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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Look_a_Unicorn" data-source="post: 885786" data-attributes="member: 11886">My Second non-History post, my first was evil and must be destroyed....Firstly, thanks for the offer Drawmack, what would be involved?And now, an honest to god (mostly) present tense post The first section conatins the character summaries that are currently available. Some of the other players have given me a character history to put in here, but where they have not the entries are just based off my knowledge & impresions.The Lords of Brightstone, Session played on 7/3/2003Current Character List:Malachi Grimward, Lord of Brightstone Keep & Council Member of Onrek, Lvl 12/2 Mage/Mage-Noble of Onrek. Played by Me (Mortimer)The only child of a proud family line, Malachi was born into a prosperous life. His parents however, instilled in Malachi the awareness that the benefits that he was born into existed only to allow him to better serve & protect those who were less fortunate.Malachi’s protected upbringing was thrown into disarray upon his father’s courageous death. In a large battle between Onrek troops and several united Orcish tribes, Malachi’s father had volunteered to lead a squad of soldiers in a rearguard action, thus allowing the beleaguered Onrek troops time to withdraw & regroup.Shattered by her husband’s death, Malachi’s mother retreated to a monastic lifestyle and used a large portion of the family wealth to send Malachi to the Academy Magicka. The Mage Academy catered well to Malachi’s fascination with such varied subjects as the ancient history of the Elven Empire, alchemy & the arcane arts. His agile mind and voracious desire to learn quickly allowed Malachi to be recognised as a very promising student.Upon graduating many mages sought the promising young Mage as their apprentice. Malachi took service as a journeyman to the esteemed Council Mage Korugan, learning much & forming a healthy respect, although little true feeling for his harsh Mentor.After a number of years serving his master, Malachi became curious as to the Master Mage’s secrecy regarding his research. Eventually his youthful curiosity overcame his innate desire to obey his master’s commands, and he undertook to watch his master experiment.The reason for the secrecy quickly became clear: Malachi watched in horror as Korugan summoned and bound a demon- a black art strictly forbidden in the lands of Onrek. Hastening to the authorities Malachi quickly convinced a hastily assembled Council of the truth of his words & led a squad of troops back to arrest his old Master. Catching him by surprise, Korugan and his demonically summoned allies were quickly defeated and Korugan was given over to the land’ justice. As a reward, Malachi was promoted onto the Onrek Council to replace the now-disgraced Korugan’s position and even granted Korugan’s preferred weapon, the Scepter of Ve'arteal. This Scepter was known to be a relic of the elven empire, rumoured to have numerous powers- none of which seemed to function.Wishing time alone to reflect and study, Malachi spent most all the remaining wealth bestowed on him by his mother purchasing and equipping an alchemist’s shop & laboratory in a small town named Marikest in the quiet north of Onrek. Malachi believed that the profits from the alchemy business would easily be able to fund his continued studies. After several years, while he had amassed a deal of wealth selling his valuable wares, it became apparent that maintaining the shop would take the majority of his time, leaving little for study & even less to fulfill his duties as a Council Member. Becoming impatient with the restrictions the life of a shop-keeper placed upon him, Malachi is thus quite prepared to join a group of adventurers after they declare a desire to clear the land around Marikest of a dangerous group of Orcish raiders. Malachi asks his cousin Undru to take over the running of his shop.Malachi exemplifies a lawful good Lord. He is working hard to increase the prosperity of Marikest, and of Northern Onrek. He believes that this is the only way to protect those whom he feels responsible for, although he thinks longingly of all the research he could be engaged in if his duties did not rest so heavily on his shoulders.Malachi is currently responsible for trialing High Councilor Zarek's flying warship, "Arma". He has been given permission to use the warship as a foil to the Frost Giants while an evacuation of the remaining Ugarri is carried out.Teame, Ugarri (Half Giant) Berserker, Lvl 