Vergil

**Vergil** is a player character in the *Shazza's Angels* campaign. Classified a fighter, his unique Dark Slayer martial archetype accentuates his abnormal abilities in battle.

## Appearance

Vergil is a male human with fair skin, grey eyes, and white hair which is backswept. His clothing consists of a black duster with light blue lining, worn over studded leather armour of dark blue shades. In addition to these are charcoal fingerless gloves, black trousers, and black boots covered by teal gaiters.

## Personality

Vergil is cool, calm, and collected, and introverted, to the extent that the aura of coldness he produces is almost physical. He is a man of few words, preferring his statements to be brief and his language to be articulate, if somewhat antiquated. Living in solitude has caused Vergil to be awkward socially, as he sometimes misses cues and is oblivious to norms. Although he exudes apathy, Vergil cherishes few things deeply and reacts to disrespect without mercy, the prime example of this being the vengeance exacted upon the tiefling warlock who stole Yamato.

Vergil seeks ultimate power above all else: he will sacrifice anything ruthlessly to achieve this end and is indifferent to the consequences of his actions. Despite his demeanour and and goal, Vergil is an honourable warrior; he refuses to wield ranged weapons, never attacks from behind, or combats a weakened opponent. Innocents and unarmed individuals will not be harmed until they pose a threat or stand in his way.

The infernal is of interest to Vergil, for reasons yet unknown—he knew how to navigate and destroy the Qliphoth, was aware that the tiefling warlock's patron was a fiend, and sought such literature in Krag Keep's library. One reason for this could be the detail about his childhood revealed in 'The Interview', suggesting his research may be an attempt to hunt them and similar creatures; however, the nothic below Krag Keep referred to Vergil as "devil man" and claimed to know the deeds he committed, hinting at an unexplored, darker side of Vergil.

## Abilities and Skills

Vergil's abilities make him the optimal fighter: he is inherently strong and dexterous, able to match the power of larger opponents and perform acrobatic feats with ease, and his constitution is near-inhuman, capable of enduring extreme damage and fighting for prolonged periods—even after severe punishment.

### Combat

Vergil is proficient with any weapon he wields, mastering them upon acquisition instantly. Although deadly with the Sword of Ghostly Vengeance, his lifetime with Yamato has resulted in swordsmanship resembling art. Vergil's fighting style with Yamato resembles iaijutsu, attacking with quick-draws, precise strikes, and using the sheathed sword for blunt strikes and blocks. Maintaining his coldness in combat, Vergil never attacks recklessly or charges into battle, opting to approach menacingly and strike efficiently. He abhors ranged weapons, supplementing his offence with Mirage Blades instead.

Vergil's superb speed allows him to attack multiple times before the opponent can react; his signature move, Judgment Cut, is a quick-draw imperceptible to the human eye. A unique ability granted by Vergil's Dark Slayer archetype is the ability to teleport: he can reposition himself in the blink of an eye, doing so to close distance, dodge attacks, and disorientate his opponent.

### Equipment

* **Yamato**: A katana sharp enough to cut through the planes of existence, Yamato is a memento from Vergil's father and is his most cherished possession.
* **Mirage Blades**: A feature of his Dark Slayer martial archetype, Vergil's Mirage Blades are projectile, spectral swords acting as his answer to ranged weapons. They can be cast as one blade or many—attacking directly, shielding Vergil, or raining down upon opponents.
* **Sword of Ghostly Vengeance**: A magical blade taken from a defeated bandit leader, the Sword of Ghostly Vengeance binds to Vergil like a symbiote in battle.
* **Studded leather**: Tough but flexible, Vergil's armour provides protection without sacrificing his mobility.

### Other Skills

Vergil's study of the infernal has granted him expert knowledge of the planes. He is able to detect creatures, items, and symbols from the infernal realms and is familiar with almost every significant devil. Vergil has learnt to speak the Infernal language also.

## Biography

### Background

Vergil's life prior to the origination of Shazza's Angels is a mystery. The only event brought to light was a devil attack on his childhood home, causing the death of his mother and estrangement from his brother. There has been no mention of his father besides Yamato being a keepsake from him.

### Prologue

Vergil was not a founding member of Shazza's Angels; however, events surrounding him would become the catalyst for their first adventure. Under unknown circumstances, Yamato was stolen by a tiefling warlock who fled to another continent and summoned the Qliphoth. The infernal tree's appearance provided Vergil with the location of his sword, but he was forced to escalate the Qliphoth with minimal equipment. Vergil discovered the tiefling, mere moments after being defeated and disarmed by the party, and seized Yamato immediately. Having retrieved his birthright, Vergil finished the warlock in swift, but brutal fashion—slashing him into pieces within the blink of an eye. Knowing the Qliphoth's roots had to be severed from within the Nine Hells, Vergil opened a portal and entered Baator, disappearing after acknowledging the party for their assistance.

