majority English-speaking and had veteran support from most of the anti-RPF community in 2018 then they may have been able to.
Elite Guardians vs Templars in the 2018 Christmas Chaos Final
To summarize, the Templars and the Rebel Penguin Federation are both the culmination and conclusion of the people against the elite/established order. Without the Templars, there would be no World War 7, no trickle-down effect of any army league nor any of the modern-day armies that currently exist, existing.
The same goes for the Rebel Penguin Federation. Without the Rebel Penguin Federation, no armies would be alive today. Hence, which brings me to my concluding point that, without the Templars and Rebel Penguin Federation existing, there would be no modern-day community, no league model, no modern innovations we have, nor any armies that currently exist today.
Final Thoughts
Overall, both armies are the single two most impactful armies to ever exist in the post-original Club Penguin era. While some may argue that this opinion piece is entirely a garbage take, they simply do not know their history as well as a veteran of this community from 2017 onwards would know it.
Both armies have always worked in tandem, whether together, against each other or in spirit, both armies have shaped the history of the community and its modern-day state more and most effectively and importantly than any one army or individual in the community.
Without both of these armies, there is no league, no CPPS armies, no Water Vikings, Doritos, Ice Warriors, Army of Club Penguin nor Dark Warriors, or Pirates/Light Troops revival. Without both armies, my friends, there is no modern-day community.