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Stitia, Plane of 13 Deaths (RPG Style Saga/My First Saga)
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That being said, Byro packs up his most useful equipment. Conceals the mystical stone in a safe lockbox, and puts it all in his horse drawn carriage, and heads out to find the scholars of Hitcherald. He knows not exactly where he is headed (see above), but he has faith in his endeavors.
Byro knows not what lies ahead, but he has dealt with much in his life, and feels adequately prepared for this leg of his journey. But, just to be on the safer side of life, he stops by a magical trinket shop in Ystheria to buy himself a little extra protection with the money he has made from his plague potion.
///
Xataxji stared momentarily at the now silent coin. Then, he locked both trinkets in a small chest mimic for safekeeping, and left his chambers, carrying the mimic under one arm.
"Ugalon ! Show yourself ! We're leaving !"
Seemingly melting from the shadows in the hallway, the demon appeared and gave a sharp nod. "You called ?"
"Yes ! I hope you're in a mood for travelling, because we're in for one hell of a trip," answered Xataxji as he skittered down the corridor towards the main entrance of the ziggurat.
Ugalon followed, jogging to keep up with his towering master.
"And where would that be, if I may ask ?"
"Descour."
"What ? Why ? There's nothing there but sand and bones..."
"Opportunities, Ugalon. Of the kind we rarely stumble upon. Grab your things."
"You mean to leave now ? At least let me gather an escort..."
"Now means now, and besides, I want to keep a low profile. It's you and me on this one."
Ugalon stopped dead in his tracks. "Not to vex you, my lord, but... you are thirty feet long."
Xataxji froze too, then examined himself as if for the first time. "Oh. You have quite the eye, Ugalon. But nothing a clever disguise won't fix, right ?"
The demon recited a quick incantation, and in a swirl of green and magenta energy, he transformed into a much smaller figure.
"How do I look ?"
"Repulsively human, my lord."
"Always the poet, Ugalon. But something for my face would indeed improve upon the subterfuge." Xataxji fished a bronze mask from within his robes, and masked his face.
"All set. Here, carry this," he said, throwing the mimic to Ugalon. The other demon caught it mid-air, avoiding the fiend's attempt to bite him. "Tsk ! Behave," he growled, slapping the chest's maw shut.
And with that, they both left the Ziggurat of Jedam, and started their travel to the wastelands of Desour on a pair of tamed nightmares.
"This is rather bold, Xataxji," thought the demon to himself. "But if that gold coin holds the same potential as his silver brother... My, things could get interesting. Very interesting. A price to pay... well, that's old school. Whatever's out there, I will teach it how a bargain is struck."
>>
As the fallen angel tried his best to uncover the secret from the scroll, the magic from the enchanted scroll lashed back to his mind.
And no one knows what would happen afterwards, or was it?
Currently in an island facing challenges presented to him by the gods off the coast of yrntrn. Any good messenger spell could access me once I got out. From there, a meeting to discuss employment could be arranged.
"You guys stole what was rightfully mine, now, where is your captain?"
You eventually cross the border into Descour, and the sun is beginning to rise. The last person to cross this border was human. It would be a shame if they were still around...
”You will find me in the North...”
Challenge
You start heading North, when you are confronted by six beings.
”Before you can advance any further, I must test you. Prove to me you are worth my time.”
Make a card to deal with two Zanletheshi Drudjs and the tokens they produce. Points will given based on how well your response works against the enemy, as well as the realism of the card and how it suits your character’s colors and ideals.
You entry will be scored from 0-15. Any score below a ten will count as a miss, and you will take one hit for each point below 10 your score is. Your current HP is 10.
Criteria:
• 5 points for overall effect and balancing.
• 4 points for realism, following color pie, and proper rarity. You may lose a point if the effect of the card is unclear.
• 3 points for fitting the colors and themes of your character (BRG Jund)
• 2 points for if the card would realistically do anything against the target cards in an actual game of Magic.
• 1 point for flavor (text not required; mainly checking if overall fell of the card fits its art, name, etc.).
• You will lose three points if the entry is not new.
