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sacrifice

  (săk'rə-fīs') pronunciation
n.
    1. The act of offering something to a deity in propitiation or homage, especially the ritual slaughter of an animal or a person.
    2. A victim offered in this way.
    1. Forfeiture of something highly valued for the sake of one considered to have a greater value or claim.
    2. Something so forfeited.
    1. Relinquishment of something at less than its presumed value.
    2. Something so relinquished.
    3. A loss so sustained.
  4. Baseball. A sacrifice bunt or sacrifice fly.

v., -ficed, -fic·ing, -fic·es.

v.tr.
  1. To offer as a sacrifice to a deity.
  2. To forfeit (one thing) for another thing considered to be of greater value.
  3. To sell or give away at a loss.
v.intr.
  1. To make or offer a sacrifice.
  2. Baseball. To make a sacrifice bunt or sacrifice fly.

[Middle English, from Old French, from Latin sacrificium : sacer, sacred; see sacred + facere, to make.]

sacrificer sac'ri·fic'er n.
 
 
World of the Body: sacrifice

The Greek myth of the origin of sacrifice links it with the aftermath of Prometheus' attempt to trick Zeus by dividing the meat of an ox into two packages and trying to persuade Zeus to pick the one that had the tempting exterior, but that contained only the bones of the beast. In animal sacrifice, it was to be these bones which were burned on the altar as the divine share: the human sacrificers and onlookers then divided out the meat according to their degree of participation in the ritual. In the classical world, animal sacrifice was a daily necessity, reminding people of a lost past in which they had once shared food with the gods, but simultaneously acting to keep up communication between the human and the divine worlds. The Christian innovation of the ‘one, true, pure, immortal sacrifice’ of the son of God thus built on classical notions of the necessity of sacrifice, but also completely overthrew them by its insistence that no further animal sacrifices were necessary.

Not all sacrifice takes the form of animal sacrifice. Bloodless offerings of cakes, fruit, and bread were also common in antiquity. In all sacrifices fire was used to consume the parts which were being dedicated to the gods; a holocaust is a sacrifice in which the chosen offering is entirely consumed by the flames.

In the late nineteenth century, scholars of religion and sociologists tried to find a general theory of sacrifice. In his Lectures on the Religion of the Semites (1894), W. Robertson Smith proposed that totemism was the basic form of sacrifice, in which the clan shed the blood of its totem animal, then consumed it in a communal meal. The great French sociologist Émile Durkheim went further, arguing that sacrifice not only bonded the members of a social group, but acted to make the group aware of its common identity and thus, in a sense, to create the group. The anthropologist René Girard saw sacrificial violence as the basis of human culture; the classical scholar Walter Burkert links it to man the hunter who, by hedging around the slaughter of animals with the observation of strict ritual practices, attempted to allay his unease about whether the animal kingdom permitted him to take the lives of its members.

The problem with all such ‘grand theories’ of sacrifice is that they cannot always take account of individual societies' different myths and practices. However, a comparative approach can be illuminating; for example, the Greek myth of the Bouphonia (Ox-slaying) suggests that the beast to be sacrificed must agree to its role, and the story of the sacrifice of Christ also makes much of the need for the sacrificial victim to be aware of his role and willing to take it on. In classical Greek sacrificial ritual, the ox was even supposed to nod its head in consent, although this was often achieved by sprinkling water on its head to make it shiver.

Human sacrifice, like cannibalism, tends to be an accusation levelled by a society against its most feared enemies, or a marginal group within it. The Romans accused the Carthaginians of sacrificing children; Christian communities from the Roman Empire onwards have accused Jewish communities of it, while Roman pagans accused the Christians of exactly the same offence. But, as the ultimate victims, human beings make perfect sense in extremis. In the biblical story, when God tested Abraham by asking him to sacrifice his only son Isaac, the command did not seem unreasonable, and the last-minute substitution of a ram became evidence that ‘The Lord will provide’. In myth and drama, the Greek leader Agamemnon thought his daughter Iphigenia was an appropriate sacrifice to ensure a good wind for the fleet sailing to Troy; in many versions of the myth, the goddess Artemis substituted an animal for Iphigenia. In ancient Rome, the burial alive of two Gauls and two Greeks was performed when the city was believed to be in serious danger.

— Helen King

 
Thesaurus: sacrifice

noun

  1. One or more living creatures slain and offered to a deity as part of a religious rite: hecatomb, immolation, offering, victim. See religion.
  2. A loss sustained in the accomplishment of or as the result of something: cost, expense, price, toll1. See transactions.

verb

    To offer as a sacrifice: immolate, victimize. See give/take/reciprocity, religion.

 
Antonyms: sacrifice

v

Definition: give up, let go
Antonyms: hold, refuse

 
Military History Companion: sacrifice

Propitiation of the gods before battle by means of sacrifice was common throughout the ancient world. Animal sacrifice was a central part of early religious practice, having several stages: dedication of the sacrifice, confession of sins, slaughter of the sacrifice, spilling of blood upon the altar, consumption of the sacrifice by fire or by those offering the sacrifice. In the case of the augurs or haruspices of Rome, the animal was sacrificed to permit contemplation of the entrails for prophetic purposes.

Evidence of human sacrifice in the ancient world is not plentiful. Rome abhorred the practice and rooted it out when encountered among others, although when writing of the druidic rituals of the Celts and the taking of heads for trophies they probably exaggerated for propaganda purposes. Across the Atlantic, wholesale Aztec human sacrifice is well documented and additionally their ‘flower wars’ were fought specifically to gather captives for evisceration on the temples of the Sun. In many Amerindian cultures cannibalism, with or without sacrifice, seems to have been a spiritual rather than a dietary custom.

At an early stage, warrior societies recognized the importance of self-sacrifice battle. In a funeral oration for Athenian war dead in 431 bc, Pericles established the link between religious sacrifice and death in war, while Horace wrote ‘dulce et decorum est pro patria mori’, a useful precept for politicians and generals ever since. Examples of heroic self-sacrifice are enshrined in the annals of humankind, from Leonidas' Spartans at Thermopylae, to Byrhtnoth and his retinue at Maldon, Roland at Roncevaux, and the Light Brigade at Balaclava. The military outcome is not relevant. We do indeed ‘remember the Alamo’. Sacrifice can take the form of conscious martyrdom as with the defenders of Masada or Gordon at Khartoum. Military ends are transcended by a higher purpose or, at least, an act of desperation can be given moral meaning as with the self-immolating kamikaze in the final phase of the Pacific war against Japan.

Although Christian Communion symbolically embodies sacrifice, much theological ink has been spilled to get around ‘thou shalt not kill’. At the time of the Protestant schism, the link between religion and state power was made explicit in the saying ‘cuius regio, eius religio’. Perhaps its saddest manifestation was the holocausts of the 20th century. Perhaps the most pathetic manifestation was the cult of remembrance which arose during WW I, especially in Britain, when the experience of battle was directly equated to the sufferings of Christ and soldiers were said to have died in a state of grace. This heresy, known as patri-passionism, was quietly denounced after the war, but ‘greater love hath no man than this’ was carved not only on war memorials but also into the hearts of their grieving families.

