Parallel Lines (OOC)
- Thread starter Eluvan
- Start date
Bronze, Apostle of the Lord of Blades
Here is the character concept that I submitted to the Wizards.com UnCon charater creation contest, and I'm submitting it now to you to hopefully play in your Eberron game. Hope you like it!
>>>>>>>>>>
“I live to serve. He who has created me gave me life and I use that life to serve Him. He is my Creator. My Lord. My Lord of Blades. Within the creation forge from which I emerged, my Lord designed a new breed. A breed of Warforged designed expressly to be His conduit to the world. My brethren and I have been placed upon the land of Eberron to bring forth His message to others of our kind… they who have not yet looked into their futures and seen He who shall free us and lead us home.
We must all embrace our Lord. My soul is His soul, and He shall bring us divinity.”
Bronze, Apostle of the Lord of Blades
The “living construct”-- at once an oxymoron and a reality. For the race of the warforged, to be granted life through a machine rather than a womb is a concept that is at once mystifying and enlightening. How a creature of metal and wood could be born with a soul is a mystery that only the members of House Cannith have an answer to. However, now that this oxymoron is in fact a reality, there is one warforged in particular who is bringing all his children together as the singular race that they are. For many years the Lord of Blades has been a messianic figure for a good number of warforged, but he never looked upon himself in any sort of divine way. Until now.
The Lord of Blades has begun using his creation forges to birth a new breed of warforged… a breed which have a soul stronger than any others that have come before them. An enlightened soul… a divine soul… a Favored Soul. And these Favored Souls follow the tenets of their savior, and no one else.
Background:
It was just over a year ago that Bronze and his five brethren (Platnium, Gold, Silver, Copper, and Brass) came out of the secret creation forge of the Lord of Blades, hidden somewhere in the depths of the Mournland. Almost immediately upon his birthing he discovered the divine power coursing through his mechanical body, and spend a solid six months in a monastic lifestyle as he pondered the reason of his existance and the power his Lord had granted him. He and his brethren studied and trained at the foot of their Lord, learning His Message of one day rising up and assuming the mantle of their birthright-- leadership of Khorvaire itself. They each were taught that the very reason for their life was to extend the reach of the Lord’s swordarm to those areas of Khorvaire where simple heresay of the Lord's deeds alone would not do the trick. Although many warforged had already heeded their Lord’s call and come on a pilgrimage to what was once Cyre, there were still many other 'forged who as yet had not. These six would go out across the land and pass on the knowledge they were given, in hopes of bringing more of their people into the fold.
At the end of the six months of training, each of the six apostles went off to a different corner of the continent to pass on the Lord’s message of solidarity within the warforged race. Bronze has now spent the last seven months working within [Area of Campaign Start] passing on the tenets of the Lord of Blades, and slowly but surely more and more Warforged are leaving their posts and positions to indeed travel to the Mournlands. Every day Bronze continues his work, walking and adventuring amongst all the races and doing his best to pass on his Lord's message to every warforged he meets.
Personality:
Bronze works subtly as he walks amongst his fellow creatures of Khorvaire. He does not out and out declare the eventual downfall of humanity (as that would be a death sentence), but rather he speaks in soothing tones of devious propoganda about what the warforged are truly capable of if they throw off their shackles of their previous rolls of servitude. Those around him might not even realize of what he truly speaks, so Bronze is able to walk freely and indeed adventure with members of the "other" races. But regardless of what duty or job he might be currently employed to do, he will always continue to promote the independance and rise of the warforged race in whatever sublte manner he might find. In addition, although he tends to be more of a sermonizer, negotiator and a speaker of truths, he will willing pick up his blade when he needs to emphasize his point. Sometimes the only way to get people to understand is to beat the truth into them... something he has no problems doing.
Appearance:
Bronze is built very muscular and well-designed... one might almost say "beautiful". His body is laced with mithril, iron, and many plates of deep bronze, and the wood inside of him has been stained to match. In honor of his place at the foot of the Lord of Blades, his body has been adorned with precious diamonds and topaz, and his torso is carved with intricate patterns, almost like a dragonmark itself.
