Crimson Age
Nithan Keralis (aka. Nithan Achika)
| Race: | Half-human / half-demon |
| Gender: | Male |
| Age: | 29 |
| Alignment: | True Neutral |
| Class: | Rogue |
| Language: | Old Galinian |
| Lore Specialty: | Occult |
| Background: In the Icecrown mountains north of even the Norlands once lay a small village called Hoarfrost Hollow. It was the frontier beyond the frontier inhabited only by the famous exiled Keralis clan and whatever other outcasts had chosen to settle in the dangerous mountains to avoid even greater dangers. The proud clan of Keralis carried strong magical powers in their bloodline, but before their exile, they had been famous for their political influence and their economic success. Hoarfrost Hollow was a small village with no more than 40 inhabitants, 27 of which were members of the founding clan. The village lay in a comparatively sheltered valley where they were able to grow enough crops and keep enough livestock that they could make a decent living. In spite of the hostile weather and the dangerous wildlife, the once so highly respected Keralis clan had found a place where they could raise their children in peace. But one of the strongest inheritors of the Keralis bloodline was not content to live out the rest of his life in quiet obscurity. He desired to reclaim the fame, the respect, and the wealth which he felt rightfully belonged to him. |
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| Maccus
Keralis had been everything once. He had been the prodigy of his clan,
graduating with top marks from the At least that was how he perceived it. He still had his beautiful wife Edana and their lovely daughters Wynne and Lavena, and he was joined in exile by every member of his family. In the beginning, it looked like it might work out after all. But with every passing year, Maccus grew ever more bitter and sought ever more desperately for a way to return his fallen clan to its former glory. Finally, he found what he believed to be the perfect solution in one of his grandfather’s old arcane lexica. It was a plan permeated with danger and uncertainty, but Maccus believed himself capable of harnessing the most powerful of spells. As so many men before him, he would be destroyed by his arrogance. Without explanation to his worried family, he isolated himself in a freezing cave for several days until his ritual was complete. He emerged a changed man. He had summoned an ancient being from the netherworld into his own body. He had granted the demon Morfran access to his flesh. He believed this demon would give him the power to redeem his clan and return to Reveenna. He had not realized that Morfran would not only crave but be fully capable of slowly infesting and eventually overtaking Maccus’ mind. Maccus lived among his clan in Hoarfrost Hollow for 8 more years, during which he fathered another child, his first son. The Hollow quickly became a haven for exiled Anconians and grew to a population of 40, but even amongst the other members of the clan, Maccus’ family was now regarded with some scepticism. Nobody in the village spoke of Maccus’ strange habits or increasingly disconcerting demeanour, nor of the strange pallor or the unnaturally sharp teeth of his young son Nithan, whose eyes had been known to carry the occasional red gleam. Nobody spoke of these things, but everybody knew of them, and the family became outcasts in a village of outcasts. When Nithan was 6 years of age, Morfran finally achieved the goal he had been patiently working towards for 8 years. In a frenzied haze of blood and screams, Morfran and Maccus unleashed their combined powers on the far from helpless village and emerged from the chaos as a single entity of pure hate and loathing. As the dark form of the demon knelt before the injured Edana, whose daughters it had executed before her eyes moments ago, her eyes seemed devoid of life. She had been desperate and pleading, but now she was just empty, and young Nithan gazed into her lifeless eyes as her heart was ripped from her chest and discarded unto the snow like a broken tool. The demon turned around to face Nithan, licking his mother’s blood from its fingers… and smiled. Then it walked past him and north into the mountains. |
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| A
month later, a ranger found a pale young boy north of the Anconian border,
on the outskirts of goblin territory. Carrying only a bloodstained signet
ring inscribed with the name Keralis, the boy was taken to an orphanage in
