[OOC] Bible of Ichor: Septet for the Dead

[Rune_Alchemist]

Ten years, did the Witch labor under the gaze of Ichor.
Answers to be given, questions asked. Sleepless nights and days of work.
At the end, when the efforts had nearly been in vain, did the body stir
Jubilation. Praise. Ichor blesses.
"Rise, the first of the undead. Rise and let us walk the night together once more."
- Bible of Ichor, Chapter 2 verse 4

"Arise, my children. Ichor grants you succor once more. Arsie from your eternal slumber. Drink deep of my blood as you did when you were born. Fear not the sun or relics of the Gods, for they no longer hold any power. Find the tomb of the silver swords. Revive the First. Bring her before me. So as I command, you will listen."

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Hello hello, welcome to the OOC.

Link to the Int Check

Firstly, some rules -

1. I have very few, and really, most are guidelines, but If nothing else, read this one. It is likely the most important rule here. In regards to combat - PvE should be simple enough. Against lesser mobs I'll likely let you go ham as you need to and feel free to describe what you do yourself. Against bigger threats though, you do not get to decide whether or not you hit an enemy - or if your attempt at something was successful or not. I do. If you're unsure, just ask. PvP may happen here, though I do not expect it to be common. In such a scenario should it happen, resolve it yourselves in an appropriate manner, or I will be forced to micromanage the combat and nobody will be happy.

2. I will be attempting to post once or twice a week for those that have posted. This is not exactly a hard and fast rule, as I won't be keeping any strict deadlines here. Only real rule I have - is post at your earliest convenience. At most I will be willing to wait a week. After that, I'll continue posting as usual whether you post or not. Go long enough, and well, I'll probably start checking for a replacement.

3. Once I make a final decision on something, that's it. I will try to be as fair in things as possible, but if you're not happy with it well...too bad, I guess. If you're unhappy enough to give me grief or constantly question my decision after then either leave yourself or I will eventually eject you from the RP and banish your character to the shadow realm.

That's it really! Anything else just ask.

Onto the fun world building bits!

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A few notes about characters:

• Players will be fairly powerful to start with. They should be able to reasonably handle most non-boss level threats without too much trouble either by themselves or with a companion. Your power of course, will come from your blood and the power that Ichor grants her undead children. Your powers may be degraded after so long being well, dead, but you will surely, slowly, regain your former power.
• Magic and power for Vampires can vary greatly. Terramancy, Blood Magic, Celestial magic, summoning...there are many avenues that Ichor's blessings present themselves, and while some are common and well known, there could very well be abilities out there that are unique to an individual. As a rule, vampires are physically stronger than the average human and possesses skill with Blood Magic as a base.

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Vampires:
Creatures born of the union of Ichor and the Violet Witch. No one is quite sure how or when the first was made, only that they were created from a bestial blood-sucking creature in the Ophidiel Era. Unique to most undead, they look mostly entirely human. They retain their memories, personality and general appearance save for the key fact...they are now undead. Unbound by the normal rules of the cycle of life and death, bound to the Goddess Ichor.

As the children of Ichor, vampires are given boons from her blood. Many avenues of power are open to them, possessing supernatural charm and strength with peculiar magical affinities. While they could subsist for a time on animal or other blood, they truly must feed on the blood of humans. Going too long without doing so would leave one weak and eventually starting to revert to their more bestial roots.

Creating a new Vampire is something of an honor and not easily done among them. A vampire must be willing to give their own blood to a human under Ichor's gaze in a particularly bloody, decadent ritual where the one to be turned is given new unlife as well as the subject must be willing. Whether under the influence of some charm or illusion spell or not. There may be other ways, for humans that walked particularly dark paths, but generally earning Ichors favor is not done so easily otherwise.

Of course, with such power comes some weaknesses. Silver acts as a potent poison, weakening and diluting Ichor's blood which flows through all vampires veins. Upon being afflicted with it, they will find their bodies weakening as their blood magic begins to wither in potency from the poison and the divine properties of the metal rejecting the undead from within. (effectively, it'll weaken your blood magic and physical abilities)

Holy emblems too, will weaken a vampires magical abilities creating an area where the divine influence overpowers Ichor's own. This extends to mantras and passages from other divinities holy texts as they drive out Ichor's influence. Of course Ichor's blood still remains strong. (Effectively, it'll weaken your magical abilities)

And of course, sunlight. The bane of any vampires existence. The holy light of the Gods near instantly burns Ichor's blood and kin, scorching them with an imperious gaze. While you do not have to currently worry about this...perhaps it'd be good to remember to never walk within the light as a vampire unless you want to end up burning your unlife to ash in seconds.

The Peculiar Magical Affinities:
While human mages may study stars and draw power from things around them, Vampires possess innate magical abilities stemming from Ichor herself. Much like the paladins and servants of the Gods of old once did. This is a list of most common, and not an entirely comprehensive list. A small description of how each particular magic will work. At a base level, they are stronger than humans physically, possess the ability to use Blood Magic naturally, and can see even in areas that lack light completely.

Peculiar Magic

• Blood Magic - The bread and butter of Vampire abilities. All vampires have some proficiency in this, even if they do not actively pursue to cultivate it. Users of blood magic are able to make bloody weapons from their body, strengthen their physical attributes to supernatural levels and use blood-based spells from a distance or perhaps, form defensive barriers with their blood.
• Entomancy - A somewhat unsettling magical art that allows one to speak with and commune with the skittering insects of the world. At a base level, it allows one to summon, manipulate, grow, mutate, and command insects exclusively. A sometimes overlooked art. Masters can easily command swarms of locusts, ants, and similar vermin and creating chimerical creatures of various bugs.
• Illusion - What would a vampire be without their ability to charm and fascinate? Vampires practicing this particular school can easily manipulate ones perception of reality, easily enthrall and charm masses into doing their own bidding, confuse opponents into fighting others. A rather insidious school but favored by the more subtle and flamboyant sorts.
• Necromancy - Another somewhat expected magical school of the vampire. In its essence, Necromancy is the manipulation of the Soul of a living or dead being and forcing it to do ones bidding. It also includes hexes and curses, designed to debilitate and afflict those who posses any sort of soul. Undead raising can take many forms - from calling spirits to aid you in battle, marching around with an army of skeletons, or going full mad scientist and creating horrible undead chimaera monstrosities.
• Terramancy - A somewhat more rare craft given by Ichor. The ability of controlling the very earth beneath ones feet. Earth manipulated in this way takes a bloody hue and if struck seems to bleed, too and pulse with a heartbeat. Used creatively, it is a fairly strong skillset for the vampire to hone. The strongest can shudder the very earth itself and make it bleed.
• The Crimson Star - A more esoteric and somewhat harder to understand usage of Ichors blessing. Perhaps telling of Ichor’s true nature, the ability to use the otherworldly energies. Ripping holes within the fractured Roots of the world and calls forth raw, otherworldly energy. Takes the forms of stars which chase foes, explosive, rippling energy that runs along the ground and similar such things. Be careful you do not let something unintended slip through these cracks...
• Summoning - Vampires blood naturally calls to things beyond the realm. Some specifically tap into this magic to summon things from elsewhere to fight for them, or to augment their own strength by temporarily gaining attributes of whatever it is they summon. Beasts, Demons and Eldritch beings.
• Divine Magic - What would a God be without devout worshipers that espouse and polytheize for them. Those who are particularly devout, earn such abilities. Clerics of Ichor spend days indulging in Ichors tenets in order to grow closer to the Goddess herself. Studying her Bible, words, every aspect of her and the Violet Witch in hopes to gain just a fraction more of her blessing. They gain special variations of Blood magic which is in fact, resistant to what vampires would normally be weak against such as fire or other holy relics, and Summoning magic, able to summon and commune with the Bloody Servants of Ichor herself. The only 'downside' is that devoting ones life to this would make it difficult to specialize in other forms of magic.

