Your eyes crack open, blinking rapidly as you adjust to the harsh glare of a bright, white light. You attempt to dim the light through magic, but find it impossible, much to your frustration. In the end, you give up, glaring right back at the offending light instead.
A chuckle meets your ears, and your head snaps down, seeing that you are seated across from an unidentifiable humanoid silhouette, with nothing but a small, round wooden table between you. Your glare intensifies, and you level it at this even more irritating feature of the room. Said room, you note, is a white-paneled and spotless cube.
"You died," they claim, and you sense the smirk radiating from them, from under that face-concealing hood. The voice is no more clue towards their identity than anything else.
"This hell, then?" you ask, teeth gritted under your master-crafted steel helm, "disappointing. I could teach you to better torment – this is just annoying."
"Nope," they reply, before pausing just enough that you almost speak up. This, it seems, was a ruse, just to annoy you, as they continue "this is where I decide where to send you next. Just letting you get one sentence out has been quite informative already!"
"What, you couldn't tell from the armor?" you scoff, motioning to the dark, spiked steel you are clad in with one hand, "do I look like a paragon of virtue to you?"
The figure shrugs.
"I've seen weirder, trust me," they inform you, "I try not to be too judgmental of people's style nowadays."
You snort derisively, baring your teeth in a sneer. You're a dark lord, damnit, not just some spike fetishist.
"Right, anyway," they say, conjuring a sheet of paper from nothing with a flash of light, "huge jackass, check."
Having never heard that particular insult before, you nonetheless roll with the punch, retorting faster than possible for a less experienced speaker.
"You don't seem much better, donkeyfucker," you bite back, inspired by the mention of donkeys. Better to keep on topic, even when it comes to insults, after all.
"Oh, believe you me, were you less… you, I'd be polite," they tell you. "Unfortunately for me, though, you're the you-est person I've had the misfortune to meet."
"Getting off topic, aren't you?" you mock, "you seem unable to stick to that checklist of yours."
"You…" they begin, before stopping, and taking a deep, calming breath, much to your amusement, "fuck you, but point. Let's get this over with."
"Sure," you said, with a smirk on your lips. Whether the being across from you is divine or merely celestial, you care little, you just want to piss them off.
"First up, name?" they ask, putting a newly conjured quill to the parchment.
"What, you don't know?" you ask with a mocking tone. They grip the quill tighter.
"It is required for the paperwork," they reply, tersely, "and due to prior incidents where an administrator wrote the wrong name out of spite, I am required to have you say it yourself."
[] Name: Write-In
"Good, good," they say, relieved at your willingness to be at least a tiny bit cooperative, "next, gender."
[] Gender: Write-In
They nod to themself.
"Right, next we have a bunch of trivial stuff that I don't particularly need your help filling out, so I'll do that myself later, when I've sent you away," they inform you.
"We done, then?" you ask, though you quickly receive a shake of the head.
"There's one big one we have to get through, and then I'll be ready to send you away," they say.
"A big one?" you ask. They quickly give you a nod, then turn the page toward you, revealing that the question is big, not metaphorically, but quite literally, having a fair few empty lines for your answer to be written onto.
"How's your magic work?" they ask you, and you quirk an eyebrow, though it is hidden beneath the steel you wear.
"Perfectly fine, albeit not in here," you reply, genuinely confused, "better than fine, even – I am peerless in my arcane mastery."
"Ah, right. You don't know, do you? There are worlds, other than yours, that have native systems of magic, which often work quite differently," they explain, surprising you quite a tad, "so please, describe what you can do, and what limits it."
You start with 5 Points
[] Fields of Magic
-[] School of Ruin. -1. Master the dead, throw lightning, and burn your enemies to ash.
-[] School of Creation. -2. Summon minions, heal wounds, and alter your surroundings.
-[] School of Glamour. -3. Break minds, fool the senses, and turn friend against friend.
-[] School of Sanctuary. -4. Raise wards, dispel magics, and read the flow of the future.
-[] School of Elements. -1. Master the four basic elements – water, earth, fire and air.