Here is the character concept that I submitted to the Wizards.com UnCon charater creation contest, and I'm submitting it now to you to hopefully play in your Eberron game. Hope you like it!
>>>>>>>>>>
“I live to serve. He who has created me gave me life and I use that life to serve Him. He is my Creator. My Lord. My Lord of Blades. Within the creation forge from which I emerged, my Lord designed a new breed. A breed of Warforged designed expressly to be His conduit to the world. My brethren and I have been placed upon the land of Eberron to bring forth His message to others of our kind… they who have not yet looked into their futures and seen He who shall free us and lead us home.
We must all embrace our Lord. My soul is His soul, and He shall bring us divinity.”
Bronze, Apostle of the Lord of Blades
The “living construct”-- at once an oxymoron and a reality. For the race of the warforged, to be granted life through a machine rather than a womb is a concept that is at once mystifying and enlightening. How a creature of metal and wood could be born with a soul is a mystery that only the members of House Cannith have an answer to. However, now that this oxymoron is in fact a reality, there is one warforged in particular who is bringing all his children together as the singular race that they are. For many years the Lord of Blades has been a messianic figure for a good number of warforged, but he never looked upon himself in any sort of divine way. Until now.
The Lord of Blades has begun using his creation forges to birth a new breed of warforged… a breed which have a soul stronger than any others that have come before them. An enlightened soul… a divine soul… a Favored Soul. And these Favored Souls follow the tenets of their savior, and no one else.
Background:
It was just over a year ago that Bronze and his five brethren (Platnium, Gold, Silver, Copper, and Brass) came out of the secret creation forge of the Lord of Blades, hidden somewhere in the depths of the Mournland. Almost immediately upon his birthing he discovered the divine power coursing through his mechanical body, and spend a solid six months in a monastic lifestyle as he pondered the reason of his existance and the power his Lord had granted him. He and his brethren studied and trained at the foot of their Lord, learning His Message of one day rising up and assuming the mantle of their birthright-- leadership of Khorvaire itself. They each were taught that the very reason for their life was to extend the reach of the Lord’s swordarm to those areas of Khorvaire where simple heresay of the Lord's deeds alone would not do the trick. Although many warforged had already heeded their Lord’s call and come on a pilgrimage to what was once Cyre, there were still many other 'forged who as yet had not. These six would go out across the land and pass on the knowledge they were given, in hopes of bringing more of their people into the fold.
At the end of the six months of training, each of the six apostles went off to a different corner of the continent to pass on the Lord’s message of solidarity within the warforged race. Bronze has now spent the last seven months working within [Area of Campaign Start] passing on the tenets of the Lord of Blades, and slowly but surely more and more Warforged are leaving their posts and positions to indeed travel to the Mournlands. Every day Bronze continues his work, walking and adventuring amongst all the races and doing his best to pass on his Lord's message to every warforged he meets.
Personality:
Bronze works subtly as he walks amongst his fellow creatures of Khorvaire. He does not out and out declare the eventual downfall of humanity (as that would be a death sentence), but rather he speaks in soothing tones of devious propoganda about what the warforged are truly capable of if they throw off their shackles of their previous rolls of servitude. Those around him might not even realize of what he truly speaks, so Bronze is able to walk freely and indeed adventure with members of the "other" races. But regardless of what duty or job he might be currently employed to do, he will always continue to promote the independance and rise of the warforged race in whatever sublte manner he might find. In addition, although he tends to be more of a sermonizer, negotiator and a speaker of truths, he will willing pick up his blade when he needs to emphasize his point. Sometimes the only way to get people to understand is to beat the truth into them... something he has no problems doing.
Appearance:
Bronze is built very muscular and well-designed... one might almost say "beautiful". His body is laced with mithril, iron, and many plates of deep bronze, and the wood inside of him has been stained to match. In honor of his place at the foot of the Lord of Blades, his body has been adorned with precious diamonds and topaz, and his torso is carved with intricate patterns, almost like a dragonmark itself.
