Arcana Sideblog

12.  If they could hang out with a deceased famous person’s ghost, who would they pick?

Telos would choose Arthur Conan Doyle for a few reasons. 1. To pick his brain with Portia about detective/observational techniques 2. To bug the crap out of the guy with how popular his stuff still is 3. To commiserate with that Ace Mood of Not Understanding Why People think Two Dudes Living Together is Gay and 4. To troll the shit out of the guy who thought that fairies were real with actual magic.

Ihsan would probably choose Lucio, if only so that he can banish the dude again and/or put the guy on trial for the shit he did (yes, my boy is that single minded when it comes to Lucio).

19. Would they put a costume on their familiar for Halloween? And if so, what would they dress their familiar up as?

Given that Scout is 100% Telos’ familiar, they hadn’t found theirs before their death, and Scout seems by all counts to not like that sort of thing, no, Telos wouldn’t.

Ihsan’s swan would never put up with the indignity of animal costumes but he might have been persuaded to wear a pretty bow around his neck so we’ll go with that. He’s the gift that keeps on giving.

22. Which horror movie trope are they most like: the badass survivor, the first to die, the comic relief, or the killer?

Telos is the killer, hands down. They are a terrifying force holding together a vast multiverse with string, spit, and a prayer.  

Everyone has a backstory, what’s yours?

@gentapprentices

Whew, boy, strap yourselves in, folks.

Ihsan was born into a large, very well off, new money noble clan in Prakra. It was part of the new wave of meritocratic thinking sweeping the nation and Ihsan’s clan bought into it hook, line, and sinker. They trained their children from a very young age to become civil leaders, bureaucrats, and high-ranking members of the court. Ihsan’s early education centered on governmental systems, levers, diplomacy, philosophy, and most especially ethics and morality. As people near the top, it was their duty and their moral imperative to better circumstances for those below. Systems can be corrupted and perverted and it is their job to guard them from such so that the systems can continue to evolve to best serve the needs of the people writ large. 

Ihsan took to this education like a fish to water. As someone with high magical aptitude and skill, he eventually entered the best magical university in Prakra, which all but assured him of a future at the Empress’ court as one of her many magicians. His skill with protective magics alone should have landed him in the guard regiment but Ihsan’s mind and eye for systems proved more valuable. While at court, he was drafted into the magical law office, regulating ingredients and codifying laws and consequences for the nefarious side of magical practice. He spent a couple of years working there and earned a reputation as a distant, diplomatic person who gets the job done.

Then came The Incident. The scandal everyone in Prakra still talks about. That’s right, Nadia’s engagement and eventual marriage to Lucio. Everyone knew what that Vesuvia was like and everyone knew that Lucio’s courtiers were, in a word, dangerous. While the Empress refused to stop her daughter’s madness, she did decide to send along an ally and guard under the guise of magical/diplomatic adviser. That’s right, she sent Ihsan. Ihsan was, to put it mildly, Not Happy about this assignment. Vesuvia was one of the worst places on the planet, their poor starving, the place stank, and it was as backwards as a place could be. And that was without the threat of a deadly plague. Never the less, Ihsan knew his duty and left his home, quietly grumbling and with great reluctance. 

On the journey south, he and Nadia found themselves spending a lot of time together. And she impressed Ihsan. A lot. She spoke of the changes she wanted to bring to Vesuvia, of the best ways to revitalize the once proud city, of bringing the Prakran Golden Age to a people who so desperately needed it. She...well, entranced Ihsan. Caught him in her vision. And he vowed to work with her to the end. Together, they made quite the plans on that long voyage. When Lucio wasn’t around making a fool of himself. Vesuvia welcomed their new Countess and the Countess’ Magician with open arms.

A celebration of your apprentice’s friendships 

@gentapprentices

Asra - Ihsan considers Asra as someone between little sibling he never had, student, mentor, and good friend. Ihsan met Asra his first day in Vesuvia. Fresh off the boat and with very little time on his hands, Ihsan had been heading to his aunt’s to pay his respects when he came across Asra. The teenager’s magic and control impressed Ihsan and his personality sealed the deal. Ihsan mentioned Asra to his aunt, who would eventually take him on as a shopkeeper. Asra and Ihsan met in the intervening years mostly at Ihsan’s aunt’s biweekly teas. Asra took care of her when she started to sicken and Ihsan would always be grateful. In return, Ihsan passed control of the shop to Asra. The two of them nowadays just like to hang out and shoot the breeze together in their precious free time. 

