Dantia/Research/Golden Plate Vision Research

The following article contains player-created lore or theories. It is not necessarily an accurate reflection of official game lore.

Version History

12/18/2020 - v1.1, added lion visions for reference.
12/06/2020 - v1.0, added first round of research and notes.

Notes

Woman in Gold Plate

• Know she is a female
• Massive/tall figure, so not a dwarf (although many things indicate this is a dwarven story)
• Scarred lips, broken nose
• Often smirks
• Uses a tower shield and broadsword
• Gold plate (with other people wearing gold plate)
• Why are they chanting in the most recent vision?
• Paladin named Atheina who wore a lot of gold (noted by Elurora)

The Creatures

• Why do I think they are Biters? UNANSWERED
• Beisswurms are versions of the "lesser known adult" of the Biter, and do not seem to have the fully developed body of the adult. Only later in life do they grow legs and develop icy breath. (Beisswurm)
• "Multi limbed" describes beisswurms
• Chitin is an exoskeleton of an arthropod (Beisswurms are insects)
• Larger monstrosities could be adults, but they are "slow-moving", "screaming", and wearing splintered wood and bone, which doesn't sound like dragons/Biters/wyrms.

Dragons?

• The Biter entry says although they look like a dragon, they are "unintelligent"
• At one point they are described as skittering with "wing and claw", so can't just be beisswurms
• An official timeline references "The Biter" as a "Frost Wyrm" (Elanthian Timeline)
• An IG book from Taisidin/LTB references a wyrm as a dragon, and references it flying/with wings/swooping (Small book)
• Vision about an ice dragon flying - Or could this be ice that is falling away from a previously frozen body (The Biter)
• Might be a reference to the Heralds, but doesn't look similar to any that are described
• The Biter was handled by someone thought to be Corik, who would have personal vendetta against dragons (because of the Dragon Priests)

Abandoned Mine, Lair of the Beisswurm Walking quietly through the dark slippery passageways is claustrophobic. Turning a tight corner, you almost bump into a large solid slab of ice which stretches across the entire tunnel and prevents further passage. Encased in the ice is a huge seemingly perfectly preserved creature.

R> look creature

It is unclear exactly what this huge creature is. The skin appears to be that of a snake, but the powerful jaws and rows of teeth suggest that it may be part crocodile or even part dragon. > look ice > Partial details of the creature are revealed by the clearness of the ice.

Somewhere on the uncharted seas far to the south there was a glacial island, a land made almost entirely of ice! Though he could not be sure since he was unable to enter the main crypt, he believed that upon this huge iceberg he had found the final resting place of Corik of the Black Cloud. Also in this tomb were signs of a massive creature, unlike any other known in Elanthia, set to guard the last sleep of the honored dead. - Huburt announced that despite this he would soon be looking for people to travel to the mysterious land of ice, dubbed Meshor, to seek out the treasures of the tomb and return the corpse so that a positive identification could be made. https://elanthipedia.play.net/Corik%27s_Secret:_Treasures_of_the_Tomb

Meshor: https://elanthipedia.play.net/Meshor

Shattered Glass

• At one point, the Paladin is said to "carves a vicious arc of smoke and shattered glass". Where does the glass come from?
• This may be a reference to the lion visions, where the albino lion is shown standing over the "twisted remains of shattered glass and rapidly rusting steel". It is then knocked off it's feet by a hissing mass of bramble and ice and smoke.
• Bramble may tie into the masks of bramble and clay.
• Smoke and white lions may be something about how Paladins see mana. "There are black streaks in it" (noted by Elurora)

Fetid Miasma

• "A fetid miasma wafts across the area, leaving rot and rust in its wake."
• May also be a reference to the lion visions
• "choking smog"

Location

• Where is the tower full of paladins? Steel cables doesn't give me anything.
• Maybe the Shard Paladin tower? (noted by Elurora)
• "Rocks and shards"
• If there is wind, it must be outside
• Then deep underground
• "weeping refugees" - where could they be from? Maybe this is from the past when Bedna fell
• screaming wind scatters jagged shards of ice across your face
• Kertig and banded bronze doors are clearly Dwarven.
  • May be a reference to the magical door that Cork created (https://elanthipedia.play.net/Lairocott_Brach:_The_Stone_Clan_Home_(book))
• Dwarves in the Stone clan pay homage to Kertig
• Fighters are fighting "against the winds" implying the wind is not just THE wind / environmental

