Uncloaked  Cloaked ![Ordore] (http://th07.deviantart.net/fs71/PRE/f/2011/267/4/b/cloaked_mage_by_far_east_ghost-d4aro55.jpg) Name: Ordore Igbin Race: Human Gender: Male Age: 17 Alignment: Mage Personality: Ordore is cautious of everyone. Not wanting to trust many people, Paladins Or Mages. He feels if he trusts someone he is gonna get hurt. Therefore he often is alone and observing everyone. Being alone has made him not a talkative person and often avoids civilization. Bio: When Ordore was only 10 years old he realized he was very different from his friends. When him and his best friend Luke were talking about becoming Paladins, both their dreams, Ordore felt a kind of surge. Feeling scared he grabbed Luke's shoulder and then out of nowhere they were about 200 meters from before. Luke jumped back and Ordore knew exactly what he was, so did Luke. Luke, hating Mages quickly turned on him. With both wrestling on the ground Ordore, being the far less physical one, was getting beat on. Tears running down his face another surge was coming. Luke screaming at his "Best-Friend" for being one of them. Ordore's surge happened again. This time, he left Luke behind. Being in an ally way he knew he needed to leave. He found a cloak and ran. Leaving Luke and the city behind him. Running for the rest of his life. Initial spells/techniques: - **Teleportation**: The ability to travel up to 500 meters away. - **Purgatory**: To put any hate that's in the area of 500 meters into a target, causing pain, suffering, paralysis etc. (Only lasts 3 seconds, its more of a stun earlier on) - **Sunfire Ray**: A ray or beam of fire that is so hot it can melt steel Skills: - **Hunter** - **Trap Master** - **Stealth** - **Strategist** - **Swordsman** (Not master) Combat strategy: He is often behind fights. Planning a strategy. Always 5 steps ahead and his plans are Rarely foiled. he uses this to set traps and makes people/animals play his games. Unique equipment: A grayish white cloak. The same cloak he stole when running away. And a Soulba (google it)

**Appearance:**  Underneath the armor, He has short, neatly-cut, black hair, and rugged (nearly clean-shaven) facial hair. His eyes are a deep blue color, and he has a light skin tone. Whenever he isn't wearing his armor, he usually wears a combination of a white shirt, and brown leather pants, often accompanied by a white cloak bearing the insignia of the Paladins of Altea. Underneath the cloak is usually a brown belt carrying his sword and dagger. **Name:** Varkasan Trenact **Race:** Human **Age:** 21 **Alignment:** Luminous Knights **Personality:** Varkasan is a very approachable fellow, despite how some people may view Paladins. He is friendly to nearly everyone he meets, while still maintaining the image and discipline of Paladins as an elite fighting force of Altea. He tries his best to find a peaceful solution to conflicts, and will avoid violence if at all possible. However, this does not mean he is any less capable in combat. Varkasan is a skilled swordsman, perhaps not as good as some of the older warriors, but he is excellent in his own right. His skill is also backed by an unwavering drive to fulfill his duty as a Paladin. "Patriotic" would be a word to describe him. His loyalty to their cause is almost zealot-like, as he will do whatever it takes to ensure peace between the people and The Mages, or purge any magic that is deemed to be a great threat to his kingdom. Because of this, he is nearly incorruptible, and will most likely choose duty over any temptations and personal emotions. However, this also makes him susceptible to being manipulated if someone had the rank to command him, and the charisma to hide their ulterior motives. **Bio:** Varkasan was born to a family who resided in the town of Paltrica, located near Meridian. His father was a soldier, while his mother was a simple housewife. He lived a relatively normal life for a boy like himself. Though he had always looked up to his father and aspired to follow in his footsteps. Not out of a drive for glory like most, but rather a subconscious sense of duty and responsibility to the land he was raised in; a kind of moral debt to Altea. His father often taught him different sword-fighting techniques in order to prepare him for the future, knowing fully-well he could not stop the boy from his dreams. At the age of 17, Varkasan enlisted into the military and quickly made himself known to his superiors with his combat skills, and unwavering loyalty to his kingdom and people. His ability to resist both great fear and temptation so that he can carry out his orders made him a candidate for becoming a Paladin. Since The Paladins are considered greater than the common soldiers, at the age of 19, Varkasan accepted the offer without hesitation. He spent the next two years undergoing the special training needed in order to wield the power of Luminosity. The two years were some of the hardest of his life, but his zeal managed to carry him through where some would surrender. He was an amiable person to be around for several recruits and managed to make friends and allies out of them. Then there were some who took advantage of his loyalty. An example was when he was tricked into cleaning the bunks of a select group of recruits when they had planted evidence implying that the instructors assigned him for that task. Only when Varkasan had inquired to their superiors about being assigned to cleaning the same bunks for several days in a row was the deception discovered, and the guilty party punished. He heard the instructors say something like "If they ever pass, the shadows will be at their backs for certain..." Varkasan was unsure what this meant, but now he tries to remind himself to be wary of manipulation. At the end of his training, he underwent the dangerous initiation needed to hold the power of Luminosity, and he survived. Varkasan was both joyful and relieved. Because of his skills and overall reliability, he was quickly assigned into a unit and given his first assignments. **Initial Spells/Techniques:** - _Luminous Blessing:_ Varkasan will enchant an object, covering it with the power of Luminosity, thus giving any normal piece of equipment anti-mage capabilities. This is usually used on his combat equipment, though he can also use it for other things if the situation calls for it. The duration depends on how concentrated he makes it. - _Sunlight Flare:_ Using concentrated Luminous energy, Varkasan is able to create a floating sphere of light which he can move at will. Same as his previous ability, the duration of the sphere depends on how much energy he puts into it. The sphere creates an aura of Luminosity that slowly burns up mana within its radius. Contact with the flare itself is very dangerous for a Mage. For non-mages however, its effects range from the warm sensation of a hot summer day within the aura, to a sunburn from touching the flare itself. - _Holy Armaments:_ Similar to Luminous Blessing, a piece of combat equipment is enchanted with energy. However, instead of coating it, the Luminosity takes a more concentrated form. For example, it can create spikes of light appear from the front of a shield to deter melee magic attacks, or create a transparent visor of light onto the openings of a steel helmet for extra protection. Takes the same amount of energy as Luminous Blessing, but he needs more energy and skill for greater armor and weapon additions. Varkasan has a mastery of this ability, in the sense that he can swiftly change the arms additions on his equipment as needed. However as a novice, his augmentation options are limited **Skills:** - _The Guardian:_ While not an entirely special skill, Varkasan's fighting style involves playing defensively, and using the opponent's moves against them. He usually lets the enemy make the first strike, and counters it. When an enemy tries to come for him at close range, he either blocks or parries the attack in an attempt to disarm them or throw them off-balance. He tries to see where the enemy attack will come from, and will respond with equal force in the