PyroFox Member
Admiral
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- Joined: 10 yrs ago
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- PyroFox 10 yrs ago
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He was still not all that impressed by the group, and possibly even less so by their employer. So, he could teleport and summon a table. From what he could tell, it was all from that tome. Any idiot could read instructions and repeat them. But, even so, the man was easily more powerful than him if he had that book with him, and could garner any information he required out of it. So, he simply closed his book, shoved it into his back, and very reluctantly sat down at the table. At six-foot-two and wide in the shoulders, he was very uncomfortable with how close he was to the two mages on either side of him.
The mention of a library got his attention. An ancient place filled with several hundred volumes of arcane texts, just out there waiting for anyone to stumble on them and take the knowledge for their own? He could barely suppress a grin from sprouting underneath his bushy beard. However, if this man was just going to give them all free reign over the place once they got there and established the waypoint, then there was something more to it than just the library. Something specific that would be overlooked by anyone not looking for it. While the man continued to explain the pay, which was completely secondary to him at this point, he grumbled underneath his breath.
Then there was the arrival of the bandits. His original intent was to simply sit there, relax, and let everyone else deal with them all. Unfortunately, some _genius_ had decided to set the entire village on fire. And, even more unfortunate, he did not know any cold spells to put anything out. If she hadn't already been shot a few times for her stupidity, he'd have stabbed her. Instead, he yanked his sword from his scabbard and stalked around, waiting for easy prey to come for him.
He must have looked intimidating, because he was mostly ignored for a little bit. A few bolts of lightning that were more show than substance flew over the heads of the bandits, gaining their attention. One of three charged at him. So, rumors of bandits being stupid were true. The bandit intended to run right through him. Rather than let that happen, the fool got a shot of electricity in his face when he was only a few feet away. As showy as his abilities were, a point blank shot to the face was enough to kill any but the hardiest men, and even then they'd be down for quite a while foaming at the mouth.
Another lost interest for an easier target, but another, some guy in what passed for little more than rags covered in fur and wielding a mace made his way more cautiously towards him. The duel was over quickly. The bandit gave a savage swing, which was blocked with the flat of the sword, parried away, and then the tip of the blade was thrust forward into the bandit's chest. The mage let the body drop to its knees, and used the sole of his boot to push the corpse off of his sword. Then he faded into the background, disinterested in continuing fighting. He didn't feel like getting a knife in his back or an arrow in his chest, like some people.
> You guys know that feeling when you write a HUGEASS post that took you 3 or more hours to do, only for the website to randomly glitch out (Logged me out automatically, leading to an error page when I tried to post) and then delete absolutely EVERYTHING with no way of recovering all the work?
A man who looked like little more than the common thug was making his way down the rode towards the little village of Misala. Former village, he corrected himself. From what the rumor said, it had been abandoned for over a generation, possible two. Thick boots kicked up dirt into the already dirty brown trousers he wore. His beard was unkempt, a mass of brown that was sorely missing its normal treatment of being braided like the dwarves did theirs. A black tunic covered his chest to make him look at least somewhat decent. A sword hung on the left side of his belt, a backpack on his back filled with books, parchment, quills, ink, and a tiny bit of rations.
Still a good bit from Misala, the man kept his beady little eyes on the text in the pages. An old, old dialect of the common tongue, difficult to read yet easier to speak. He would, if he needed to, just to confuse those around him. His eyes rose for a moment, then lowered back to the pages. They described fantastical things, things that many would rather be forgotten or kept hidden. Things of demons and magic, of wars and monsters. He chuckled, knowing full well that he'd be a dead man the moment the Paladins realized he'd pilfered it and a few other books from the library before running off to lands unknown.