2/8/3Barbarian/Fighter/Ugarri. Played by ChunkyA rugged, well traveled adventurer from the harsh icelands of the North. Unlike most of his kind, Teame had a feirce desire to leave his community and see fortune and fame out in the big wide world. He has traveled over most of Onrek, sometimes in small advernturing partys like the current one, often alone. His experiences taught him much, and his combat skills improvedas did his desire to help others in need, no matter what their race.Scattered over the world are villages and towns indebeted to him for some act of heroism, and in some parts he is quite famous. He never stays in one place too long however, his soul is restless, ever seeking new challanges and new people to assist. An event occured a few years into his career that changed the half giant forever. While traveling the wild lands to the south, he came upon an isolated temple, dedicated to the Kord. Previous to this encounter, Teame had never worshiped any gods, save for a polite acknowledgement ofthe gods worshiped by the Ugarii. The warrior decides to check the temple out, maybe they have some sort of quest for him. However, as he approaches the temple, out comes a hoast of Bugbears and Ogers. The monstors attack the warrior, but Teame's battle experience and resolve see him through. The monstors are driven off, but not before Teame suffers several mortal wounds. Inside the temple are a several clerics of the god kord, captured by the monstors, who are rescued by Teame upon his arival. The clerics heal the Half Gient back to perfect health over the next few weeks, during which time Teame is forced to remain at the temple. Teame is taught much by the priests of Kord, and learns that the ideals of the god are identical to his own. Having witnessed the miricles the god has to offer first hand is more enough to convert himto worshiping the God. Teame returns often to the temple over the next few years, learning from the priests, and protecting the temple with his sword. Teame swears a sacred oath to always perform the work of Kord, always seeking out and destroying evil wherever it lurks, and spreadingthe word of the great god's power. In return the clerics combine their powers to forge two twin Holy Blades, Mecurial Greatswords, imbued with the might of Kord, tempered in the holy waters of the Temple. As a symbol of his oath, the symbol of kord is tatooed to his chest. Not long after leaving the Temple, Teame learns of the threat to the Ugarii nations, and immediatly heads for his homeland. He meets Malachi and the others during the journey, and together they are able to give aid to the Ugarii people. Teame and a few other adventurers are forced to travel to another plane by magic, in order to escape undead horrorsdisturbed in an ancient tomb. It just so happens that they arrives on the plane on which Kord himself resides. It is clear to the warrior that fate is guideing him towards a meeting with his god. Things do not go well however, for Teame and the others of the party are ambushed byYthrax, and forced to flee the plane once more. They return home, having gained nothing for all their journeys, and now they are in worse danger than ever before, for the magics have gone wrong, they have fallen into the ocean.. possibly miles off shore...Ull, Envoy of the Pale Keep, Lvl 13 Paladin, Played by Is’maelAttached to High Councilor Zarek's flying warship project as a gesture of goodwill between Onrek and the reclusive forces of the Pale Keep. Has a slight dislike of Mages and their "meddling with forces better left undisturbed", especially the arrogant Magocracy of Onrek.Sir Mandrake, Knight of Onrek, Lvl 13 Fighter, Played by Griffin(Sir Mandrake' Cohort/Squire is named William & is served by a Page, John)A loyal Knight of Onrek charged with upholding the law of Onrek and the Virtues of Knighthood. As a reward for successfully executing a small war in southern Onrek has been given the charge of Guard Captain for the troop contingent aboard the Arma. Any association with the Arma is considered most prestigious.Umgar, Ugarri Cleric/Ugarri, Lvl 11/3, Played by RurikAs the Frost Giants pushed steadily into the Ugarri homelands in the mountains west of Marikest, Umgar left on a mission to request aid from the forces of the humans that oral histories indicate allied with the Ugarri in times past. Arriving near to Marikest he found Lord Malachi's group battling an encroaching Orcish horde set to decimate all of Northern Onrek united by a cabal of Ogre-Magi under the leadership of a powerful Warlord (secretly under the control of a pit-fiend, Musharvik).A