This is a basic outline of the plot for series 2.
There are two planets: Eray and Jindaria, in a steam-punkish 1650's technology era. On Eray, there is the Higharc, who are a republic. Jindaria is ruled by monarchs. Their civilizations are too different and war becomes inevitable. Anarasorian, a celebrated hero from a previous war with an evil Jindarian empire, the Demon Empire, is desperately mending the damaged diplomatic ties between these two planets. He has two children, Mhaldin and Fenera, who share minds. The Higharc believes it can profit off a war with Jindaria, but first Anar has to be taken from the picture. They kidnap Mhaldin and demand Anar leave politics. The kidnapping triggers the long awaited war between Eray and Jindaria: the All War. The Higharc did not perform the actual kidnapping however. They had a bandit lord named Yuel kidnap the boy. Yuel is collaborating with demons in his other dealings. When Anar doesn't capitulate to the Higharc's demands, Yuel tries to have Mhaldin killed. Mhaldin is rescued by a demon and taken to a demonic city where a demon, who wants him to join demonkind, installs various machines into his body. Among them are weapons. Mhaldin's father recovers him and takes him home.
Blaming himself for starting the All War, Mhaldin believes he has a greater purpose to fill. His sister, with her magic powers, is swiftly becoming a hero in the All War. Her non-violence combined with her healing magic makes her loved by her allies and respected by her enemies. He joins her in the war. Furious that Anar has still not left politics, a member of the Higharc, a man named Haulk, has Yuel send assassins after Fenera. Fenera is almost killed and Mhaldin hunts Yuel down. His quest for vengeance is extremely violent. In the end, he captures Yuel and takes him home to torture him to death.
Angered that Yuel is not given a fair trial, lawmen try to take Yuel from Mhaldin. Angry, Mhaldin kills a lawman and goes into exile. With no family who will accept him, Mhaldin joins the Usor'an (the main villain) and the Demon Empire, where he gains prestige. When the demons ally with the Higharc, Mhaldin murders their leader and takes her place, but makes the assassination look like the work of the Higharc. He leads the demonic army against the Higharc, thus reaping vengeance for his kidnapping. He gets out of control and attacks everything on Eray. Fenera and Anar realize they need to defeat him.
Thus, side by side, with her father, Fenera battles her fallen brother for the future of not only Eray, but Jindaria too. Deep inside, she knows what drove him over the edge and is confident he can be brought back to the light. But is she right?
Saturday, January 31, 2009
Friday, January 30, 2009
Peoples: The Servants
These are the battle-fodder of the demonic army and are by far the most common type of demon. Despite this they appear the least often of all the demon species and lack any sort of influence in the Demon Empire. They are the workers, fighters, and mobs wielded by the kings of demonkind.
Physically, servants look like a scrawny man with no hair, bright red skin, pointed ears, tiny horns of ivory, sharp claws, and a rat tail. They are slightly shorter than men but some can grow to be much bulkier. They are no very intelligent albeit smart enough to take orders. Their vocabulary is limited and their voices are soft and hissing. Baby servants are born from pools of servant saliva and refuse. Their demon masters have perfected these "spawning pools" and built lake sized pools that churn out hundreds of the creatures every week. This, coupled with the fact that servants do not need to eat, ensures that their population is in the tens of millions, even in lean and hungry places within the Demon Empire. Unsurprisingly, their wicked masters take to dining on their flesh if food is unavailable.
They behave like rats (causing some people to call them rat-people). They breed in massive numbers and live in shadowy areas, ruins, or other places that people don't bother to chase them out of. If a demon warlord wants an army, all he needs to do is look in dark places and he'll probably find a nest of servants. Servants are a disorganized society, having no leaders of their own. Instead, they follow whatever powerful destroyer catches their attention. Their loyalty to these leaders is unshakable. They are smart enough to learn some bits and pieces of the demonic honour code, thus earning them the trust of the empire.
Unless given weapons, servants will fight with their claws or whatever they can pick up. Servants have gone into battle waving sharp sticks, rocks, bones, and furniture. When they are armed they are given cheap, simple weapons that are capable of being mass-produced. Then they are thrown into battle, showering on the enemy in wave after relentless wave of scuttling bodies. In book 3, a typical servant warrior carries a buckler, a short axe, and wears a helmet made of a metal plate beaten into a rough bowl shape with studded leather armor.
Poor fighters, it is said that one soldier can take down five armed servants all on his own. A squad of men working together can kill a swarm of them. But the bastards keep coming. In the story, the servants are an enemy for the heroes to kill in large numbers, without resorting to the "Stormtrooper Effect" thus the story is more believable. If I want to bring on the pain, the socrighters or destoryers make an appearance, but if it's going to be a heroic RPG moment then the servants will swarm forward.
Here's a quote about them:
"We don't really think of them as members of the empire. They're more of a tool to be used, and expended, for greater gains. We regard them with as much dignity as a musketeer gives his ammunition. Well, actually no. A musketeer has only so many shots."