--[] Hedge Elementalism. -1. Master the secondary elements – ice, metal, lightning and sound.
--[] Terra Force. -3. Master obscure magics related to the earth – ley lines, runestones and much more.
-[] School of Pacts. -1. The writing of magically binding contracts, with customizable consequences and degrees of unbreakability.
--[] Spirit Mastery. -1. Bind spirits to your will, be they ghosts, elementals, or nature spirits.
--[] Demonology. -2. Conjure and bind fiends of all kinds. Risky, but powerful.
-[] School of Druidcraft. -2. Be lord to nature, be it the leaf, beast or the natural forces.
-[] School of Metamagic. -2. Magic that influences magic – counterspells, amplification, and rituals of permanency.
--[] High Magic Theory. -3. Not only do you know an impressive repertoire of extant spells and rituals, you know how to make your own.
--[] Teaching 101. -4. You've taken courses in how to teach magic theory.
-[] School of Artifice. -3. Use magic to craft magical items, be they wands, arms, armors, or something entirely different. Highly recommended.
--[] Cauldron of Everything. -1. Alchemy, the art of transmutation and potion-brewing.
--[] Metals of Myth. -1. You know how to create the three great metals of myth: Mithril, Orichalcum, and Adamant.
-[] School of Fateweaving. -4. More art than science, this field of magic allows you to twist the future directly.
-[] School of Edicts. -5. Through long and arduous rituals, sign proclamations of magical intent. Once read aloud to the relevant authority, your edicts will shake the world.
[] Limits of Magic
-[] Limits of Mana. +1. You have a limited pool of mana that slowly replenishes over time. Every act of magic you commit expends at least a bit of it.
--[] Spell Slots. +2. Each spell is divided into a tier. For each tier of magic, you have a limited number of spell slots, which can be expended for that tier or lower. To replenish these, you need to rest for several hours.
--[] Orb of Mana. +1. You own a head-sized orb of primordial magics – to replenish your mana, you need to be within a short distance of it.
-[] Tiresome. +1. Casting magic saps your physical stamina, tiring you as you cast.
--[] Unhealthy. +2. Casting magic saps your vitality, harming you with every spell.
-[] Cooldown. +1. Whenever you cast a spell, you have to wait a certain amount of time before you can cast that spell again – the stronger, the longer, usually.
-[] Components. +2. Voice, gestures, or physical sacrifices are a requirement of your magic. Most even require more than one be used.
--[] Big Stick Energy. +2. The previous requirements are intensified. You always require spoken words, a gesture, and an item for channeling magic (usually a wand or staff). Always all of them, for every spell.
---[] Ritualism. +3. Every single spell you know is a slow, elaborate ritual. You'll need materials, a lot of time, and probably a dance teacher. Your shortest rituals take ten minutes to cast, most take more.
-[] Impermanence. +2. Making anything permanent with your magic is either difficult, expensive, or in need of maintenance – or all of the above!
-[] Concentration. +2. All but the simplest of ongoing spell effects require you to concentrate on that spell and that spell only. Casting other spells in the meantime risks ending the old one.
-[] Tomebound. +2. You have a big bad leatherbound magical spellbook, which contains the details of your every spell. Without it, you cannot cast.
-[] Arcane Savagery. +4. Your magic does not cooperate or coexist peacefully with technology. Both disrupt one another, usually violently. Keep it simple.
-[] Wild Magic. +0. Your magic is… unpredictable. The rules just don't quite seem to stick to what you cast and craft. When things go particularly great, or awful, well… when it rains, it pours.
"Good, great, I think I got that all down," they say, nodding once, probably subconsciously.
"That was everything you needed me for, yes?" you ask, and they give you an affirming nod.
"Indeed! Now we can determine where to send you!" they say, elated to soon be free of your presence. They look ready to continue, but their concentration is broken as a rolled-up scroll appears on the table. They pick it up and read, slowly but surely gaining an aura of frustration.
"It would seem," they bite out, "that a certain someone has taken an interest in using you for a little game of theirs – a particular world's original fate would be dissatisfying, they claim, so they're using you to shake things up."