Once again, these are not the only things you'll be limited too. Feel free to get as creative as you want! These are just to give people direction and to explain a bit about some things you'll possibly be seeing in game. Do discuss with me any other magic abilities outside of these, though! I did chose these for reasons, and of course if you have questions about any of the above, do ask and I shall do my best to give examples. As well, feel free to hybridize! These are more guidelines and to give ideas.

Vampiric Thralls:
Thralls are the Elite of a vampire's servants. A mixed blessing that makes one an undead being, but not quite a vampire either. Those who become thralls undergo a ritual to become one, but are denied succor from Ichor. When such a case happens, they become a Thrall. A fully autonomous undead being completely and utterly loyal to the one who turned them. They gain enhanced strength and abilities, retain whatever abilities they had in life and also for the most part, look no different from when they were alive meaning only a fairly astute individual or fairly strong mage could even sense the change making them perfect for more undercover operations. As with turning a mortal into vampire, the target of Thralldom must in some way be willing. Either through coercion or mental domination. As undead themselves, they can't be fed from. Try not to go overboard.

Religion:
Vampiric religion is focused on the worship of Ichor and studying the relics and texts left behind by her apprentice, the Violet Witch who gave the first of the Undead sentience and life. While not all actively worship her, all vampires know for a fact she exists, and that she is very watchful of her children. Worship of her often involves bloody feasts and shows of devotion. More eccentric ones tend to do so with some risque aspects involved. Its all pleasing to Ichor, whatever it is so long as you do not break certain tenets.

Ichor herself is something of an enigma, even to the vampires. The Goddess of Crimson Blood, Undead, Vermin and things which are detested by humans. Originally she was not even a God. She was given shape and form by the cries of the forsaken undead, thrown out of the cycle of life and death in the Ophidiel Era. With the help of the Violet Witch she created the first of the Undead and would go on to create Vampires from the blood sucking monstrosities that stalked the land. Likewise, Ichor's true appearance is something unknown to most of her kin, though a painting left behind by the Violet Witch depicts her as a woman with scarlet colored hair and a few scraps of written text where the Witch reports that somehow, they also possess certain masculine qualities.

Ichors attitude towards her children and humans are mixed. There's no doubt she has no love for humanity, and solely puts her affection onto her unliving children. Still, the bible instructs a strict code of both conduct and seven tenets that vampires are supposed to follow. Human beings, while little more than perhaps pets or entertainment to most...well, vampires can not exist without them, can they? You are free to interpret them as you wish.

Seven Tenets

I. Never betray or harm your brethren. To do so is to invoke Ichor's wrath.
II. Do not insult Ichor or the Violet Witch. To do so is to invoke Ichor's wrath.
III. Never Disobey Ichor's orders. To do so is to invoke Ichor's Wrath.
IV. Do not bring undue attention to the Undead. To do so is to invoke Ichor's wrath.
V. There will be no other gods before Ichor. To do so is to invoke Ichor's wrath.
VI. With all things, elegance and bombast. Separate yourselves from the beasts and humans. To act with undue cruelty and violence is to invoke Ichor's wrath.
VII. Without humans, your brethren will perish. Treat them with care, but do not love for they can not love us. To do so is to invoke Ichor's wrath.

The first of the undead:
Your Queen. The one you will be attempting to revive. Created on the guidance of Ichor after the Violet Witch endlessly toiled away. She may not be a vampire like you, but she is the first of the Undead that all Undead swear fealty to. She bears Ichors blood, after all, and is as close as the Goddess will ever be to truly being upon this realm. Imprisoned in a tomb of Silver swords by a now dead god. Supposedly though, those paladins still protect the tomb...

The world:
At the end of the Ophidiel Era, the sun and moon would both fall. The world would be turned into a lightless wasteland with no light upon its surface. The gods have died, their power weakened to minimum. An impenetrable darkness covers the land, chased away only by the torches of the humans that remain, fearful of the dark that surrounds them and the things which lurk within.

Players will be starting in the ancient city of Alavaris, an old city that was central in the conflict in the Ophidiel Era as it is where the Violet Witch supposedly once lived and operated from and at one point was a haven for the undead and their ilk. However, it was also one of the first cities to fall when the Hundred Paladins began their crusade. Who brought you back to this city after you were slain remains a mystery, for now...but whoever they were, interred you in an underground crypt, surrounded by a bed of nightshade.

Fortunately, it is now overrun with undead. Unfortunately, they are not your friends.

Civilization:
Well, it does exist I suppose, yet can it truly be called civilization? With the collapse of the Ophidiel Era, much technology, civilization, and history was lost. Gods names, forgotten. Rites forsaken. Cities buried under piles of rubble and ruins. Humans lived in walled off villages and large cities where even there, they are not safe from the horrors that stalk the darkness. Light will not help them. Worship of their dead gods, will not help them. Perhaps they simply need to be shown a much better Goddess to worship.

Technology:
Much of the world was lost during the fall, but during the Ophidiel Era technology had advanced to the point of having something of a light steampunk flavoring. A bit like Bloodborne, if you want to imagine that. Rudimentary fire arms will be present, such as single shot pistols and you may find hints of more advanced tech later on, but generally, think rudimentary steampunk and gothic victorian as far as most things will go.

Gods, Spirits, and things other:
Gods...a thing of the past. A relic of the Ophidiel. None currently live upon this world abandoned by all divine providence. Humans, clever and strong still manage to live despite this. There may still be lesser spirits that exist, hiding far, far away from any humans or others. Indeed, things other than gods, things from beyond the Roots, from beyond the now severed branches still lurk, waiting, feeding, feasting.

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~Character Sheet~

Annnnd here is the CS!

Note: I will not be accepting CS's on a first come, first serve basis. I'll be letting everyone submit a CS and choosing from the ones I like the best and think fit the overall tone I am going for. It will be in your best interests to discuss things with me if you're uncertain or want something not listed here.

I'll be accepting no more than six players.

Character Sheet

Name:
Fairly self explanatory.
Gender:
Male? Or Female?
Appearance:
Typically, vampries are pale and tend to have light colored hair. Rarely, they will have red colored hair. An indication of a strong connection to Ichor. Often revered by other vampires.
Abilities:
What magic and other abilities do you possess? Generally, I would say having some skill in blood magic plus a secondary affinity would be a good idea. Of course, feel free to mix and match and come up with something fun from the things presented, or even your own as above. Remember though, any abilities you have would have considerably deteriorated over the course of your slumber.
Personality:
Just a brief blurb. What do you think of Ichor? What do you think of your mission? Of humans? do you think they're cattle to be herded? Prey to toy with? Either way, without humans you yourself, will not survive.