the frontier During his 13 years long stay in the orphanage of Milarro, Nithan didn’t have a lot of friends. Most of the other children (and indeed even the nurses) were scared of him because of his sharp teeth, his deathly pale complexion, and the occasional red gleam in his eyes. He also came to be known as a very aggressive boy who would’ve probably killed several of the other children if the nurses hadn’t intervened. Nithan left his lonely life at the orphanage to join the king’s army at the age of 17. He knew he had to learn to fight well if he could ever maintain a hope of killing the demon who slew his family. On some level, he got what he wanted: He was taught how to fight with a sword, how to use a bow, and how to move properly in a light armour. But Nithan’s superiors quickly discovered that he showed considerable talents for stealth and vigilance, and so they assigned him to a ranger squad to be trained as a scout in the frequent skirmishes with orcs at the border bastions. During his service in the army, he saw a fair bit of action, but generally avoided direct confrontation whenever possible. He worked with 4 different patrol squads over a period of 7 years, but his disturbing appearance, introverted manners, and natural distrust allowed him to keep a convenient distance to his squadmates, which helped him survive in a situation where death was a frequent occurrence. The only exception was his attachment to Amira Loweir, a female field medic two years younger than Nithan. He joined her squad to fill a vacant position after his first squad had fallen into an ambush and two members had perished. Amira was fascinated by Nithan’s quiet and introverted behaviour and the two of them developed a romantic relationship; Amira became Nithan’s first real friend, and in the period when he knew her, she got him to open up a bit and he almost forgot the bitter curse of his blood. But war and demon blood is not beneficial for relationships. After three years, the two other members of the squad started to express concern with the relationship between Nithan and Amira. When they confronted Nithan about this during a patrol mission in the deep, frozen woods, the discussion heated up to a level where he could no longer control himself: He killed all three members of his squad including Amira, who tried to intervene. When Nithan regained his consciousness, he was badly hurt himself, and after a few weeks in the hospital, he was reassigned to a new squad which was missing a scout, more introverted and traumatized than ever before. In his third squad, which was quite experienced and well respected, Nithan replaced a ranger who had recently been crippled by a nasty orcish spike trap. Unfortunately, the squad felt that Nithan didn't work very well with them; he was still trying to deal with having killed the only woman he’d ever loved, and he had some cooperation problems and occasionally did some slightly disturbing things (such as spending all night in a foetal position, trembling, staring into the night). After a few months, his squad mates requested that he be transferred to another squad, and their superiors did as they asked. Being kicked out of his third squad was the proverbial punch in the face that Nithan needed. He pulled himself together and decided to be the best scout he could be. He stayed in his fourth squad for the last 2 years and a couple of months of his army service, and while none of his squad mates ever got to know him very well, they acknowledged that he was a good and experienced scout who worked well in the squad. After seven years of service, he finally left the army at the age of 24 to pursue his vengeance. |
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During the 5 years that have passed since then, Nithan’s life has been all about finding the demon Morfran and staying alive. He’s been forced to steal a few times to survive, each time swearing it would be the last. He has been forced to leave a town in great haste because the villagers became suspicious of his nature. He has worked as a day-labourer for longer periods of time, accepting work as woodsman, hunter, and messenger among other things. And he’s even taken mercenary scouting missions for the army on occasion. When not making a living, Nithan has been busy honing his skills, practicing self-control, and tracking down people who could help him learn more about the occult and demons in particular. |
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| Appearance: Nithan is a man of average height and with an agile physical build. His movement tends to create associations of feline animals, as he almost subconsciously distributes his weight in a way that makes his steps very quiet. His modestly handsome features are somewhat shamed by his pale grey skin, a scar to always remind him of Amira’s murder under his left eye, and his unnervingly pointy teeth. Indeed, if Nithan is regarded very closely, it will become apparent that he has fangs. Nithan’s hair is jet black and his eyes are generally black as well, except when he is aggravated or when he needs to make use of the abilities inherent in his blood, in which cases they flare up with a crimson glow. |
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| Personality /
behaviour: Nithan comes across as a very controlled and discrete person, which is primarily because he knows that too powerful emotions could cause him to lose control and do things which would get him in trouble. He rarely reveals his emotions to other people because he’s too used to repressing them to avoid this. Rather than openly criticizing something he disagrees with, he’ll usually snort or grumble in a disgruntled fashion from the sidelines, and if asked for his opinion, he will often reply with some manner of snide remark. Nithan is pretty determined to find the demon who took away his family and kill it; he doesn’t view the demon as his father, and he can get a tad upset if anybody makes that connection in his presence. In Nithan’s life, everything else is secondary to getting revenge for the extermination of his family. Nithan is used to having nobody to take care of except himself; his selfishness is basically an intuitive defence mechanism. That’s not to say he doesn’t want to be around other people, but he is naturally wary of strangers because of some very bad experiences in his past. Because he’s never had many real friends, he is loyal to anybody who respects him and earns his trust, especially if he had reason to believe they could ultimately help him get his vengeance. |
