"The Academy of Meridian"

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The Armageddon Gospels

It is said that upon the creation of Sardun, Melkath, author of time, created a book, a sacred gospel that would allolw mankind to be like him. It is said that he who reads from these gospels will become like the creator himself, forming a whole new world with a wave of his hand.

However, with the deceit of Hecuba, Melkath deemed mankind unworthy of such power. It was then that the gospels were hidden, not to be unearthed until the final day when Melkath himself would unmake his world and take his loyal followers to into the great beyond. If any but Melkath should read from the gospels, they will destroy this world and create a new one in it’s place.
 
The Trinity of Sardun

Melkath, saddened by humanity’s inability to live according to his design left the world of Sardun in the hands of his daughters. Marah was the oldest and most like her father. Malai was the middle child and the peacemaker between her sisters and father. Finally, Melphi was the youngest and most disobedient. When the sisters took their reign over mankind, each came to represent a different aspect of humanity’s spiritual nature.

Marah became the light goddess, being so like her father and ensuring that his will was done, Marah was not above actually taking part in the lives of mankind and personally helping them. Malai preferred to remain hidden from mankind, helping them or hindering them only when they strayed too far from a balanced spirit. Melphi on the other hand became known as the mother of lies, doing nothing but promising much to her followers in return for evil deeds designed to upset the fragile order of her father’s world.

All of the sisters were entrusted with one of the gospels, ensuring that none of them would ever posess them all. Marah would keep her gospel safe because it was her father’s will. Malai would do so to ensure that neither of her sisters had the ability to throw the world into war against the other. Even Melphi, who hated her father, hated humankind more and the thought of man being as powerful as she was disgusted her.

Due to the nature of his daughters, Melkath knew that the keys to undoing his world, The Armageddon Gospels, were forever safe.
 
The Birth of Magic and The Shattered Race

Marah and Melphi were constantly at war. Each posessed a small fraction of their father’s power. Each had the ability to create and to destroy. And each of them used their power to try to unseat the other from their throne of power.

Malai had no need to either create or destroy. She became known as the spellweaver for her ability to turn her sisters light and dark magic into natural elements of Sardun. Marah’s magic she converted into the powers of earth and water, Melphis’ magics were turned into fire and air. While the two sisters warred amongst each other, the land grew rich from their power.

In time, the land became so infused with magic that mankind was able to tap into the powers of the gods. Exposure to magic caused humans to break off into many different races. For centuries, the seven tribes of humanity lived among themselves, each changing in different ways. This time is referred to by historians as the age of the shattered race.
 
The Imperial Unification

Original man, having relied on machines and enginuity rather than magic remained furthest removed from the magical change brought upon the other six tribes. Original man had also held onto the creator’s teachings and thus they were aligned closely with Marah. As the other six tribes became farther removed from humanity, they also became farther removed from the creator’s teachings, relying on magic instead of paying homage to the gods. Over time Marah became enraged at this blasphemy and she encited her beloved humans to wage war against the followers of not just one of her sisters, but both of them.

Malai, unable to truly fight back against her sister joined with Melphi to push back the human onslaught. Many horrible creatures and magics were created through this union and they still exist to this day,. Although the magically infused races proved to be formidable opponents, mankind, being the most adaptable of all races, eventually learned magic and conquered the entire land of Sardun.

However, holding onto the land of Sardun was a different matter and the human armies were beaten back to their homeland of Meridia. The defeat of the imperial armies is considered complete by historians although there are still human settlements living affluently and securely on every continent of Sardun. In some cases, humans live in those regions more comfortably than the native races.

The greatest effect of the Imperial Unification was the spread of the Imperial Oath. As Imperial armies looted the ancient wealth of Sardun, entire nations were left destitute. This made it very difficult for the occupying armies of the Empire to maintain order. Therefore, the actual wealth of those conquered nations was replaced with Imperial Oaths. These Oaths bore the seal of the Empire and were recognized by every imperial merchant as actual wealth despite the fact that the Oaths themselves were made out of gold, a soft and useless metal unfit for forging and universally considered worthless.

