Gerald Tarrant/Bio & Battles

Gerald Tarrant; The Hunter, the Prophet, Premier of the Order of the Golden Flame, First and Only Neocount of Merentha. The man who created god.

Gerald Tarrant was born an Adept - someone who is naturally attuned to the Fae currents on Erna, and able to Work it easily. However, he also realized the dangers the Fae posed to humankind; it manifested their worst fears and deepest hopes equally, but all Faeborn constructs fed on humanity. Seeing this, he sought to change Erna to be more like Earth.

In his teens and early twenties, Gerald Tarrant lead armies in battle, creating a name for himself as a brilliant tactician and an avid connoisseur of knowledge. During this time period, he also crafted the Church of the One God. Each sentence of its scripture and each tenant of the religion was carefully and meticulously crafted to tame the Fae, so that it would not respond to humanity.

At the tender age of 28, however, a congenial heart defect nearly killed him. Unable to bear the thought of dying before seeing his work finished, he turned to the study of Sorcery to try and prolong his life. This led him to be excommunicated from the very church he helped found. A year later, he sacrificed his wife and two of his children to make a compact with the Unnamed to sustain his life.

900 years later, he reigned as the Hunter, a force of evil who fed on fear itself and made his home in the Forest. The Forest was not wholly natural; it was a self-sustaining ecosystem carefully constructed by Tarrant himself. Feeling the threat of a new evil, one that threatened his Church, he accompanied Reverend Damien Vryce to destroy it, doing so in the Rakhlands, and across the sea to the East. His compact with the Unnamed was broken due to one act of compassion, and they dragged him down to Hell.

After being rescued by Vryce, and given a single month in which to find a new source of sustenance, they traveled to Mount Shaitan. He killed the demon that threatened both his Church and all of humanity with an act of altruism - giving his life so that others may live.

He was granted a second chance, to mend his ways and repent. His actions had changed the Fae forever; it now only responds to self-sacrifice. Sacrificing his identity as Gerald Tarrant, he managed to continue his life well past the point where he should have died.

Battle vs. Nightmare (by Leolab)
Nightmare is walking in a forest, and notices that the trees seem to be herding him somewhere. He walks into a clearing, and looks around. Gerald Tarrant swoops in, shifting out of his bird form and back into his normal human form. He wordlessly points his sword at Nightmare, who drops Soul Edge, the fleshy eye in the middle of the blade glaring at Tarrant, and readies the Iron Paddle.

Tarrant closes, taking the demon by surprise with his aggression. The two swords clash, Nightmare’s massive zweihander batting Tarrant’s sword aside. The sorcerer ducks and rolls under Nightmare’s swipes, the Coldfire in his blade flickering along its length and casting darkness around it. Tarrant Works Coldfire onto Nightmare’s sword, freezing it and forcing him to drop it. Nightmare retreats to Soul Edge, while Tarrant shifts into one of the many vile beasts found in his domain. He pursues Nightmare and lunges at him, but his teeth meet steel as Nightmare blocks with Soul Edge. He springs back, and morphs back to his natural form. He takes out his blade again, and strikes. Tarrant’s speed drives Nightmare back, and in an act of desperation Soul Edge becomes its more powerful form. Tarrant is now the one retreating, his blade being beaten back by his foe’s powerful strikes.

Tarrant works Coldfire, and the unnatural blaze freezes Nightmare solid, flesh and armor alike. The Neocount then pulls out his pistol, needing to be sure that his foe is dead and deeming him dangerous enough to use his last resort. The bullet flies through the frozen demon, shattering it.

Expert's Opinion
Tarrant is much more skilled than Nightmare, as he has had nearly a millenium to practice and hone his fighting skills.

To see the original battle, weapons, and votes, click here.

Battle vs. Achilles (by Leolab)
Achilles is walking in the Forest, moving as stealthily as he can until he reaches a clearing. Once there, he spots a large bird flying above him. Believing this to be a message from the Gods, he stops and unlimbers his spear and javelin, but the bird attacks. Achilles manages to raise his shield in time to block the talons from striking his eyes, and manages to wound the creature with this sword. Gerald Tarrant, shapeshifted into the bird, feeds off of the warrior’s fear and heals himself. Tarrant then grabs the sword in his talons and works Coldfire, shattering the sword and causing Achilles to drop it.

He then lands, and shifts back into his normal form. Achilles picks up his javelin and throws it at the Adept, but Tarrant uses Coldfire to freeze the spear and shatter it long before it reaches him. Achilles picks up his spear and charges Tarrant, who draws his own sword in the process. Achilles jabs several times, only to have his attacks dodged or deflected by the Coldfire-infused sword. Tarrant meets with a similar frustration, as all of his strikes glance off of the Achaean’s shield. Tarrant uses the nature of Coldfire to his advantage, as Achilles’ proximity causes it to freeze his soul. Tarrant, dodging, parrying, and riposting knows that he is safe; in his state of Unlife, he has no soul to freeze. Achilles notices the peril, and bashes Tarrant with his shield. He goes flying, and Achilles charges in again, trying to hit Tarrant into a tree. The Forest responds to Tarrant’s will, and the trees disappear to allow him to land softly. He works Coldfire at Achilles’ shield, freezing it and giving the warrior major damage to his shield arm.

Tarrant, seeing his opponent weakened, takes out his gun. Banishing all doubts about the gun from his mind, he levels it at his opponent. Tarrant takes his time, savoring the terror coming off of the clearly defeated warrior. After his hunger is stated, the Hunter pulls the trigger, ending Achilles’ life.

