And a very good day to you, dear readers. How are you? Good? You cool? Excellent. Welcome to the fourth exciting installment of The Chronicles of One Telaran, my leveling/travel guide through the enchanting world of Rift.

Let’s dive right in, shall we?

The first few quests in the Guardian starting zone of Silverwood are all about stopping the Defiant from utterly destroying Port Scion. Here I get to try out my new one-handed weapons instead of using the two-handed claymore I wielded throughout the starting zone. It’s kinda cool, but I’m not sure I’m dealing the same amount of damage as I did with the sword. Or perhaps the enemies are just tougher here. I’ll have to keep an eye on that (I know that the one-handed blades deal less damage, but you can swing them quicker so it should even out).

With the first few intro quests out of the way, I have to admit that things are very interesting here and we are thrown right into the deep end. It seems that Silverwood is being invaded. Maelforge, the dragon of fire, is using a breach in the planes to communicate with members of the Wanton, his dragon cult followers. These deluded fools are trying to bring him through the rift. And Caedryn has to stop that; otherwise the world (cue movie trailer voiceover guy) will fall beneath an apocalypse of flame.

Ahem.

So. Maelforge eh? Plane of fire and all that? A good as time as any to have a quick look over these Blood Storm gods and see what they’re all about.

Maelforge

So it turns out Maelforge is a bit of a bad ‘un. Actually, it turns out he’s a bit psychotic, like, Hannibal Lector psychotic.

Maelforge hails from the elemental Plane of Fire, so I suppose it’s understandable that he’s always grumpy. (You ever had really bad sunburn? I have. When I was 13 my family moved from Scotland to South Africa. When we arrived, my parents unleashed us on the swimming pool so they could have a nap. In mid-Summer. In the afternoon. Later that day I was sporting a very fetching lobster-red hue, plus blisters across my shoulders and face, and had a bad case of sunstroke. Good times.) Anyway, imagine that. Then multiply it by a million. That’s how Maelforge feels.

Maelforge is chaos. Plain and simple. He sows turmoil and dissent. He lives to see things fall apart (or burn). You’d think this would mean he and Regulos were best buds, chilling in a lava pool with a cold beer, but you’d be wrong. Regulos wants to end creation once and for all, but Maelforge is kinda petty in that he wants to break the world down, cause as much pain as possible, then sit back, sniggering to himself while the world regrows, only so he can burn it down all over again. He’s in it for the long haul.

Greenscale

Greenscale, on the other hand, is from the Plane of Life. Greenscale hates civilization, he hates structure and rules. He is all about nature in its most basic form. Out of control. Uncaring. Kill or be killed. In Greenscale’s ideal world, it’s survival of the fittest, all the way. As you can imagine, a sterile, lifeless prison is anathema to him (I imagine the magical prisons the that the Blood Storm are banished to are like the prisons Superman banishes General Zod to in the Phantom Zone. Spinning, mirror-like traps that are sealed forever). It's enough to drive anyone mad.

If Greenscale gets free he will destroy Sanctum, Meridian, and every other symbol of progress until all that left is a rambling, overgrown wilderness. Filled with fleas and mosquitos. And ticks. And dragons. And big, scary beasts.

No more pizza.

No more toilet paper.

No more ice cream.

The humanity! 

Akylios

Behind door number three we have Akylios. Akylios hails from the Plane of Water, and likes fun in the sun, water sports, and the constant, never-ending screams of all living creatures everywhere.

Akylios is the dragon god of secrets and magic.  He’s just… insane. Screaming, certifiable, locked-away-in-a-loony-bin, insane. You know that kid at school who used to delight in torturing animals? In burning things with magnifying glasses, or any other number of unpleasant pastimes? That’s Akylios. He is only interested in Telara because the screams of horror and pain of its people are like music to his ears, a symphony of pain. He was already insane before he was locked away. Now he’s so far beyond mad there’s not even a word for what he is. He is the Über-God of insanity.

Crucia

Crucia is the dragon goddess from the plane of Air. She is the fleeting change of emotion, the whispering, cajoling voice of evil that convinces a jealous husband to murder his wife’s lover. Once she touches your mind, you are hers to control. Her touch can cause parents to murder children, children to murder their siblings. A person you thought of as a friend will suddenly pull out a sword and run you through. That is Crucia’s control.

The Storm Queen once possessed a mighty empire, controlling vast, terrifying armies. Her ability to control minds meant she had the most sophisticated spy network in the land. But now her control has weakened, and all she can do is invade the minds of her dragon cult worshipers, the Storm Legion. She is nowhere near as powerful as she once was.

Laethys

And finally, there's Laethys. Laethys is the dragon goddess from the Plane of Earth. She is the Queen of Avarice. Her scales are gold, and her eyes are diamonds. She wants to possess everything. She wants to be worshipped by everyone. She couldn’t let Regulos destroy the world, because who would make all the pretty jewels for her? She has a bit of a hate-hate thing going with Crucia as well. Crucia preaches unthinking obedience and devotion, whereas Laethys wants passion and lust. She can never have enough. Spoiled and fickle, Laethys discards her followers as quickly as she warms to them.

She’s like the Paris Hilton of the Rift universe.

And there we have it. The Gods of the Blood Storm. Next week, I try and stop Maelforge’s followers in Silverwood. Unfortunately, I take a bit of a wrong turn and end up a kilometer away in Quicksilver College where I take part in my first actual Rift incursion and public group event.

See you then!