Ahriman the Great

The Ancient Xelaran Empire

**Ahriman the Great** was one of the many incredibly powerful sorcerer kings of Xelaphos. He experimented frequently with magic, his main focus being the magic and power of the soul. He somehow used his discoveries to extend his lifespan greatly.

Ahriman is one of, if not the most, prominent figure in human history. He is the first and last human to have lived longer than 150 years by a large margin, and many historians believe Ahriman would still be alive today were it not for the catastrophe that wiped the Xelaran Empire from existence. While the cause of this catastrophe is unknown, many blame Ahriman and his ambition.

Ahriman has several spells that he created himself, focused around the soul, be it the wielder's or their enemy's. Many of his spells have been lost to time, and if any of his spellbooks were uncovered, they would sell to any mage worth their salt for a hefty price. The only other scholar to be worth as much would be Solomon the Wise, one of Ahriman's enemies that, surprisingly, he never attempted to destroy. The monk would always preach against what Ahriman was doing, calling him a false prophet and a wielder of highly illegal magics, even going as far as to say that his extended life span is all thanks to heinous rituals that sacrificed hundreds of lives for every year added to Ahriman's life. Whether this was true is unconfirmed, but it appears that the majority of people brushed this off as falsehood, due to the lack of evidence against Ahriman.

## Titles

Ahriman possessed many titles that would follow after his name. During very formal events, each of his titles would be read during his introduction, sometimes taking several hours to complete. Below are the most commonly recorded titles that Ahriman held.

"*Ahriman the Great, Angra Mainyu, the Omniscient, Lord of the Skies and Desert, Mighty Sorcerer King of Xela, Heir of the Weave, Chosen of Krystaal, Liberator of Sza, Truth of the World, the Will of Time, Wielder of the Divine Flame, The One That Came Before, Emperor of the Sands, Herald of the Living, The Mighty Lion of the Infinite Desert, The Hawk of the Heavens, Taker of Souls, Scion of Irsaaq, Lover of Goats, The Great Deciever, Builder of the Great City, Architect of Terror, Bearer of the Sceptre, Keeper of the Infinium, He Who Does Not Serve, Avenger of the Dead,The Ever Vigilant, Vanquisher of Vermin, Punisher of the Scourge, Rider of Eagles, Commander of the Undying Legion, Saviour of Mortals, The Grand Heirophant, Chosen of Aasillist, Wrangler of Scorpians, Keeper of the Portals, High Steward of the Six, Prophet of the North, Tamer of the Lich King, The Eternal Warden, The Exterminator of Elves, Defender of the West, Voice of Talos, Guardian of the Quan Pass, Eternal Sovereign of the Xela, The Great Unifier, Belittler of Malerion, Carrion Lord, Slaver of Aethel Ynn, The Undying, Caller of the Bitter Wind, Purger of the Orc Menace, Master of the River Xel, Destroyer of the False Gods, Father of Snakes, Bringer of Light, The Undisputed, Sentinel of Stygia, Breaker of Fey, Master of all Mundanus...*"
―A few of many of Ahriman's titles.
## History

### Origins

After Mortaran was slain, many tried to rule Xelaphos but all failed to keep hold of their position for more than a few decades. Two centuries of unrest later, a young but powerful sorcerer arrives at the city, killing all those who stand before him, claiming his birthright as King due to his status as a messenger of the gods, using his magic to prove it so. Many accepted his claim, mostly due to fear, but in time they came to realise that he was the best ruler to rule the city for the last 200 years.

Over the next century, Ahriman's fame within the empire grew as he performed more and more feats of increasing grandeur. He beat back orcs diverted by the drow from the north, he stopped the incursions of a yuan-ti cult by instating himself as one of their gods, he ended a rat plague that had taken hold of the city.

### Assassination

Eventually, the other kings of the Xelaran Empire grew jealous of Ahriman's fame and influence and privately petitioned the High King, who also shared their worries. They met with a few of the disgruntled nobility of Xelaphos who could no longer profit off the chaos wrought by the local troubles, and quickly a plan was born. The kings highered the most skilled assassins in the empire and tasked them with assassinating Ahriman so that the nobles could take his place as more loyal servants to the High King. Within a matter of weeks, while delivering one of his speeches to a large crowd, Ahriman was shot dead with a simple arrow. As he fell into the crowd, it is recorded that those closest to the assailant managed to restrain him and he was beaten to death.