Time Period

• Settlers Dwarves from Hib leave to find other areas to claim. (Greystar_Commune)
• ~1700BL They create the "Dwarven Gardul Free State" comprised of the settlements Gardul, Berdna, and Fashein, in the Siergelde Shel. (Greystar_Commune)
• The Siergelde Shel is not a range of it's own, but consiss of several smaller mountains that branch off from the Jounrelai Shel range (Siergelde Shel).
• The Journelai Shel mark the boundary between Theren and Zoluren. They are the home of the Dwarven Kingdom of Rendstaan. (Journelai Shel)
• 1041 BL Berdna is overrun by biters that erupt from the Earth and into the Dwarven Tunnels in 1041 BL. (Greystar_Commune)
• 1040 BL The Dwarven Gardul Free State is reformed as the Greystar Commune. (Greystar_Commune)
• 475 BL the Greystar Communte sought Imperial aid against the biters, but did not receive any, so they aligned with the Dwarven Kingdoms instead. (Greystar_Commune)
• The Greystar Communite ultimately collapsed when Dragon Priests razed Fashein in 201 BL and Gardul in 200 BL.
• 152 BL Frost wyrm "The Biter" appears in abandoned Stone Clan mine (Kraggur's Dwarven Timeline)

Lion Visions

Date and Time: 10/10/2019 Pressing your back against a massive chunk of marble, you smell the fetid remains of a hissing amalgamation. The scent of burnt foliage and rotting vegetation assaults your nostrils while glittering rime wafts from the mass of rapidly decaying bramble. A massive tawny lion stands over the remains, panting heavily. Looking to the forest, the lion's eyes narrow, and it cocks an ear, listening for something in the distance. Collapsing into nothingness, the amalgamation vanishes. The lion bows its head, nudging the remains of a thick chain on the ground, which flares with golden light and wraps itself loosely around its neck. Shaking its powerful head, the color bleaches from its coat until it is an almost golden, brilliant white, and the lion roars to the skies in challenge. The forest echoes in response with otherworldly yowling and skittering. Claws extended, the lion snarls at the ready. The vision fades.

Date and Time: 08/29/2019 Leaning around a massive chunk of marble for a better view, you watch as a hissing mass of bramble, ice, and smoke tears an unconscious albino lion in half, throwing each end in opposite directions and thrashing the ground in victory. The lion's severed head lands at your feet, the scarred and blooded face finally serene, and the chain binding it to the marble slab flares with golden light and detaches, falling to the ground. Without further pause, the writhing primordial amalgamation swells outward and speeds towards you and the chunk of marble. Suddenly, from beyond the clearing's edge, a tawny lion with black streaks in its mane runs forward, knocking the amalgamation aside. They square off for a long moment, and the tawny lion bends down to sniff the corpse of the albino lion. At the clearing's edge, you see the cryptic outlines of three more lions, watching, and the vision fades.

Date and Time: 06/13/2019 Glancing around a massive chunk of marble, you stare in horror at a hissing mass of bramble, ice and smoke clawing savagely at a prone albino lion, which swipes and snaps in defense, but is clearly at a disadvantage. The enormous lion is covered in lacerations and becoming increasingly tangled in the long chain wrapped around its neck, binding it to the chunk of marble. The hissing mass slams a twisted thorn through one of the lion's hind legs and, wrapping a long icy vine around the lion's other leg, begins to pull. The lion scrambles against the now taut chain, pinned on an otherworldly rack, suffocating. Snarling, heaving, the lion clamors against the restraint, kicking desperately at the hissing mass, pulling at the soft dirt. Blood vessels burst in the lion's eyes, sinew tears along its legs, and you watch its consciousness begin to slip, when suddenly, you hear a deep roaring bellow behind you, and the vision fades.

