Books
Overview
The City of Heroes backstory is a rich tapestry of heroism and villainous plots. Many missions require the character to locate or research magical (and ordinary) books. This article represents an attempt to catalog all fictional books referenced in the City of... universe.
Abyssal Tome
(Archmage Tarixus's story arc, Forging the Blackwand)
This is an ancient book containing various dark rituals in various tongues. It tells how the borders of life and death were once manipulated to craft the legendary Blackwand. Though the wand is long lost, this book could presumably be used to create a new one.
As If By an Occult Hand:Secrets Behind the News
(Indigo's mission, Stop the Assassination of Dan Irish)
A book written by the reporter, Dan Irish, containing sensational revelations that the Knives of Artemis would prefer remain secret.
Book of Ancient Magic
(Cadao Kestrel's story arc, The Envoy of Shadows)
(Diviner Maros' mission, Get Book from Legacy)
This handwritten book contains descriptions, chants, and eldritch formulae for a number of dark magic rituals, including instructions on summoning the Envoy of Shadows. It has no listed author, but is dated 1592. An aura of malevolence clings to each page.
Book of K'Gar
(Police Radio mission, Retrieve the Book)
This is supposed to the holy text of an alien religion from the future, but no one's been able to decipher it. Legends say no one will be able to interpret it properly until the year 2260.
- Probably a reference to The Book of G'Kar from Babylon 5, which is set in 2260.
Book of Runes
(Skipper LeGrange's mission, Retrieve the Book)
A spellbook owned by the village of Salamanca. The villagers use its magic spells, including the Rune of Warding, to fend off the strange creatures invading the countryside.
Book of Stheno
(Matthew Burke's mission, Learn More About Stheno)
This ancient tome refers to Stheno, the sister of the Gorgon, Medusa. It seems she is the goddess worshipped by Mercy's Snakes. It speaks of a time when Stheno will return to spawn new and powerful progeny.
Book of T'Jer'imikanu
(Positron's task force, The Rule of Three)
This book, the last of its kind, was presumed lost in the Chicago fire of 1871. It is written in an obscure language, and describes a ritual for gaining great power that can only performed during a storm. Or, as the book has it, at 'a conflux of lightning and rain.' The larger the conflux, the more effective the ritual.
Chaos Cook Book
(Newspaper mission, Library Robbed, Rare Books Missing)
A rare, valuable magic book.
- Possibly a reference to the Anarchist's Cookbook, an infamous hacking instruction manual.
Codex of Bloodlines
(Magus Mu'Drakhan's story arc, The Secret of the Circle)
(Allison King's mission, Save the Wyatt Mediums from the Circle of Thorns)
Main Article: Codex of Bloodlines
Also known as the Blood Tome.
This magical book can trace a person's ancestry back to the time of the ancient civilization of Mu. Any name written in its owner's blood blossoms out a crimson family tree on the book's black pages, in the arcane language of the Circle of Thorns
Hammer of the World: Incantations from the Abyss
A book about the infamous Malleus Mundi by Dr. Nathaniel A. Bierce, Professor of Esoteric Anthropology at Winthrop University.
History of Oranbega: The War of the Mu
(Cadao Kestrel's story arc, The Envoy of Shadows)
This is a hand-written, multi-volume work by the ancient wizard, Akarist. Each book chronicles a different aspect of a great war between the ancient peoples of Oranbega and another lost civilization called the Mu. The books start with the creation stories and mythic founding of Oranbega by refugees who's god led them across the sea in great ships, after they had been exiled from their homeland for practicing magic; and proceed up to the war.
The last volume Akarist was working on has only reached the first few days of the conflict, where Mu Skyships rained a magical fire down upon the outlying Oranbegan cities. From the detailed descriptions, it seems as if Akarist himself was an eyewitness.
Hequat and the Mu
(Magus Mu'Drakhan's story arc, A Traitorous History)
- This serves as a preface to the first book of the history of the Mu/Oranbegan war.
Though we did not know of them until the War, the Mu had been our sworn enemy for hundreds of years. Within a fortress-island forged of iron and fear they had been trained to hate us and to fight against us for generations. Their Goddess demanded it, and they obeyed her in all ways. They believed that their chosen place upon this world was to serve as the righteous implement of her will, and in their deeds and customs did they enshrine this so that to do otherwise would be unthinkable. At her command they performed generations of what would now be called eugenic breeding in order to strengthen the magical power within their blood lines to unheard of levels. At her command they crushed all contrary thought, and made no art that did not praise her name. At her command they attacked our peaceful Oranbega on a spring day, sewing ruin on our city and bringing war to us after it had become forgotten in our lands. The name of this Goddess was Hequat.