It was about that time when he realized that he had come into the shadow of a building. He looked up, noted the horrifyingly overgrown state of the village, then shrugged and continued, shutting his book in the process. It was stuffed underneath his arm as he made his way into the center of the camp, situating himself a little away from the rest. He let the backpack onto the ground, then stuffed the thick tome inside out of view of prying eyes, then pulled out a few pieces of dried jerky to gnaw on while others enjoyed their roasted boar and other treats. He did notice the elves and the odd girl in the worse looking armor. The girl did not impress him. She looked like she was overcompensating.
With that thought in his head, he took out a small book about the recent history of Altea and began reading to pass the time while he waited for their esteemed benefactor to come and give them the job.
**Name:** Viktor Grimm
**Race:** Human
**Age:** Twenty-Seven
**Alignment:** Mage
**Personality:** As skeptical a man as anyone can find, Viktor is bound to distrust anything not recorded in a book written before he was born. He is even less willing to believe anything someone says, let alone what they would have him believe. Despite a lack of being mistreated personally, he harbors a great distrust, dislike, and disgust towards the Paladins, and he makes no attempt to hide it when he speaks to them, though he's not dimwitted enough to openly speak against them. Few outside of his own kind can tolerate him for all the venom he spouts when he opens his mouth, and if they ever got a look as to what he kept locked inside his head, even the Paladins would be wary to go around him. He would prefer to keep to himself and his books than bother with anyone.
**Bio:** Viktor had a childhood that many could only dream of. While his family was in poverty and practically dying on the streets, risking their hides begging or working in the Undercity, Viktor grew up with little less than the average child. Every parent wants nothing more than for their child to be happy, and his were no exceptions. However, them allowing him to get his way ended up in them going hungry more often than not, and eventually led to his cousins and uncles abandoning them to their fate. At the age of five, he was discovered to be a mage by another beggar. Shortly after, Viktor accidentally burned down the shanty his family lived in. No one was harmed, however he was then taken away to study and learn to control his power.
All of this was told to him secondhand. He remembers nothing from that long ago, and cares little for the people that were his family. So little that he threw out his birthname and gave himself the one he now wears. He later did learn that his parents had starved in the streets not a month after he was taken away. He was sheltered in one of the ghettos by adoptive parents, and each day was taken to a library/college for mages to learn about their abilities, albeit under heavy supervision by the Luminous Knights.
There, he learned much of what he knows now. Most of it magical theory, philosophy, and little magic. The Paladins don't like mages knowing what they're doing. Better if they never utilize their potential and sit as a wasted resource their entire lives. Nevertheless, Viktor did pick up some useful skills while he was at the college. He observed the Paladins who sat out front, sparring, when he was younger. He would occasionally participate when they would let him, using a large hand-and-a-half training sword when he could. Under brutal conditions, he was trained in martial combat by the older Paladins who had nothing better to do but stand guard. They never grew to like each other - Viktor was cold, if respectful, and the Paladins were Paladins.
Little else of importance has happened in his recent years. He continues to train and study, often staying until late hours, sometimes after midnight, until the Paladin assigned to him decides to force him back to his home in the ghetto. Some have noticed that he seems to be getting more irritated and aggressive lately, as if something has him worried or nervous.
**Initial spells/techniques:**
- *Lightning Bolt:* Viktor sends a bolt of electricity in a straight line. The first thing it hits is given a strong surge of electricity, often incapacitating the person or animal and causing spasms for a few moments. The pain is great, but nothing someone with a strong threshold for pain cannot power through. Any metal on the body only makes the effect greater, since it is such a great conductor.
- *Gust:* He is able to send out a blast of wind around him, knocking away all but the heaviest of people or objects. The average distance people are thrown has been ten feet so far.
- *Mist:* A heavy mist forms from the mage, and spreads across a half-mile radius. The mana becomes thinner
the farther away from the epicenter, and after a while (roughly ten minutes) there is little mana keeping the mist still together. At its thickest, it is difficult to see five feet in front of oneself.
