Xenograg Division: Avery Shiv Blade(4) vs. Ian MacKenzie(13)

[Cassius Gaius Maximius]

Avery Shiv Blade

Gender: Male

Race: Human

Point of Origin: Unknown.

Occupation: Avery's occupations have varied tremendously in stature and perks over the years...but they always involved either dueling, or dueling-esque combat. Avery was rumored to have grown up as a combat slave in his homeland, being trained in a bevy of armed and unarmed martial arts as well as some instruction in basic spellcasting. By his late-teens/early twenties, he escaped to Rhydin, where he began regularly sparring at a gym in a low-income region(most likely Dockside, although this cannot be confirmed). Here, he became unwittingly involved with a clique of Rhydinian gangsters, who noted his superlative martial prowess and introduced him to the duels, where they made money off of his dueling wins. This made Avery one of the first duelists to use the duels as their job. While the mobsters certainly made a wise investment--Shiv Blade rose from Commoner to Warlord in two weeks(and Baron of the Sixth in a further two weeks) and won 200 WoL in two years--it is reported that Avery saw none of this money.

Later on, Avery would sign with TDL's Company of the Dragon...and thanks to his utility in the rings and G'nort Dragoon Talanador's wealth, would sign one of the most lucrative contracts in TDL history, a precursor to the lavish contracts of the later seasons that some dueling insiders hold responsible for the closure of TDL.

Preferred Weapon: A staff. Although he remained loyal to this weapon and sometimes half-jokingly called it "the whoopin' stick", Avery was unusual amongst duelists of his generation in that he never named his weapon.

TDL History: 35-11 over five seasons. Avery was initially a member of House Oakenshield in Season 516(mirroring his Arena affiliation with the dueling faction of the same name), before signing with the Unforgiving in Seasons 517 and 518; The Unforgiving reached the TDL Championship Finals. In Seasons 519 and 520, Avery was a member of the Company of the Dragon, as mentioned above. Former TDL MVP for Season 518, and former TDL Champion with CDR for Season 519. Best season was Season 518 with the Unforgiving, at 11-0; this was the first undefeated full season in TDL history.

DoS Titles Held: Former Overlord(4 defenses), former Baron of the 6th, former Baron of the 12th. Avery was the third duelist in the history of the bloodsports that are currently organized under the Rings of Honor to achieve the Triple Crown: Overlord of the Duel of Swords, Diamond of the Duel of Fists, and Archmage of the Duel of Magic. However, he was first and, as of this writing, only duelist to hold all three primary titled ranks at the same time; a situation that he called "Diarchlord". Avery never lost the mantle; he was stripped of it by a reluctant Baronial Council in May 2000 for disappearing in the midst of a challenge by Drey Starke. While he periodically appeared after this point...for the most part, Avery's Arena career ended after this incident.

Challenge Victories: Long Wang Lo(OL Challenge), Adeena Maeax(Baronial Challenge-6th), Cletus Ganderfald(Baronial Challenge-12th), Damien Mortis--twice(OL Defense twice; test in 2nd challenge), Roland Sal Roa(OL Defense, 2-0 B03), Leo de Lorenzo(OL Defense, 2-0 B03), Shakira(Challenger in Intercession), Sartan(Right of Challenge in ToW, vs. Challenger's Champion), Verceterix Gavin Favre(Test of Worthiness).

Notable Tournament Wins/Placings: N/A.

DoS Madness History: N/A.


vs.


Ian MacKenzie

Gender: Male

Race: Not quite known. It is claimed that Ian was a hybrid between a human and an ancient extraterrestrial race with terrible power and a strong immunity to all types of magics. This was not always a benefit for Ian, as "all types of magics" included the Ward of Gondar...he was nearly killed after a brutal Right of Challenge duel against Jeff Oakenshield in early 1997. However, Ian had tremendous psionic powers. In addition to whatever physical gifts he may have gained from his "alien
" genes, Ian was also a very large man, standing between 6'7 and 6'10. Not only did Ian have tremendous reach...unlike his good friend Vereceterix Gavin Favre, he also had the personality to make it rather imposing.

Point of Origin: His "alien" origins are unknown. However, his "human" origins were the Scottish Highlands, and it was the Scottish Highlander culture which he used as his native culture. As such, he recieved the typical "life training" in armed combat that Scottish Highlanders were wont to recieve.

Occupation: Royalty/Nobility. Ian was a nobleman in the Scottish Highlands, but after leaving Earth, he secured a promotion. Presently, is the ruling monarch of New Caithness, a realm near Rhydin which is reminiscent of the Scottish Highlands. Ian's noble breeding informed both his best and worst qualities. In addition to this, Ian was also a committed Roman Catholic, and an ordained priest of the Church...given that Scotland became a Protestant country around 1560, this would indicate that he is at least over 450 years old. In Rhydin, Ian was primarily known as the owner of TDL; the TDL Championship was named the MacKenzie Cup in his honor, and the TDL Championship Finals were held in New Caithness for at least the first few seasons.

Preferred Weapon: Ian was one of the few duelers to duel with a weapon in each hand other than a pair of daggers, a testament to his ability to control his blades in the midst of combat. His primary dueling weapon was a katana named Icebreaker Prime; his secondary dueling weapon was a main gauche, a 16th/17th century dagger-like blade of Spanish origin with an often ornate handguard which tapered backwards at the rim, thus shielding the wielder's whole fist. As weapons go, the main gauche is a rather appropriate one for the Duel of Swords...it was specifically designed for the duels which were prolific amongst the honor-obsessed grandees of Hapsburg Spain.(In a sense, the weapon's subsequent association with a very high concern for personal honor made it ideal for Ian personally as well.) Ian was unique among Scottish duelists in that he disdained to use the claymore; in the end, national pride took a backseat to speed and mobility, and this may be one reason why he is still considered by many to be the best Scottish duelist of all time.

TDL History: 0-4, in Season 515 with Team Loincloth. Needless to say, Ian's brief TDL career was not his brightest spot. However, it would border on ignorant to judge his dueling skill on this: It was only four duels(a lot of very good duelers have lost 4 or more duels in the past in one night), and for Ian, the administration of TDL always took precedence over actually dueling there.

DoS Titles Held: Former Baron of the 5th, former Baron of the 8th, former Baron of the 9th.

Challenge Victories: Xenograg kathu-Darelir(Baronial Challenge-5th).

Notable Tournament Wins/Placings: Winter 1996 WLT Winner(def. Simini in the finals, won the vacant 9th Ring as a prize), placed in the Summer 1995 WLT and won the vacant 8th Ring as a prize. It has been claimed by veterans that Ian has won or placed highly in several early Warlord's Tournaments; unfortunately, there is no extant evidence for this.

DoS Madness History: N/A.


Head to Head: When assessing Avery Shiv Blade's career, one has to ask: Is this a case of "what might have been?" or was it a bolt of lightning in which everything was accomplished in a couple of years? With all due respect to Cletus Ganderfald, Cassius Maximius, G'nort Dragoon Talanador, or Magnus Eques...one has to wonder where their records(and seedings) would stand if Avery had remained active. Even during a very brief comeback period in the spring of 2004, there was a hint: He was the only duelist to ever best Shakira in the challenge ring during that period.

Ian is also a "What Might Have Been" case, in a way: What if he had challenged much more regularly than he did? What if he had been more outright active in the rings instead of preferring an elder stateman role for much of his career? Certainly, anyone who knew the man can tell you that the dueling resume is very, very misleading. This is a very hard duel to call.