Deleted member 304046
D
Deleted member 304046
Decided to publish a mini-essay or an opinion piece of sorts, mostly in regards to the Imperial Regiment Generals and their treatment of Blen Greymoore.
While the Orcs/Tribal Dominion are my favorite race and faction in Arkain, and the Undead are good "middle-of-the-road" option, being neither my immediate favorites nor being disliked/despised, the Humans and some Demons tend to be my "punching bags", either due to being cruel and causing harm to certain characters that just happen to be liked by me or, in case of Humans (Elves and Dwarves to an extent as well), taking precedence over Orcs/Tribal Dominion, at least in my opinion, and due to my bias against Humans taking "the central"/"the main protagonist" role in fantasy works (it's one of the main reasons why I did not grow to like Gardon, the Ironfist and its characters). In the case of Imperial Regiment generals, it's a bit of both, though I mostly focus on their attitudes and actions against the Orcs.
Zoia Blackwolf: She was already quite an unlikable jerk in the Second Orc Book when she did not listen to Logan's commands and, if my memory serves correctly, called him a coward and wanted to kill him. It's been a while since I played Arkain Books so I might be misremembering it. Her and Wolf Regiment's actions against Inara and other women of the Darkmind Clan was what made her a detestable pile of toxic waste to me. Watching how her warriors treated Inara was very unpleasant for me and learning what was done to Inara and other orc women made me want to see Zoia and the entire Wolf Regiment dead. Zoia, Darkfang and that cursed wolfguard, who chose to take Inara as the prisoner in the first place, must be slaughtered and butchered in the most painful and ruthless way possible. Honestly, Zoia and her repugnant dogs are far more hateable and sadistic than Duke Redfist himself. Volarian was at least a pleasant individual once and there's at least some understandable reason for him acting the way he does. Sure, Redfist will kill the Orcs and their allies in a fanatical way, but it is far less evil and psychologically cruel than turning Orcs into gladiators and forcing them to kill each other. Van Durce was and will always be right about Zoia, her thoughts and actions are evil, and if it weren't for Inara, Zoia should have been killed the moment Van Durce arrived. No matter how arrogant and pompous Van Durce and his Golden Guard are, they are undeniably far more noble than Zoia and the Wolf Regiment. And the rest of the Regiments for that matter.
Aveen Elvir: Why does Elvir act so cold towards Blen, even though he had done nothing wrong to her? Is it because Blen was not born into nobility, unlike her? If that's the case, then Aveen is very petty, elitist, snobbish, vain and not as intelligent as she thinks she is. Perhaps her hostility to Blen comes from knowing about Selior's insecurities in regards to him (since Elvir and Selior seem to get along), yet she should be smart enough to know that Blen holds no ill will to Selior, considers him his friend and never wanted to overshadow him in any way, not to mention that Blen is not even aware of Selior's true thoughts. Moreover, she knows about the strained relationship between Gardon and Van Durce, yet she told him in her letter that Van Durce cares for Gardon more than he lets on. Why could not she have done the same in regards to Greymoore and try to tell Selior that Blen considers him his equal and would not want him to feel bad in any way. If Aveen knew how Selior felt about Blen, she could have done something to help Selior overcome his negative feelings and allow him to trust Blen, but she didn't. This makes her a bad friend for Selior. Perhaps she uses Selior and his insecurities as an excuse to hate Blen? I can see that being the case, that's for sure. Also, she was not shown to care at all when Blen was sentenced to imprisonment and execution, meaning that she is completely fine with Greymoore being killed. Speaking of Van Durce, I enjoyed when he reprimanded the generals for their incompetence and inadequacy. Aveen more than deserved those words and I would be delighted to see her be taken down a peg or two. Or thousand. I hope she dies, preferably at the hands of Lokar the Crusher, a much cooler character and a better person than her. A horrible and stuck-up arsehole, Aveen, along with Zoia, is the worst and most unpleasant of all Imperial Regiment generals and leaders. Even more so than Lord Genethas, Duke Redfist and Tarm Luthram.
Kenos Harran: He and his forces participated in an attempt to exterminate the Darkmind Clan and may have been the one to burn the former Ironthunder Clan chieftain alive. Because of this, as well as due to being a human, Kenos deserves to die, either at the hands of Lokar the Crusher or Flammedus, showing superiority of Centaur humility and kindness over Imperial arrogance and xenophobia. He also did not express anything in regards to Blen being imprisoned and about to be executed, making him yet another general who does not like Greymoore. To his credit, Kenos does have few redeeming moments: in the interlude Rising Tensions when Greymoore and the others arrived at Cleavehand's camp, he did suggest to let them rest and said that they must be tired after their long journey, while in the Pride of the Empire he wanted to spare Vanessa's life and told her to leave the battle. Like Elvir, Harran is more silent and reclusive of the Imperial Generals and may not exactly be a people person, yet he has more sense of common decency than Aveen. If one were to ask Elvir for something, she would brush the person off, but Harran would be willing to help. I am not on Kenos' side and he is still among the four Imperial Regiments generals that I don't like, but he is slightly more redeemable than Zoia and Elvir, both who make Sir Edoarus the Executioner, who is one of Aridon's the darkest servants and more hateful than even Rahandir Drakeskull, and the entirety of Scarec Nexus look more welcoming and affable.
