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Pandora's Box: What about it?

speanozspeanoz Posts: 238 Arc User
edited February 2021 in Champions Pen and Paper RPG
I'm curious about the history of Pandora's Box within the Champions universe.

Is it specifically mentioned at all? Does its Champions equivalent follow the original Greek mythology closely or not? Are there any analogs to it in other cultures within the universe?

Thanks for your time. :)

Comments

  • bulgarexbulgarex Posts: 2,310 Arc User
    I'm not aware of any specific CU reference to Pandora's Box. But since the Imaginal Realms follow human belief pretty closely, I would imagine if Pandora's Box exists it would resemble what most people believe it to be. Note that that might not be exactly the same as the recorded myths describe it.

    To the best of my recollection, the closest thing to PB in the CU is the potent mystic artifact called the Basilisk Orb, first appearing in history on the Pacific island of Pohnpei. The following is from DEMON: Servants Of Darkness p. 17: "In 1376 a fisherman had dredged up in his nets a large orb made from an eerie, greenish stone — almost some sort of over-sized pearl, but carved with disturbing-looking reptilian figures, all intertwined. After lust for the orb inspired greed that led to a massacre among the fisherman’s community, the priesthood of Nan Madol confiscated the unholy thing. Despite their faithful service and ardent prayers, the priests received no divine protection from the influence of the orb, and they quickly descended into the same murderous greed that had gripped the fishermen. In the end the king of Nan Madol ordered the orb buried deep below the city, but the corruption the Basilisk Orb radiated was perfidious and invasive — stone and earth was not enough to stop it. Slowly, over the course of centuries, the energies from the Basilisk Orb slithered up through the earth, burrowing into the hearts of Nan Madol’s inhabitants, and the city succumbed to its malevolent influence. The Basilisk Orb remained below the ruins of Nan Madol until American airplanes bombed the island during World War Two, inadvertently revealing the Orb’s hiding place.'
  • bulgarexbulgarex Posts: 2,310 Arc User
    I did think of something else that sort-of fits the motif of Pandora's Box. During the Dark Ages the dragon named Geiskivaro was the mightiest dragon of his era. The prize of his hoard was a three-foot-tall solid gold statue of a python, the Golden Serpent, created by the patron "god" of VIPER, Nama. But Nama had cursed the Serpent, its power motivating Men with greed, drawing them to try to slay Geiskivaro and take the Golden Serpent. Finally a group of Vikings succeeded in killing him, but lust for the Serpent soon set them fighting each other. One of their number, "of pure and honest heart," resisted the statue's temptation, and learned he could neutralize its curse by sealing it in a box with saint's bones. The Vikings carried the Golden Serpent as far from Europe as possible, westward across the ocean; but the ship with the box aboard sank somewhere off the coast of America. (That story is related on pp. 6-7 of VIPER: Coils Of The Serpent.)
  • speanozspeanoz Posts: 238 Arc User
    bulgarex wrote: »
    I'm not aware of any specific CU reference to Pandora's Box. But since the Imaginal Realms follow human belief pretty closely, I would imagine if Pandora's Box exists it would resemble what most people believe it to be. Note that that might not be exactly the same as the recorded myths describe it.

    Thanks for the information! Always such a reliable source of knowledge. :)
  • bulgarexbulgarex Posts: 2,310 Arc User
    There's actually a lot more of significance about the Basilisk Orb. This artifact dates at least as far back as the prehistoric age of Tuala Morn. Between 28,000 and 20,000 BCE, cultures arose in Europe and the Middle East resembling a sort of "fantasy medieval Europe," like the Arthurian and Carolingian romances. All the British Isles of today were fused together into one large island; but Tuala Morn was the name of the "Ireland" part of the island (although significantly larger), separated from the rest by a mountain range. Tuala Morn is a sort of synthesis of Irish, Scottish and Welsh myth and folklore -- cultures, character archetypes (spearmen, druids, etc), magic styles (and geasa), non-humans (fay, trolls, and the like), gods, spirits, enchanted islands, the works. It's clear that in the Champions Earth timeline, this land was the source and inspiration for many of those features of historical Celtic myth and folklore. However, all the lands of that era and region were geologically unstable, and ultimately collapsed, destroying those civilizations and producing the geography we know today.

    When the ancestors of the Tualans fled from their original homeland in the West to escape persistent enemies, they were led by three chieftain brothers, but guided by the great wizard Coruch Crotha. Much of the wizard's power resided in the Basilisk Orb, which he carried set in the top of his staff. When they arrived at Tuala Morn the Tualans faced several hostile foes, but none so terrible as the Trolls. In the climactic battle of their war with the Trolls, Coruch Crotha faced the Troll King in personal combat. The wizard slew the king, but himself received a mortal wound when the Troll's enchanted sword shattered his staff and the Basilisk Orb vanished.

    In this era there's no suggestion the Basilisk Orb possessed the corrupting influence it later displays. Something must have happened to it over the intervening millennia.

    In 1968 archaeologists studying Nan Madol discovered the Basilisk Orb. Word of the discovery reached Luther Black, leader of DEMON, who recognized what it was. (That seems to imply the Orb had been active in the world between the collapse of the Tuala Morn region and 1376.) DEMON mobilized and seized control of Pohnpei and its neighboring islands (including an American naval base), where Black started a three-day ritual using the Basilisk Orb to view possible futures, to find one in which he claimed the power of the Kings of Edom. The ritual was interrupted by UNTIL and the Sentinels superhero team storming the island. Meteor Man II wrested the Orb from Black and sunk it in an active volcano. Black was forced to flee, having clawed out his own eyes in a fit of madness when the ritual was interrupted; but not before he received a vision of his future triumph, with all the conditions he needed to fulfill to make that vision reality. (And which Champions Online devs saw fit to change or ignore.) 😏

    The Basilisk Orb is a sphere of greenish crystalline stone, carved with nine intertwined reptilian figures. Each figure represents a different power. When that power is called upon the corresponding figure glows, and sometimes seems to rise up from the Orb. Its known powers are:

    Anord (Chaos), to unmake a person or thing, dispersing it into chaos-stuff;

    Camstail (Deception), to create illusions so real they can even kill;

    Creidav (Faith), to inspire others to believe anything the wielder says and fulfill whatever he asks of them;

    Eagar (Order), which weakens the power of magic in its target;

    Egla (Fear), which protects the wielder and any near him from any fearful influence;

    Firin (Truth), compelling the target to speak with total honesty;

    Osraltach (Unreality), augmenting the magic of the wielder or others;

    Raltach (Reality), to create any nonliving object out of the very air.

    (Yes, I know those are only eight powers. The ninth isn't written up or mentioned anywhere, which may have been an oversight; but it's easy to assume the ability to see the future is the ninth.)

    The information above is summarized from Tuala Morn and DEMON: Servants of Darkness.
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