- For the Rage Wars version of Tal'Set, see Tal'Set (Rage Wars).
- "Only the strong survive."
- —Tal'Set[3]
Tal'Set, also known as The Valiant One, the Son of Stone, and the Fury of Hope, is a Saquin warrior. He is the main character of Turok: Dinosaur Hunter and Turok: Evolution. He is the first Turok of the Acclaim video game series timeline.
History
Early life
Little is known about Tal'Set's childhood, or his life in general. What is known is that he was born to the Saquin Nation. Tal'Set grew up to be a brave warrior, willing and able to defend his tribe with his life.
In November 1886, the Saquin Nation was attacked by Captain Tobias Bruckner and his men, wiping out most of the tribe. Tal'Set would be the last one standing of his people and the one to fight Bruckner. During their scuffle, the two were suddenly transported to the Lost Land after Chief Grey Bear activated an ancient stone with his blood.
Shortly after arriving in this strange world, Tal'Set is discovered by the River People and is taken to the seer, Tarkeen. The seer identifies Tal'Set as the legendary Turok. Tarkeen then tells Tal'Set that the city of Galyanna is in danger, as the genocidal Lord Tyrannus plans to destroy it. Tyrannus plans to do this by sending his army, led by a colossal beast called the Juggernaut. The army consists of Sleg troops, a race of Dinosoids that are hell-bent on eradicating humans. Meanwhile, Bruckner, having no other purpose in the Lost Land other than to kill Tal'Set, is recruited by Tyrannus to assist in the attack.
On his journey, Tal'Set meets up with a woman named Genn, who offers Tal'Set her armed Quetzalcoatlus as a form of transportation around the Lost Land.
Saving Galyanna
Tal'Set's first objective given by Tarkeen is to save the River Village's Wise Father, who is being held captive at a Sleg base. Tal'Set is able to locate the man but is caught by Bruckner and his team of Slegs. The River Village's troop leader, Djunn, quickly rescues the pair from the base.
Later, Tal'Set journeys to the Suspended City, an area the Slegs are planning to use as a bridge in order to reach Galyanna. This objective is made easy with the help of the Suspended City marines at his side. The warrior is able to destroy the city, forcing the Slegs to retreat, but not for long. Following the destruction, Tal'Set goes airborne once more and engages in battle with the Juggernaut.
Tal'Set is able to weaken the Juggernaut and enters the small fortress atop the beast. He is then able to dispatch many Slegs within and disable the Juggernaut, foiling Tyrannus' plot. The battle for Galyanna is put to an end, and Galyanna stands victorious.
Bruckner's Defeat
While the city of Galyanna is saved, Bruckner still lives. Tal'Set locates Bruckner, and the two engage in battle.
Bruckner, who now has a robotic, prosthetic arm (given to him by Tyrannus to repair the injuries suffered at Tal'Set's hands) arrives on the scene with an armed Tyrannosaurus rex. Tal'Set arrives with a small unit of soldiers to assist in the battle.
Tal'Set is able to down Bruckner's mount, causing the dinosaur to fall onto its side with Bruckner pinned beneath, still alive but defenseless. Bruckner begins shouting at Tal'Set to "finish the job," but Tal'Set decides against this. The warrior explains that Bruckner does not deserve a warrior's death and leaves him to die. Infuriated, Bruckner begins shouting insults at Tal'Set before being devoured by scavengers, a degrading and undignified death.
Tal'Set accepts the mantle of Turok. Tarkeen expresses that he prays that the path Tal'Set has chosen, the path of war, does not consume him.
Meanwhile, Lord Tyrannus is seen at his fortress, letting out a cry of frustration and rage, mourning his defeat.
Turok: Dinosaur Hunter
Sometime after the events of Evolution, Tal'Set remains the current Turok and continues to defend the Lost Land with his life.
He eventually learns of a tyrannical cyborg known as the Campaigner, who plans to enslave the Lost Land and Earth by retrieving an ancient artifact called the Chronoscepter.
The Chronoscepter was a powerful weapon conceived by the Lazarus Concordance which is able to shred the fabric of space and time. Knowing its capabilities, the elders broke the Chronoscepter into eight pieces and scattered them across the Lost Land to prevent it from falling into the wrong hands.
