Crath Lade, Merciless King

By J Kovach

Darkness Civilization, Dark Lord

ORIGINS
In the mountains of the Fire Kingdom there once lived Crath Lade, a ruthless warrior with the same lust for destruction shared by all in the molten lands of flame. As a child, however, Lade surpassed others his age, both in fighting skill and creative killing methods. He took to battle early, gaining notoriety that spread beyond his people to other civilizations. None could defeat him--or so he thought, until one fateful battle. The fight was against the Water Civilization on volcanic land. Suddenly, it turned particularly heinous when the Darkness Civilization churned up from the underground, and entered the fray. As Lade continued to fight and scream his battle cry, he noticed that he could no longer hear the return cries from his brethren. The warrior found himself surrounded by warriors of Darkness--completely alone. After pausing a moment to assess, he raged on, erupting over and again. Eventually, however, the numbers of opponents became too large, and the Dark forces overpowered him. Most Fire folk believe that Lade died on the field that day. In reality, he found himself drawn into the Darkness, and given an elevated position among them, which he embraced.

ATTACKS
The Merciless King is known for his Fulmination Attack. This he developed as a young fighter in the unforgiving, destructive land of his birth. Just like the volcano, Lade can lay dormant, obfuscating himself for hours amongst foliage or in a field. At the right moment, he explodes from hiding in an eruption of flame and pale blue smoke. The concussion is so violent that it rends his enemies to shreds. Many that have shared the field of battle with Lade claim to have actually witnessed the souls of his opponents being drawn from their bodies and into him at the moment of impact. This power is said to be so strong that even those who aren't directly targeted, but are standing near the impact point, are also left soulless and twitching on the field of battle. When not interested the element of surprise, the Merciless King charges into battle on his ghostly white steed, screaming his war cry, in the grip of a bloodlust he never felt in the volcano lands.

POINTS OF INTEREST
Not surprisingly, Crath Lade came up with the title of The Merciless King himself. He requires everyone, when addressing him, to use his full name: Crath Lade, The Merciless King; only a chosen few are allowed to address him by the simple moniker of Your Majesty. When not involved in exemplifying his own importance, Lade loves to hold tournaments in the underground. He gathers huge crowds of festering creatures of the Dark and coordinates enormous battles. Teams are pitted against one another and awarded points for kills. Individuals can get points for creative deathblows, deepest festering wound, and most impressive explosion. That last prize his Majesty always wins, of course.

CIVILIZATION
Dragged from the violent, sulfuric landscape of his youth, Lade had to learn to adapt quickly to an environment that was so different, yet equally as dangerous. The slime-laden tunnels leading to the gathering places of the underground are a moldering playground for germs and disease, and Lade took ill immediately upon reaching this place. Quickly, an armored suit was fashioned for him that would protect him from the feculent decay that was all around. The next problem was that the Merciless King could see, unlike many of the dwellers lurking in the caves. After months of experimenting with vile underlings and black arts, a special set of horns was developed that glow brightly enough to provide enough light for him to see, yet still keep it dim enough to keep the Darkness' foul sanctity. While appearing to be mounted on his helmet, there are rumors that the horns are actually melded onto his own skull.

STATISTICS
Card Race: Dark Lord
Card Cost: 8
Power: 4000
Card Rarity: Super Rare
Card Number: S3/S5
Card Set: Thundercharge of Ultra Destruction