bargain was struck, Umgar would assist the Lords of Brightstone and then the Lords would turn their efforts towards helping the Ugarri people. After many adventures, and the hard-fought Battle of Marikest where the Cabal was destroyed by the combined forces of the Marikest militia, their recently discovered allies the Klackons, troops sent from central Onrek and magical suits of armor animated by the magicks of Ahktor and Malachi, as well as the Lords themselves.Thus Malachi, true to his word, worked within the council to succor aid for the Ugarri people, and was granted the use of the warship Arma, as well as permission to resettle the Ugarri people in the mountains dividing Northern Onrek and Southern Onrek as part of Malachi's plan to re-discover a lost pass through the mountains that would allow trade to commence between the two halves of the continent.However while traveling throughout the Ugarri lands in an effort to reestablish contact with the besieged Ugarri strongholds, the group encountered an Ugarri stronghold untouched by the Frost Giants, but destroyed from within and now host to many undead creatures. In a pitched battle with Liches in a vast library discovered below the stronghold, Umgar, Teame and Bes were forced to flee to another plane, while Ahktor fled the battle. (Malachi was in Onrek (the capital) at the time.)While only a few know what befell Ahktor during this time, Umgar, Teame and Bes have since had many adventures on this other plane...(That I was not present for and those cannot write up, except in a general fashion)Relevant NPC'sAhktor, Recent Appointee to Council of Onrek, Sorcerer Lvl 17. Last played by Griffin.Ahktor returned to Brightstone after his battle in the library somewhat subdued. He informed Malachi that he had eventually proven victorious over the undead forces and spoke of a great library underground. A few days after this, Ahktor inexplicably vanished with all his items neatly stored away and only pale grey dust remaining. It should be noted that during the adventures to free the Ugarri he befriended a dragon named Ash and her young, who are temporarily lodged in the upper (treasure) hold of Brightstone.Bes, Planar Wanderer. Half-Kobold, Half-Dragon, Rogue/Gatecrasher Lvl 6/5, last played by Is’maelAppearing in the middle of Ahktor's extra-planar Magnificent Mansion one day, he agreed to accompany the group for a time and grant to Malachi all he knew of planar travel, and in exchange required the party to assist him in returning to the outer planes once they had finished aiding the Ugarri. In the library battle he grabbed several tomes (all that would remain of thousands, as the library was destroyed in the fight). During the planar travels he flees in the final battle against Ythraks.Tara, human fighter (reincarnated as a black bear) Lvl 10, last played by Is’mael.Once a Lord of Brightstone, now her giant furry body remains in stasis, completely mindless after a bad draw from a Deck of Many Things. Malachi hopes to one day research what has happened to her soul and free his friend from whoever has her ensnared.Ugman, Half-Orc Fighter Lvl 10, last played by Is’maelThe only Lord of Brightstone apart from Malachi remains of the original group. He has been retired from active adventuring for many months, training the guard contingent of Brightstone. However the powerful sword that he wields has been pressing him to find it's twin armor, and despite Malachi's urgings to wait for the expedition he has assembled to set-out (the expedition awaits only Malachi, whose other duties have so far kept him busy) he is sore tempted to leave and begin searching at once.Current Day (Session played 7th March, 2003)Plunging into the ocean’s depths, Teame is inexorably dragged into the ocean’s depths by the weight of his armour and giant long swords. He struggles to cast them off, but before shedding the encumbering plate he has been dragged hundreds of feet into the ocean's murky depths. Breathless, his mouth opens, yet only water pours in. As blackness starts to film over his vision he finds himself in the gauzy light of a strange elsewhere. A cowled figure offers him another chance of life in return for future service.Having no choice but to accept, Teame awakes to find himself on the shores near Nharden Keep, his armour & swords returned to him. Locating a mage, Teame asks to be teleported to Brightstone Keep, and after paying a stiff fee finds himself in the home talked about by his adventuring companions.Explaining himself to be a friend of Malachi’s, the guard summons the Seneschal to deal with the