Bibliography

  • Bushaway, Bob, ‘Name upon Name: The Great War and Remembrance’, in Roy Porter (ed.), Myths of the English (London, 1992)

— Bob Bushaway

 
Britannica Concise Encyclopedia: sacrifice

Act of offering objects to a divinity, thereby making them holy. The motivation for sacrifice is to perpetuate, intensify, or reestablish a connection between the human and the divine. It is often intended to gain the favour of the god or to placate divine wrath. The term has come to be applied specifically to blood sacrifice, which entails the death or destruction of the thing sacrificed (see human sacrifice). The sacrifice of fruits, flowers, or crops (bloodless sacrifice) is more often referred to as an offering.

For more information on sacrifice, visit Britannica.com.

 
Philosophy Dictionary: sacrifice

Rationalizations of classical sacrificial practices include supposing that they dramatize the violence of killing and the associated guilt, or that they purge the killing of guilt by seeing it as part of legitimate ritual. Do ut des (Latin: I give so that you give) is the natural attempt to establish relations of reciprocity with divine powers, echoed in Christianity in God's sacrifice of his own son (see atonement).

 
Archaeology Dictionary: sacrifice

[Ge]

The slaughter of an animal or person or the surrender of a possession as an offering to a deity. Many societies in different parts of the world and at different times practised sacrifice, often according to regularized astronomical or calendrical events relating to dangerous or critical moments. Although generally seen as ceremonial in context, sacrifice may have functional ends institutionalized in the practice itself, for example the regulation of population and the creation of an instrument of political terror.
 
Asian Mythology: Sacrifice

Sacrifice is a universal religious act, one closely associated with the mythologies of particular traditions. Sacrifices are often offered to divinities in the name of society by priestly castes. The offerings themselves may be symbolic or literal, vegetable or animal. Scapegoats of various kinds may be used to substitute for living offerings that a given group is unable or unwilling to give up. For example, Abraham was instructed to offer Isaac as a sacrifice and did so, but an animal became a substitute for Isaac; the Christians say that Christ died as an offering for humanity. Sacrifices are often accomplished at sacred times of the year in sacred places. In Asian myth and religion sacrifice plays important roles. Japanese emperors offered sacrifices to the dead and to nature divinities (See Kami, Shinto entries). The Chinese Emperor, representing his people, made winter solstice sacrifices to the gods and to the dead. Sacrifice is important in the bear cults of the Ainu (See Ainu Mythology) and to the indigenous religions of Indonesia (See Hainuwele). It is central to the fire rituals of the Zoroastrians (See Zoroastrianism, Avesta). In the Hindu (See Hinduism) tradition of India sacrifice can be said to be the central issue. In the Sāṇkhya tradition, life emerges from the sacrifice of the primal male or Puruṣa (See Puruṣa), and the continuance of existence depends on the proper practice of ritual sacrifice (See Hindu Mythology, Agni, Dakṣa, Devī, Kālī, etc.). For the Hindu. He and the world itself represent a sacrifice—that which must continually be destroyed and re-created through the eons of history.

 
Columbia Encyclopedia: sacrifice
[Lat. sacrificare=to make holy], a type of religious offering, or gift to a superior or supreme being, in which the offering is consecrated through its destruction.

The Nature of Sacrifice

Sacrifices may be performed on a regular basis, according to established patterns of daily, monthly, or seasonal acts, or on special occasions, notably at important times in an individual's life (birth, puberty, marriage, death), and in the face of extraordinary conditions. The purpose of the act is either to establish or sustain a proper relationship with the god or gods. Sacrifices may simply express homage and veneration, or they may give thanks for good fortune. Sacrifices of supplication are intended to provoke good fortune, and sacrifices of expiation are offered to appease the divine wrath kindled by humanity's transgression of other arrangements. Humans have been known to sacrifice anything that they have ever used or produced; the oblation may be left exposed; poured, if liquid, into the ground; or burned.

History

The Paleolithic evidence for sacrifice is unclear, and it has not been observed in contemporary hunter-gatherer societies. It has been observed, however, in pastoral and agricultural societies. In simpler societies, anyone is usually permitted to offer a sacrifice, but in more complex societies, this right is generally reserved for either a religious specialist or a person of high political rank. Often, the sacrificial cult is linked to the legitimacy of a king or emperor, as in classical Japan, China, Sumeria, Egypt, and Rome; sometimes, struggles for control over this cult lead to conflict between priests and kings.

Biblical accounts of sacrifice begin with Cain's sacrifice of the fruit of the ground, not acceptable to God, and Abel's rightful sacrifice of the firstlings of his flock. The release of Abraham from the vow to sacrifice Isaac has been read as an argument against human sacrifice in Hebrew tradition, evidenced elsewhere in the story of Jephthah's daughter. After their Temple was destroyed by Romans in A.D. 70, the Jewish sacrificial cult was replaced by other activities; among present-day Samaritans, however, the paschal lamb is still sacrificed at the time of the Passover. In the New Testament, the symbolization of Jesus by the sacrificial lamb is frequent. In the ancient liturgies, the Eucharist is regarded as a real continuation of this sacrifice of Calvary; hence Roman Catholics call the Mass “the holy sacrifice.”

Other ancient cultures of the Middle East, Asia, and Europe also had religions with sacrificial rituals. Perhaps the most fully developed was that of the Vedic religion in India, as worked out in great detail in the Brahmanic texts (see Hinduism). The Maya and the Aztec developed a particularly bloody and elaborate ritual of human sacrifice. Human sacrifice in simpler forms (e.g., cannibalism, head-hunting, killing of prisoners) has also been widespread. The practice of human sacrifice is rare in recent years, although survivals do exist in some parts of the world, and even animal sacrifice has become widely reviled. In the United States, practitioners of Afro-Caribbean religions such as voodoo and Santería have been subject to law enforcement restrictions on animal sacrifice, but in 1993 the U.S. Supreme Court ruled it was a constitutionally protected practice as a religious rite.

Bibliography

See R. J. Daly, Christian Sacrifice (1978); H. Hubert and M. Mauss, Sacrifice (tr. 1964, repr. 1981); M. I. Siddiqui, Animal Sacrifice in Islam (1981); W. Burkert, Homo Necans: The Anthropology of Ancient Greek Sacrificial Ritual and Myth (1983); U. M. Vesci, Heat and Sacrifice in the Vedas (1986); N. Davies, Human Sacrifice in History and Today (1988); P. Tierney, The Highest Altar: The Story of Human Sacrifice (1989).

 
Food & Culture Encyclopedia: Sacrifice

Sacrifice is the ritualistic and reverential slaughter, cooking, and distribution of meat. Conventional accounts of sacrifice stress the colorful and religious aspects of slaying an animal for the benefit of the participants' relationships with the gods. This understanding leads to the generalized use of the word "sacrifice" to mean giving up something—including other foods—in anticipation of more valuable rewards.

From the viewpoint of a cultural outsider, sacrifice may seem a brutal or incomprehensible practice. Yet historically, sacrifice has been a common practice in many tribal and agrarian societies, as have food offerings, in a more general sense. Sacrifices serve various functions: the ancient Chinese text Li chi describes ceremonies that summon spirits from above to restore social harmony. Maintaining environmental balance is also a common sacrificial motive. Sacrifices are important in the doctrines of Hindus, Jews, Christians, and Muslims: they enable participants to share a table with their deity, give thanks, atone for sins, or appease angry forces. For example, Muslims believe that the animal slaughtered at the Id al-Adha (Festival of Sacrifice) at the conclusion of their pilgrimage to Mecca will carry them to Paradise.