**Skills:**
- _Bastard Swordsmanship:_ Through years of training around and with Paladins, Viktor has become an adept at wielding hand-and-a-half weapons. As such, he is also quite skilled in using a sword with both one or two hands, and has trained himself to be ambidextrous with a blade. He could also, in theory, adapt to both longswords and greatswords with relative ease if he were forced to.
- _Scholarly Mind:_ He has an educated and refined mind, if his views are skewed by prejudice and lack of real world practice. He is able to analyze and look at any situation from a neutral perspective, giving an unbiased opinion. His education also allows him to read the common tongue, as well as older dialects, the dwarven tongue, and the elven tongue, though the last he is less well versed in.
- _Enchanting:_ While still barely an apprentice in the art, Viktor has learned how to imbue weapons and armor with minor enchantments, such as increased strength or speed by small increments, or lighting a weapon ablaze or coating it with electricity.
- _Forbidden Lore:_ While not something he is willing to share with anyone, for fear of his throat being slit in a dark alley, is that he knows of the existence of the Scars as well as many of their locations, as well as a basic grasp of what the Beyond is and how its denizens act. While he is not an expert by any means, he does know enough to work out why the Beyond is feared by many, and why it is such a useful source of power. If only he knew how to tap that resource.
**Combat strategy:** In short, Viktor would prefer to avoid combat. It is not that he does not believe in his own skills as a swordsman, but that he feels that if he were to get into a fight, it would be with Paladins, who have a major advantage over him in more ways than one. Rather, he would put off fighting in favor of getting away. Whether this be by hurling lightning bolts or throwing around debris or making an impenetrable mist to hide his escape or mask an ambush, so be it. The battle won for him is the one that is not fought.
Must he fight, he would take up a duelist's stance, wielding his sword in front of him with both hands while taking a more passive route in the fight, weaving and parrying until he can get off a spell or use one might chop to end the fight, rather than prolong it.
**Unique equipment:**
- _Bastard Sword:_ A common blade that he "acquired" late on night from one of the Paladins who had been assigned to him.
- _Grimoire:_ A very old and dusty book written in an even older dialect of the common tongue. Something he procured from the library, and which he studies to gain more magical knowledge. The study is slow going as the text is hard to decipher, however progress is being made.
Everyone posts while I'm not online. Will get something up this afternoon.
**Name:** Viktor Grimm
**Race:** Human
**Age:** Twenty-Seven
**Alignment:** Mage
**Personality:** As skeptical a man as anyone can find, Viktor is bound to distrust anything not recorded in a book written before he was born. He is even less willing to believe anything someone says, let alone what they would have him believe. Despite a lack of being mistreated personally, he harbors a great distrust, dislike, and disgust towards the Paladins, and he makes no attempt to hide it when he speaks to them, though he's not dimwitted enough to openly speak against them. Few outside of his own kind can tolerate him for all the venom he spouts when he opens his mouth, and if they ever got a look as to what he kept locked inside his head, even the Paladins would be wary to go around him. He would prefer to keep to himself and his books than bother with anyone.
**Bio:** Viktor had a childhood that many could only dream of. While his family was in poverty and practically dying on the streets, risking their hides begging or working in the Undercity, Viktor grew up with little less than the average child. Every parent wants nothing more than for their child to be happy, and his were no exceptions. However, them allowing him to get his way ended up in them going hungry more often than not, and eventually led to his cousins and uncles abandoning them to their fate. At the age of five, he was discovered to be a mage by another beggar. Shortly after, Viktor accidentally burned down the shanty his family lived in. No one was harmed, however he was then taken away to study and learn to control his power.
All of this was told to him secondhand. He remembers nothing from that long ago, and cares little for the people that were his family. So little that he threw out his birthname and gave himself the one he now wears. He later did learn that his parents had starved in the streets not a month after he was taken away. He was sheltered in one of the ghettos by adoptive parents, and each day was taken to a library/college for mages to learn about their abilities, albeit under heavy supervision by the Luminous Knights.