Eluvan
First Post
DEFCON: You've put a lot of thought and work into this, which is good. I'm not sure how much I like the 'chosen one' angle though. When players start wanting to make characters who are one of only five special, superior warforged made by the Lord of Blades himself I get a bit tetchy, for all the same reasons that if I was running Forgotten Realms I would have a problem with one of the characters being Elminster's cousin or something. I'm not saying there's no way I'll let it through. I'm open to intelligent counter-arguements. But it is an issue.
I completely understand where you are coming from, and I agree about the whole "chosen one" kind of thing, which indeed can get very sticky. Quite frankly since I cut and pasted most of it over from my UnCon entry, I didn't do anything to edit out that kind of stuff, which I have no problem doing if you think it might need it.
Although to be honest... the whole reason I created the history the way I did was because of the very compressed timetable the ECS seems to give us. In the ECS it mentions that it's only rumored that the LoB has a working Creation Forge, and if those rumors are true, it's one that he's had to jury-rig and thus won't be able to churn out new ones at the same exponential rate that House Cannix used to be able to. So quite frankly, as far as "new" warforged are concerned (i.e. the ones that have been created following the ban from the Treaty of Thronehold), there probably ONLY ARE a few of them (from both X d'Cannith's secret forge and LoB's secret forge). So yeah, my warforge would be "special" inasmuch that he's probably only one of a dozen that the LoB has probably been able to create in the last two years.
What does that mean? Realistically and game-wise... not much. There's no difference between my warforged and any other warforged that is out there... except that because I wanted to figure out a logical reason why a warforged would have the Favored Soul class (since Favored Souls are BORN with a hint of the divine rather than praying for it). The only way that seeemed to make the most sense was if the LoB built him that way (as opposed to a warforge suddenly "discovering" the hint of divinity within them).
Quite frankly, I can have Bronze be a Favored Soul for ANY of the gods... but it seemed liked worshipping the LoB made the most sense. And there really isn't anything "special" the character gets for being a Favored Soul of the LoB because all he's doing is going out and "preaching quietly" to other warforged he runs into any saying "you know, the LoB has some good ideas that you may want to go listen to..." And as that is a very dicey proposition, the character can't make any hay off his supposed Favored Soul status. Cause if he did... and people discovered that not only has the LoB a working creation forge but that he's also creating an army (slowly creating it granted), that most of the surrounding countries would come down on the LoB like a ton of bricks. So the history I created and his supposed "chosen one" status, are basically things that will never, ever get mentioned because Bronze knows that to reveal himself is to cause a whole mess of headaches for the LoB.
So that's my hopefully intelligent counter-argument.
Which basically just says that I'm not expecting (nor desire) any special treatment for the character, but rather am just trying to make "warforged race" plus "favored soul class" equal something that makes logical sense. But like I said above... I have no problems whatsoever editing things and/or recreating things to make a character concept that doesn't make you tetchy. I just want to play a favored soul, and the warforged was an interesting race to play it as. Thanx Eluvan!
Although to be honest... the whole reason I created the history the way I did was because of the very compressed timetable the ECS seems to give us. In the ECS it mentions that it's only rumored that the LoB has a working Creation Forge, and if those rumors are true, it's one that he's had to jury-rig and thus won't be able to churn out new ones at the same exponential rate that House Cannix used to be able to. So quite frankly, as far as "new" warforged are concerned (i.e. the ones that have been created following the ban from the Treaty of Thronehold), there probably ONLY ARE a few of them (from both X d'Cannith's secret forge and LoB's secret forge). So yeah, my warforge would be "special" inasmuch that he's probably only one of a dozen that the LoB has probably been able to create in the last two years.
What does that mean? Realistically and game-wise... not much. There's no difference between my warforged and any other warforged that is out there... except that because I wanted to figure out a logical reason why a warforged would have the Favored Soul class (since Favored Souls are BORN with a hint of the divine rather than praying for it). The only way that seeemed to make the most sense was if the LoB built him that way (as opposed to a warforge suddenly "discovering" the hint of divinity within them).