confused warrior. Seneschal Maros arrives and Teame asks to talk to Malachi, but is told that Malachi is currently on board the Arma, escorting the column of Ugarri refugees, but that he can talk to Ahktor!!Pleased to discover his friend safely home, Teame meets Ahktor and after a few desultory attempts at conversation with the seemingly distracted Sorcerer, is taken with Ahktor on board the Arma. Without another word Ahktor vanishes back to Brightstone.Somewhat hurt by his companion’s cold welcome, he explains to the guards now levelling weapons at him that he is a friend of Malachi’s & asks to be taken to him. Looking over the rail of the warship he is pleased to see that his people have been able to begin their migration successfully.Teame is taken to Malachi’s room on ship and despite an initial surliness at having his studies interrupted, once his visitor’s identity becomes apparent Teame is warmly welcomed.Teame relates the tales of his adventures on Isgard & after removing his armour shows Malachi two strange burn marks that have appeared on his chest that still glow as though they are charcoal. Not knowing what to make of them, Malachi introduces Teame to Ull and Sir Mandrake who are also not able to shed much light on the strange marks, but think they may have some religious significance.As the small group catch up with each other’s recent history, Malachi is shocked to hear of Bes leaving the others, but decides that all can be forgiven if Bes returns the books taken from the library to them… but is then heartened to hear of Ahktor’s return to Brightstone.The column of refugees have now reached the vicinity of the grandiose castle being built to house forces to protect the North, and Malachi leaves the Arma to inspect progress. Noting the large numbers of Gnomish slaves working at the site, Malachi is given a tour of all work now completed. The overworked Overseer is quite glad to hear that now that Ahktor has returned, he should be given some assistance. Malachi also requests that more local labour be used in the construction rather than slaves.Finally Malachi asks to be taken to the Engineers and Architects responsible for the castle. After sharing a drink with them he gives them copies of notes taken from the strange engineering designs copied from the massive doors taken from below Morheim, asking them to see if they can determine their function.While the Arma continues on with the refugees, Malachi teleports ahead to Brightstone where he immediately visits Ahktor to welcome him back. Ahktor seems somewhat distracted and not that interested in what his friend is saying, until he is presented with the Council Ring & Deed that Malachi has been awaiting the chance to present. Additional animation fills the withdrawn Sorceror once the chest containing Ahktor’s previously abandoned items is presented to him.Malachi then details the steps he took to ascertain his friend’s fate, and expectantly awaits an answer as to why all the magicks used failed. Ahktor explains that he had been working on focusing his powers into a new spell and the experiment went badly wrong. Unsure of what happened, he regained consciousness on the outskirts of Onrek- butt naked- a few days ago. Although unsatisfied with this answer, Malachi does not press his friend further & instead asks if he has any knowledge of another library, similar to that destroyed in the battle with the Liches, as Malachi had used arcane magicks previously to determine that such a library MUST exist, but had found no hints of it’s location in the ruins of Morheim. Ahktor is again of no assistance.Ahktor then declines to join Malachi in a drink to celebrate his return, explaining he has much work to do and that he must shortly leave to begin overseeing the castle’s construction. Glad that his friend is safe and taking his Council duties seriously, Malachi is still somewhat hurt by Ahktor’s coldness.Returning to his own chamber Malachi summons Maros, the Seneschal, who gives a full report on local events. Maros then informs Malachi that there is someone he should talk to. Taken to Brightstone’s small infirmary, Malachi meets Marcus, Reg Ty’djarling’s deputy. Marcus is covered in many wounds & residual fear remains in his eyes. Marcus haltingly explains that Reg had taken his two deputies with him to explore the area around Tara’s Keep in the Dragonspine Mountains. All was going well until they located & began exploring the Keep itself. They had been set upon by vicious foes who attacked from the cover of darkness. Marcus relays how he managed to escape & return, but does not know the