 This article contains spoilers. Read at your own risk!
|
- "Hope is an intellectual anomaly common in the lower species; a primitive belief that somehow, against all odds, the inevitable can be averted. This self-delusion, this disease, is deeply rooted in your culture."
- ―Lord Achriman taunting humanity in one of his propaganda speeches[src]
Lord Achriman was one of Mental's servants, serving as his chief strategist, philosopher, and propagandist. An ancient ruler of the Shadow Plane and a powerful sorcerer, Achriman was put in charge of overseeing the Earth Campaign during the Mental War. He also served as one of the commanders of the Tunguska Offensive and was considered to be the de facto leader of the Cult of the Eightfold Manifestation until his death.
He is a major character who is first mentioned in Serious Sam 3: BFE, but doesn't make an actual appearance until Serious Sam 4. In the game, he serves as the main antagonist and is fought as the penultimate boss.
Biography[]
Lord Achriman was a mighty sorcerer who originated from the Shadow Plane, a little known and strange dimension, where he ruled as Lord of the Shadows. At some point, he came across the mighty Tah-Um, and became one of his oldest and wisest of servants.[1] Throughout the eons, Achriman conquered many worlds in the name of his master, either enslaving the local intelligent lifeforms or exterminating them entirely. For his servitude, he was awarded with the Gold Cross, which also earned him the title of 'Golden Cross Recipient of Tah-Um'.
Achriman was known by many titles, such as Subjugator of the Great Council and the Hegemon of Liminality, which testified his many triumphs over the sentient species of the galaxy. More than merely an accomplished leader, Achriman was also Mental's chief philosopher and propagandist, preaching the deconstruction of the universe in favor of eternal commitment to his master. During the Tunguska Offensive, he was in charge of the Earth Campaign, with a focus on eliminating human resistance across Europe.[1]
Perhaps one of his Achriman's most devious feats was the deception of the sorceresses of the Great Council, who entered a deal with him to fight off Mental, only to be corrupted by Achriman's dark magic and turned into puppets who were forced to serve his master as part of his army.
Appearances[]
Serious Sam 4[]
Lord Achriman appears in-person to confront Sam.
Approximately a month prior to the events of Serious Sam 4, the Mental War was nearing in Mental's favor, and the majority of the human colonies were wiped out, leaving Earth's as their last stronghold. When Mental tracked the retreating humans back to Earth, a massive portal in Tunguska, Russia, appeared, which allowed Mental's forces to battle the humans head-on. Once Mental's forces and the Octanians had managed to gain control and establish bases in the region, Achriman was tasked by Mental to be in charge of the Earth Campaign and either destroy the humans or to force them into serving Mental. This began with Achriman using the Octanian Harvester Leviathans of the allied Cult of the Eightfold Manifestation to convert the human populace into mindless beasts to serve as cannon-fodder for Mental's Horde, a process that involves the surgical removal of the human brain and replacing it with a colony of cyber-parasites.[2] With many hundreds, if not thousands of transformed humans under Achriman's control, he begun leading his forces west towards Europe.[3]
With densely populated areas like Paris and Rome under Achriman and the Octanians' control, he had his forces slaughter any resisting human forces, while Harvester Drones, sent down from the Leviathans, snatched up any defenseless humans for transport back to the motherships. During this time, Achriman began setting up Propaganda Drones to broadcast his messages all across Europe, meant to encourage immediate surrender and demonstrate his intellectual superiority.[4][5] Meanwhile, a convoy of high-ranking Earth Defense Force personnel, the Alien Artifact Acquisition team, are sent into Rome in their search for the legendary Holy Grail, a mysterious artifact rumored to have the power to heal the wounds of the world, which would be a valuable asset in the fight against Mental.