Quite frankly, I can have Bronze be a Favored Soul for ANY of the gods... but it seemed liked worshipping the LoB made the most sense. And there really isn't anything "special" the character gets for being a Favored Soul of the LoB because all he's doing is going out and "preaching quietly" to other warforged he runs into any saying "you know, the LoB has some good ideas that you may want to go listen to..." And as that is a very dicey proposition, the character can't make any hay off his supposed Favored Soul status. Cause if he did... and people discovered that not only has the LoB a working creation forge but that he's also creating an army (slowly creating it granted), that most of the surrounding countries would come down on the LoB like a ton of bricks. So the history I created and his supposed "chosen one" status, are basically things that will never, ever get mentioned because Bronze knows that to reveal himself is to cause a whole mess of headaches for the LoB.
So that's my hopefully intelligent counter-argument.
Which basically just says that I'm not expecting (nor desire) any special treatment for the character, but rather am just trying to make "warforged race" plus "favored soul class" equal something that makes logical sense. But like I said above... I have no problems whatsoever editing things and/or recreating things to make a character concept that doesn't make you tetchy. I just want to play a favored soul, and the warforged was an interesting race to play it as. Thanx Eluvan!
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Sorren
First Post
I've got a character concept I'd like to play if you still have room:
Sorrenkhad, Kalashtar Psychic Warrior (will multiclass with psion at next level)
Born to a legacy of war, Sorrenkhad is the last surviving child of House Talisk. The patriarch of his House, Sorgenkhad, was also his father. Sorgenkhad was a great military leader and was a hero of the people of Adar. He was attributed to commanding many of the few victories over the Inspired that lay siege to their sanctuary home.
Sorgen one day called council, claiming he had conversed with the Storm Guardians, and was given a vision of victory over the Inspired. His plan was to strike out against them with everything they had, eschewing defense in favor of offense, hoping the sudden change in tactics would grant them an element of surprise that would give them an edge against their enemies.
Though Sorgen had always been well received in the past, this new plan was surely madness. The other generals and councilmen didn’t agree with this change in tactics. After all, why would the Storm Guardian’s speak to Sorgen when they spoke to no other? Was he mad?
Unwilling to take the risk of lowering their defenses, Sorgen’s was denied. However, this didn’t stop the powerful general. He gathered unto him all of his faithful soldiers, and with them, proceeded with the plan in secret. Soon, he struck out against the council’s will, taking his men, and leaving Adar nearly defenseless. Sorgenkhad led his men down the mountain to what he believed was certain victory. What he faced was not a battle, but a slaughter.
The powerful telepath’s of the Inspired had long heard the tails of the powerful House Talisk, and had devised a way to defeat the proud general. They approached him in his meditations, taking the form of the Storm Guardians. They convinced him of this mad plan, bolstered his pride, and in the end, led him into a trap that spelled his doom.
The forces waiting for Sorgenkhad’s charge were uncountable. They destroyed his forces and fell upon the weakened defenses of Adar with the intention of killing ever Kalashtar they could find, particularly those of House Talisk. The battle was terrible as powerful psionic forces ripped through the valley, swords and Wills clashed and thousands died. In the end, the determination of Adar’s people, the mighty storms that came from sky above, and even the mountains themselves proved too much for the Inspired. Adar still stood, but the price its people paid for Sorgen’s arrogance would never be forgotten.
During that horrible battle, as the Inspired ravaged the land in search of Sorgenkhad’s bloodline, his wife gathered what was left of House Talisk and, using an ancient psionic artifact, transported herself and her kin to Khorvaire. There she gave birth to her son, Sorrenkhad upon the Starpeaks of Aundair.
The survivors of House Talisk knew they had no place in Adar. Their family name was ruined and the Inspired’s Dreaming Dark agents were actively searching for them. Their only hope was to make a life for themselves in this new land. They took up residence in Fairhaven and for years made a living for themselves as gemcutters and general laborers. The claimed to be human, and took the family name Khadiir.
Life was good for Sorren, at least it was until one late winter day not long after his 17th birthday. At long last, the Dark had found them. He and his uncle, Jakenkhad returned home one evening to find their home destroyed, blown apart from the inside by a sudden expansion of fiery energy. His mother dead and his home destroyed, Sorren and Jaken fled.