The conquered peoples never took Imperial rule completely and eventually the Empire withdrew her armies. However, the Imperial Oath remained a mainstay of Sardun’s economy and every nation came to recognize it.
 
The Rise of the Grey Legion

After the Empire withdrew her armies and eventually restored much of the world’s wealth, Sardun became peaceful. The great war which had been initiated by Marah was over and the sisters lived well-removed from each other.

However, the damage was already done. The union of Malai and Melphi’s powers created a new form of magic, unlike any previously encountered. Necromancy was borm from the unholy union of nature and darkness, undoing the natural cycle of life and allowing the dead to live in a blasphemous undeath.

At first, Melphi took the undead under her wing, beleiving them to be creatures of darkness, however their connection with nature was just as powerful as their connection with darkness and they could not be controlled solely by Melphi. One of the undead, Zephram, was an honored Imperial General who had perished on the battlefield during the Imperial Unification. Zephram called to his banner the fallen warriors from both sides of the ancient conflict. Sacred dust became flesh again and the Grey Legion was born.

The Grey Legion took Melphi’s gospel away from her. Without her sisters power, she could not turn them back. Then, the legion turned their attention west towards the two remaining gospels, that of Malai resting in an enchanted glade in Cyrilli and the gospel entrusted to Marah ensconced in the hall of the creator in the capitol of Merida.

While the nations of the world unite to fight back the Grey Legion, summoning armies and fleets to stop them, the demand for heroes has grown. With no military, no police, and precious little order, the land of Sardun needs heroes more than ever. Thousands have answered the call and of those thousands, most have died unspeakable deaths.
 
Registering at the Academy

With the demand for heroes comes a need to train them. Any common citizen may become a great hero if given the proper motivation and the proper training. It is for this reason that the Academy of Meridia was created.

At the academy, anyone—even you can become a hero. The Academy teaches everything from Swordplay to Magic, Burgling to Archery. All that remains is to enlist. Admission is free due to these desperate times but we hope that one day you will remember us with a few oaths as the skills you learn here take you down the road to fame and fortune.

We will explain the registration sheet as best we can. However, if you’re ever registered at such an academy it should be pretty self-explanatory.

Name: This should be obvious. This is the name you’ll go by throughout your travels. Don’t feel discouraged if your given name isn’t heroic enough. You may put down any name you so choose.

Race: This shouldn’t be too complicated if you know the seven races of Sardun. If not, then don’t be ashamed of your sheltered life, we have provided a list below.

Human: There’s one standing right in front of you. The registrar is human. If you don’t know what a human is, take a good long look at him. Humans are considered to be the most basic of all races, not being inclined to any one ability or the other, humans are a good base for any character.

Cyrilli: Cyrilli are the mysterious inhabitants of the forests. They have dark brown, grey or blue skin and their eyes tend to glow in the dark. Except for their enhanced dexterity and vision, their stengths and weaknesses are nearly identical to humans.

Baruna: Short stocky and as rugged as the earth that formed them. Baruma are excellent metalsmiths and enjoyed a peace during the Imperial invasion due to their superior weapons cafting skills. Many races hate the Baruna as much or more than they hate humans as the power of the Imperial army was made that much stronger due to Baruna weapons.

Vashar: Catlike in appearance, the vashar are natural fighters as their abilities lean towards stength and speed. Their natural claws and sharp fangs are also formidable weapons. The Vashar hate humans perhaps more than any other race as the human “Nadjir” settlement encroaches on their ancestral lands and pushes them to the outskirts of the Naja desert.

Hasper: Small, rotund and generally very jolly individuals, the hasper have a very strong attunement with nature and do very little actual work. Living in massive mansions set in hills underground, the hasper generally do not leave their homes, much less their homeland. However, some young Hasper, bored with Hasper life have decided to become heroes.

Melith: Living in underground cities made of crystal and stone, the Melith are reptilian in appearance and like the Vashar have claws and fangs which which they may attack their prey. Melith are unique in that they posess the ability to metabolize their own blood into venom. Upon biting an enemy, the vemon is transmitted into the bloodstream where it does all manner of havoc. Melith venom is the strongest on Sardun and the Melith themselves are immune to all but the strongest of the venoms produced by their own kind.

