Phaerys

[Fallen Templar]

Phaerys

Battle: Epic
Race: Ataran
Origin: Xel-Atar

Appearance:



At a glance, Phaerys is a tall and spindly figure standing at roughly six-and-a-half feet tall. It is perpetually clad in a suit of bronze-coloured armour, exquisitely crafted with alloys far different to those of most other planes, and unusually hot to the touch, almost uncomfortably so. Worn over this is is what appears to be a hooded raiment marked with flamelike runes. A quartet of arms ending in clawed, talon-like hands mark Phaerys as something quite certainly not human.

In the eyes of most denizens of the Multiverse, Phaerys is some bizarre man in armour, or some form of automaton. Those who would come to better know Phaerys will find that the truth is stranger still; the creature within the armour is one composed of radiant energy from a star, somehow given a life and a mind of its own. The fiery glow behind the visor is its own light, filtered through a heavily polarised screen so as not to blind anyone.


Personality:

A keenly analytical mind filled with boundless curiosity would be an apt description of this being. Phaerys wanders the Multiverse in search of whatever great fonts of power and knowledge it has to offer, incessantly gathering information on each plane visited. It also displays an interest in collecting all sorts of esoteric oddities in its travels. Samples of exotic materials, fragments of dead worlds, and memories of distant planes, to name but a few.

Towards others, Phaerys largely comes across as aloof and detached, preferring to study people from a distance. It speaks little of itself, largely content to pursue its own agenda with quiet determination. But on occasion, it has been known to approach and work with others for the sake of a common goal, or even because they warrant sufficient interest.

When it comes to the art of battle, Phaerys is something of a reluctant fighter, but one cannot traverse the Multiverse for too long before being dragged into all manner of escapades. When forced into such circumstances, it fights with precision and purpose in mind, carefully studying its target before unleashing a torrent of solar fury into wherever it would have the most impact.


Abilities:

Solar Physiology
As energy-based creatures native to the surface of a star, Atarans are immune to the negative effects of heat and radiation, along with weaknesses inherent to fleshy creatures such as fatigue and disease. In addition, the mass of energy that passes for their body can gradually regenerate if it is partially discorporated, the rate of which depends on the amount of energy – predominantly radiation – they are able to absorb from their surroundings.

However, despite being able to feed off it, natural background radiation alone is insufficient to sustain their form when away from a star. Therefore, Atarans must rely on environment suits, made from highly specialised materials so as to withstand their unusual occupants. If a suit is breached or otherwise compromised, the Ataran's stellar mass will start to bleed out and dissipate. If it is not repaired, it may be a matter of hours until too much of the Ataran's body is lost to the point that it can be considered deceased.

Power of the Sun
All Atarans possess the ability to use fire and light magic, the strength of which may vary between individuals. Their kind can project bolts and beams of superheated plasma at will, often accompanied by bursts of intense light. The light magic they employ is unlike the holy energies commonly used by priests throughout the Multiverse, however, as it is more akin to the raw elemental force itself.

Gravity Manipulation
Certain Atarans have been known to hold an even greater mastery of their domain. Some of whom, like Phaerys, are capable of controlling gravity in localised areas. These effects include allowing oneself or other people and objects to be carried aloft or thrown with great force. On the other side of the coin, it is possible for Phaerys to increase gravity's influence, slowing or even crushing the intended targets. However, the greater the effect – and the greater the target's mass – the more energy and effort must be spent to enact the desired result.

Multiplanar Archivist
Phaerys is well-versed in the magic required to both create a portal through the Warp, and form a shield to protect against it. Centuries of travelling and studying various planes of the Multiverse have provided Phaerys with a wealth of knowledge pertaining to certain laws that commonly govern the local fabric of reality for many of them. Even before Phaerys first stepped through the Warp, it has devoted centuries of study toward matters of the arcane, and many scientific fields.


Equipment:

Ataran Excursion Suit
Phaerys' most notable possession would be the excursion suit it wears: a self-contained environment that allows the Ataran within to interact with the myriad worlds beyond its native habitat. Though it is designed to withstand the heat of a sun, along with intense gravity and electromagnetic waves, the esoteric alloys that make up its structure are not best suited for taking physical impacts. Despite this shortcoming, the suit has no shortage of useful gadgets to make up for it, all of which are keyed to only activate with Phaerys' specific energy signature.