Eventually the pair, the last known members of House Talisk, found themselves in Sharn. Certainly no one would be able to find them among the great City of Towers. Since they arrived two years ago, Jaken has been training young Sorren to fight, using both his mind and body as a weapon. They pair of them lay low, not drawing attention to their psionic nature. They make a living a gemcutters and jewelry makers, all the while training for a day when they may be required to defend themselves.
Recently however, Sorren has grown increasingly impatient. His powers have grown and, much like his father before him, he has a hard time watching the world go by without him. Refusing to live a life cowering in fear, he has become obsessed with obtaining power. He plans to become powerful enough to one day go home to Adar, reestablish House Talisk, and take the fight back to the Inspired. They will pay for what they did to his kin, and they will pay for the life of fear he has thus far endured.
Sorrenkhad, Kalashtar Psychic Warrior (will multiclass with psion at next level)
Born to a legacy of war, Sorrenkhad is the last surviving child of House Talisk. The patriarch of his House, Sorgenkhad, was also his father. Sorgenkhad was a great military leader and was a hero of the people of Adar. He was attributed to commanding many of the few victories over the Inspired that lay siege to their sanctuary home.
Sorgen one day called council, claiming he had conversed with the Storm Guardians, and was given a vision of victory over the Inspired. His plan was to strike out against them with everything they had, eschewing defense in favor of offense, hoping the sudden change in tactics would grant them an element of surprise that would give them an edge against their enemies.
Though Sorgen had always been well received in the past, this new plan was surely madness. The other generals and councilmen didn’t agree with this change in tactics. After all, why would the Storm Guardian’s speak to Sorgen when they spoke to no other? Was he mad?
Unwilling to take the risk of lowering their defenses, Sorgen’s was denied. However, this didn’t stop the powerful general. He gathered unto him all of his faithful soldiers, and with them, proceeded with the plan in secret. Soon, he struck out against the council’s will, taking his men, and leaving Adar nearly defenseless. Sorgenkhad led his men down the mountain to what he believed was certain victory. What he faced was not a battle, but a slaughter.
The powerful telepath’s of the Inspired had long heard the tails of the powerful House Talisk, and had devised a way to defeat the proud general. They approached him in his meditations, taking the form of the Storm Guardians. They convinced him of this mad plan, bolstered his pride, and in the end, led him into a trap that spelled his doom.
The forces waiting for Sorgenkhad’s charge were uncountable. They destroyed his forces and fell upon the weakened defenses of Adar with the intention of killing ever Kalashtar they could find, particularly those of House Talisk. The battle was terrible as powerful psionic forces ripped through the valley, swords and Wills clashed and thousands died. In the end, the determination of Adar’s people, the mighty storms that came from sky above, and even the mountains themselves proved too much for the Inspired. Adar still stood, but the price its people paid for Sorgen’s arrogance would never be forgotten.
During that horrible battle, as the Inspired ravaged the land in search of Sorgenkhad’s bloodline, his wife gathered what was left of House Talisk and, using an ancient psionic artifact, transported herself and her kin to Khorvaire. There she gave birth to her son, Sorrenkhad upon the Starpeaks of Aundair.
The survivors of House Talisk knew they had no place in Adar. Their family name was ruined and the Inspired’s Dreaming Dark agents were actively searching for them. Their only hope was to make a life for themselves in this new land. They took up residence in Fairhaven and for years made a living for themselves as gemcutters and general laborers. The claimed to be human, and took the family name Khadiir.
Life was good for Sorren, at least it was until one late winter day not long after his 17th birthday. At long last, the Dark had found them. He and his uncle, Jakenkhad returned home one evening to find their home destroyed, blown apart from the inside by a sudden expansion of fiery energy. His mother dead and his home destroyed, Sorren and Jaken fled.
Eventually the pair, the last known members of House Talisk, found themselves in Sharn. Certainly no one would be able to find them among the great City of Towers. Since they arrived two years ago, Jaken has been training young Sorren to fight, using both his mind and body as a weapon. They pair of them lay low, not drawing attention to their psionic nature. They make a living a gemcutters and jewelry makers, all the while training for a day when they may be required to defend themselves.