opposite direction. Included in his tactics are outlasting his opponent in a battle of attrition and endurance, and advancing upon them once they feel the effects of fatigue. While blocking and countering, he tries to gauge how powerful his enemy is, and judging how much more he will need to wear them down before beginning his own assault. He may not be the one to make the first move, but more often than not, he will have the final say. - _Titan's Endurance:_ In conjunction with his defensive tactics, Varkasan can withstand a large amount of fatigue and punishment. More so than other Paladins can. He can withstand long and tiring marches, as well as drawn-out battles. By the time most soldiers are losing their morale and energy, he can still maintain himself at full combat effectiveness. However, even he has a limit. It's just that it's quite higher than most. Some would say abnormally so. However, this also means that it takes much longer for it to fully recover as well. Varkasan needs this kind of endurance to make his Guardian style of fighting work to its full potential. - _The Arbiter:_ Due to his preference of avoiding conflict, Varkasan is an able negotiator. He is capable of listening to others and inferring things about them based on what they say. With this information, he attempts to reach a common ground with the other party. He may not always agree with what the other believes in, but he can understand where it comes from, and he actively tries to find a way to settle things that would be in the best interest all who are involved. **Combat Strategy:** Varkasan will always begin a battle by enchanting the necessary equipment with Luminosity. With his equipment now being deadly to Mages, he is capable using his fighting styles against nearly all enemies. He will usually let the opponent make the first move before responding with the necessary counters. If he has the time, he lets them continue their attacks until he thinks they have used up a lot of their energy and stamina, and thus, less capable of dealing with his own attacks. When dealing with multiple enemies, he uses his Flares to scatter them and lets the Flare's aura deter them from regrouping while he tries to deal with the separated ones. If given enough time, he can actually create a makeshift barrier using the Flares (though it would expend a lot of energy especially if it was made to last). He creates and removes various Holy Armaments to his weapons depending on the situation. He makes use of that ability more when he is pressed for time and must quickly eliminate enemies using a blitzing rush of attacks augmented by different Holy Armaments which he swiftly places and replaces to keep himself unpredictable. **Unique Equipment:** - _The Sentinel:_ The sword and shield set used by Varkasan. A wealthy friend and fellow recruit of his had it crafted for him as a Paladin graduation gift. It was designed to be more tough and durable than a majority of standard-issue weaponry. This complements his defensive fighting style as his weapons can stand large amounts of punishment without fear of breaking or degrading quickly. However, this also means they are heavier than usual gear, and take more energy to move. - _Guardian Armor:_ A standard-issue variant of Paladin armor given to Paladins whose duties revolve around the defense of territory and crowd control. It has slightly more armor than the usual armor, however it also gives enough space for the wearer to move without restricting it by too much as most heavy plate-armor would. The difference between this and the standard set is only slight, however.

 **Name: ** Edward ("Eddy") of Ashenos **Race:** Elf **Age:** 98 **Alignment:** Mage **Personality:** Above everything else, Eddy is loud and hot-headed. He has no patience for such things like manners or tact. And this has gotten him into trouble countless times, and yet, he continues to speak his mind loudly, no matter what. Those who can tolerate his brutal honesty find that Eddy is a rather good person. He is loyal to his true friends - after all, out there you can only trust each other. Though very few people are considered his true friends nowadays, as "friends" have left him (figuratively) burning before. Eddy knows that various strangers most likely will seek to use him, and so he will do the same, and they can expect no more loyalty than they themselves offer. **Bio:** Eddy does not know his parents. He never did. He was found in the wilds by some hunters, who lived in a remote and small village, outside of Altea's civilization - the village of Ashenos. Eddy proved to be a natural with a bow, and at the age of 16, he discovered that he was also a mage. Luckily for him, no Paladin appeared out of thin air to capture him. Nor did the villagers care much - it could be an useful tool to survive the merciless wilds when mastered. One day, a group of bandits settled in nearby. The poor village was made as a target for extortion. When the thugs came to "negotiate", Eddy simply told them to "go fuck themselves", which prompted an attack on the village. Although there were some casualties, Edward's magic and skills with the bow helped Ashenos to drive out the scum. Not willing to wait for their retribution, the hunters each parted ways and abandoned the village. In the following decades to come, Eddy experienced it all. Running from the Paladins, smuggling, caravan raiding and even some assassinations within The Undercity. Over the years he had quite a few true friends, though most of them eventually died in this dangerous line of work. He experienced quite a bit of betrayals as well, usually when it's time to share the loot. So Eddy has learned to be careful around his "teammates". And now, he's heading to another small village near the edge of Altea's civilized frontier - The Misala Village. Rumor is going around that someone is searching for a group of mages for a very specific, dangerous, and extremely well paid job. Even if turns out to be a trap or a hoax, it is a good idea to check it out. **Initial spells/techniques:** - _Flame Crash_: Eddy shoots a ball of fire skywards, leaving it floating high up in the air. At his command, it will come crashing down to the target location. - _Fireball:_ An ageless classic, Eddy has learned this one from a spell tome he got in The Undercity. While he is yet unable to use anything but the most basic form, throwing an exploding ball of fire at someone is still extremely effective. - _Trailblaze:_ Once activated, this spell will leave a trail of fire in his footsteps. Used as a means of "kiting", moving backward while attacking with fireballs and arrows, and hampering the opponents ability to chase him. Eddy can create a flame trail up to 10 meters of length, and flames last for a minute. **Skills:** - _Survivalist:_ Eddy has a bow, a trusty knife, and an endless supply of fire. As well as the knowledge to use them. Living of the land is what he has done for most of his life, and it is his second nature. - _Experienced Hunter_: Eddy has hunted some quite nasty critters, avoided others. Either way, when it comes to wild beasts, he knows nearly everything. Unless it's an creature mutated by a Scar. But he learned to avoid those. - _Herbalist:_ As an extension of his survival skills, Edward has learned a great deal about herbs, especially on how to treat various wounds and sicknesses with them. Or which ones could be used for venom or poison. If Eddy tells you not to eat those berries, you really shouldn't. - _Complete utilization:_ With a beast slain, no part of said beast should be wasted. All it takes is a knife and a know-how, and a beast's carcass can be used for far more than just meat. **Combat strategy:** Eddy, being an archer, prefers to stay at range, showering his opponents with arrows and an occasional fireball. To keep his opponents on the edge, he leaves his Flame Crash up in the sky, waiting for the opponent to take the wrong step. Eddy's favorite strategy is forcing an opponent to dodge either his arrow or his fireball only to be hit by Flame Crash immediately after. Trailblaze