People: Kotrit Wayveri
- "I wield more power than you could possibly conceive of!"
His is a name best left unmentioned.
History
Kotrit Wayveri (CR 93 Tor 13 – 398 Kla 22) was born a human in the city-state of Wayverith. Named for the constellation Kotrit, he was the heir to the Wayveri throne, being the only child of his generation in his family.
Kotrit would become an incredibly accomplished magician, studying the darker aspects of the arcane for which his family was known, but found he had a particular talent for necromancy. While physically underwhelming, he was aware of his great intellect, and thus became incredibly arrogant and became power-hungry at a young age.
In his sixteenth year, he was declared a master of arcane arts, and claimed his family's throne in a lethal duel with his father. He retained his seat on the Wayverith throne with the assistance of his distant cousin, Luna Lorne.
The War of the Illusionist
He turned his eye north, to the elven lands of Adren, and remembered well the lessons of his family's past: in particular, the elves' assistance lent to the peoples of the Ronkan Empire as they fled the Wayverith invasion of RIY 109. Knowing of the arcane artifacts known as the shield stones, and knowing that the elves were the original keepers of their origin, Kotrit decided that an invasion of the continent of Ashkar was in his family's best interests.
Using his arcane abilities and the knowledge of the vast losses of life in the centuries before his reign, Kotrit used necromancy to build himself an army of undead. These he unleashed both on the continents of Ashkar and Chaliraz; with the assistance of magic, he kept his forces hidden from his enemies, and thus was able to take both lands completely by surprise. However, in both cases, the combined forces of the inhabitants kept the war at a standstill: in Ashkar, the magical components of his forces were challenged by mages trained by Kalrios Dilark, while in Chaliraz, his troops were tactically outmatched by a young Tamerlane.
Fearing losing the war, Kotrit turned to anything that would assist him in attaining victory, in particular focusing his efforts on researching the shield stones. It was in studying ancient Kiltian manuscripts related to their function that he discovered writings of the Tower of Illusion, an ancient sanctum that had supposedly belonged to a powerful Force-user. Believing that he would be able to find great secrets hidden within, he traveled to the Tower, whereupon he was granted entry by its master, the Omega.
While in the Tower of Illusion, Kotrit gained access to a deeper understanding of magic than most thought possible: there, he attained the status of archmage, and the ability to use magic beyond mortal ken. As a demonstration of his newfound power, he raised the continent of Lotharien, which had been sunk by its inhabitants millenia prior.
Aware of the magical might of his counterpart in Adren, Kotrit decided that he needed more powerful magically-inclined generals to assist him in overcoming their power. Upon his return to Wayverith, he raised eight ancient spellcasters, turning them into a unique type of undead never seen before nor seen since: they are known simply as the masks. While he and his new generals went north to Ashkar, he sent new magically-strengthened undead to the shores of Molandum, enabling his troops there to make greater progress.
For roughly a year, Kotrit and his troops pressed further onto both continents, but it was seemed hopeless, and Kotrit's demeanor grew darker and more hateful. Finally, deciding that if he could not have Ashkar, then no one could, he invoked epic magics on the land, turning the entire northern portion of Ashkar - once a lush, gentle savanna - into a desolate, icy wasteland. This display of power broke the back of the Ashkian forces, and they were forced to retreat to eastern Molandum.
Shortly after the freezing of Ashkar, the Wanderer Tarian appeared, and he - together with Kalrios and a number of others - began hunting down Kotrit while the remainder of Tamerlane's forces fought the undead. Learning of the planned assassination, Kotrit retreated to the Tower of Illusion, seeking a way to destroy Tarian.
Soon after, Tarian and his cohort arrived at the Tower of Illusion, and - in the year CR 118 - it is believed that Tarian slew Kotrit. Its figurehead slain, the undead armies sieging Molandum ceased and were easily vanquished. Without an heir, the nation of Wayverith was reduced to squabbling city-states, and the world began rebuilding.
The Veil
Kotrit was revived after Tarian's departure by the intervention of the Omega, in the year CR 121. However, instead of raising him as a human, as he once was, the Omega turned Kotrit into something far more dangerous, and more symbolic of his personality: a dracolich. While teaching Kotrit of yet more magical secrets, the Omega also attempted to instill in Kotrit a measure of patience, indicating that there were much greater plans in play for the young necromancer-turned-dracolich.
Armed now with more arcane power than he could possibly have imagined, and significantly more pissed off, Kotrit returned to Wayverith, where he reinstated his rule with an iron fist. The few city-states that held out against him were quashed with relative ease, and the world prepared itself for a continuation of the War. However, rather than immediately engage his enemies, Kotrit instead wove a spell of immense power, crafting what was known as the Blue Veil, and shielding the continents of Distarin and Sarteri from the world. Rather than assault his enemies in the present, when he was weak and they strong, he would bide his time, assembling an army and learning of the secrets of the shield stones, while his enemies remained ignorant of his presence.
The Blue Veil effectively shielded those two continents from the rest of the world, entirely removing them from the world memory. The War of the Illusionist became a distant myth, something shrouded in mystery. Even maps and cartographical notes were forcibly changed, with none the wiser. However, the effect was two-way: Kotrit was unable to interact with, or even learn about, what was happening on the other side of the Veil. He opted to contact the char Zalera, who became his eyes and ears in the rest of the world.
Finally, after two and a half centuries of ensuring the pieces were in the right place, Kotrit used Zalera to trick a group of adventurers into breaking the Veil. With the world whole once more, Kotrit unleashed his forces upon the world. Even with the sudden memory of what had truly transpired in the past, none of the world leaders at the time was anything near prepared for such an invasion of undead, and the world fell swiftly.
Kotrit's End
Kotrit was warned by the Omega that, among the adventurers that had broken the Veil, there was a Wanderer. Having experienced such a fight before, Kotrit was well aware that he would be unable to face such an entity as he was. He requested the Omega's aid, and he and his generals were instructed to transport their castle to the Desert of the Unspoken, in which rested another of the Omega's towers.
Once there, Kotrit uncovered evidence of the existence of another Wanderer, Lilith, who he was led to believe - by her self-assumed title - would be willing to assist her. Using means presently unknown, he found a way to contact her, and for reasons unknown, she assisted him in ascending to the status of Wanderer.
Nearly immediately after his ascension, X and the Crew of the Phoenix arrived, and - in CR 398 - Kotrit was defeated with finality.
