My Hero!

Physical:
Abyssals are clawed, fanged creatures whose most prominent features are tails, talons for feet and a set of horns that rise from their skulls. Impossible to disguise themselves in any avenue, Abyssals are not one to hide from their troubles.

Their skin tones are everything but dull, they span the entire range of the rainbow, depending on their sire and their mother. Their eyes generally share the colour of their thick, durable hides, with the ‘whites’ of their eyes being a pitch black.

Abyssals are physically the most imposing of all of the races, with the exception of certain Savages. They are notoriously difficult to harm due to their natural inclination towards violence, thick hides and natural weapons.

Some abyssals have natural spikes that come out at the forearm, adding an extra setof potential weapons to the Abyssal’s disposal. All Abyssals have a tail, but the tip of the tail is different for each Abyssal.

Some Abyssals are noted to have wings as well, though this is often due to magical enhancement as wings were originally only thought to be an trait that Jer’Zail’s personal entourage were gifted with.

Abyssals all have sharp teeth, often times with fangs. Forked tongues are also a common physical attribute. Almost all Abyssals have digigrade legs and their feet all end in three talons,

Abyssals use what one would consider hair as a status symbol. These manes of thick, coarse fibers are actually resilient to most blades and are often worn about the Abyssals as a form of full body cloak.

To find an Abyssal with a shaved head or short hair is to know that this Abyssal has been publicly made an example of. Until their mane returns to its full glory, their honour is tarnished.

Society:
Abyssals are by far the most crass, violent and powerful of the sentient races. Their society revolves around strength and frailty, as their God decreed. A single, normal Abyssal is a match for two of most other races with the exception of certain Savages and some Unclaimed.

Lead by the immortal Succubus Queen, consort to Jer’Zail, Abyssal society is slow to improve upon traditional values, ways and laws. Forsaking most conventional comforts and luxuries, Abyssals live hard lives, sleeping on slabs of rock with naught but their scaly hide to protect themselves from the elements.

The only Abyssals to truly know luxury are the Succubus Queen and her consorts (Before they are killed during their copulation with the Queen, of course). Those who think the Succubus Queen soft for sleeping upon pillows and indulging in baths dare not speak out, for she constantly displays her strength to her people.

Abyssal society is barbaric to most. Fights break out in the streets on a constant basis, but for the Abyssals, this is the norm. Any rivalry or argument that cannot be resolved in a basic wrestling match or through a good ol’ game of punch-face will be delegated to the Great Coliseum.

Altercations between Abyssals that go beyond the norm, like theft or a glaring disagreement on who should have achieved a promotion are unanimously resolved through gladiatorial combat in the Great Coliseum. This is not the only use for the Great Coliseum. Those Abyssals who have lost honour or who are looking to raise their standing in society take part in the Great Coliseum in order to gain rank.

Every year, the Grand Coliseum hosts the Consort Tournament. This tournament consists of any and all Abyssals who wish to have the greatest honour any Abyssal can be given – a chance to sleep with the Succubus Queen herself and be remembered for all times as the champion of that year’s Tournament.

Every entrant knows their fate if they survive. To sleep with the Succubus Queen is guaranteed death, but still they sign up in droves – females and males alike.

Outside of the Abyssal Plane, diplomacy often consists of many punches, kicks or, at the most ‘civilized’ way; a verbal confrontation that ends with one person admitting defeat, which is about as anti-Abyssal as it gets and would result in a shaved head for daring to submit to someone of lower ranking than you.

Abyssals generally build their commonplace buildings to be open aired. They enjoy their privacy, but large archways and air flows are a must in a place that as hot as Jer’zail’s plane. As a result, many of their buildings are high-ceiling style with cathedral spacing.

As most of Jer’Zail’s Plane is left in ruin, Abyssals have had to stack their buildings atop each other and tightly align them together. This makes Abyssals cities far more vertical than horizontal in growth – often times built into the side of a mountain or the buildings become one large mega complex after a certain amount of growth.

Hair is an important trait among Abyssals. The luster, the shine, the length, the quality, the lack of split ends. While any sane individual would indicate that having hair down to your knees would a detriment in combat, Abyssals revel in their long locks.

The reason for this is that Abyssals are some of the most devout of all the races. Jer’Zail may be the God of Strength, but this also makes him the God of Weakness.

Where Abyssals are by far the most physically powerful of all the races, they do not shy away from giving themselves a weakness – and showing it off at every opportunity to ensure others know that even with such a huge negative, they will still win.

Lore:
Jer’zail was one of the last Gods to enter through the Oculus, so bored was he of the vast, endless nothing outside of Alteria that he became curious as to what his siblings had devoted so much of their time to.

Upon entering Alteria, Jer’zail was immediately unhappy with what lay before him. There was no conflict, no creature that he could force to obey him, all he saw was lifeless, desolate blackness. He was unimpressed with it, for it was the same as what he had just left.

The God of Strength spoke with the other Gods about their own creations. Lo’ani showed him her beautiful garden with colours and endless flowers. Jer’zail was sickened by the display.

Kurthal showed Jer’zail the impressive creatures and his endless jungle – Jer’zail remained unmoved as he deemed the creatures too weak for his purposes and the jungle too full of life and annoying vegetation.

Sermali presented Jer’zail with the endless sky of her plane and the majesty of its views. Jer’zail considered them beneath him.

Dershan shared with his older brother a secret from beneath Alteria’s surface and offered his brother to dig into the very core of Alteria to find a secret they both could share. Jer’zail deemed it inconsequential and found no purpose to Dershan’s incessant spelunking.

