On the Betrayal of Bruce Arsen

Bruce Arsen doesn’t trust Robert Spellbinder, that much is known. But why is Scott’s best friend so skeptical of Spellbinder? That has been one of the biggest hindrances to the project. Right up there with figuring out a precondition that works.

However, recently both of these problems were solved. I’m not going to say what the precondition is, but I am able to discuss “The Betrayal.” This is the term used when referring to the event that made it clear to Bruce that Robert was up to something. Bruce had always been a bit suspicious of Robert. He seemed to know something about Scott that he was trying to use to further some cause. Exactly what this was, Bruce didn’t know, but he did know that he should keep an eye on Spellbinder at all times.

Now originally, we were going to have it so that Robert somehow betrayed Bruce. But it has since become more of a situation where Robert betrays himself to Bruce.

Currently “The Betrayal” occurs when Robert reaches the breaking point due to his anger at Amanda and his irritation with Bruce. He then starts ranting at Bruce to bug off. During this discourse, Robert lets slip some comments regarding “spectacles” and “number eleven”. Bruce had no clue what was meant at the time, but he realized it had something to do with Scott. After that incident Bruce became much more watchful of Spellbinder’s interaction with Scott…

“…is that it all began with a promise.”

Spectacles‘ plot is built on a rather unconventional concept: A promise made between the antagonist Robert Spellbinder and his sister Amanda. The promise? In the words of Lucidan composer Elkovsky, “Only that she would return.”

As hinted at in the opening sequence of Spectacles: Bruce’s Story, Amanda makes the catalyzing promise under rather urgent circumstances. While what these circumstances exactly are isn’t revealed in the intro, it’s obvious from her tone that something sinister is brewing. Later on, we learn of the existence of the Littermates, the collective name for the eleven children fathered by Victor Spellbinder. According to a prophecy, the ninth Littermate is destined to become the Primus, the most powerful sorcerer either world had ever known.

Now you’re probably saying at this point: “Stop right there, Bruce! The prophecy thing has been done to death; it’s the oldest trick in the book!” And you would, in fact, be correct. However, Spectacles takes the idea in a different direction, subverting the cliché quite nicely.

See, here’s the thing: Amanda undermines the prophecy herself! It turns out that shortly after she went off to find her place in the world, she ended up selling her soul to Hades. Her reason for doing so isn’t revealed until just before the penultimate battle with Robert Spellbinder, but I’m sure you can guess why she did it: To take her brother’s place as the Primus.

Unfortunately this means, as you can probably guess, that Amanda will become a much bigger threat later on than her brother ever was…

“maggie ec lusa!” is Back.

I decided to bring back the old Spectacles blog. For the uninitiated, Spectacles is a 2D role-playing game series I’m working on.

The story is this:
Scott Starcross and his friend Bruce Arsen wake up one night to find themselves in an unfamiliar and frankly rather unsettlingly quiet world. They soon learn that the world they’re in is the dream world, Lucida, and Scott is the wearer of the legendary Spectacles, glasses which give their wearer protection against harmful magic.

The friends learn about the Littermates, a group of eleven siblings who were all fathered by a man known as Victor Spellbinder. As it turns out, the ninth Littermate has been prophesied to become the most powerful sorcerer Lucida has ever known; and because the Littermates were raised evil, this puts both worlds in grave danger.

The majority of the story is spent chasing Number Nine, who, for reasons unknown, wants the Spectacles for himself. And despite–or perhaps because of–the precondition placed on them by their creator, Justin Ilapse, he may just be able to use them!