Galiam: Living reclusively amongst the mountains of Sardun, the Galiam went largely ignored in the Imperial Unification. Some say it was due to the fact that the Galiam have no true nation to call their own in the first place. Most are likely to believe that it is due to the fact that Galiam stand twice as tall as a human and hurl three-ton boulders at each other for sport. A single Galiam could wade through a platoon of human soldiers flinging them to the wind like matchsticks.

These are the Races of Sardun. If you’ve never had the chance to get acquainted with any of them, feel free to walk around the Academy as our faculty represents each of the races of Sardun. However, if you’re already an accomplished hero, all you really need to is register here and you can go about your business without training in the Academy.

Next thing you’ll need to do is determine what class of hero you are. This determines guild membership and what skills you will be able to learn after you’ve got some experience under your belt. You may consider yourself a certain class but for filing purposes, we ask that you choose one of the classes that we have provided that most closely represents you. If you wish, you can even choose two or three classes in order to more accurately determine your own class, however this will make earning training sessions at your respective guilds even more difficult.

Man-at-Arms or Shieldmaiden:

Skilled warriors who specialize in melee weapons. These fighters are masters of almost every close-range weapon and can move comfortably in even the heaviest of armor. Such as these make up the largest percentage of Sardun’s heroes.

Lightfinger:

Known primarily for their burgling skills, Lightfingers are also formidable opponents. Sneaking about and backstabbing their enemies, blinding them with handfulls of crushed glass, or simply lying their way out of a confrontation are all ways that Lightfingers can best even the strongest opponent.

Warmongers:

Powerful warriors who place their trust in their own natural strength and resillience rather than in weapons skill or heavy armor. Warmongers are seen as barbaric by some, however they simply consider themselves as more attuned with the natural elements of nature. Tatooing themselves with ancient protective symbols instead of wearing armor, Warmongers tend to fly in the face of conventional combat. Warmongers are formidable opponents as they are immensely strong and wield massive two-handed weapons. Also, Warmongers posess the warcry ability which allows them to increase the fighting prowess of their allies while striking terror into the hearts of their enemies.

Clerics:

Clerics are magic-users who receive their powers dierectly from the gods rather than through study or an innate magical abilty. The main thing a Cleric must do is remain faithful to their chosen path as a Clerics abilities are determined by their devotion to their god.

Cleanser: Cleansers are clerics who follow the teachings of Marah, the goddess of light. They have the power to heal ilness, injury and some even have the ability to reverse the horrors of death itself. Like all clerics, Cleansers must stay aligned to the light in order to retain their holy powers.

Shaman: Children of Malai, the goddess of balance, Shamen can use nature spells easily and may even transform into animals. Shamen must live a chaste and balanced life in order to keep their powers.

Banisher: Able to inflict injury through curses, hexes and dark prayers, banishers are fearsome representatives of Melphi's will. Banishers must remain wholly pledged to evil in order to keep their murderous abilities.

Crusaders:

Crusaders are champions of the Church of Marah. Equipped with both the divince grace of her Holiness the Chambra of Marah and powerful blessed weapons and armor, Crusaders defend Cleansers in their holy pilgrimages and generally uplift the people.

Glenwardens:

Tending to the forests and wild places of Sardun, Glenwardens are the unofficial protectorate of the Shaman tribes. Working together with the Shamen to control the flow of magic in nature and preventing the rape of the land through war, Glenwardens are a cryptic and secretive order. Glenwardens are fearsome foes in battle, striking from the gloom of the forest with their arrows.

Nightblades:

Assassins of Melphi's dark cult, Nightblades have no loyalty to their Banisher masters, obeying them only when personal safety or personal gain dictates. Nightblades are feared throughout Sardun by good and evil alike as no throat is safe from the Nightblades. From the shadows, none is as deadly and in close quarters, Nightblades are a match for most foes even when unarmed.

Magi:

Magic-users who devote themselves to their study, Magi can learn nearly any spell through ardent study and discipline. A powerful Magi can stand alone against and entire army and turn it back with but a single word or gesture.

