Caststarter
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Ding ding ding, round 2. Tried to keep the grappling aspect as intact as possible since that is sort of his gimmick in the first place, considering all three of his weapons have some sort of method to catch opponents, his actual grappling, and a curse that relies on it happening. I decided to do a couple things beyond what has been suggested, making tweaks, re-words, and overall getting it closer to what I envisioned of Michalis proper.
Name: “Michalis Odin”, The Spiritful
Age (and height): 53, 5’11
Race: Human
Element: Light
Appearance: Michalis is a later-middle aged man, with chestnut hair tied in a long ponytail, receding far behind his scalp. His cheeks are sunken, mainly due to his age, and his chin slightly elongated. His left eye is sewn shut, the area having a vertical scar across it. Yet he still stands tall and proud, almost as if he is a mighty hero in the making.
His jack of plates, a form of armour recycled from the likes of brigandines, hides his muscular body, where a tattered cloak hangs far behind him. The cloak itself obscures his lower face. He wears primarily black clothing, shown between the gaps of his armour. Armour only is worn on the upper half of his body, where the lower half is simply dirtied smithing work pants and boots. His actual shirt is an unbuttoned, loose work shirt with the sleeves rolled up. Overall, his attire is very worn and aged. Yet, oddly enough, they still maintain their original effectiveness in battle. Same can’t be said about his jack of plates.
Equipment:
God-steeled sword, Tyrfing: Michalis smithed this very blade himself, in order to prepare for his rebellion. Forged from a rare steel, it emits the power of the Vascole god of war and Ill-fate, Tyrfing. It has a gold cross-guard and flat pommel, with an extremely black leather strap around the grip. The crossguard curves forward, preventing attacks from slicing into Michalis’ hand. It is the strongest sword ever made in Vascole’s territory, cutting through strong steel after multiple blows, causing rumours that it can cut through adamantite(read, it can't. Why? Because adamantite.). The blade itself is completely bathed in light, giving it a golden shine.
In terms of functionality, Tyrfing is a long, one-and half hand sword. It has a serrated edge on one end, and a clean edge on the other. He normally wields the sword by two hands, where it is rather light meaning he can slice and dice at surprising speeds with the clean end. Or… rip through the enemy. The serrated edge might catch clothing, normally a large detriment. Yet, Michalis improvised this situation to stop more nimble or difficult to pin targets.
Barbed, 5 foot chain: An improvised weapon, the chain was altered to wrap around a target where Michalis can pin down an opponent, as well as tear into their body.
3 dual-sets of tied together daggers: Yet another improvised set of weapons, these daggers are connected by 10 foot long rope, one for each set. Michalis can lasso a target, swing a dagger at a distance and retrieve it back, or simply dual wield the weapons. These weapons are multi-purposed, applicable for a vast amount of situations. However, they can prove impractical since they are extremely unorthodox. The daggers themselves are akin to bowie knives, meant for slicing rather than stabbing.
Innate: Michalis is an incredible grappler… wait did someone ask for a pile-drive? Indeed, Michalis actually specializes in wrestling throws, all in the name to give an opponent no room to breath, for everything, to Michalis, is a weapon. Hyperbole aside, he does not feature unrivaled skill with grappling, but it is a skill he certainly picked up along the way, five years of practice.
Attributes: He strikes like the wind, yet steady and secure like stone. Michalis has incredible control of his body movements, always exerting just the right amount of pressure, speed, and correct angle of his blows. His pace is also substantial. While it doesn’t rival horses, it is ever steady, where he doesn’t slow down or speed up, ever constant like a flowing but rushing river. Otherwise his physical aspects are simply average for a former member of Vascole's military, with notches in speed and dexterity.
With such excellent control comes substantial wisdom. While he doesn’t have the tools necessary to truly enable the ability to turn an opponent’s abilities against themselves entirely, he is able to strike at their weak points. He is an intelligent individual as well, as one should be if they want to e a leader, though not as far as even higher end strategists. (This was more of a case of wording than balancing, just to make it clear what I had in mind.)
The only fatal weaknesses comes from the fact that most of his weaponry and abilities are rather unorthodox. He must be quick of mind in order to apply the right tool for the situation. If the enemy is smart enough, they can certainly find ways to combat Michalis. This is a challenge Michalis recognizes and accepts, considering it is only due to his low amount of resources where he had to improvise. Another, albeit smaller, that tactics can be unconventional, due to lack of proper studies to be a truly proper tactician and strategist. As such, sometimes what Michalis thinks, while indeed intelligent and supposedly well-thought out, are a bust regardless.