• You cannot submit any card you’ve submitted so far for this contest.
While your magic is significantly weaker than before, you are still a powerful being. You use your mind to break the spell on the scroll and absorb its contents. Restricted for high ranking angels? Even without a ranking, you manage to disperse the divine protection on the scroll that kept its information from getting into the wrong hands...
The STARGAZIUM is located in the VAULT OF THE STARS inside the HIDDEN ARCHIVES. At EXACTLY 12:36 AM, the STARGAZIUM is accessible, but only by DIVINE SCHOLARS or HIGHER RANKING BEINGS, using the PROVIDED COMBINATION. While only CERTAIN PEOPLE have access (find this list in SUPPLEMENT 13), it can be accessed in APOCALYPTIC CIRCUMSTANCES, using the WORDS THAT CALL THE GODS. Only HIGH RANKING ANGELS can do this, and an ALERT will be sent through THE BEYOND if such a thing were done.
The words that call the gods? You know them... but you may draw lots of unwanted attention doing that. Thankfully, you’re in decent timing if you wanted to try cracking the code.
You find the Hidden Archives using more scrolls, and manage to open its secret entrance. Now... how to get to the Stargazium?
- Using the Words That Call the Gods (50% chance of failure)
- Break the Code (25% chance of failure. Significantly worse consequences for failure.)
A few hours later, you arrive. This is strange... a man of death, walking among divine life. You are asked to remove your mask as you make your draw your carriage through the port city of Dydyg. You won’t find a scholar here, but you find plenty of business as you make your way to the Center of Prayer. You are drawing a lot of weird looks from angels, but they do not bother you as you pass from city to city.
You are arriving at the Center of Prayer
This is it. The Divine City. If there’s an angelic scholar to find, you’ll find them here.
You approach the main temple. You were told to speak to the new Lord Arbiter, Altreya. She will summon a scholar to speak to you about the stone.
“Lord Arbiter Altreya! We have a man requesting information.”
“Let them in...”
You walk into the grandesque chamber. The Lord Arbiter is sitting in a chair, left leg crossed over the right, right arm on the chair. Beside her is an exotic polearm.
“Ah. Byro. I hope you weren’t coming here for any angel materials.”
It’s actually quite the opposite. You came here to have a strange stone identified. You remove it from your pocket, and the glow is much more radiant than before. The entire room gasps in unison, and the guards beside you aim their lances at you.
“Where did you acquire that stone?!”
You tell them how your former friend Reggie had it as one of their possessions. Altreya rises, lance in hand, and walks over to you.
“Forget you ever saw it.” Suddenly, Altreya snatches the stone from your hand. “Security! Escort this man for further questioning. I will be disposing of this stone!”
The guards begin to carry you out of the room by your arms. You didn’t expect it to come to this. What will you do?
- Accept your escort
- Fight back against the angels to reclaim the stone. You will need to make a card that can deal with Altreya and two 3/3 Angel creature tokens with flying.
If you choose to fight, points will given based on how well your response works against the enemy, as well as the realism of the card and how it suits your character’s colors and ideals.
You entry will be scored from 0-15. Any score below a ten will count as a miss, and you will take one hit for each point below 10 your score is. Your current HP is 10.
Criteria:
• 5 points for overall effect and balancing.
• 4 points for realism, following color pie, and proper rarity. You may lose a point if the effect of the card is unclear.
• 3 points for fitting the colors and themes of your character (WB Orzhov. You may splash a third color into your identity, but this change will be permanent.)
• 2 points for if the card would realistically do anything against the target cards in an actual game of Magic.
• 1 point for flavor (text not required; mainly checking if overall fell of the card fits its art, name, etc.).
• You will lose three points if the entry is not new.
• You cannot submit any card you’ve submitted so far for this contest.
>>
'Can I really do this? Surely I don't want to alert THEM if it has to be done. On the other hand, if I failed this... still, I have nothing to lose, I have already lost too much in this... whole matter...'
Thought the former archangel as he waited somewhat impatiently in front of the fabled Stargazium. Then he took a swig of water from his definitely not stolen leather bottle, and quickly wiped the sweat from his forehead away.