Physically, servants look like a scrawny man with no hair, bright red skin, pointed ears, tiny horns of ivory, sharp claws, and a rat tail. They are slightly shorter than men but some can grow to be much bulkier. They are no very intelligent albeit smart enough to take orders. Their vocabulary is limited and their voices are soft and hissing. Baby servants are born from pools of servant saliva and refuse. Their demon masters have perfected these "spawning pools" and built lake sized pools that churn out hundreds of the creatures every week. This, coupled with the fact that servants do not need to eat, ensures that their population is in the tens of millions, even in lean and hungry places within the Demon Empire. Unsurprisingly, their wicked masters take to dining on their flesh if food is unavailable.
They behave like rats (causing some people to call them rat-people). They breed in massive numbers and live in shadowy areas, ruins, or other places that people don't bother to chase them out of. If a demon warlord wants an army, all he needs to do is look in dark places and he'll probably find a nest of servants. Servants are a disorganized society, having no leaders of their own. Instead, they follow whatever powerful destroyer catches their attention. Their loyalty to these leaders is unshakable. They are smart enough to learn some bits and pieces of the demonic honour code, thus earning them the trust of the empire.
Unless given weapons, servants will fight with their claws or whatever they can pick up. Servants have gone into battle waving sharp sticks, rocks, bones, and furniture. When they are armed they are given cheap, simple weapons that are capable of being mass-produced. Then they are thrown into battle, showering on the enemy in wave after relentless wave of scuttling bodies. In book 3, a typical servant warrior carries a buckler, a short axe, and wears a helmet made of a metal plate beaten into a rough bowl shape with studded leather armor.
Poor fighters, it is said that one soldier can take down five armed servants all on his own. A squad of men working together can kill a swarm of them. But the bastards keep coming. In the story, the servants are an enemy for the heroes to kill in large numbers, without resorting to the "Stormtrooper Effect" thus the story is more believable. If I want to bring on the pain, the socrighters or destoryers make an appearance, but if it's going to be a heroic RPG moment then the servants will swarm forward.
Here's a quote about them:
"We don't really think of them as members of the empire. They're more of a tool to be used, and expended, for greater gains. We regard them with as much dignity as a musketeer gives his ammunition. Well, actually no. A musketeer has only so many shots."
Thursday, January 8, 2009
All about one of my characters: Vashuss
Simple and inexperienced. Malleable and naive. Confused and twisted. Vashuss is a minor villain in book 6 onward, making an appearance near the end. He is (at least, he appears to be) a metal centipede the size of a small elephant with a big head. He is supposed to be a mindless killing machine in the service of Mhaldin. Vashuss was gifted to him by Usor'an to serve the boy as his mount. Vashuss is supposed to have an artificial mind, which accounts for his gullibility.
Vashuss says very little, speaking through a free moving holographic projection that has its own voice. In this was, Vashuss essentially has two bodies. His centipede-like metal body had twelve long, flexible limbs that pull him along quite nicely. Because he is a machine he is treated likewise, shown no friendship by Mhaldin and worked nearly to death.
The truth is, Vashuss is not a machine but a hyper-intellectual infant who is stored inside the machine's giant head. Vashuss controls the machine with his mind. Mhaldin does not know it, but Vashuss is actually his bastard son, the mother of whom is Usor'an's daughter. This is significant because now Fenera's nephew is the main villain's grandson. She thought fighting her brother would be bad.
Vashuss says very little, speaking through a free moving holographic projection that has its own voice. In this was, Vashuss essentially has two bodies. His centipede-like metal body had twelve long, flexible limbs that pull him along quite nicely. Because he is a machine he is treated likewise, shown no friendship by Mhaldin and worked nearly to death.
The truth is, Vashuss is not a machine but a hyper-intellectual infant who is stored inside the machine's giant head. Vashuss controls the machine with his mind. Mhaldin does not know it, but Vashuss is actually his bastard son, the mother of whom is Usor'an's daughter. This is significant because now Fenera's nephew is the main villain's grandson. She thought fighting her brother would be bad.
Wednesday, December 31, 2008
Non Canon Scenes
I have taken up writing a few non-canonical scenes and scenes that are "unofficial," which is to say, scenes I do not plan to include in the books. Why am I writing them if I do not intend to use them? It helps flesh out the world if I write some things that occur behind the scenes. It is also fun because I can write about what would happen is the bad guy wins. I also have been working on a "blooper reel". I might post it soon.
Anyways, the New Year is coming soon. I'll see you in 2009!
Anyways, the New Year is coming soon. I'll see you in 2009!
Saturday, December 27, 2008
Plans for Book 4
I started book 4 about a year and a half ago. I have since began and finished books 5 and 6: a total of over 400 000 words. I am now returning to book 4 and finishing it off before I grind on through book 7.
