Episode list

Twin knights *Huoon and Morholt return from two years crusade to their ancestral castle Ardoewaan. Wise cave-dweller Karanog tells them pest killed even their father Gondewijn and Morholt's wife Beatrijs. Neighboring lord Gorneval saw his men took over the farms of died peasants and tells the brothers he who draws the heirloom sword from a beam will succeed. Huoon manages, so Mortholt mounts his consolation prize thoroughbred stallion but is thrown off, while Huoon rides him easily, and leaves with kid son Gawijn till Huoon grants him the chosen western half the lordship. Poaching serf Orm refuses to do excessive chores, so flees to Gorneval, whose protection will be canceled if he's found poaching.

Gorneval refuses to accept Morholt's unsubstantiated claim that Orm was poaching, hence must be hanged, so is called a liar and challenged to a duel next day. Brother Huoon hears about it, fails to mediate, and decides to take sleeping Morholt's place at the duel, unrecognizable in his armor. By the time Morholt catches up, Huoon has been fatally struck. Gorneval curses his sword and swears never to use it again. Morholt takes two soldiers tow hunt down Orm, who puts up a valiant fight but end sup overpowered.

Lord Morholt wants to revenge his brother Huoon, who died fighting his duel, while assuming the sole lordship of Ardoewaan, but promises the fresh widow to raise their son Rohalt as his feudal heir, rather then his own son Gawijn. However the stallion throws him off again, and the sword, symbol of the fief, turns his hand bloody each time he touches it. So he seeks help from father Peregrijn at the monastery to break such curse, but dislikes the answer he must do penance as charitable lord. Morholt even persist to take 'revenge' on poacher Orm, who learns from his own lord Gondeval, whose oath to forsake the sword prevents him putting up any armed defense, it's time to flee, with his wife, to the wise man Karanog in his cave, but Morholt and his soldiers follow their trail.

Orm is bothered by goat robbers, but his foundling son Rahalt deals with them and goes all the way to buy his sister a fancy leather belt. Morhilt tries to train his son Gawijn as butch knight, but the knave is more interested in book wisdom, and Sir throwing parchment in the fireplace makes him agree to let his heir make up for it at the monastery, with monk mentor Peregrijn.

Raised as shepherd Orm's son, Rohalt tires of Karanog's book wisdom and leaves home, determined to become a knight. Lord Gorneval wonders about his name but agrees to have him rained as squire by his captain Mark, bumbling to Sir's daughter B.'s amusement. Rohalt is sent for spiritual preparation to Peregrijn, who has him promise never to abuse the sword and wake all night at the altar, but just then two robbers intrude the chapel. He wards them off, sets chase, Peregrijn wakes the monks to join, but they escape and from the tree they hide in capture the proud stallion of Ardoewaan.

Rohalt returns to Orm at Karanog's. When the 'ghost horse', which the robbers caught by lasso is sighted, jester Fulco pays them to let it 'haunt' Morholt's guilty conscience again, then it escapes again. Rohalt decides to capture it as his knightly mount.

Gordeval's daughter Belinda's taunting makes Rohalt realize training and a horse don't make him a knight, he needs expensive armor. So he offers his service as caravan protector to scrooge merchant Roegier, who forced Martijn the son of widow Elspeth, who can't pay her annual land levy to merciless lord Morholt, who also seized the only precious possession as his feudal inheritance tax at the farmer's demise, to service instead of working the land, for a loan at excessive interest. Morholt hired the two horse thieves as tax collectors, which Rohalt mistakes for robbers, so he's arrested for sabotaging tax, till the merchant pays up plus a ransom, but Roegier refuses. Gawijn helps Rohalt sneak out and force the merchant to pay for everything and release Martijn, free of debt.

Morholt gets a shock when Fulco arranges for the white stallion to be seen as the lord's late brother Huoon's horse, or its son, and recalls the history for Gawijn. Soon he realizes, as cued by Fulco's song, that the heir's sparring partner and friend, gifted knight Rohalt, who alone can ride it and draw the sword of Ardoewaan, must be Huoon's son, who was abandoned as foundling and raised by Oerm and Karagon. Morholt pays his 'tax collectors' to dispose of both jester and rising knight, ignoring one is Fulco's brother and the other gets a fat bribe. Rohalt is sent on a quest to free Ardoewaan's now near-barren valley, which used to pay most taxes, of a mysterious monster, also an excuse for the rogues to kill him, but he outsmarts each attempt.

Rohalt goes on quest for the 'red man' in the valley, entering the cave where fire scares the peasants from. The creature hides, attacks but is beaten by sword versus pitchfork and torch. His foxy companion Mora convincing the knight it's not a monster, he even nurses his burns with Karanog's ointment. Having heard its hurling and seen his dog Karbal leaving alone, the tax thugs return to tell Morholt he must be dead, but are sent back to retrieve him dead or alive, only to find his abandoned shield and spear, which Morgolt considers sufficient proof. Having learned the red man is Brandal, a "grif", member of an alien species that lives in a hot, rich world nearer the earth's core, but the access was blocked by a cave-in, Rohalt gets Karanog to come blow it open with an explosive from Cathay. Gratefully, he's shown the way to the strange subterranean world and given a splendid sword and a lump of gold. Even shown those, Belinda calls him a wretched rustic compared to future lord Gawijn, whom she is nursing lovingly. Orm refuses the gold so it's changed into silver coins to distribute among the destitute valley farmers.

After his triumphant quest return from the valley, Rohalt is promised to be made a knight. Fulco holds Morholt to his promise to tell the lady about him being Huoon's son and hence co-heir of Ardoewaan, but agrees to wait till fiend Gawijn is brought back for it all. Goons Grim and Wezel were publicly thrown in the dungeon, having failed to sabotage him, but lord Morholt releases them to kill him and the jester during their voyage to the monastery, were father Peregijn is to prepare the ceremony. Rohalt however manages to trap and seize the fiends, one by one.

Morholt releases Wezel and Grim to murder Rohalt on his next quest, to the marsh witch Gildatr, but they fail again. He also sends the greedy merchant Roegier to enlist her, but she tricks him to gather riches from her treasury and fail the single torch time limit till her monster comes devour him. Next she treats the robbers duo to a feast and as they fail the sharing test kills them off. Rohalt arrives, remains vigilant and prevails in a duel despite her black magic.

In Rohalt's absence, lord Morholt's rule of terror gets worse then ever, exploiting peasants and imposing excessive punishments for futilities. Fulco leaves the castle after opening the dungeons and gets Orm to take the lead in a major rustic revolt. They regularly outsmart the cruel lord's troops, even the 'bored' master at arms he recruited from Gondeval's castle. Returning during a rebel intrusion in the castle, Rohalt helps fight them off an sets chase, surprised to find himself opposite his adoptive father.

Morholt proceeds to punish the rustic rebels mercilessly, earning a pardon only by killing their own mates, including Orm. Rohalt and Gawijn's arrival enables father Peregrijn to stop the carnage and Fulco to tell the lady her son is alive. The foundling is formally recognized as Huoon's heir, to rule half the lordship and has the rebels safely moved thereto or banished. Fulco sneaks behind Morholt, who is relieved to see the sword no longer makes his cursed hand bleed, but trying to draw it, falls with a fatal head wound. Rohalt decides to proclaim Gawijn sole heir and lord, preferring to leave as knight errant, eagerly joined by his foster sister and lover.