3. Diablo 3: Big Trouble in Little Xiansia
If you spend any time hunting for jewels and their combined forms you will be hard pressed to forget Covetous Shen. The artisan jeweler of Diablo 3, he fulfills the vital role of combining, implanting and salvaging these precious stones. Suffice it to say Shen loves gems, though if you spend any amount of time in his presence, his other interests become painfully clear as well. Shen also enjoys talking. And talking. And talking. At great length, for no reason other than he can. However, within that constant chatter, Covetous Shen hints at mysterious revelations about himself and his purpose. Upon first encounter its easy to dismiss these tales as the eccentric ramblings of an old man whos not quite all there. But despite initial hesitations you come to learn that normalcy is the last thing Covetous Shen would ever claim. Shen regularly references Zei the Trickster, the revered god of thievery from his homeland, Xiansai. Despite deftly avoiding personal questions, Shen does not deny being far older than a normal man, nor his similarities to this god that travels the world disguised as a humble merchant. While he never confirms this identity its heavily implied throughout the course of the game that their connection could be much more substantial. In addition to serving all your jeweling needs, Shen claims to be searching for a jewel of his own, one containing a powerful creature named Dirgest. Responsible for the deaths of thousands, the creature was trapped within the stone, but now a flaw has formed in the jewel and through it Dirgest can consume the life of its holder. Convinced hes the only one that can safely handle and seal the stone, Shen fears the possibility of the evil within being unleashed upon the world. If you can dredge through the dense and frequent bursts of nonsense coming from Shen, you find this perfectly packaged subplot just waiting to be expanded upon. One of the last mentions of this missing jewel is when Shen says, When you defeat Diablo, don't laze about. We have other lands to explore, you and I. Dirgest's jewel is still out there somewhere. It doesnt get much clearer than that.