Bio:
Nothing extensive. After all, by now any life you had before has long since been over for nearly an Era. Just give a brief idea of who you were, how you became a vampire and how you were slain by the Hundred Paladins.

Anything else:

[Pyromania99]

I'm here

[Dead Cruiser]

Cool stuff I will try to have a CS up today.

I am planning basically a vampire wizard. Blood Sorcery ahoy.

[Cu Chulainn]

Crimson Star time, baybee

[Guy0fV4lor]

Blood Knight Gaming for me lads

[ERode]

Alright, how many slots are there? And what’s the deadline for CSes?

[Rune_Alchemist]

Alright, how many slots are there? And what’s the deadline for CSes?

@ERode

Did I forget to put that here?

Seems like I did.

oops.

As stated in the INt Check, I'll be accepting five, maybe six players. No more. As for the deadline, probably 1 week for everyone to get their CS's in.

[Click This]

Six slots for twelve players, hmm? This'll be a particularly competitive one it seems.

I'll work on something today and or over the weekend.

[Fading Memory]

One week, aight. That’ll keep me short. Good. I’ll field some questions in the evening my time, then crank out my musically inclined gothic ne’er-do-well. Every Queen needs a fanatic.

[ERode]

Six slots for twelve players, hmm? This'll be a particularly competitive one it seems.

I'll work on something today and or over the weekend.

@Click This

Where’s the competition? I don’t see it. ;3

[Pyromania99]

Blood Lily Cleric

Name: Akyasha

Gender: Female

Appearance: Akyasha is much like the rest of her kin. Pale, pleasing to the eyes…. The most notable features are her bright red hair and the religious garb she wears at almost all times.

Abilities: As a Vampire, of course Akyasha has access to Blood Magic and as a devout servant of Ichor, she also has access to Divine Magic that only Clerics of Ichor would have. The Divine Magics of Ichor are essentially Blood Magic without any weakness a Vampire might have as well as the ability to summon the otherworldly servants of Ichor.

That said, she utilizes her Blood Magic in a special way. When she strikes an enemy with her Blood Magic, she attempts to put a "seed" on or in them. This "seed" starts to drain blood from it's target and will over time sprout as a Blood Magic mockery of a lily, something that Akyasha affectionately calls a "Blood Lily". After she collects the lily, she can utilize it in a couple of ways, but her favorite is in her summoning magic. The amount and quality of blood that she collected influences the creatures she would summon from using the Blood Lily.

Personality: Some describe her as an eccentric. She’s a devout servant and follower of Ichor. She follows the tenets as close as she can except for one thing. While she agrees that normally, humans cannot love them, she thinks that they can be made to love them. Though, this typically means that she likes to have plenty of human thralls. Specifically, Human Women that she can dress in her religious outfits and follow the Path of Ichor.

Outside that, one could say that she is every so slightly obsessed with the Cult of Ichor and making it as perfect as she can as well as the betterment of her kin. She sees humans in three ways. The humans worth attempted to turn to the Cult of Ichor and those that are cattle meant for feeding. This does not mean the cattle are to be treated crudely as that would be against the tenets. Preferably, they are to be given their own rooms and things to do as well as well fed. That way, their blood tastes the best it could be.

The third and final way she looks at humans…. Are those worthy of ignoring. As the tenets state not to act with cruelty and treat humans with care, Akyasha finds the best way to care is to ignore those that one does not need to interact with as interaction would bring “undue attention to the undead.”

Bio: Once upon a time, Akyasha was a blonde human girl with another name, turned by a Cleric of Ichor. Over the years, she dedicated her unlife to the following of Ichor and rose through the ranks. Unfortunately, during the final years she saw many of her fellow clerics felled by Paladins until finally, she was one of the last few Clerics. Of course, one of the last few didn’t matter as she was impaled with a holy weapon and put into an eternal slumber. Only to eventually wake back up in an unforgiving world….


Anything else:

[Princess Peril]

Here's my character. I don't mean to immediately come up with my own affinity but, I had the idea and I wanted to follow through on it, haha. Figured I'd submit something anyway.

Khalida Nasser

Name:
Khalida Nasser
Gender:
Female
Appearance:
A tall, imposing woman standing at about six feet, six inches tall. Her skin is a mutation of it's original brown color, now dark grey in most places. She has a highly muscular build and while usually she wears medium to heavy armor, she currently is making do with some simple trousers, boots, and a chest wrapping. Despite taking many hits over the years, she is unscarred. Her ear-length, somewhat curly hair is black, though there is a light pale bang that hangs down in front of her forehead. As a vampire it's hardly worth mentioning, but she is beautiful as well. In a 'crush your head with her bare hands' kind of way.

Abilities:
As a vampire, Khalida has control over blood. She can harden it and maneuver it at will, using it as a weapon or defensive barrier.

Her affinity however, is to her own physical ability. All vampires are stronger than humans, but Khalida is stronger than most vampires, as well as having more speed and durability. She is a talented warrior in many aspects, including bladed weapons, blunt weapons, throwing weapons and archery. She prefers to use physical weapons over blood weapons, simply so that she can save her blood magic energy for other utilities. Despite being so large, she can also be quite stealthy and is good at tracking.

Personality:
Khalida is a quiet, gentle extrovert. She enjoys victory and the thrill of battle, as well as the finer things in life. Ichor is her Goddess of course, and the one true ruler of this world. Though she isn't sure why the religious text is always so stuffy, dry, and hard to read.

Khalida has somewhat of a strange view towards humans- she sees them as she would see her fellow vampires. Simply people. After all, she was a human once upon a time. How someone could view humans as 'cattle' is beyond her. They simply fulfill a different role in the ecosystem. They are the prey, vampires are the predators. Whoever wins, one way or the other, is who is worthy of survival. Though with the death of both Ichor and the Gods, the world has been cast into complete disarray. The only one capable of saving the world now is Ichor.

Bio:
Originally a slave turned gladiator who won her freedom and became a mercenary. Seeking an eternal, worthy cause to fight for, and finding the Gods to be complacent and lazy, turned to Ichor and the Violet Witch. That was a long time ago. She was once a great vampire general and warrior. At the end of the Ophidiel Era, she was a general responsible for defending Alavaris from the Hundred Paladins. As a leader and a warrior, she fought valiantly but was amongst the first vampires to die, placing victory as a higher priority over her own survival. She fought until she was soaked with her own blood and the blood of her enemies, her armor wrenched and dented off of her. Finally she was caught out of position, and succumbed to a well placed barrage of holy arrows. Slumping to the ground, she went through the rather undignified process of dying before closing her eyes for what she thought would be the final time.

Needless to say it was a humbling experience.

Anything else: The humans most likely didn't inter her with her weapons and her armor. She'll have to make do with blood magic and her bare hands until she finds some new weapons and armor worthy of her power.

[Fading Memory]

@Rune_Alchemist

Where in the realm of Gothic do I need to aim my dart? Serious grotesquery, or more cartoonish macabre? I can do anything, I just want to end up in your expectation zone.