allows his to keep his distance from melee attackers and slow down their advance. **Unique equipment:** None. All Eddy carries is either bought in Undercity, stolen or made by himself. All of which makes their quality rather questionable. --------  **Name:** Alicia von Eternus **Race:** Human **Age:** 20 **Alignment:** Luminous Knights **Personality:** Alicia isn't the one to talk much. She has a goal, an objective, and she will accomplish it. Small talk is only a distraction. Emotions, friends are the same. She will usually reply to others trying to start conversations, but will only speak herself if necessary. She is not the one to go out of the way to help people, but will not harm anyone unless it is necessary. Under all this, she has a good heart and noble intentions, it's just that her vast majority of life was spent in relative isolation. The only people she actually had a chance to socialize with for 18 years was her Father, Master Oriano and various maids. And those people were trying to avoid being close to her. Alicia simply does not know how to handle various social situations, and feels anxious around large groups of people. And in battle, you could hardly find anyone else more focused than her. **Bio:** Since she was born, Alicia's fate was decided. She would honor her ancient lineage and become the finest Luminous Knight there could be. Since she could walk, her training has already begun. Master Oriano, one of the few people who mastered the exotic Sioretto fighting style, was eager to pass down his knowledge. To him, Alicia was a heir of sorts, one who would inherit his knowledge, and maybe even surpass him. Day by day, week by week, month by month, Alicia endured grueling physical training. She was also taught history, politics, strategy and warfare. By the time she met the minimum age required to join the Paladins, she was more than prepared for the basic training there. The two years training to be a Paladin were a huge cultural shock to her. So many people, with so many stories and lives on their own. Lives that they had some control of. Choice. They made the choice to join the paladins themselves. Nevertheless, she managed to make a few close friends. The first friends she ever had. She overcame many challenges and trials, and yet, dealing with people was and currently is the most difficult one. However, she did manage to have her own sort of fun during the training. When a combat instructor criticized her fighting style as impractical and ineffective when compared to something like sword and board, the said instructor hit the ground in roughly two seconds when trying to demonstrate the point. After that, she was in everyone's spotlight, much to Alicia's despair. She has been told that she will rise within the ranks effortlessly. She was told that she had a bright future. She was to be an example of model citizen, a model family. And yet, she feels hollow. And just after her graduation, Alicia and a few others from the ones who succeeded in graduating were off to their first mission. **Initial spells/techniques**: - _Sword of Light:_ Conjures up a sword shaped Luminosity projectile to somewhere near her body, floating mid-air and following her, ready to fire in any direction at her command. She can maintain up to 4 swords simultaneously. Her other spells are based around Swords of Light. - _Piercing Light:_ Shatters a sword of light into many small shards. While this severely diminishes their impact and is a lot less effective than just letting the sword to hit the target, it covers a wide area. Primarily used to destroy weak, lingering magic which covers a large area, or to provide a sort of dampening zone which weakens all magic within it. The shards are not enough to ignite a mage even when contacting his/her flesh, but they also mess with various defensive spells they use. - _Ring of Blades:_ Commands all active Swords of Light to surround and circle around a single target, hampering movement. Can be commanded to simultaneously shoot towards the target, making it very hard to avoid. Or they can be scattered via Piercing Light. **Skills:** - _Sioretto Style:_ An ancient martial art which uses two longswords of varying length, weight and centers of balance, which no more than a few people mastered. This unique fighting style relies on predicting your opponents moves and reactions, utilizing the opponent's and the user's momentum rather than brute force. When properly executed, to an observer it looks like a dance of swords, with the user spinning around from a foe to foe, attacks simply missing the Sioretto master. As it heavily relies on prediction, this style is rendered ineffective against opponents with unique weapon and combat styles, or if their combat style is not initially observed or known. - _Combat Focus:_ A required skill for Sioretto, Alicia is able to enter a state of trance, completely purging herself of any emotion or thought, focusing solely on the battle ahead. While in this Combat Focus, Alicia is able to predict enemy actions just from a twitch of their muscles, their facial expression and/or their initial stance. When all combat variables are known, Alicia is able to plan her moves a few seconds in advance - the use of spinning attacks allow her to build momentum and not fear being hit, since she already predicted where her opponent will strike and what the next one is going to do. Needless to say, Alicia can only maintain this focus for about a minute, after that the mental exhaustion will prevent her from doing that again for a few hours. Without the Combat Focus, Sioretto style dramatically loses effectiveness. - _Combat Analysis:_ Against an opponent with an unique fighting style, predictions are impossible without analyzing their movement patterns. Attentive analysis also allows Alicia to spot weak spots and various others exploitable flaws, while giving her the necessary info to activate Combat Focus. This also is valuable info to give to her teammates. - _Duelist Mode:_ When using Combat Focus is impossible, and by extension, Sioretto, Alicia sheathes one of her swords and assumes a fencer's stance. While she is a capable fencer, her swords were never meant for quick thrusting attacks, and as such, her combat effectiveness is greatly reduced, reducing her from an excellent fighter to a mediocre one. **Combat strategy:** Using Luminosity to deal with ranged attacks and attackers, Alicia bides her time until she's confident she has enough information to safely use Combat Focus. At her deadliest during this mode, she is able to take on multiple opponents single-handedly. Swords of Light allow her to both attack mages at range and shoot down their projectiles, while Piercing Light acts a dampening field and area denial. Ring of Blades can be used to immobilize a mage and and kill him if needed. While still able to take care of herself in Duelist Mode, Alicia needs to be on the defensive, and let her more well-rounded teammates to take the charge. **Unique equipment:** - _Izanami & Izanagi:_ The two swords Alicia wield. The finest swords custom made specifically for Alicia, which also cost her father a small fortune. Made by the finest Dwarven smiths, these weapons are unmatched, at least compared to the equipment which is given to Paladins for free. Specifically made to be viable as a focus, these swords are extremely sharp and durable. Their main flaw is that they are very specific - only truly effective when using Sioretto, they lose their superiority when used for other styles for which they are not meant for. Alicia's friends, when trying out her swords, all mentioned that they feel unwieldy and awkward to use. - _Valkirian Armor:_ Named after the mighty female warriors of myth, this armor was also custom made for Alicia. Offering a balance between protection and flexibility, this armor would still be considered light when compared to the standard armor given to the Paladins. However, Valkirian Armor provides Alicia with complete freedom of movement which plate armor could not ever give, and which would only hamper her combat abilities.

