The Mighty Herald

Visionary leader of the Paragons of Unity faith (or cult, if one listens to my detractors), I am cut from a different cloth than all other men, but do not let that fool you. I am just like you in every way that matters. I mean no harm to anyone or anything but the status quo, and I promise that together, there is no limit to what we can achieve. Call me a cult leader if you'd like; I care not for childish tactics such as name-calling. I care about connection and results. Reputation is built on those, not what they call you. Names are worthless in the face of achievement, and for that reason, I am only the Mighty Herald.   Forgive me, I needed certainty that my tale would be told accurately, so I took over writing this article. Who better to learn from about the Mighty Herald than the Mighty Herald himself? Let us get to know each other throughout. I will recount every facet of my identity worth recounting, and you need only think about yourself. I will feel it in the air between us, and I will learn more about you than anyone else has ever bothered to learn.  

History

I dislike discussing my past. Before I was the Herald, who was I? If I answered that question, it would destroy the very purpose of my being the Mighty Herald, wouldn't it? Let us just say that I grew up around the tail end of the Age of Unrest and through the start of the Age of Justice. At a young age, I met Salasar Feaphed, the greatest mage of the Modern Era, and knew my calling was in the studies of magic, just as his was.  

Ilder's Early Days

I watched the village of Ilder rise up from the ashes after the Ilder Massacre, admiring the leading figures in its construction, from Oraakil and Talthil Mardaar to Drorthod Lormorn and Uustac Acoria. As its current Village Chief, I feel an obligation to praise those early days, what some call the greatest Ilder has ever seen. To that, I say you need only watch what comes next. I will make those golden days seem like nothing.   My name is often left out of the founders of Ilder, for I did little to establish it, but I was there in its earliest days. Too young to make an impact, but old enough to see the new world being built. A new, better age started on the shoulders of giants I witnessed growing up... I, too, intend to be like them.   It was in Ilder that I met a dear friend of mine. He was from a prominent family there, but he was not like his famous father and mother, not as beloved, not as capable, not as outgoing. He was unable to live up to the expectations around him, and while a part of him died in the Raid of Ilder, he lived on, injured and broken, until he truly passed away in the Invasion of Stallbourne. It was through him that I realized the state of the world; we cannot achieve greatness alone. Some of us are destined to solitary mediocrity, but as a collective, even the most mediocre can form something brilliant and powerful.  

Education and Disillusionment

I attended the Magic College of Zephys, as well as the Institute of Maya Zaman and Ironforge University. It is only right for a studious individual with big dreams to get the best education they can, to learn more about the greatest institutions in the world, and meet different kinds of academics in different corners of Totania.   There were fantastic folks all across the continents, but so too were there threats beyond the scope of any hero left to stand against them. When a new Korvian King popped up after the retirement and death of folks like Nalrik Tilrak, the heroes left in their wake were not capable of solving it on their own. A vacuum had appeared, ready to swallow the world whole... and while I managed to do what I could to keep our world from falling apart (as did some capable folks I met along the way), I knew that I alone could not stop the villains of the world. We needed heroes... we needed paragons.   In my travels, I'd also learned something of great importance. The Gods of Totania are not looking out for the common man. Sure, they may bless a Prophet or Champion on occasion, but how often are they not just affluent folks getting another boost to their already wonderful lives while others suffer. There was a man who showed this to me clearly with his words and actions... I consider him the first prophet of this movement: Finethir Shinebright.   He was not refined in his thoughts, and I do not credit him with much more than the spark of an idea. He certainly did not create the Paragons of Unity, but he knew the flaws of the world and knew it all lay in the fact that mortals view the Gods as their betters, as their teachers, as their rulers. But we know more than we give ourselves credit for. We are capable of more than they dare to let us know.   Something else that characterized the early Age of Justice was the fall of the God Phrixus, when his Temple was destroyed and his faith was sent into hiding. Did they try to rebuild? No. Phrixus instead abandoned Totania, leaving his followers to beg for a God that may as well have not existed at all. At the same time, the Draconian villages were taken over by Priests of Helle, as the Goddess of Greed tried to claim ownership of an entire species of people. It was despicable, and so I had to do something.  

