Valmerath, Seer of Asura

Art by Joey Comma

**Valmerath, Seer of Asura** is a powerful Umbrani in service to Asura, the Many-Faced Lord of Deception. On behalf of his liege, he attempted to create another breach from the Shadow to the Prime Plane through stolen energies from the veil of Faewunder. Valmerath always wears a hideous grin that compliments his twisted fascination with the denizens of Io he comes in conflict with.

## Description

### Appearance

Valmerath is a lanky humanoid standing over twelve feet tall. His limbs are elongated, and his fingers are especially long and slender, ending in black pointed nails. His skin is a dirty white, giving him a unhealthy appearance. Only the lower part of his overly long face is visible, revealing an oversized mouth peeled back in a permanent grimace of thin purple lips and yellowed teeth. The rest of his face is concealed behind an elaborate golden mask with red accents. The mask resembles a human face but possesses a white and purple emblem at the top of the forehead resembling a third eye. A elaborate headdress resembling a corona extends from the sides of the mask.

Valmerath also wears a set of white and purple robes, with a purple tabard embroidered with an arcane sigil. A pair of gold pauldrons adorn his shoulders, connected by a thin gold chain. A badge can also be seen on his right pauldron, resembling a sun with a vertical partition down the middle. Valmerath can also usually be seen carrying a large crimson dodecahedron the size of his head, which is emblazoned with numerous swirling patterns.

### Personality

Valmerath exudes smugness and irreverence. He seems perpetually amused at his surroundings, enjoying the chaos he is causing. He also appears to find Ionians somewhat fascinating, having never met one before despite hearing of how they banished his liege. He often expressed delight in watching the voyagers struggle to defeat him and took note of their attachments to one another. He also displays highly sadistic behavior, glibly forcing Gloria to chose who he should target next with his scythe.

Though he does demonstrate some frustration at the efforts of the voyagers, he proves to be unusually graceful in defeat, taking the disruption of the ritual in stride. Like his superior Asura, Valmerath also shows an aptitude for deception by manipulating Almen'gyl, ambushing the voyagers and hiding the growing tear into Faewunder before it engulfed him and his adversaries.

## History

### Background

Valmerath was once an Astari who lived on Io some 2,500 years ago. During the Jupiter Incident, he was sundered like the rest of his kin, and his soul was plunged into the Shadow. For centuries, he endured the torture of living in the Shadow Veil, desperately seeking to be free. To this end, he rallied under the banner of a powerful Shadow called Deus, a former elder in his old society. He and other Shadows loyal to Deus then plotted to be liberated from the Shadow and return to their former home.

### The Shadow Invasion

In the Year 735, Deus and his servants were able to complete a ritual to create a breach to the Prime Plane. They manipulated a vainglorious prince named Dmitrius Asmodia to shroud the Kingdom of Asmodia in darkness and poison its people with toxic smog. The ritual was a success and Shadows loyal to Deus flooded out of the new gate and returned to Io. Valmerath was one such Shadow and he, like the rest of his kind, managed to find a vessel from the many corpses of dead Asmodians. By binding himself to this new vessel, he became one of the first of a nascent species of Devils. In particular, Valmerath became a being known as an Umbrani, though that distinction is yet unclear.

Under the guidance of his leader, newly christened Asmodeus, Valmerath and his allies began to prepare for their invasion to properly begin. It is currently unknown what role Valmerath played in the Shadow Invasion. Despite their best efforts, heroes from across Io learned of the oncoming invasion and rushed to the defense of their home. A series of fierce battles took place across Io, cumulating in the battle between the Lord of All Shadows and the crew of the Miss Demeanor in the Royal Court of Asmodia. The heroes of Io were victorious, and Asmodues was banished back to the Shadow. Relying on their leader to maintain their presence there, all of Asmodeus' followers were also banished back to their prison, including Valmerath.

### Servant of Asura

For the next millennium, Asmodeus and his Devils remained in the Shadow, plotting to attempt another invasion. During this time, a new society began to form, with the creation of a capital city and a functioning hierarchy beneath Asmodeus and his Lords of Shadow. Valmerath pledged his services to the fourth Devil Lord: Asura, the Many-Faced Lord of Deception. Valmerath would learn to imitate some of his master's power and was eventually awarded the title Seer of Asura, marking him as one of their most trusted servants.

