Well, that was quite the ride. I don't know where to begin but I'm going to go into far more detail than I normally would about the character and the last 800 hours simply because of all the misinfo and nonsense that's been floating around.


The Build: Chaotic/Good Felar Marshdweller/Explorer.
-----
I went with this after seeing Rasst in action. I've always preferred arpee and thought some of the good_only progging gear would be a nice accent to the build's strengths (it wasn't for the record). I became Sunwarden very early and with insects I felt very strong. Pursuit worked quite a bit when mastered (thank you, skill learn) and dirt/entangle spam/beast call/serpent strike were pretty much all I needed. Early on I noticed the obvious flaws with the build and I was pleasantly surprised that 99% of my enemies did not. Pretty much everyone did exactly what they shouldn't in spamming flee and dying tired. The few who stood their ground and attempted burst damage usually managed to run me off (unless I was prepped to the gills, in which case it was 50/50). This is a big reason why Kraldinor and I never killed each other solo, but more on that later. Beyond that Falcorix was the *only* warrior who utilized dirt kick and retreat to circumvent pursuit.

Sitting around and waiting was torture sometimes. I became very proactive in taking enemy items and killing retrievers during long sessions. Of my 120ish PK wins I would say over 50% of them were in the Prosimy. While this was my first ranger I really think I would have managed more PK wins with another build/alignment and while I'd likely try another ranger someday I doubt it will be another swamp/explorer.


The Role: Cursed felar with anarchistic leanings.
-----
People will have to read the PBF to get the full story but the basic idea behind Azhelak was that his people, the Tul'vharun, were cursed Ages ago when one of Azhelak's direct ancestors was tricked into trading a human a Spear that was said to be blessed by the ancients. His ancestor did this to save his wife who was ill with a mysterious plague. The spear, which represented the Purity of the Tul'vharun, was traded for a cure to the plague. Unknown to the elder Tul'vharun the man later used the Spear in a Becoming which turned the man into a lich. A few months later the now-cured fela gave birth to a horribly disfigured felar and died in the process. From that day on every Tul'vharun that was born was more disfigured than the last (which is why I took repulsive and ancestral curse flaws).

The story went on the theorize the origin of the curse. Some thought it was the ancients cursing the tribe for bartering the spear, others thought it was from the mysterious wanderer-turned Lich (named Draclivis in the role, a name you may have seen in others PBF's). I added that the curse drove the Tul'vharun toward uncharacteristic bloodshed and lust so that despite their best efforts to end their bloodline (and thus the curse) they were unable as the bloodlust would take hold and they'd basically rape and pillage. Azhelak found that by killing evil he could hold these urges at bay. My RP was far more stable in the 48ish ticks after a PK, the longer I went without blood the crazier (and angrier) the RP got.

Here I should note that when i wrote the role I had no idea what the origin of the curse was, nor how (or if) it could be cured. I had no expectations other than seeing if there were any imms who wanted to run with the story. I would have been content to rp a disgruntled, cursed felar until I lost interest. I also would have been content for a story that didn't end happily. i was willing to leave everything (including my expectations) open to the ebb and flow of CF. Azhelak worshiped Baerinika because purity and fighting evil seemed to fit the role well. I have tried in the past (Athioles being the most recent) to get Baer's tat and I screwed it up miserably each time. Come to think of it this was my first tattooed character in Cf and probably the fourth that tried Baer's epic religion. So you can pretty much toss any "favorite" conspiracy theories out the window in that regard.

One day while ranking in Mal'trakis I accidentally killed an elven invoker. Or I should say I called a beast to help us against 3+ headhunters and the elf area attacked and my wolf ate him. I used it as a means to further my bloodcursed arpee and found Andira (along with Oshui) in Baer's shrine. I reached out to Andira, told her about my curse and how I was coming unglued after the curse had tasted the blood of an elf. She agreed to help me in any way she could and our story together started there. I approached her because she was an Acolyte, at the time I knew nothing else about the character, the player nor if she'd play any sort of role in my story.

From there, after an elaborate ritual Azhelak managed to push the darkness from himself (with the aid of Andira). While he (and his tribe) were still cursed he was no longer a slave to the urges mentioned above. He also knew (from a series of dreams, thanks to whichever IMM did that) that the Lich was alive and the source of his affliction. During this time the lich showed up in person (thanks to whichever IMM did that, as well) and a few series of battles occured from which I decided that the only way to defeat the Lich was to forge a new spear.

And so I approached Baerinika (The Spearmaiden, makes sense right?) and I collected ten or so objects that represented the *reborn* purity of the Tul'vharun (as the old spear represented ancient purity) and from that Baerinika gave me a skill to forge a ranger's spear that was imbued with virtue. This spear was used to eventually kill Draclivis and free the Tul'vharun from the curse. At which time the ancestral curse flaw was replaced with the shining soul edge.

The spear you all saw in at least one Dios log doing something fancy. It could wrath, it could cast divine/elemental bolts as well as fumble (I believe?). All told in the 500ish hours I had it it progged in PK four times. Three times the person was already screwed and the fourth was against Kraldinor who I was incapable of killing solo. It went off on mobs quite a bit, especially undead (I'm not sure if that was coincidence or not) but it certainly wasn't as powerful as some on the forums made it out to be. With that being said it was really a nice touch to the character and obtaining it was likely his proudest moment.