Any particular culture analogues I should be following? We seem to be aiming European style stuff, but if you’re drawing from a particular reference it’s cool to know.

Are you cool with me portraying a bard style character, silly jokes aside? The intention is to be someone who long ago earned his Undeath by pleasing the queen with song and ending up a formal ‘court musician’ of musical secrets. A fanatic philosopher of passions sort of fellow. If you’re not vibing with the idea I can stew a different idea.

[Rune_Alchemist]

@Fading Memory

For your first question regarding art.

The inspirations for this are heavily influenced by Bloodborne, if you've ever played it. I don't want to say they'll be straight up copies of either the Hunters or the Cainhurst nobles, but starting there would be a good base as far as general aesthetics and the overall feel of the game is going to be.

Culturally, heavily, well Victorian Gothic. Large grand cathedrals with lots of pointy edges (Notre Dame, Victorian era fashion) those sorts of things. That said, this is also well, Gothic fantasy. Some exaggeration and unrealistic aspects are to be expected. As an example of two potential characters that will be in the RP -

potential characters

Potential character 2

There will definitely be some heavily grotesque and eldritch creatures present, but for the most part Vampires are expected to act with some manner of grace/decorum/and be a bit of a beacon of pure vampiric elegance and imperiousness within this game.

As for your character idea, that seems totally fine, sure. A bard is always welcome, and vampires certainly always love good entertainment, especially of a more macabre sort.

Hopefully all of this helps some.

---

On another note, I shall go through CS's tomorrow morning and give thoughts/if there's anything that needs changing then.

[Cu Chulainn]

Is it No Naught November already?

Astronaught

"To exist is to suffer, to forever be burdened by pain, hunger, the frailty of man... Allow me to ease you of such burdens!"

Name: Cipher

Gender: Male (0)

Abilities:
Aside from the physical and blood-borne abilities of a vampire, Cipher possesses all manner of 'dilettante' knowledge. In particular, he is a genius mathematician, navigator, and astrologer, although much of his knowledge seems to have been lost in the interim, a consequence of his long life. Cipher also possesses the ability to calculate information at rapid speeds, although this ability has somewhat degraded ever since his reawakening. However, none of these skills are as impressive as his master over the stars, and what lies between them.

A master navigator of the Crimson Star, Cipher's signature magic is known simply as Null Nihil Naught - the Origin of All. In essence, it is the creation and utilization of 'rifts' within the world, allowing one to travel from one point to another at an instant. In other words, wormhole generation. The farther and more esoteric the destination, the more difficult it is to create a rift to such a place. If one uses this magic with reckless abandon, there is a chance they may open a rift to the darkest of places between the stars, where countless horrors lie in wait. As such, precise coordinates are required to achieve the best results.

It is quite strange that this is Cipher's sole magic, as he was known as a grandmaster of the Crimson Star in his time. Perhaps even his skills at magery have degraded over time, lost to the long slumber and his apparent degrading sanity.

Perhaps what's stranger is how Cipher had adopted a rather vicious new mode of combat utilizing monofilament wires embedded within the fingers of his gloves as a deadly, if unorthodox weapon. These wires have been reinforced with blood magic to a degree, adding some sort of control to an otherwise wild method of attack.

Personality:
A man whose head is truly in the stars. Aloof and apathetic of most things around him, Cipher's attention is directed to what is beyond. After all, he is a man consumed by his own desire; to achieve eternity, immortality, and everlasting life. His opinion of other vampires is that of pity, seeing them all as trapped in the perpetual cycle that is hunger and satiation. This extends especially to other humans, of whom he sees as especially pitiful due to their mortality.

In essence, a man who only cares to look at the big picture, missing the most minute of details. Perhaps this very nature would lead to his downfall, to be consumed by something much smaller than himself.

Bio:
The man known as Cipher was once an academic of no small renown, a philosopher from a time when philosophy was held in great regard. His true name had been lost to time, but many of his contributions had progressed civilization forward, credited to his students, followers, and admirers. He did not care for such fame and fortune, as there was only one thing he sought in his quest for knowledge: Eternity, immortality, the chance to live everlasting and free from the struggles of the mortal form.

It was through his studies that he looked to the stars, and to the darkness between. It was from this darkness that he had found his scarlet salvation. His captivating countess, clad in crimson, promised him eternal life and more so long as he swore fealty to her, and offered his blood in her name. Such a proposition could not be denied, and soon, the long-lost philosopher king would then be known only as Cipher.

Once an influential mage and advisor to the First of the Undead, Cipher soon grew at odds with his unliving status, not wishing to suffer the hungering pangs of a bloodthirsty vampire. He would grow increasingly complacent in his role the further he increased his mastery and understanding of the stars. It only made sense that Cipher would abandon his court at a time where his abilities were most needed as the Hundred Paladins began their crusade.

Cipher had warped to what he believed was his answer to his thesis, the origin point of all life and existence, a place where he would remain eternally so. Instead, he merely found himself in the wilds, probably the place where the first two humans had fucked or something. It didn't take long for a squad of paladins to find Cipher's whereabouts, brought forth by a peculiar blood mage...

Anything else: Cipher wears a strange helmet that covers his entire visage. Some say it is to protect his head both physically and socially, for his visage was completely masked. A hypothesis closer to the truth would suggest this mask allowed him to see deep into the stars, and what lies within. In truth, it was merely a glorified shade that allowed Cipher to gaze at the stars eternally without hurting his eyes.

Cipher also has a pistol. He knows how to use it.

Perhaps something most peculiar about Cipher is how... off he would seem after his awakening. It's as if he received much more than mere silvered wounds. What isn't known to him, or anyone else in Ichor's fledgling court, is that the Blood Mage that had aided in his death had left something quite insidious within his very being, a 'parasite' that should not once be awakened....

Unfortunately...

... It has already taken root.

"My pawns are in place, my bishops have you cornered, and my knights are at your throat. Your king will be mine. You will be mine."

Name: Ivaroth "Iv" Fortinell

Gender: A Master of Puppets transcends all form of identity! (Male)

Appearance:
A frail boy clad in extravagant attire, Iv stands at a mere 4'9" and sports a rather sickly composition, even as a vampire. Of note, his gloves seem to be laced with thin fibrous wires soaked in blood, a medium for his particular affinity of magic.

Abilities:
While Iv possesses the physical capabilities of a vampire, he is still physically weak in comparison to others of his kin given the nature of his transformation as well as the blood-borne illness that plagued him before he was turned. Inversely, Iv's sports an extreme compatibility with blood magic due to this very same illness. His primary use of Blood Magic is known as Hematic Hegemony, utilizing a series of specially-crafted wires that act as artificial blood vessels. When properly embedded into a living being, they would find themselves 'bound' to Iv's very will, commanded like grotesque marionettes. Sporting an unfathomable potential in the art, it would not be far off to call Iv a genius when it comes to blood sorcery.