Social scientists have explained that dramatic rituals encourage group solidarity. The act of coming together to present gifts helps to bind members of a group together as well as any blood oath can. According to Scottish anthropologist W. Robertson Smith in The Religion of the Semites (1889), sacrifice originated in a meal shared between people and their god. French sociologist Émile Durkheim and his associates asserted that sacrifice constantly renews group consciousness of the sacred and that the all-powerful god which society worships is itself.

Ceremony promotes social cohesion, but such theories are incomplete because they do not explain why cohesion important in the first place. As stated earlier, the underlying action of a sacrifice is the coming together for the slaughter and distribution of meat. This core social action is elaborated on cultural and religious levels. The animal is not lost but is allocated to the group according to precise rules. In groups that perform sacrifices, animals are valuable enough food to warrant special attention, typically at a festival, and often the animals are large enough to warrant wider dispersal than within an immediate household. This dispersal typically takes place at some central place such as a temple.

Early Jewish celebrations of Passover traditionally required the sacrifice of one lamb for each household or for distribution among several small households; the lamb was then eaten with unleavened bread and bitter herbs (Exodus 12:1–28). This ritual is a seasonal festival that, on one level, recalls the nomadic origins of the Hebrews, who would annually gather to celebrate increased flocks. On another level, however, Passover recalls the escape from Egypt after Moses had cursed the Egyptians to suffer the death of their first-born males. To avoid this curse, the Hebrews placed on their door posts a sign made from the blood of sacrificial lambs.

Gods have traditionally played key roles in food distribution. Each temple-state in ancient Mesopotamia had its own deities who lived in the ziggurat and who were fed offerings from the surrounding farms. This tribute not only supported the temple bureaucracy and artisans but also fed the poor of the region. In other places, this type of food redistribution also took place in kingdoms that were under the leadership of warrior rulers. For example, the ancient leader King Solomon oversaw the apportioning of 22,000 oxen and 120,000 sheep at the dedication of his temple. These sacrifices served as a vast round of public meals, which were shared by "all Israel . . . a great assembly" from distant places. These meals also lasted for quite some time, as Solomon dismissed the crowd on the eighth day (1 Kings 8:62–66).

The role of the mageiros in ancient Greece also illustrates the social centrality of sacrifice. This same word was used for priest, cook, and butcher (which might bewilder the modern mind). Nevertheless, the common link among these individuals was that each of them was responsible for the cutting up of meat, the priest wielding his cleaver (or machaira) ritualistically, the butcher commercially, and the cook artistically.

Aztec priests gained notoriety for sacrificing human victims. In The Sacred Cow and Abominable Pig, the anthropologist Marvin Harris argues that such "warfare cannibalism" occurs when captives have greater value as meat than as slaves (pp. 199—234). Yet many claims of human sacrifice are often suspect, as they can be misrepresentations of others as "less civilized." For example, some people in the ancient world mistook Christians for cannibals because they spoke of their savior as a sacrificial lamb and of their eucharistic bread and wine as his flesh and blood.

Because the acquisition and distribution of meat are so fundamental in society, they have been surrounded by many different relationships, rituals, and meanings. The allocation can become so formalized, the portion of food "lost" to the gods so large, and sacramental feelings so profound that the process may no longer resemble sharing. In addition, many accounts have overemphasized religious meanings at the expense of focusing on the sacrificial process of cooking offerings. However, a gastronomic interpretation of sacrifices need not diminish the importance of the ties among people, natural forces, and gods that sacrifices represent. On the contrary, taking the sharing of food under serious consideration arguably grounds the religious aspects of sacrifice and increases their relevance.

In much of the world, the act of slaughtering meat has been removed from plain view to the city outskirts. It has shifted from the butcher's shop to behind a supermarket wall. The final carving of joints now tends to be kept to the kitchen, and the image of cattle is separate from that of hamburgers. Greater sympathy with ceremonial sacrifice may help reconnect meat-eaters with their metabolic universe. A keener sense of the sacred when eating meat might help counterbalance tendencies toward instant gratification, conspicuous consumption, viewing animals as commodities, and the increasingly unbalanced distribution of the world's resources. If animal-devouring gourmets do not entirely embrace such religious impulses as atonement, propitiation, divine commensalism, and thanksgiving, they might nevertheless remember that to "immolate"—from the Latin for 'sacrifice'—is to sprinkle with a condiment.

Arguing for a more materialist reverence that brings the sacred back into the kitchen, Episcopal priest Robert Farrar Capon advises cooks to remember that they inhabit "bloody ground and holy ground at once." In his recipe book and "culinary reflection," The Supper of the Lamb, he confronts the dilemma of the "bloody, unobliging reciprocity in which life lives by death, but still insists that death is robbery" (pp. 45–52).

Bibliography

Capon, Robert Farrar. The Supper of the Lamb: A Culinary Reflection. Garden City, N.Y.: Doubleday, 1969.

Detienne, Marcel, and Jean-Pierre Vernant. The Cuisine of Sacrifice among the Greeks. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1989.

Harris, Marvin. The Sacred Cow and the Abominable Pig: Riddles of Food and Culture. New York: Touchstone, 1987. Originally entitled Good to Eat, 1985.

Symons, Michael. "Cutting Up Cultures." Journal of HistoricalSociology 15, no. 4 (December 2002).

Symons, Michael. "The Kitchen of the Gods." Australian Religion Studies Review 11, no. 2 (Spring 1998): 114–125.

—Michael Symons

 
Word Tutor: sacrifice
pronunciation

IN BRIEF: To give up something of value or meaning to the giver; an offering.

pronunciation He who would accomplish little must sacrifice little; he who would accomplish much must sacrifice much. — James Allen (1855-1942), New Zealander statesman.

 
Quotes About: Sacrifice

Quotes:

"Sacrifice, which is the passion of great souls, has never been the law of societies." - Henri Frederic Amiel

"Sacrifice still exists everywhere, and everywhere the elect of each generation suffers for the salvation of the rest." - Henri Frederic Amiel

"Sacrifice is nothing other than the production of sacred things." - Georges Bataille

"In this world it is not what we take up, but what we give up, that makes us rich." - Henry Ward Beecher

"No fine work can be done without concentration and self-sacrifice and toil and doubt." - Sir Max Beerbohm

"He who never sacrificed a present to a future good or a personal to a general one can speak of happiness only as the blind do of colors." - Olympia Brown

See more famous quotes about Sacrifice

 
Wikipedia: Sacrifice (computer game)
Sacrifice
SacrificeBox.jpg
Developer(s) Shiny Entertainment
Publisher(s) Interplay
Designer(s) David Perry
Release date(s) NA November 16, 2000
EU November 24, 2000
Genre(s) Strategy
Mode(s) Single player, Multiplayer, Online play
Platform(s) Microsoft Windows, Mac OS 9.2, Mac OS X 10.0.4
System requirements PII 300 MHz
64 MB RAM
3D Accelerated Card
620 MB hard disk space
For other uses, see Sacrifice (disambiguation).

