Welcome to another edition of Picture Perfect, the column where we analyze photos from years past. This edition will explore a conflict that has become all too familiar, generating one of the greatest rivalries in the new age between Templars and Water Vikings.
Designed by Cassie
If you have been living under a rock, you might not know about the ongoing war between Templars (TCP) and Water Vikings (WV). On April 8, the Vikings took the first offense as they set out to invade the Knights. In just 12 days, the war has already posted over 15 battles. As the war seems to have no end in sight, some may be wondering where the energy for all these battles stem from.
Well, this is not the armies first rodeo. The two have commonly been at odds since the pandemic. The last time was when both armies found themselves on opposite sides of World War IX. However, their rivalry cemented during the wars of 2020 and 2021. One such instance is a conflict dubbed the Ninth Great Holy War.
On April 21, 2021, the Templars declared war on the Water Vikings. The declaration was made by then leader, now army legend, Racecar40. Tension seemingly never ceased to exist following the conclusion of the Golden Seas War, a war fought between the armies just a month prior in March 2021. At the time of declaration, both armies were comfortably placed within the mid-rankings of the Top Ten.
Look at these simple war terms
On the chance the Vikings did not answer the call, the Knights threatened to raid events. Initially, the war contained terms stating the battles could only take place at 7pm EST. The terms would soon be changed. In response to the war, then Water Vikings leader, Guncotton, made this remark, taunting the Templars’ tactics.
We are ready for a war, we just don’t like the idea of a long-drawn one [be]cause a war against TCP is really boring taking into account their whooping speed of five tactics per minute. They’re gonna raid our events now and we’re ready for it, more [event quality] for both the armies.
It is important to note that, at this time, there existed no private server strictly for armies. Therefore, for this war, battles were to take place on Club Penguin Rewritten. On April 22, 2021, the Battle of Ascent was fought.
The last true battle of the Ninth Great Holy War
Overcoming the lag of Club Penguin Rewritten, the two armies fought fiercely, going into “overtime.” Despite only two true battles taking place, then Templars leader Brownpen4 declared that the Templars were victorious in the war on April 25, 2021. It’s unclear due to a lack of historical record but it seems the two battles were simply raids hosted by the Templars on Water Vikings’ events.
The entire war Water Vikings were hiding from us, cowering in their mother’s basements crying. This goes to show that WV was nothing without their allies and duals, and now they stand in a heap of ruin as their army falls.
With no resolution, both armies moved on to different ventures. War broke out again in August 2021, resulting in a 2-2 tie despite Templars declaring victory.
Club Penguin Armies reached out to former Vikings leader, now army legend, Aaronstone42 to summarize the rivalry:
I think its the best rivalry that armies has currently. TCP and WV have a long history of trading blows in wars with close battles and it’s always fun to war them, and add to the rivalry.
Compared to today’s standards, these conflicts could almost hardly be referred to as wars. Back then it was common for these short lived conflicts to pop up and disappear as fast as they came. It’s another remind that, even without a map, the quality of the community has come so far in the past year. As we see the ongoing war creep closer to 20 battles, who will end up on top before the release of the server map?
More Information
Mchappy is interning at Club Penguin Armies as the Chief Executive Producer. Max held him at gunpoint to finish his biography.