Matter Assembler
A technological marvel built into Phaerys' excursion suit, this device is capable of absorbing, storing and reassembling raw matter with very little need for other tools, if at all. This matter absorption and projection is done through receptors within the gauntlets. While it can be used to build or repair almost anything given sufficient time and energy, there are certain substances in the Multiverse that are much more difficult to synthesize than to harvest in their natural form, and some that are outright impossible.

Wayfinder's Sensors
Within the excursion suit's helmet is a highly advanced suite of sensors, capable of detecting and recording all manner of energy readings, as well as see through illusions. The visor can even provide an array of functions analogous to night vision, infra-red, x-ray, and image magnification.

Dimensional Storage
Sample retrieval poses a challenge when you live on a sun and travel between dimensions. To combat this issue, the excursion suit has a compartment whose interior exists within a small pocket dimension, and can hold several small items plus a weapon or two.

Paradigm Field
A technology that is rare among Atarans and difficult to manufacture, Phaerys' excursion suit is equipped with a reality-stabilising Paradigm Field, allowing passage through the Warp unscathed. Moreover, it even offers considerable protection against chaotic or transmutative energies.


Background:
The being known as Phaerys was first made manifest on Xel-Atar just over two thousand years ago, relative to its home plane. A lengthy span of time to the average mortal, but far less so for an Ataran. While there are many of their kind, they are hardly prolific. Each Ataran is carefully formed through means unknown to outsiders, and ingrained with a specific purpose in their highly ordered collective.

Phaerys was created and assigned to the scholar caste, as one of many who were tasked with picking apart the riddles and mysteries that were scattered throughout its home plane, even those that were woven into the metaphysical fabric of reality itself. A natural aptitude for both science and sorcery coupled with a burning ambition brought Phaerys great recognition over a span of mere centuries, from the rank of a lowly if brilliant adept, to leading a coven of its own on several expeditions throughout the galaxy. They were a team of five in all – Phaerys included – each one a formidable sorcerer in their own right, and specialists in their chosen field. Their exploits were such that the group was given the rare honour of bearing its own name, the Coven of the Infinite Eye.

It was on one of their expeditions that Phaerys' coven made a remarkable discovery. While the existence of other universes was all but confirmed, travelling to or interacting with them was another matter entirely. Runic carvings found in a series of long-dead ruins bore record of an attempt to cross the spans between dimensions, and the incantations involved. Phaerys and the others hurried to return their findings to Xel-Atar, and request permission to repeat the experiment.

No expense was spared in this fantastical undertaking once approval had been sought. Plans were drafted. The portal chamber was assembled. New technologies were devised to help resist and combat the chaotic energies from beyond. As the ones who discovered the proverbial keys to the Multiverse, the Coven of the Infinite Eye was given the honour of being the first expedition through.

However, the great plan went awry at a critical point. It remains unknown how – whether through miscalculation, sabotage or simply the fickle nature of the Warp itself – but when Phaerys and its companions entered the portal, a violent surge of energy rushed around them like a typhoon. Before they knew it, the coven had been scattered across the Multiverse, and their way back home had been cut off.

That was the last that Phaerys had seen of its peers to this day.

In the wake of being left lost and alone in an unfamiliar plane, Phaerys had but one course of action available: to continue with its original mission as best it could, and if possible, find the others... assuming they were still alive.

For over a century, Phaerys searched the Multiverse in vain. Theoretically infinite planes made for a mathematical improbability to find even one of the other Atarans. To make matters worse, the Warp seemed to confound virtually any attempt at navigating to a specific plane, often leaving it down to blind luck more than anything else.

And so Phaerys persisted, studying each new dimension that it found, and searching for any trace of its fellow explorers, or a way back home. Until relatively recently, when Phaerys happened upon the site of an old battlefield. The destruction was on a scale it had never before encountered. Some extensive archaeology work eventually revealed concrete evidence of other Multiversal travellers like Phaerys itself... along with clues as to where they might have gone next.

For once in all of Phaerys' travels through the Multiverse, it was no longer wandering aimlessly from one plane to the next. It now had a clear objective in mind – to track down these other travellers and seek their assistance...

[Soul Reaver]

This character has been APPROVED for use in the Epic BB.