There, he learned much of what he knows now. Most of it magical theory, philosophy, and little magic. The Paladins don't like mages knowing what they're doing. Better if they never utilize their potential and sit as a wasted resource their entire lives. Nevertheless, Viktor did pick up some useful skills while he was at the college. He observed the Paladins who sat out front, sparring, when he was younger. He would occasionally participate when they would let him, using a large hand-and-a-half training sword when he could. Under brutal conditions, he was trained in martial combat by the older Paladins who had nothing better to do but stand guard. They never grew to like each other - Viktor was cold, if respectful, and the Paladins were Paladins.
Little else of importance has happened in his recent years. He continues to train and study, often staying until late hours, sometimes after midnight, until the Paladin assigned to him decides to force him back to his home in the ghetto. Some have noticed that he seems to be getting more irritated and aggressive lately, as if something has him worried or nervous.
**Initial spells/techniques:**
- *Lightning Bolt:* Viktor sends a bolt of electricity in a straight line. The first thing it hits is given a strong surge of electricity, often incapacitating the person or animal and causing spasms for a few moments. The pain is great, but nothing someone with a strong threshold for pain cannot power through. Any metal on the body only makes the effect greater, since it is such a great conductor.
- *Gust:* He is able to send out a blast of wind around him, knocking away all but the heaviest of people or objects. The average distance people are thrown has been ten feet so far.
- *Mist:* A heavy mist forms from the mage, and spreads across a half-mile radius. The mana becomes thinner
the farther away from the epicenter, and after a while (roughly ten minutes) there is little mana keeping the mist still together. At its thickest, it is difficult to see five feet in front of oneself.
**Skills:**
- _Bastard Swordsmanship:_ Through years of training around and with Paladins, Viktor has become an adept at wielding hand-and-a-half weapons. As such, he is also quite skilled in using a sword with both one or two hands, and has trained himself to be ambidextrous with a blade. He could also, in theory, adapt to both longswords and greatswords with relative ease if he were forced to.
- _Scholarly Mind:_ He has an educated and refined mind, if his views are skewed by prejudice and lack of real world practice. He is able to analyze and look at any situation from a neutral perspective, giving an unbiased opinion. His education also allows him to read the common tongue, as well as older dialects, the dwarven tongue, and the elven tongue, though the last he is less well versed in.
- _Enchanting:_ While still barely an apprentice in the art, Viktor has learned how to imbue weapons and armor with minor enchantments, such as increased strength or speed by small increments, or lighting a weapon ablaze or coating it with electricity.
- _Forbidden Lore:_ While not something he is willing to share with anyone, for fear of his throat being slit in a dark alley, is that he knows of the existence of the Scars as well as many of their locations, as well as a basic grasp of what the Beyond is and how its denizens act. While he is not an expert by any means, he does know enough to work out why the Beyond is feared by many, and why it is such a useful source of power. If only he knew how to tap that resource.
**Combat strategy:** In short, Viktor would prefer to avoid combat. It is not that he does not believe in his own skills as a swordsman, but that he feels that if he were to get into a fight, it would be with Paladins, who have a major advantage over him in more ways than one. Rather, he would put off fighting in favor of getting away. Whether this be by hurling lightning bolts or throwing around debris or making an impenetrable mist to hide his escape or mask an ambush, so be it. The battle won for him is the one that is not fought.
Must he fight, he would take up a duelist's stance, wielding his sword in front of him with both hands while taking a more passive route in the fight, weaving and parrying until he can get off a spell or use one might chop to end the fight, rather than prolong it.
**Unique equipment:**
- _Bastard Sword:_ A common blade that he "acquired" late on night from one of the Paladins who had been assigned to him.
- _Grimoire:_ A very old and dusty book written in an even older dialect of the common tongue. Something he procured from the library, and which he studies to gain more magical knowledge. The study is slow going as the text is hard to decipher, however progress is being made.
Would Enchanting count as a spell or a skill?
Might make a character. Considering two options.
6/10, I like the image.
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