<div class="floatright">(https://www.animecharactersdatabase.com/uploads/chars/4758-1261081560.png)</div><strong>Name:</strong>Aramis Silverscale<br/>Human Wizard of the Arcane Order<br/><strong>HP:</strong>51/51 ;<strong>Status:</strong>Heroism [+2 to Attack, Saves] (130 minutes), Protection from Energy: Fire [72 damage] (130 minutes), Soul Armor [+5 to AC, Energy Resistance (Lightning): 15] (120 minutes), Polymorphed into Ogre Mage, Tenser's Transformation (Dispelled)<br/><strong>Actions:</strong>Preparing and Dueling Ragnar, Champion of the Thunderdome.<br/><strong>Location:</strong>Damalla, Thunderdome<br/><hr/><br/>Much as he would have liked to have witnessed the rest of the duel between Maya and the Arcane Warrior, he couldn't. Aramis' eyes were set upon the Beastfolk Mystic and his tactics against the Psychic whom was brutally beaten down in outright visceral tenacity. He saw how he was able to simply shrug off injuries and magic that would normally cripple and dismantle other warriors. The wizard knew damn well if he drew him, his options of fending the likes of him off would be very slim if he even allowed him to get close to him. For the moment it didn't seem like there was any chance of winning to the untrained eye. However Aramis was a studious mage and kept his eyes on Ragnar through the fight. As such he was focusing on what he saw, what he did and what he could possibly do in order to counter him. Short range teleportation was a real problem and all those buffs were making this opponent a true nightmare for any opposition and the Psychic was dismantled by the Beastfolk despite all those wondrous defenses.<br/><br/>The man fought much like he was a true gladiator and showboated like one as he seemed to roar out in triumph the moment he had bested his opponent in the dome. Rightly so because as he recalled momentarily, Ragnar was a champion whom won his freedom right here in this very arena. Aramis had to admit to himself he was a touch nervous about this since it appeared a lot of his options for dealing with an opponent like the Beastfolk Mystic had slipped away. He was trying to recall any information about Ragnar that he could have gleamed from both his battle and from observations in the past involving his preparations during the first half of the tournament. The beastman seemed to prefer using his magic to make him into an unstoppable powerhouse. Dispelling the magic might be an option since that wasn't something the psychic could try... but would he even get the chance? All it would take is for him to be forced into close combat and that would be the end of it.<br/><br/>For the longest time, Aramis sat there watching the victors of the respective matches one after the other.  How many wands and staves did the young woman have at her disposal? How she had a few traditional and unorthodox spells and the mage tries to recall each and every spell that was fired off. He caught the tail end of Maya's long standoff with the arcane warrior. The Silverfish couldn't help but clap with genuine jubilation as Maya pulled an upset victory over what might have been a tough opponent. Somehow however he doubt he could pull the same trick on the beastman nor his previous as he did with Lady Brightlance. Lost within his thoughts, he stands up and waits for whomever his next opponent was. Sadly he was assuming correctly he would be fighting the former Thunderdome champion.<br/><br/>Aramis didn't even hesitate in preparing for this fight. Ragnar certainly had done so during the brief break. Since no one called him on it, that meant there was still yet something he could do. With his spells refreshed he took the liberty of fabricating his favorite scarf back into a proper form before reenergizing his spells. He took hold of a scroll case and looked over it. He knew well that he needed to spend this spell scroll wisely. But in a situation like this, he felt it might make the difference in advancing or being eliminated. Quietly his hands extend forward and spoke silently as if trying to cup a small bird or insect. Neither was what was shown as an azure colored ember seemed to radiate within the cupped hands of the Silvermage as he quietly called upon the very sands of the Thunderdome and the vast array of soul energy to offer him just a tiny bit to bolster his essentia reserves. It was only a small amount yes and it would be brief but it would be enough to help fuel a potent protection. He had a feeling he was going to need that spare essentia to fuel his Soul Armor. He invests all that essentia he just granted himself and fuels it into his clothing.