Sacrifice is a 3D real-time strategy game with strong RPG elements, developed by Shiny Entertainment, the creators of the Earthworm Jim franchise. It was lauded for its original concept, graphics, and sound quality by most reviews.

Overview

Sacrifice is a real-time strategy (RTS)/action hybrid game that differs from most games in the RTS genre in that the player assumes control of a particular character on the field (the wizard) and plays the game from a third-person point of view centered on that character, and play is very direct, in that all creatures are created directly from spells cast by the player. In contrast, most real-time strategy games allow the player to see the battlefield and play the game from a top-down point of view, and force the player to create buildings which can later be used to manufacture units.

Sacrifice single player campaign consists of 10 sets of missions, one for each of five gods that the wizard can choose to work for. In addition to having different missions, each god also grants its own set of creatures for summoning and spells to be cast to the wizard. Not only does the player receive different spells from each god, but depending on which gods he chooses to support, the story changes drastically, creating several different endings. It is notable that once you serve a god, some other gods who see him/her as a rival may not provide you any chance to serve him later, hence limiting the gods you can choose and avoid a "triumph combination" of creatures and spells. As an incentive to completing various hidden objectives or simply performing brilliantly in-game, one of the five Gods can appear during or at the end of a mission, granting the player a special boon, the likes of which vary greatly. For instance, Stratos regularly grants players a boon of bonus mana points or speed. Other gods, like James can grant the player an increase in defense, or attack, in healing ability etc.

Sacrifice also possesses a bonus feature once the player has completed the game. The Player is allowed to choose their own character as a side rather than a God in multiplayer. The effect: The player's wizard develops according to the story line, keeping the benefits of boons and mixed creatures and spells, giving some players, an edge over regular players.

The resources (a common element in RTS games) in Sacrifice are souls and mana.

Mana is used for casting any spell, summoning creatures, and is an unlimited, slowly generating resource. A manafountain is a neutral structure existing on the map and cannot be created throughout the game, but provides mana for any players nearby. To claim a neutral manafountain to be your own one, you can summon a Manalith on it, so it will provide mana only for you and your friendly creatures. Manahoars, a summoned creature, can draw energy from your manaliths and give you mana even when you are at a distance from your manaliths.

Souls are used for summoning creatures, and are limited; no new souls can be created during the game. Souls cannot be destroyed unless a unit falls off the map, in which case the soul or souls contained in that creature is forever destroyed. Several creature abilities, such as Consume Soul and Rend Soul, also destroy the soul but are accompanied by other special effects.

Souls exist on the map in two forms: blue souls and red souls. Blue souls are either neutral souls that are placed on the map by the map makers waiting to be picked up by any wizards or souls that are released from the corpse of friendly creatures. These blue souls can be picked up directly by the wizard when he walks near them. Red souls are hostile souls that are released from the corpses of hostile creatures. Red souls cannot be picked up directly, and the wizard has to cast a spell Convert to summon a Sac doctor that will carry the corpse to its summoner's altar and carry out a ritual to purify the souls. During the transportation, the Sac doctor could be killed and the corpse released back to its former master.

The sole aim of this game to win, is to desecrate the enemy's altar. To do this, you have to approach your enemy's altar and cast a spell "Desecrate" with one of your creatures as a sacrifice. A group of Sac doctors will be summoned and perform a ritual to desecrate the altar. During the process, the enemy wizard will suffer damage sent from the ethereal realm. The stronger the creature you have sacrificed, the more the damage is. If he is killed during the process, the desecration is done. If any of the Sac doctors are killed, the desecration will be interrupted and your sacrifice offering will be released free.

A god's power can reveal itself in any part of the world except other god's capitals, in which the Ultimate Altar of that god was set up to collect the faith of the god's people, which is the primary necessity of every god. Gods also establish a connection between themselves and their wizards through a wizard's altar. Thus wizards are the manifestation of gods to accomplish the god's will. Wizards can never be truly killed if the connection exists, and the god can resurrect the wizard somewhere else. But if a wizard is killed and he has no altar (or no connection with their god) at the time of death, they are dead forever and cannot come back.

Story

In the single-player campaign, you play as the wandering wizard Eldred, a plane-jumper who leapt to the current world when his own was destroyed. Accompanied by the owl-like Imp Zyzyx (his familiar), the game takes place through flashbacks, with his recounting of his recent deeds being the background to the game.

In his now-destroyed homeworld of Jhera, Eldred was a man of substance (a lord or a king, he doesn't specify, though he was most certainly a tyrant) and one of many who vied for power. He spent his life forging another man's empire, but when the young monarch died at far too young an age, power and dominion fell to Eldred alone. Despised by his subjects, foreign powers and internal conspirators sought to tear his kingdom apart. Having dabbled in alchemy and conjuration before, Eldred was forced to turn his hobby into a serious study, eventually turning to dark, dark forces. This resulted in his summoning of the Arch-Demon Marduk, who promised to destroy his rivals.

He did, but he didn't stop there. What Eldred didn't know was that Marduk was a being of infinite appetite, a monster who fed off the worlds to which he was summoned. With Jhera crumbling into nothingness beneath his feet, Eldred and Zyzyx fled into the Astral Void, eventually "washing up" in the world in which the game is set.

This world is ruled by five gods and their wizard-champions. The gods are:

  • Persephone - Self-righteous goddess of Life, who's virtue is Justice. She occupies the lush and green lands of Elysium (capital city: Idylliac)
  • James - "Good ol' boy" god of Earth, who's virtue is Peace. He occupies the harsh and rocky Glebe. (capital city: Agothera)
  • Stratos - Egocentric "know-it-all" god of Air, who's virtue is Knowledge. He occupies the snowy and desolate mountains of Empyria. (capital city: Thryhring)
  • Pyro - Techno-industrial god of Fire, who's virtue is Progress. He occupies the volcanic and depleted wastes of Pyroborea. (capital city: Helios)
  • Charnel - Amusingly malevolent god of Death, who's virtue is Conflict. He occupies the rotten barren of Stygia. (capital city: Dys)

The player takes on a mission to champion for one of these gods. After each mission you get to choose another task, and thus choose to serve a different god (or the same one) for the next mission. As the game progresses and the gods factionalise in preparation for their war, the player begins to lose contact with the gods of whichever faction he has assisted the least, except if the player champions for Stratos, who is amorally neutral and self-serving and plays off all factions to his own benefit (or, as he puts it, "Oh, let's do be honest shall we?: In any half-way civilised world I would be the only God.").

It is, however, shown in the fourth mission that Marduk has followed Eldred to this world and is conspiring to destroy it as well. His plot involves the creation of a cult centred around Ashur, a persona he has created for himself, and founded with the help of Jaduggar, the last centaur, who despises the gods after Stratos allowed his people to be slaughtered. The cult revolves around the idea that gods are pointless beings whose very existence is predicated upon belief in them, and that the people of this world should stop believing and thereby free themselves of the endless religious warfare their gods have inflicted upon them over the millennia. In fact, Marduk is mearly aiming to eliminate all supernatural resistance to his ultimate destruction of this world.

In the first six missions, if you accomplish some optional objectives or meet a particular target which are hidden from the list of primary objectives (in some maps, simply win the game; in some others, you have to figure that out) a god will offer you a boon upon victory, be the god the one who gave you the mission or another one involved in the game, ranging from increasing health, mana, or speed, to increasing magic resistance, physical resistance, and health or mana regeneration of your wizard.