Rise of the Paragons

I had some misguided attempts at starting a movement at first. The Korvian City can attest to that, as can Grandstone, but I took failure as a lesson.   When I and my first followers began preaching the good word, we started in Deepwater, on the edge of one of Heaven's greatest blots on our world, the Great Dip. Together, we withstood it, and wrote the Standards for a United Life, the holy text of the Paragons of Unity.   With this text in hand, we walked Elone, from Bang Kruthiwat to Vitroveil, until we finally reached Bortan, where we'd amassed quite a following.   Faithful from across the entire continent were behind me, and together we built the Temple of Unity by hand, right outside the Valley of Creation that Helle had sought to steal from Phrixus in my youth. The Goddess of Greed would not have it. The people would.   There was pushback, of course. Grand Wizard Hameila Neconkus tried to have me killed, kept berating us and calling us a cult, but that was the natural response of a Demigod to a purely mortal movement. We were her antithesis.   Our movement grew, and of that I was very grateful. In truth, I don't even recall the moment when the name the Mighty Herald stuck. Did I come up with it, or was that name thrust upon me by followers? I couldn't tell you.   What I can tell you is that we are now spreading even outside of Elone, with footholds in Udai that are slowly gaining ground. I see on the horizon that the world will soon all recognize the Paragons of Unity as the true way forward, even if they do not believe in it all, they will see the truth in our movement.   Some may call us a cult, others may call me a villain, but we stand together. No threat, be it the Elven Guard or Noble Council, may stand in our way. They will all see the light, sooner or later. We can make the world much better, much easier. I say, these detractors are expending far too much energy on critical thought and opposition to an easier life, when they could release their inhibitions and give in to the paradise that comes with unity. If we recognized that there is no more need to struggle, we would not need the Gods, and there would be no need for villains to ever rise up. We would all be one in the Paragons of Unity.  

The Modern Herald

Now, I have risen to the position of Village Chief in Ilder. My journey is a humble one, from a boy with no name and reputation in the Age of Unrest to a prophet shaping the next age. But I do not walk this path alone. It is a shared journey, one I wish to walk side-by-side with everyone in the world who will see the light. Everyone who will stand up with me, as one body, and denounce the divinity that has abandoned us while repelling all evils that dare to harm even a hair upon the collective head of Totania.   The Post-Heraldic Age of Faith is coming. I do wonder what that means for this world. Don't you want to find out?  

Information

Sexuality

I consider myself a man of the people. Who am I to choose only one person in all the world to be with? Who am I to choose only one gender, out of all the variations found across the world, to choose partners from? I force nothing upon anyone, but leave the option to everyone, and if all the world were to choose to be my partner, I'd take them all, man, woman, what have you.  

Religion

Need I elaborate further? I lead the Paragons of Unity; of course I believe in the words I preach. There is no future in following the words of the immortal Gods. Mortalkind is the true font of divinity.  

Wealth

Believe it or not, I am among the poorer Chiefs in the Draconian Villages, for I had no inheritance or wealthy venture. I am grateful for the generous donations we often receive, and while none of it is my own personal wealth, it is also true that the money of the Paragons of Unity is for all, and thus, I am also infinitely wealthy.  

Abilities

Believe it or not, I'm a skilled old man who can do more than most. I'm quite good at tightrope walking, for instance, and I've been known to juggle. The tea I brew is famous the world over, and my rhetoric is better than even the great speechwriters in Camor. I'd like to say I'm among the greatest Yuf players in the world, though my pupil Kealthan is starting to get quite skilled. Perhaps one day he might even beat me.  

Magic

I am an ace, of course, so I'm capable of all elemental affinities, and I have a great many tricks up my sleeve, though truly it's nothing all too terrifying or really anything you'd need to worry about. All the magic I know is for the benefit of all people.