Dorbric Berangar: Like with Kenos Harran, Dorbric is more likeable and sympathetic than Zoia and Elvir, and I do feel quite sad for the cute, old bull after he lost Fergon, Ramerius and Selior. However, he and his regiment did partake in an attempt to wipe out the Darkmind Clan, thus I side against him. That being said, I do not necessarily want Dorbric to die. He still has to be defeated, preferably by Brockta to showcase his strength, but he can simply be bested in combat and then leave Salria in peace. I do not like Dorbric, but I can be slightly less harsh on him than I am with some other humans. In regards to Blen, Dorbric was his teacher, yet he did not react at all during the moment when Van Durce announced Blen's imprisonment and impeding execution. Yes, Dorbric was shaken by the loss of Fergon, Ramerius and Selior, and he did think that his teachings led Blen to prison, but he did not stand up for Blen against Van Durce when the former was to be taken prisoner and also did not show any resentment in regards to Van Durce, Golden Guard and the Empire for unfairly sentencing Blen, his own student, to death. Dorbric could have gone berserk and attempt to attack Van Durce after hearing that Blen will be punished, only to be intimated by the tall, gold and arrogant High Lord into submission, perhaps even being dominated in combat by the High Inquisitor. Only Gardon, Harmos and possibly Merlon (if his lines of dialogue in the Second Human Book are taken into the account) were true, actual allies to Blen and the ones to vouch for him, but no one else did. Neither Elvir, nor Kenos Harran, not even his own mentor. Aedale did not attempt to protect him from Van Durce. If Fergon was alive, he may not have stepped up in Blen's defense, even though there was no animosity between the two and the same goes for Ramerius. Ramerius may have complimented Blen after the battles against the Orcs (though I think Ramerius' praise to Greymoore was backhanded and not truly sincere), but due to his connections with Van Durce and Golden Guard, Ramerius might not have spoken in favor of Blen. So yes, Blen was almost all by himself, alone and without anyone truly being on his side.
While the Orcs/Tribal Dominion are my favorite race and faction in Arkain, and the Undead are good "middle-of-the-road" option, being neither my immediate favorites nor being disliked/despised, the Humans and some Demons tend to be my "punching bags", either due to being cruel and causing harm to certain characters that just happen to be liked by me or, in case of Humans (Elves and Dwarves to an extent as well), taking precedence over Orcs/Tribal Dominion, at least in my opinion, and due to my bias against Humans taking "the central"/"the main protagonist" role in fantasy works (it's one of the main reasons why I did not grow to like Gardon, the Ironfist and its characters). In the case of Imperial Regiment generals, it's a bit of both, though I mostly focus on their attitudes and actions against the Orcs.
Zoia Blackwolf: She was already quite an unlikable jerk in the Second Orc Book when she did not listen to Logan's commands and, if my memory serves correctly, called him a coward and wanted to kill him. It's been a while since I played Arkain Books so I might be misremembering it. Her and Wolf Regiment's actions against Inara and other women of the Darkmind Clan was what made her a detestable pile of toxic waste to me. Watching how her warriors treated Inara was very unpleasant for me and learning what was done to Inara and other orc women made me want to see Zoia and the entire Wolf Regiment dead. Zoia, Darkfang and that cursed wolfguard, who chose to take Inara as the prisoner in the first place, must be slaughtered and butchered in the most painful and ruthless way possible. Honestly, Zoia and her repugnant dogs are far more hateable and sadistic than Duke Redfist himself. Volarian was at least a pleasant individual once and there's at least some understandable reason for him acting the way he does. Sure, Redfist will kill the Orcs and their allies in a fanatical way, but it is far less evil and psychologically cruel than turning Orcs into gladiators and forcing them to kill each other. Van Durce was and will always be right about Zoia, her thoughts and actions are evil, and if it weren't for Inara, Zoia should have been killed the moment Van Durce arrived. No matter how arrogant and pompous Van Durce and his Golden Guard are, they are undeniably far more noble than Zoia and the Wolf Regiment. And the rest of the Regiments for that matter.
