Alquist Proft

**Alquist Proft** is a human detective in the Ravnican Agency of Magicological Investigations on Ravnica. He is the master detective who solved the *Murders at Karlov Manor*. He previously belonged to the Azorius Senate.

## Description

Proft is Ravnica's premier detective and a master of deduction. He is human man with light brown skin and hair dark on top but graying at the temples. He is usually dressed in a long azure coat. Proft has never dedicated himself to any sort of physical art, preferring to focus on the mind, and he is very observant and factual. He notices everything, however small or inconsequential it might seem.

Proft can create illusionary environments mimicking any place or crime scene he has ever investigated, though this is exhausting for him. He is also able to magically unlock simple locks. He can project his consciousness inside his mind, and view it in the form of a "mind palace" filled with shelves of files containing all of his knowledge.

## History

Proft was once a lawmage with the Azorius Senate. At some point before the Phyrexian Invasion, he sought to learn more about the plane's largest guild, the Golgari Swarm. He traveled the Undercity, learning how the guild operated, asking them about their society and how they interacted with the city. He joined the Ravnican Agency of Magicological Investigations after it was founded by the archon Ezrim.

When called in to investigate the murder of Zegana at Karlov Manor, he was able to quickly expose and capture Etrata, who had attended the celebration in secret. Three days later, believing Etrata was not guilty of the murder but may have information, he helped her escape from Azorius custody. The two retraced Etrata's path to the safehouse where she had spent the night before the party, which was also the last place she remembered being before she was arrested. They found a yellow-gray powder sprinkled on her bed, which Proft suspected to be some kind of drug. On their way out, they were attacked by Massacre Girl, who had been hired to kill Proft and managed to injure him before Etrata forced her to stand down. The duo set off to see Kylox, a friend of Proft's whom he believed would be able to explain the evidence they had found.

Etrata and Proft reached Kylox's laboratory but noticed that it had been ransacked. They accessed a secret passage to find the scientist, who denied them his help unless they could get him to Ezrim. However, he was abducted by a gang of goblins shortly thereafter. The two tracked the goblins to one of Krenko's safehouses, where the criminal demanded everything Kylox knew about the murders. Etrata dispatched Krenko's minions, but before Kylox could divulge anything, a citizen burst into the window bound for Krenko and fatally stabbed Kylox. After the man was subdued, Etrata used her psychic abilities to remove the enchantment on him, revealing that he was oblivious to his actions.

Next, the two visited the undercity of the Sixth Precinct to see Izoni, still hoping that someone would be able to analyze the powder. She cooperated, revealing that the powder was derived from a living thing not native to Ravnica. However, Proft realized that their conversation was being spied upon, and ran after the hooded interloper only to be knocked unconscious by a mysterious force. He awoke in his mind palace without having summoned it himself, accompanied by a mysterious person in a long, hooded cloak. They stole one of the files containing his knowledge and returned him to the physical world, where he thanked Izoni and left the undercity. He sent a message to Kaya via courier to meet him at Karlov Cathedral, where Teysa Karlov's funeral was being arranged, for a debriefing. Once there, Kaya informed Proft of three clues which he hadn't previously had: first, that there was a note written in Phyrexian near Teysa's corpse; second, that an attempt had also been made on Aurelia's life; and third, that Kaya and Kellan had been attacked by mysterious thugs who took suicide pills that dissolved them into moss before they could be questioned. These were the final clues Proft needed, and he declared that he knew the true killer's identity.

Proft invited important figures from each of the guilds except Dimir and Golgari, as well as Krenko, to meet him at Vitu-Ghazi, in Trostani's private study. Once they were all assembled, he declared that he would take them into a side room individually for questioning to get the final piece of the puzzle. He brought Kaya in first, but the two only sat in uncomfortable silence until a flower grew out of the floor. As it was about to expel a burst of pollen, Kaya cut the stem, and Proft contained the flower in an Agency evidence capsule, preventing it from wilting immediately. He brought it out to the guild leaders and revealed that the individual questioning was a ruse and he already had the answer.

### Solving the case

Everyone involved in the cases had lost their memory shortly before the criminal act and regained it shortly afterward. Izoni's testimony certified that the source of the powder did not exist naturally on Ravnica — but that did not mean it couldn't have been cultivated, and it didn't exhibit any characteristics of Phyrexian bioengineering. Proft knew that, if he announced that he had almost solved the mystery, he would paint a target on his back, and in so doing would force the killer to allow him to collect evidence by exposing their method of delivering the powder. He picked Kaya for an "interview" because of her planeswalking ability, which would allow her to flee the scene if she was brainwashed into killing Proft - making it the perfect crime.