## Phase 3 Story

### Manipulating the Faewunder

About 500 years after the Shattering of Io, Asura tasked Valmerath with overseeing the creation of a new breach into Io. During their time in the Shadow, the Devils had discovered a new Veil called Faewunder, a vibrant place of nature and fey magics. Valmerath, as per his master's instruction, began to reach out into Faewunder and study it in order to manipulate its power. Valmerath's plan was to create a nexus point between the Shadow, Faewunder and Io. Valmerath managed to create this convergence of Veils through a focal point: a large tree from Faewunder.

Channeling Faewunder's power, he transported this anchor to an abandoned castle in the Ustrana region of Northern Ishtar and set the ritual in motion. To better defend the area from interference, he found a Silvonan warrior called Almen'gyl to serve him as a puppet. He infused Almen'gyl with the Blood of Shadow, granting him complete control over the fey and enchancing his abilities. He then set Almen'gyl to guard the entrance to the castle.

### Defending the Ritual

Messing with Faewunder's magic came with unintended consequences, as creatures from Faewunder were conjured unbidden into the nearby settlement of Lindow. Valmerath used his stolen powers to make the creatures return to him, but he had already drawn attention to himself. A group of voyagers set out from Lindow the next day and made their way to his lair. They managed to free Almen'gyl from his possession and enlist the Silvonan's aid. Undeterred, Valmerath continued the ritual and laid in wait for Io's first wave of defenders to arrive. Two days later, the voyagers and Almen'gyl entered the castle and found their way to the ritual room. Valmerath then jumped down from his hiding place to ambush them.

Valmerath then engaged the group in combat to divert their attention from the ritual. Valmerath could not contain his excitement at meeting Ionians for the first time, admitting to finding them fascinating. Valmerath used his twinscythe to ravage the party, but found his efforts were often thwarted by the half-Lagoman historian Gloria Gladeblossom. Gloria did her best to draw attention away from her allies as they tried to find a way to disrupt the ritual. Though he did not relent in his assault, the Seer of Asura transitioned to psychologically harming the girl, taunting her and targeting her friends with sadistic glee. As the battle went on, Valmerath noticed Almen'gyl among their ranks, and dismissively acknowledged his former puppet.

Finding himself surrounded, he then turned to Gloria and offered her to make an unpleasant ultimatum: whichever of her friends she cared for least, he would strike down with his scythe. Gloria, hesitantly, chose Almen'gyl. Valmerath then lashed out mercilessly at his former slave. However, the devil failed to noticed that Gloria had applied a spell of protection against his kin, causing Valmerath to deal minimal damage to the Silvonan. Meanwhile, the rest of the party had identified the tree as the catalyst for the ritual and had begun to destroy it. With enough damage dealt, the tree began to die and with it the ritual became undone. The separation of the veils instead created a temporary tear to Faewunder rather than the Shadow.

Valmerath knew that he had failed, but saw an opportunity to get back at Io's would-be defenders. He teleported to the center of the room, masking the presence of the tear. He then utilized the techniques Asura has taught him, donning crimson and azure masks to manifest a deadly explosion. However, the voyagers were able to nullify the magic by forcing Valmerath's mask to synergize with the ambient energy. After two attempts, Valmerath admitted defeat, declaring Io had been spared a second invasion. However, he gleefully announced that the voyagers would not get to enjoy their victory. He then revealed the tear into Faewunder, now grown large and strong enough to attempt to pull them inside. Valmerath allowed himself to be forcibly drawn into Faewunder, knowing that his adversaries would also be drawn in with him.

## Etymology

Valmerath appears to be an original name created for the Ioverse setting.

A "*seer*" is a person of seeming supernatural ability that is able to see visions of the future by means of divination. Unlike the oracles of Ancient Greece, who were direct conduits for the gods, seers needed to interpret signs to determine the future, using haruspicy and the presence of certain birds to answer questions.

An "*Asura*" is a class of supernatural beings found in Indic religions. They are power-hungry evil beings that are constantly in conflict with their good counterparts, the Devas. Asuras coming in many forms and possess a myriad of different abilities, but are nearly universal in their desire for wealth and power. Asura appear as antagonists in many Hindi stories, with examples such as Keshi, Vritra and Hiranyakashipu.

## Trivia

* Valmerath is the first Umbrani to appear in on stream in the Ioverse.

## Images

### Official art

Valmerath donning the Crimson Mask.Valmerath donning the Azure Mask.