DISCLAIMER: All of the events described and quoted in the present text, as well as characters, locales, and other settings present here are property of their rightful owners. This is a purely fan-based theory, thought about by a man who has played and loved every single iD Software game, and wishes to share his thoughts with the world. Doom, Quake, Wolfenstein and all of their assets are registered trademarks of iD Software and Bethesda Softworks Heretic, Hexen and all of their assets are registered trademarks of Raven Software All the images utilized are the property of their respective owners, a few of them edited for purposes. Everything expressed here is merely an opinion and doesn't reflect any official statement from the makers of the games. Now go ahead, and enjoy! Table of Contents Greetings, ladies and gentlemen. ....................................................................................................... 1 The Beginning: Before Heretic ............................................................................................................ 3 Rise and Fall of the Serpent Riders: Of Parthoris, Cronos and Thyrion............................................... 3 Cronos, the world of Hexen ................................................................................................................ 4 Proto-Earth: Thyrion............................................................................................................................ 4 The Thyrion Theory ............................................................................................................................. 5 In modern times .................................................................................................................................. 8 Of Rage, and its possibilities.............................................................................................................. 11 Doomed ............................................................................................................................................. 11 Quake ................................................................................................................................................ 12 Summary ........................................................................................................................................... 14 Discussion .......................................................................................................................................... 15 Change log ......................................................................................................................................... 15 Greetings, ladies and gentlemen. To begin with, I would like to explain the purpose of this document. In short: Every single ID game is connected in one way or another, even darker and more magical games such as Heretic and Hexen, and it falls within a cohesive continuity that hints at something massive and incredibly fantastic. Sounds crazy, does it not? Well, please do allow me to give some context. This began upon discussing with a good matey about the upcoming Wolfenstein: The New Order game, and recalling that on 2009's iteration of Wolfenstein, there is a Tome artifact that powers up B.J.'s Medallion powers and whatnot. This is, indeed, a nod to the Heretic/Hexen game series created by Raven Software, using the Doom engine, and they really held no other relation with any other of the games. The item referenced in Wolfenstein is called a "Tome of Power," an artifact that can enhance the bearer's weapons, increasing their destructive power; pretty much the same function in Wolfenstein as it does in Heretic, Heretic II and Hexen II. A nice little nod, but it goes deeper. Veterans of the Heretic/Hexen series may recall that Hexen 2, the last game in the series, takes place in the land of Thyrion, a place which is, quite literally our own world. It has distinctive locales such as Mesoamerica, Greece and Rome, Egypt, Western Europe and even the Tibet, albeit with different names (Mazaera, Septimus, Thysis, Blackmarsh and Tulku, respectively.) Now, the plot in this game, revolves around a demonic conquest, perpetrated by Eidolon, oldest and mightiest of the Serpent Riders. During this time, magic roamed the earth, and the Tomes of Power made their appearance in the world of Thyrion to power Eidolon's war machine, and were used by the four heroes of the world to defeat the Rider and bring peace. But what if some remained? What if a sliver of magical artifacts remained in the world, and were found? What if these were used by people with a deep interest and knowledge in the occult, to gain power and raise an army with impossible technology and magical artifacts? 1 What if this someone happened to be a man named Adolf Hitler? And this is where everything begins to fall into place. The technology, magic artifacts and occult things researched by the Reich during the events that occur in Spear of Destiny, Wolfenstein 3-D, Return to Castle Wolfenstein, Wolfenstein (2009) and The New Order are actually the remnants of the magic in Thyrion. Still farfetched, no? Well, my dear friends, like any good story, this one must begin from the beginning. So grab your reading glasses, a snack, and sit back for what may be one of the greatest stories in gaming history. In chronological order of the events described, this theory follows the steps of the next games: Heretic 1 and 2 > Hexen > Hexen 2 > Spear of Destiny > Wolfenstein 3-D > Return to Castle Wolfenstein > Wolfenstein (2009) > Wolfenstein: The New Order > Commander Keen > DoomRPG > Doom 1 > Doom 2 > Doom 64 > Others. The "Others" section refers to games such as the Quake series and Rage. And now, onto the meat and potatoes of this whole thing. ALLONS-Y! Also a fair warning: Here there be spoilers. Proceed at your own risk! 2 The Beginning: Before Heretic It all begins before Heretic, as it is described on the Chronicle of Deeds, Hexen 2's game manual. It commences with the legends of the Steppe Dwellers of Kazul-Mok, foretelling the coming of evil into the world. In their legends, in the time before and beyond memories, a powerful spellcaster created a vessel to travel across the Aether, the substance holding the universe and its planets together, held in its place by a powerful crystal barrier that separates the universe from the darkness beyond. In his search for knowledge and his desire to explore beyond the limits of knowledge, the wizard rammed the prow of his vessel into the crystal barrier, opening a bore that let in a trio of powerful demons into our plane of existence. Horrified by the accident, and likely immediately regretting his life choices, the wizard used all of his power to cast the preventing more creatures from the void from seeping in. But the damage Picture non- was done. related Rise and Fall of the Serpent Riders: Of Parthoris, Cronos and Thyrion The next step in our journey would be the games Heretic/Heretic 2. These take place in the land of Parthoris, where the Serpent Riders make their first assault into the Reality. The plot of this game follows the Sidhe elf Corvus, the Heretic, along the various locales of Parthoris, a land of magic and arcane lore, of powerful artifacts and elder technologies. The world of Parthoris was largely shaped by the Seraph, a race of divine-like beings, mighty spellcasters that created a large amount of magical technologies and artifacts that would shape the lives of the inhabitants of Parthoris for ages to come. As they would leave the mortal world behind, they predicted an enormous evil coming into the world. As a response, they created one final artifact to protect the people of Parthoris: The seven most powerful Seraph magi sacrificed themselves to bind their souls into the Tomes of Power, artifacts capable of enhancing the magical abilities of anyone who came to use one of them, enabling them to produce feats of power beyond imagining. Due to their power, they were hidden away to prevent their misusage, and so they remained hidden. Until D'sparil came. Corvus, Heretic's protagonist, managed to steal one of the Tomes of Power, Teejallah, whom aided him in his quest to bring down the Serpent Rider. As explained by Heretic 2's manual, the Tome of Power was actually a sentient being, holding the soul of 3 the once mighty Seraph magus and channeling its power into Corvus, allowing him to cast more powerful spells, eventually allowing him to kill D'sparil and free Parthoris... For a time. Cronos, the world of Hexen We travel now through space and time, to the world of Cronos, a world ruled under the iron fist of three powerful factions that dictate every aspect of the people's lives. The Legion, holding the military power of the world; the Church, enthralling people's spirits, and the Arcanum, holding a tight leash on the usage of magic and using it to control the populace. It was in this land where the second Serpent Rider, Korax, made his attack. Easily swayed by his promises of power and eternal life, the rulers of Cronos' governing powers, the Grand Marshall Zedek of the Legion, Traductus, High Patriarch of the Church and Menelkir, Archmagus of the Arcanum, delivered the people they were meant to protect into the Rider's claws. Only three young apprentices, one of each faction, rose to face the Serpent Rider: Baratus, Warrior of the Legion; Parias, Priest of the Church, and Daedolon, Magus of the Arcanum. Together, they managed to defeat Korax, even without the aid of the powerful magic