Malak the Deceiver

Malak the Deceiver is a main character and boss from the Wrath of the Dragon campaign. Like Raishin, the player(s) must encounter and battle Malak on multiple occasions. Malak is disguised in a human form for the first act of the campaign, not revealing his true draconic form until he is defeated in his first boss battle.

**Lore**

Malak the Deceiver is the right-hand of the Dragon Lord Vesolath, and has long been an ally to him. Malak is one of very few creatures on Menune that Vesolath considers a 'friend', although the Dragon Lord's understanding of the word may be a little bit off. During the Cendall invasion, Malak is the one charged by Vesolath to pull the strings and manipulate certain events during the invasion, such as the hiring of the Bloody Axe Mercenaries, the raiding of Aqueous Cove in Lasonia and the formation of the now-infamous Wyrmcult, a cult dedicated to the worship of dragons, specifically Lord Vesolath. Malak is a cruel and sadistic being, who shares the same ideals as Lord Vesolath, hence why they have been allies for many centuries. They both believe that Dragons are the supreme race on Menune and that all lesser, mortal races deserve to be enslaved or exterminated. The land of Cendall is considered an affront to the pair, as it is the largest human nation to use magic on such a large scale. They also both believe that the use of magic should be solely for dragonkind. In ages past, it was dragons who gifted the use of magic to the first humans on Narador, a decision that both Malak and Vesolath view as a grave, disgusting mistake that must be remedied.

After Vesolath's invasion of Cendall began, Malak began to work on pulling the strings behind various events. His first job was forming the Wyrmcult, a fanatical group dedicated to worshiping and serving the great Dragon Lord Vesolath. Malak headed this group, disguised in his human form in an attempt to gain the trust of humans more easily, and to raise less suspicion. Malak also hired out the Bloody Axe Mercenaries to work for the Wyrmcult and aid them in attacking various settlements in Cendall. Malak himself was present when Lucian Belerius invaded Thaldrin the Butcher's compound for information on who they were working for. Malak watched the two battle, and was impressed at how easily the mage overpowered the butcher. Thaldrin begged for his life and was about to tell Lucian exactly who he was working for, but before he could finish his sentence, Malak fired a blast of dark energy at Thaldrin, killing him instantly. The Deceiver then gave Lucian a warning, to leave well enough alone, or face the consequences.

After his first encounter with the young Belerius, Malak returned to the depths of the Midscott Mines, where he had temporarily set up his base of operations. Later in the evening after their first encounter, Malak would come face to face with Lucian and his new ally Allistar DuMont, who had both tracked the Deceiver to his lair in the mines after defending the town of Midscott from Raishin the Thunderlord's attack. Malak fights the pair in his human form, still displaying incredible amounts of strength and skill. However, the pair eventually wear down the Deceiver, forcing him to transform into his true, draconic form. Malak then unleashes a massive blast of dark energy, stunning the duo and preparing to execute them. Malak gloats to the pair, and reveals the basics of his Lord's plan to the 'dead men', but is suddenly ambushed by the mysterious Masterless Rogenta, -an agent of the Wyrmakk Dragon Lords- who sentences him to death and begins to attack. Still fatigued from his battle against the humans, Malak is forced to retreat.

Malak returns to the safety of his master's lair, and explains the details of what happened to the Dragon Lord. Needless to say, Vesolath is not pleased with the news. Angered, he lets out a monstrous roar, shaking the Deceiver to the bone. After regaining his composure, Vesolath changes his plans somewhat, and gives Malak the task of bringing the Dragonblood Mage to him alive, threatening to destroy Malak himself if he fails again.

The following day, Lucian and his party board a boat from Port Erith, planning to make their way down-river to the Mage's College. Malak and a group of his Wyrmguard had assaulted and taken over Mage Tower Farol earlier that day. Farol is located on the bank of the Cendall river, and gives the Deceiver the perfect spot to perform an ambush. Malak waits for the boat containing Lucian and his party to come down river, and fires a massive fireball at the boat, causing it to burn and sink into the depths of the river. However, before he has the chance to capture Lucian and the party, Malak is once again ambushed by Rogenta in an attempt to give the party time to escape. The pair battle once again, but Malak is not fatigued this time, and easily overpowers his foe by quickly unleashing the same blast of dark energy that he had previously used against Lucian and Allistar. A beaten and overwhelmed Rogenta falls to the ground, unable to continue the fight, and Malak teleports away, further down river to search for Lucian's party.

**Boss Battles**

During the first encounter the party has with Malak, he battles in his Human form. Malak displays incredible amounts of power over both fire and dark magics, even in this limited state. He uses a combination of martial prowess and mindgames to attempt to overwhelm both Lucian and Allistar. At certain intervals during the battle, Malak even splits the pair up, sending one of them at a time into his own personal 'Shadow Realm', where both heroes must defeat a shadowy version of their partner.