**Image: ** [His face](http://imgur.com/wPJIUkt.png). Ru wears simple leather clothing, tougher than wool or linen, but still comfortable to go about both daily, and nightly business. When travelling, he carries a pack and a worn, but still water resistant cloak which sometimes acts as a pillow. **Name: ** Ru **Gender: ** Male **Race: ** Human **Age: ** 21 **Alignment: ** Mage **Personality: ** Ru tries his best not to take life too seriously. Wandering between Meridian's outlying towns, he has made many acquaintances, and also a decent amount of enemies, and has grown to believe that as life gives, so it takes away. Ru likes to take things at face value, but knows that others often will try to deceive him. A somewhat ironic trait, coming from a thief and an illusionist, but past experience seems to teach that constantly wondering whether the people beside you will later betray you simply becomes tiring. So long as he still has his life and a mostly intact body, why not live and let live? The paladins are the exception to Ru's uncaring nature. Their presence is a threat to his way of life, for if they knew him as a mage, he would surely find himself dead, or worse, trapped. **Bio: ** Ru was born to a denizen of Meridian's underground, into an unremarkable, and rather unfortunate family with far too much to worry about already. By the time Ru could walk, it seemed he had wanted to get away. Not from his family, who he loved, or the life they had, which, while not great, could definitely be worse, but from the undercity. His early years were fairly unremarkable, but as he grew, he came to discover more about the world around him, and the more he glimpsed of the sunny world above, the more the undercity felt like a prison. For a time, he resented being born down here in the dark, away from the light and the open plains. But when he discovered he was a mage, he came to realize he should be grateful. Had he been born above, and lived above, and been discovered above, his world would have changed to make the former prison of the undercity seem as wide and open as the entire world. And he also knew that it would be dangerous to stay below, for although the luminous knights would never fully purge the criminal and magical element from below, each time they tried, a few wouldn't be able to flee fast enough. And so after one such raid, Ru fled, taking everything he could and made his way to wander the surface, free. **Initial Spells/Techniques: ** - Replicate: Ru creates a short lived illusion of himself. This copy has very little physical strength, and can easily be revealed as merely an illusion upon touching it, or destroyed if hit with sufficient force. - Blur: Ru makes his form harder to distinguish, blending into his surroundings and becoming hard to focus on, as if you were looking at him with your eyes crossed. When heavily blurred, people seem to have an aversion to looking in Ru's direction. His illusions can also do use this ability. - Telekinesis: Ru can move objects magically. It is easiest to simply *pull* things closer, or *push* them directly away, and while he can rotate objects and move them in other directions, it takes more concentration and willpower to do so. Ru cannot seem to affect himself with this power. **Skills: ** Ru is quite handy with daggers, but is also familiar with short swords and crossbows. While he won't be winning any fair fights against a trained swordsman, Ru prefers to fight with as many advantages on his side as possible. Locks of all sorts are no match for his skilled fingers, allowing Ru to enter and leave without a trace - other than the valuables that leave with him. Ru is accomplished at scaling buildings in order to reach more discreet points of entry, and those skills can be applied to climbing other surfaces as well. Of course, Ru would be a rather poor thief if he had no skill concealing himself, a skill which is greatly enhanced by his magic. Although he has a small collection of poisons, he prefers not to use them, and most, though debilitating, are non-fatal. (In short, *Familiarity with daggers, short swords, and crossbows, lock picking, climbing, moving stealthily, and poisons.*) **Combat Strategy: ** When forced to fight, Ru tries to use anything he can to his advantage. When blurred, blows that opponents thought would land can easily pass through empty air as their eyes deceive them. He uses this quite effectively with his replicates, exploiting peoples tendency to block blades they see coming towards them, even if they aren't particularly real. His telekinesis is used to destabilize his opponents in battle, making them trip up or lose balance. As a thief, not an assassin, Ru prefers not to kill, only to occupy his opponents long enough to escape. **Unique Equipment: ** Ru keeps several daggers and lock picks hidden on his person with a dingy short sword strapped to his hip. His crossbow and bolts tend to remain hidden within his pack along with whatever food and other possessions he has at the time. Although there have been times he could have purchased better equipment, he still carries on with what he has.

**Image:** -  **Name:** Freiya Arkaos **Race:** Human **Age:** 25 **Alignment:** Luminous Knights **Personality:** If Freiya were to summed up with one word only, it would be "angry". Due to the constant pain caused brought upon her by the scars on her face, Freiya is nigh always in an irritated mood and prone to snapping angrily at those who further bring down her abysmal mood. Due to the pain, Freiya always carries a wine-skin on her person, allowing small sips of alcohol to take the edge off of the pain. When sufficiently calmed down by the drink, Freiya is a very somber person, uncharacteristically able to focus on tasks for a person under the influence. Freiya does not socialize much due to her prickly and melancholic attitude driving others away more oft than not, but she prefers it that way. Harboring a deep seated hatred for the mages and their kind, Freiya will strive to become stronger and garner more influence among the Luminous Knights to fulfill her personal vendetta against the mages who stole her father from her. **Bio:** Born a non-magical child to two mages, Freiya's mother died shortly after her birth, leaving her to her father's care. During her childhood, her father Jumal Arkaos would become the only mage Freiya would ever confess to loving or having respect for. Her father taught her to read and write, alongside taking care of her other education very well despite the constant supervision of their family of two. Upon reaching the minimum age required to join the basic training to become a Paladin, she joined with her father's encouragement. She trained diligently. While no prodigy, Freiya was as strong physically as - if not even more so than - the boys of her age group. This was her life until she was thirteen. Before all went down in flames. Unbeknownst to her, her father had taken up teaching some orphaned mage children magic in the Undercity, as a passage from their home's cellar led to the seclusive area. While she had known of the children, even adopting some as her younger sisters, her father had kept her in the dark of the secret tutelage sessions. Seeing fire and smoke come out of their cellar, Freiya had recklessly charged into the Undercity through the flames in a desperate search for her missing father. And find him she did right before a fiery explosion of magic gone wrong went off. The explosion resulted in the death of her father and the characteristic burns on Freiya's face. Now orphaned by the same children she had adopted as her sisters, the seeds of a vendetta were sown. Life went on, until she had completed her basic training and it was time for the ritual. There had been lingering traces of magic in her scars, and like all mana did when coming into contact with Luminosity, so did Freiya's scars ignite into a white blaze. In agony, the young Freiya still did complete the ritual. As the last traces of mana from the scars were burned away, the accident had a curious and unfortunate effect on the young Freiya: The scar felt like it was always on fire. Despite the constant crippling pain as her now eternal companion, Freiya managed to recover with milk of the poppy to help her sleep and through sheer iron will, albeit barely. Now an adult, Freiya serves as a fearsome Paladin of the Luminous Knights. **Initial spells/techniques:** - **Luminant Burst:** Pumping her sword full of Luminosity for short bursts, Freiya can effectively parry spells with her blade. Needless to say, the effects of using a Luminant Burst on a mage leads to gruesome results. - **Ki-Tan : Beginner Level:** Showing surprising amounts of aptitude for the ancient art, Freiya has received some tutelage in the usage of Ki-Tan, mainly to reinforce and enhance her body to suit her battle style. Yet she is only a Paladin and the Overlords at Meridian hardly have the time or interest to tutor her further, so Freiya is mostly left to her own devices with advancing her skills with the ancient martial art. **Skills:** - **Rage of the Fallen:** Freiya is strong physically and this is further augmented to frightening levels by adrenaline and her natural fury. While not supernaturally strong or exceptionally fast, Freiya could easily take down almost any untrained, larger man. - **Iron Will:** Used to the pain brought to her by her facial scar, Freiya can easily ignore damage caused to her in combat. She will charge on like a stampede and won't slow down until she's dead. - **Battle Instincts:** Freiya possesses a good amount of primal instinct for battle, being able to almost subconsciously feel and read the flow of battle. - **Iron Liver:** Freiya has an extremely strong tolerance for alcohol and is able to carry out any task as well as a normal person would sober. Freiya has developed and honed this skill for years. (Yes, it is a skill.) **Combat strategy:** Freiya fights like a berserker. She charges and strikes down at her opponents with heavy, debilitating blows with little to no care for her personal health. Relying heavily on her well-honed intuition, Freiya fights instinctively and brutally. Freiya is at her deadliest when angered, where a single blow from her sword can easily be fatal to whomever is fighting her. **Unique equipment:** - _Claymore:_ A standard claymore of the Paladins. Freiya prefers this particular heavy weapon over all others. - _Wine-skin:_ Freiya's personal wine-skin, which she always carries with her.

