Sitting at a table for dinner was fairly normal. Eating a Michelin restaurant wasn’t that strange, at least for a man of Ulrich’s standing. This wasn’t even the first time he had eaten with a ghost, though it would hopefully end better this time around. Despite the seemingly normality of the situation to Ulrich, he couldn’t help but feel on edge. It wasn’t dining with a hero from the past, though that likely didn’t help the situation at handle. A battle to the death was something he had done several times prio, meaning any thrill or nerves from it had gone away decades ago.
Maybe it was the fact that this war held a monster lying in wait? Ulrich was only given the rank of Cherubim, ensuring that a more powerful magus had partaken in this war. Unfortunately, that also wasn’t the case. In fact, Ulrich had thought it to have been some sort of mistake. He had already spent an earlier section of the day ranting about his rank to his Servant, though he apologized later on after he realized how polite she was.
The day had been standard, well as standard as the prelude to a war could be. Ulrich had summoned his Servant early in the morning, while the moon had still yet to sleep. They had a short exchange, then immediately got to work preparing for the night. A few distractions ruined this plan, such as his previously mentioned rant, room service breaking while he wasn’t paying attention, the hotel questioning his identity, his assets being momentarily frozen, and things of that accord.
In hindsight, this day went fairly poorly. However, such things were seen as momentary setbacks. He may have considered killing everyone in the hotel once or twice towards evening, the man kept his sanity long enough to know that was idiotic. One of the many strengths of a hotel was the amount of bodies. Who would ever take over a hotel only to remove the inhabitants?
Once sunset had arrived and he mentioned feeling a bit peckish, his Servant suggested a meal. Ulrich had no intention of ever leaving his hotel room for food, but when his Servant mentioned trying the delicacy of this alien land, Ulrich couldn’t refuse. His Servant had been polite and respectful so far, which meant they deserved some sort of treat. Was rewarding a Servant like a pet wrong?
Probably.
Ulrich had been to Budapest before, Austrian and Hungarian magi still held close ties, he had yet to really try any of the fine dining the city had. This Costes was the first restaurant in Hungary to receive any attention, so at the very least he could brag about eating here to some of his acquaintances. The restaurant was initially completely booked for the night, but bribery never really failed if you add in enough 0’s.
And so, there he was, sitting at a table across from his Servant. His face and posture spoke nothing about his current state of unease, but it remained nonetheless. No matter how hard he thought, nothing was coming to him. He simply sighted and hoped it would go away after a meal. With that, he finally opened him his menu.
“I hear the Fogas here is their best dish. It’s a type of fish, though I haven’t tried it myself. They only have Western drinks here, so just order what you like. I’ll probably have a Barbaresco, but please don’t let my taste dictate your own.”
The city of Budapest is soon to slumber, blissfully unaware of the calamity at work outside of it’s gaze. The sun had begun it’s descent over the horizon, leaving a purple hue as the only natural light to coat the city. The snow which had started earlier in the day as a slight flurry has begun to come down hard onto Budapest. While the sun was beginning to sleep, the winds were starting to awake, making an already chilly night even colder.
It was a seemingly peaceful night for Budapest, with just the right amount of wrongness to leave those intune with the sense of dread that was soon to occur.
The war to actualize the dreams of 8 magi was soon to begin.
All of the magi had arranged in the city a few days prior, but never before had the city given such a false sense of serenity. Each had gotten acquainted with the city, so the disturbance was likely felt by them all. The lack of genuine command mantra helped them blend into a city of nearly 2 million, but that one thin layer of protection was ruined earlier in the day when their Servants were summoned.
The copies of legendary spirits of the past given shells made from ether entered the stage around 12 hours prior. General introductions were given, maybe their identity, but both master and servant would begin to have a good idea on what kind of person they were working with. The pairs had better reach some kind of understanding at least, the war was soon to bring warmth to this cold city.
As the sun continued it’s path behind the hills of the Second and Twelfth District, the opening signs of the war had finally begun to flare up. Literally, as the Command Mantra on the magi’s hands began to burn, signaling that another Master was in the area.
