Magic Untapped takes a look at the story of Jolrael, a reclusive mage from the Dominarian continent of Jamuraa.
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TRANSCRIPT:
Welcome back to Who Is on Magic Untapped as we check out the lore of various character from throughout the Magic: The Gathering multiverse.
I’m Barry White.
This time around, we’re spending some time looking at the story of Jolreal, a key person in Dominaria’s Mirage Wars who, believe it or not, is still around today.
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Born in Zhalfir on the Dominarian continent of Jamuraa, Jolreal was naturally gifted in the ways of magic.
In her relative youth, she was a court mage for the royal houses in Ki’pamu, the political capital of Zhalfir. While lauded by the nobles, her non-magical peers were mean and often taunted and teased her.
After years of such abuse, she decided to forsake humanity and requested from Zhalfiran leadership that she be allowed to lead an expedition into the wilds of Mwonvuli, a jungle on the western edge of the kingdom. They agreed and she, along with a small exploration troupe, set off for the wilderness.
The jungle was thick and wild. One by one, Jolreal’s exploration troupe thinned out due to the harshness of the jungle. Jolreal, though, seeing this as an escape from society, persevered until it was only her left on the journey.
Tales of her supposed demise reached the capital, but Jolreal has at last found peace among the wild beasts of the Mwonvuli jungle. Save for one instance when she returned to the capital to witness the mage Teferi crown the Zhalfir’s new queen, she stayed in her reclusive home until she felt a swell of mysterious magical energy from the sea just north of the continent.
Curious, she ventured to investigate. Once at what she felt was its source, she found not just a barren atoll, but also two others whom were also called by the burst: Mangara, a mage diplomat from the nearby continent of Corondor, and Kaervek, an ambitious warlock from Urborg.
As the three could find nothing noteworthy there, they all decided to travel together back to Jamuraa.
On the way back home, Jolreal befriended Kaervek and guided him in exploring the outer reaches of Jamuraa. Mangara, meanwhile, ever the politician, traveled to Ki’pamu and set up shop there.
As they traveled, Kaervek made note of Jolreal’s distrust and disdain for human society. He used this as a means to manipulate her in using her talents of beastmastery to declare a war of sorts against Zhalfir – especially once he noticed the work Mangara was doing in the capital in brokering peace between factions and gaining favor among the nobles.
As Kaervek summoned spirits and nightstalkers from his native Urborg, Jolreal charmed Mwonvuli’s various beasts and animals against the various kingdoms of Jamuraa until, finally, an all-out war erupted.
Kaervek’s war, however, was exhausting for Jolreal and, over time, her loyalty to the warlock’s ambitions waned.
Eventually, a swell of magical energy very much like the one that called her to the sea to begin with happened again. Kaervek, noticing it as well, led an armada back toward the atoll to investigate.
On the way to there – an area that now appears like a grand manor – Jolreal comes to the realization that she’s been manipulated by the warlock this entire time.
She turns on him while in the middle of the Kukemssa Sea and forms a mutiny, seriously wounding Kaervek. The warlock escapes to a nearby marsh shortly before Teferi, who owned and lived at the island manor, scuttled the warlock’s fleet.
Teferi then sent a drake out to the wreckage to save Jolreal, whom he remembered from the queen’s coronation many years prior.
The Mirage Wars now over, Jolreal retreated once more to the wilds of Mwonvuli.
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As for the time since the Mirage Wars, Jolreal has been seen twice thanks to her abnormally long, magically-enhanced lifespan.
She made a brief appearance during the Keldon Invasion of Jamuraa in defense of her homelands not long before the Phyrexian invasion of Domiaria and she was there once again when Zhalfir rejoined the Multiverse at the end of the New Phyrexian multi-plane invasion when her homeland rejoined the timestream, supplanting New Phyrexia itself.
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