Temple of Blood

Goal: The Order of the Blessed Return was once a strong guiding force in the polarization of Darke factions. While it was active, there were frequent sessions of what could be called RP if you favored it, or pseudo-sanctioned slaughter if you didn't. In either case the effect was the same; people took part on both sides and made an effort to engage each other over a single idea. This area is an homage to the fanatics of times long past who paid respects to the history and milieu (it's a word - look it up) of the Shadowlands. In the past, members of The Order of the Blessed Return have risen numerous fortresses and even taken over entire cities by force, occasionally coming close to its ultimate goal: returning Marghuul to reign over the Shadowlands.

Premise: An obscure artifact known only as The Heart of Darkness had been found and used to create a permanent rift between the Shadowlands and the Outer Realms. As Marghuul strained to enter through this portal The Heart of Darkness was sucked in instead, fixing the rift at a size much too small to allow even some of his generals to slip in.

In his characteristic rage, Marghuul unleashed all the demons he could into the Shadowlands. These goalless, unpredictable demons range in power from those not even a middling Chaotic-Lords would stoop to associate with to Demon-Lords who have so often assisted individual Chaotic-Lords that they are revered in story and have their own proper names. The Temple of Blood has arisen under the command of the Demon-Lord Sssla. While it is unusually peaceful currently, tendrils of power creeping out from its walls can occasionally be felt the world over.

Iconic Encounters:
  • Sssla, The Chainer - This Demon-Lord has made a name for himself by helping any and all who would abduct their foes rather than vanquish them outright. Its power grows through fear and suffering, and it is known for prolonging agony merely to feed from the wounds of its victims. It appears as an extremely thin-skinned, naked, sexless humanoid whose body constantly drips blood. Its vasculature is visible through its skin, and it has no disernable bones. Its face is a smooth, featureless mask. It has no wings, horns, claws, talons, or any other classically demonesque traits. In its left hand it wields a weapon made of an unidentifiable creature's vertebral column from which a number of skulls dangle. It uses this gruesome weapon interchangably as both a whip and a morningstar.
  • Sanc Oagulum, Mischief Maker - This tiny lesser demon is notorious among Chaotic-Lords and Paladins alike for its incredible capability to avoid harm. It appears as an inverted sprite, which is to say, its innards are on the outside of its body such that skeletal features sit over the musculature with nerves running on their outer surface. It is generally referred to as she, but has no sex. Completely impossible to harm, Sanc Oagulum harasses any she comes across with minor spells and bothersome effects such as slow, bleeding, disarmament, confusion, and the like. What this oft-reviled demon is doing in the Temple of Blood is unclear, but she appears to leave Sssla to its own devices while endlessly harrassing all others.
  • Vess, Headless Smith - Vess is a greater demon whose only ability is to take the soul of a mortal and forge it into a weapon. He was well-known during the Great War for turning the populace of entire captured regions into near-living weapons for Marghuul's side. His presence in The Temple of Blood lends credence to the rumors that abductions of Celebornian supporters and Elves have increased since the Temple's arrival. While he can work with any materials, he prefers the living as they scream most loudly when they are remade.
  • Assorted Celebornian Supporters - Rarely more than a handful of men and women are found alive in the Temple of Blood, but they are always related to Celeborn's followers in some tenuous way. These folk can be saved from their gruesome fate, delivered more quickly to Vess, or otherwise act as player pets while in the Temple.
  • The Rift - Here one can freely enter or leave The Warp (*note: The Warp as a proposed recode is soon to come on this topic from me), but Marghuul's presence can manifest itself to some small degree when such a thing occurs. This is the site where The Heart of Darkness failed to complete the opening of the gateway.

Ideas: A number of mini quests could be available here. We could save the abducted (these would replentish but the quest is only solvable once per individual), banish Sanc Oagulum (solvable every time a particularly unfortunate summon lesser demon spell fumble returned her to the Temple), help Vess build weapons from enemies (blacksmith skill required, solvable once with recurring ability to reach the weapon created), find out about The Heart of Darkness (solvable once ever, then becomes common knowledge through inscriptions or books - maybe open up further quests around this currently-non-existant artifact), build upon the Temple of Blood (on-going quest that must be first given by Sssla, but then allows players to add personal rooms on to The Temple of Blood via an account that tracks some number of pks of higher level players or Celebornians), or widen the rift.

The Headless Smith should be able to smith any type of weapon constantly and at random, as long as he has victims available. These weapons might have some small chance of coming with an innate living weapon lock on them, and some amount of other bonuses - always made of random minerals based on the level of victim. Alternative, or in addition, he could take existing weapons as Okef does and bind living beings to them (mobs, unless there's a method of moving uncon players as was once proposed) to alter them in some way (preferably not usually beneficially). Like the forge in the canyon used to do, a tinker forging a weapon here should have some special effect (and the forge in the canyon should be reinstated).

Sanc Oagulum should be as untargetable as a faerie guardian or shopkeeper is, and should cast low powered (*1 or 2) spells like cause bleeding, decrease metabolism, fear, instill poison, blindness, and the like. It should also have occasional emotes about tripping up whomever is her master at the time (these could be players or mobs alike. Other than Sssla, of course), tiring them out, and other extremely minor yet positively irritating effects. She should also switch owners at random times based on whoever is in the room, so if I happen to be afflicted with this particular pest I could drag her somewhere heavily frequented and see her make someone else miserable.

I think the Temple of Blood should serve as a model for clan-esque castles, in that an individual should be able to pledge their allegiance to Marghuul and the Temple of Blood, then use currency and some bank of stored actions to build the Temple itself. Adding rooms initially, then perhaps doors or hidden passages, then eventually spending their stored actions to submit requests for the wizards to code in terms of mobs; items; or effects. This would obviously be limited to a certain number of rooms per person and would be save rooms that allowed description changes (though these description changes could require review, if it is determined that since they are in a public place they should be on-theme) just like castles or inn rooms.

The mobs that would be available to populate this place are legion. Anything that reveled in death, demons, pain, suffering, or all that is evil could potentially be found here. Think of it as a holy pilgrimage site for all those who are evil.
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cerberus@darkemud.com