Chaos followed as the nobles scrabbled for power, stabbing each other in the back until eventually all of the nobles that were privy to the assassination plans were called together by the High King to the pyramid that served as Xelaphos' royal palace. What happened to them within, no one knows, but once they entered, accounts state that the pyramid shifted and grew, devouring noble estates until it rested where it is today, standing far larger than any other building in the city. Once the Great Pyramid was still, Ahriman emerged from the top unharmed, stating that he had snakes within his court, and he had routed them out.

### War against the Dread King

Over the next few decades, Ahriman's prowess grew exponentially. It is debated if Ahriman ever showed his full power, and many agree that he did only once, when the Dread King lead an army against the Xelaran Empire, but never made it past Xelaphos. There, Ahriman challenged the Dread King to a personal duel. At the climax of the duel, there was an explosion and where the two combatants fought, there was now only dust and ash. Thinking their rulers were dead, both factions jumped into action, the white elves fleeing while the people of Xelaphos went berserk, killing any elf they found. Once again, though, a few weeks later, Ahriman appeared in the city as if nothing had happened. A few decades later, it was revealed that the Dread King also survived as he returned to Aldarnesh to scold his armies.

Ahriman was at this point incredibly famous throughout the world; the Dread King was wanted as a highest priority by the Krystallans but could not bring him down. And yet it seemed that Ahriman got closer than the Krystallans ever had to killing the ancient elf, and even brushed off his injuries as if they were merely an inconvenience. Several times over the next decade Ahriman had to fend off Krystallan assassins, but he always survived, always making a speech afterwards mocking the Krystallans' feeble magic and technology.

### Rise to High King and the Fall of Xela

Eventually, Ahriman began weaving intricate plots against the other kings in the empire - the grandchildren of those that had him assassinated originally. One by one, Ahriman claimed cities within the Xelaran Empire, until one day, whether coerced through threats or magical means, the High King abdicated, declaring Ahriman as his successor. Once more, Ahriman did not seem surprised, just taking on the responsibility without even so much as a word. The Xelaran Empire was his to command, and he seemed to care very little. He had turned his goals elsewhere and taking control of the empire was simply a simple step to start him down his path.

Over centuries, Ahriman worked, all the while still protecting his citizens as he used to, performing powerful magics as if giving a silver to a beggar in the streets. Many historians consider this era to be the golden age of the Xelaran Empire, where disease, hunger and poverty were a thing of the past. Everyone had opportunities to study the arcane, and many under the tutelage of Ahriman himself. Magical trinkets became commonplace for mundane uses, such as self-heating cooking equipment or clothing that could change colours at the wearers discretion, and even more complex arcane items becoming slightly less rare for the nobility, such as mechanical servants that obeyed verbal commands and that could perform simple tasks.

Everything changed during the calibration of 3,768 BIC. Ahriman had been working on some kind of massive weapon connected to the Great Pyramid of Xelaphos, which had several clones in other Xelaran cities, including the largest being in Noramarah, the capital. Many believe that Ahriman tried to fire this weapon to attack the Krystallans while they were busy with calibration. Perhaps the weapon misfired, or the Krystallans intervened with a weapon of their own, no one knows for sure. Regardless of the theories, the Xelaran Empire was wiped from existence in its entirety, with no humans being sighted on the northern half of the continent for at least a millennium. Not even corpses were left, just the abandoned cities with their defences fully activated.

### Revival

During the events of the Primordial Crisis, an exiled Krystallan Lance-Team uncovered an ancient lab of Ahriman's near Windbriar. There, they found and activated a portal to the Black Pyramid of Xelaphos, where one of Ahriman's clones, naming itself Ahrak, had gone rogue and cast Ahriman out while he and his hive-mind were dormant. Ahriman had survived for nearly five-hundred years by storing his conscience in the back of the mind of scholars looking to unearth Ahriman's secrets, one of these wizards being responsible for the creation of golem factories underneath Elfhome. When Lance Team Sigma helped the last of these wizards back to the Black Pyramid, Ahriman's conscience at last returned to his hive-mind, restoring his control over his clones and reactivating them, subduing Ahrak for later questioning and reconditioning. Since that occassion, Ahriman has remained hidden within his great pyramid, waiting for "The Great Enemy" to show themselves once more, caring little for the destruction of the people in the world around him.

## Spells

The spells listed below are the spells that Ahriman created that are known about. The spells themselves may be lost to time, but their names at least are known.

* Ahriman's Army (effects unknown)
* Ahriman's Court (effects unknown)
* Ahriman's Drain
* Ahriman's Harm
* Ahriman's Lament
* Ahriman's Might (effects unknown)
* Ahriman's Minor Drain
* Ahriman's Path
* Ahriman's Rites (effects unkown)
* Ahriman's Sacrifice (effects unknown)
* Bolt of Ahriman