In terms of swordmanship, Michalis has been regarded as top-class though his improvised weapons in hand he only had at best two years of practice. The former is more due to his intelligence and control rather than pure skill.
Cursed Verses: During his tenure in the Order of the Just Cavalry, Michalis was both a holy warrior and rallyman. He trained in song and war in order to lead his battalion to victory. This did not wane over the years, where he can invoke the power of Tyrfing into the blade itself. Each ancient verse relates to the mythical story to Tyrfing’s legacy, both as a heroic figure and a cursed man, where only those who rise above their fate may achieve victory. As such, Tyrfing himself gives these curses to the blade, lending no magical influence.
Only one curse can be emitted at a time, where they last for about half a minute. Most known verses have a direct opposite, due to the many contradictory sources on the exact details of Tyrfing’s life. For example, the stanza “Beginning” has one version where Tyrfing started his life cursed, while the other blessed. However, only Michalis knows the truth… where only the cursed verses have any actual effect. Not even sheathing the blade stops the curse. Only when time passes or he invokes the stanza “Peace” does the curse stops affecting Michalis and his vicinity. Each stanza must be completed in order to allow the effect to take place at all. Giving Michalis a hefty smack will definitely throw him off entirely as well as intensive evasion, but otherwise he can complete them in about ten seconds.
Waneful Beginning: The glow turns into an ominous dark grey, emitting light in a 5 foot radius. Passive magical effects are suppressed in the aura, while more concentrated effects like spells are somewhat mitigated. For example, a spell with a radial might be reduced to half if the point of origin is within the radius, or can’t cross into Michalis’ vicinity if outside and far enough. However, this too means Michalis can’t benefit from passive magical items if he were to have grabbed one from an enemy. This applies to the magical strength of the blade, causing its force to be rather mundane.
“When a god is born,
Does his life bring hope and peace?
Or does it bring destruction and ruin?
Precedent been made, Tyrfing set forth
Into the sunset bloodied by loss
Where he was the weakest of all gods”
Vengeful Betrayal: The glow turns into a bright red, emitting light in a 10 foot radius. Not only does the aura increases everyone’s disposition towards violence and bloodshed, increasing their physical abilities while inside by about 25% percent. (Funny story for everyone. I actually thought this was too much in the first place, increasing physical abilities.)
“His shieldbearing brother betrayed him,
In order to steal the pride of his people,
The enemies’ weapons were sharpen,
With no sense of grace nor skill,
Tyrfing fought a blood-crazed army
Where his lack of ferocity earned him renown”
Three Great Evils: The glow turns into a disturbing black, dimming light in a 10 foot radius. The blade saps the strength of the user slowly but replenishes it via sapping an opponent’s physical strength via any kind of physical contact. When the verse is revoked, the glow bursts with blinding and searing holy power for all within 10 feet of the blade except Michalis, for he sacrificed his strength until then to foster this power. The light is non-lethal, even at high potency. But higher potency means more burning of the skin and eyes, leaving opponents disoriented more severely. (read, not longer) It should be noted that the drain goes as far as half of the user. An opponent's own strength does not apply to this aspect, so it can't be used to further bolster the searing light. Anyone's strength recovers naturally after about ten seconds when the curse ends.
“When Tyrfing’s land was obtained,
Three demons plagued the country,
Sapping the land dry and decayed,
He too was weaken by the darkness,
But his tactical wit prevailed,
For he used the demons’ power against them”
The End Brings Despair: A beacon of holy light, the blade seemingly elongates in radiant energy, the golden shine enhanced. This bright light covers a 20-foot radius, purging any darkness. Yet, everything in the aura becomes visually demonic and twisted, under a fearful illusion for those inside of it. Michalis, however, looks younger and almost god-like, eye seemingly renewed, armor gleaming, and reinvigorated. These illusions typically take the form of anyone’s darkest aspect, be it a dark secret, regret, or vice. Even Michalis sees his biggest regret; his military failure to free Vascole.
“Revived, the demons sought revenge,
Killing his wife and children but one,
The demon army twisted the land,
Forcing it to become one of shadow,
Spiritless, the land was a pertinent dusk,
The cursed god however, was more than that.”
Peace: For most scholars, this is the typically agreed upon end of Tyrfing’s life.
