Escheron: A Tale of Political Intrigue

Eons ago, before the time of man, a powerful entity known as Yaldabaoth brought forth into existence a pantheon of gods. Each of these gods was conscripted into his service, and each was given the responsibility of governing the various elements of the mortal sphere. Using their powers of creation, the pantheon gave birth the world of Escheron, and the mortal men who would walk its surface.

Mankind flourished on Escheron, and built many lustrous kingdoms. With the passing of time, mankind began to approach a level of unparalleled technological progress. The pantheon's governance was no longer necessary to protect and sustain the mortal sphere, and so Yaldabaoth recalled their powers. Many gods did not wish to surrender their powers so willingly, leading to a great conflict among the realm of the gods. All but few gods were destroyed, and the essence of their powers was left lingering above the heavens.

Many of man's kingdoms fought to claim this power for themselves. Some succeeded, and Escheron saw an age of conquest that set a precedent for centuries of suffering and conflict. The Arcanians -- the self-appointed guardians of these powers -- finally came into their possession, and sealed themselves away in the ruins of the realm of the gods for all eternity. The conflict had finally come to a rest. Time passed, and such accounts were held only to be legends of a past mythology...

Centuries later, the kingdom of Asnoth -- and the neighboring kingdom of Ragnoth to the South -- have come into a proclamation of war. Lord Leonis of Asnoth has become paranoid of the secrets held by the descendents of the Arcanian people of Ragnoth. Fearing they might one day break the seal on the realm of the gods and unleash the gods' power once more, he has petitioned a figure known only as the Shadow Lord to seek-out the secrets of the Arcanians and eradicate their kind.

Enter Maya Anson: a young girl, and the last descendant of the Arcanians. 10 years ago, her home village was taken under the military occupation of Asnoth's Royal Guard, and her family slaughtered by the forces of the Shadow Lord. She has hence been orphaned into civil resistance, and is now leading a campaign to liberate her village from the occupation, once and for all.

Will mankind's lust for power doom history to repeat itself? Just what are the secrets of the Arcanians? What destiny awaits Maya -- the final heir to their knowledge? Who is the Shadow Lord, and what role does he play in the affairs of Asnoth? The answers await you in... Shadow over Ragnoth

Wow, very nice!  I wish I could write like that...

Every time I see the word "Ragnoth," I end up thinking of one of the moons in the S.A.D. universe: Ragnor.  Quite a coincidence, huh?

The post was actually constructed by Zera from an email that he sent me. He asked me on chat last "night" to post it here for him.

Gotta give a little background for the game. Still. I have to give credit where credit is due. (I feel... wrong... if I don't)

All those nice graphics AND a good story too? 

On my side it always reminded me "Rangarok" ^^

Yea, same with me =D

* DJ Omnimaga wonders if once E:SoR and CaDan are done, if Iambian would be willing to port Reuben Quest to ASM

O_o

Wow, great story!  You and Zera are doing a great job

I'm reading the Silmarillion by J.R.R. Tolkien, the prequel to Lord of the Rings Trilogy, and it's giving me a lot of inspirations ^^

It's a fascinating book.  It seemed to be more a collection of notes/short stories than a prequel though.

I thought I would share some of the inventories from the game, since there isn't a lot of information about non-technical details published at the moment. Considering magic is a fairly important part of the game, I wanted to start with some general descriptions of the various spells that can be found or purchased.

The mortal world of Escheron is largely without magic. Magic, for all intent and purpose, was a power held only by gods. With the destruction of the gods came the destruction of magic itself; however, many are still able to tap into the lingering essence left behind by the gods and endow themselves with spell-like powers on a much smaller and more limited scale.

Any number of magic rituals (actually, as many as eight) can be scribed to a spellbook, and performed anywhere at anytime -- provided the character is infused with mana. By praying to a goddess statue and making an offering in gold, (several are scattered around the world) the character will be blessed with this power. Mana, in essence, is a "spell-charge." Each charge you have will allow you to cast any single spell from your spellbook. A character may be infused with as many as eight spell-charges at a time. There are no individual levels of spells, or tiers. A spell-charge will cast *any* spell you have learned.