The player fights through a total of nine missions, each one rewarding you with new creatures and spells, and the tenth and final mission taking place in the present and being the final showdown between Eldred and Marduk. Depending on the player's choices in his narration of the tale to Mithras, Marduk reveals himself in a different way, either telling the Player to open their eyes, or chiding him for not grasping power. Also, the God which the player serves in the ninth mission,effects Eldred's decision at the end of the story, depending on which, the Player can choose to move on to another realm, or help rule and rebuild the current realm.

One of the unique enemies in the game, is Marduk. Marduk is the only wizard in-game who does not require an altar, and as such cannot be killed directly and also permitting him to directly steal the souls of the Player's slain creatures. This is unique only to the final level of the game, in other levels however, where Marduk makes a scripted appearance, it is possible to locate his altar either through Meanstalk 'catapulting' or through Scapex. However, attempts to attack Marduk or desecrate his altar, (If found, a rarity as they are usually located in hard-to-reach places) will prove futile, as Marduk simply teleports away off the Map, taking the altar with him.

Minions

These are the various creatures available to each deity.

Persephone's Faithful

The unique ability in Persephone's Faithful is that all creatures regenerate health over time, the Troll being able to regenerate the fastest among the Faithful.

  • Druid: Druids fight bare handed and therefore do less damage than most basic melee minions of other god. But they often survive much longer, because of their special ability "Life shield" which makes enemies do half damage to the druids.
  • Ranger: Rangers are the basic shooters of Persephone's Mystics. They have quite a long range, and have the ability "Divine sight" which summons a floating eye to scout around.
  • Shrike: Shrikes do sonic attacks, and can stun the enemy wizard and interrupt their actions. Like the druids, they have Life shield ability.
  • Scarab: Scarabs are an auxiliary creature. Although they cannot attack, they shoot out a beam which heals friendly units.
  • Troll: Trolls are an advanced melee unit which deal more damage and have more hitpoints than druids. They also regenerate quickly.
  • Gnome: Gnomes, possessing a very advanced culture, use their handcannons to shoot down their enemies and rarely miss. An albino Gnome Hero, named Thestor, is an opponent in the first Persephone mission, but if spared he will fight for you for all of the other missions.
  • Gremlin: Gremlins are swift flying units, and can use their ability to snare a hostile unit, lift it up, and deliver a fierce attack.
  • Mutant: This malformed creature is infected with a horrific disease, which culminates in the growth of polyps filled with disease pathogens. In battle, Mutants pluck these polyps from their bodies and hurl them at the foe, possessing the longest range of all Persephone's creatures. Mutants also release a burst of healing energy that affects all nearby friendlies when slain.
  • Ent: Persephone's most powerful ground creature, the Ent is a slow-moving but tough and powerful Melee Unit, with the ability to generate a Lifeshield around all nearby friendlies via its Protector special ability. There is an Ent Hero named Toldor, who becomes available to Persephone followers in the later missions of the game.
  • Dragon: the Titan of Persephone's forces, the Dragon is a Flying Unit with the special ability Breath of Life, which effectively mimics the Charnel spell Animate Dead. The Dragon Hero Sirocco is available to James followers from the second mission. Dragons also ensnare their enemies in Grasping Vines when they hit them, preventing opposing units from escaping.

Pyro's Proles

  • Cog: These primitive, steam-driven robots bludgeon their foes with metal hammers and explode in bursts of searing steam when slain.
  • Flame Minion: These ranged creatures spit fireballs, and cane use their ability "Run Away" to speed to a battle or to retreat.
  • Spitfire: Spitfires are Pyro's basic flyers. They shoot out cones of flame, dealing area of effect damage, but they are very fragile especially against enemy ranged units. In groups, however, they are a force to be reckoned with.
  • Tickferno: Tickfernos are red beetle-like support creatures that can shoot a heat ray. While doing little damage, the ray saps mana from enemy wizards at a swift pace. They are therefore useful for undermining your opponent.
  • Firefist: Firefists are trolls that were captured and experimented on by Pyro. As their health diminishes, they deal progressively greater damage.
  • Pyromaniac: These Pyro-worshipping Gnomes shoot fiery darts from their 'rocket launchers' that set their targets alight. The first Pyromaniac, Faestus, is available to Pyro followers at the first level and then rejoins them from the fourth level onwards. The treacherous Faestus will also side with others to save his own skin, so he also becomes available to Charnel, James and Persephone followers when they assault Helios (Levels 7, 6 and 8 respectively).
  • Pyrodactyl: These fragile bat-like creatures can spit out "viscous oil" that disables anyone in an area from receiving commands, and will ignite when struck by a fire-spell, or fire-based attack from certain creatures.
  • Bombard: Bombards were once mountain-living Lummox, which makes them the cousins of the Flummox and the Flurry. They are very slow but deadly. They throw burning spheres which burn a large area.
  • Warmonger: The creature with highest damage output, a Warmonger attacks with their machine gun. Notably less hardy than their Styx counterpart, they are nonetheless deadly, especially in groups. Their wide range of fire can be harmful to friendlies, thus Warmongers should be used sparingly. They also have "Firewalk" ability which allows them to instantly transport a short distance.
  • Phoenix: Phoenix are gigantic flying units; Pyro's ultimate creature. They fire a red beam similar to the Tickferno's, which both deals damage and drains mana from targets. They will also cast a fire shield upon themselves when hit by melee attack.

James's Yeomen

  • Trogg: Primitive cave-dwelling humanoids, Troggs are the toughest among all basic melee units. Troggs are slow and have resistant skin which protects them from magical damage, though non-damaging spells (Freeze, Grasping Vines, Slime etc.) still affect them. This ability makes them the ideal unit when going up against one of Pyro's superweapons or wizards.
  • Earthfling: These shooters attack by spitting gravel at targets. They can also turn themselves to stone, which increase their regeneration rate and defense but disables them, rendering them unable to do anything beside standing still.
  • Gargoyle: James' basic flying unit, Gargoyles are more durable than their Pyro-aligned cousins, the Spitfires. They cast down a rain of stones to smash anything below them.
  • Basilisk: Like Scarabs, Basilisk are an insect-like support unit, and do not attack. Instead, they can petrify enemies with their gaze, rendering the target stationary and helpless.
  • Taurock: Stronger than the troggs, Taurock are damage- absorbing tanks and are great manalith siege weapons. As their health diminishes, their defense increases.
  • Flummox: Flummoxes are mountain-dwelling Lummox creatures trained for wartime use. They are very slow, and not very accurate. A Flummox throws out stone boulders to shake the ground and can interrupt an enemy wizard's spell-casting.
  • Ikarus: these powerful flyers are similar to Pyro's Pyrodactyl and Charnel's Blight, in that their special ability (Stickbomb)coats an enemy with sticky glue, slowing and incapacitating the target. An Ikarus Hero named Gammel is available to James followers from the first mission.
  • Boulderdash: Boulderdash are more accurate than other ranged shooters, and do damage to multiple targets. Their rocky projectiles split into three, damaging multiple enemies.
  • Jabberocky: A Jabberocky walks painfully slow but tanks better than Taurocks. They can also make a tiny earthquake which can interrupt an enemy wizard's spells.
  • Rhinok: The sole ultimate creature who walks rather than flies, they are arguably the most powerful ultimate creature. Rhinoks attack by sending waves of spikes out through the ground in all directions, and can summon a halo of boulders to shoot down nearby hostile flyers.