However, it seems that Iv had focused his magical knowledge towards a specific niche. What could be considered a cross between Blood Magic and Summoning, Iv specializes in the art of creating familiars: beings who are subservient to their master while also being an 'extension' of the master. Iv's aptitude revolves around the creation of more powerful familiars, favoring quality over quantity. By domineering the bodies of powerful beings through his Hematic Hegemony and slowly integrating their existence into his, he is capable of turning even the most powerful of corpses into a mere part of him. Of course, this process is delicate and time-consuming, with particularly incompatible existences being an extremely painful procedure.

When a familiar is fully integrated, they are able to take the form of Iv's limbs, replacing his frailty with their prowess. Iv has only integrated one familiar into his body so far, the Vampire Lord known as Cipher. However, due to the grisly nature of Cipher's death and Iv's own inexperience in the creation of familiars, Iv was incapable of replicating his knowledge or maintaining his full affinity with the Crimson Star. While Cipher takes the form of Iv's left arm under normal circumstances, he is the form that Iv has chosen to 'adopt' given the position he has found himself in.

An imposter among the vampire lords, one would say.

While his primary fighting style involves the use of familiars, he is capable of using his blood-soaked wires as an insidious, "unseen" weapon. Its potential for slaughter is high, although these wires are somewhat unwieldy, controlled via Blood Magic.

Personality:
Iv conducts himself as a "mage" first, and a "vampire" second. However, it could be said that his very mentality as a mage is inherently the same as that of a vampire. That said, he does not see the disparity of the living and the dead in the same way a 'true' vampire would. Instead, Iv views all in one of two lenses: the weak and the strong. The weak are there simply so that the strong could have those to tower over. They are simple tools at his disposal, whether it is a soldier to fight his battles or a sac of blood to satiate his hunger.

The strong, however, are those that hold Iv's true respect. Those who make their mark on the world, the few who hold power, true power, over the many. In Iv's case, he holds mental acuity in the same light as physical prowess, if not moreso, given his background as a mage and scholar. The strongest among the strong are those that Iv would idolize, superior beings to strive towards becoming... and to Iv, this desire to 'become' another can be interpreted as very literal.

Iv is a man who looks up to the strong, and who desires to become even stronger. That said, this does not mean he disregards the weak. After all, even the most pitiful and insignificant of maggots could be feasting on the flesh of even the gods. An ambitious man who holds the strong above else, but stays wary of the weak. A natural 'lord,' some would say, though it is more accurate to refer to him as a 'dragon' of sorts.

Bio:
The heir of a long line of human heroes, it is said that Ivaroth was destined for greatness, one who is said to bring an end to the undead... or at least, that was what the prophecies promised. Instead of the strong child that was promised to the Fortinell, what came was a sickly disappointment that could nary lift even himself from bed, let alone a sword. A shamed secret of the Fortinell, Ivaroth was instead sequestered away, his very existence censured and written off as a "death at birth."

As he grew older, Ivaroth had instead began a pursuit for knowledge instead, believing that he should fortify his mind as he was unable to do so with his body. It helped that he was all but forgotten, his duties as a lord abandoned to his more able-bodied siblings. He grew increasingly fascinated with the nature of the world itself, particularly in the fantastical beings that had been abundant in the Ophidiel Era. This fascination had lead him into reading into the studies of magic, something he had an astounding interest towards.

It did not take long for Ivaroth to delve into the forbidden, reading of the dark magics that humanity's darkest of foes have used. It was through this that Ivaroth discovered his affinity for Blood Magic. Ironically, it was the very sickness that plagued Ivaroth's entire life that also afforded him a great affinity with this art. At the mere age of 10, he had even developed his own foundation of magecraft in this art, utilizing wires attuned with his blood in place of vampiric abilities.

Ivaroth believed that this magic would give humanity an edge towards the undead beasts that plagued them. Naturally, he had ran away from home when he was barely of age, answering the call of the Hundred Paladins under the guise of a wizard named 'Iv.' While he was not given the honor of wielding a silver sword or given any of the blessings the others have received, Iv was still attached to a squad of Paladins as an auxiliary support. After all, one cannot expect much from a frail scholar.

It was through Iv's magic, however, that they were able to track down and slay a particularly powerful Vampire Lord, a pilot of the stars who possessed a maddening form of magic. In the end, while this lord was cut to pieces, the paladins Iv had ventured with had been afflicted with a strange madness, having seen things man was not meant to apprehend.

To Iv, however, this 'madness' had instead awakened a form of ambition within him. As he gazed upon the vampire's cosmic powers, he too saw beings of great and unfathomable might. To be mighty and powerful, to not be overlooked for his physiological failings... such power was tempting to Iv. It was at this moment that Iv could truly attain such heights, surpassing the frailty of his own mortal form.

And so, he had decided to put a hypothesis to the test. It was a theory that he had once abandoned before due to how maddening it sounded. Firstly, he had forced the remaining Paladins he was traveling with against each other, taking those who were dead or succumbed to their madness under his control. Like puppets under his command, Iv had them slay their fellow brothers and sisters before aptly killing themselves. When his former compatriots were finally taken care of, Iv then implanted his strings into what remained of the star-scourged vampire lord they had been sent to slay.

The lord's forbidden knowledge, maddening magery, and blasphemous blood had surged into Iv all at once. It was something he couldn't control, something he couldn't maintain. Iv knew that slowly, but surely, he was fated to die with the rest of his companions, to die with the quarry they had slain. And yet, Iv chose to live, to stubbornly cling to whatever semblance of life he had left. Power was so close to him, he could not let it get away!

And in his fleeting moments, before he had succumbed to his own maddening ritual, he had heard a voice in his head. Gentle, yet fierce. Welcoming, yet foreboding. It had promised Iv the power he had sought in exchange for mere fealty.

Given his situation, there was nothing Iv could do but accept.

Anything else: Iv walks with a cane, with a ritualistic dagger hidden within its shaft. It is made of a similar material to his blood-soaked wires, and serves many purposes in his sanguinary rituals.

Iv is something of a polyglot, proficient in many of the old Human languages in the Ophidiel era. Whether this translates to languages of this 'new' era remains to be seen.

Iv can make a mean blood parfait.

[VitaVitaAR]

• Name: Aleksiya Ravennart, also known as Ice Princess Aleksiya, or the Rime-Winged Vermilion Angel
• Gender: Female
• Appearance: "... Don't ask." With the appearance of a child no older then 10, Aleksiya can still put off a surprising amount of menace.
• Abilities: Aleksiya is known as the Ice Princess for a reason. In addition to a high capacity with blood magic, Aleksiya specializes in magic that permits the manipulation and creation of ice. Ice created by Aleksiya is extremely cold, enough to produce a burning sensation on contact with unprotected skin and prolonged contact causing tissue damage. She can rapidly form ice in different shapes, commonly in the form of spears and spikes to be used as projectiles. Given sufficient time, she can even freeze a target solid. Before her death and revival, she could freeze targets much more rapidly. But her signature technique is the combination of Blood and Ice magic. By freezing blood, she can enhance blood projectiles to fly further and penetrate more deeply, raining shards of frozen ichor upon her foes or creating exotic patterns of crimson frost to use as a barrier. Her second title was earned due to the use of her favorite weapon, a scythe composed entirely of frozen blood that she can create at will as long as she has sufficient blood to manipulate. She does not need physical contact with her own blood, or disembodied blood, in order to freeze it and alter its shape. Therefore, an enemy who gets her blood on them could easily be unaware of the danger until too late.
  
