History VideoGame / TalesOfMajEyal

* BrainwashingForTheGreaterGood: Played with during the Allure Wars. [[spoiler:The Conclave of that time [[PoliceState weren't exactly]] [[PropagandaMachine role models]], but one thing that made them [[ALighterShadeOfBlack slightly better than]] [[TheEmpire their rivals]] was that they placed ''some'' value on their citizens' happiness, best exemplified by the [[StateSec Overseers]] loaning out [[MemoryWipingCrew their agents and amnesia-inducing spells]] to hospitals, using them to treat war veterans' PTSD; it's implied that [[KnightTemplar Healer Astelrid]] specifically requested that they wipe her memory of having to [[MercyKill euthanize a loved one (or several) to prevent their transformation into a ghoul (or ghouls)]]. Granted, they ALSO used said abilities for more [[ReleasedToElsewhere nefarious]] [[PlayingWithSyringes purposes]], particularly when the war turned to a stalemate...]]

* EvilVersusEvil: In the Age of Allure, the Conclave were [[spoiler: a totalitarian state, ruled by [[StateSec Overseers]] who had no ethical qualms with [[LaserGuidedAmnesia wiping inconvenient memories or sentiments]] from their citizens' minds, including those of wounded soldiers so they wouldn't object to [[PlayingWithSyringes being experimented on]] and converted into [[SuperSoldier Ogres]], and encouraged said Ogres to [[ToServeMan eat Halflings alive]] if the spectacle would be [[MakeAnExampleOfThem demoralizing to the enemy]] (and good for their troops' morale)]]... but they still come off as [[ALighterShadeOfBlack a nicer bunch]] than the Nargol Empire, who [[spoiler: kept an entire species as secret slaves and test subjects, experimented on prisoners of war, [[FantasticNuke committed the first act of mass necromancy in history]], had at least one squad that [[ISurrenderSuckers feigned surrender]], [[FantasticRacism called humans]] "[[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking lank-legs]]," and were generally the root cause for quite a lot of Maj'Eyal's currently ongoing problems]].

* {{Hypocrite}}: [[spoiler: After her lover was tortured and nearly destroyed by Spellhunters, Shasshhiy'Kaish concluded that Eyalites were hateful, barbaric and sadistic. Her response? She plans to laugh as the Fearscape plunges all Eyalites into death or endless torment, because they clearly deserve it.]]

** In the Age of Allure, the Conclave were [[spoiler: a totalitarian state, ruled by [[StateSec Overseers]] who had no ethical qualms with [[LaserGuidedAmnesia wiping inconvenient memories or sentiments]] from their citizens' minds, including those of wounded soldiers so they wouldn't object to [[PlayingWithSyringes being experimented on]] and converted into [[SuperSoldier Ogres]], and encouraged said Ogres to [[ToServeMan eat Halflings alive]] if the spectacle would be [[MakeAnExampleOfThem demoralizing to the enemy]] (and good for their troops' morale)]]... but they still come off as a nicer bunch than the Nargol Empire, who [[spoiler: kept an entire species as secret slaves and test subjects, experimented on prisoners of war, [[FantasticNuke committed the first act of mass necromancy in history]], had at least one squad that [[ISurrenderSuckers feigned surrender]], [[FantasticRacism called humans]] "[[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking lank-legs]]," and were generally the root cause for quite a lot of Maj'Eyal's currently ongoing problems]].

* TimeCrash: The result of a Paradox malfunction.

** Incidentally, guess how you unlock Paradox Mages in the first place? Well, if you're playing a Temporal Warden and explore the Daikara, you encounter your future self and have to fight him. [[spoiler: You unlock the class by ''being killed by your future self''. The event nullifies itself, kills your future self, and [[TimeCrash creates a temporal rift]] as the universe [[RealityBreakingParadox divides by zero]].]]

** Madness: Basically, it's NintendoHard taken UpToEleven and beyond. Compare Insane to Nightmare and apply the result to Insane. It's so difficult that even given all the knowledge and resourcefulness of the most veteran players, only ''eight'' Madness wins (out of over 5000 attempts!) were ever recorded since the introduction of this difficulty in 1.1.0 (as of July 24 2014).