Hequat was in our myths as well, for it was her followers who had hounded us from our lands and drove our forbears into the sea. In our myths she was the former lover of Ermeeth, the god who taught our people the magic he had learned from fabled Tielekku. Hequat was also Ermeeth's greatest foe, and it was from her armies we had fled under one sea and across another to the land we would call Oranbega. We had thought Ermeeth and Hequat both legends until her soldiers came one fateful spring to burn our world away.
Hequat hated Oranbega then, and would hate that which we have become even more. However, it must be remembered that her hatred stemmed from our refusal to bow down to the gods in all things, as she thought it was proper for mortals. That aspect may bode ill for the peoples and cultures of this modern era.
Cost of Mercy
(Magus Mu'Drakhan's story arc, A Traitorous History)
- This serves as a preface to the last book of the history of the war.
When our people were pressed by the Mu, we took drastic measures. First we sank our city beneath the earth to shelter us from bombardment by Mu sky ships. Then, when we found we still were sorely pressed, we turned to other powers from darker worlds. A Prince of Demons came to us and offered us his aid. The Circle of Thorns, the ruling council of Oranbega, debated greatly, but in the end we bargained with him.
His first gift to use was the Thorn Blades, demon swords that turned men into blood-frenzied monsters. Armed with these we turned the tide, and the slaughter was indescribable.
The wizards of Mu found new tactics, however, and blunted our attack. Again we struck bargains with the Prince of Demons, and we brought forth troops to fight on our behalf from the depths of Hell. With wraiths and spectres did we march upon the Mu. With Behemoths of the land and Leviathans of the sea did we fall upon their men, their city, their very land. The fiends had bargained for the slaughter of ever last man, child, and woman of Mu, and on that fine point we faltered. We still felt mercy for them, pity even, and we saw in them what might have become of us. We let some Mu escape to far shores. When the fiends discovered this, they were both outraged and gleeful, for they had hoped for just such an outcome. In the end we had to sacrifice our mortal forms, and were only able to escape the wrath of the fiends as bodiless spirits in our sunken city. Such was the cost we paid for our mercy.
How to Serve Man
(Newspaper mission, Library Robbed, Rare Books Missing)
A rare, valuable magic book.
- Possibly a reference to a short story by Damon Knight and a Twilight Zone episode.
Journal of Padre Gerard Henri
(Mr. Bocor's story arc, The Book and the Burning)
This old handwritten book is the personal journal of Padre Henri, a jesuit priest who came to the Rogue Isles hundreds of years ago. There are lots of notes about the land and people he met there, and then the entries start to become strange, talking about a great battle on the mountain and sealing a demon away. One thing that sticks out to you is that the first few entries start right after Padre Henri left Egypt after getting some clue about the island from a mysterious source there.
In addition to being a valuable historical resource, the book is also enchanted. It makes the possessor more... pliable to those who know the right kinds of magics.
English Translation
(Virgil Tarikoss' strike force, The Beast Beneath the Mountain)
This book is a translation of the Journal of Father Gerard Henri, a French monk and reputed master of mystic powers who worked for the French government in the 17th century. According to entries in the Journal, Henri came to the Rogue Isles in response to tales of a demon-worshipping cult called the Children of Enos. He arrived to find both the Cultists and the Garrison sent to fight them wiped out. There are pages missing, but what's left talks at great lengths about the preparations Henri and his cohorts went through to face something the Cultists had summoned from the depths of the netherworld in their desperation. Something Henri felt was too powerful for him to destroy, but could be contained within the mountain. Something called Bat'Zul.
Lost Holy Text
(Phillipa Meraux's mission, Investigate the Cave Where the Lost May Be Storing the Stolen Technology)
You found this book in the Rikti base. Written by hand, it describes a utopian society in which physical labor is unnecessary, in which each member's needs are provided for in full. You can imagine the downtrodden Lost pouring over this manuscript in wonder, longing to belong to such a world.
Lost Tongues of the Tower Makers
(Miriam Bloechl or Laura Brunetti's story arc, The Scroll of Tielekku)
Compiled by Greek scholars, this book is a guide to the ancient languages of a lost civilization that built a tower to the stars.