Mentalists:

Utilizing a new form of magic called Psionics, Mentalists do not leave the source of their powers in the hands of the elements, but rather they tap into their minds to fuel their powerful spells. Mentalists have the uncanny ability to turn and pervert so-called "pure magic" by attacking the mind of the caster while the spell is being performed. For this reason, Mentalists do not need to learn counterspells.

Archon:

Perhaps the most fearsome and dangerous spellcasters alive are the Archons. Archons are posessed of an innate ability to conjure and do not need to study magic. The spells produced are of exceptional power but in their casting drain the Archon, the more complex and powerful spells leaving their host almost completely void of life.

These are the Classess of Sardun. While most classes tend to follow a certain dress code, you are free to dress however you like. However, as a precaution we ask that you write a physical description of yourself in the event of catalysmic injury or disfiguring death in order that we may make funeral arrangements with your next of kin.

Please fill out the form below...


Name:

Race:

Class:

Appearance:

There, now you can go on into the world of Sardun. Make us at the academy proud and above all, have fun.
 
A strange sight greets the otehr enlistees as they enter the registry area.A Huge,easily 12' giant sits on an open bench,scribbling away at the(for him)tiny registration form with a quill pen delicatly placed between two large fingers.

Name:Shen
Race:Galiam
Class:Warmonger
Description:normally quiet and reserved,thoguh when angered or in a fight he uses his hieght two and a half times the size of the average human to his advantage.He has straight brown hair,and brown eyes.tanned coarse skin,and a broad but not fat body.
Main weapon is a heavy spiked chain,Armor is piecemeal,as most armors wont fit him.Armor slides up his right arm(full-plate),an oxen's yoke rests over his shoulder as a brace for two huge sheets of metal,which tie at their corners around him to eachother work as a make-shift chestplace.His left leg is covered in chainmail stitched itno his simple cloth leggings.He wears thick soled studded leather boots.
 
He sits at a bench, calm and composed, filling out the form as quickly as he can.

Name: Orres Esseliam
Race: Human
Class: Man-at-arms
Appearance: 6'2". Dressed in leather breeches and cotton tunic. When armed and armored, wears a half-plate that covers his torso and the upper half of his left arm. He rarely wears a helm as he dislikes how they limit vision and add weight, but will do so if necessary. The armor is plain, and inexpensive. He wears thick, leather boots. He has a 2 knives, one long, one short, strapped to his belt, and wears a sword as large as a man on his back. He is emotional, quick to anger but quick to friendship. He has difficulty sympathizing with others, but can do so. Generally well-liked, he has few enemies. The enemies he does posses generally emerge from lost fights or victims of his rage.
 
Scroll tightly rolled up in her fist, a dark-skinned Cyrilli maiden leans against one of the smooth marble walls and surveys her future classmates. Apparently seeing something promising in all of them, she unrolls the registration sheet and begins to fill it out.

Name: Maiana Thornbow

Race: Cyrian (Half-Cyrilli, Half-Human)

Class: Glenwarden

Appearance: Standing at six feet tall, Maiana's Cyrilli heritage is more apparent than her human lineage. Her ears are pointed as Cyrilli's are, but each are delicately curved and remain close to the head like human ears. Her eyes are a peircing violet color and glow faintly by moonlight as do the eyes of all Cyrilli. However, this is a cosmetic trait as her night vision is that of an average humans.

Dressed in the plain leather and muslin clothing of a Glenwarden, Maiana blends easily into the dark corners of the Academy halls where she seems to prefer to stay. Her only armament appears to be two quivers of arrows and a heavy longbow that is easily as long as she is tall. The bow is adorned with murderous-looking thorns and when unstrung, makes a leathal quarterstaff.
 
Name:Bryntii Ki`Fairan
Race:cyilli
Class:shaman/magi
Appearance: Hidden within a mottled, roughhewn cloak, not much of the slim, almost skeletal, figure is visible except her delicately boned hand holding the quill and a glimpse of silver hair. She carefully and precicely places each of her words upon the paper without so much as a glance around the cavernous room. When she shifts, her hood falls back a little, letting the light fall upon sharp facial features, her eyes draw what little attention her looks merit as she smiles sadly, tracing the feather back and forth across her jawline as she thinks of her next choice of words.