“The demons destroyed the castle walls,
In one final stand, his spirit dimmed slightly,
For fate caught up to him,
The god could live no more,
But he pushed on, destroying the demons,
The curse lifts, but his soul destroyed.”
spoiler:
The Curse Lifts: In comparison, the previous glow is overwhelmed by the true spirit of Tyrfing. The glow turns into a vibrant prismatic shine, as the blade bursts with harmless prismatic fire, a true beacon of hope. The light bathes the area 30-feet around it, but actually does nothing. Instead, Tyrfing’s curse lifts and completely inspires Michalis for one final push. There is no ability enhancement, only heighten morale and sense of justice, law, and courage. Michalis has no fear, for he never had it. He is the hopebringer to all of Vascole against the tyranny that stands before them, for he is the true descendant of Tyrfing, the Spiritful. His true name, Michalis Tyrfing. Tyrfing was no god… just a normal man that stood toe to toe with the gods themselves. His spirit is what blesses the blade, silent and invisible, but forever by Michalis’ side. These last two verses were in fact lost, the last piece to the truth, the true version of “Peace”.
The Mortal:
“The weakest of the gods triumphed however,
For the mortal was more than a mere mortal,
He was a god on the mortal plain,
Cursed with a fate unprecedented,
He rose, defeating the darkness,
Becoming a true king and leader.”
The Spiritful:
“The demons could not penetrate his castle,
For his spirit shined greatly for all,
He was a beacon of hope,
The demons were slain once more,
The land was given peace,
Soon to be called… Vascole.”
Background: Michalis Odin was born on a quaint farm in the farther outskirts of Vascole territory. There he helped his parents tend to chores and grew a strong sense of family, where he learned the responsibilities he must inherit where then his own child must adopt later on. His family carry a strict secret to themselves, mainly revolving around the Vascole god Tyrfing. Lately, followers of Tyrfings have been ousted for being fanatical. Soldiers are exempt from this view, for Tyrfing is a god of war to begin with.
As such, like most of his family beforehand, he enrolled in the Vascole military, specifically in their paladin group the Order of the Just Cavalry. Much of his career was both a holy warrior and rallyman, fighting against surging rebellions and foreign aggression against the Vascole empire. There, he made good friends such as Varn Roberto, who shared his sense of justice and desire to rise above one’s circumstance. However, one day, Michalis retired from the army and settle off as a blacksmith, proving to be a profession of immense skill for him.
He practiced for a decade and a half before realizing Vascole’s ultimate blade, named after Tyrfing. At the time, Vascole’s oppression of culture, religion, and counter-culture grew, where all countries conquered or became satellites states must adopt Vascole’s way of life. While it bolstered the areas economically, the way of life was still miserable for many.
As such, Michalis rebelled against Vascole. Using his new blade as a symbol of hope, he rallied former military officials, budding soldiers, and reliable workers to guide the entire continent into a better future. However, he had one major obstacle, in the form of Michel Fergueson. Michel was the only one who could see through Michalis’ unorthodox tactics, where he branded his entire army as bandits to snuff any sense of justice from his cause. Though it is rumoured that at the time, Vascole was short-handed on proper tacticians and strategists, due to endeavors against other countries around the empire.
Michalis failed many battles in his campaign, where his last crucial battle he was put up against Varn Roberto. Realizing the situation, the two fought not as enemies, but as friends. The two combatted each other personally, where Michalis stood triumphant. However, this was taken advantaged by Michel, who surrounded Michalis’ now fledgling army.
Michalis managed to break through, but not without the fault of unable of continuing his cause. He rushed back home on horseback, only to find his son missing. When he pressed the locals on what happened, it was said that Michalis himself was killed.
This endeavour would be dubbed as the Bandit Uprising, where Vascole grew ever more powerful. Michalis’ title was soon changed to the Spiritless, due to rumours that he was transformed into a horrible monster. Yet if Michalis himself still lived… he grew to realize that his son was transformed into a monster.
Due to his failure and lost, the campaign became his greatest regret. However, this is a regret he took as a challenge instead, for he knew what god he followed. This was his fate that he must rise above of, not let squander him.
With the ever coming Elemental Championships, he knew that the Vascole empire should not be the only one that had a representative from the continent. He remembered Prota being there last year, where now she is Vascole’s empress. He set out to prove to the people, where he intends to give everyone in the continent the will to rise up once more.
Personality: Michalis is quiet, but has an ever increasing sense of justice, courage, as any paladin should be. Calm and collected, he rises up for any challenge, unflinching. Sometimes his sense of justice causes him to be stubborn, but his intellectual nature allows him to also know the bigger picture. Once an objective catches Michalis’ sight, he pursues.
< Message edited by Caststarter -- 6/25/2018 3:28:41 >
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