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| “ | You should close the door | „ |
| ~ A sign left by Israphel at the Yogcave. |
| “ | I was only four years old, and all I can remember is rain, lightning, and a terrible, pale face. He took our mother from us that night, into whatever dark place he inhabits, and then soon after, our father left us too. Adaphon raised us well, but I was forever haunted by that pale face, and vowed to find out what had happened to my parents. | „ |
| ~ Old Peculier recounting his first memories of Israphel. |
Israphel, also known as the Dark Lord or the Pale-Faced Man, is the titular main antagonist of the famous story-based Minecraft YouTube series Shadow of Israphel, which ran on the YouTube channel "The Yogscast" from 2010 - 2012.
He is the leader of a cult building portals around Minecraftia to allow The Sands to enter and destroy what's around them.
Background[]
Supposedly, Israphel was born on January 1, 1905 (making him 105 or 107 years old assuming the channel is set after from 2010 to 2012), possibly in the town of Terrorvale. Israphel's father was the head of Terrorvale's church, Reverend John. In his youth, Israphel worked for the esteemed Professor Grizwold, who played a key role later in the lore of YouTube series. At one point whilst working for Grizwold, the professor accidentally summoned a creeper which killed the young Israphel.
Israphel has three graves, one near the ruins of Professor Grizwold's lab, where he is referred to as "Lehparsi", one in his home town of Terrovale, and one in Mistral City. Regardless of which backstory is true, the recurring theme of Israphel dying to a creeper implies that is what happened to him. After an unknown amount of time, Israphel was supposedly resurrected by an unknown dark force, speculated to be "the Evil Under the Sand".
Role in Professor Grizwald and The Redstone Keys[]
NOTE: Although this series was filmed after Minecraft and Shadow of Israphel, the events of this mini-series pre-date that of Minecraft and SOI.
Israphel serves as the main antagonist in The Yogscast mini-series "Professor Grizwald and The Redstone Keys". In the mini-series a mysterious apprentice of Professor Grizwald, widely assumed to be Israphel, was said to have been killed by a creeper. This "apprentice" is the antagonist of the maps, and has caused numerous damage to the world there, even staring a goblin rebellion, which threatened to start a war. The rebellion was shut down by the series' main protagonists, a dwarf named Honeydew and an astronaut called Xephos.
Role in Minecraft Survival Multiplayer[]
First Appearances[]
Israphel's ever first appearance was in The Yogscast's "Minecraft Survival Multiplayer" series. Prior to his initial appearance, Israphel acted as nuisance in The Yogscast's Minecraft world, constructing strange buildings and objects. His first act of malevolence was skillfully booby-trapping Honeydew and Xephos' base and home, known as "The Yogcave", with TNT. His first true appearance was in the 17th episode of the series.
Honeydew and Xephos were expanding their base, when they spotted Israphel who preceded to fire arrows at them. Realising the duo were armed, Israphel fled, causing Honeydew and Xephos to chase after him. When they left their base, armed with swords, Israphel had vanished, and the duo returned to their work. Israphel isn't seen again until Episode 21, where, once more, he attacks Honeydew and Xephos whilst they are upgrading their base. This time, whilst chasing Israphel, the duo stumbled upon a bridge which led them to the town of Terrovale, where they meet "Old Peculier", who would become the series' tritagonist.
Kidnapping of Daisy Duke[]
Whilst in Terrovale, Honeydew and Xephos met Israphel's father, Reverend John, who sent the duo on a series of dangerous tasks in an attempt to get them killed. It is later revealed that John had been brainwashed or even possessed by Israphel. It is whilst the heroes were doing one of these tasks that Israphel kidnapped Daisy Duke, the local blacksmith and Old Peculier's love interest.
After following Israphel into the town crypt, the duo were met by Reverend John, who attempted to murder them, resulting in his death. After following Israphel through a long series of tunnels, Honeydew and Xephos discovered a gargantuan fortress under the town, where Israphel was holding Daisy. Despite Xephos and Honeydew's best efforts, Israphel managed to escape with the kidnapped Daisy through a "Hellgate" in the "Cave of Terror" that Honeydew and Xephos had built earlier.
Role in Shadow of Israphel[]
Isrpahel has a much bigger role in Season 3, and is played as a much bigger antagonist. In the first episode of the series, he is revealed to have almost completely destroyed the Yogcave, with only a few bits of it still standing. This leads the now four heroes, Xephos, Honeydew, Old Peculier and Skylord Lysander, to Mistral City. He orders he pirate Jock Fireblast to burn down Mistral City in episode 10, framing Lysander in the process.
In episode 11, he orders the capture of Granny Bacon, Honeydew's love, later killing her and turning her into a zombie. He also resurrects his father, Reverend John, as an undead, who is also killed. After watching Israphel himself follow Old Peculier into a tunnel, Honeydew and Xephos chase after him. Later in the series, the heroes go to Verigan's Hold, where they read The Tale of the Sands. In episode 15, Israphel gets his first big appearance, as he attacks the trio with a few minions as they try to rebuild The Wall.
It is in this appearance where they actually fight, Xephos getting within a few feet of him and attacking him with his sword. After the three of them retreat, he waits at The Wall, still damaging it.
Later Israphel's face is spotted briefly by Xephos in a different desert, and they take chase. But a sudden storm hits, and they lose sight of him and instead find a Stone Dragon and a temple, with a tomb that reads "The Tomb of The Dark Pharaoh Lehparsi". Several Yogscast fans noted that Lehparsi is simply Israphel spelled backwards. It is possible the storm was caused by Israphel to escape from the group.
He converted Skylord Vitali to his side, ordering him to kill all the other Skylords, and to bring him the Skyhold to serve as his fortress, and air ship. His hand can be seen in the events at Stoneholm, as he seems to be the one who made some dwarves disappear, and made King Finbar sicken, then come back to life as a cultist, as well as the one who granted him his dark powers. It seems his current plan is to awaken the Jade Sentinels, and sacrifice Daisy Duke to them. He seems to be using the Sands in a way they were not intended to be used, and is behind much of the events in The Hand, haunting Enoch inside his dreams, abducting Webley Grizwold, and brainwashing the clones produced there.
Behind the Scenes[]
Israphel is portrayed primarily by The Yogscast's Paul Sykes, commonly known as "Sjin". Despite the series' discontinuation in July 2012, Israphel had remained a fan-favourite and presence in both The Yogscast and Minecraft communities. He is referenced by members of The Yogscast frequently, and is occasionally hidden in various videos, possibly hinting of a reboot of the series in the future.
Trivia[]
- Israphel's in-game skin appears to be an albino creeper.
- Israphel is believed to have possible time-slowing abilities.
External links[]
- Israphel on the Villainous Benchmark Wiki.