You chuckle, if for no other reason, to spite the hooded being. "I'll be the pawn of nobody, I'll have you know," you say, "whoever this person is, they can be assured that I will bring them down soon enough."
"Good luck," they say, simply.
"Regardless, where is it, then, that I am to be sent?" you ask, a tad curious.
"I'm not to say, but for the detail that the world is named Earth" they tell you, then pause, "what I am to do is offer you a choice."
"You have my attention," you reply, motioning with a hand for them to go on.
"Your choice of a cardinal direction, specifically," they elaborate.
"And no context to clarify, I assume," you say, to which they nod again.
[] Cardinal: North
[] Cardinal: South
[] Cardinal: East
[] Cardinal: West
"And that's all," they say, and you feel a tingling in your every cell. "Bye!" they exclaim, and without any further fanfare, you vanish.
-Welcome to Earth-
Salutations, dear readers, and welcome to what I hope to be quite a wild ride. A fantasy Dark Lord being Isekai'd onto Earth? What more could one ask for? So have fun trying to conquer the world!
Now, I do have a bit of practical information for you. First, voting, in this quest, will be done via a plan format – gather up your votes into one big bundle, give the plan a name, and wait for others to vote for your plan. Second, the quest will mostly be using a CK-2 style format, though at times, you will be presented choices as above. Another change from the CK-2 format is that Piety has been defenestrated, and in its place stands Arcana, the stat responsible for magic.
A note for the magic options – both for fields and limits – is that yes, you have to pay for both the main option and any sub-option you want, though sub-options are optional. (Conversely, you get points for the main option and all the picked sub-options when it comes to limits). There is no limit to the amount of sub-options from one option you can pick – so having both Hedge Elementalism and Terra Force is a valid option.
Also, if it seems like some of the magical fields you can pick have some overlap, that's because they do – the School of Ruin will let you throw a fireball just the same as the School of Elements. Overlap doesn't benefit you, but it's a miniscule problem, so don't worry too much about it.
Plan: We Do A Little Merlin-ing [X] Name: Emrys Ambrose [X] Gender: Nonbinary, Pronouns He/They
[X] Fields of Magic
-[x] School of Creation. -2. Summon minions, heal wounds, and alter your surroundings.
-[x] School of Elements. -1. Master the four basic elements – water, earth, fire and air.
--[x] Hedge Elementalism. -1. Master the secondary elements – ice, metal, lightning and sound. -[X] School of Metamagic. -2. Magic that influences magic – counterspells, amplification, and rituals of permanency.
--[x] High Magic Theory. -3. Not only do you know an impressive repertoire of extant spells and rituals, you know how to make your own. --[x] Teaching 101. -4. You've taken courses in how to teach magic theory.
-[x] School of Artifice. -3. Use magic to craft magical items, be they wands, arms, armors, or something entirely different. Highly recommended.
--[x] Cauldron of Everything. -1. Alchemy, the art of transmutation and potion-brewing. --[x] Metals of Myth. -1. You know how to create the three great metals of myth: Mithril, Orichalcum, and Adamant.
[X] Limits of Magic -[x] Limits of Mana. +1. You have a limited pool of mana that slowly replenishes over time. Every act of magic you commit expends at least a bit of it. -[x] Components. +2. Voice, gestures, or physical sacrifices are a requirement of your magic. Most even require more than one be used. -[x] Tiresome. +1. Casting magic saps your physical stamina, tiring you as you cast.
--[x] Big Stick Energy. +2. The previous requirements are intensified. You always require spoken words, a gesture, and an item for channeling magic (usually a wand or staff). Always all of them, for every spell. --[x] Orb of Mana. +1. You own a head-sized orb of primordial magics – to replenish your mana, you need to be within a short distance of it. -[x] Arcane Savagery. +4. Your magic does not cooperate or coexist peacefully with technology. Both disrupt one another, usually violently. Keep it simple.
-[x] Tomebound. +2. You have a big bad leatherbound magical spellbook, which contains the details of your every spell. Without it, you cannot cast.