Stratos' Servants

  • Frostwolf: Stratos's basic melee units are very fast, yet very fragile. The Frostwolves were formerly slaves to Persephone's "circle of life" until they swore allegiance to Stratos. Their ability "Run away", which makes them run faster, is also useful to speed them into combat.
  • Sylph: A deadly accurate shooter. Their ability "Stealth", allows them to turn themselves invisible, making them good for ambushes or for tracking enemies.
  • Brainiac: Brainiacs use their psychic power to stun enemy wizards and interrupt their spellcasting. Their attack could be considered the most effective among the basic Stratos units, but they are very fragile. A Brainiac hero Sara Bella is available in the first and the sixth Stratos' missions. Charnel followers will also find her fluttering about in shock on a mountain in the final Charnel mission.
  • Vortick: A white insect-like support unit that spits out a tiny cyclone which does little damage, but tosses enemies about. If used near a ledge, there is a chance that the unit will be hurled off the map.
  • Squall: Large flightless birds that fire a high-pressure gust of wind that knocks the target back. They deal abysmal damage, but slow melee units often have a difficult time getting close enough to attck them.
  • Storm Giant: A strong and fast melee unit which can become stronger when struck by lightning. Their "Call Lightning" ability summons a lighting bolt to strike them, damaging the giant, but increasing its melee damage. Additionally, other lightning attacks (Like Stratos's basic damage spell) will trigger their power as well. Lord Surtur, a Storm Giant hero, is available in the second Persephone mission as well as the second and third Stratos missions.
  • Seraph: The fastest of all flyers and a relative of the gremlin. The Seraph can ensnare a unit in a crackling energy cage to incapacitate it and deliver a free hit.
  • Flurry: A weird area-damage shooter made up of a novice wizard riding a Lummox. They hurl icy projectiles that cause an area to implode, drawing everything nearby towards the impact point. It is very effective at stunning enemies and spellcasters, but can also disable your melee units on the front line.
  • Yeti: A powerful melee unit whose melee attack freezes their targets.. Their enemies will be driven mad by its freezing fist.
  • Silverback: The most frequently used ultimate creature. They fly fast, their breath freezes their enemies and they posses "Run Away". Further, when struck by lightning, they get a damage boost, like the storm giants. Despite this, they are very dependent on mana and thus, are easy to handle with Phoenixes.

Charnel's Minions

A unique ability of Charnel's Minions is their ability to regain health from attacking enemies, thus making creatures with large amounts of health, nearly unstoppable in the field.

  • Scythe: Though less aggressive than the Cog, the Scythe's attack replenishes its life and makes him an excellent basic melee unit. They can survive a long time and deal much damage. A Scythe Hero called Gangrel is available at the first mission for the necromancers, and he will be possessed by Astaroth the Demon Lord in the Ritual of Charnel in front of the Demon Gate in the fifth Charnel mission. When possesed by Astaroth, Gangrel becomes nearly invincible, only vulnerable to being hurled into the chasms of Golgotha
  • Fallen: Fallen are undead ranged units that cough out swarms of flies which slightly slow down their enemy. Like the Scythes, their attacks replenish their life. They can also "Play Dead," becoming immobile, but dramatically increasing their regeneration rate.
  • Locust: A fragile flyer who is nonetheless excellent at finishing off the enemy wizard. They can easily pursue him, and their attacks drain mana as well as life.
  • Necryl: Necryls are bloated tick-like support units. They spit diseased bile which stops victims from regenerating health and mana. When killed, they spread out diseases to infect those around them.
  • Blight: Charnel's answer to the Pyrodactyl, Blights are flyers who are effective at assaulting manaliths with guerilla tactics. They can also spew "Blightmites" to slow down their enemies.
  • Netherfiend: A melee unit with high defense. They can consume blue souls to increase their size and strength.
  • Deadeye: Deadeyes are zombified Gnomes. Their guns now fire deadly accurate poison darts at a very long range.
  • Abomination: Similar in appearance to Persephone's Mutants, the Abomination is one of Charnel's long-range units. While the Mutant is more accurate, the Abomination's projectiles (which consist of chunks of necrotic entrail and congealed masses of blood) leave a trail of corrosive droplets behind them as they arc through the air, which means they damage all enemies between the Abomination and its target. The gruesome nature of the Abomination's projectiles means that each shot leaves a streamer of blood on the ground and a splash of gore where it hits. Multiple Abominations attacking an area can leave the ground totally covered in blood.
  • Styx: Similar in appearance and function to a Warmonger, Styx channels dark energy and cause explosions to attack its foe. In addition to dealing heavy damage, they can also detonate a blue soul to heavily damage all nearby units.
  • Hellmouth: The Hellmouth is a flying unit which shoots out poisonous projectiles. They have slightly weak attack damage, but like the Netherfiend, can consume blue souls to increase their health and damage. They have a high number of hit-points allowing them to be able to tank effectively.

Others

  • Manahoar: All wizards can summon these short humanoids. They draw energy from your manaliths, and replenish your mana. One of the notable things is that the amount of mana a manahoar can draw from a manalith depends on the distance between the manalith and the manahoar. Thus, an effective way of cutting off a wizard's supply of mana is to either kill off the manahoars, or simply annihilate all manaliths in the area. (The effect is only noticeable in large maps.)
  • Sac-doctor: You can't control them, but no wizard can win without the use of these creatures. They are used to carry the red souls to the altar for conversion, and desecrate your enemy's altar.
  • Villagers: These are the helpless, unarmed people who inhabit this world. They appear as Peasants, Farmers, Snowmen, Slaves or Zombies within different God's boundaries. You will get a single red soul by killing them, which you can then convert.

Spells for each god

Persephone's Mysticism

Consisting almost entirely of healing and support spells, the Mysticism of Persephone is used to bolster your forces, so a Mystic needs souls more than any other wizard.

  • Wrath: like all initial spells, Wrath is a simple offensive spell; the wizard conjures a globe of blue-green energy and hurls it at the target.
  • Ethereal Form: each of the second-level spells in Sacrifice is a defensive spell for the player. Ethereal Form is the shortest in duration, but the most useful in application: it effectively turns the caster ethereal, making them immune to any physical and magical attack.
  • Grasping Vines: Grasping Vines entangles a target and prevent it from movement, but the target can still attack or cast spells.
  • Rainbow: an upgraded form of the Heal spell that hits the initial target and then bounces away to heal four more of your units.
  • Rain of Frogs: causes frogs formed of magical energy to start falling from the sky over the targeted area. These frogs chase all nearby units (both friends and foes) and cling to them, slowing them down for a while, before exploding. They inflict little damage individually, but a concentrated barrage can destroy just about any ground-based unit.
  • Healing Aura: causes the targeted creature to radiate an aura that heals all nearby friendlies.
  • Vinewall: creates a barrier of vines to shoot up from the earth. Any enemy that gets near the wall is entangled.
  • Charm: permanently converts the target creature into one of your minions.
  • Meanstalks: causes giant vines to erupt from the soil. These vines impale any creature that gets near them and then flings it high into the air. The initial spiking causes some damage, the impact causes more. Ultimately, however, it is only a distraction and/or way of slowing the enemy down. Meanstalks also never attack the same creature twice, thus creatures capable of surviving the impact can press forward. Humorously, creatures and wizards can be 'catapulted' in the opposite direction of the bending stalk, a technique which is useful near chokepoints or chasms, allowing for quick kills.

