Xenograg Division: Magnus Eques(2) vs. Ekth "E" Sm

[Cassius Gaius Maximius]

Magnus Eques

Gender: Male

Race: Human

Point of Origin: The realm known as Polaris; Magnus is the younger brother of Cletus Ganderfald. He was the first of the brothers to enter the duels, the first brother to reach the rank of Warlord, the first to win a Barony...and the first to become Overlord. In light of Cletus's current resume, it's easy to forget that at the beginning of their careers, most duelists and dueling insiders considered Magnus to be the better duelist by a considerable amount. Magnus is also lifelong friends with another famed Polarian duelist, Damien Mortis.

Occupation: Like his brother and close friend, Magnus was a "Guardian of Polaris", a member of Polaris's military elite. Also like Cletus and Damien, he was a veteran of the lengthy and brutal wars which the realm of Polaris had against a bloodthirsty race of orcs. In addition, it is said that Magnus was personally trained in armed combat and in a stoic lifestyle of extreme physical conditioning and acceptance of pain by a beloved mentor in Polaris: Some reports claim that this mentor has died, and Magnus has taken over his role for the next generation of young Polarians. If so, this would do much to explain his absences from the rings...while he still appears on occasion, his dueling career on a seriously competitive level is most likely over.

Preferred Weapon: Magnus's primary weapon was a broadsword named Dual Blade: The broadsword appears to be the national weapon of Polaris. However, he also utilized a hatchet: Magnus was famous for switching weapons when he was either losing or had a strong lead, a habit which even his brother criticized. Magnus must have listened to fraternal advice: By the end of his career, he was no longer doing this. However, while the hatchet certainly lacked range, it was capable of vicious blows which could sap away a duelist's willingness to continue or to operate with a clear, pain-free mind in a single round. It was also useful in tandem with Dual Blade for defense.

TDL History: 42-30 over nine nonconsecutive seasons: Magnus began his TDL career in Season 516 with the Dragon's Lair Deadbeats, the franchise of his good friend Huma Dragonbane. He joined Cletus and Damien in forming the Unemployed in 517, only to leave that team in 518 and 519, forming a new franchise with his friend Elijah Basia Uhr: This franchise was, in keeping with Magnus's laconic style, simply named "Just Duelers". He rejoined the Unemployed in Season 520 before leaving TDL for three seasons. In Season 524, he resurfaced in the league with UNM once more, for his best season ever...it was here that he won his best record ever, at an astounding 11-2, and won a TDL Championship. In Season 525, he dueled a few times as a Free Agent. In general, Magnus Eques's TDL career was the picture of inconstistency: Very strong seasons were interspersed with decidedly losing seasons.

DoS Titles Held: Former Overlord, 2-time former Baron of the 2nd/Battlefield Park(1st reign, 2 defenses), former Baron of the 9th, 3-time former Baron of the 13th(1st reign, 5 defenses; 2nd reign, 1 defense). In addition to generally establishing an association with the 13th Ring(a.k.a. the Barony of New Haven) that was much akin to Var Medici-Giovanni's association with the Tenth or Adeena Maeax's association with the Sixth, Magnus held the Second Ring for a year and a half.

Challenge Victories: Gunthar O'Dwyer(OL Challenge, 2-0 B03), Ariadne Angeles(Baronial Challenge-2nd), Arane Nausikaa Ganderfald(Baronial Challenge-Battlefield Park; yes, he did challenge his sister-in-law), Goldie(Baronial Challenge-13th, shutout), Topaz(Baronial Challenge-13th), Daryl Kyle(Baronial Defense-2nd), Hood*(Baronial Defense-2nd), Unagi Miyamoto(Baronial Defense-13th), Jesse Troyan(Baronial Defense-13th), Eros deBurgo(Baronial Defense-13th, shutout), Mornlythe Shera-Jorethan(Baronial Defense-13th), Avery Shiv Blade(Baronial Defense-13th), Cassius Maximius(Baronial Defense-13th), Duc Percival Marchand de Clermont(Baronial Defense-13th; Council's Champion), Sartan(Right of Challenge in ToW, vs. OL's Champion)**, Jeff Oakenshield(Challenger in ToW).

*--It would later be revealed that Hood was, in fact, Dalamar Ar'Daumon...meaning Magnus did manage to score a challenge win over Dalamar!

**--As a result of this win, Magnus was awarded the 9th Ring from Cletus Ganderfald after Ganderfald went on to win the Overlordship.

Notable Tournament Wins/Placings: Fall 1998 WLT 3rd place(won the vacant 13th Ring as a prize).

DoS Madness History: 2007: Seeded 1st in the Athlstan Division; lost to Mortath in the first round.


vs.


Ekth "E" Smith

Gender: Male

Race: Human

Point of Origin: Unknown

Occupation: Unknown. The easy-going "E" wasn't really the Type A, "career" type.

Preferred Weapon: A nondescript sword, named "Justasword"...a rather charmingly appropriate fit for E's unpretentious and witty personality.

TDL History: 9-13 over three seasons. In Season 520, E founded a TDL franchise known as the No Brand Heroes, aided by the yang to his yin...the uptight and serious-minded current Warlady and former Baroness Aya Hayashiabara. E spent two seasons as captain of the No Brand Heroes before leaving TDL. He returned in Season 524 as a member of the Innkeepers. Best season was a .500 record of 4-4 in Season 524 with the Innkeepers.

DoS Titles Held: Former Baron of the 2nd/Battlefield Park(1 defense). E held this ring for nearly one year.

Challenge Victories: Magnus Eques(Baronial Challenge-Battlefield Park), Anjolie Quinn(Baronial Defense-Battlefield Park, 2-1 B03).

Notable Tournament Wins/Placings: Fall 2004 WLT Winner; as the undef. bracket champion, split a two duel final with Sarah "Stick" Allian in the finals.

DoS Madness History: N/A.


Head to Head: Okay, if I said that there wasn't an enormous disparity in accomplishment here, I would be lying. But one factor towers over the comparison: E has beaten Magnus to win a ring. As far as I'm concerned, this first round matchup boils down to this: Could E win a rematch? On the one hand....E has shown flashes of brilliance at times, such as a 7-6 overtime win over G'nort Dragoon Talanador in Season 524(in case anyone thinks this might have been a "past his prime" case, G won the first DoS Madness several months after this TDL duel), and an unsuccessful challenge to Anubis Karos for the Overlordship where he came very close to pulling it off. Perhaps more importantly...it may not seem like it here because his challenge losses are not listed, but an overview of Magnus's challenge history shows a marked weakness against "underdogs".

On the other hand...the same full overview will also show that Magnus has rarely lost to a duelist in a major duel and not been able to pay them back; in a similar situation to the "E" matchup, his historic first reign as Baron of the 13th ended at the hands of a little-known Warlady named Goldie, by a decisive score. A month later, Magnus came back and shut her out. It's up to the voters to decide what scenario plays out.