 **Name:** Dysmoira "Dys" Bazgard **Race:** Dwarf **Age:** 28 **Alignment:** Luminous Knight **Personality:** She's a rough-and-tumble, honest speaking, ale guzzling dwarf. Dys doesn't mind fitting into those stereotypes one bit, and she'll readily share a good dwarf joke over a mug of ale when she isn't on duty. The one time you wont see a jovial smile on her face is when she's facing magic, or magic users, which she openly despises to a zealous degree. Surprisingly, she is insatiably academic, and you can rarely see her without a book of one form or another in her hand. She is openly charismatic in her own right, and willing to talk and joke with just about anyone, but is hard to truly befriend - she wont consider anyone her "true brother" until they've proven themselves, whether through battle or otherwise. When you are her true brother, you will know it, and the perks of it are her undying loyalty. For a true brother, she would willingly take their place on the gallows. What Dys cannot abide by almost as much as mages are people who feel sorry for themselves, and she will get noticeably frustrated the more people around her wallow in their own weakness, emotional or physical is all the same to her. Her motto is, "draw strength from your weakness, and realize in your strength you are weak - then learn to get over yourself". She has moments of self doubt just like any other, but she refuses to let them get in the face of her duty. **Bio:** She was taught from a young age to feel the anger of her ancestors in her bones, the fury for the magic that once enslaved their noble race and diminished their pride. In retrospect to that, growing up in the wealthy Bazgard Clan was disheartening to Dys, as everyone around her preferred living behind the shield of the Luminous Knights, crafting their weapons and armor, and tinkering with their newest inventions. Dys even hated the Luminous Knights for a good portion of her life, mistakenly thinking that they kept the dwarves underfoot to steal their inventions to take the glory that dwarven invention wrought for themselves. She trained relentlessly and angrily as she grew into her teens. She would practice with the weapons her father forged, and would test the armor her mother crafted. She gained a reputation among her neighbors as the "Young Battleaxe", as much for her fiery personality as for her fighting style in the local arena. Dys proved to be a brute force during combative trials, and her parents realized she wasn't meant to live a life of crafting in the Undermountain. They brought in a peculiar teacher to instruct their daughter in not just the ways of battle, but also in her academics (which Dys tended to ignore). Dys's instructor, much to her initial dismay, was an elven woman named Vivace dai Remethiel. The woman was calm and tranquil like a still lake, held her patience like a mountain, and had outlandish ways of telling Dys just exactly what she was doing wrong. Dys became fed up and stormed from her instructor more than once, but eventually they began to see eye-to-eye when Vivace literally flipped Dys over in the middle of a lesson and beat the young dwarf senseless for her snottiness and insolence. After that, Dys was much more apt to listen to what Vivace had to say, though the elf had to put her to the knee on a few more occasions. The elf completely changed her outlook on life, and over the next ten years of being under the tutelage of Vivace, Dys transformed into a whole new person. Her instructor became her hero and role model. She held a fire in her heart to join the Luminous Knights, as Vivace once had, and to learn more about the world in all it's wonder. She gained her insatiable reading habits from Vivace giving her "pop quizzes" about books that the dwarf was supposed to have read as her homework, and when Dys hadn't read them her punishments were worse than when she failed in her combat training or mouthed off. After just over a decade of tutoring Dys, Vivace passed away from age. The young dwarf was shocked and dismayed, she hadn't realized that her infuriating but wondrous instructor had been so old. To honor the elf's memory, Dys practically ran to join the Luminous Knights so that she could spread the fighting styles Vivace dai Remethiel taught her across the battlefields of magical tyranny. **Initial spells/techniques:** - _Cataclysmic Force:_ Dys slams her battleaxe or fists upon the ground, object, or person and creates a three foot wide by two foot tall semicircle of outward expanding Luminosity in front of what she hit. This shock wave isn't capable of being manipulated by Dys, and she uses it mainly for combat control as it moves forward on it's own until it dissipates into nothingness seconds later. (During later levels of this spell, it would be a full circle of expanding Luminosity from the target location. The expansion would stop ten, fifteen, twenty, etc. feet from where it began depending on it's level, and it's dissipation period would happen ten, fifteen, twenty, etc. seconds from the beginning of the spell) - _Negation Force:_ She creates two one foot by one foot shields that float over her forearms. This shield moves with her, and is incapable of being placed over another portion of her body. (During later levels of this spell, the shields would morph into wing-like protrusions floating along her arms and back, capable of being bent and flapped to block attacks) - _Liquid Force:_ The only spell Dys is capable of controlling as a projectile, it appears as a one foot long snake made of light, bending and twisting chaotically as it slithers toward it's intended location with varied speed. Sometimes it travels fast, and other times it is slow, and it all depends on how well Dys manages to cast it. When it reaches it's target, it wraps around whatever it is like a python, attempting to squeeze the magic out of it. She uses this spell the least because of how finicky it is. (During the later levels of this skill, it becomes more and more like a python, growing in size to a maximum of three feet wide by twenty one feet long. It's power and speed both remain chaotic through out it's leveling) **Skills:** - _Battleaxe Mastery:_ She is skilled in using the weapon through her constant practice during her life in the Undermountain, and her furthered training among the Luminous Knights. When she has one in her hands, she is a brutal fighter. Though she may not be as swift as an elf or human, her strength is put into every swing and the force is staggering. - _Elf's Cunning:_ She isn't just brute force, her time with her elven instructor taught her cunning. She is exceptional at using her environment to her advantage, and quickly surmising effective escape routes should the need arise. - _Rei'shi:_ When she cannot hold her weapon in her hands, she was taught the elven hand-to-hand fighting style of Rei'shi. This style is primarily defensive in nature, and when used it appears as though the user is fluid in motion, blocking attacks with open-palms and shifts of their body. It primarily focuses on the use of the arms and upper body, while the lower body is kept light and free to move. Rei'shi is a practice of unwavering patience, as it offers no offensive attacks. - _Repair:_ She has learned through growing up in her Clan to repair armor and weapons. She isn't master-level at it, but her aid can be handy in a pinch. She typically carries around a small supply of repair materials on her person. **Combat strategy:** In combat, Dys would be one of the first to go in to test the waters while still playing it safe. She is aware that her poor control over her Luminosity spells make her a prime target, and she will actively juke her opponent. Her primary fighting style is with her battleaxe, and she tries to create as much reach as possible with her weapon to counteract her diminutive size, her main attack with her weapon would be _Cataclysmic Force_. If her weapon is taken away, or the space is too small to use it effectively, she switches to Rei'shi and employs _Negation Force_ so that her blocks and body shifts don't leave her wide open for magical assault. She prefers to leave _Liquid Force_ entirely alone, unless under extreme circumstances. **Unique equipment:** - _Vivace's Virtue:_ A battleaxe her father gave to Dys when she announced that she would be joining the Luminous Knights. Apparently he had been prepared for that particular announcement, and presented her with it immediately. The battleaxe is one of her most treasured possessions, named after her beloved teacher. Sometimes Dys fondly calls it "Vivi". - _Mother's Blessing:_ A unique set of armor made by her mother specifically for Dys. It was bestowed upon Dys before she left to join the Luminous Knights, and she has grown familiar and accustomed to it's maneuverability. - _Necklaces:_ A pair of seemingly plain necklaces. They hold tremendous sentimental value for Dys, and she wears them at all times. -------  **Name:** Akali dai Remethiel **Race:** Elf **Age:** 127 **Alignment:** Mage **Personality:** Akali is a perpetually cheerful, somewhat naive and lighthearted elf at first glance, but one delves deeper they find that she is.... different. Her eyes are just a little too wide, her smile shows slightly too much teeth, her laugh is a touch maniacal . In her underlying fervor, she wants to _paint_ the world with her magic, to make the normal abnormal, to make the abnormal wondrous, to beautify the ugliness, to erase war, to cease conflict. She has odd ways of being touchy with others, and even more peculiar ways of speaking. She will refer to herself as "We", and never "I" - and most people are _sure_ that it isn't the royal we, but as if she truly believes herself to be more than _just herself._ On