Plan: We Do A Little Merlin-ing [X] Name: Emrys Ambrose [X] Gender: Nonbinary, Pronouns He/They
[X] Fields of Magic
-[] School of Ruin. -1. Master the dead, throw lightning, and burn your enemies to ash.
-[] School of Creation. -2. Summon minions, heal wounds, and alter your surroundings.
-[] School of Elements. -1. Master the four basic elements – water, earth, fire and air.
--[] Hedge Elementalism. -1. Master the secondary elements – ice, metal, lightning and sound. [X] Limits of Magic -[] Limits of Mana. +1. You have a limited pool of mana that slowly replenishes over time. Every act of magic you commit expends at least a bit of it. -[] Components. +2. Voice, gestures, or physical sacrifices are a requirement of your magic. Most even require more than one be used.
You seem to have 3 points to spare - you should probably invest those in something (there's no benefit to having more than 0 points at the end of the vote)
[X]Plan: We Do A Little Merlin-ing
[X] Plan: spirit binding artificer
Let's make a true utopia for the human here one that will give rise to a true United earth which is saying conquer the world and force the status quo to change
New quest! Looks interesting.
Hmm how about: "It's not fancy, but I do it very very well" [] Fields of Magic
-[] School of Ruin. -1. Master the dead, throw lightning, and burn your enemies to ash.
-[] School of Metamagic. -2. Magic that influences magic – counterspells, amplification, and rituals of permanency.
--[] High Magic Theory. -3. Not only do you know an impressive repertoire of extant spells and rituals, you know how to make your own.
[] Limits of Magic
-[] Limits of Mana. +1. You have a limited pool of mana that slowly replenishes over time. Every act of magic you commit expends at least a bit of it.
Alternatively: "Slow but powerful" [] Fields of Magic
-[] School of Sanctuary. -4. Raise wards, dispel magics, and read the flow of the future.
-[] School of Elements. -1. Master the four basic elements – water, earth, fire and air.
--[] Terra Force. -3. Master obscure magics related to the earth – ley lines, runestones and much more.
-[] School of Artifice. -3. Use magic to craft magical items, be they wands, arms, armors, or something entirely different. Highly recommended.
-[] School of Metamagic. -2. Magic that influences magic – counterspells, amplification, and rituals of permanency.
--[] High Magic Theory. -3. Not only do you know an impressive repertoire of extant spells and rituals, you know how to make your own.
[] Limits of Magic
-[] Limits of Mana. +1. You have a limited pool of mana that slowly replenishes over time. Every act of magic you commit expends at least a bit of it. --[] Spell Slots. +2. Each spell is divided into a tier. For each tier of magic, you have a limited number of spell slots, which can be expended for that tier or lower. To replenish these, you need to rest for several hours.
-[] Cooldown. +1. Whenever you cast a spell, you have to wait a certain amount of time before you can cast that spell again – the stronger, the longer, usually.
-[] Components. +2. Voice, gestures, or physical sacrifices are a requirement of your magic. Most even require more than one be used.
--[] Big Stick Energy. +2. The previous requirements are intensified. You always require spoken words, a gesture, and an item for channeling magic (usually a wand or staff). Always all of them, for every spell.
---[] Ritualism. +3. Every single spell you know is a slow, elaborate ritual. You'll need materials, a lot of time, and probably a dance teacher. Your shortest rituals take ten minutes to cast, most take more.
So all magic would be massive rituals with big setup and cool down. Instead of being used directly for fighting it would be used for stetting things up. Empowering locations and items. Changing the terrain. A very Evil Overload sort of magic.
[X] Plan: spirit binding artificer
[X] Name: Gabriel Brock
[X] Gender: male, He/him
[X] Fields of Magic
-[X] School of Ruin. -1. Master the dead, throw lightning, and burn your enemies to ash.
-[X] School of Glamour. -3. Break minds, fool the senses, and turn friend against friend.
-[X] School of Pacts. -1. The writing of magically binding contracts, with customizable consequences and degrees of unbreakability.
--[X] Spirit Mastery. -1. Bind spirits to your will, be they ghosts, elementals, or nature spirits.