With Achriman's Raider fleet dominating the airspace over Rome, the Triple-A team decide to utilize the capabilities of the HAARP to trigger Mount Vesuvius and force it to erupt. The plan is a success, and the Raider fleet is grounded.[6] Sam and Rodriguez make their way back into Rome to rescue Carter and Father Mikhail, who are trapped in the catacombs, and learn that they need to find a sacred text inside the Vatican Library.[7] Sam and Rodriguez split up to search for them seperately with Sam travelling through some ancient ruins and to the Colosseum, where Achriman greets him with a slow applause.[8] Achriman is amused by Sam's threats and notes that it is humanity's unwavering confidence in the victory of the underdog that makes conquering Earth so entertaining. He then sends a few hordes of his minions after Sam and watches him fight, while further trying to demotivate Sam. After his minions are all eliminated, Achriman summons a colossal Swamp Hive to kill Sam and disappears with a maniacal laughter. Despite Achriman's confidence, Sam kills the beast, reunites with his team and find out that the Holy Grail is actually located in Carcassonne, a medieval fortified town located in France.
Lord Achriman kills Kenny.
Sam and his team are once again separated upon their arrival in France by Octanian raiders, individually trying to make their way to Carcassonne. At the entrance to the city, Sam is greeted by the rookie EDF soldier Kenny, whom Sam has been protecting and mentoring throughout the mission. After fighting off a large horde of Mental's forces together, Achriman appears once again and grabs Kenny by the throat. He mocks Sam's inability to protect his friends and, when Sam challenges him to fight one-on-one and to leave Kenny out of it, asks why he would do that, when instead he impales Kenny's throat with his fingers, killing him. Achriman mocks Sam once again, stating "there goes another hero" as a grim reminder to Sam what happens when humanity continues to resist the fight against Mental. Achriman flees by teleporting away from the scene. Sam calls him to come back, but his pleas go unanswered.[9]
Achriman confronts Sam once again.
With some help from the French Resistance and their informant, Charlie, Sam makes it into the castle, where the Holy Grail is allegedly kept sealed away.[10] Sam fights through the hordes of minions occupying its walls, meets up with the rest of his team one by one and finally reaches the basilica, where Achriman appears once again. He thanks Sam for bringing him his friends, and that way he can kill all of them in one fell swoop. As Achriman monologues, Hellfire, Rodriguez and Father Mikhail notice the pecuilar size of his legs and begin mocking them. Achriman responds by retracting his torso into what is actually a mobile cocoon, and propels himself into the air, having now gained multiple, butterfly-like wings and ready to fight Sam and his friends.[11]
Achriman's final moments.
The fight against Achriman is a tough one as he is fast, surprisingly durable and employed many magical tricks. Before they could even think about defeating him, Sam has to destroy the mobile cocoon with explosives as Achriman can rapidly heal himself with it. As soon as he was somewhat wounded Achriman rushed to the cocoon, opening it up to heal but also making it vulnerable.[11] Even with the cocoon gone, fighting him was not an easy task, as Achriman created many magical clones of himself, each one attacking on its own and hiding his true self among them. But, eventually, even the mighty sorcerer fell and crashed into the ground. As Sam approaches with a shotgun in hand, Achriman defiantly tells him that his victory was only momentary and dared him to immortalize the occasion with one of his worthless one-liners.
Sam replies with "I lost my shoe", referencing Kenny's 'one-liner' from earlier in the game (something that Rodriguez and Jones had relentlessly mocked him for). Achriman was completely dumbfounded by this response, but before he can finish expressing his confusion, Sam blows his head off with his shotgun, ending his reign of terror and avenging Kenny and the thousands of worlds he watched burn.[11]
Serious Sam: Siberian Mayhem[]
Set shortly after Lord Achriman's demise, Sam has to traverse the dangerous Siberian landscape to reach Tunguska and stop the treacherous General Brand, who has taken the supposed "Holy Grail" for himself so he may defect to Mental and join the winning side. Achriman may be gone, but his invasion plan continued without him as Mental's troops flooded onto Earth via the massive portal that appeared in Tunguska. Destroying the portal was paramount to giving humanity a chance for survival, making it necessary to stop Brand at all costs before he could hand the artifact over to Mental.