Pyro's Sorcery

As would be expected, Pyro's magic is all about fire and flames. Known as Sorcery, Pyro's Sorcerers have the greatest amount of offensive power in the game. There is no Pyro spell that cannot be made to deal damage.

  • Fireball: simple, direct and effective. Generate a large ball of flames and molten rock and then hurl it at the foe. It explodes when hit and damages a very tiny area, roughly about the size of two level 1 creatures close to each other.
  • Fireform: engulfs the caster in a shield of flames, which effectively sets any nearby hostile unit on fire as well as lowering damage inflicted (insignificantly).
  • Rings of Fire: like all third-level spells, Rings of Fire hinders the victim's movement, causing it to slow down a little. Unlike the other third-level spells, Rings of Fire actually causes damage while it lasts.
  • Dragonfire: creates a dragon-shape of flames which flies at a target then flies up into the air before making two further air-strikes. Whilst it only targets three individual units, it burns anything caught in its path.
  • Explosion: creates a ring of fireballs around the target point, which swell up and then explode. This inflicts fire damage but also sends anything caught in the area of effect hurtling through the air. If cast near a chasm it's possible to send creatures flying into the chasm.
  • Firewall: creates a wall of flames that burns anything that comes through it as slowing them down during the process of passing through.
  • Rain of Fire: as the name suggests, creates a storm of fiery meteors over the target area. Very good at killing off guardians.
  • Blind Rage: drives a group of creatures into a blinding fury, which causes them to attack the nearest unit, be it a friend or foe, with their melee attacks (Units which do ranged attacks therefore deal less damage).
  • Volcano: the spell for mass-destruction, creates a volcanic eruption. The central area will burst out hot magma which does a lot of damage and kill the toughest creatures within seconds. This area is however quite small, but the volcano also hurls out deadly volcanic bombs which also does drastic damage.

James's Geomancy

Since he is the god of Earth, James specializes in geomancy and therefore has mostly earth-related spells, which are specialised to defend and bolster the endurance of your James Yeomen.

  • Rock: the most simple attack spell; rips a giant boulder from the earth and sends it flying towards the target. James and Stratos share the dubious 'honour' of being the only two gods in the game whose initial spells can hit your minions if they get between your spell and the target.
  • Skin of Stone: the caster becomes encased in a flexible but durable layer of rock.
  • Soul Mole: summons some unknown form of burrowing creature, which sweeps towards the target soul of a dead minion and then carries it back towards the caster, knocking down any enemy in its path. Be cautious when using this spell, as once the Mole grabs the soul it counts as a Gib Soul (aka it's available to any wizard). This spell is less likely to be used then its Stratos counterpart Soul Wind, due simply to the fact that James creatures are tougher and have more health than Stratos creatures. Soul mole can also only pick up souls, while Soul Wind can also do a decent amount of damage to anything en route. This spell has the most extensive range in the game however, and can be quite handy to collect souls far away from the wizard. The spell also costs much lesser Mana than Soul Wind, and takes much lesser time to reset, allowing the wizard to reclaim souls faster than with Soul Wind.
  • Erupt: the earth at the target point rises up and then slams down, hurling any nearby creature through the air and stunning them. It causes a little damage when they hit the ground, and it can fling creatures into chasms, but it's more useful for disrupting a tightly-clustered group of enemies.
  • Halo of Earth: this causes several boulders to rip themselves from the earth and hover above the caster's head. They automatically fire themselves at any enemy that gets near. They do damage equivalent to the Rock spell.
  • Wall of Spikes: creates a line of stalagmites that slow and wound anything that moves through them.
  • Bombardment: causes a massive shower of boulders to rip from the ground and then slam into the targeted area like mortars. The sheer power of this spell can pound the targeted area into a crater.
  • Bovine Intervention: most likely a reference to Earthworm Jim's infamous cow joke, this spell causes a giant cow to rocket out of the sky and land on your target. It shakes the ground when it hits, hurting nearby enemies and stunning them, and the initial target is gibbed and instantly release blue souls.
  • Bore: a massive chunk of earth (roughly the size of an Altar) is carved away in a spiral shape. Any land enemy caught in the spiral counts as having fallen into a chasm. The melted area restores itself over several seconds.

Stratos' Elementalism

Stratos's repertoire consists mainly of lightning, wind, and frost spells, and is very well balanced. His (slightly weaker than most) spells recharge incredibly fast, so you always have a mid-level spell ready.

  • Lightning: simple and direct, this spell creates a lightning bolt that arcs from your hands to zap the target. Unlike all of the other spells, Lightning does not track its target but simply hits the first thing directly between you and the target; including allies, obstacles and the ground itself! However, it costs less mana than any other spell in the game, and recharges incredibly fast.
  • Air Shield: creates a swirling vortex around you to reduce damage and push any enemy back when they approach you.
  • Freeze: the least useful of all immobilizing spells, a frozen target thaws out instantly if attacked. Its sole saving value is its quick speed to be cast- making it very useful for disrupting enemy spellcasters or halting fleeing enemies. Try using it when an enemy flying creature is over a hole and get rid of them for good.
  • Chain Lightning: slightly weaker in damage than Lightning, Chain Lightning makes up for it (and the fact it has a longer casting time and prevents movement whilst being cast) with the fact that it bounces from the initial target to strike anything nearby.
  • Soul Wind: creates a mini-cyclone that zooms to a targeted blue soul and snares it, blasting any nearby enemies with lightning bolts along the way, dealing damage roughly equivalent to Lightning. Unlike lightning, it also knocks them over for a bit. Usable while moving.
  • Frozen Ground: the wizard hurls a freezing mass of ice and cause an area of ground to be covered by a plate of ice, freezing any unit caught in it. The ice-plate eventually shatters, causing damage to any unit within its area. Its long casting time limits its effect as the targets often go away the area before the ice hits. This is unique in being the highest-level spell you can cast while moving about.
  • Fence: this wall spell creates a line of transparent globes that electrify anything that comes near them. The damage dealt is the highest among all wall spells, but this is balanced by the fact that this spell is one level higher than the others.
  • Cloudkill: creates a small black storm-cloud that rains down a random shower of powerful lightning bolts. These bolts are attracted to units and wizards, but can and will strike randomly if there is a unit within range. If targeted at a specific unit, the cloud slowly moves to follow the target; otherwise, it will be fixed at the point it was cast. Great for killing guardians.
  • Tornado: creates a powerful tornado that sucks up any unit and whirls it high into the air before letting it drop. it lasts quite a long time and can effectively disrupt the targets for quite some time.

Charnel's Necromancy

Charnel's spells are stereotypical "black magic", relating to death, demons, decay and pain. A wizard of Charnel is a Necromancer, and Charnel's lore is called Necromancy. While not outright devastating, Charnel's magic can still be lethal if used with an amount of subtlety and tactics.

