The Continent is a place of danger and wonder in equal measure; those who would travel it do so at great personal risk. While most band together, there have always been those who, through recklessness, abandonment, or plain stubbornness walk their path alone. Whether they do so by choice or not, each of these souls find themselves amongst the Wanderers.
Experience the dangers of the continental jungles through the eyes of some of its most intrepid explorers, cutthroats, and heroes. Witness the wonders of Essence – the powerful, yet dangerously effective magic at the heart of the relics and spells left behind by the Ancients. Grapple with the awe (and sometimes terror) inspiring creatures lurking within these wilds. Survive or perish by your own quick thinking, because the life of a Wanderer rests within their own hands.
Favored
Choose one of three to lead your forces.
Rya Jin, Windswept Wanderer
Rya Jin has spent her life at sea: meeting new people, taking in new sights, and seeking something she can’t quite name just beyond the horizon. When her ship crashes on a previously unknown continent full of ancient relics and strange beasts she’s forced to learn how to survive in this new world – quickly. Staying a step ahead of the forces seeking to capture her will require all of her cunning and plenty of luck.
With a Favored ability granting benefits for playing cards during your opponent’s turn, Rya Jin is the perfect pick for players who want to control the tempo and put a wrench in the plans of your enemies.
Silgar, Apex Predator
There’s nothing that Silgar can’t hunt down – people included, for the right price. When he was contracted by a cabal of rich benefactors to hunt down a castaway recently washed ashore on the Continent, it was just another job. But as their cat and mouse chase heats up across the jungles and plains outside Scar City, Silgar begins to thrill at the challenge. Finally, a worthwhile quarry sits before him – let the hunt begin.
Silgar’s battle skill focused Favored ability make him an ideal choice for players who want to go wide, deploy their forces, and overwhelm their opponent with brute strength.
Jeddos, Brother of the Road
The Disciples of St. Saldorus know more about the ancient civilization that inhabited the Continent than anyone – they’ve made studying the relics left behind their life’s work. Jeddos has never been the best Disciple, though, and he’s always been more interested in people than things. On paper, Jeddos is a wandering recruiter for the Order. In truth, though, he spends more time buying trinkets from beggars and teaching farmers how to repair their essence-infused equipment than anything else. But when his path crosses a strange newcomer to the Continent in desperate need of guidance, he’s forced to decide whether it’s time to stop roaming and do something he hasn’t done in a long time – take a stand.
Relics are the name of the game for those using Jeddos as their Favored. Build up your strange devices, use them to augment the strength and abilities of your units, and beat your enemy through technological superiority.
Allies
Strengthen your decks with uniques.
Velna Kodet, Exiled Magebreaker
Anyone can use Essence. It’s a bit like walking – the first few times you try, you may stumble. Eventually you’ll get from point A to point B, even if it takes a while. But if you want to learn to run, you’ll need a Magebreaker. And no Magebreaker was so sought after as Velna Kodet.
In the decades directly after the Cataclysm, humanity desperately needed to expand into the wild places surrounding Scar City, as the city was never meant to hold the staggering amount it now housed. Velna made a name for herself as a member of the Scar City expeditionary forces, cutting paths through the most dangerous wildlands Ardua has to offer. A virtuoso of combat magic, it wasn’t long before she was forced into a more important, if less adventurous role: Head Magebreaker for House Scar.
In her time as Head Magebreaker, she brought up generations of deadly competent students. Her instruction was legendary, which made her fall from grace all the more surprising. The exact circumstances behind the falling out between Velna Kodet and Lord Scar are the subject of endless rumors. The end result is the same, though: Velna left the city for a quiet life of exile. Once a slayer of terrifying monsters and a general of legendary renown, Velna tends a garden and awaits an inglorious end.
Prince Quinn, Heir to the Crown
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Rals Quinn was elected as heir to the succession in a landslide, much to the chagrin of King Belgrand. The Quinn family hasn’t held the Crown since before the Cataclysm, and the King had maneuvered ruthlessly in attempting to have his chosen ally elected. In the end, though, his political machinations failed in the face of Quinn’s earnest presence and the strength of his family name – Quinn will succeed Belgrand, and many believe the Continent will be the better for it.
Being Prince to a spurned King is no easy life, however. Quinn frequently finds himself at odds with his liege, who finds Quinn’s easy charity and idealistic streak nauseatingly naive. Quinn, for his part, finds the King cold, lacking in true feeling for his subjects, and most disturbingly, increasingly a mere puppet for the noble houses of the City to direct as needed. All of these contentions are likely why Quinn now finds himself on the perpetual fringes of courtly life.
The elected Crown Heir is meant to be a partner is governance, as they learn to lead at the side of the King or Queen. Instead, Quinn is shunted to the edges, mocked at every opportunity, and kept from any real power. If Quinn is to learn to lead his people and find a way to ensure humanity prospers, he will need to take matters into his own hands.
