The Breaking of the Seal: Ignivarus’ Follower 9 TA

Decades later, in the year OA 290, during the Tenebrae Aetas, whispers of forbidden flame stirred among the followers of Ignivarus. Known as the Flamma Sanctum, these zealots believed that the Demon Lord Balrath could be harnessed to “cleanse” the world in fire, purging all weakness.

Led by the ambitious Pyrrhan Vexilis, a charismatic but fanatical Ignivarus priest, the Flamma Sanctum infiltrated the Shadow Tower, claiming it as sacred ground for their trials of fire. The seal, weakened by centuries of neglect and mortal oversight, trembled at their tampering.

Ignoring all warnings, the Flamma Sanctum performed the Ritual of Embered Dominion, calling upon the spark of Ignivarus to break the layers of divine magic containing Balrath. Flames erupted, not just from fire, but from the sealing stones themselves. Demons stirred within their prison, sensing freedom.

The walls of the tower cracked, releasing bursts of shadow and flame into the skies above Iron Isle. The city trembled as minor demon incursions appeared outside the tower, forcing the guilds to mobilize tower wardens and Sealward adventurers to contain the threat.

Pyrrhan and his followers, intoxicated by fire and divine hubris, soon realized their folly. Balrath’s power seeped outward, corrupting even Ignivarus’ blessing into destructive heat. Many of the zealots were consumed, their souls trapped in the residual fire. The tower now burned from within, a smoldering hazard that only the most skilled Sealward adventurers could enter.

Though the seal was temporarily restored, the actions of the Flamma Sanctum left a lasting mark. Rumors spread that Balrath’s whispers could still be heard in the fire, sowing dissent and ambition among mortals. It became a new legend, a warning: even the blessings of a god can become a curse when ambition overrides wisdom.

The breaking of the seal gave birth to a new generation of tower heroes, and whispered prophecies declared that only mortals “unbound by Agorath”—like the current player party—might finally resolve the lingering threat of Balrath once and for all.