  When given enough excess blood, she is capable of manipulating the blood in her body to force herself to operate at a higher degree of strength and speed. This technique is known as Rime-Winged Vermilion Angel, and is the origin of one of her titles. Excess Blood forms in icy veins stretching from her back, twisting together to resemble a pair of wings, where it can be stored for use to maintain this form. It is crucial that she maintains the 'wings' and does not overuse this technique, as the strain from the manipulation of her own bloodflow can cause her veins and many internal organs to rupture. While this may not kill her outright, it would be catastrophic in battle.
  
  Her most powerful technique, Endless Crimson Crystal Prison, is currently too complex and requires far too much power and blood for her to activate. On activation, ice rapidly encases the target, who is then skewered by numerous spears of ice before being frozen completely solid. The target is left a permanent ice sculpture, a bizarre art piece filled with gleaming spears. An overkill technique intended to be used against large or particularly stubborn foes, it has slipped from her grasp due to the lengthy period of time she spent dead.
• Personality: Arrogant and cruel. Sadistic and capricious. These are words that describe the demeanor of the Ice Princess Aleksiya. High-handed, judging those around her by if they offer value only in how much they amuse her, this is the Crimson Reaper's attitude. But, while describing her in this manner is not necessarily incorrect, it perhaps does not capture the whole picture.
  
  It's impossible to deny Aleksiya's sadistic streak, and she is cruel to her enemies and will often speak in a callous and unforgiving manner. Her smug attitude is no exaggeration either. But, in spite of this behavior, she shows favor to the weak and downtrodden, those who suffer under the thumb of the kind of people who recklessly abuse their own power. Human or vampire, those who prey upon the helpless are viewed scornfully by Aleksiya, who reserves her cruelest acts for those who show such cruelness themselves. She is especially sensitive to the plights of children. She will at times exaggerate her more cruel and villainous streak specifically to grow her reputation, but it isn't uncommon for her softer side to show through. In some respect, her willingness to serve Ichor is likely due for the sake of providing further structure to the world's current state, in hopes of punishing those who exploit the weak.
  
  Regardless of her softer side, Aleksiya's arrogance cannot be overstated. She has nothing but confidence in herself, and her abilities, and will mock and belittle any that she sees as beneath her.
• Bio: Aleksiya was born to a noble family, long ago. As nobility went, they were quite fair-handed, and loved their daughter, showering her with affection and spending as much time as they were able to with her. The Ravennarts were also friends of another neighboring family, the Mierret, and Aleksiya frequently played with their youngest daughter, a girl of her age named Brigette. Aleksiya and Brigette rapidly became close friends, and spent many days together playing in and around the grounds of her family's mansion. Unfortunately, these days were not to last.
  
  Tollivor Burian, head of the Burian family, had long held a rivalry with the Ravennarts and the Mierret.
  Manipulating minor nobles, he was able to stage a surprise attack on the Ravennarts' mansion during a celebration where much of the Mierret family, including Brigette, were present. In spite of their best efforts, their defenses eventually crumbled, and Aleksiya and Brigette's families were slaughtered. Given no time to mourn, they were snatched away by Lord Burian, who claimed their lands and intended to use the young girls as trophies, enslaving them for the sake of a spiteful vengeance against his slaughtered rivals. Subjected to Lord Burian's cruel whims, the girls were frequently beaten and subjected to starvation, as the wicked lord subjected the common folk to monstrous acts for his own amusement. Aleksiya witnessed horrific tortures and cruel games carried out in Lord Burian's court, and was sometimes subjected to them herself. But she felt far worse pain when Brigette was targeted, as the other girl's health steadily wore down.
  
  One morning, she awoke to learn that Brigette had apparently died in the night, her body tossed away like trash.
  From that point onwards, Aleksiya did not care what else happened.
  
  She would take revenge on Lord Burian, and make him suffer for his crimes.
  
  But her young body could only take so much cruel treatment, and soon she too was cast out, starved and beaten, to die in the cold one winter's night.
  
  And yet, it was not to be. A figure she thought she recognized as a noble she had once met prior to Lord Burian's attack made her an offer of survival, and power, and she found herself accepting without a second thought.
  
  The next morning, Lord Burian was dead, his skinned corpse hanging from his bedroom window.
  
  Aleksiya Ravennart, now a vampire, claimed ownership of the land that once belonged to her family, as well as the lands of the Mierret and Burian families. The nobles who participated in her family's slaughter were killed, their heads displayed on pikes and their properties absorbed into Aleksiya's territory. From this point on, the girl's life was one filled with that which brought her pleasure. Finery, sweet blood, and punishment for the wicked. As time went on, she became more and more active in moving against those who had earned her ire, and her reputation as the Ice Princess grew. Her manipulation of ice grew to become quite famous.
  
  Unfortunately for Aleksiya, not even her considerable magical capabilities were enough to save her from the surprise attack of the Hundred Paladins, and she was killed. In her last moments, her thoughts drifted to Brigette, and the smallest hope that she would see her once again...
• Anything else: Carries a stuffed rabbit that belonged to Brigette. It is quite weathered by this point, but somehow mostly intact.

[Dead Cruiser]

The Red Worm

Name: Ashur Kupala

Gender: Male

Appearance: While his appearance is mutable thanks to his skills in transformative blood sorcery, Ashur's most commonly-used guise is that of a slight, gentle-featured young man with white hair and pale eyes. His usual garb is finery that allows him to walk amongst the educated and privileged without notice.

Abilities: Ashur's longest pursuit through his unlife has been the study of blood magic, and his attempts to refine it into new and terrifying forms of sorcery. As a living man he was a proficient wizard and alchemist, but in Ichor's era his powers over flesh and blood were truly terrifying. He has dabbled in a wide array of magical disciplines, including those unique to Ichor's children, but blood magic and alchemy that he has derived from it are his true forte.

Personality: To most, Ashur has a charming, if somewhat servile demeanor; this is a fascade, long cultivated over centuries of politicking and deception. In truth, Ashur is vicious, ruthless, and utterly brutal in pusuit of his goals. However, this is all kept carefully concealed, and his efforts toward his secretive agenda are subtle enough to go unnoticed by most. Regarding Ichor, at first Ashur saw her as a means to an end, but now considers her to be his jailer, and knows that he can never truly be free as long as his life is linked to her power. He gives every appearance of pursuing the mission she passed down to him, but truly seeks to rid himself of her yoke. While Ashur views himself as superior to every human, he thinks much the same of most vampires. In his mind, he is an evolved, advanced being, better than any human or vampire, which are beings that exist only to serve his needs and goals.

Bio: Ashur was born in a distant land, a far-removed prince of a royal house. The early years of his mortal life were fraught with danger, as court politics in his homeland were fierce and deadly. He honed his skills in deception (and in poisoncraft) simply to survive his youth, and once he was of age he left his homeland to study the mysteries of magic. Far along his travels he heard tell of the undead goddess Ichor, and sought her power in order to achieve eternal life. Without the threat of age and death hanging over his head, he believed he would be able to achieve mastery of sorcery outside the reach of mortals. His investigations led him to an opium den that was truly the den of something far worse. Beset by vampiric thralls, he used his magical skills to dispatch the undead fiends, and their master was impressed by his prowess. Under Ichor's auspice, Ashur was made a vampire, and his first act as one of the living dead was to slay his progenitor, to ensure none could claim to be his superior.