Recently however, Sorren has grown increasingly impatient. His powers have grown and, much like his father before him, he has a hard time watching the world go by without him. Refusing to live a life cowering in fear, he has become obsessed with obtaining power. He plans to become powerful enough to one day go home to Adar, reestablish House Talisk, and take the fight back to the Inspired. They will pay for what they did to his kin, and they will pay for the life of fear he has thus far endured.
Eluvan
First Post
Well, thus far I am encouraged by the quality of submissions I am receiving. DEFCON, I think you have just about managed to convince me. In all honesty all I truly wanted to do was to make sure that you didn't just think it would be kewl to be personally attached to the Lord of Blades. You have managed to come up with a cohesive reason why you want this for your character concept, and that is good enough for me. Keep 'em coming guys! I think I will allow another 48 hours for submission of concepts and then choose the players I want to take.
ShaggySpellsword
First Post
Systar os Taer Cyjyl (CG Male Valenar Elf Bard1) (revised history)
Systar was born into the clans of the Valaes Tairn in the year 866 YK. His father, Tharaes Pel, was a Keeper of the Past, a historian and holy man for his clan, and a feared archer. Systar’s mother, Belaesia, was a brave adventuress, known for her daring expeditions into Xen’drick, seeking out and recovering relics of the ancient Elven heroes. In Systar’s young life, he was indoctrinated with a great loves of his people, the Tairnadal, and was taught all of the great histories and songs of his people. He wasn’t ever especially close to his mother, as she was often off traveling to Xen’drick, bringing back relics to be kept safe at his father’s temple, but Systar would often sit long hours to hear his father’s histories and bow-songs. In 894 YK, when Systar’s mother didn’t return from an expedition, this close tie grew even stronger.
Systar, much like his patron ancestor Kelaerys Thousand-Stings, took to the bow quite quickly, his father being an excellent teacher. Years of stringing strong wooden staves, and honing the fluid motion and instinctive aim that all Valenar bowmen are known for built Systar up physically, making him a favorite in his town, a young boy praised for his skill in song and history as well as his martial talents. With this praise Systar grew in confidence, and was excited when, in 914 YK, his father decided that they would accompany the largest host of Tairnadal elves mustered in years to Khorvaire, to aid the kingdom of Cyre against its enemies.
This move changed Systar’s life. While he rarely saw any actual combat and was often sent to stay with baggage trains, the excitement of warfare and travel was almost like an intoxicant to young Systar. At camp, Systar would often sing the ancient songs of Elven heroes for the entertainment of the tired troops, keeping up morale and maintaining his status as a favorite of his war band. This joy increased tenfold when Systar, his father, and the rest of the Tairnadal took the ancestral homeland of the Tairnadal for themselves, founding the Kingdom of Valenar.
Systar’s extended war-family founded a small keep along the cost and called it Taer Cyjyl, after a famous keep that once stood in Aerenal. Here, Systar continued to work on his bow skills, and his father was put in charge of defending the town, and protecting those too young to fight, or those who returned to the keep injured.
In 973 YK, when Systar was a mere 95 years old, a large raiding party of Talenta Barbarians struck deep into Valenar and was poised to attack Taer Cyjyl. Most of the war band left the city, leaving behind only Systar’s father, and a handful of wounded or very young warriors to guard the Keep. A fleet of boats landed on the shore near the keep, scaled the walls, and put Taer Cyjyl to the torch. Systar and his father made a valiant attempt to protect the temple, and hold of the two dozen or so attackers, but it was impossible. Systar’s father, with the town and all of their friends dying all around them, made Systar promise to run, and get word to the war band. Systar did as he was told, stopping long enough to look back and see his father killed by an elf dressed all in black, with a strange tattoo sprawled across the right side of his face. Systar ran to the battlefield only to find the war band destroyed by a force vastly superior in numbers than had been expected. Systar, armed with only his bow, was forced to travel through enemy occupied territory to the nearest Valenar stronghold. Systar warned them of an impending attack and then collapsed from exhaustion. The attack never came.