Malleus Mundi
(Scirocco's story arc, The Hammer of the World)
Main Article: Malleus Mundi
Malleus Mundi (Hammer of the World) is an Akkadian text. The tome was rumored to belong to various occult teachers and mystics throughout the 18th and 19th centuries, but the last owner of the Malleus Mundi was thought to have been none other than Baron Zoria's one-time mentor, Grigori Yefimovich Rasputin. Though there is some doubt as to whether they had ever actually met. Some resources indicate that the Circle of Thorns tracked down the text in early 2004 in the Lubyanka Museum’s special archive in Moscow. It was the capture of this same archive that was said to have been one of the objectives of Germany’s Operation Barbarossa during World War II. In fact, a secret unit of the German army, the Spezialwaffen Kommandotruppen, comprised of members of the occult-based Thule Society, was created specifically for this purpose. The archive, however, had been temporarily shipped to Siberia for safekeeping in the first weeks of the invasion.
Mu Codex
(Matthew Burke's mission, Steal Book from Ghost Widow)
A valuable magic book owned by Ghost Widow.
Nectanebo's Book
A relic that increases the power of ToHit buffs.
Obsidian Libram
(Miriam Bloechl or Laura Brunetti's story arc, The Scroll of Tielekku)
Long whispered of in magical circles, the Obsidian Libram is connected with many wild rumors. Some say it is the written soul of a demon. Others insist it is a testament engraved by intelligent saurians during the age of reptiles. Some even whisper that it is a gateway to another plane of being. No one knows the truth, for this book of black stone plates seems to present different faces to different readers.
Of the Great Tower
(Technician Naylor's mission, Get the Items Naylor Needs From the Circle and the Nemesis Army)
Despite the book's title, it seems to be all about how the Circle makes their portals. It's written in their own language, but copiously illustrated. On further perusal, it looks like the book isn't so much about portals in general, but that it's summing up how certain aspects of portal creation pertain to a much larger project.
On Sacrifyces: Their Uses and Their Various Consequences
(Mage-Killer Zuhkara's mission, Get the Books)
A Circle of Thorns book about summoning demons.
On the Dissolution of Psyches
(Calvin Scott's task force, A Mind in Danger)
This tome explains how one can destroy a target's mind by attacking psychic connections they may have with others.
One Book of Rularuu
This book is said to contain the essence of the timelines that have been, are and could be. Each letter is beyond the comprehension of all but Rularuu. Nonetheless, the tiniest fragment bestows power to those who possess it. The One Book gives a 20% reduction to debt incurred by all Supergroup members at all times.
Real Faultline, The
(Doc Delilah's sourvenir, The Real Faultline - by Dr. D. Stein)
This book was written by Doctor Delilah Stein, the Heroine Historian, and published recently to much talk in the media. The book tells the true and sad story of a Hero who was destroyed in the cruelest way possible, and of how his real history finally came to light. It's the story of a Hero named Faultline and what really happened to him.
Red Dust Tome
(Miriam Bloechl or Laura Brunetti's story arc, The Scroll of Tielekku)
These swirling crimson sands are enchanted to form themselves into a book at their owner's will. The Red Dust Tome contains such bizarre knowledge that it can unhinge the thoughts of anyone without extraordinary willpower.
Rikti Factions, Vol 1
(Serpent Drummer's story arc, Dreams of Peace and Acts of War)
This book is an explanation of how the Rikti have become divided since their time on Earth. While there's a great deal of information covered in the book, a series of bookmarks and highlightings help you pick out the important information:
Ever since the end of the First Rikti War, the Rikti on Earth appear to have suffered through disagreements about how best to proceed. These disagreements grew until the Rikti on Earth began to factionalize into two groups: the Traditionalists and the Restructurists.
The Traditionalists believed that wherever they were, they should maintain the norms of Rikti society, with its slow decisions reached through psychic debate and group consensus. The majority of the Traditionalists were from the minority of scientists and engineers who had accompanied the invasion force and had been trapped when the portals were sealed.
The Restructurists felt that the old paradigms wouldn't work in their current situation and were open to creating new ones, centered around the military majority of the invading force. They quickly became focused on advancement through military accomplishment and swelled their ranks with converted humans.
The Traditionalists were terrified of these changes as they saw their society turned upside-down and becoming a military dictatorship. In an attempt to blunt the power of the Restructurists, they've even begun talking to humanity about ending the war. The Restructurists need the continued war to justify their changes, and are unlikely to accept any peace.
It is conjectured that on the Rikti Homeworld, the military is a small minority of Rikti population, and that the Rikti civilian government could have far more power. But, in the war on Earth, the Rikti military and the Restructurists are all anyone knows.
Rites of the Dark
(Colleen Nelson's story arc, A Path Into Darkness)
You found copies of this book on several of the Council soldiers you defeated before they left the country. Each slender volume contains rituals, pledges, and ceremonies used in initiation to something called 'The Path of the Dark.'