The city would know no peace while this war took place and neither would the Masters.
The Dreams of 8 Magi were both the admission fee and the prize of this war. In order to actualize what they want most, the dreams of others must be stomped and crushed into the snow. No mercy is given to those too weak to lay it all on the line for what they want.
The roulette had begun it’s spin, with only one potential Master avoiding the bullet. Who shall be that lucky one?
Camillo-Giovanni: District XII Oshi-Lauchme: District V Adina-Keleman: District II
Ulrich and Elenorzva failed their encounter rolls, placing them in whatever Districts they decide on outside of V, II, or XII.
Ulrich appears as someone rather calm, cool, and collected. This is not to say that he isn’t, but it masks his rather fiery desire to accomplish something once he has committed. Ulrich is the sort of person who, if there is a leaderboard, he would need to be at the very top. His younger colleagues and students have made sure to keep him away from Video Games because of this, as if Ulrich spent his time in them, it would be a crime to Magecraft everywhere. If an actual real reward is at the end of the leaderboard? Well, few things could really stop him in his pursuit. During his teen years, he was constantly “Employee of the Month” at his part time job.
Ulrich is ultimately the kind of person who only truly knows isolation, thus it is really the only sort of interaction he genuinely knows. While he was raised by another family, he was always a bit of an “outsider.” He was able to make friends and the like during his years as a student, but those weren’t TRUE friendships. Or at least, they never felt that way. If he could even feel that way. His romantic life was always fleeting, with himself still never settling down towards the end of his magus youth. His inability to form connections in any meaningful sense has forced him to create a mask of sorts, one which shows the warmth and compassion required by a teacher. It has been noted by Nobles in the Aristocratic Faction that he likely has some sort of ability to switch between personalities, but that isn’t exactly true. Shifting between masks is not anything that special.
Hates the Church for fairly obvious reasons.
Still a WIP.
The Rudolfsheim family began in the 13th century in the state of Salzburg within the Kingdom of Bavaria. The founder, Rudolf, would establish and begin taking the family down their path towards the root. If a magus could find a method to perfectly “dissect” the Soul, then follow it back, a path to the root would be established. This naturally led Rudolf towards Spiritual Surgery, which was fortunate as his circuits seemed to have been composed to work with it. While Spiritual Surgery was seen as a more barbaric art than something noble, it fit well with the heavy pagan roots of the Alps.
After his passing, the family would continue to follow in his footsteps. Being the first generation head, he was not much of a magus, but the seeds he had sown would give birth to one of the most prominent families in the magus world. Soon after their beginning, they would even take a role in politics of the normal world. While not key figures, the Rudolfsheim would play a significant role in Salzburg breaking free from the Kingdom of Bavaria, something they did as a method to court wealth and favors. Establishing relationships and favors with Nobility is something the family would continue to do through the Archbishop of Salzburg, up through the Holy Roman Emperor and Emperor of Austria-Hungary.
In the magical world, their ability to court relationships also came into play. Even when they were still a young family, they would find ways to befriend prominent magi. This included many of the early Occultists of the Renaissance, even to figures like Paracelsus. Their positioning in Salzburg, and later Vienna, allowed them to have their finger on the cultural pulse of Europe, both normal and magical. Eventually, the Rudolfsheim would achieve their own greatness, producing successive generations of, minimum, Pride ranked Magi, some of which would go into teaching or faculty positions within the Clock Tower. Around the turn of the 19th century, the family would begin to take spouses of genuine noble families. For all intents and purposes, the family had begun to truly cement itself as a real powerplayer within the magical world.
Ulrich’s father was an excellent magus, but a bit of a step down from their family average. His circuits weren’t as high, but more importantly, his mindset was off. He lacked the political grace, nor the mind for complex magical theory. Most importantly, he had no skills in family management and could never hold his temper. In effect, this would end up isolating the family from some of their allies, but also saw numerous branch families cut ties, seeing him as the downfall of the family. Even the higher ups in Clock Tower were seemingly ready to turn their back on him and the family, but in a last ditch effort he accepted a deal with the Bartholmeloi.