Many spells require that the character actually be wise enough to perform them; otherwise, they cannot be learned and put into application. It will sometimes be necessary to grind on a character's WIS score to learn more powerful and effective spells. Some characters begin with a greater disadvantage in this area, and require a lot of training to prepare them for spell-casting.

Divine Magicks
Magicks that heal, protect and strengthen the party. Suited for the classical "priest" archetypes.

Necromancy: Laying on of Hands

Restores a moderate amount of HP to a single target ally. (scaling)

Neutralise Poisons

Neutralises poisons and other infirmities within a single target ally.

Impregnable Egression

Dematerialises the party in one location, and rematerialises them in another. Consequently, the process takes its toll on the vitality of the entire party. Useful for back-tracking out of dungeons, or escaping difficult enemy encounters.

Angelic Orison

Restores a minor amount of HP to the entire party. (scaling)

Abjuration: Malice Mirror

Enhances the defences of a single target ally. This effect may accumulate.

Enchantment: Draw upon Inner Strength

Enhances the strengths of a single target ally. This effect may accumulate.

Conjuration: Phoenix Plumage

Summons the spirit of a phoenix to resurrect a single target ally, and inflict minor fire damage (scaling) against all foes.

Resurrection incurs an effect known as "system shock," where returning a spirit to its infirmed body often results in permanent deformity. (the reduction of mHP and stamina) The spectre of death does not concede without first taking its toll...

Conjuration: Heavenly Sunder

Inflicts moderate to heavy non-elemental damage against a single target enemy. (scaling)
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Arcane Magicks
Magicks that focus on destruction and alteration. Suited for the classical "wizard" archetype.

Evocation: Faerie Fire

Inflicts moderate to heavy fire damage against a single target enemy. (scaling)

Evocation: Algid Lance of Amost

Inflicts moderate to heavy cold damage against a single target enemy. (scaling)

Evocation: Caustic Fount

Inflicts minor to moderate fire damage against all enemies. (scaling)

Evocation: Rending Gale

Inflicts minor to moderate cold damage against all enemies. (scaling)

Evocation: Venomous Scourge

Inflicts minor non-elemental damage (scaling) against all enemies, and causes poisoning.

Siren's Enchanting Aria

Places all enemies under an enchantment.

Illusion: Feigned Darkness

Blinds all enemies and raises the evasion rate of the entire party.

Alteration: Leadening Gaze of the Gorgon

Petrifies all enemies.
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Sealed Magicks
Spells that cannot be purchased like others. Such magicks were sealed away due to their misuse, and the knowledge behind them is scarce.

Alteration: Scabrous Hand

Inflicts poisoning and blindness, and places a single target enemy under an enchantment.

Evocation: Conflagration

Inflicts heavy fire damage against a single target enemy and causes blindness.

Necromancy: Dracul's Grasp

Drains vitality from a single target enemy and restores the same amount to the caster.

Evocation: Maelstrom

Inflicts heavy cold damage against all enemies and results in a slight chance of instant-death.

Necromancy: Quietus

Ceases life within a single target enemy, regardless of how strongly that target might resist death.

Is there only Fire and Cold types in the game, or did I miss one or two?

Yes and no. They're the only registered elemental types, but there are many other properties associated with spells and weapons. Fire and cold damage are the only properties that can really be fully resisted. There are also effects like lightning. Using a lightning spell on flying enemies, enemies that dwell in or around water or mechanical enemies will inflict additional damage. Lightning is otherwise not registered as an element. Then there are individual weapon types. Some enemies will resist damage from specific weapons, or be weak to them. Bows are effective against fyling enemies, for instance, as axes are effective against enemies that have tentacles.

All of this is explained by NPCs in the game.