The four thugs crouched in an alley, quietly observing the docks where a massive three-masted galleon was unloading cargo. They had been planning this heist for weeks, but a sudden obstacle stood in their way.
The first thug swore. "That... That freak's there. I'm not fighting it!" He shook his head vehemently.
A second thug, the smallest one of the bunch, nodded. "I hear it ain't even natural! It's a sorta machine thing, ya know?"
"Shut up!" The largest member of the group and the leader of the band of thieves slapped his smaller companion. "There's easily ten mill in bullion and jewels in that there cargo, and you wusses are 'fraid of a tin man?!"
"Oh, he ain't ordinary, though." Whispered another goon. "Last week, he fought off the entire Iron Skulls gang on his own! He's dangerous, and I ain't stepping foot near him!"
Indeed, surveying the docks was a tall, dragonoid figure. It gleamed in the sunlight, entirely covered in an intricate set of golden plates and armor, it's four arms each bearing wicked looking weapons. Sturgar was the personal guard and right hand of Duke Nartheus, a rich merchant and owner of the largest and most prosperous trade fleet for thousands of miles. Although none but the duke knew it, Sturgar was no machine. Certainly, most of his body was made of metal and filigree, but was was very much alive underneath all that armor. Early on in his career, sailing on the Inspiration, the newest addition to Nartheus' fleet, on it's maiden voyage, a saboteur had stowed away and detonated nearly four-hundred pounds of gunpowder in the ship's hold. In the crow's nest and farthest from the explosion, Sturgar had survived, but just barely. He sustained severe burns on eighty percent of his body and floated to shore, half dead, on a plank of driftwood. Nartheus could have simply hired a new bodyguard and saved a fortune, but he chose differently. He had the greatest smith on the continent forge him a new body, stronger than that of any man or beast, and gave the dragonoid another chance. For this act of kindness, Sturgar would die to protect the duke.
"Fine, then! I go first!" Yelled the largest thug, before leaping from the alleyway and firing a bolt from his massive crossbow. He was a good shot, having killed many men with a single bolt, and was confident in his aim. This confidence shattered as, far more quickly than a being so heavy should be able to move, Sturgar whirled and split the bolt through it's middle with an intricate saber. The bisected projectile clattered to the floor.
The goon shook his head. That was impossible!
"Alrighty, tough guy!" He snarled, recovering from the shock. He hefted a mighty morningstar, a spiked iron ball the size of a melon on a chain, and spun it in circles as he charged towards the golden figure.
The thug swung his weapon again and again, but each blow was deftly dodged or deflected. How was the freak so fast?! That much metal should have weighed a ton! The thug never finished his thought. A heavy blow from Sturgar's mace took the bandit's legs out from under him, and he hit the ground hard. He screamed in pain as an axe was viciously buried into his stomach, paralyzing him. Finally, two sabers flashed in an X, and the goon's head rolled down the street and into the alleyway where his companions waited, hidden. At he sight of their leader's decapitated head, eyes rolling and tongue lolling, they scrambled and ran.
"Ah, another thief." Duke Nartheus casually strolled up the docks and towards Sturgar. The duke was a tall, thin man. He wore a burgundy coat with gold trim and walked with a golden cane. Nartheus stroked his thin beard as he poked the body of the thug with the tip of his walking stick.
"Excellent work, my friend. Do try being a little... subtler next time. The dockhands are tiring of cleaning up all the blood and... body parts." He tapped Sturgar on the shoulder with a metallic clang.
Sturgar nodded. He was unable to speak, as his windpipe had been shattered by the explosion and, although now healed, had left his vocal chords irreparably damaged. Not that it bothered him. After all, he was a fighter, not a talker, and he was good at what he did.
"One more thing, before I leave." Nartheus turned. "I've heard of an event. A tournament of sorts. I thought nothing of it, but maybe you'd like it. After all, you would fight the best of the land. Some practice and, who knows, perhaps a prize at the end. I'm sure it shall be difficult, and it may take some time, but I've had a few improvements to your body commissioned, so you'll be in top form. What do you think?"
Sturgar nodded.
(I had to use MTG.Design for these, as MTG cardsmith doesn't have options for colored legendary artifacts or sagas. Also, his full type is dragonborn soldier, but it wouldn't fit on the card.)