A simple Dead Apostle hunt was all that was needed to be done to remain in good graces with the Aristocratic faction. Of course, this isn’t actually how it happened. While Ulrich’s father brought together a decent force including all members of the main family, it just wasn’t enough for what would occur. The actual invasion of the Dead Apostle stronghold wasn’t that bad, though it left a few dead and most injured to some degree. The actual problem was the Holy Order showed up a tad bit late, after the fighting had occurred, and had a group of injured magi on neutral ground on their hands.
It was a slaughter.
As the event occurred during a Dead Apostle Hunt, and on Neutral grounds like Japan, there was little the Association could do in regards to bringing it up with the Holy Church. The Rudolfsheim main family was effectively eradicated in that moment. While a few objects were restored, including what remained of the crest, the bulk of the family had died on that die. This event left Ulrich, Age 7, on his own.
Ulrich was the heir to a dead legacy, with those taking care him the most loyal of the Rudolfsheim branches. The crest that was returned to him was little better than a family of a handful of generations. A crest that would have taken 20 years or so to fully transfer was done in a few years. The boy himself, on the surface at least, appeared no better than his father in composition. He would stand as a swan song to a once powerful family.
Or, that was how it was meant to go.
Even at a young age, the boy’s natural intellect showed. The family that took care of him still kept a shred of their influence, and used it to better educate the boy with tudors. He entered the Clock Tower on a scholarship, after he properly demonstrated his control over the humours of course. His time at the academy would be described by him as “boring and uneventful,” though it likely was not the case. Many duels would take place around Ulrich, with his constant string of victories being unheard of. This mostly stemming from the fact that he was a Spiritual Surgeon. Many rumors still circulate around the dormitory he stayed in, most of which stem around how a Surgeon could possibly destroy an entire wing. Ulrich would graduate fairly quickly from the Clock Tower, where he immediately took a spot as an apprentice under the Nuada-Re family. His time at Clock Tower showed the rest of the Association his skills in Spiritual Surgery. It may have been a “barbaric” art, but his skill in it even exceeded those found in the Holy Church.
After his years as an apprentice, he spent the following decade tying his ailing family back together. There were rogue branch families, and they needed to be brought back into line. His numerous accolades made it easier, but there were several occasions where force or coercion were needed. In one case in particular, he had to actually hogtie a man. It was probably the most turbulent time in Ulrich’s life.
With this finished, Ulrich was in his mid-30’s, and was offered a position to teach a few classes on the fundamentals of Spiritual Surgery. As he actually had nothing better to do, along with him having a renewed desire in Clock Tower politics, he accepted the position. While he still teaches a few introductory courses in Spiritual Surgery, most of his teaching time is spent on the highest of levels. Every few years when the Astromancy department is down a Professor, he’ll pop in to teach a rudimentary course.
As a man nearing 60, Ulrich is considered one of the very best at what he does. As a teacher he is mostly beloved, though he is consistently considered a “tough” Professor, consistently getting a 4 or 5 on Dark RateMyProfessor. As a member of the Aristocratic faction, he is feared as being “persuasive,” and a highly regarded asset by those in control. As the scion of a seemingly dead family, he had managed to make a “1” from “0,” something that would likely end him in a History book somewhere. While many of his adventures were in his youth, few have lived quite the life. Now, towards the end of magus' youth, he is looking to settle down and finally continue the Rudolfsheim family.
After one last adventure of course.
Rumors of the Holy Grail War, an artifact created by the Einzbern to manifest wishes, had begun circulating around his department. Ulrich took an immediate curiosity in it, which forced him to look deeper into it. After making a few calls and reading a few old tomes, he began to understand more of the true nature of the Holy Grail. With that in mind, fighting for it was the only logical thing to do. His life was on the line, but this was likely an effort that could have him realize the family’s goal.