Spending his unlife in pursuit of secret magics and forbidden alchemy, Ashur spent most of his time far removed from the societies of both humans and vampires. His eventual goal was to surpass the vampiric condition, and evolve into an entire new form of being, free of Ichor's control. Even so, the Hundred Paladins sought to put him down all the same, and there was little that he could do. Their divine power was enough to nullify his unholy magic, and he was eventually slain by his own alchemically-mutated minions after his control over them was broken by the paladins' magic.

[Asuras]

Full
Character Sheet

LUNA EMERALTIDE
♀ | 5'8"

---

♪Rest now, in my arms
This needn't be a nightmare
Dream my voice, hear my song
Your blood is safe with me♪

Abilities:

A longing for control, stasis, and jurisdiction serve as the fundament of Luna's peculiar magic, borne of her unique and particularly strong capacity for enthrallment. So potent is the pierce of her mystic gaze and the ineffable quality of her voice that even her kin sometimes cannot resist. The extreme character of this ability manifests too in her applied magic as ethereal chains, enrapturing spirits, and dismissive auras. Upon the battlefield, Luna dominates her adversaries by way of binding them into paralysis or sapping their will.

Luna can ensnare victims with manifested chains, tying their arms to prevent retaliation, or binding their legs in place to stop their movement. Similarly, she can achieve the same effects by draining the target of their inclination to fight -a 'charm' spell, more or less. At its most powerful, Luna can outright dominate a victim's mind, temporarily throwing them into thralldom, and contesting against their willpower.

Each of these things Luna manifests through her gaze and through voice. Beautiful and soothing, her voice can at one moment be merely an enticing melody, and the next a disorienting curse. To mortals, even unintentionally, a look into her eyes for just a little too long may draw dizziness, confusion, or captivation.

She is in all ways a siren that nullifies and neutralizes, leaving one helpless of her approach when at last her saber or fangs find their way into flesh.

Personality:

Matronly. Focused. Curious.

Luna favors peace over violence, and would rather a world return to its former glory, than to stagnate in moonless ennui as it is. To her, everything now is a mistake that must be corrected, albeit with carefully-designed adjustments in favor of her own kind. Though loyal to vampire-kind and Ichor, Luna holds that man is an existence that should be respected less as cattle, and more as a reservoir of 'friends' to draw from. The connotation in her wording and demeanor, however, ties the nature of 'friends' and 'pets' closely together. A servant, a dog, or a cow -each is still something that even humans can come to 'love and respect' despite the reality of their existences.

Posturing as an accommodating and reliable figure, Luna strives to be a mentor and leader in many ways, perhaps out of a longing to be considered helpful and appreciated. With a longing for the return of the moon, she is driven to uplift Ichor, her kin, and all those who would further this endeavor. Some might call her ambitious, though Luna would describe herself as a merely hopeful soul.

The outwardly cold in demeanor, she is in reality quite fond of socializing, new relationships, and even comedy. With a joke, her poised expression turns to giddy laughter, and the veil of seriousness drops in favor of someone amicable and friendly. Though her dedication to her goals are iron, she need not be herself.

Biography:

When Luna yet breathed, her profession was that of a priestess in service to the goddess Atmeria, now long forgotten by man. As a priestess to the deity of rivers, lakes, and other freshwater sources, Luna blessed locales with safe travels, bountiful harvests of fish, and purity. The sanctity of wells, guarding them from proliferating disease and taint, fell into her purview as well.

The sole caretaker of a temple to Atmeria, Luna was more often visited by hopeful suitors rather than villagers seeking divine blessings and rituals. Her immaculate voice, like crystalline pristine waters of a mountain stream, drew the attention and desire of many. Some merely sought her innocent company, while others nigh-demanded less savory things.

In the twilight of the Ophidiel Era, one such persistent suitor would visit upon Luna not merely his own charming company, but eternity itself. The vampire, in their affair with Luna, feared the loss of her immaculate song, and begged her to remain at his side into the yawning road of forever. Smitten by his person, and herself always an aloof priestess, Luna accepted his proposition and bound her destiny to endless time.

The rendezvous with the man would not last, in a cruel twist of fate: he himself would not last, leaving the once-mortal priestess alone in the Gotterdamerung. As the curtain upon the world descended but inches above the stage, Luna took to wandering, drinking in all that she may experience, and honing the beliefs in Ichor that now guide her newly-awoken chapter.

[Psyker Landshark]

The Death Knight

Dragan Meszaros

Gender:
Male

Appearance:

Stands at a large 6'4. Broad of shoulder and hulking in build. Well-defined muscle, though deeply scarred across his body. Favors furs over silks when outside of his armor. Typically favors massive two-handed weapons, and is most commonly seen wielding a massive flanged mace.

Abilities:
Dragan primarily utilizes both blood magic and necromancy in tandem, befitting a vampire known as the Death Knight.

As a blood mage, Dragan specializes in physical enhancement, preferring to fight in melee with a physical weapon in hand. Of course, he's entirely capable of utilizing the other aspects of blood magic as well, resorting to blood weapons when disarmed and blood barriers to defend against magic. Strangely, though, he has never been seen actually casting a ranged blood spell.

As a necromancer, Dragan keeps it simple, traditional, and efficient: zombies, skeletons, and other such more mundane undead with which to drown his foes in a sea of corpses. One will occasionally see larger abominations within his forces, but these are rare and tend to be pre-prepared, with Dragan seemingly unable to raise these at will in the field as he could with groups of lesser undead. Of course, Dragan cannot simply raise armies at will. Without preparation, he tends to be able to create a dozen or so undead soldiers at a time, given enough materials. With the proper rituals and rites, however, Dragan is entirely capable of acts such as raising entire graveyards at once or binding the shambling bones of large creatures into his service.

Both of these aspects combined leave this particular vampire as a frontline general, leading undead armies into the thick of battle.

Personality:
Dragan follows a twisted sense of noblesse oblige in his dealings. To him, vampires are inherently higher life forms as compared to humans, and thus bear responsibility towards them as a result. Humanity in Dragan's eyes are, at the very least, higher than cattle. It would be more accurate to say that he treats mankind as ignorant children: unable to fend for themselves or make wise decisions. Thus, vampires are to safeguard humanity within their borders, and for this service, deserve the blood they require to survive. After all, this was simply the feudal contract as existed in eras past. Only now with more worthy lords to rule over man.

As a follower of noblesse oblige, Dragan strives to be as great as he can in his personal conduct. He conducts himself with elegance and decorum. However, this is also matched with a penchant for violence and direct action. Where other vampires prefer subtle manipulations and secrecy, Dragan simply strides through problems with a suit of hulking plate armor, a massive weapon, and an undead horde at his back. He is a lord, after all, and lords do not skulk like cowards when their authority is challenged.