'That's it then. No risk, nothing gained.'
And he finally decided to crack the code by himself alone.
(I choose the second choice.)
You quickly scour the entire library. Even though they weren’t smart enough to keep the location of the Stargazium a secret, you can’t find the code...
You walk up to the door to the Vault of the Stars. Right on time. The door bears upon it symbols, representing each of the Six, each of the lands of Stitia, emotions, and so on. There are hundreds of symbols upon the door, and all it reads is a simple phrase...
Only those who know my secrets can enter...
Ref. Khantsievth’s Becoming
You think to yourself, but you have to think fast. A line... from the Stargazium... in reference to Khantsievth? You think you have it.
”He shall make himself known as the god of all men, killing all who oppose him, and the ones you hold true will only weep.”
The symbols relevant to this... a demon, the pantheon, the dead man, the rebel, each of the Six, in order, and the weeping woman.
The door glows as you finish entering what you think is the code. It slides backwards, the stone in the center turns, and it slides to the left. You are one lucky angel right now.
Challenge
“Who requires my knowledge?”
The book whispers to you. It is absolutely massive. It could probably crush you if it was closed with you inside of it.
”Who seeks... the future?”
You approach the book. This must be it, alright. The constellation of the Six is upon it, and its pages are gossamer.
”Rafael... you must be desperate to have come here... you are not of status, but you took the effort to seek my knowledge... read deep... you may never see my pages again.”
The book levitates into the air and opens. Page after shimmering page, it turns, until it reaches a decent way in.
”There are unforeseen forces at work here. My pages have been thoroughly revised. You are the first to see the new fate that awaits this world. With this knowledge, you could change it... but beware. For my knowledge is vast, your capacity for knowledge must be even moreso.”
Make a card that can affect your hand size/draw ability. Points will given based on uniqueness, as well as the realism of the card and how it suits your character’s colors and ideals.
You entry will be scored from 0-15. Any score below a thirteen will count as a miss; however, this is non-combat scenario, so you will not suffer damage.
Criteria:
• 5 points for overall effect and balancing.
• 4 points for realism, following color pie, and proper rarity. You may lose a point if the effect of the card is unclear.
• 3 points for uniqueness
• 2 points for fitting the colors and themes of your character (URW Jeskai)
• 1 point for flavor (text not required; mainly checking if overall feel of the card fits its art, name, etc.).
• You will lose three points if the entry is not new.
• You cannot submit any card you’ve submitted so far for this contest.
>>
”Place your hands upon the pedestal, and look deep into the pages. Only then... will the knowledge of our future be yours...”
You oblige, and put your complete focus into reading the pages, when suddenly, your mind is overtaken. Page after page flips rapidly, and your mind is filled with a prophecy. A dark future. Visions of the end of the world. And every single event that leads up to it.
And on the darkest hour of their final day, the moon will set on Stitia, and the demon will have won...
The book snaps shut, and you collapse to the ground. It feels like your mind is racing your heart to see which can go faster. The Archdemon! The gods! What... what are you going to do! You were right... the Six isn’t just forsaking the people... it plans to turn against them! What have you done? You came here seeking knowledge of the future, out of sheer curiosity alone, and now... here you are. You are the only one who knows of the future, and...
”You must not tell anyone about what you have seen... or they will die.”
Draundr decides to buy a new sword, but he feels the ones in the market don't speak to him. He ventures out to the forest with a pickaxe to find some metals for himself; maybe he can learn a little money to buy a sword tailor-made for him.
But, like everything else, it doesn't seem so simple for Draundr, is it? Upon approaching a clearing he begins to hear whispers, beckoning him to a foggy opening near some rocks. There, he sees it, a sword glowing red, set in a stone bound by chain.