Upon gaining knowledge of this weapon, the Campaigner decides to seek it out and utilize its abilities to destroy the barriers between the Lost Land and the worlds connected to it in an effort to enslave and conquer the universe.
Tal'Set vows to recover the eight pieces of the Chronoscepter before the cyborg does.
Journey Through The Lost Land
Tal'Set ventures all across the Lost Land, recovering the pieces of the Chronoscepter along the way. The warrior encounters several dinosaurs, soldiers recruited by the Campaigner, Aztec warriors, and even a species of aliens during his journey. This is due to the fact that the Lost Land is connected to multiple worlds, acting as a kind of middle ground, and all manner of life from all corners of the universe have ended up there over the millennia.
The warrior journeys through the dense jungles of the Lost Land, the booby trapped labyrinths of ancient cities, and the Campaigner's Fortress itself.
Eventually, Tal'Set locates all eight pieces and assembles the Chronoscepter. He then quickly confronts the Campaigner, and the two engage in battle. Tal'Set uses the Chronoscepter, and the Campaigner is immediately obliterated in the blast.
Chronoscepter's Destruction
Shortly after the Campaigner's defeat, the warrior goes into a dream state where he and Turoks from all time periods discuss the Chronoscepter's fate. They eventually decide to destroy the weapon to prevent it from being used for ill. The destruction causes a violent earthquake across the Lost Land. The released energy of the weapon also reacts with strange, alien technology at the heart of the planet. Awakening an evil entity that was in a deep slumber for Millennia. However, his awakening would go unnoticed by the inhabitants of the Lost Land for Decades.
By the time the Primagen began his assault on the Energy Totems that had been keeping his powers in check, many Turoks had come and gone. It was Tal'Set's descendant, Joshua Fireseed, who was tasked with stopping the Primagen and ending the threat that Tal'Set's actions had awakened.
Trivia
- Tal'Set is voiced by Dean Seltzer in Turok: Dinosaur Hunter.
- Tal'Set's appearance on the cover of Dinosaur Hunter greatly differs from the way he appears in-game. His appearance on the box art is strikingly similar to that of Joshua Fireseed. It is likely that this design was re-used for Joshua. However, Tal'Set would have a similar appearance in the Game Boy Advance version of Turok: Evolution.
- Turok: Evolution for the Game Boy Advance states that Tal'Set is the only survivor of the Saquin Nation from Bruckner's assault.
- Tal'Set appears as a playable character in Seeds of Evil's multiplayer. Here, his name is misspelled as "Tel Set".
- The only game where Tal'Set is not seen or mentioned is Turok 3: Shadow of Oblivion.
List of appearances
Video Games
- Turok: Dinosaur Hunter (First appearance)
- Turok: Battle of the Bionosaurs
- Turok 2: Seeds of Evil
- Turok 2: Seeds of Evil multiplayer (as "Tel Set")
- Turok: Rage Wars
- Turok: Rage Wars (GBC) (Box art only)
- Turok 3: Shadow of Oblivion (GBC) (Image only)
- Turok: Evolution
- Turok: Evolution (GBA)
Comics
- Turok: The Way of the Warrior
- Turok: Spring Break in the Lost Land (Mentioned only)
- Turok/Timewalker #1
- Turok/Timewalker #2
- Turok: Tales of the Lost Land
- Turok Online Exclusive Webcomic
- Turok 2: Seeds of Evil comic adaptation
- Turok: Evolution
Junior Novels
- Turok: Seeds of Evil
- Turok: Arena of Doom (Mentioned only)
- Turok: Path of Destruction
Notes and references
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Gomez, Jeff (October 1997). "The Modern Turok: Dinosaur Hunter Timeline (1860-Present)". Extreme-G Official Game Secrets. New York: Acclaim Comics. p. 128.
- ↑ Staff (June 23, 1998). "Turok Dot Com: Turok Timeline". Archived from the original on February 23, 1999. Accessed July 9, 2016.
- ↑ Turok 2: Seeds of Evil, upon selecting Tal'Set in the Nintendo 64 version's multiplayer mode.
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