Movement on the floor captures the attention of the watcher as her sturdily booted foot swirls within the strap of her pack that is resting on the floor next to her seat. suddenly becoming aware of those around her, she glances around, nectarine hued pupils focusing on each person in the room before returning to the task at hand. She leans over and digs through the lumpy pack as if looking for something and sighing softly when she straightens back up, empty-handed. Seeing the variety of people represented, she feels a bit uncomfortable until she inhales deeply, mutters something then exhales, closing her eyes for a moment, still not having come to a conclusion on wether or not the elders were right, maybe she is too young to be out of the forests, but by Malai's calling she is needed and 78 years had better be old enough to serve the Goddess.

She finishes the form and carefully placing the quill aside, she picks up her pack and the form and returns it to the counter before moving off to the side, uncosiously seeking out a light source as she rummages through her pack once again before pulling out a bundle. She unwraps a book and starts reading while she waits for the next stage.
 
Revlin

Placing his small hand into the fifth pouch on his right hip, Revlin pulls out a gold quill. He smiles to himself, as he tries to remember how this fell into his pouch. He remembers seeing in at the entrance to the Academy as the human was answering some of his questions. No matter, it will go well with the gold inkwell that also made it into the same fifth pouch.

Name : Revlin Tenderfoot
Race: Hasper
Class: Lightfinger
Description: Revlin is a typical hasper as far as his height, coming in around 3'9 if he stands on his tippy toes. He is different then most in the fact that his is not portly, almost svelte in appearance. He has found that behind narrower has helped him in his profession in the past. He carries a hoopak, a typical weapon of his race which is a forked stick around 4 feet tall. It has a large stretchy band at the fork end that is ideal for slinging stones, and the opposite end is capped with a sharp metal point. He always wears a tight leather set of work clothes, jet black of course to better conceal himself in the dark. In a small scabbard at his waist, he carries a short sword. Concealed in the folds of his cloak that he wears over the leather is four silver throwing knives that he is suprisingly proficient at.
 
Name: Tokudo
Race: Human
Class: Mentalist

Appearance: Clothed in a loose vest and pants, with a sash for a belt. Save for his eyebrows, his head is completely hairless. He wears a necklace, upon which is a small crystal that shifts from blue to purple, depending on how the light strikes it. He carries a backpack, though it is empty except for a change of clothes and enough food to last a few days. He rarely carries food for longer than that, as he learned as a child how to absorb nutrients from the sun and soil, as plants do, and consequently rarely needs actual food. At his side is an unremarkable scimitar.

An elaborate tattoo runs diagonally accross his chest. It currently does nothing, but he seeks to empower it.

After observing his future classmates for a moment, he takes and fills a form. Upon completing it, he sets it back on the counter and silently turns to face the window.
 
Name: Gorret

Race: Melith

Class: Nightblade

Appearance: Standing just under 6 feet, Gorret is green and scaly, with blood red eyes and both sharp claws and sharper fangs. He has a tail, but almost always wears a cloak to conceal it. The cloak also usually conceals his face as well. Just his eyes pierce through.
Two bastard swords are sheathed as his side, and he carries a dark wooded bow on his back.
 
She looks around the room as she slips her form from the desk. Surprisingly noticing another of her own short race seated in the room.

She quickly retrieves a quill and fills in her form

Name: Corona
Race: Hasper
Class: nightblade/lightfinger

Description: Corona was disowned from her family a short while ago because of her mischevious ways and her somewhat unnerving taking to revenge.

She stands a mere 3' 5" usually coming to a humans midsections. She wears a tight corset top her breasts slightly swelling from the cups. Around her waist she has twin dagger-like blades perfectly balanced to her size and form. She also wears fitted knee high animal hide boots and an animal hide skirt also only reaching to her knees. Over her entire form hangs a dark hooded cloak. The cloak looks as if it were meant for a slightly larger Hasper as the bottom edge is slightly tattered as if dragging on the ground and when the hood is raised it hangs partly into her face.