Date and Time: 02/04/2019 You peek around a massive chunk of marble, your eyes following the line of a long chain embedded in the chunk, snaking across the churned, bloodied, gore-speckled dirt, and winding around the neck of an enormous albino lion. The lion is panting, steam rising from its maw. At its feet lie the twisted remains of shattered glass and rapidly rusting steel. The lion is wounded, one eye swollen shut, a chunk of an ear missing. A long, ragged flap of skin hangs from its hip, dripping brilliant ruby-red blood that vanishes when it touches the ground. The lion looks at you and snarls in pain, showing pearly white teeth and fangs as long as your hand, though you sense no danger or threat from the beast. Suddenly, tensing and casting its one-eyed gaze to the side, the lion is knocked from its feet as a hissing mass of bramble and ice and smoke barrel into its flank, and the vision fades.

Date and Time: 01/05/2019 You hear the snarling of something made of glass and steel and violations, and in a panic you begin to run. Your lungs burst with the effort, and your legs feel leaden as your every step fails to add any distance between you and the thing behind you. As you feel yourself slowing, and the hot acrid breath of the thing begins to fill your nostrils, you suddenly fall and tumble. Dazed, you look up from the soft dirt, and find yourself next to a massive chunk of marble. A chain extends from the marble, snaking across the ground around the neck of a massive albino lion. The lion gives an ear-splittingly loud roar, and leaps at you, massive claws extending, as it soars over your shoulder and collides savagely with the thing. You cower behind the marble, listening to the sounds of battle, and after a while, the lion roars in victory -- and in pain. The vision fades.

Date and Time: 08/31/2018 You see a massive chunk of marble shot with spiraling veins of silvery, mirror-like material. A chain tethering a mighty albino lion is affixed to the marble. The lion bears the scars of countless battles, and though it is old, missing a chunk of ear, and paces with a limp, its flanks ripple with muscle and its claws dig into the soft dirt. The lion gnaws at the dark metal chain, but cannot so much as dent the links. Suddenly, billowing shadow gathers and coalesces into a thing with too many eyes and an unhinged jaw bearing row upon row of jagged fangs. The thing howls a challenge as it advances upon the lion, and the lion gives a low roar. As the thing leaps in attack, claw and tooth meet shadow and maw. When the battle is finished, blood and smoke soak into the dirt, and the thing evaporates into ash. The lion limps over to the marble chunk where it lays on the ground wearily as it begins licking fresh wounds, rattling the chain, and the vision fades.

Date and Time: 08/16/2018 You see a grove of twelve enormous trees, growing in a semi-circle. Their branches reach high into the sky, the stars themselves twinkling within their embrace, bearing leaves of every color you can fathom. A lumberjack approaches, bearing a simple but sharp axe. From behind one of the trees, an ancient and scarred albino lion charges, issuing a deep and resonating growl that causes the very air to vibrate. The lumberjack swings his axe wildly, burying it in the lion's chest, but not before the lion rakes its claws across the lumberjack's face, spraying his blood upon the ground. Blood dripping from his face, the lumberjack savagely twists the axe free, and with a grimace, spits on the corpse of the lion. Swearing under his breath, the lumberjack turns and leaves the grove. The body of the lion decays rapidly, and far above, radiant blossoms bloom over the tree branches.