A leader of a scouting party, Myr Shadar, took his band out, and found Systar’s story to be true. Impressed by the young elf’s survival instinct and apparent warrior prowess, Myr took Systar under his wing, training him in the art of War Archery, not simply the form and aim, but the practical applications of using your bow to rule the field. Systar, horrified by his loss, was a willing, if withdrawn student, and with time, became an accepted member of Myr’s unit, the Eisyrn Mas (Roughly translated: Arrow Swarm). Over time, Systar started thinking of Myr as a second father, and his war band as a new family, and the old Systar started to show through, never as confident, never as boisterous, but still Systar, skilled, and well liked by all. Because of his relative youth, Systar was often protected from the worse of the fighting, and took on the role of an almost mascot for the Eisyrn Mas. It was in this capacity that Systar saw the last ten years of the Last War.
Systar had put much of the tragedy of Taer Cyjyl out of his head until one day, five years ago, when Systar was on the battlefield combating a powerful Cyren host along his and many other Valenar war bands. A Cavalry unit broke through the flanks of their formation, and the horses were amongst the archers. The leader of the cavalry unit was dressed entirely in black plate, and bore down upon Systar. Systar drew his blade and succeeded in impaling the horse, throwing its rider, before a flail caught him in the head, knocking him near to unconsciousness. Before he closed his eyes for what he thought would be the last time, Systar saw the rider stand, remove his helmet, and continue fighting. It was the leader of the Taer Cyjyl raiders. Try as he could to kill him, Systar could only succumb to sleep.
Systar awoke as in a dream. They had won the battle. Myr Shadar was dead and his second in command, a big, burley, likeable fellow named Bestaes Sai now commanded the Eisyrn Mas. Once again, Systar became haunted by the death of another father, and the presence of that tattooed elf in black. Systar rejoined the war band in battle, his bow-songs sounding like dirges, and his demeanor noticeably grim. When the war ended three years later, Systar still had not shaken off his need to know who the man was who took so much from him, and could not stand to find himself grow too close to Bestaes or any of the others, only to lose them again. Systar, with the war over, struck out on his own to travel the cities of Khorvaire, hoping to determine something about the tattooed man in black, and to make his ancestors, Kelaerys Thousand-Stings, Tharaes Pel, and Myr Shadar proud.
Systar was born into the clans of the Valaes Tairn in the year 866 YK. His father, Tharaes Pel, was a Keeper of the Past, a historian and holy man for his clan, and a feared archer. Systar’s mother, Belaesia, was a brave adventuress, known for her daring expeditions into Xen’drick, seeking out and recovering relics of the ancient Elven heroes. In Systar’s young life, he was indoctrinated with a great loves of his people, the Tairnadal, and was taught all of the great histories and songs of his people. He wasn’t ever especially close to his mother, as she was often off traveling to Xen’drick, bringing back relics to be kept safe at his father’s temple, but Systar would often sit long hours to hear his father’s histories and bow-songs. In 894 YK, when Systar’s mother didn’t return from an expedition, this close tie grew even stronger.
Systar, much like his patron ancestor Kelaerys Thousand-Stings, took to the bow quite quickly, his father being an excellent teacher. Years of stringing strong wooden staves, and honing the fluid motion and instinctive aim that all Valenar bowmen are known for built Systar up physically, making him a favorite in his town, a young boy praised for his skill in song and history as well as his martial talents. With this praise Systar grew in confidence, and was excited when, in 914 YK, his father decided that they would accompany the largest host of Tairnadal elves mustered in years to Khorvaire, to aid the kingdom of Cyre against its enemies.
This move changed Systar’s life. While he rarely saw any actual combat and was often sent to stay with baggage trains, the excitement of warfare and travel was almost like an intoxicant to young Systar. At camp, Systar would often sing the ancient songs of Elven heroes for the entertainment of the tired troops, keeping up morale and maintaining his status as a favorite of his war band. This joy increased tenfold when Systar, his father, and the rest of the Tairnadal took the ancestral homeland of the Tairnadal for themselves, founding the Kingdom of Valenar.
Systar’s extended war-family founded a small keep along the cost and called it Taer Cyjyl, after a famous keep that once stood in Aerenal. Here, Systar continued to work on his bow skills, and his father was put in charge of defending the town, and protecting those too young to fight, or those who returned to the keep injured.