Scroll of Bokol
(Police Radio mission, Get the Scroll)
This scroll was penned by those who believe that life here began 'out there', in the depths of space. It talks about the lost colonies of humanity that are supposed to live among the stars.
- This is an ingame reference to Battlestar Galactica; Bokol is referring to the planet/lords/colonies of Kobol.
Scroll of Tielekku
(Miriam Bloechl or Laura Brunetti's story arc, The Scroll of Tielekku)
(Diviner Maros' mission, Steal Scroll of Tielekku)
Main Article: Scroll of Tielekku
The Scroll of Tielekku is an ancient papyrus scroll with the image of the goddess Tielekku seated on a throne of gold surrounded with pictograms. It tells the story of a prehistoric war between two pantheons of gods, a great alliance of man’s first gods and a coalition of twisted gods who fed on death. It goes on to tell how the goddess Tielekku first harnessed the power of magic, taught it to other gods and mortals, and used her power to trick and defeated the evil pantheon, banishing them to the spirit world. The scroll gives instructions for contacting Tielekku herself should the pantheon she banished ever return to trouble the living world. Finally, it warns that this knowledge should never fall into the Banished Pantheon's hands, for they could use it to trap Tielekku and devour her.
Sisterhood of the Huntress
(Indigo's mission, Find the people kidnapped by the Knives of Artemis)
This book illustrates rites and rituals for mystical ceremonies associated with a secret society called 'The Sisterhood of the Huntress.' A cursory examination shows elements of moon worship, ritualized hunting of human beings, and violent human sacrifices. Though the book is filled with hateful screeds against all men and any woman who is not a member of the Sisterhood, you can see evidence it was probably twisted from the dogma of a once gentler fertility cult.
Spells of the First Order
(Miriam Bloechl or Laura Brunetti's story arc, The Scroll of Tielekku)
This tattered vellum folio from 1602 is rumored to be an original translation of the first spells ever taught to mankind by the gods.
Story of Ruladak
(Sara Moore's task force, The Legend of Ruladak)
This handwritten journal is filled by page upon page of densely-cramped writing. Part-way between a journal, a survival guide, and story book, it talks a great deal about living and surviving in the Shadow Shard.
The first entries in the book start with talk of a great cataclysm, when 'The Mad One broke the world'. It speaks next about the short golden age that followed, when 'The Kind One' traveled the lands, promising the survivors that salvation was close at hand, and that their oaths to Rularuu were no more. No mention is made of what the oaths to Rularuu were.
The next set of events deal with the appearance of Ruladak the Strong. Ruladak is called the Brother to Kindness and Brother to Madness, and is called the 'Iron Fist of Rularuu'. The book describes battles between Ruladak, the 'Mad One', and the 'Kind One'. Finally, it details how the Kind One sealed Ruladak away with 4 mystic seals.
Tolshak Mysteries
(Hardcase's story arc, Sold For a Song)
This ancient and musty-smelling tome is filled with occult ciphers that would take years for the uninitiated to interpret. According to Karvost the Mystic, it unlocks key secrets of demonology.
Tome of Hequat
(Newspaper mission, Tome of Hequat Stolen!)
The old leatherbound book contains numerous spells and incarnations, but none that seem to serve your nefarious purpose.
Tome of Persephone
(Unai Kemen's story arc, To Save a Thousand Worlds)
Persephone lived her life half in sunlight, half in shadow. Her tome contains many rituals dealing with the union of two disparate objects or beings. This book was destroyed long ago according to our history, but another dimension still has an existing copy.
Tome of Tormvodel
(Ghost Widow's story arc, Life and Death)
This ancient tome, stolen from Oranbega, should provide the clues Ghost Widow needs to restore her mortal form.
Truth, The
(Dark Watcher's story arc, The Horror of War)
Many people died over the contents of this book. The well-written volume lays out in comprehensive detail the terrible truth of the Rikti War and its origins as the merciless machinations of none other than Nemesis, the so-called 'Prussian Prince of Automatons'. The author chose not to use her name with good reason. Of the many people named in the book who were instrumental in uncovering the truth, you're one of the few who are still alive.
Zeitspielraumexperimente
(Ashwin Lannister or Laurie Pennington's story arc, Ubelmann the Unknown)
This book, written in German in the last days of World War II, appears to be about early time travel experiments. One section has been highlighted heavily, and notes are scribbled along the margin in English. The notes are about the abysmal failure rates of the program, and about the test subjects used in the experiments. The identity of the last test subject jumps off the page at you: an intelligence officer named Wolfgang Ubelmann.