Sturgar Vairdrinn
Sturgar is a tall dragonborn made almost entirely of golden alloy. His original body is destroyed, save his brain, heart, and lungs. All other vital functions are performed by his robotic body. With four arms, mechanically enhanced speed and strength, and a mastery of weapon use, he is a formidable duelist. He has been serving as duke Nartheus' bodyguard for 16 years. Steadfast, fearless and loyal, he can put himself in the path of danger without a second thought. Still unfamiliar with the limits of his new body, he is eager to push it's boundaries and impress his employer with feats of strength and masterful combat technique, but is often overconfident and looks down on those who prefer other forms of combat, like hand to hand fighters, archers, and especially magic users, which he views as cowardly and unskilled but secretly envies.
Height: 6'5"
Weight: 863 lbs.
Race: Dragonborn
Gender: Male
Age: Biologically 23, currently 37. He does not physically age, being 80% machine.
Alignment: Lawful Neutral Occupation: Bodyguard
Skillset: Armed and naval combat, enhanced reflexes and physical strength
Combat Specialty: Melee weapons use, often wields four weapons at once. Prefers two sabers for quick deflection and slashes, an axe to pierce armor, and a heavy mace to knock over and unbalance foes. He gives little regard to defense, as his cybernetic body shrugs of most blows. He fears only lightning, as a strong electrical shock may severely damage the mechanisms in his body and halt the functioning of his organs.
Knocking the guy for having one mace and 3 other bladed weapons, shame! Also, my entry might be right on the deadline, but it's coming together, hopefully Sunday at the latest (I'll be gone much of Saturday...)
@ArashiKun - Yes, the tournament is still open for new contenders for a couple of days at least!
@Red_Tower - If you need extra time, I could push the deadline further away by a day or two. I'm late as well, since I was planning to post some lore earlier, but I still haven't been able to do so. I try to do it today.
Here are my character's stats: Height: 2 metres Weight: 70 pounds* Race: Former Human Age: Lots Alignment: Formerly Chaotic Evil, now Unaligned. Useful Skills: Immune to common weapons, very skilled, Psychic Wind ability. Motive: The people running the games wanted him in the competition, so they moved the Orchids, and Nash went with them. *Technically this is the weight of his armour, him having no material body inside it.
@TonySparks No, and Nash would never share them or any information (Which is his whole personality) When this challenge series continues, I will start making all my entries be the bosses from Deltora Quest.
@KorandAngels Arn has more than one way of finding out things. It might be an Eavesdropping maid, a totured Tornament guard or Arn can always go the trial and error method haha.
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Comments
The first thug swore. "That... That freak's there. I'm not fighting it!" He shook his head vehemently.
A second thug, the smallest one of the bunch, nodded. "I hear it ain't even natural! It's a sorta machine thing, ya know?"
"Shut up!" The largest member of the group and the leader of the band of thieves slapped his smaller companion. "There's easily ten mill in bullion and jewels in that there cargo, and you wusses are 'fraid of a tin man?!"
"Oh, he ain't ordinary, though." Whispered another goon. "Last week, he fought off the entire Iron Skulls gang on his own! He's dangerous, and I ain't stepping foot near him!"
Indeed, surveying the docks was a tall, dragonoid figure. It gleamed in the sunlight, entirely covered in an intricate set of golden plates and armor, it's four arms each bearing wicked looking weapons. Sturgar was the personal guard and right hand of Duke Nartheus, a rich merchant and owner of the largest and most prosperous trade fleet for thousands of miles. Although none but the duke knew it, Sturgar was no machine. Certainly, most of his body was made of metal and filigree, but was was very much alive underneath all that armor. Early on in his career, sailing on the Inspiration, the newest addition to Nartheus' fleet, on it's maiden voyage, a saboteur had stowed away and detonated nearly four-hundred pounds of gunpowder in the ship's hold. In the crow's nest and farthest from the explosion, Sturgar had survived, but just barely. He sustained severe burns on eighty percent of his body and floated to shore, half dead, on a plank of driftwood. Nartheus could have simply hired a new bodyguard and saved a fortune, but he chose differently. He had the greatest smith on the continent forge him a new body, stronger than that of any man or beast, and gave the dragonoid another chance. For this act of kindness, Sturgar would die to protect the duke.
"Fine, then! I go first!" Yelled the largest thug, before leaping from the alleyway and firing a bolt from his massive crossbow. He was a good shot, having killed many men with a single bolt, and was confident in his aim. This confidence shattered as, far more quickly than a being so heavy should be able to move, Sturgar whirled and split the bolt through it's middle with an intricate saber. The bisected projectile clattered to the floor.
