Kari

Kari, once a towering figure amongst the waves and the wielder of the Samurai's code, is a deity who commands the sprawling domain of water in a tale that is as tumultuous as the seas he oversees. This minotaur, known for his unwavering sense of honor and unmatched combat prowess, began his journey as a mortal Samurai Fighter, carving his name into the annals of history with the precision of his non-magical blade and the depth of his convictions.

Bound by a strict code of conduct, Kari's life was a testament to the principles of engagement and the sacred traditions of the samurai. His name was synonymous with honor, a trait that once defined his divine charge until a fateful clash with Vulcan, the god of power. In a bitter dispute that shook the foundations of the pantheon, the fiery Vulcan emerged dominant, reshaping the heavenly hierarchy to reflect his victory. Kari, stripped of his original domain, was relegated to the sovereignty of water, a realm as boundless as his former glory, yet seen as lesser by Vulcan, an eternal reminder of their conflict.

Despite this, Kari's renown never waned. His fame was etched into the world through his martial skill, a samurai who eschewed the arcane in favor of the steel in his grip and the honor in his heart. His ascension to divinity was a gift bestowed by a mysterious benefactor from the Fujiwara pantheon, a secret he kept close, ever humble, ever respectful of the contributions of others to his legend.

The Rotanian ocean, a vast and fathomless expanse, concealed the city of Demmond where Kari resided in his divine tenure. It was from these dark depths that he observed the world above, his presence a silent guardian over the waters he commanded. However, even gods can fall, and Kari's end came at the hands of the Betas. Foreseeing the looming shadow of the Lich God, Zoren, Kari embraced his demise as a necessary sacrifice. In his final battle, he donned the mantle of a mentor rather than a warrior, his every move a lesson, his every strike an instruction. Kari's death was not in vain, for it heralded the rise of the Betas, his pupils, who would carry the weight of his legacy into their own saga against the wither.

In his days as a mortal adventurer, Kari's path intersected with a moment of fate when an ally, beguiled by the lure of the Deck of Many Things, drew the ominous Skull card. This act invoked a relentless avatar of death, a spectral entity bound to the sole purpose of hunting the card's drawer. Unwilling to abandon his comrade to such a grim destiny, Kari intervened, his blade cleaving through the phantasmal assassin with a warrior's precision, invoking the curse upon himself as a result. With each avatar Kari vanquished, another would soon rise, an endless cycle of confrontation and death. The intervals between their resurrections varied—some mere days, others stretching to months—but the struggle was unyielding. For a decade, Kari's ally evaded death's grasp, shielded by the minotaur's unbreakable will and unmatchable skill. Yet, even the strongest of bonds and the mightiest of heroes cannot stave off the inevitable forever. Kari's ally fell to the avatars, leaving Kari to bear the curse alone. Kari handled this burden in stride, but his lover, Tiana, did not handle the fate well. After the death of her brother, Tiana found it too difficult to stand by Kari's side and watch time and time again the curse return. Marked by this relentless pursuit, Kari faced these avatars time and again, his life a battle not just for honor, but for respite from the relentless tide of death that followed him until his final breath.