Visions Referenced in this Research

Vision Reference Name	Vision Date	Vision
"Bonfire"	11/18/2020	Everything flickers, the fabric of reality rent, and you find yourself walking under a starless sky, flanked by figures wearing golden plate and holding bright torches. Skittering screeching can be heard in the distance as you make steady progress. You find your way to a wide unlit bonfire, and the figures form a circle and begin to chant, low and guttural. As their intonations reach a frightful crescendo, their torches extinguish, plunging everything into darkness. The yowling creatures seem to press closer, louder and emboldened. The chanting drones into a resonant timbre, roaring forth with a squeezed last breath. The creatures begin to howl. The bonfire suddenly erupts, burning downward, sparks raining from the sky in a pillar of spiraling flames, and for a brief moment you see everything -- figures in glaringly bright armor face outward, shield and spear ready, a horde of maw and tooth and claw and talon snarling, reaching -- and the vision fades.
"Massive Tower"	07/25/2020	Everything flickers, the fabric of reality rent, and you see a massive tower of poured stone, riddled with openings, doorways, perches, and steel cables. A fetid miasma wafts across the area, leaving rot and rust in its wake. Countless gold plate-wearing figures emerge from the tower, peering into the distance as a warning horn reverberates. From the midst of the choking smog, skittering forms with too many limbs undulate forward, and the faint outline of enormous, slow-moving behemoths can be seen steadily advancing in the distance. The figures slam their swords against massive tower shields in challenge and leap from the tower, bounding downward as they rush into battle. Showing no fear, they swing radiant light and glow with brilliant luminescence as they practice their craft, carving arcs of chitin and hoarfrost. The giant monstrosities resolve as they approach, screaming in splintered wood and bone. The figures charge, and the vision fades.
"Freezing Solid"	04/27/2020	Everything flickers, the fabric of reality rent, and a screaming wind scatters jagged shards of ice across your face. A massive figure in golden plate steps in front of you and raises a tower shield, bracing her shoulder against the onslaught. Icicles and hoarfrost accumulate on the edges of the shield, and she leans forward, grunting with effort. Glancing around, you see hundreds of other figures in golden plate, leaning into tower shields against the winds, many guarding cowering and helpless people. The wind begins to intensify, and the figure roars in fury, her armored boots gouging deep tracks into the rocky ground. You see other figures blown backwards, those they protected freezing solid and shattering into bloody crystal. The figure slams her shield into the ground and a crackling mess of ice shatters against her bascinet, tearing the helm off. Looking back at you, her smirks despite a broken nose, and the vision fades.
"Kertig Door"	03/01/2020	You find yourself deep underground, surrounded by the oppressive weight of the chill air and echoing dripping of damp stone walls. An enormous door of kertig and banded bronze is closing as giant gears churn, and astonishingly, a massive figure in golden plate braces in the mantle, holding the doors open, slowing their closure. Beyond the doors cowers a family of weeping refugees, dirty and frail, and far behind them, skittering forms of tooth and claw race forward. The massive figure shouts at the family, urging them to run faster, and her strength begins to waver as the doors begin to close. As the monstrous forms draw near, the figure grits her teeth with the effort, and the vision fades.
"Ice Dragon"	02/22/2020	You feel a deep chill in the air as the world melts away around you and all you see is a massive dragon soaring high above the clouds, bits of ice and frost shedding from its body with every mighty wing stroke forward. One of the errant shards begins to dance hypnotically through the air, spinning, twisting, and twirling upon a wild course as it falls toward the ground below. You wince and shield your face just as the shard of frost is about to pierce your eye, and a feminine laughter rings in your ears! You finally open your eyes to find that the vision has faded and the world returns to what it was before.
"Challenge"	02/02/2020	Everything flickers, the fabric of reality rent, and a howling wind spatters hot, fetid blood across your face. A towering wall appears before you and erupts into a mass of screaming multi-limbed bodies, skittering with wing and claw. The tide of forms rushes forward in throes of rage, and a massive figure in golden plate shoves you back. The wind plinks against her armor, sending sparks as rock and shard bounces off breastplate and helm. The figure stands tall, fearless, focused, and you catch a glimpse of her face, eyes closed, a half smirk gracing scarred lips. As she turns to the onslaught, she slams her broadsword against her tower shield in challenge, roaring in fury. Swinging a rainbowed arc of radiant light as she runs ahead, she shows no mercy as she practices her craft, carving a vicious arc of smoke and shattered glass. As the figure dances behind shield and blade, she begins to glow with luminescent white light. The vision fades.
"Bramble and Clay"	01/04/2020	You are surrounded by darkness, the musty scent of hewn rock and damp air filling your nostrils. A flint is struck, and a torch flares with light, revealing a massive cave, the bare rock walls and ceiling disappearing beyond the small circle of illumination. You are circled by robed figures, their faces obscured by masks made of bramble and clay, streaked with stark white paint. The figure holding the torch steps forward, touches your forehead, and the ground begins to ripple like water. Suddenly, you fall, submerged in gloom. From the depths you flail, reaching upward for air, and you watch as the figures begin to one by one walk away from the light, until your lungs burn and only the torchbearer remains. Tilting its head curiously, the figure snuffs the torch against the flowing ground, and there is only darkness. Air suddenly fills your lungs and with a shuddering breath, the vision fades.