Achriman himself is briefly mentioned as the one who put a bounty on the head of resistance fighter Igor Ledov for writing a song that insults Mental's mother and by proxy making the heretical claim that Mental has a mother in the first place.[12] There is also some Russian graffiti insulting Achriman that can be found in Ustinov.
Serious Sam 3: BFE[]
A Witch-Bride of Achriman, corrupted by Achriman's dark powers.
While Achriman himself is long dead by the time Serious Sam 3 takes place, his presence lingers in the form of his Witch-Brides that continue to fight for Mental. Sam first encounters one of these Witch-Brides as a boss while he's in Karnak, and soon they become recurring enemies afterwards. Their telekinetic powers and constant shifting between the real world and the Shadow Plane that Achriman once ruled and trapped them in make them some of Sam's most dangerous foes.[13]
Tactics[]
- Always follow the cocoon part of his body. While the coccoon is trying its best to run from the player and their squad, it is slowed and later stops moving when Achriman heals himself. Being near it can give the player the opportunity to throw in C-4 to deal damage to it.
- A good and common tactic the player can use is to throw more than one C-4 charge while Achriman is healing. Throw at least 3 C-4 while he's in stasis mode, but don't activate them one by one, as the cocoon part of his body will become invincible after the first tick of damage.
- Constantly strafing is a good way to dodge Achriman's attacks, especially his lightning bolts. It is necessary to dodge them as well, since there are a limited amount of health packs in the arena, so be cautious. The player should move around in a zig-zag pattern to dodge some of the objects Achriman is throwing at them, but they should also be aware that they're hard to dodge.
- Strong and rapid-fire weapons like the XM214-A Minigun and XPML21 Rocket Launcher are great weapons to use on him when he is vulnerable to attacks. Constantly firing the minigun at him can deplete his health quickly.
Relationships[]
Sam Stone[]
- "You are not only outnumbered, but outdated. A relic from a time when people believed in heroes, or causes or... freedom."
- ―Lord Achriman to Sam[src]
Achriman strongly despised Sam, believing him to be a 'relic' from the past and should be eliminated. As Achriman was so dedicated to his master Tah-Um, he strongly believed that Mental would win the war against the humans, no matter how many of their soldiers Sam killed or how many "witty one-liners" he came up with. He would provoke, taunt and demotivate Sam whenever they encountered one another, and even went as far as to threaten him with Kenny, and showed no regard for the rookie's life. When Sam challenged to fight Achriman one on one and have him spare Kenny's life, Achriman preferred to make Sam suffer even further by killing Kenny right in front of his eyes.[9]
Kenneth Orkanti[]
Just like with any other human fighting against Mental, Achriman showed no mercy nor remorse towards Kenny. He used the rookie's life to threaten Sam and to warn him of the consequences of what would happen when humanity wouldn't surrender and give in to Mental's demands.
Personality and skills[]
Achriman threatens Sam with Kenny's life.
- "You see, that attitude is what makes conquering your planet so amusing. Your unwavering belief in the triumph of the underdog. I want to see that confidence... break."