<br/><br/>Upon reentering the area Aramis smiled and took off his spell book just outside the dome as a young elven woman in white robes of regal finesse which only complimented her figure walked out of the book adorned in beautiful golden jewelry with emerald gems. She gave a smile and held onto the mage's spell book before she stepped back a few paces and simply watched. She was a touch nervous but she was trying to not show that when Aramis enters the dome just as Ragnar does. Ragnar couldn't help but eye ball the company Aramis keeps.<br/><br/>The black hat of Aramis drooped over a bit to the right and he adjusts it in one hand. So when Ragnar came in with such a feral smirk on his face, expressing his ill intentions to the human mage Aramis spoke up about that facts he had gleamed.<strong>"Champion of the Thunderdome. I'm flattered that you would waste your best efforts in the semi finals."</strong>The battle hardened mystics hands spark with lightning as he inquired with a chuckle.<strong>"Why flattered?"</strong>The blonde haired country boy gave a cheeky smile to him.<strong>"Didn't think you'd concede before we even started."</strong>And with a snap of his fingers during this opening dialogue between the two Aramis took the initiative and surprises Ragnar by casting a Silent Dispel Magic. He was trying to strip him of some of his own self buffs mid match.<br/><br/>Whilst the beastman was quite formidable and remarkably dangerous, taking off some of those buffs should relatively give him the advantage. Several items in question fail the moment his magic was cast. However Ragnar was not deterred as he very quickly began to close the gap even as Aramis uses his boots of levitation to try and get up and off the ground so Ragnar couldn't immediately grab onto him. He tried to immediately use his ring only to find it fails him. Aramis had targeted his ring recognizing it for what kind of magic it was during the previous fight. It wouldn't be long before Ragnar merely teleported straight up and struck Aramis back down and were it not for the Soul Armor shielding the mage in a flash of azure energy, he might have very well have lost his next spell. It went off but at the moment nothing seemed to happen. Ragnar was having none of this and wants to make an example of the mage for having such cheek. He smashed his hands into Aramis chest to try and draw blood but thankfully his soul armor and stoneskin were making the difference in keeping him alive. Aramis was using his ironwood to try and fend off the battle hardened beast folk but was soon finding himself face down in the sand as he continued to mutter through the pain. This was playing out as brutally as the fight between the psychic and himself.<br/><br/>The blond mage was pounced upon by the Beastman and pulled up by his hair until he was clenched by him. Both hands were around his neck and thus Ragnar was trying to strangle Aramis so he couldn't make use of his magic.<strong>"Don't know what you're planning but its over. Yield or die."</strong>Aramis held onto the wrists of the beastman as his eyes rolled up from the force around his neck before they shift from blue to yellow and his sclera turns pitch black. His skin likewise loses its healthy coloring and turns a dark rust brown. Muscles began to warm and bulk up as his bones lengthen and become fortified. The beastman looked at his hands as they were being pried off. The mage had more than just raw strength. The spell had been finished and now Aramis was transforming, becoming bigger than even Ragnar. Aramis was an exceptionally large looking Ogre-Mage!<br/><br/>Now thirteen feet in height he lifted up from his knees and threw Ragnar over his shoulders, unceremoniously tossing his opponent into the sand but holding onto the right arm and wrist. The mage had a boisterous boom to his voice as he spoke<strong>"This fight barely has started!"</strong>And with this newfound strength he wrenches Ragnars arm actually making the beast man howl in agony. Ragnar turned over in order to keep the mage from outright snapping his arm at the shoulder and grits his teeth. Despite his own immense strength, he was having problems wedging Aramis off his arm. He could manage a few digs into him trying to punch through the protections of the mage but he seemed to be rather stalwart. His incarnum shield invocation also wasn't helping in this matter.<br/><br/>The champion of the Thunderdome invoked the magic of his trump card knowing now he had no choice to use it. His pelt began to darken and his neck and shoulders began to sprout teeth, eyes and ears, one for each side. Ragnar sprouted two extra heads which bray in a disturbing howl of multiple voices. All the while Aramis seized Ragnars right hand and pried the ring off of his finger. He wasn't about to even risk the chance of his magic being dispelled by that infernal ring after he disabled it. He knew that it wouldn't stay disabled forever and used this chance to get rid of it. The second and third head reach forward and bite into the arms of Aramis and Aramis bellows in agony as the Soul Armor couldn't stop those teeth from digging in. He leaned back and then head butted the central head of Ragnar in order to make him let go. He threw Ragnar away making the eastman tumble before getting back to his feet. Aramis in the meantime had pulled a scroll from the scroll case out. Honestly he had been saving this for when he needed it in a more dire situation but he couldn't afford to lose if this tournament was truly meant to help his quest.