fate of the others.Realising he will have to delay the departure of the waiting expedition to the Elven Ruins once again to deal with this new threat, Malachi sends a messenger to the underground Klackon empire requesting a small number of scouts to assist in exploring the darkness of Tara’s Keep.As soon as the Arma arrives the next day, Malachi leaves orders to make the refugees comfortable while the small group of adventurers & the Klackon scouts continue on to investigate whatever new dangers are infesting Tara’s Keep.The swift airship allows them to reach Tara’s Keep in under a day, and the companions set down on the roof. The party then begins to cautiously search the levels of the Keep one at a time.An attack by Orcs & Goblins is easily repulsed, with the few remaining Goblins fleeing to the keep’s lower levels. Teame, Ull, Sir Mandrake & William chase after them in close pursuit. Malachi and the Klackons choose a more cautious approach and ensure that no other foes remain on their current level before descending.The goblins manage to evade their pursuers. Or perhaps their intent was to lure them into a trap, for as the warriors begin to retrace their steps, slithering black ooze appears, blocking their return. Possessing the fastest reflexes, William hurls a sword deep into the quivering mass.The ooze splits and the thrown sword clangs to the ground, melted away to almost nothing.Not noticing the fate of his companion’s weapon, Teame steps forward and delivers a multitude of powerful blows to the creature, each one causing it to split into multiple portions of the original entity, but even more worrying dissolving his most valued possessions, the two mercurial great swords that had been his closest companions for years.The numerous split oozes strike back at the group, pseudopods dripping acid slamming hard against armour. The warriors manage to avoid or fling off most the acid before it could do much damage to them, but are dismayed when another of the Black Puddings emerge from the staircase behind them, cutting off a retreat in that direction. Unable to use their weapons to any effect, Teame draws forth a Javelin of Lightning, and although the blaze of electric energy damages his friends, it also smashes apart all but one of the segments of the original pudding.Taking advantage of this opportunity, Ull springs past the pudding which fails to connect as it lashes out at the agile warrior. Taking advantage of his freedom, Ull breaks into a sprint in the direction of the upper levels, realising that the magical powers of Malachi will be far more effective against these creatures than any weapons the warriors currently wield.As Ull ascends several flights of stairs, Malachi hears his cries for assistance. Realising the situation must be urgent for the Warrior to call upon a mage for assistance, Malachi recklessly plunges down the stairs.Ull quickly explains the situation & with no time wasted the two arrive at the scene of the battle, Malachi lets forth a barrage of magical missiles, unwilling to let loose more powerful magicks as his companions would also be caught in their area of effect. Quickly enough the weakened ooze is dispatched and the embattled warriors are able to flee behind Malachi, who erects a defensive shield and batters the remaining ooze with powerful spells. In one swift & smooth motion the ooze glides towards Malachi, punches through the defensive screen in a shower of sparks and envelops him inside it’s acidic bulk. Magical defences temporarily absorbing the ooze’s acid, Malachi is in a dire situation as he cannot get a hand free to cast any spells to destroy the creature. Although his companions try to tear the ooze off Malachi there is little they can do. As his defences fail, Malachi remembers the circlet about his brow, retrieved back at the Tomb of Vosh the Defiler. With a thought, Malachi unleashes a blast of magical energy directly into the core of the creature blowing it apart into hundreds of swiftly dissolving gobbets (Metagame: Critical hit from A Circlet of Minor Blasting)Trailing a depressed Teame who believed that the loss of his swords indicated that he had fallen out of favour with his god Kord, the weary group returns to the Arma to rest & reequip.And if you don't know why it's titled "My Second non-History post, my first was evil and must be destroyed...." it's because I accidently posted the exact same thing originally as a new thread rather than reply. If it still exists it needs to be hunted down and painlessly put to sleep...</blockquote>

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