Expert's Opinion
Achilles may be a good fighter, but Tarrant's magic and his gun carried him through.

To see the original battle, weapons, and votes, click here.

Battle vs. Illua (by Leolab)
Illua and Gerald Tarrant are squaring off in one of the many slums of Luthadel, swords drawn and surrounded by the Mist. They circle each other, waiting for their opponent to make the first move. Illua, getting tired of the waiting, opens with an Abyssal Slash. The move travels the distance between them, and Tarrant barely dodges it.

He retaliates by launching a blast of Coldfire at Illua’s sword, which freezes the weapon. He strikes with his own blade just as Illua casts Dimensional Rift, which staggers him and gives her time to escape. She manages to cast a small amount of fire on her sword, restoring it to its normal form. She turns and looks for Tarrant, finding herself in front of a massive building with many spires. As she completes a circle, she notices an abnormally large black bird perched on one of the spires. The bird swoops down to attack, but she slashes its claws with her sword. Now bleeding, Tarrant hurriedly transforms back to his Human form, and starts to have a sword duel with Illua. After many strikes, parries, ripostes, and spellcasting, Tarrant succeeds in hitting Illua in the shoulder. Severely weakened by both exhaustion and the blood flowing from her wound, Illua casts Sheol.

It hits, and Tarrant is immobilized. The attack also heals Illua’s wounds, and she readies her sword for a kill. Tarrant Works Coldfire, however, and freezes her lower body. Since she is unable to move or free herself, Tarrant simply waits until the paralysis wears off and takes out his gun. He levels it at his opponent, and feeds off of her fear. His hunger stated, the Hunter pulls the trigger, a bullet penetrating Illua’s head and splattering blood and brain matter all over the street behind her. This tournament’s deadliest warrior turns and walks away calmly, trying to find his way back to Erna.

Expert's Opinion
While Illua is a deadly and more accomplished spellcaster, Tarrant's gun won the day.

To see the original battle, weapons, and votes, click here.

Battle vs. Siegfried Schtauffen (by Leolab)
Siegfried walks into the Forest, seeking out the evil known as the Hunter to destroy. “The Hunter is clearly connected to Soul Edge. Destroying him will help with my redemption,” he says to himself, trying to quell his sense of unease as he makes camp. “Still, I wish I had the Schwarzwind, this forest is brimming with evil energy.”

Meanwhile, a wolf with hand-like paws approaches the citadel at the center of the Forest, an exact replica of Castle Merentha. The beast appears impatient, as its master walks out. Tarrant sends it away, and opens up a path through the trees, simultaneously sending out a command to the denizens of his forest to leave the intruder alone. He also closes off his foe’s path of retreat, and opens up on a winding path leading towards a clearing, though one covered by the intertwined branches of the trees that used to grow there, after all, The Hunter would never let any sunlight into his domain.

Siegfried packs up his camp, and looks around to find only one path before him. With nowhere else to go, he continues along it, feeling the evil presence growing as he walks towards a canopied clearing. He spots a man dressed immaculately, who draws his sword and attacks. Startled, Siegfried catches the blow on his armor and draws Faust, and strikes out blindly. He looks at the furrow left by the sword, where the metal appears to be frosting over.

Tarrant smiles, knowing that the Coldfire trapped within his sword – Dark Fae in its most primal form – would have made that area brittle and susceptible to a follow-up strike. He moves in for another attack, but his sword is batted aside by Faust.

Siegfried fights for his life, rapidly flowing between all the stances and moves he knows, and is rapidly being pushed on the defensive by his foe’s speed. He is so focused on maintaining his defense that it takes him completely by surprise when Faust shatters. At that moment, Tarrant leaps back and Siegfried hears a crack, and feels a thud in his armor. He looks down, and sees that he had been shot in the rib.

Tarrant smiles, seeing that his aim was true. He hit in the gash left by his initial cut, but the armor stopped the bullet enough that the only result was a broken rib. Seeing Siegfried pull out Requiem, he starts Working Coldfire at his foe, starting to duel with magic against metal.

Siegfried rushes towards Tarrant, attempting to impale the sorcerer before he can fight back. He is stopped in his tracks by a wall of fire, which gives off darkness rather than light. The warrior can feel the unnatural blaze freezing his soul, slowly but surely killing him. He is still mobile enough to block several blasts of Coldfire, but this breaks Requiem. Suddenly, he feels himself filled with a holy light.

Tarrant sees a blue glow beyond his protective wall, and feels his Coldfire shrink back at an outpouring of holy energy. Wasting no time, he shapeshifts into a majestic, black bird of prey and takes wing, seeing his foe sporting a newly-crystallized armor and a shining blue sword. Letting out a cry, he dives in for an attack.

Siegfried sees this, and raises Soul Calibur to block. As talons meet crystal, Tarrant Works Dark Fae, and the holy energies of Soul Calibur clash with the darkest forces on Erna. The struggle between paragon and fallen prophet releases a blinding light and a rippling cold, causing the ground to frost over.

After much struggle, the Coldfire consumes the Holy Sword. It shatters into impotent pieces, and Tarrant closes in on Siegfried’s face, feasting off of his terror. The complete and utter shock of losing Soul Calibur overwhelms him, and he is unable to fight back as Tarrant works copious amounts of Coldfire through his talons directly into Siegfried’s veins, freezing his foe solid.

Expert's Opinion
Tarrant won out due to his patience and the superiority of his weapons over Siegfried's.

To see the original battle, weapons, and votes, click here.