Ulrich appears as someone rather calm, cool, and collected. This is not to say that he isn’t, but it masks his rather fiery desire to accomplish something once he has committed. Ulrich is the sort of person who, if there is a leaderboard, he would need to be at the very top. His younger colleagues and students have made sure to keep him away from Video Games because of this, as if Ulrich spent his time in them, it would be a crime to Magecraft everywhere. If an actual real reward is at the end of the leaderboard? Well, few things could really stop him in his pursuit. During his teen years, he was constantly “Employee of the Month” at his part time job.
Ulrich is ultimately the kind of person who only truly knows isolation, thus it is really the only sort of interaction he genuinely knows. While he was raised by another family, he was always a bit of an “outsider.” He was able to make friends and the like during his years as a student, but those weren’t TRUE friendships. Or at least, they never felt that way. If he could even feel that way. His romantic life was always fleeting, with himself still never settling down towards the end of his magus youth. His inability to form connections in any meaningful sense has forced him to create a mask of sorts, one which shows the warmth and compassion required by a teacher. It has been noted by Nobles in the Aristocratic Faction that he likely has some sort of ability to switch between personalities, but that isn’t exactly true. Shifting between masks is not anything that special.
Hates the Church for fairly obvious reasons.
Still a WIP.
The Rudolfsheim family began in the 13th century in the state of Salzburg within the Kingdom of Bavaria. The founder, Rudolf, would establish and begin taking the family down their path towards the root. If a magus could find a method to perfectly “dissect” the Soul, then follow it back, a path to the root would be established. This naturally led Rudolf towards Spiritual Surgery, which was fortunate as his circuits seemed to have been composed to work with it. While Spiritual Surgery was seen as a more barbaric art than something noble, it fit well with the heavy pagan roots of the Alps.
After his passing, the family would continue to follow in his footsteps. Being the first generation head, he was not much of a magus, but the seeds he had sown would give birth to one of the most prominent families in the magus world. Soon after their beginning, they would even take a role in politics of the normal world. While not key figures, the Rudolfsheim would play a significant role in Salzburg breaking free from the Kingdom of Bavaria, something they did as a method to court wealth and favors. Establishing relationships and favors with Nobility is something the family would continue to do through the Archbishop of Salzburg, up through the Holy Roman Emperor and Emperor of Austria-Hungary.
In the magical world, their ability to court relationships also came into play. Even when they were still a young family, they would find ways to befriend prominent magi. This included many of the early Occultists of the Renaissance, even to figures like Paracelsus. Their positioning in Salzburg, and later Vienna, allowed them to have their finger on the cultural pulse of Europe, both normal and magical. Eventually, the Rudolfsheim would achieve their own greatness, producing successive generations of, minimum, Pride ranked Magi, some of which would go into teaching or faculty positions within the Clock Tower. Around the turn of the 19th century, the family would begin to take spouses of genuine noble families. For all intents and purposes, the family had begun to truly cement itself as a real powerplayer within the magical world.
Ulrich’s father was an excellent magus, but a bit of a step down from their family average. His circuits weren’t as high, but more importantly, his mindset was off. He lacked the political grace, nor the mind for complex magical theory. Most importantly, he had no skills in family management and could never hold his temper. In effect, this would end up isolating the family from some of their allies, but also saw numerous branch families cut ties, seeing him as the downfall of the family. Even the higher ups in Clock Tower were seemingly ready to turn their back on him and the family, but in a last ditch effort he accepted a deal with the Bartholmeloi.
A simple Dead Apostle hunt was all that was needed to be done to remain in good graces with the Aristocratic faction. Of course, this isn’t actually how it happened. While Ulrich’s father brought together a decent force including all members of the main family, it just wasn’t enough for what would occur. The actual invasion of the Dead Apostle stronghold wasn’t that bad, though it left a few dead and most injured to some degree. The actual problem was the Holy Order showed up a tad bit late, after the fighting had occurred, and had a group of injured magi on neutral ground on their hands.
It was a slaughter.
As the event occurred during a Dead Apostle Hunt, and on Neutral grounds like Vietnam, there was little the Association could do in regards to bringing it up with the Holy Church. The Rudolfsheim main family was effectively eradicated in that moment. While a few objects were restored, including what remained of the crest, the bulk of the family had died on that die. This event left Ulrich, Age 7, on his own.