The Wardens: aka being a bad Outlander and humping conjurers.
-----
When I joined Outlander I was kind of surprised and pissed to meet Auldr. My intention was to be a very liberal Warden. Make friends with dwarves, help Paladins, et cetera. Auldr was basically already doing this and after our first talk I almost deleted but instead I decided to help him as best I could. My goals for Outlander were a lot like my role in the sense that I was open to any and every option. I fully expected to be booted at times and I planned to either make my focus entirely on the curse or joining Fort if that would have happened. I made my RP very freedom-centric as Azhelak had a greater appreciation for the idea as he and his tribe were essentially slaves to Draclivis. Secondly it was hard for Azhelak to pass judgment on anyone (especially those of the Light) as he viewed himself as an ugly, cursed and soon-to-be Evil (ie. consumed by the curse/bloodlust) felar. So as Sunwarden my goal was to encourage Wardens to follow their hearts and not dogma. If their hearts led them too far from the Warden's goal of Thar-Eris (which should never be confused with the other branches) then I would have expected the imms to handle it. In this sense I was the best and the worst sort of leader and I think the relationships I developed with all the Wardens were unique.

I work two jobs in the "real world", one in the late afternoon for a few hours and then the other until 4am CST. This is why most of you saw me in the dead of night and it's also why Andira and I meshed as well as we did; my day was ending just as hers started. This overlap (when most of the game is dead) gave us plenty of time to talk (and sorry to disappoint but no mudsex) and develop a dynamic that I felt was defining of what Azhelak became. By the end of his life he was no longer the sheltered, angry felar. He was no longer ashamed of his appearance and he was bolder than ever. This transformation felt natural for me as a player because of Andira. I've played CF for a few years and another mud for a decade before and I'm confident in saying I've never encountered a character that was perfectly played as Andi.

I should take this time to note that we PK'd together very little. I made a point not to hunt with her (defending the Fortress or at times, the Refuge aside) as I didn't feel it was entirely fair and honestly I didn't want to deal with any more whining than I had to. Any reports to the contrary are just nonsense. I have 120+ PK's logged and she was given an assist in six of them. I'm honestly not sure where a lot of the forum backlash came from in that regard.

Eventually we had a non-wedding, which was the best Amaranthe would do for us. I should thank you for changing my perspective on gay marriage, Am. I now understand (at least in theory) the frustration that people must have felt for so many years. This different classification aside the ceremony was a lot of fun, thanks again to everyone who attended and to Amaranthe for putting it on. Up to this point I was viscious in my defense of Andira IC. I was prepared to PK other Outlanders for attacking her but she seemed to win all of the Wardens and even most of the Harbinger branch over on her own. Reavers were always fun to fight/argue with. I'd like to think that Nyst and I had a quiet, disdainful respect for one another.

Overall I appreciate the amount of freedom I was given with the Warden branch. It's always a goal of mine to push the envelope in a cabal, either through wars or ideology, to break the cycle a little. The same thing over and over can only be done so many times.


Goodbyes: Too many to remember.
-----
Andira: I pretty much covered most of it above but I did sincerely enjoy our time together. My mornings aren't going to be quite the same. See your role through!

Brakrar: Azhelak called you brother and he meant it. We came up together and boy did we wreck house for a few months there. My time in Outlander wouldn't of been nearly as enjoyable without you. I think it's BS that you lost Harbinger but I didn't get a vote.

Ekaerok: I didn't trust you IC and I think it showed but OOC I was really impressed by your character. Best of luck.

Baerinika: 8th times the charm I guess! I still don't know how to approach you properly, even after the tattoo I felt like I kind of just stumbled through much of it. I hope the ideological dots I tried to connect were at least close to what you were looking for.

Amaranthe: Thank you for everything. I hope I didn't push things too far. A coven-member is even higher on my list of to-do's now.

Kraldinor: Manipulating Imperial politics was something Azhelak was pretty good at. He took a lot of credit (more than was reasonable ooc) for the poor state of Dura's Empire. Then you came along and surprised the hell out of me. I only play one character when I lead a cabal but I was really tempted to roll something to run around with you. Easily one of my favourite characters of this age.

Mendos: I had plans to approach an imm or two about giving you some of my con before you heroimm'd. You were a key part of Azhelak's development and I'm really glad we crossed paths.

Leyras: I wish you played more. You were Azhelak's oldest friend and I think we bonded more over Auldr's hazing than anything. By the end Azhelak trusted you more than anyone.

Alauvriel: I was apprehensive when Andira first told me what was going on IC but you are nothing short of amazing. As far as I'm concerned the Wardens (and Azhelak's legacy) are in your hands. Go get those Reavers!

Nyst: Getting killed LD rubbed me the wrong way tonight but you had every right to do what you did. I really need a new router.

Rest of the IMM staff: keep up the great work, we appreciate everything you guys do.


-----
I'm sure there's a hundred more people and a few dozen other points I'm forgetting but this is far longer than I ever intended. I never thought I'd be bummed over a character dying but I'm really going to miss this one.

Take care everyone and I'll see you in the Fields.


Azhelak
Aucius
Athioles
Hjalmar
Rhyaldrin