In regards to the Goddess, Dragan is a loyal enough follower that he swears to fulfill his divine mission without complaint. Having served the Queen once already, he sees little issue with working to bring her back.

Bio:
The vampire lord known as Dragan Meszaros, the dreaded Death Knight of eras past, was once known as the crusade's greatest shame. Born as an orphan ward of some irrelevant church of a now-dead god, Dragan grew to be a paladin of the same church, setting out on quests throughout the land. He slew monsters, saved the innocent, and championed the light of his god.

Despite his successes, however, Dragan slipped ever into deeper frustration and melancholy as he saw the same stories happen time and time again. Men create problems for themselves that he had to solve for them. Tragedies and villians were created through human sins. The apathy, greed, and wrath of humanity were greater foes than any mere monster that had ever stood in his path. Men were ever more incapable of managing themselves.

Dragan's final days as a paladin were spent chasing the rumors of a vampire in a great duchy of a now-forgotten kingdom. When he arrived, however, every value he held was challenged. The duke was a vain tyrant, working his people past the breaking point and abusing the fruits of their labor to glorify himself. The commoners barely cared about this vampire in the territory: a few deaths a month barely compared to the starving masses. In fact, when Dragan did finally track the vampire's thralls down to an outlying village, he saw something there that broke him. The people in that village, the vampire's cattle, were doing far better compared to the rest of the duchy. Better fed, working for themselves, and just...happier.

It was then that Dragan knew his truth: man was inherently unable to rule itself. Left to its own devices, humanity would eat itself alive. Dragan gave up. He fell. Returning to the duchy's capital, the once-vaunted paladin launched a brazen assault on the duke in broad daylight, slaughtering him and his meager guard. Afterwards, Dragan returned to the vampire's village, throwing the unworthy ruler's head into the middle of the town square. With the vampire's attention piqued, Dragan knelt before him, stating that he had seen the true light.

Bemused at the thought of taking a fallen paladin as Ichor's child, the vampire turned Dragan. After a period of time adjusting to his new existence and learning all he could of vampirism, Dragan took his leave, setting out on his own with his patron's blessing. Centuries later, the vampire known as the Death Knight scourged the land, conquering a kingdom with his undead army in the name of the Queen. He sought to replace the incompetent rule of man with his own benevolent tyranny. But this was not to be. Not in this era. Such a public, reviled monster was one of the first targets of the Hundred Paladins, made more urgent by the shame that he was once a paladin himself. While the bulk of the Hundred tore through his armies with their silver swords and divine blessings, their strongest champions engaged Dragan himself and laid him low. The Death Knight was shattered with his kingdom, his dreams dashed as the Hundred moved on.

[Click This]

Ended up adapting part of that drawing I mentioned for this after all. Hardly as detailed as I’d have liked to make it on short notice, but I’m not good enough of an artist for that, ha.

Princess Ambassador

Giselle de Farry

'Sella'

♀

---

Standing at 5’ 4”, she possesses an average, if somewhat slim frame. Her pale skin is a near match for her paper-white hair, often done up in fluffy twintail locks that reach down to her upper back. Her blood-red eyes, typical of her kind, twinkle with amusement, to match the refined elegance of her way of carrying herself. She enjoys discerning, often bare-shouldered dresses, and usually of her own creation.

Abilities

As a lady of blood, Giselle takes the art of bloodcraft to its upper bounds of refinement. Acting as the artist or conductor of her own world, she paints the environment around her in tasteful blood. From the elegant dresses she wears, to the beautifully crafted weapons she wields, to even the exquisitely decorated chairs and tables that she sits at, they are all her creations of blood.

Once upon a time, transmutation of such valuable ichor into immutable, fantastic masterpieces was not beyond her. It was not uncommon for her to reward the most loyal of her friends and followers with thoughtfully crafted weapons, equipment, and sundry. To others, for the right price.

Although her work embodies creation, it does not belie her destructive potential, either through her creations themselves, or by brute force of blood as is favored by many of her kind. Possessing a secondary affinity for illusion, a task she puts to use in friendship, it can be otherwise insidiously dangerous in battle, in light of her abilities of creation. How can one feel safe, after all, if one knows what they face is a creation, but not of what type?

Personality

Giselle is an unusual character for her breed, insofar as one can be as an undead being whose unlife and purpose revolves around lifeblood. Secular as much as one can be without being too out of line with Ichor, she treats humans as intellectual equals to her own kind, preferring to judge people on their individual merit and without the bias of unlife— show respect and have your wits about you, and she will return the favor, and more. That, however, doesn’t stop her from finding many of them wanting, and subsequently, beneath her notice.

To humans, she is one of the more pleasant characters among her people, if somewhat smug and self-satisfied. She’s able to find intellectual companionship with the humans and vampires that she finds herself able to respect, and somehow finds amusement out of the antics of those that she does not. Those that she favors she does all in her power to protect or win to her side, slotting them into her retinue with their free wills (mostly) intact, dispensing favors and rewards with an even hand. Many eventually serve in her employment as maid and butler knights, as thralls and valued humans alike.

Content to talk, listen to stories, and act as ambassador between the two worlds, she does not kill unless required to do so, finding the act a waste. Satisfied with her own thing in peace, she subscribes to the mind your own business school of ethics. She, however, responds by rote with significant force escalation if even slightly provoked otherwise. To Giselle, the taking and giving of blood is transactional—if she respects you. For the right price, she may even allow one to walk alongside her as a fellow daughter of Ichor.

In the wake of the ashes of an era crumbled to dust, for how the world has fallen, only sense can be found in returning her queen and liege lord to the world.

Biography

An era and a half ago, long lost to time, Giselle was once the heir to a great princely house. Just and fair, wise for her years, a consummate diplomat, and unblinded by religious zeal, she was the ideal successor to rule the lands of the great house. It was this same lack of dependence on the whims of the gods that made it easy for her to fall when a vampire passed into her domain.

Finding stability in a particularly decadent ritual together with some of her court, once turned, her attention simply returned once more to tend to her domain with a careful but firm hand, as she always had, securing peaceful futures for her human and undead subjects through personal diplomacy—backed by her loyal order of maid-knights.

In time, she became respected for her immutability and diplomacy by both living and undead alike, joining the orbit of the Queen as one of her trusted, if aloof, generals in the role of ambassador between the two societies. She was the bridge between her kind and the humans, the gateway to the undead, and the undead to the living. Connections, special goods, and services that might never have existed between the two did, through her.

It was a respect and a reputation that went a long way, her land and court remaining a finely balanced neutral safe ground even well into the war of the crusade of the Hundred Paladins, carefully maintained by ironclad treaties and agreements.

Yet still, the paladins would not suffer a single vampire to remain untouched, especially one that would provide the last safe haven to her kind. Fortress as it was, booby-trapped beyond reason, guarded by its own elite order of knights and secured by human alliance, it was no deterrent. Eventually, they came for her and her people still, as society and general order unraveled as the era came to a close. The last days of the crusade burned bright and hot as vampires fought against paladins, knights against knights, humans against humans, the Paladins paying dearly for every inch of soil taken.

There was only so much an isolated enclave in a collapsing world could take, however, before it too would fall together with their Lady and the rest of them all.