Then Jer’zail came to Quel’Lan’s domain, Quel’Lan showed him the fantastically magical realm she had made. Jer’zail found it mundane. Full of useless colours and superfluous dimensions unneeded by the Gods.

Disappointed with his siblings, Jer’zail returned to his dead, grey plane and sat upon his throne, depressed at the lack of anything interesting in the other worlds. There he sat, his massive, spiked jaw resting upon his powerful taloned hands as he peered into the void about Alteria.

Some of the other Gods came to look upon Jer’zail’s domain, most examined his lifeless creation and moved on, thinking their eldest brother was pondering on his creation.

The last Goddess to visit him, Quel’Lan, decided to goad her brother into action. Quel’Lan teased Jer’zail, for his plane lacked any imagination and didn’t show the fury he was so well known for. She mocked him for being as indecisive as Kethu and went along her way, back to her magical land of unicorns and rainbows, leaving the God of Strength alone on his desolate plane.

Enraged that his siblings had all accomplished some form of success in their own domains, Jer’zail found his inspiration in rage. His fists slammed into Alteria’s surface and dented it. Where his rage burned, flows of fire and molten rock overturned until his entire plane was aflame.

None of the other Gods applauded his work. None dared to even enter his domain for Jer’zail was known for his wrath. They shrunk away from Jer’zail and left the God to his land of fire and death.

With their fear, Jer’zail knew he had made the proper plane. A plane where only those of true strength could survive. As the Gods turned their gaze from his newly formed haven, Jer’zail sat upon his throne, now flowing with magma while flames erupted about his frame.

The creatures that crawled forth from the fissures bathed in the rage of Jer’zail and as his rage consumed them, their forms twisted into horned, spiteful frames to match their new nature.

As Jer’zail watched his new playthings fight among themselves. The weaker of the creatures were crushed and reduced to ash across the God’s plane. He watched in glee as they fought for his amusement. One day, as he walked his wonderful plane of fire, Jer’zail came across a small encampment in the rocks.

None of his creatures had ever created a settlement and he was intrigued at which of his siblings’ pitiful creations would dare infringe upon his domain. Jer’zail looked upon the pale-faced creatures but they bore no signature from his siblings. So small were they that he knew his creatures would devour them in time.

Jer’zail was impatient, however, and sent his creatures to deal with the small encampment of pale-face creatures. Watching the large wyrm-like beasts split the earth as they approached the encampment, Jer’zail turned away, perfectly content to let his minions deal with the weak little beings in his stead.

The God of Strength returned to his volcanic throne and looked across his plane bathed in flame. It was great. It was vast. It was violent… but it missed something. Jer’zail pondered on this a great while until finally, he was struck on the toe.

Confused, Jer’zail peered down at the base of his throne. Before him stood one of the creatures he had sentenced to death. It had survived his rage-filled beasts, crafted armor from their remains and wielded one of the spikes of its rage as a weapon.

Jer’zail laughed and asked the little creature what chance it thought it had against the God that had created a plane of such fury. The creature bellowed at Jer’zail, its essence screamed that it was not afraid, that it did not fear death and that it would have the God bend its knee to him for the terrible deed Jer’zail had done.

For days, the small creature attacked Jer’zail as the God watched in curiosity. For days it landed blow after blow against the God until its spike was dulled to a pebble, yet it did not yield. After a week, Jer’zail finally stopped the creature, who still tried to swing at the God.

“You have shown your ferocity, weakling” Jer’zail said to the creature as he held it in front of his face. Still the creature would not yield. With interest, Jer’zail offered the creature a compromise.

“There is no fun in me killing you, for it would be as easy as drawing breath. Instead, I offer you strength and power. To be by my side and to be free to roam my lands. What say you?”

The creature was tired. Its knuckles were bloody and its armour heavy. It agreed and with a deep breath, Jer’zail released his fiery essence upon the creature. The fire circled the creature and renewed it.

The breath entered its body and burned it from the inside. Its hide hardened from the weak flesh from what it was and became a strong hide. The flame erupted from the creature’s skull and cooled into mighty horns and finally, the lava leaked down the creature’s back and formed tail with a pointed tip.

No longer did the creature miss its armour or its spike. It had natural weapons. Jer’zail tasked his new Abyssal to go forth and return with more of those who had been like him so that he may bequeath them the same gifts.

The new Abyssal strode forth into the remains of his old encampment, his former friends looked upon him in fear and worry. Forcefully, the new Abyssal brought forth his old clan before Jer’zail for them to receive the God’s gift.

So was born Jer’zail’s children; The Abyssals. Born of stubbornness and pain. Born to a desolate plane of fire and death. Born of strength and weakness. Born to serve Jer’zail and bring others into his glory.

Unique Traits:
One of the most unique looking of all the races, Abyssals are large. Even their females tower most other races. Horns adorn their heads of all shapes, sizes, twists and twirls. Most of symmetrical, but when a horn is damaged, it often regrows a little differently than the rest.

Their hide makes Abyssals invulnerable to fire. They can step across molten lava with a little bit more than a third degree burn. This hide also affords them a level of indifference towards conventional weaponry. Basic peasantry weapons like swords do little but bounce off their thick hide.

To add to their physical prowess, Abyssal claws are capable of splitting stone and are considered more dangerous than most basic weaponry.

Abyssal hair is immune to both fire and basic bladed weapons. In order to cut this mane of thick, luxurious hair, one would need an Essence Blade or a weapon specifically sharpened for the task.