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| Quirks: Bites his lower lip when he’s worried or considering something Fiddles his mother’s signet-ring when he’s bored His eyes turn red when he uses his demon abilities or when he is aggravated Picks his (unnervingly sharp) teeth with his nails after eating Sleeps in his clothes and/or armour as an old habit from his army days Tends to grumble when something displeases him |
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| Likes: Animals Darkness Fire Spicy food |
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| Dislikes: Alcohol Bright light Crowded places Demons Direct confrontation Killing humans Making difficult choices Religious people (at least those who are likely to want him dead) Stealing |
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| Fears: Losing control of himself Powerful magic Revealing his true nature |
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| Short Term
Goals: Getting help from somebody trustworthy Improving his control over his demon abilities Learning as much as possible about his demonic heritage |
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| Long Term
Goals: Killing his demon father for revenge Finding a way to fit into human society Failing the above, finding another society to fit into |
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| Abilities: Strength 12 +2 – Nithan is reasonably well trained from his years in the army… and his demonic blood helps a bit too Dexterity 16 – Nithan has always preferred to avoid combat, and his natural agility has helped him do this Constitution 12 – Nithan can take a few more hits than most men, but he is far from invulnerable Wisdom 10 – Common sense is not Nithan’s strong side, he is no wiser than most common folk Intelligence 16 – With a quick wit and a sharp mind, Nithan is capable of grasping most situations fairly easily Charisma 8 -2 – Although he isn’t actually ugly, Nithan has no charisma at all, and his sickly skin is rather disturbing |
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| Skills: Concentration 2 – To keep his demonic instincts under control, Nithan has trained his concentration Craft/Set/Disable Trap 5 – Seven years spent in the company of rangers has taught Nithan a thing or two about traps Hide/Move Silently 5 – Nithan has always been good at concealing his presence to stay out of trouble Listen/Spot 5 – As a scout and half-demon, Nithan has well tuned senses Lore (Occult) 5 – Nithan has spent many hours tracking down information about his heritage Open Lock 5 – When you need to move silently, it is vital that you can move wherever you like Search 5 – His good eyes and a self-taught thoroughness makes Nithan good at finding traps and hidden items Tumble 5 – Thanks to his agile physique and keen senses, Nithan is difficult to get the drop on in a fight |
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| Feats: Armor Proficiency (Light) – During his military years, Nithan always trained in his grey leather armour Barbarian Rage 1/day – When Nithan loses control of his demon instincts, he can be a terrible opponent Darkvision – His demonic blood allows Nithan to see reasonably well even in pitch darkness Evasion – Nithan’s quick reflexes often get him out of serious trouble Fire Resistance 1 – The demonic blood that runs in Nithan’s veins shields him slightly from fire Sneak Attack 1d6 – Nithan’s old squad mate Amira was kind enough to teach him a few things about anatomy Weapon Proficiency (Rogue) – As an experienced military scout, Nithan is trained in the use of small weapons |
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| Full List of Possessions: | |
| Backpack | Utility belt (in backpack or worn) |
| Discrete grey leather armour (in backpack or worn) | Two similar daggers (in utility belt) |
| A more relaxed outfit (in backpack or worn) | Lockpicks (in utility belt) |
| Am pads with leather bandages (in backpack or worn) | A small bag of caltrops (in utility belt) |
| A sleeping bag (backpack) | A canteen (in utility belt) |
| Minor spike trap (backpack) | A pouch (in utility belt) |
| 15 meters of rope (backpack) | His mother's signet ring (in pouch or worn) |
| Sleepin skin (backpack) | Shortbow (strapped on his back) |
| Food rations (backpack) | Quiver with 20 arrows (strapped on his back) |
| Short sword (scabbard) | Leather boots (worn) |
| Extra
Info: Maccus Keralis – sorcerer, chaotic evil demon male. Location unknown, last seen in the Icecrown mountains. |
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