Fantasy Strike is an Olympic-style tournament that takes place in a fantasy martial arts world fractured by political conflict. Stone golem Garus Rook founded the tournament series to bring together the many provinces of the authoritarian Flagstone Kingdom, and plant the idea of a different way of life.
Meanwhile, Grave Stormborne has gained notoriety throughout the kingdom as the only fighter to defeat Rook in a tournament match. Though Grave has no interest in matters of state, his fighting skills have piqued the interests of several factions…
Dragon Tail Vale
A Master and His Disciples
For years Master Midori has trained the Stormborne siblings from the relative safety of the Dragon Tail Vale, but as Grave has grown, so has his reputation. When Midori first received invitation to the Fantasy Strike tournament, he refused, fearing Jaina to be too inexperienced and fearing Grave might have to face Onimaru, the man who slew their father. However, with pressure mounting from both Rook and the Stormbornes, Midori has reluctantly decided to escort his two disciples to the event, swearing to protect them with his life.
The Morning Star Sanctuary
Political Dissidents
Both several hundred years old, Garus Rook and Jefferson DeGrey have watched the rise Flagstone Kingdom and the birth of its unjust laws. When one of DeGrey’s former rivals in the court room, Sirius Quince, came to power and instituted the most totalitarian regime yet, the two friends founded the Sanctuary as a refuge for those endangered by the callous chancellor. One such runaway is Valerie, who has come to passionately believe in all the Sanctuary stands for. Together, the three have decided to host Fantasy Strike as a last ditch effort to inspire change and recruit people such as Grave to their cause.
The People’s Republic of Flagstone
Preserving the Social Order
As leader of Flagstone, Quince believes on one thing: order. All else is secondary. So when he heard that insurgents were hosting a tournament with the express purpose of inspiring political revolution, he decided the best way to humiliate the fledgling political movement would be to enter the tournament himself and win. Besides, he’s also hoping to get revenge on DeGrey, the pesky lawyer who ruined Quince’s perfect guilty record in court. The Chancellor is accompanied by two of Flagstone’s strongest soldiers, the veteran military strategist General Onimaru and the brutish bruiser Troq Bashar, a mercenary from the Golden Plains.
The Dreadlands Wanderers
A Warning from the North
Master Menelker, Midori’s estranged brother, is a highly skilled martial artist who will do anything to win. While searching for an opponent who could give him a proper challenge, he traveled into the mysterious northern Dreadlands, where he discovered horrible evils preparing to invade southward. While escaping the lands, however, he was ambushed by an undead monster. He would have died if not for Gloria and Gwen Grayson, a pair of sisters who traveled the realm healing the sick and needy. They stumbled upon Menelker and the monster and intervened. In the scuffle, unfortunately, Gwen was also injured. While Gloria was able to restore Menelker back to proper health, Gwen seemed inexorably infected with a mysterious malady. The three of them are now heading to the tournament in hopes of convincing the various factions to unite against the impending invasion.
The Anarchists
An Uneasy Alliance
Captain Zane of the Bloodguard has been a thorn in Flagstone’s side for years, flagrantly disobeying its laws and speaking out against its authority. He believes that might makes right; until Flagstone can stop him from doing as he pleases, he sees no reason to listen to Quince’s rules. Zane has come to rely on the services of Vendetta, an enigmatic assassin in the Bloodguard. Zane doesn’t fully trust Vendetta, though, and he’s right to be suspicious: Vendetta is really a spy for the Dreadlands who is using Zane to destabilize the region and prime it for conquest. The pair are joined by Persephone, the Nox Oracle, a mythical being who intervenes in the world to correct its course towards justice. Believing Quince’s Flagstone to be unjust, Persephone hopes to use Zane and his Bloodguard as tools for weaking Flagstone’s grip. Though they are arriving at the tournament under the pretense of alliance, do not be fooled: Zane, Vendetta, and Persephone are all trying to use each other for their own ends.
The Visitors from Far Away
Unlikely Friends
Lum is a native of the far-off Pandalands who loves nothing more than a good game. When he received word of the Fantasy Strike tournament, he was more than eager to travel the distance to attend what promised to be the most exciting competition around. Along the way, he passed through Murkwood Marsh, where he entreated his old friend Argagarg, a pensive shaman of the Merfolk, to come with. Though the Merfolk have usually kept to themselves, Argagarg had become worried by the brewing tensions of the outside kingdoms, so he decided to travel with Lm to learn more about the conflict. Once they arrived, the pair was joined by Setsuki Hiruki, a novice Fox Den ninja who had also traveled from a distant land to attend in hopes of learning from some of the best martial artists in the realm. United by their expat status, this trio are helping each other out in this foreign land.
Fractured Factions is a single-day tournament that (loosely) emulates the canonical Fantasy Strike tournament hosted by Garus Rook. Every player will choose a faction and play the tournament with that faction’s three characters; for example, if I choose “Dragon Tail Vale,” I will play as Grave, Jaina, and Midori.
This tournament is conquest-style. In each set, once you win with a given character, you can no longer use that character for the rest of the set. You win the set once you have won a game with each character.
Details
- Saturday June 24th at 6pm GMT (10am PDT)
- Single elimination
- Fast Timer
- Best of 5/First to 3
- In case of a double KO, replay the MU
- All games are double-blind pick.
- All players must play the entire tournament with one of the following triplets of characters: Grave, Jaina, and Midori; Rook, Degrey, and Valerie; Quince, Onimaru, and Troq; Menelker, Gloria, and Gwen; Zane, Vendetta, and Persephone; Lum, Argagarg, and Setsuki.
- Players should inform each other which faction they are playing before the first game of the set.
- If you win with a character during a set, you cannot use that character for the remainder of the set. You win the set when you have no characters left to play.
As always, let me know if you are interested in playing. Sign ups are open until the tournament begins.
Let the battle for the realm’s future begin!
[details=The Single Day Tourney Hall of Fame]1. @Shax, the Greatest Grappler
2. @Zqxx, the Most Inhuman One
3. @Legion, the Familial Arbiter
4. @BD_Corro, the Master of Variance[/details]
, but I suppose that’s what you get for switching to the Vortoss.
from different times.
's, making up some lore that he built a second. But I eventually decided that was a terrible idea and decided to simply leave them out. 
Your idea is WAY better than mine was, however.
I meant the start time to be whenever it is 10am on the west coast of the United States. Thank you for catching that! I will update the post.
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