Draundr walks up to it, "What is this?" he questions himself, below it he reads a scripture etched into the stone, "In order for one to wield this sword, they must have already resigned their soul for a righteous cause." Draundr decides to heed this, and grabs onto the sword, at the slightest touch it begins to read his soul, after a minute or two, it pulls freely out of the stone, seeming to customize itself to his preferred grip, almost as if it is now bound to his soul.
https://mtgcardsmith.com/view/zacarias-insignia
Remembering a sacred plant from his old home, Zacarias waves his left hand above his right, and a small plant sprouts out of his burned flesh. The plant grows rapidly until it becomes a tiny little tree, then it’s plucked out by Zacarias, who feels no pain. He offers it up to the deity, and as he speaks, a memory of happier times comes into his mind.
https://mtgcardsmith.com/view/memory-of-flowering?list=user
“I don’t want to hurt anybody on this flourishing world. I want to know why I came here, what I’m here for, and where I am. Can you tell me?” He stares up at the goddess, almost pleadingly.
https://mtgcardsmith.com/view/pollymorph
The spell caught the Adepts off guard. Each of them popped off into a parrot, their poles clattering to the ground. Enerew picks up the cutest one. "Mind if I keep him? He'd make a great addition to the crew. You know, like a mascot."
@TezzeretofCarmot21 I’ll get to your card later as well.
@Fallen_Lord_Vulganos I will send you a list of important events later. You can absolutely feel free to continue in the Arcanum or travel elsewhere, but first, you feel tired, so you’ll need to rest.
>>
'Tch, so that's how it is then.'
Leaning against one of many of the bookcases, the fallen angel sat cross legged as he smirked sarcastically. Rafael was right after all.
'Divinities, demons, gods, damn it all... may the god-... fate, pity this accursed and forsaken world...'
And the former archangel slowly drifted to an unconscious state as fatigue took over his body. The combination of tiredness from the overwhelming revelation and his exerted journey didn't fare well towards the mortal form of the fallen angel.
@EpicBoss99 as Verth and @Tommia as Joseph VS. @Blazin_Biscuit as ???
Joseph is carrying his blocks of silver to the plains, when he is confronted by a strange, but weak, demon. Used to dealing with demons, he sends his owl, Zarven, to intercept, and the owl kills the demon easily. However, its master is not pleased, casting a spell that reeked havoc on Joseph’s Auramancy skills and rupturing his link to Zarven’s conscience. In this moment, the demon lord sends Joseph a warning...
With his strength sapped away, Joseph is unable to carry the silver. Already beginning to transform into a werewolf, he darts away on all fours, hoping to meditate out of sight and regain his strength. Verth is following him, when they are confronted by the demon,
“Hello... Verth...” The demon whispers into the mind of the werebird. ”Hmm. What a curious creature you are, yes, diseased with lycanthropy like your friend here - and a hunter as well at that. However my friend - this is MY prey”
"If you know something that I don't about my ally Joseph, then you're going to have to start talking before YOU become prey," Demon hunting wasn’t Verth’s usual business, but he had gained a great ally here. He couldn’t see them go to waste.
Joseph notices Verth’s voice, stopping dead in his tracks. His hair is beginning to darken. “I’d advise against trying to fight whatever this thing is. If... he was able to damage my auramancy, he must be very powerful. The last time something like this happened was during the holy war in my battle with Khantsievth. Who knows... that may be who he is.”
“You mess with forces far beyond yourself little one. I have come to retrieve what is rightfully mine!”
The two rangers watch as a dark, ethereal claw tears a gash into the air. A second claw appears, and together they pull the tear open. Through it, they can see an elk, peacefully grazing in a tranquil wood. Suddenly, it rears with a painful yelp. Black tendrils envelop it as it tries to escape, but to no avail. They watch as its form swells, tainted black, and before long, standing through the portal, is a horrid demon beast. Its head shoots their way as it charges through the portal. The demon leaps and is brought into this cursed realm, tormented, and looking for a kill.
“Son of a *****!” Joseph did not have any time to face this demon if he hoped to spare the people of Racrion the wrath of his werewolf form. “At... this rate I’m never going to bind myself in time. I... really didn’t want to do this... but for the safety of the people, I have to.”
Joseph pulls from his pocket... the vial of blood from earlier, when he mended Rafael. Joseph holds it in his hand, and begins to perform a dark spell...