** After the Spellblaze wrecked Mal'Rok, the demons dedicated themselves to avenging all the trillions of souls who lost their worlds and lives to it. One problem--[[ColdBloodedTorture they want to visit upon those responsible the accumulated pain of all the Spellblaze's victims, as that will be needed to even approximate "justice".]] It doesn't help that they think the mortal races are actually Sher'Tul creations, and that even Eyal itself is guilty in some fashion.

* NiceJobBreakingItHero: Unlocking the [[spoiler:doomelf]] race requires [[spoiler:killing the only three demons who have been on Eyal since before the Spellblaze]], effectively eliminating any chance of the demons learning that their planet's destruction was largely an accident, and that in any case only the Shalore elves were at fault for it. Maybe not a bad idea if you're a Shalore, but otherwise...
** Given that one of them explictly states that she doesn't care about that, and the others are MIA, it wouldn't help.

** In one of the loading screen blurbs of the first RC, it's mentioned that the Ziguranth were founded by ''escaped test subjects of the Conclave''. Guess who ultimately became the resident [[KnightTemplar KnightsTemplar]] [[AntimagicalFaction against magic]].

* JackOfAllStats: In races, the Cornac and Higher. In classes, the Temporal Warden and Mindslayer. The Temporal Warden plays with the precept in that it has a couple of skills that use your Willpower to calculate your Strength and Magic, meaning you don't have to spread your stats out as much as you'd think.

* GeniusBruiser: Ogres' might goes without saying, but despite being stereotyped as DumbMuscle, they are also ''more'' intelligent than humans in many ways, not less. While they do prefer simple and direct solutions over complex ones, they are in fact ''more'' cunning than humans rather than less, their magical proficiency is equal to that of the [[OurElvesAreBetter Shaloren]], and due to the need to maintain their magically-enhanced bodies, they are Maj'Eyal's foremost rune masters.

** [[TimeMaster Chronomancy]], the ability to effect changes in the fabric of space, time, matter and energy. Not limited by {{Mana}}, but meddling with the timestream creates Paradox, which simultaneously makes a Chronomancer's abilities more powerful and increases the chance that the magic will backfire.

Tales of [[strike: Middle Earth]] [[SerialNumbersFiledOff Maj'Eyal]] is a {{Roguelike}} with a long history, stretching back at least 10 years. Originally titled [[DragonridersOfPern Pernband]], it was a variant of the classic Roguelike ''VideoGame/{{Angband}}'' with Pern influences -- although all Pern influences were removed following a Cease and Desist letter in the late 90s. It was then renamed Tales of Middle Earth, the various Tolkien elements refined and perfected, and development continued on it off and on for a decade.

** [[spoiler:Tannen]] is another, seeking to run all sorts of [[PlayingWithSyringes unethical]] [[TestedOnHumans experiments]] with the full knowledge that his peers and society at large wouldn't approve; his justification is that adherence to experimental ethics prevented study of [[spoiler:the Sher'Tul farportals, contributing to the Spellblaze]], and ''someone'' needs to catalogue the [[ForScience risks, hazards, and applications]] of taboo subjects before desperation pushes someone to toying with them anyway. [[spoiler:The problems arise with his [[DisposableVagrant guiltless abduction of new test subjects]], and when the hero's existence threatens to cut off his funding, jeopardizing his experiments...]]

* GoMadFromTheIsolation: [[spoiler: After millennia of being stuck in the interstellar void, Gerlyk--the primary creator god of Eyal--has fallen prey to this.]]

* BowAndSwordInAccord: While you can technically do this with Bulwarks, Berserkers, and Archers (they have access to both missile and melee skills...if you're willing to spend a skill category point for it, anyway), Temporal Wardens are the resident lords of this art. Not only do they have ''default'' melee and bow categories, Celerity lets them switch weapons ''without'' using up a turn.