top of the rest of her oddities, she is sure she can taste the emotions of others, and describes them as colors. All in all, when most people speak to Akali for an extended period of time, they're either left perplexed or irritated. Or both. It is insanely difficult to offend this elf, and she infact loves when people describe her in different ways, no matter how bad or good. She loves it all! During battle, she is unpredictable and tricky, as if she is "playing" with her opponents. She leaves nearly every opponent alive, but she believes that in fighting for your life, there is beauty - and yet she wishes for all conflict to stop. A contradicting mixture to be sure, and it somehow adds weight to the way she describes herself as _"We"_... **Bio:** Akali was born long ago to Vivace dai Remethiel, an elf who had been cast out from the Elven Forest not long after Akali was born. They had found the Arcane Magic within Akali, and instead of letting the Keepers of the Grove dispose of her precious daughter, Vivace chose exile. Vivace had known that it was impossibly stupid to give up her life for a mageling child, but once she had decided, there was no way to go back. She kept her eyes ever forward with her daughter, Akali, by her side and tried to eek out an existence in the wilds, so that her child wouldn't need to live a life restricted by the Luminous Knights. In retrospect, Akali had loved living off of the land with her mother, but over time Akali had grown too curious about the world of magic. She delved into dangerous territories once or twice, with Vivace reeling her back in each time. Vivace knew that her daughter wasn't normal, even for a mage, but it was when Akali took it too far and had tried to _paint her magic_ onto a child that she lured from a nearby village that Vivace realized that Akali had no concept of _right_ and _wrong_. Vivace tried to instill these lessons into her gently at first, but when Akali wouldn't understand, her mother had to resort to violence. Reprimands were in no short order as Akali aged further, but she did learn the basics of what she **should** and _shouldn't_ do, and to please her mother she tried to make her magic useful for peaceful ends. Illusions and beauty, these were things Akali knew that her mother would surely like! Akali practiced the art of such things, and cultivated it, all in order to show her beloved mother how wonderful magic could be. When Akali used her _Illusionaire_ on Vivace, her mother experienced intense agony and fear, and collapsed from the shock. When she awoke three days later with Akali fretting over her, Vivace had, had enough. She took her innoncent and naive daughter to the wilderness with one thought in mind: Vivace had to kill her own daughter, before Akali could wreak havoc upon innocent people with her idea to "beautify the world". Their fight was one-sided, with Akali so confused that she couldn't even muster a spell, though she had no desire to hurt her beloved mother. Vivace had her staff to Akali's throat, ready to crush it and end Akali's life, but she couldn't bring herself to the awful deed of erasing Akali dai Remethiel's existence. Her mother threw the staff to the ground and left, never looking back. Since then, Akali has tried to find her mother, but to no avail. She wants to paint the entire world so that no matter where Vivace may be, her mother will see how beautiful Akali has made it and delight in her daughter's efforts. **_"All we want is for mother to be happy with us!"_** **Initial spells/techniques:** - _Illusionaire:_ Akali twirls her staff around and as she does, an illusion weaves before her target's eyes of whatever they fear most. Other mages could see through it easily in it's early stages, while regular folk would be duped for it's duration, though as she gets more powerful, these illusions become more and more wondrous. And terrifying. (duration of 3 seconds at lowest level, then increase of 3 seconds per level as she gets more powerful) - _Beautify:_ Akali's magic seems to imbue itself in the world around her, giving the world a magical and mystical look. This effects her opponent's auditory and sensory capabilities, as they seem to feel and hear phantom fairies and butterflies crawling all over their bodies. When the spell ends, each of the butterflies that landed on them explodes in pure arcane power, causing minor damage, while the fairies minorly heal whoever they land on. (5 butterflies and fairies at lowest level, increasing in increments of 2 for butterflies and 1 for fairies each level) - _Starlight, Starbright:_ Akali raises her staff to the sky, and a shower of magical stars rain down on her target location. These stars will explode as they touch the ground or opponents into visions of furry and cute critters, typically rabbits and ferrets that run amok inside the area of effect, exploding on contact with anyone in the circle, healing or damaging them depending on the critter. Rabbits heal, ferrets damage. (duration of 5 seconds and 3 critters at lowest level, increasing in increments of 5 seconds and 3 critters) **Skills:** - _Rei'shi:_ Akali was taught the style of Rei'shi by her mother, and she is particularly adept at it. This style is primarily defensive in nature, and when used it appears as though the user is fluid in motion, blocking attacks with open-palms and shifts of their body. It focuses on the use of the arms and upper body, while the lower body is kept light and free to move. Rei'shi is a practice of unwavering patience, as it offers no offensive attacks. - _Acrobatics:_ Akali is unnervingly light on her feet, able to climb just about anything that could be climbed, and flip over and around all sorts of obstacles. She has adopted this light-footedness from her time spent in the wilds, climbing trees and rocks. - _Staff Mastery:_ Her mother taught her the use of the staff growing up, and Akali has learned to be adept at using it to keep enemies at bay while she beautifies them with her magic. She can use this to vault away, or as a way to focus her magic, though the staff she uses isn't a Focus quite yet. - _Vegetarianism:_ She refuses to consume meat and lives off of the plants of the land. She is adept at finding edible plants in the most unlikely places, as well as practiced in their correct preparation. To that end, animals seem to be attracted to her and she finds it unnaturally easy to befriend them. **Combat strategy:** In combat, her true desire is for it to end. To that effect, she uses her abilities to slow and confuse the onslaught of her enemies, all the while she is keeping far back and away with her staff and acrobatics should any opponents try to attack her directly. If she were to face a Luminous Knight, she would try to run from them as fast as possible. **Unique equipment:** - _Memoria:_ The staff Vivace left when she abandoned Akali, and the one Akali uses to this day. It was made from Elven magic, twisted and formed into an extremely durable and flexible weapon that Akali takes every advantage of. On one end, it has a loop for a lantern, and on the other it has been attached with the head of a paintbrush. The latter was Akali's doing. - _Friendship:_ Akali has a unique bond with a flying squirrel she found in the wilds. She has named it Viva, in memory of her mother, and the creature is usually crawling somewhere on her person, munching on nuts and acorns. **Other:** - _Themesong:_ [Dance of the Fairies](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tzXPxJ1BSlI)

**Image:**  **Name:**Darthalia **Race:** Elf **Age:** 43, but looks around half that. **Alignment:** Mage **Personality:** Growing up isolated hasn't helped her people skills so Darthalia prefers to stay quiet, mainly due to the fact she usually never has anyone to talk to. The fumes from her work also adding to her behavior, Very Paranoid if she thinks she is in danger, If someone were to talk to her she would ramble on then trail off and mutter to herself. She is nice enough, if not for the lack of normal behavior, She prefers to avoid combat whenever possible, this being a tad difficult living in the Black Forest but she has adapted over the years setting traps and such to capture the dangerous animals and she always finds a use for nosy wanders stealing from her garden. **Bio:** Darthalia had a very quiet childhood, She was left in the care of two Dwarf's as a small baby. Her elven parents left her there for her own safety,They were mages and were currently being hunted down by the paladin's for going rouge and escaping the supervised area. Leaving their child with the Dwaven potions makers in the Black forest seemed like a good idea. Darthalia didn't find this out until the age of 18. But she always knew she was different, from the age of 15 she was taller then her 'parents' but never questioned it. When she did find out, nothing really changed, she still thought of her carers as parents and they thought the same of her, so she didn't think about her Elf family much. At around the age of 18 she had discovered her mage powers, terrified by it she told her parents who explained everything to her, of course only basic things, and they told her that she was never to leave the forest unless she was going to the undercity, for the Paladin's would kill her, they exaggerated a little but it was to scare her from leaving the forest. She agreed to never leave the forest but practiced her basic magic when she had free time. Growing up the Dwarf's ran a business, potions. They would create them and go into the Under city to sell them. They taught this trade to Darthalia, who became quite good, even creating new ones, this wasn't usually a good idea because there were no one willing to test them, but of course Darthalia found a way