-[X] School of Artifice. -3. Use magic to craft magical items, be they wands, arms, armors, or something entirely different. Highly recommended.
--[X] Cauldron of Everything. -1. Alchemy, the art of transmutation and potion-brewing.
--[X] Metals of Myth. -1. You know how to create the three great metals of myth: Mithril, Orichalcum, and Adamant.
[X] Limits of Magic
-[X] Limits of Mana. +1. You have a limited pool of mana that slowly replenishes over time. Every act of magic you commit expends at least a bit of it.
-[X] Cooldown. +1. Whenever you cast a spell, you have to wait a certain amount of time before you can cast that spell again – the stronger, the longer, usually.
-[X] Components. +2. Voice, gestures, or physical sacrifices are a requirement of your magic. Most even require more than one be used.
-[X] Tomebound. +2. You have a big bad leatherbound magical spellbook, which contains the details of your every spell. Without it, you cannot cast.
I may have gone a little overboard with my plan, but the idea of evil-but-not-too evil Merlin-expy seeing the modern world and going "yeah, nope" grabbed onto me
Wait the magic not going well for tech is sort of dumb to me we need tech for us to speed through the entire world can you imagine the advances we can make @DragonGrimoire
Wait the magic not going well for tech is sort of dumb to me we need tech for us to speed through the entire world can you imagine the advances we can make @DragonGrimoire
with the fields I chose. we can effectively replace modern tech within our territories,and then go further.. You can feel free to change you vote, but i'm sticking to my guns.
with the fields I chose. we can effectively replace modern tech within our territories,and then go further. Also. Magitech, mate. You can feel free to change you vote, but i'm sticking to my guns.
Ach, my bad
I meant like
Ok, a computer does x y and z things, right? You figure out what it does, then figure out how to create a magic item that does x y and z things through arcane means
Basically i guess...more applying the scientific method to magic than conventional magitech
This is very much possible, and you know, defangs all our opposition and encourages scientific study of magic under our influence.
Ach, my bad
I meant like
Ok, a computer does x y and z things, right? You figure out what it does, then figure out how to create a magic item that does x y and z things through arcane means
Basically i guess...more applying the scientific method to magic than conventional magitech
Ehh, I don't really like the idea of Arcane Savagery. The best magitech comes from mixing technology and magic in interesting ways. Some things are easy for magic and hard for tech. Some things are hard for tech and easy for magic. Combine and take the best in both.
Glamour isn't really my favorite either.
How about: [X] Plan: evil lawyer
-[X] Fields of Magic
--[X] School of Pacts. -1. The writing of magically binding contracts, with customizable consequences and degrees of unbreakability.
---[X] Spirit Mastery. -1. Bind spirits to your will, be they ghosts, elementals, or nature spirits. ---[X] Demonology. -2. Conjure and bind fiends of all kinds. Risky, but powerful.
--[X] School of Edicts. -5. Through long and arduous rituals, sign proclamations of magical intent. Once read aloud to the relevant authority, your edicts will shake the world.
-[X] Limits of Magic
--[X] Limits of Mana. +1. You have a limited pool of mana that slowly replenishes over time. Every act of magic you commit expends at least a bit of it.
---[X] Spell Slots. +2. Each spell is divided into a tier. For each tier of magic, you have a limited number of spell slots, which can be expended for that tier or lower. To replenish these, you need to rest for several hours.
--[X] Tiresome. +1. Casting magic saps your physical stamina, tiring you as you cast.
[X] Plan Wickedest Witch in the West [x] Name: Morgana Green
[x] Gender: Female
[x] Fields of Magic
-[x] School of Creation. -2. Summon minions, heal wounds, and alter your surroundings.
-[x] School of Elements. -1. Master the four basic elements – water, earth, fire and air.
-[x] School of Druidcraft. -2. Be lord to nature, be it the leaf, beast or the natural forces.
-[x] School of Artifice. -3. Use magic to craft magical items, be they wands, arms, armors, or something entirely different. Highly recommended.
--[x] Cauldron of Everything. -1. Alchemy, the art of transmutation and potion-brewing.