- ―Lord Achriman to Sam
As one would expect for being a servant of Mental, Achriman was a cruel, ruthless, and manipulative tyrant. He was an incredibly sadistic individual who delighted in deconstructing every single value that those he considers beneath him hold dear, preaching the abandonment of hope and resistance in favor of eternal commitment to the One Infinite. He possessed a superiority complex and had a warped, self-absorbed, and narcissistic view of himself, believing that he was better than everyone else around him. Not only did Achriman possess these quirks, along with having a tendency to insult and provoke people who got in his way, he wouldn't hesistate to commit acts of cruelty, such as when he brutally killed Kenny right in front of Sam as a grim reminder to him of the consquences of fighting in a war.[9]
As Mental's chief philosopher, Achriman possessed great knowledge of the subject, and would use this to his advantage. As heard in his propaganda speeches, he would frequently mock human fundamentals and beliefs, such as freedom, morals, symbols, knowledge, and the concept of heroes. When talking with Sam, Achriman told him these beliefs were nothing more than relics of the past and described them as "illusions" and "bedtime stories for little boys".[14][9] Furthermore, just like his master Tah-Um, Achriman cared nothing for intelligent species such as humans, seeing them as disposable fodder to be molded into tools of his making. He also harbored an intense hatred for planets that were inhabited by intelligent life, such as Earth, stating it as "loud, garish and annoying" and comparing it to a disease.[11]
Achriman had a habit of talking over others, as he wanted to be heard more than anything. That way, he could intimidate his enemies by demonstrating his leadership and sharing his opinions of those he deemed inferior to him. Achriman would even try to talk down his enemies during the middle of a fight, such as when Sam and his team fought him. This infuriated some of Sam's friends, such as Father Mikhail, causing him to cut Achriman off mid-sentence and telling him to just "shut up and fight".
Powers and abilities[]
Achriman chucking debris at Sam and using his cloning ability.
- Skilled Magical Powers: Hailing from the Shadow Plane, Lord Achriman was a powerful sorcerer and extremely skilled in magic.[1] His powers were very similar to those seen by his own minions - the Witch-Brides - but his abilities were far more superior in comparison.
- Summoning: Utilizing his skills in magic, Achriman was able to summon entities. He had used this ability on one occasion to summon a Swamp Hive for Sam to battle with at the Colosseum. He could also summon fireballs to use as projectiles for attacking his enemies.
- Psychokinesis: Like the Witch-Brides, Achriman could cast powerful psychokinetic spells that enabled him to chuck debris such as rocks, pieces of statues, and cars at his enemies.
- Teleportation: Another ability Achriman shared with the Witch-Brides was his ability to teleport, as shown on several occasions which he used to travel from one location to another with ease.[9][11] though he was much faster than the Witch-Brides when using this ability. A disadvantage of this ability, though, was like the Witch-Brides, Achriman would leave a purple trail and a stream of black particles when teleporting around, which enabled Sam and his team to track his movement during the fight.
- Electrokinesis: He had the ability to cast lightning, which he would use as his secondary attack. He could create powerful bolts fo electricity that were very damaging to anything they came into contact with. This ability only worked on stationary targets, though, and could easily be evaded by hiding behind cover or moving out of the way.
- Clone Creation: Achriman possessed the ability to produce clones of himself in order to confuse his opponents. However, these copies could be easily be distinguished from his original body, as they were all standing still in mid-air, whilst Achriman was always attacking. He was able to produce multiple clones at once.[11]
- Immense Durability and Endurance: Despite his appearance, Achriman had incredible endurance and was capable of taking a heavy hit from Sam's weapons. He required heavy firepower to take down, and when he had taken some damage, he could use his cocoon to 'recharge' himself. Only by having his cocoon destroyed was he rendered vulnerable. His high endurance and durability, combined with his superior magical abilities, made Achriman a formimable opponent who was not to be underestimated, even against legends like Serious Sam.
- Flight: Upon merging with his cocoon, Achriman sprouted butterfly-like wings, which granted him the ability to fly. He didn't appear to 'fly' so to speak, as his wings weren't seen visibly flapping that would grant him actual flight, but rather he levitated in the air with them.
- Immense Speed: Despite initially appearing to hardly move around at all, instead relying on his cocoon for transport, Achriman gained incredible speed upon his metamorphosis. He was able to fly fast around the church to avoid Sam's attacks or to attack him behind while Sam was busy fending off his clones.