“In the name of the ones who made you, and the ones who guide your soul. In the name of those who hate you, and for those who payed their toll.” Joseph’s hands are shaking as he removes the lid from the vial. “I drink... to your death!”
Verth is horrified. This entire time, Joseph’s been hiding this vial. When he healed the angel at the Dawnwood Hometree, he performed his act as though it were an act of heroism. And here his is now, drinking the blood... and he’s smiling. The weakness seems to have dispersed itself from Joseph, and in its place, laugher...
“Heheheheh...” He wipes the blood from his lips and puts the rest of the vial’s contents back into his coat. “I don’t see anything wrong here, Verth. It’s just a tool of my trade.” The blood of an angel... created directly by the gods. Its power is immense, and overflowing with life essence. As it fills Joseph’s body, his coat rips as black angel wings emerge from his back.
As the newly-formed abomination set its sights on killing Verth, the wereraven refused to be intimidated. Even upon the realization of his ally’s dark tactics, he could not waiver, so he transformed into his wereraven form and prepared to attack.
"I don't have time for this!!" Verth complained. He knew that there were other evil forces at work throughout Stitia, and although his research primarily focused on the weaknesses of lycanthropes, Verth quickly figured out the glaring weakness of the demon: its arrogance. The unholy elk monster charged Verth, leaping into the air to pluck Verth from the sky. Without hesitiation, Verth mimicked the demonic beast's movements, diving under the beast and bringing his foot up with a mighty kick. Should his attack be successful, the momentum of the beast moving upwards and Verth moving downwards should allow his talons to cleanly bisect the beast.
Both bird and beast reared with determination to kill whatever stood in front of them. As Verth’s talons dug into the beast, it let out a mighty roar. Verth was now behind the beast, but it quickly turned around by its master’s hand. Verth may have wounded the beast, but it was very much still alive as it charged him down. Verth is able to dodge it and fly above, keeping the beast from attacking as he gives himself a moment to recover.
Meanwhile, Joseph focuses on the source of this problem. He uses his newfound power to locate the demonic projection once again, and flies to him. He reads the demon’s aura...
“So, your name is Zanletesh? Not so nice to meet you. Anyways, before you go throwing around any more threats, acting like you own the show, I’d like to introduce myself to you a little. I’ve been in this game a lot longer than you have. For 12 centuries, in fact. Before this world was even created. I’ve hunted demons, and went toe-to-toe with Khantsievth, which I doubt you’re even the half of. I wish I would of warned you while I had the chance. The merest glimpse of my true power will break you.”
Joseph stares straight into the demon’s projection, and his eyes flash with an arcane glow.
Down below, things are getting fierce. Both Verth and the monstrosity are still fighting, both with unnatural stamina and strength. In deadlock, it was very apparent this was getting nowhere, until suddenly, the beast caught one of Verth’s wings with its horns. While not injured, Verth was trapped as the beast prepared to inflict a damaging blow...
In this moment, Verth’s aura let out a cry of desperation. Joseph notices, and breaks his spell on Vanletesh’s projection, flying over.
“Today’s your lucky day, Zanletesh. Not only did you make me waste half a vial of good blood, but you made me waste it on a minor pest problem like this.”
Holding the beast back, Joseph stares straight into its eyes. His gaze is thousandfold, with each and every tormented spirit that Joseph couldn’t save desperate for vengeance. For release. They pulled at the beast’s soul, tearing it apart, and the defenseless beast disappeared as its very existence was unraveled.
The battle is in a deadlock. No one took damage from this round. In a PM, each of you must send me your choice; You may either continue the battle by sending another card, or you may flee. Fleeing has a 50% chance of failure, and will deal 3 damage to you if you fail.
“I... accept your plea. Though your arts may be comparable to our enemies, your heart speaks of innocence. As a rose bush has thorns, capable of harming those that pass by it, it does not mean to harm. It merely wishes to grow. Rise, late shaman.” You stand up, still holding the plant. She accepts it. Around her dress lies a ribbon with the Duskwood and Dawnwood Insignias. The third one, in the center, is missing. The tree coils itself into a small symbol, and it becomes emblazoned upon Sprot’s ribbon. “Perhaps, you are the one who will replace the enemies of our people. I know not why you are here, but I do hope that great things await you. This is Duskwood Territory. This plane is Stitia. While it is unfortunate you arrived here, you can rest assured that my people will watch over you. Good luck Zacarias...”