In 973 YK, when Systar was a mere 95 years old, a large raiding party of Talenta Barbarians struck deep into Valenar and was poised to attack Taer Cyjyl. Most of the war band left the city, leaving behind only Systar’s father, and a handful of wounded or very young warriors to guard the Keep. A fleet of boats landed on the shore near the keep, scaled the walls, and put Taer Cyjyl to the torch. Systar and his father made a valiant attempt to protect the temple, and hold of the two dozen or so attackers, but it was impossible. Systar’s father, with the town and all of their friends dying all around them, made Systar promise to run, and get word to the war band. Systar did as he was told, stopping long enough to look back and see his father killed by an elf dressed all in black, with a strange tattoo sprawled across the right side of his face. Systar ran to the battlefield only to find the war band destroyed by a force vastly superior in numbers than had been expected. Systar, armed with only his bow, was forced to travel through enemy occupied territory to the nearest Valenar stronghold. Systar warned them of an impending attack and then collapsed from exhaustion. The attack never came.
A leader of a scouting party, Myr Shadar, took his band out, and found Systar’s story to be true. Impressed by the young elf’s survival instinct and apparent warrior prowess, Myr took Systar under his wing, training him in the art of War Archery, not simply the form and aim, but the practical applications of using your bow to rule the field. Systar, horrified by his loss, was a willing, if withdrawn student, and with time, became an accepted member of Myr’s unit, the Eisyrn Mas (Roughly translated: Arrow Swarm). Over time, Systar started thinking of Myr as a second father, and his war band as a new family, and the old Systar started to show through, never as confident, never as boisterous, but still Systar, skilled, and well liked by all. Because of his relative youth, Systar was often protected from the worse of the fighting, and took on the role of an almost mascot for the Eisyrn Mas. It was in this capacity that Systar saw the last ten years of the Last War.
Systar had put much of the tragedy of Taer Cyjyl out of his head until one day, five years ago, when Systar was on the battlefield combating a powerful Cyren host along his and many other Valenar war bands. A Cavalry unit broke through the flanks of their formation, and the horses were amongst the archers. The leader of the cavalry unit was dressed entirely in black plate, and bore down upon Systar. Systar drew his blade and succeeded in impaling the horse, throwing its rider, before a flail caught him in the head, knocking him near to unconsciousness. Before he closed his eyes for what he thought would be the last time, Systar saw the rider stand, remove his helmet, and continue fighting. It was the leader of the Taer Cyjyl raiders. Try as he could to kill him, Systar could only succumb to sleep.
Systar awoke as in a dream. They had won the battle. Myr Shadar was dead and his second in command, a big, burley, likeable fellow named Bestaes Sai now commanded the Eisyrn Mas. Once again, Systar became haunted by the death of another father, and the presence of that tattooed elf in black. Systar rejoined the war band in battle, his bow-songs sounding like dirges, and his demeanor noticeably grim. When the war ended three years later, Systar still had not shaken off his need to know who the man was who took so much from him, and could not stand to find himself grow too close to Bestaes or any of the others, only to lose them again. Systar, with the war over, struck out on his own to travel the cities of Khorvaire, hoping to determine something about the tattooed man in black, and to make his ancestors, Kelaerys Thousand-Stings, Tharaes Pel, and Myr Shadar proud.
Eluvan
First Post
Okay, this is pretty good stuff. Thus far I think that the three players who have given me a full background and character concept (that's Sorren, DEFCON, and ShaggySpellsword) can consider themselves provisionally in. I can't guarantee you places, but on the basis of what I'm seeing now your characters are approved.
It seems that we also have Badger, Torillan, Lobo Lurker and Ferrix in the running. So that's seven players competing for four places. If all of you submit good concepts and backgrounds, there is the chance that I might be induced to run two parallel games, which would play off each other to some extent.
It seems that we also have Badger, Torillan, Lobo Lurker and Ferrix in the running. So that's seven players competing for four places. If all of you submit good concepts and backgrounds, there is the chance that I might be induced to run two parallel games, which would play off each other to some extent.
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