- Regeneration: With his coccoon, Achriman was able to heal himself and replenish his health whenever he had taken a fair amount of damage. Once it was destroyed, however, he could no longer regenerate.
Quotes[]
- "Let me deconstruct his for you. You are not only outnumbered, but outdated. A relic from a time when people believed in heroes and causes and... freedom. But deep down you know, you must know, this ideas are myths. Bedtime stories for little boys, and you can never win."
- ―Achriman provokes Sam
- "Oh, the hero has defeated the villian. And now what - a one-liner, the perfect manifestation of empty human wit. Maybe a pun, an attempt to to ignore the howling abyss with a ridiculous construct of macho verbiage? What will it be, Sam? With what hollow words will your immortalize this momentary triumph?"
- ―Achriman upon being defeated by Sam
Appearance[]
Out of all Mental's servants seen, Lord Achriman was perhaps the least intimidating in appearance. This also reflected his condescending demeanor and personality. He appeared as a tall, humanoid insectoid alien encased in a cocoon with six spider-like legs; something that Sam and his friends mocked due to how "tiny" they were.[11] Outside of his cocoon, he had skinny legs that were disproportionate with the rest of his body, which were too weak to render aid for walking.[8] He wore metallic or golden armor that covered his shoulders and neck. On his head was a crown that resembled a Regalia of the Pharaoh. His appearance at first was the least intimidating out of all Mental's generals and even some of the monsters in his army.
Upon Achriman's metamorphosis, he gained 2 pairs of translucent, purple butterfly-like wings.
Behind the scenes[]
- Early concept art depicted Achriman with a more insectoid-like appearance, with his face being more "insect-like" compared to the final version.
- Curiously, his old design can be still be seen on EDF and Mental's Horde posters.
- At one point, Achriman was to undergo different stages during the boss fight, before the player would face him in his final stage as a huge dragon-like creature with large wings and a long tail. This design was ultimately scrapped due to time and budget constraints.
- Achriman's name is based on Angra Mainyu, known as "Ahriman" in Middle Persia, the god of evil in Zoroastrianism.
Trivia[]
- Lord Achriman was one of the few servants in Mental's Horde who could speak in fluent and comprehensible language (in this case, English).
- He is voiced by Simon Paisley Day, an English stage and screen actor.[15]
- One of Achriman's quotes ("there is a hierarchy to the universe") is, coincidentally, used by Howard Brand soon after he reveals his treachery to the Triple-A team.
- It's possible, however, that Brand already knew about Achriman's usage of dialogue, and simply reused one of his quotes, seeing that Brand shared Achriman's views and ideologies.
Gallery[]
Artwork[]
Retail[]
List of appearances[]
- Serious Sam 3: BFE (Mentioned)
- Serious Sam 3 VR: BFE (non-canonical appearance) (Mentioned)
- Serious Sam 4 (First appearance)
- Serious Sam: Siberian Mayhem (Mentioned and seen on posters only)
References[]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 NETRICSA description
- ↑ Processed Anthropolyp NETRICSA description
- ↑ Serious Sam 4
- ↑ Serious Sam 4 level: Death from Above
- ↑ Serious Sam 4 level: Death from Below
- ↑ Serious Sam 4 level: The Die Is Cast
- ↑ Serious Sam 4 level: When in Rome
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 Serious Sam 4 level: Morituri Te Salutant
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 9.3 9.4 Serious Sam 4 level: One for the Road
- ↑ Serious Sam 4 level: A Breakfast in France
- ↑ 11.0 11.1 11.2 11.3 11.4 11.5 11.6 Serious Sam 4 level: Anathema Unto God
- ↑ Igor Ledov NETRICSA description
- ↑ Serious Sam 3: BFE Witch-Bride of Achriman NETRICSA description
- ↑ Serious Sam 4 levels: Morituri Te Salutant and Machina Ex Deus (Propaganda Drones broadcasting Lord Achriman's speeches)
- ↑ https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1861862/
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||