The guards unbind you, and you notice that the same emblem your tree turned into is now upon your left hand. With your entry to this world granted, you have become the first bearer of your name within it.
“I sense you are a high being from a clan in a different plane. While I could never replace the allies you lost, and couldn’t reunite you with them, I do have something I can do. Follow me. Your new life awaits...”
As a divine light surrounds you, you are suddenly teleported to a smoldering forest. Sprot walks towards the ruins of what lies here, and the entire forest seems to blossom with new life. The ashes of a giant tree are cleared as a new one grows in its place. It is a perfect recreation of the tree you offered to her, only much, much greater. “Welcome to your new home, and I hope you’ll accept this gift as an apology for the trouble my people have caused you.”
Deep in the heart of Woewedt, a new faction has formed. Elves, priests, and shamans arise from the ashes of whatever flame burned this land, and assemble to you. This faction is now yours. Once you name it, and confirm its color alignment, you will begin your journey.
@Tommia The faction’s color alignment will be Saskia colors, i.e. every color except blue. The name of the faction will be the Rootforged Conclave.
——————————————————————————
Zacarias carefully uses his mastery of plants to summon a giant vine. He makes the vine wrap around the tree, intersecting it at various points. This vine both symbolizes the relationship of people with nature and functions as a path to get around the tree, which Zacarias plans to use as the hub for the Rootforged to gather.
Using some carefully-prepared rot magic, Zacarias clears a large room at the bottom of the tree. He intertwines some vines, plants, and the roots of the tree itself to create a room coated in life with an ornate feel to it. At the back of the room, he creates a throne.
Sitting upon his throne, waiting for his followers, Zacarias grins. Although he is now beyond death, he can still continue to foster life, and thus he still has a purpose.
You feel your way along the side of the dome, crawling low to maximize your visibility.
“I know you’re down there. Let’s settle this like intelligent people.” One of the wizards, across the arena, says. That’s one of them. You just need to find the other two.
Nohel realizes that neither you or the wizards will fight with the steam in the way, so, with a gust of air and a burst of heat, the steam condenses at the top of the dome, and runs down the sides. All of the water in the center is gone, but now, the water boils under the dome of steam as it begins to move in from all directions. You tail touches the steam, and it catches on fire, forcing you to take a moment to put it out.
Your time is limited. You need to think fast. You can only access blue mana, so any of your usual methods of approach to such easy targets are unusable. Thankfully, you come up with a twisted idea. You’ve never cast this spell before, so you’ll need to hope it works...
”What are you doing, Enerew...?”
A smile cracks across your faces as you close your eyes, and envision all of the wizards as... parrots? Perhaps maybe their mind magic made you a little off the rocker. But, nonetheless, you snap your finger, and hope that it worked.
”Hm... I did not expect something like this to happen...”
“Caaahk! I did not expect something like this to happen.” You open your eyes, and realize that your spell actually worked. All three of the wizards have turned into parrots.
”Very well. You certainly showed a bizarre kind of resourcefulness I haven’t seen in ages. And for that, I congratulate you for surviving. Come now, brave adventurer, and accept my blessing.” A projection of the God of Knowledge descends upon you, and in his hand is your lance, except the point of it has been replace with a blue crystal. “Hold this tip to your mind, and ask me any question. I will answer truthfully, and to the best of my ability, but... there is one catch.”
You gained The Great Boon of Nohel. In a PM at any time, you may ask me any question in regards to the Saga, be it about a character, event, etc.. The question must be six words or less, or, it must rhyme and be thirteen words or less. If the knowledge does not pertain to any forbidden topic (that would be up to me) and I can answer it, I must answer truthfully, and as completely as possible. You may have a total of three questions answered this way. They do not all need to be asked at once.