The goon shook his head. That was impossible!
"Alrighty, tough guy!" He snarled, recovering from the shock. He hefted a mighty morningstar, a spiked iron ball the size of a melon on a chain, and spun it in circles as he charged towards the golden figure.
The thug swung his weapon again and again, but each blow was deftly dodged or deflected. How was the freak so fast?! That much metal should have weighed a ton! The thug never finished his thought. A heavy blow from Sturgar's mace took the bandit's legs out from under him, and he hit the ground hard. He screamed in pain as an axe was viciously buried into his stomach, paralyzing him. Finally, two sabers flashed in an X, and the goon's head rolled down the street and into the alleyway where his companions waited, hidden. At he sight of their leader's decapitated head, eyes rolling and tongue lolling, they scrambled and ran.
"Ah, another thief." Duke Nartheus casually strolled up the docks and towards Sturgar. The duke was a tall, thin man. He wore a burgundy coat with gold trim and walked with a golden cane. Nartheus stroked his thin beard as he poked the body of the thug with the tip of his walking stick.
"Excellent work, my friend. Do try being a little... subtler next time. The dockhands are tiring of cleaning up all the blood and... body parts." He tapped Sturgar on the shoulder with a metallic clang.
Sturgar nodded. He was unable to speak, as his windpipe had been shattered by the explosion and, although now healed, had left his vocal chords irreparably damaged. Not that it bothered him. After all, he was a fighter, not a talker, and he was good at what he did.
"One more thing, before I leave." Nartheus turned. "I've heard of an event. A tournament of sorts. I thought nothing of it, but maybe you'd like it. After all, you would fight the best of the land. Some practice and, who knows, perhaps a prize at the end. I'm sure it shall be difficult, and it may take some time, but I've had a few improvements to your body commissioned, so you'll be in top form. What do you think?"
Sturgar nodded.
(I had to use MTG.Design for these, as MTG cardsmith doesn't have options for colored legendary artifacts or sagas. Also, his full type is dragonborn soldier, but it wouldn't fit on the card.)
Sturgar Vairdrinn
Sturgar is a tall dragonborn made almost entirely of golden alloy. His original body is destroyed, save his brain, heart, and lungs. All other vital functions are performed by his robotic body. With four arms, mechanically enhanced speed and strength, and a mastery of weapon use, he is a formidable duelist. He has been serving as duke Nartheus' bodyguard for 16 years. Steadfast, fearless and loyal, he can put himself in the path of danger without a second thought. Still unfamiliar with the limits of his new body, he is eager to push it's boundaries and impress his employer with feats of strength and masterful combat technique, but is often overconfident and looks down on those who prefer other forms of combat, like hand to hand fighters, archers, and especially magic users, which he views as cowardly and unskilled but secretly envies.
Height: 6'5"
Weight: 863 lbs.
Race: Dragonborn
Gender: Male
Age: Biologically 23, currently 37. He does not physically age, being 80% machine.
Alignment: Lawful Neutral
Occupation: Bodyguard
Skillset: Armed and naval combat, enhanced reflexes and physical strength
Combat Specialty: Melee weapons use, often wields four weapons at once. Prefers two sabers for quick deflection and slashes, an axe to pierce armor, and a heavy mace to knock over and unbalance foes. He gives little regard to defense, as his cybernetic body shrugs of most blows. He fears only lightning, as a strong electrical shock may severely damage the mechanisms in his body and halt the functioning of his organs.
> is clearly wielding a mace
hmmmmmmmm
Also, my entry might be right on the deadline, but it's coming together, hopefully Sunday at the latest (I'll be gone much of Saturday...)
@Red_Tower - If you need extra time, I could push the deadline further away by a day or two. I'm late as well, since I was planning to post some lore earlier, but I still haven't been able to do so. I try to do it today.
Height: 2 metres
Weight: 70 pounds*
Race: Former Human
Age: Lots
Alignment: Formerly Chaotic Evil, now Unaligned.
Useful Skills: Immune to common weapons, very skilled, Psychic Wind ability.
Motive: The people running the games wanted him in the competition, so they moved the Orchids, and Nash went with them.
*Technically this is the weight of his armour, him having no material body inside it.
When this challenge series continues, I will start making all my entries be the bosses from Deltora Quest.