round that. She became good enough to take over the business as her parents got to old to continue. They were around a 100 when they received Darthalia and after 25 years, they were not fairing to well. One stormy night they passed away, leaving Darthalia the hut and all its contents, and the business they had built their whole lives. She was very grateful and vowed to continue their business "Doommantle Potions". Ever since she has lived in the black forest, occasionally after creating a batch of potions, she would travel to the Undercity to sell them for food and new ingredients for more potions. The only time people come to her hut is when they wander through the forest and try to steal her plants. She usually catches them and uses them to test potions on. The ones who live are welcome to leave, the ones who aren't successful, well they don't leave. She has spent her life here, and part of her doesn't want that to change. But another part, that part wants adventure. **Initial spells/techniques:** _Brite-Lite:_ Used in its most common form it is a small orb of light, allowing the user to travel in pitch black caves, or tunnels, uses a small amount of Mana when first used and slowly drains little by little while in use. If used in combat it is only used defensively. Creating a large flash of light blinding anyone to see it for 10 or so seconds. _Shadow Morph:_ This spell allows the user to control the shadows around them. Usually used for stealth it can create a large shadow to conceal the user in a dark environment. Like BriteLite, prolonged use drains away at mana. _Basic Healing:_ This of course self explanatory. With this spell the user is able to heal non-immediate fatal wounds. This spell being very useful, but drains quite a bit so can't be used over and over and leaves very little mana for other spells. **Skills:** Potion Crafting: Growing up brewing potions and has given her alot of experiance. So if the occasion calls for it she can easily make small health potions or a Mana boost potion, but anything more substantial and she will need more equipment. Long Range Weaponry: Sometimes she would not have the money to purchase food after buying ingredients, so she would need to hunt. Disliking it of course but she has some experience in the use of cross bows. **Combat strategy:** Darthalia prefers to avoid combat whenever she can, but if she much engage she prefers to be on the defensive. Using her BriteLite spell and using her crossbow if she much attack. She isn't very skilled in combat but can usually hold her own in combat with either animals or petty bandits that come through the forest. **Unique equipment:** A small engraved leather bag holding many little ingredients to make small health potions or mana potions and a black oak crossbow that she only carries when she is travelling, along with a black oak carved dagger with a silver blade, She received it from her adoptive father, he was a regular hunter.

 **Name:** Mastrix of the Scar **Race:** Human **Age:** 19 ** Alignment:** Rogue Mage **Personality:** - She hates the paladin, considering them responsible for all that is wrong in the world, blaming them for her life of misery that could have been spent ruling like a divinity back in the days of old where magic was a benediction and not a curse, they were no worthy enemies but rather theft that use their own form of magic against the rightful owners of the world. She holds very little respect for normal people, silent spectators destined to be ruled by an overlord or another and as for other mages, until proven otherwise they are cowards without an ounce of ambition. Her world is that of hate and despise but still even with her fancy armor on, she remembers that the paladins crushed them long ago and that she is still a kid sucking humidity of wall and eating insects to survive while the bastards eat meat and drink fresh water in their castles and so she never underestimates an enemy. **Bio:** Nothing is left of her childhood as she was raised in a community of wandering mages that refused to bow down to the Paladins until they were exterminated by a raid. She fled in the wilderness being only 7 years old but already before her parents died, the mages could tell there was something wrong going on with her. Some said her parents traded her soul for powers with a demon, that she contacted one herself, being a rather impressive caster at a young age or that in her dream world one linked himself with her, but still even if she was mostly an unruly kid throwing tantrums all the time, she still had surprising moments of lucidity or 'Hunches' allowing her to find ways to survive in the wild. Eventually she found that the best way to survive the onslaught of paladins hunting for her kind was to hide where it was too dangerous for them to hunt her. The scars proved to be, against all odds, the place where she grew. She found there ancient things and fed on the few mushrooms and herbs growing in dank caves, until one of her 'hunches' led her to a corpse. An ancient nameless mage that died long ago but that still held on its corpse its possessions. Another corpse to loot for her but as she gazed into the past to watch what happened to him she found one of the lords of old, a mage of great power that had fought the Paladins and in this she found, as a silent observer, some inspiration. There had to be more to life than eating moss and ambushing adventurers, no? Despite being a bony, borderline anorexic survivor of a inhospitable land, she done the armor she found and began to imitate this man from long ago. **Initial spells/techniques: ** - Eldritch Fire: A fire that slowly burns living things, making a large amount of smoke, is actually painless but will still slowly melt the flesh anyway and cripple or disfigure you. Land where this fire has burned may no longer bare life again and where large patch of land have been destroyed, attacks from beasts of the Scars are much more frequent. - Curse: A slow and perverse thing, Mastrix can link herself to another mortal and force her wounds away on him. She still receives the initial wound and if mortal, it will kill her, but otherwise she will heal at an increased rate by making the cursed one slowly die. Paladins may use negation magic to make her suffer through the link but the effects will be felt by both parties. Considering Mastrix doesn't have the constitution of a Paladin however she prefers not to abuse of this ability with them as most likely she'd die before the paladin gives up. - Echo from the past: Some double sight of sort, with some concentration Mastrix can have some visions of before, although this isn't always done of her own volition. This can provide insight on secret passages or secrets thought to be lost. She however will never get used to most of the ancient mages having magic to detect divination and invisible spectators that occasionally, despite being dead for so long, notice her. **Skills: ** - Eidetic Memory: Mastrix has an almost perfect memory and remembers each and every rocks of the Scar she lives in, each words that were ever spoken to her. This means that she also has a knack for imitating basic spells and remembering their casting. - Inhabitant of the Scar: Generally deadly environment where 36 things can kill you only in the immediate square meter next to you? What people would call an hostile environment where no man can set foot is the definition of home for her and in the Scars she lives as easily as a paladin would live in his castle. The reverse however isn't as true. - Omnivorous Cannibal: Sucking the humidity out of a mole in a dank cave or eating another human are only normal for her and while this may seem like obscene to others, she is still proud of her ability to survive in the most barren wasteland. Her ability to see a disemboweled human and feel hunger also means that very little in the way of gore and violence can phase her. - Lost knowledge: Seeing visions of the past and stumbling on old spell books and scrolls in the scars made her a veritable library of knowledge thought lost forever . ** Combat strategy:** - She will lure her opponents in dangerous places, corner them to then slowly immolate them and when they are at their weakest, she'll link herself with them watching them slowly die and all of this as much as possible without revealing herself. Like most mages of old, she can't defend herself for crap in close combat and will try to avoid it at all cost. Still, she likes to 'extend the pleasure' and isolate her target, making it die slowly and gloat in the shadows. Afterward it isn't rare for her to eat their heart, believing that the nature of paladin mana allows her to expend on her own mana pool by consuming the seat of a paladin's power. Ki-Tan users are a delight for her she'll get out of her way to consume. **Unique equipment:** - Ring of the Master: A simple ring of silver that gives her limited control over some of the beasts in the Scars. It doesn't allow her to give order as much as it allows her to lure the monsters in a certain direction, leaving their murderous ways do the rest. - Staff of Twilight: Those with knowledge in the ancient mages will remember this focus coming from a mage of incredible power that with its armies and magic carved the very land. An artifact thought to be lost in the destruction of the mage that would be no means befit a neophyte like Mastrix. - Bone Armor: An enchanted armor giving the wearer practical immunity from fire and also an intimidating stature. Still, the armor is made to make the wearer imposing and protect a mage in a duel against other magic users and while it can somewhat protect against a paladin's magic, it's too light to give practical protection against physical blows.