<br/><br/>Ragnar had an adrenaline fueled smile on his muzzle appreciating the approach this young opponent took but it wasn't going to be enough. He thought he had seen everything the mage could do.<strong>"You know you cannot keep this up forever right? You did your best but it ain't worth your life."</strong>Aramis however did nothing but open the scroll and began reading the incantations upon it. Slowly he could feel his heart starting to beat faster and faster with every moment he heard Ragnars words ring in his ears. The look on Aramis' face told him everything he needed to know. Either the mage was that stubborn or he still was delusional to think he could be him with raw magic. He charged forward and finally got to lay his shocking fists upon Aramis' face. He paused for the moment as he just took it and didn't flinch. The Shield magic adhered to his Soul Armor was protecting Aramis once again, making him harder to effectively hurt.<br/><br/>Aramis returns the favor and though Ragnar's protections were formidable against mages, this was just a very raw and straightforward punch and it didn't matter how much resistance one had to such elements, this blow from the ogre was like getting smacked with a tree trunk. Then Aramis took hold of his iron wood staff in one hand and cracked Ragnar in the face with it, and then once more. His fist might not be magical in nature but his iron wood staff was an enchanted trick staff and as such the visage of deity Ragnar took was proving ineffective. Aramis wasn't even trying to cast magic, instead opting to just beat he beastman down into the sand.<br/><br/>Ragnar realized he had severely underestimated him and was needing to respond swiftly or he'd be overwhelmed. He used his deflection abilities to make some of Aramis' blows bounce off his body but he had to keep some of it reserved for healing because those blows sting every time. Aramis used his own shield magic to deflect a blow or two of his own with his tough hide and armor helping to mitigate more blows. Ragnar was finding more and more of his blows blocked by a much more competent fighter now as the staff deflects blow after blow. The batsman teleports around the larger opponent to try and create openings as his speed was helping to keep him from being overwhelmed but the transformation spells used were allowing the human mage to keep up. The two are simply trading blows in an unprecedented flurry of magic and might. Sparks of lightning clash against raw azure energy as Aramis scarf glows with intense energy. Ragnar despite in such a predicament was thriving off the adrenaline of this fight. He had a smile on his face as he continued to fight and dodge.<br/><br/>Finally he saw a chance and made use of his smite good ability slamming his fist into the chest of Aramis and making him keel over in agony before he reached up and cracked him with a double axe handle. Aramis looked bruised but Ragnar was quickly returning to full strength thanks to his own abilities though he had to admit Aramis had pushed him past his limits. Despite the heavy blow, Aramis wasn't stopping as his country ilk made him a more durable mage than most. Coupled with the dual transformation spells he took the mage still had some spirit left to give. Suddenly Aramis cracked the ears of the beastman with both hands making him recoil, then grips hold of Ragnar and began slamming him into the ground, using his own leg for leverage to toss him about like an old doll. The ground was showing indents of the blows landed.<br/><br/>Ragnar kicked Aramis right under the chin making him drop the beastman unceremoniously onto the dirt. Ragnar rises up now visibly showing damage he cannot simply heal up from. But even Ragnar was tiring of this fight and it was time to end it. He rose up to his feet as he began to chant one of only few spells he had memorized in him which was a backup Dispel Magic, just in case his ring was gone. Aramis could feel his mind starting to return as was his true form as he tried to stand up and found difficulty in doing that. His entire body felt like it was in agony. However he was still smiling.<strong>"Gotcha..."