Proft also deduced that the pollen could not work on the same person twice, as, if it could, the killer would surely have attempted to brainwash Etrata a second time, killing him and proving her guilt beyond all doubt in one fell swoop. The weapon was a magically cultivated plant with advanced properties, but also built-in limits. This combination of traits suggested the power to control nature, but also immense respect for it. The killer, Proft concluded, was a member of the Selesnya Conclave. That also satisfied the question of how the pollen was delivered. The roots of Vitu-Ghazi pervade the whole city of Ravnica, leaving ample opportunity for a sufficiently skilled nature mage to sprout a plant at any place in the city. The plants grow, emit pollen at their victims, and then wither away without a trace.

Tolsimir Wolfblood stepped forward, declaring that he was responsible both for the murders and for sending the thugs after Kaya and Kellan. However, Proft rebuffed him, asserting that he was trying to take the fall for the true killer: Trostani, guildmaster of the Selesnya Conclave. His statement provoked Oba, the central dryad of the trio, and she explained her motives to the assembled guild leaders in a furious rant before attacking all present. Proft, lacking direct combat skills, was protected by his allies.

Although Etrata was seriously injured, worrying Proft, she ultimately helped trap Oba in an Agency barrier ward. She was neutralized by her sisters, who put her into the same unconscious state she had put them in. In the aftermath of the fight, Proft took Etrata under his wing as his aide on a permanent basis, the two having become friends during the investigation.

## In-game references

Represented in:

* Alquist Proft, Master Sleuth

Depicted in:

* Anzrag's Rampage
* Auspicious Arrival
* Deduce
* Demand Answers (Magnified showcase)
* Intrude on the Mind
* No More Lies
* Not on My Watch
* Reenact the Crime
* Slice from the Shadows
* Unauthorized Exit

Quoted or referred to:

* Assemble the Players
* Coerced to Kill
* Leering Onlooker
* Snarling Gorehound

*Murders at Karlov Manor* case notes:

* Assemble the Players
* Audience with Trostani
* Auspicious Arrival
* Call a Surprise Witness
* Coerced to Kill
* Deadly Complication
* Deduce
* Demand Answers
* Fanatical Strength
* It Doesn't Add Up
* Makeshift Binding
* Murder
* Not on My Watch
* Officious Interrogation
* On the Job
* Reenact the Crime
* Slice from the Shadows
* The Chase is On
* Unauthorized Exit
* Warleader's Call
* Worldsoul's Rage

## References

1. ↑ ***a*** ***b*** ***c*** ***d*** Seanan McGuire (January 9, 2023). "*Murders at Karlov Manor* - Episode 3: Shadows of Regret". *magicthegathering.com*. Wizards of the Coast.
2. ↑ Blake Rasmussen (December 5, 2023). "WeeklyMTG: Murders at Karlov Manor - First Look (Video)". *Magic: The Gathering*. YouTube.
3. ↑ ***a*** ***b*** ***c*** Seanan McGuire (January 8, 2024). "*Murders at Karlov Manor* - Episode 2: Monsters We Became". *magicthegathering.com*. Wizards of the Coast.
4. ↑ Seanan McGuire (January 8, 2024). "Monsters We Became, the DVD extras". Seanan McGuire.
5. ↑ ***a*** ***b*** Seanan McGuire (January 15, 2024). "Episode 7: Rot Before Recovery". *magicthegathering.com*. Wizards of the Coast.
6. ↑ Seanan McGuire (January 15, 2024). "Rot Before Recovery, the DVD extras". Seanan McGuire.
7. ↑ Seanan McGuire (January 11, 2024). "*Murders at Karlov Manor* - Episode 5: Chains of Expectation". *magicthegathering.com*. Wizards of the Coast.
8. ↑ Seanan McGuire (January 12, 2024). "*Murders at Karlov Manor* - Episode 6: Explosions of Genius". *magicthegathering.com*. Wizards of the Coast.
9. ↑ ***a*** ***b*** ***c*** ***d*** Seanan McGuire (January 16, 2024). "Episode 8: Gods of Chaos". *magicthegathering.com*. Wizards of the Coast.
10. ↑ Seanan McGuire (January 17, 2024). "Episode 9: Beauty in Destruction". *magicthegathering.com*. Wizards of the Coast.
11. ↑ Seanan McGuire (January 18, 2024). "Episode 10: Roots of Decay". *magicthegathering.com*. Wizards of the Coast.