 **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.

 Name: Simon Caillot Race: Human Age: 23 Alignment:Luminous Knights Personality: Playful and Jolly but always serious when in battle. Even though he doesn't give of a serious impersion about his job he does take it seriously. Bio: When Simon was 5 a terrible forest fire started in the woods he lived in. It died down a few hours later. Simon survived but his parents died trying to protect him. With the survival skills his dad taught him before his death ,Simon lived in the woods for the next couple of years. He was doing okay until he crossed paths with a bear who looked very starred. Before the bear could reach him it was cut down by a man wearing armor. Simon starred in oh when the bear fell to hits knees in defeat. The knight asked Simon why he was out in the woods on his lonesome and Simon told him his story. The knight understood and decided to take Simon in as his adoptive son. Simon surname was soon changed to Caillot and he decided to follow in his adoptive father's footsteps as a knight. When he turned 16 his father gifted him his first bladed weapon Xerxes. Initial spells/techniques: **Xerxes Assult**:Simon makes a giant blow against the ground, causing massive airwaves or rocks to strike enemies. **Xerxes Mallot**:Simon jumps up into the air really high and then strikes down hard from above. **Xerxes Wind Up Flash**:Simon lunges toward the enemy using a very powerful twist of the body doing a sideways slash. **Xerxes Rush**: Simon charges at the enemy using multiple slashes against them. **Xerxes Citadel**: This is an ability welded into the sword that allows it to absorb or redirect magical energy. Skills: •Hunting •Acceracy •Fast reflexes •Well trained in combat Combat strategy: In the beginning of a one on one battle Simon would usually be on the defensive until he gets enough information about the oppents attacking strategy. When fighting an out numbering group of oppents he would rotate is whole body to guard his blind spot and attack. Unique equipment: •Xerxes- Simon's sword. Its just a normal blade build in a odd shape. Simon believes its the most perfect defensive and offensive weapon to weld in battle. It is also very special to Simon because it was given to him by his father.

Image:  Name: Nero Manson Race: Human Age: 16 Alignment: Mage Personality: Nero has a dark and brooding personality, and he is almost unable to speak to people do to his being alone his whole life. He knows how to speak, and he's fairly fluent in the language of the living, but socially he is unable to pick up on cues unless he read about it in one of his psychology books or maybe a novel. Bio: Nero's family was a reclusive one that lived in the woods, and he never saw any other children. For years he spent all of his time exploring the old manor house, and gathering interesting relics of his family. In the gran library their were thousands of books, and his parents expected him to learn on his own. To be quite honest he never saw a single living person, not even his parents, for his entire childhood. After reading almost all the books Nero inadvertently found his way into the _other library_. There he found books on a multitude of less savory subjects, and he ended up studying the ancient magic of his family. Nero's Great something Grandfather, from about 250 years ago, had studied magic arts. Nero learned about the magic that his ancestor had studied, and began to practice with it. There were more then enough appropriate focuses in the house, sequestered away. In time he settled on a sword, made with beautiful craftsmanship. Over time he trained and trained, for maybe a year, but then he found his parents in the one room he never went into, theirs. His parents were dead, skeletons with singed and broken bones and he developed a morbid sort of fascination with them. For future reference he sealed them up in a couple of boxes, and packed them away in his stash of stuff. Then he realized the one other rule that he had, it mustn't have been them who'd said it. So he packed up after a bit of planing, and began on his first venture outside... Initial spells/techniques: God Form : Nero takes his blade and draws the symbol of the gods in the air, then he thrusts the blade in the ground, then he shuts his eyes for a second and when the open they seem to be made of pure light in the shape of the god symbol. He then uses a powerful battle stance and fights with strength and talent. Shadow Form: Nero takes his blade and draws the symbol of Shadow in the air, then he thrusts the blade in the ground, then he shuts his eyes for a second and when the open they seem to be made of pure darkness in the shape of the shadow symbol. He then uses a seemingly undisciplined battle stance and fights with speed and ferocity. Yin Yang Form: Nero takes his blade and draws both the symbol of the gods and the Shadow in the air, then he thrusts the blade in the ground, then he shuts his eyes for a second and when they open they seem to be in the yin yang symbol out of light and darkness. He then uses a battle stance that seems like some place between the last two and fights with both a ferocity and discipline, confusing the enemy and truly perfecting battle. Doesnt last quite as long as the other two, so he tries to figure out what he should use on his enemy instead of useing this stance. Skills: - Mastery over Sword-craft - Master over Magical lore, knowing all about the different techniques that his Ancestor had observed as well as all the information gathered up on different magics and magical beasts. - Master Herbologist and Zoologist, knowing all the different plants and animals that can be eaten and what they can be used for in healing and magic from his books. - Master Historian, with all the books and time in those 10 or so years he was actually functioning enough to do things like read before he found the other library he had read all the books in the first library. Many of those, that weren't on the sciences were on history, and many of those were written by contemporary from his family. He has a good account of the last 250 years committed to memory, give or take a decade or two since his parents time and their death. Combat strategy: Mostly Nero just fights with his blade, but when he feels he has to he goes into one of his battle trances depending on the enemy he has to fight. Unique equipment: - Sword of ages - The sword that Nero wields, a long straight blade with no guard. - Journal - He keeps a leather bound journal with his family crest on it, a yin yang type symbal made out of the god and shadow symbols, he hopes to someday commit it to the Other Library. Symbols: - Shadow -  - God -