Julian - Julian came highly recommended by Princess Nazali so it’s not at all surprising Ihsan eventually met and befriended the doctor. Ihsan appreciates his brilliance and dedication, Julian appreciates Ihsan’s people skills and ability to cut through the bullshit. While they aren’t drinking buddies, Ihsan and Julian have been known to get up to some high brow philosophy/ethics discussions or increasingly ridiculous magical experimentation when they’ve had a bit too much.

Valerius - His royal wineness, Ihsan’s best enemy, is the only member of Lucio’s court Ihsan can stand for more than five minutes. Valerius thinks Ihsan is too stiff and uncompromising, Ihsan thinks Valerius has the moral backbone of a chocolate eclair. Yet somehow through their years of sniping [before Ihsan left palace, caught the plague, and died] a grudging respect and friendship developed. After Ihsan’s return [which confused the fuck out of Valerius, I don’t think he knew that Ihsan had been dead but him coming back to the palace was definitely a sign to Valerius that Nadia was Paying Attention and oh shit, they might actually ferret me out], Ihsan basically devoted himself to turning Valerius into a respectable servant of the people again, mostly because after the whole route, Nadia needs all the competent, capable people she can get and, moral backbone aside, Valerius is one such person. 

What type of magic they specialize in?

@gentapprentices

Ihsan specializes in protection and construction magics. Mostly, he works in fending off attacks, magical and otherwise, and creating protective charms and barriers. He’s not very good at offensive magical attacks but his barriers are nothing to sneeze at; they’ve been known to rebound attacks and kill the source. Julian is, incidentally, very lucky that he meant no harm when he broke into the shop, otherwise he’d have gotten more than a bottle to the head. Ihsan has some skill in using magic to create structures which shouldn’t exist or to hide rooms, that sort of thing. When he and Nadia first arrived in Vesuvia, he assisted her in building her meditation chamber and hiding it from outsiders.

Does your character have recurring themes in their dreams?

Telos - Telos’ dreams haven’t been theirs for years. Their dreams are instead their time in the Arcana Realm. So in that vein, pre-death they dream of the Wheel but for the last few years, they’ve only been dreaming of a beach, a cliff side, and...is that a dog barking? Weird.

Ihsan - Ihsan often dreams of breathing underwater or losing his teeth. Sweeter dreams usually revolve around 

In what situation was your character the most afraid they’ve ever been?

Telos - As a young teen, Telos used to sneak out of their aunt’s house quite a bit. One time, they wound up in a tavern that turned into a panicked stampede when a bunch of pirates stormed the place and basically turned it into a free for all brawl. Needless to say, Telos brushed up quite a bit on their DEX scores after that. And needless to say, they became very protective of their little cousins. XD

Ihsan - Ihsan almost drowned once as a young man at the Prakran magical university. He panicked and couldn’t put up the magical shield/barriers he had been practicing and had no experience swimming. Luckily, a rather grumpy swan familiar helped him stay afloat long enough for someone to rescue him.

What was your character’s favorite toy as a child?

Telos - Telos’ favorite toys were little cloth dolls their mother taught them to make. This eventually developed into their skill, both magical and mundane, with textiles. They still make them when they need something to do with their hands.

Ihsan - Ihsan had a little crystal globe that Prakran nobles use to start teaching their children magic. It can be activated by small bursts of different kinds of magic to do different things. His favorite was the flame magic: when touched by flame magic, the globe would glow and change colors for hours. It also made for a neat night light which little Ihsan absolutely did not need, no sir.

What does your character like in other people?

Telos - Telos is a people person for an introvert. They like people who can crack jokes and people who can keep up with them in some manner. Creativity in any field is also of interest to them, as they like listening and learning and asking questions. Thinking laterally like that is a bonus for them. They prefer fairly easy going people because they themself aren’t like that at all (just because you see the river flowing and let yourself be carried along doesn’t mean you aren’t gritting your teeth or trying better position your boat). Telos highly values playfulness as well.