</strong><br/><br/>Ragnar paused but was unconcerned. His spell resistance should keep him up for whatever Aramis was about to cast. He felt that Aramis was in his death throes.<strong>"Is this your last stand? So be it. Let's see what you got."</strong>Aramis weaves his magic quickly as Ragnar approached ready to finish him off. Aramis' hands had fully extended and then came together gathering the essentia he had previously harnessed into his protections and now was making use of them to supercharge his magic. Suddenly a torrent of incarnum missiles, twelve in total suddenly launch forward and unerringly strike Ragnar one after the other. Ragnar flinches underneath the barrage, blue fire clinging to his fur.<br/><br/>Ragnar felt every single one of them land through his protections like they didn't exist. He was puzzled for a moment as to why his protections were failing but then realized something. The dawning look of realization was one of shock. He had spent<em>all</em>of his efforts in fending off Aramis when within his transformations that he failed to realize it could leave him vulnerable to a magic attack that had no element in nature. Aramis had played him from the start, from the choice of transformation, to going in for a direct approach, to his protections to mirror his own, even baiting his counter magic to stop the Silverfish. Everything was done to put Ragnar to a point where he couldn't defend against a perfectly placed attack. Ragnar drops to one knee as the first array landed and then the second was coming. Despite the outcome, he honestly had never felt more alive.<br/><br/>After the Twin Blue Missile spell was complete, Aramis was breathing slowly. Across from him he saw that whilst Ragnar was trying to stand he wasn't able to find the strength to stand anymore. In fact Ragnar had collapsed onto the ground as if his body had given out. Sharing in that sentiment, the blond haired mage was so spent that he felt like a slight breeze could have tipped him over at this point. Ragnar's voice rings out in the din.<strong>"Now that... That was one hell of a battle."</strong>Aramis sighed softly as he held back on the second casting of such an amped up spell. Aramis carefully walked over to Ragnar and turned him over and the beastman breathed slowly. He was alive but still utterly spent.<strong>"Take this and make sure you stay alive."</strong>The Silverfish knelt down and placed a red vial in his hand and the ring he had pulled off Ragnar at the start of the match. Someone so soft-hearted is that strong baffles the gladiator. In his own way he finds a small touch of encouragement for Aramis.<strong>"You better win this thing kid..."</strong>It would be for the beastman the ultimate insult to have his opponent get so far and then lose at the end.<br/><br/><hr/><br/><div class="spoiler_container"><div class="spoiler_header" onclick="hideSecond (this);" role="button">OOC</div><div class="spoiler_body"><strong>Round: 1</strong> Aramis casts Silent Dispel Magic on Ragnar's Ring, then floats upwards. Ragnar loses his action due to his Ring of Dispel Magic failing.<br/><br/><strong>Round: 2</strong> Aramis casts Polymorph to transform into an Ogre Mage, Ragnar initiated a grapple. Aramis contests it.<br/><br/><strong>Round: 3</strong> Aramis tries to wrench Ragnar and succeeds. Ragnar uses Visage of Deity to gain his form and then attacks Aramis with his extra heads.<br/><br/><strong>Round: 4</strong> Aramis throws Ragnar away and Ragnar rises from prone.<br/><br/><strong>Round: 5</strong> Aramis casts via scroll Tenser's Transformation. Ragnar attacks but is stopped via soul armor<br/><br/><strong>Round: 6</strong> Aramis takes a full round attack action. Ragnar responds in kind.<br/><br/><strong>Round: 7</strong> Aramis takes a full round attack action. Ragnar smites good.<br/><br/><strong>Round: 8</strong> Aramis grapples and throws Ragnar about. Ragnar fails to break the clinch.<br/><br/><strong>Round: 9</strong> Ragnar breaks the clinch and then casts dispel magic. Aramis casts Twin Blue Missile. Ragnar is down<br/></div></div><br/><div class="spoiler_container"><div class="spoiler_header" onclick="hideSecond (this);" role="button">Spells Memorized (Base Spell DC: 14) (CL 10th)</div><div class="spoiler_body">   5th  (2/day) - Azure Ice Shards, Twin Blue Missile (PHB/SRD)<br/>   4th  (4/day) - <del>Silent Dispel Magic</del>, Silent Lightning Bolt, <del>Polymorph</del>, Stoneskin (PHB/SRD) <br/>   3rd  (4/day) - Dispel Magic, Fireball, Heroism, Protection from Energy (PHB/SRD)<br/>   2nd (5/day) - Alter Self, Silent Blue Missile, Silent Blue Missile, False Life, <del>Soul Boon</del> (PHB/SRD)<br/>   1st  (5/day) - Blue Missile, Blue Missile, Feather Fall, Silent Mage Hand, <del>Soul Armor</del> (PHB/SRD)<br/>   0 lv (4/day) - Acid Splash, Detect Magic, Mage Hand, Read Magic (PHB/SRD)</div></div>