Six weeks later, Kangol, Saoirse, and Shazza reunited in the Tree of Life, the tavern built upon where the Qliphoth stood. The trio received a letter, expressing gratitude and warning that the warlock made a pact with a powerful fiend, but their paths will cross again. The letter was signed, "V."

### The Interview

Shortly after joining the party, Vergil inexplicably found himself in a café within the contemporary real world, alongside Kangol and Shazza. Through confused conversation, they discovered they had been selected individually to attend an interview for the position of *This Morning* presenter on ITV, replacing Holly Willoughby. At the studio, Phillip Schofield offered all of them the job; however, he revealed they would not be Holly's replacement, but would be working in human resources.

Vergil and the others semi-celebrated at a nearby pub, but began to receive negative comments from the other patrons. Before they could react, the party were blinded by a flash of light and deprived of their senses, quickly finding themselves competing against each other on various television programmes: *The Chase*, *RuPaul's Drag Race*, and *The Great British Bake Off*. During *Bake Off,* judge Prue Leith attacked the party, revealing herself as the witch responsible for the party's situation. After an intense battle, Prue retreated in defeat, cackling as she vowing revenge. Victorious, the party experienced a final flash of light and returned to the Tree of Life in their own world.

### Throne

Prior to this mission, Vergil ventured on his own for a time. He discovered a bandit camp on his travels and eliminated everyone, including their leader, from whom he claimed a magical sword. Vergil returned to the Tree of Life that night and studied the weapon to determine the source of its power. The focus caused mental strain and Vergil fell unconscious, during which time he was plagued with visions of the battle with the bandit leader and the blade, which he learned is the Sword of Ghostly Vengeance. Awakening at dawn, Vergil experienced an epiphany from his visions and felt attuned to the sword, respecting its power.

That morning, Vergil and the party received a letter from Commander Petyre of the Halberd Isles, requesting their presence for a mission befitting their expertise. Vergil departed for the islands with Saoirse and Shazza while Kangol returned to Gongorr to complete his faith pilgrimage. The party meet Commander Petyre at Krag Keep, who explains the purpose of his invitation: Jarl Erik Bertram of the Halberd Isles perished at sea and the thanes must meet to elect a new jarl; however, the clans do not see eye-to-eye and Petyre suspects the session will collapse. Hence, he recruited the party to ensure the election proceeds accordingly. With time to spare, Vergil sought the keep's library. With no infernal material there, he continued his study of the Sword of Ghostly Vengeance—Vergil sensed his attunement to the sword grow, but began to feel intoxicated by its power. A voice in Vergil's head spoke, "Let me in." Shocked, Vergil broke his concentration and collected himself, realising the time had come for the convergence.

The election proceeded as planned until three bears rampage suddenly throughout the hall. The threat was diffused quickly, but a closer look revealed the bears were larger than normal and had opposable thumbs—in addition, they bore symbolic markings, indicating berserkers transmutated by magic. Authorised to investigate, the party searched the cellar and found a mead barrel laced with felicis mushrooms. Jordain, servant of Clan Bertram, trapped the party in the cellar in an attempt to murder them, but they escaped into the subterranean tunnels below.

The party discovered a nothic living below the keep, who informed the party he saw all, including Jordain poisoning the mead. Returning to the keep, the party chased Jordain, fleeing at the sight of the surviving adventurers. When they caught him, Jordain denied any wrongdoing, but he conceded quickly and confessed he was persuaded by Eberron of Clan Roderick to taint the mead and release the berserkers. Forbidden by Halberdian tradition and lacking corporeal evidence, the clans could not deliberate the traitor, but the party were permitted to investigate further. After questioning each clan leader, the party learned that Eberron was indeed guilty: he cast a protection spell on his son, Ledmorr, to ensure he survived the berserker attack, and convinced Jordain to poison the mead. Eberron and Jordain were sentenced to death for treason, and the party were rewarded with 600 gold pieces, becoming allies of the Halberd Isles.

### United Front

While Saoirse and Shazza returned to Gongorr to celebrate the completion of Kangol's pilgrimage, Vergil decided to travel in isolation.

## Trivia

* Vergil is fundamentally identical to the character from the *Devil May Cry* series.
	+ His clothing is based on his depiction in *Devil May Cry 5*.
* In 'The Interview', Vergil and the rest of the party have a WhatsApp group chat named 'Prinnies x.'