“ | Greetings. Long have I waited for your arrival, and finally this moment has come. I am Kerghan, first of the Necromancers, voyager in the lands of the dead. | „ |
~ Kerghan's intro to the living one,when they meet in the void. |
Kerghan is the key villain of the 2001 computer game, Arcanum Of Steamworks And Magick Obscura, and he is the first of the necromancers of the world of Arcanum. He is also the founder and why the ancient order of the dead, The Derian Ka, was formed by his followers during the years following his banishment and later the battle between The Derian Ka and The Molochean Hand, an ancient organization of assassins.
History[]
Kerghan's early life and childhood is unknown, but what is known is that more than 2 thousand ago before the events of the game. It is heavily implied though that he came from an upper class background. Kerghan grew into one of the most powerful human sorcerers. Kan hua says that Kerghan was one of the few human magickers during the age of legends. He was chosen by Nasrudin to be on the elven council and the only human in fact. For 200 years, he studied the different colleges of magic especially white necromancy, which he also discovered and put together. Yet this was not enough and he searched more. He came upon the magic of dark necromancy and shared his discovery with the council. Knowing that black necromancy is evil, they told him to quit his research into the darker side of magick. He ignored them and put together the college. By really physically hurting living beings, bringing back the souls of the dead and talking to them, summoning dark beings, reanimateing dead corpses, and then quenching the lives of living beings. He performed his dark magicks on both dead corpses and live people.
Nasrudin became suspicious and sent Arronax to investigate Kerghan. Arronax told Nasrudin and the rest of the council what the sorcerer was doing. First they were going to exile him, throw him out of their number, stripe him of his resources and authority. But Arronax convinced them that he should instead be banished to the void, a mysterious world, where an ancient civilization existed and where they banished other beings they saw as a threat.
When Kerghan entered the void, he discovered that there was no time and was able to enter the realms of the afterlife. He entered the world where souls go to die. There he found peace and eternal happiness. He then came to believe that life is a great mistake of the function of the universe, and in order to correct this he had to destroy it. He continued to practice his dark necromancy and although it increased his power, It also transformed his body and spirit hideously.
In a few years Arronax was banished as well, and tried to stop the necromancer. But Kerghan easily destroyed his army, defeated Arronax, and imprisoned him in his castle. Shortly afterward, the dark elves called across the void. Kerghan took advantage of this by pretending he was Arronax, and told them that in order to escape, they must weaken the barrier between the two worlds, manipulate the Panarii Church, (a religion of the teachings of Nasrudin and the prophecy of the living one his reincarnation), and send him a kingdom of dwarves, known as the Black Mountain Clan.
He forced the dwarves to build a portal device that would enable him to re-enter Arcanum and destroy the barrier. One of the Black Mountainers escaped and warned the living one of Kerghan's plan and to give his best friend Gilbert Bates back his ring. Which begins the living one's quest to stop, join, or talk Kerghan out of his plan. Whether the living one kills or joins Kerghan he is killed by the living one.