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elliott20 04-03-08, 02:52 PM

Inspired by the mythic bard thread, in this thread, post mythos and legends that you have used in your campaign. Stat them if you want, but it's necessary. Explain what capacity and what purpose does this mythos serve in your campaign. here's my entry http://home.austin.rr.com/deeperblack/death_dealer.jpg Inspired by the image of the death dealer, this figure served as the villain for one of my crusader games where the PCs had to travel across country borders where different religions met and clashed. Dimitrius Aljar Paternicus is the son of a Leon of Paternicus, the great Crusader who conquered the the holy land and took it back from the Almahads. (the Islamic equivalent of that game) Knowing that he would lose grip over the city if he had remained in an entrenched war, Leon made truce with the Almahads, opened his city to the worshippers whose religion might differ from the Raylenian (Christian equivalent), and took an Almahad wife and gave his son an Almahad middle name in honor of Leon's foe-now turned ally, Aljar the Scholarly. Dimitrius grew up with a great sense of honor and duty placed over his shoulders. His father knew that one day Dimitrius would bare the burden of defending the holylands and it's people. Leon, despite his decorated military career, was an idealist at heart. He believed in the power of resolution and the ability for the world to one day grow beyond their petty differences in dogma. ("For we all believe in the power of the divine, and we yet all believe in the insignificance, but ironic brilliance, of man. This connection to our curiosity of the unknown, and our common goal of spiritual enlightment, is a bond that keeps us.") As such Dimitrius was raised in these very same ideals. As Dimitrius' grew, so did his wisdom and his abilities as a leader. All of the holyland loved him dearly as their prodigal son. The years past, and eventually, Leon passed away, leaving behind a legacy for his son to fill. Dimitrius ascended to the throne and for many decades reigned in the Holy City, peace persisted. But all is not well, for a new movement of religious fervor was in vogue in main land. Many of those who seek glory and wealth come to the holy land. And with them, they bring their dogma. The Almahads, with the rise of their new leadership, also sought to empower their own. Fanned by the belief that spirituality must come from purity of belief and strict adherence to literal interpretations of the religious tenents, the tension rose between the Raylenians and the Almahad. Desperately trying to keep the peace, Dimitrius threw his court in between the two sides and tried to weather the storm. This maneuver, however, proved unpopular and exacted it's price on his reputation. His own people began to accuse him of treachery and that he was lacking in faith. The Almahads saw him as an ineffectual leader incapable of keeping his own people in check. And yet, held true to his convictions he did, and he remained a vocal proponent towards a diplomatic rather than resorting to the sword. During this time, a group Raylenian templars started attacking various Almahad caravans and merchants, and slowly maneuvered to cut off supplies from the neighboring Almahad cities. War was imminent as this act of provocation lead to the Almahad leadership declaring war upon the Raylenian. Dimitrius tried to conduct an investigation to bring those responsible to justice, and he came close to the culprit. In the mean time, he tried to stop his own generals from going to war, and when he saw the Almahad army standing from the battlements of his castle, he sent a messenger to negotiate a truce with the Almahad. It was at this moment, the people turned on him. Fear of the Almahad, anger at Dimitrius' lack of zeal, and what many perceived to be pure cowardice, the people, led by his own generals, turned on him and had him crucified. He was set as an example for all the unfaithful. Finally, the angst and tension that had been building for ages has boiled and rage of the people flooded the streets. One of his generals took over his place, and lead the Raylenian armies to war. But Dimitrius' spirit could not rest. His friends and family betrayed, his people deserted him, and his ideals crushed by rage of man. Embittered by this betrayal, Dimitrius finally allowed eons of repression and guilt bubble to the surface. His soul became a malevolent spirit bent on war and vengeance. His rage could bend steel. His fury made even the devil cowar in fear. From this rage, he rose from the pile of corpses he was left in. He rode a black steed, and watched as the Almahad armies clashed against the Raylenians defending his city. As he watched, he cursed both sides for their ignorance, and then rode towards the wall. What happened next was unclear, but what was clear was that the battle ended with the armies suffering mutual destruction. The holy city was left in ruins, it's citizens all slaughtered. Reports from the few survivors claim that a black knight shrouded in dark magic rode through the fields as the battle raged on. Some claim to have saw the black knight standing over the cliff edge, observing the battle from a distance. The reports became a legend, and the black knight became a symbol of death and destruction. Many armies saw him as an omen that the ensuing battle will bring mutual destruction. And yet, the war raged on. The formal holy lands, now littered with corpses from armies on both sides, became an evil place. Eventually the word of the black knight omen spread across the holy land, and fearing their own destruction, the Raylenian and Almahad leaderships retreated from battle upon sighting him. the war ended in an uneasy blood truce. Between the two sides was a stretch of wasteland where the infamous black knight roams, acting as if he were a guardian of those lands. In an ironic fashion, the black knight did bring the truce between the two religions that Dimitrius sought. Legend has it he roams those battlefields still. This guy was used mostly as a visual device to warn the players of a particularly bloody battle coming up. He was also kind of my way of telling them one of them might die here. The ironic part was nobody ever actually saw the black knight join in battle. and so what he was meant to be remained very much a secret. (Though, officially, I statted him up as a blackguard death knight) I never got around to finishing the campaign with the players but I was planning on the players eventually meeting this black knight in the battlefield and at the end of the campaign they would eventually lay the black knight to finally rest in peace. too bad we never got to that.