As she fills out her form she mumbles inaudibly to herself
 
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A green-cloaked figure steps tentatively into the room, moving away from the entrance so as not to draw much attention. She looks around quickly for the desk where the forms are, takes one quickly along with a quill and finds a solitary bench in a corner to sit. She stares at the paper blankly for a few seconds, then raises her eyes slowly to measure the others. Her eyes widened at the sight of the Geliam and was drawn to the hands of the cloaked stranger, who had long claws like her own but were reptilian in appearance. Some shuffling in the room distracted her and she quickly began to complete the form.

Name: Deisa

Race: Vashman (Half human, half Vashar)

Class:Magi

She rolls up the paper, places the quill inside and puts it beside her on the bench. Lowering her hood, she reveals her large, cat-like eyes of amber surrounded by a ring of green. Her long, oval face is framed by her long reddish-orange hair made strange by the horizonal streaks of white, reminiscent of a ginger cat. Her ears are small and she uses a clawed finger to push it behind her right ear. She is dressed in plain light green dress, brightened only by the dark green belt looped around her waist. She wears no visibly weaponry.
 
(completely ooc) Wow we have alot of females here. The gender split is almost even. Cool ;)
 
Removing the white and shimmering robes of an academy headmaster, the registrar revals the scarred and battered armor of an aged adventurer. Producing his instructor's identification from a pocket in his robes and adding it to the registration scrolls of his students, the teacher takes his places among his students, temorarily at least, as their leader.

Name: Areor Darklighter

Race: Human

Class: Fallen

When a crudaser fails to live up to the strict codes of his order, or when a crusader performs a deed that is in direct violation with the wishes of a superior, that crusader is defrocked and denied the benefits of membership in the Church of Marah. No longer walking in the devine grace of Marah, these "Fallen" crusaders carry a stigma about them.

Outside of the church of marah and it's doctrines, some Fallen Ones become upstanding members of society. Without the strict codes of the temple binding their actions, many former crusaders find that they can use the training they gained in the temple to a greater good without the overbearing "guidance" of the temple elders.

If that were the only legacy of former crusaders, they would not likely be known by such an ominous label. However, many crusaders, broken by the harsh life they are forced to endure, find their training in the temple can also guarntee them a life of ease and material wealth if applied in a somewhat less pious manner. These are the true "Fallen Ones", whose mystic powers take on a sinister bent when their allegiance shifts from Marah to her wicked sister Melphi. The combination of unflinching discipline and complete devotion to evil make "Fallen Ones" rare but fearsome. The heinous deeds of these dark crusaders overshadow the quieter legacies of more peaceful individuals who were once the pride of the church of Marah

Areor is dressed in the armor given to him upon his coronation in the crusaders. The armor is light plate over chainmail, an older design of crusader armor which was later replaced with heavier full plate armor. Once a masterwork of beauty and strength, it has become marred by battle and although polished to a mirror shine, a slight tarnish has turned the once pristine metal a soft golden color. The crest of Areor's former order (the specific temple to which he once belonged) adorns the breastplate of the armor, however, it has been scratched and pounded into an unrecognizeable piece of metal and is completely unidentifiable.

Areor's sword is a rapier, a weapon given to officers as a badge of office. It is generally unused by crusaders in battle as they tend to favor large, two-handed weapons.

The bandolier of throwing daggers is completely out of place, something reminiscent of what a lightfinger or nightblade might wear. However, each dagger is polished to a glittering shine and seems as well cared for as the antique armor itself.

Areor stands at six feet tall, an above average height for a human male of his age. In the classroom, he allows his long white hair to cascade across his shoulders. In battle, he keeps it tied out of the way in a thick ponytail.
 
A young women steps into the room. She has dark hair, blue-green eyes and is wearing a bit dirty, green normal-looking clothes. She`s 5`6" and quite regular looking. She pics up a form, and quickly gos over to a corner to fill it out.

Name: Angela

Rase: Human

Class: Shamen/Lightfighter

She looks around, and study the unusual group of people from all rases. Then she rolls up the form and wait.
 
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