  • Insect Swarm: this basic spell conjures a ravenous swarm of flesh-eating insects and sets them upon a target, healing the caster by the amount of damage inflicted.
  • Protective Swarm: identical to Insect Swarm, but the insects swarm around the caster instead, shielding him from damage and replenish health.
  • Slime: drenches the target in thick, gooey sludge that slows them down and makes them more susceptible to damage and less capable of inflicting it. This can also slow down spell casting if the spell is started channeling before the slime is hurled.
  • Animate Dead: the most useful of all Charnel's spells, this spell targets the blue soul of a slain minion and brings it back to life. Whatsmore, it recovers at the same speed as a non-cast spell and only costs 300 mana, enabling it to be used repeatedly and with devastating effect. In fact, an army of nothing but Locusts (for the first half of Charnel's campaign), or Abominations (for the second half), in conjunction with the Animate Dead spell, is a very nearly unbeatable strategy.
  • Demonic Rift: this summons "demons" (in the form of pink energy bolts) that leap from the portal on the ground and strike an enemy, inflicting damage. One demon is summoned for each nearby enemy, and the demons inflict sufficient power to instantly slay a 1st level non-melee minion.
  • Wailing Wall: creates an ethereal barrier of screaming faces that saps mana very quickly from anything that gets too near it.
  • Plague: creates a black stormcloud which proceeds to rain diseased blood over the affected area. All creatures within or entering the area of effect are diseased, losing health steadily (and faster if they continue to be hit by the bloody rain) and suffering increased susceptibility to damage and decreased ability to inflict damage. Plague can be a fairly effective Guardian-killer, but lacks Rain of Fire's strength.
  • Intestinal Vaporization: causes a target to swell up and burst, resulting in a gib.
  • Death: summons a giant spirit-creature with scythe-blades for hands that attacks all nearby creatures. One strike with its blades instantly slays any creature. It does not attack wizards, sac-doctors or structures.

Neutral spells

Neutral spells are available to all five gods' champions.

  • Speed up: A self-explanatory spell. It boosts your minions' walking speed. The duration of the spell depends on the number of souls a creature has. The Spell lasts the shortest on wizards and 5-soul creatures, and lasts the longest on creatures with no souls, (Sac-Doctors)
  • Heal: Another self-explanatory spell that heals a friendly target.
  • Manalith: This spell create a Manalith on a mana fountain that replenishes your mana.
  • Teleport: Instantly transport yourself and your minions nearby to your own altar or manalith. When an enemy wizard is about to take over your altar, use this.
  • Convert: This spell summons a sac-doctor (which you cannot control) to transport a red hostile soul to your altar and purify it into a friendly one to use.
  • Shrine: A spell that is only available to wizards at level-three or above. This summons a shrine on a mana fountain that can act like a limited version of an altar. Your sac-doctor can convert red souls here, and increase your mana regeneration rate when you get nearby roughly by the speed of an atlar. Your manahoars cannot draw energy from shrines however.
  • Guardian: This spell create a spirit link to one of your creature with your manaliths, shrines or altar, and greatly increase its strength to protect it. The Guardians cannot go very far from the structure it guards, and the structure can only be destroyed when all guardians are cleared. When the structure is under attack, the guardians will incur any damage the structure would otherwise take.
  • Desecrate: A spell to banish the wizard forever and win the game. This spell is used upon the enemy altar and requires the sacrifice of one of your minions. When the altar is being desecrated, damage will be inflicted on the wizard and, if he dies during the desecration, he loses. The desecration will be ended when one of the sac-doctors performing the desecration gets killed.

Scapex

Scapex is an advanced level creation program included with the game that enables players to create their own singleplayer and multiplayer maps.

  • Scapex can be used to tweak the storyline of the game, adding additional souls or creatures on the player's side as well as changing various scripts in game.

It is also possible to place an extra body of the player in a section of the map. However, this body is incapable of moving or attacking. Humorously, the game warns the Player of attack, and the killed body, does not ressurect, but simply disappears off the map.

Vocal cast

External links


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Misspellings: sacrifice

Common misspelling(s) of sacrifice

  • sacrafice

 
Translations: Sacrifice

Dansk (Danish)
n. - offer, ofring, tab
v. tr. - ofre, sælge med tab
v. intr. - blote

Nederlands (Dutch)
opofferen, offeren, offer, (zelf)opoffering

Français (French)
n. - (Relig, fig) sacrifice, (Relig) sacrifice (humain)
v. tr. - (fig) sacrifier, (Relig) offrir (qch) en sacrifice
v. intr. - se sacrifier

Deutsch (German)
n. - Opfer, Opferung, Opfergabe
v. - opfern

Ελληνική (Greek)
n. - θυσία, εξιλαστήριο θύμα, (ιερό) σφάγιο
v. - θυσιάζω/-ομαι

Italiano (Italian)
sacrificare, sacrificio

Português (Portuguese)
n. - sacrifício (m)
v. - sacrificar

Русский (Russian)
жертва, жертвоприношение, жертвовать, совершать жертвоприношение

Español (Spanish)
n. - ofrenda, sacrificio
v. tr. - sacrificar, inmolar, vender sin beneficio
v. intr. - sacrificar (ofrecer sacrificios)

Svenska (Swedish)
n. - offer, uppoffring
v. - uppoffra, offra, sälja med förlust, blota, offrande

中文（简体） (Chinese (Simplified))
祭牲, 祭品, 牺牲, 献祭, 牺牲的行为, 赔本出售, 献出, 作牺牲打

中文（繁體） (Chinese (Traditional))
n. - 祭牲, 祭品, 犧牲, 獻祭, 犧牲的行為
v. tr. - 犧牲, 賠本出售, 獻出, 獻祭
v. intr. - 獻祭, 作犧牲打

한국어 (Korean)
n. - 산 재물, 희생, 투매
v. tr. - ~을 제물로 바치다, 희생하다, 헐값에 팔다, 희생타로 진루 시키다
v. intr. - 산 제물을 바치다, 희생타 번트를 대다

日本語 (Japanese)
n. - いけにえ, 犠牲, 投げ売り
v. - 犠牲にする, いけにえにささげる, 犠打で進塁させる, 投げ売りする

العربيه (Arabic)
‏(الاسم) تضحيه, قربان او ذبيحه (فعل) يضحي, تقديم الذبيحه‏

עברית (Hebrew)
n. - ‮קורבן, הקרבה עצמית, ויתור, אובדן‬
v. tr. - ‮הקריב‬
v. intr. - ‮מכר בהפסד‬

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Dictionary. The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2007, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2007. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.  Read more
World of the Body. The Oxford Companion to the Body. Copyright © 2001, 2003 by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved.  Read more
Thesaurus. Roget's II: The New Thesaurus, Third Edition by the Editors of the American Heritage® Dictionary Copyright © 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.  Read more
Answers Corporation Antonyms. © 1999-2008 by Answers Corporation. All rights reserved.  Read more
Military History Companion. The Oxford Companion to Military History. Copyright © 2001, 2004 by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved.  Read more
Britannica Concise Encyclopedia. Britannica Concise Encyclopedia. © 2006 Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. All rights reserved.  Read more
Philosophy Dictionary. The Oxford Dictionary of Philosophy. Copyright © 1994, 1996, 2005 by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved.  Read more