Pangaea-world.dk

I started to read the Wheel of Time books again a few days ago. Listening to Blind Guardian made me do it. Anyway, at work I decided to look some stuff up on the wiki, since I couldn't figure out the references to real world cultures and people. Anyway, clicking around there I stumbled upon this piece, and realized someone already made the main character I play in this game, only first and better.

Ishamael (ih-SHAH-may-EHL), originally known as Elan Morin Tedronai is considered the most powerful of the thirteen Forsaken. He was originally a philosopher and theologian during the Age of Legends, but was often too esoteric for popular appeal as his works mainly concerned the nature of reality. When the hole was made in the Dark One's prison, he looked at events critically, rather than despairingly. Being a theoretician, he came to believe that the struggle between the Creator and the Dark One was not new to this world; it had, in fact, existed since the dawn of time in a cycle, using human pawns as champions. He believed that the Dark One would eventually be the winner and unmake the Wheel of Time, reasoning that as the Dark One only must win once, he can always try again; by contrast, the Creator must win eternally and in losing once, everything would be unmade, thus making it mathematically impossible for the ultimate victor to be the Creator. He therefore became one of the first Forsaken by convincing himself of the logic of such a move.

It's a pretty good fit. "The world will end anyway, so let's go with the winning side" is what I've made of my Tekstone roleplay. I wonder if Darra read those books when he wrote the Circles of Destruction? :P

There is a good chance he did. Most of us tend to borrow inspiration for our characters and create goals for our respective groups (at least I do) from multiple sources. For me it's: The Forgotten Realms, Game of Thrones, World History (the Empires et al.) and other fantasy genres. So long as I can make it relateable too Imperial, I'll normally role with it.

I've never read those books, they've been recommended to me I just tend not to read fantasy stuff, it is weird I know since I play UO but I read a lot of biographies and historical books (Third Reich Trilogy by Richard J Evans for instance).

Though I did steal a name straight from a book I read, The Stoning of Soraya M., Soraya of course being the name I stole from the person and the last name for my character I stole from the first name of the actress who portrayed Soraya in the movie, smooshed together, you come up with Soraya Mozhan. I just thought they sounded good together, probably mispronounced with my American ways but I like it. I've kind of stuck with that Iranian nameset for all my characters save for the first character I made when I returned to UO, my merchant characters are all related sisters and brother and at some point want to write something up relating my Monk to the rest as a cousin, right now I don't RP it like that but I don't really RP much of my Monks past anyways.

But to get back to the topic at hand, I ramble as everyone probably knows, I bet if you have seen strong similarities in it, that he probably did, it isn't as if the Wheel of Time series is an underground publication, it's pretty well known in the circles who I imagine that play UO, some may have read it others like myself maybe not but a lot of people have heard of it.

Nope. Never heard of this. To be honest, I only recently started reading Game of Thrones. Before that I've not read a single fantasy book... nor many other books for that matter.

Sure ya did! Your brain works in mysterious ways !

Personal favorite: The Elric Saga

Why? Elric is a perfect example of a complex character well done. He is the hero, yet he is sullen, mysterious, dark, brooding and sometimes completely out of control. He's not boring, you can never be sure of what he will do, the book describes him this way.

"It is the colour of a bleached skull, his flesh; and the long hair which flows below his shoulders is milk-white. From the tapering, beautiful head stare two slanting eyes, crimson and moody, and from the loose sleeves of his yellow gown emerge two slender hands, also the colour of bone.

Elric was the last emperor of the stagnating island civilization of Melniboné. Physically weak and frail, the albino Elric must take drugs—later retconned to mean special herbs—in order to maintain his health. In addition to herb lore, his character becomes an accomplished sorcerer and summoner, able to summon powerful, supernatural allies by dint of his royal Melnibonéan bloodline. Unlike most others of his race, Elric possesses something of a conscience; he sees the decadence of his culture, and worries about the rise of the Young Kingdoms, populated by humans (as Melniboneans do not consider themselves such) and the threat they pose to his empire. Because of his introspective self-loathing of Melnibonéan traditions, his subjects find him odd and unfathomable, and his cousin Yyrkoon (next in the line of succession, as Elric has no heirs) interprets his behavior as weakness and plots Elric's death.

As emperor of Melniboné, Elric wears the Ring of Kings, also called the Ring of Actorios, and is able to call for aid upon the traditional patron of the Melniboné emperors, Arioch, a Lord of Chaos and Duke of Hell. From the first story onwards, Elric is shown using ancient pacts and agreements with not only Arioch but various other beings—some gods, some demons—to assist him in accomplishing his tasks.

Elric's finding of the sword Stormbringer serves as both his greatest asset and greatest disadvantage. The sword confers upon Elric strength, health and fighting prowess but must be fed by the souls of those struck with the black blade. In the end, the blade takes everyone close to Elric and eventually Elric's own soul as well. Most of Moorcock's stories about Elric feature this relationship with Stormbringer, and how it—despite Elric's best intentions—brings doom to everything the Melnibonéan holds dear."