[x] Limits of Magic
-[x] Components. +2. Voice, gestures, or physical sacrifices are a requirement of your magic. Most even require more than one be used.
-[x] Tomebound. +2. You have a big bad leatherbound magical spellbook, which contains the details of your every spell. Without it, you cannot cast.
[x] Cardinal: West
Kind of a mix between Gruntilida, the Wicked Witch of the West, and possibly Poison Ivy. Granted, this plan is pretty lean on powers but I wanted to have very few limits, particularly limits on mana so we can cast spells without worrying about running dry. Though, I could see it being nice or thematic to have a limit where we gain mana from land similar to a Planeswalker from MtG. That would also give us a good reason to capture land in the world.
--[X] School of Edicts. -5. Through long and arduous rituals, sign proclamations of magical intent. Once read aloud to the relevant authority, your edicts will shake the world.
[X] Plan Tyrant King [x] Name: Kyrus
[x] Gender: unknown, agender probably
[X] Fields of Magic
-[x] School of Pacts. -1. The writing of magically binding contracts, with customizable consequences and degrees of unbreakability.
-[x] School of Metamagic. -2. Magic that influences magic – counterspells, amplification, and rituals of permanency.
--[x] High Magic Theory. -3. Not only do you know an impressive repertoire of extant spells and rituals, you know how to make your own.
--[x] Teaching 101. -4. You've taken courses in how to teach magic theory.
-[x] School of Edicts. -5. Through long and arduous rituals, sign proclamations of magical intent. Once read aloud to the relevant authority, your edicts will shake the world.
[X] Limits of Magic
-[x] Limits of Mana. +1. You have a limited pool of mana that slowly replenishes over time. Every act of magic you commit expends at least a bit of it.
--[x] Spell Slots. +2. Each spell is divided into a tier. For each tier of magic, you have a limited number of spell slots, which can be expended for that tier or lower. To replenish these, you need to rest for several hours.
--[x] Orb of Mana. +1. You own a head-sized orb of primordial magics – to replenish your mana, you need to be within a short distance of it.
-[x] Tomebound. +2. You have a big bad leatherbound magical spellbook, which contains the details of your every spell. Without it, you cannot cast.
-[x] Arcane Savagery. +4. Your magic does not cooperate or coexist peacefully with technology. Both disrupt one another, usually violently. Keep it simple.
[x] Cardinal: South
This character is for world domination, go big or go home.
More than that it's basicly just a ripoff of kyros from tyranny. The strategy for this character is to sign edicts to destabilise regions then use pact magic to contractualy oblige agents to our cause, teach them a bit of magic and have them go on to conquer in our name. The arcane savegery is hopefully only a small problem and could even be to our advantage if it distrupts nuclear weapons.
We will hopefully conscript from the locals and use mundane means of warmaking for the backbone of our armies.
[X] Plan Sorcerous Puppetmaster
-[X] Name: Alcina Tempesta
-[X] Gender: Female
-[X] Fields of Magic
--[X] School of Creation. -2. Summon minions, heal wounds, and alter your surroundings.
--[X] School of Glamour. -3. Break minds, fool the senses, and turn friend against friend.
--[X] School of Elements. -1. Master the four basic elements – water, earth, fire and air.
--[X] School of Artifice. -3. Use magic to craft magical items, be they wands, arms, armors, or something entirely different. Highly recommended.
---[X] Cauldron of Everything. -1. Alchemy, the art of transmutation and potion-brewing.
-[X] Limits of Magic
--[X] Limits of Mana. +1. You have a limited pool of mana that slowly replenishes over time. Every act of magic you commit expends at least a bit of it.
---[X] Spell Slots. +2. Each spell is divided into a tier. For each tier of magic, you have a limited number of spell slots, which can be expended for that tier or lower. To replenish these, you need to rest for several hours.
--[X] Tiresome. +1. Casting magic saps your physical stamina, tiring you as you cast.
--[X] Cooldown. +1. Whenever you cast a spell, you have to wait a certain amount of time before you can cast that spell again – the stronger, the longer, usually.
-[X] Cardinal: West