Aveen Elvir: Why does Elvir act so cold towards Blen, even though he had done nothing wrong to her? Is it because Blen was not born into nobility, unlike her? If that's the case, then Aveen is very petty, elitist, snobbish, vain and not as intelligent as she thinks she is. Perhaps her hostility to Blen comes from knowing about Selior's insecurities in regards to him (since Elvir and Selior seem to get along), yet she should be smart enough to know that Blen holds no ill will to Selior, considers him his friend and never wanted to overshadow him in any way, not to mention that Blen is not even aware of Selior's true thoughts. Moreover, she knows about the strained relationship between Gardon and Van Durce, yet she told him in her letter that Van Durce cares for Gardon more than he lets on. Why could not she have done the same in regards to Greymoore and try to tell Selior that Blen considers him his equal and would not want him to feel bad in any way. If Aveen knew how Selior felt about Blen, she could have done something to help Selior overcome his negative feelings and allow him to trust Blen, but she didn't. This makes her a bad friend for Selior. Perhaps she uses Selior and his insecurities as an excuse to hate Blen? I can see that being the case, that's for sure. Also, she was not shown to care at all when Blen was sentenced to imprisonment and execution, meaning that she is completely fine with Greymoore being killed. Speaking of Van Durce, I enjoyed when he reprimanded the generals for their incompetence and inadequacy. Aveen more than deserved those words and I would be delighted to see her be taken down a peg or two. Or thousand. I hope she dies, preferably at the hands of Lokar the Crusher, a much cooler character and a better person than her. A horrible and stuck-up arsehole, Aveen, along with Zoia, is the worst and most unpleasant of all Imperial Regiment generals and leaders. Even more so than Lord Genethas, Duke Redfist and Tarm Luthram.
Kenos Harran: He and his forces participated in an attempt to exterminate the Darkmind Clan and may have been the one to burn the former Ironthunder Clan chieftain alive. Because of this, as well as due to being a human, Kenos deserves to die, either at the hands of Lokar the Crusher or Flammedus, showing superiority of Centaur humility and kindness over Imperial arrogance and xenophobia. He also did not express anything in regards to Blen being imprisoned and about to be executed, making him yet another general who does not like Greymoore. To his credit, Kenos does have few redeeming moments: in the interlude Rising Tensions when Greymoore and the others arrived at Cleavehand's camp, he did suggest to let them rest and said that they must be tired after their long journey, while in the Pride of the Empire he wanted to spare Vanessa's life and told her to leave the battle. Like Elvir, Harran is more silent and reclusive of the Imperial Generals and may not exactly be a people person, yet he has more sense of common decency than Aveen. If one were to ask Elvir for something, she would brush the person off, but Harran would be willing to help. I am not on Kenos' side and he is still among the four Imperial Regiments generals that I don't like, but he is slightly more redeemable than Zoia and Elvir, both who make Sir Edoarus the Executioner, who is one of Aridon's the darkest servants and more hateful than even Rahandir Drakeskull, and the entirety of Scarec Nexus look more welcoming and affable.
Dorbric Berangar: Like with Kenos Harran, Dorbric is more likeable and sympathetic than Zoia and Elvir, and I do feel quite sad for the cute, old bull after he lost Fergon, Ramerius and Selior. However, he and his regiment did partake in an attempt to wipe out the Darkmind Clan, thus I side against him. That being said, I do not necessarily want Dorbric to die. He still has to be defeated, preferably by Brockta to showcase his strength, but he can simply be bested in combat and then leave Salria in peace. I do not like Dorbric, but I can be slightly less harsh on him than I am with some other humans. In regards to Blen, Dorbric was his teacher, yet he did not react at all during the moment when Van Durce announced Blen's imprisonment and impeding execution. Yes, Dorbric was shaken by the loss of Fergon, Ramerius and Selior, and he did think that his teachings led Blen to prison, but he did not stand up for Blen against Van Durce when the former was to be taken prisoner and also did not show any resentment in regards to Van Durce, Golden Guard and the Empire for unfairly sentencing Blen, his own student, to death. Dorbric could have gone berserk and attempt to attack Van Durce after hearing that Blen will be punished, only to be intimated by the tall, gold and arrogant High Lord into submission, perhaps even being dominated in combat by the High Inquisitor. Only Gardon, Harmos and possibly Merlon (if his lines of dialogue in the Second Human Book are taken into the account) were true, actual allies to Blen and the ones to vouch for him, but no one else did. Neither Elvir, nor Kenos Harran, not even his own mentor. Aedale did not attempt to protect him from Van Durce. If Fergon was alive, he may not have stepped up in Blen's defense, even though there was no animosity between the two and the same goes for Ramerius. Ramerius may have complimented Blen after the battles against the Orcs (though I think Ramerius' praise to Greymoore was backhanded and not truly sincere), but due to his connections with Van Durce and Golden Guard, Ramerius might not have spoken in favor of Blen. So yes, Blen was almost all by himself, alone and without anyone truly being on his side.