Ulrich was the heir to a dead legacy, with those taking care him the most loyal of the Rudolfsheim branches. The crest that was returned to him was little better than a family of a handful of generations. A crest that would have taken 20 years or so to fully transfer was done in a few years. The boy himself, on the surface at least, appeared no better than his father in composition. He would stand as a swan song to a once powerful family.
Or, that was how it was meant to go.
Even at a young age, the boy’s natural intellect showed. The family that took care of him still kept a shred of their influence, and used it to better educate the boy with tudors. He entered the Clock Tower on a scholarship, after he properly demonstrated his control over the humours of course. His time at the academy would be described by him as “boring and uneventful,” though it likely was not the case. Many duels would take place around Ulrich, with his constant string of victories being unheard of. This mostly stemming from the fact that he was a Spiritual Surgeon. Many rumors still circulate around the dormitory he stayed in, most of which stem around how a Surgeon could possibly destroy an entire wing. Ulrich would graduate fairly quickly from the Clock Tower, where he immediately took a spot as an apprentice under the Nuada-Re family. His time at Clock Tower showed the rest of the Association his skills in Spiritual Surgery. It may have been a “barbaric” art, but his skill in it even exceeded those found in the Holy Church.
After his years as an apprentice, he spent the following decade tying his ailing family back together. There were rogue branch families, and they needed to be brought back into line. His numerous accolades made it easier, but there were several occasions where force or coercion were needed. In one case in particular, he had to actually hogtie a man. It was probably the most turbulent time in Ulrich’s life.
With this finished, Ulrich was in his mid-30’s, and was offered a position to teach a few classes on the fundamentals of Spiritual Surgery. As he actually had nothing better to do, along with him having a renewed desire in Clock Tower politics, he accepted the position. While he still teaches a few introductory courses in Spiritual Surgery, most of his teaching time is spent on the highest of levels. Every few years when the Astromancy department is down a Professor, he’ll pop in to teach a rudimentary course.
As a man nearing 60, Ulrich is considered one of the very best at what he does. As a teacher he is mostly beloved, though he is consistently considered a “tough” Professor, consistently getting a 4 or 5 on Dark RateMyProfessor. As a member of the Aristocratic faction, he is feared as being “persuasive,” and a highly regarded asset by those in control. As the scion of a seemingly dead family, he had managed to make a “1” from “0,” something that would likely end him in a History book somewhere. While many of his adventures were in his youth, few have lived quite the life. Now, towards the end of magus' youth, he is looking to settle down and finally continue the Rudolfsheim family.
After one last adventure of course.
Rumors of the Holy Grail War, an artifact created by the Einzbern to manifest wishes, had begun circulating around his department. Ulrich took an immediate curiosity in it, which forced him to look deeper into it. After making a few calls and reading a few old tomes, he began to understand more of the true nature of the Holy Grail. With that in mind, fighting for it was the only logical thing to do. His life was on the line, but this was likely an effort that could have him realize the family’s goal.
There may still be some edits, they were chosen more so for them fitting themes, etc etc. The overall theme of things is really starting to come together with this new round.
Well, well, well, it is time for Master Approvals 2!
Same thing as the last time, so there may still be some edits required. Overall, we just really like the thematics these characters bring to the narrative we have constructed.
@DostHou's Camillio Seguvia @Phonic's Elenorzva Sebotten Mercurius-Agnes Schwända von Schwenussen
We've decided on two Masters and two Servants that really fit the mood and themes we're going for! Also one of them had no actual competition, so good job there.
Now, just because the sheet has been approved, it doesn't mean some edits aren't required. Instead, see this as a "your character concept and general mechanics were fitting for what we wanted." While these are locked in, if something is to happen to any of these members that forces them to drop, we will ask those whose concepts weren't accepted to replace them if it pleases them.
It'd be great to expand on your magecraft a bit! While we both have some understanding on what your systems so, an elaboration would help a lot to help us have a clearer idea on what you're going for.
For your cloak mystic code, are you implying it hides akin to Invisible Air, or is it hiding in another way?