Book 4 is probably going to be the second shortest in the whole series, since its plot is very condensed. Despite what the wordmeter has said for over a year (250000 words) it will probably only be 160000 or less. As it is, it stands at 109 pages. I am thinking of having it at 160 or 170 pages. It is the final book of series 1. I really need to finish it since I am about 1/2 through series 2.
Book 4 is probably going to be the second shortest in the whole series, since its plot is very condensed. Despite what the wordmeter has said for over a year (250000 words) it will probably only be 160000 or less. As it is, it stands at 109 pages. I am thinking of having it at 160 or 170 pages. It is the final book of series 1. I really need to finish it since I am about 1/2 through series 2.
Saturday, December 13, 2008
Done book 6
Just a quick post here to make a note: on December 13 at 12:38 pm, I completed book. I have already made the title image for book 7.
Sunday, November 30, 2008
Peoples: The Scorighters
A long time ago, when the first strings of some of the things that would eventually be added into this idea came into my mind WAY back in 2002, I envisioned a special type of people. They would be a warior society of perfect militant discipline who wore black armor and helmets that had snarling faces beaten into them. They were masters of the blade. They were a nightmarish army of invincible warriors taken from all sorts of different peoples and amalgamated under one banner. I named them the Destroyers.
Though this incarnation did not last, they would be the inspiration for one of the three types of demon that I would concieve when writing book 1. They differed from the Destroyers in that they were their own seperate race whose name came to me when I thought of the role they'd play: the scourge's fighters.
If you've ever seen Lord of the Rings, the Two Towers, you'd remember Sauraman's orcs, the Uruk Hai. They were supposed to be the deadliest kind of orc. They are certainly the most memorable orcs if you ask me. They were well disciplined and wore armor that designated them as the elite. BUT HOLY CRAP THEY WERE TERRIBLE! Ten thousand of them couldn't even take out Helms Deep. I lost faith in the Uruk Hai when the elves fired their bows. Just seeing all those Uruk Hais die made me realize that training and equipment was only for show. I have come to think of them as storm-troopers-with-swords.
The scorighters are kind of like the uruk-hai in that they are the best the soldiers that the demons have, but unlike them in that they can show it. Although they look like gaunt corpses (I wanted to give them weak looking bodies to emphasize how much their armor completed them). For the closest comparison, think of the skeletal pirates from the first Pirates of the Carribean movie, but with no bare bones, lips, and no hair. The scorighters are ruthless fighters. They are immune to pain and shock, and are able to lose certain vital organs and retain health. Combine this with good training and a suit of black armor that covers them from head to toe. One scorighter is said to be able to beat five men in a melee. Traditionally, evil minions tend to be numerous and weak. The scorighters are numerous and strong.
Aside from being the demonic elite, the scorighters also form Usor'an's bodyguard: the King's Wall. They are distinct from the others in that they wear no helmets (helmed bodyguards can be infiltrated) and have dark blue armor instead of black. The King's Wall are the elite of the scorighters.
To date there has only been one scorighter character: the lieutenant of the King's Wall, Wraith. Wraith takes on a very important role as being Mhaldin's first mentor.
Though this incarnation did not last, they would be the inspiration for one of the three types of demon that I would concieve when writing book 1. They differed from the Destroyers in that they were their own seperate race whose name came to me when I thought of the role they'd play: the scourge's fighters.
If you've ever seen Lord of the Rings, the Two Towers, you'd remember Sauraman's orcs, the Uruk Hai. They were supposed to be the deadliest kind of orc. They are certainly the most memorable orcs if you ask me. They were well disciplined and wore armor that designated them as the elite. BUT HOLY CRAP THEY WERE TERRIBLE! Ten thousand of them couldn't even take out Helms Deep. I lost faith in the Uruk Hai when the elves fired their bows. Just seeing all those Uruk Hais die made me realize that training and equipment was only for show. I have come to think of them as storm-troopers-with-swords.
The scorighters are kind of like the uruk-hai in that they are the best the soldiers that the demons have, but unlike them in that they can show it. Although they look like gaunt corpses (I wanted to give them weak looking bodies to emphasize how much their armor completed them). For the closest comparison, think of the skeletal pirates from the first Pirates of the Carribean movie, but with no bare bones, lips, and no hair. The scorighters are ruthless fighters. They are immune to pain and shock, and are able to lose certain vital organs and retain health. Combine this with good training and a suit of black armor that covers them from head to toe. One scorighter is said to be able to beat five men in a melee. Traditionally, evil minions tend to be numerous and weak. The scorighters are numerous and strong.
Aside from being the demonic elite, the scorighters also form Usor'an's bodyguard: the King's Wall. They are distinct from the others in that they wear no helmets (helmed bodyguards can be infiltrated) and have dark blue armor instead of black. The King's Wall are the elite of the scorighters.
To date there has only been one scorighter character: the lieutenant of the King's Wall, Wraith. Wraith takes on a very important role as being Mhaldin's first mentor.
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