My PC's
AD&D
The Forgotten Realms
Glade
Zond Ebonblade
Aldus
Hero
Legacy
Shade
Posting
Suggestion
The Forgotten Realms
Glade
Glade Crownsilver is the 6th son of Yvonne Crownsilver 10th in line for the purple throne of Cormyr, as such his noble heritage allows him some freedom within the realm. This freedom comes at a cost however as being of the nobility he had to swear an oath of fealty to Azoun IV on his 13th birthday. Also due to his chaotic nature he considers this oath not a public statement of his loyalty, but a personal one that defines his character and commitment to Cormyr.
During the 13 years since he gave the oath he has never been called upon, but he has made an effort to make himself useful to the throne by defending the realm from its enemies when he sees them. That is not to say he has not tried to profit personally from these acts as
a recent incident with Iron Throne agents has proven.
His oath and training has earned him the title Knight of the Realm, yet the discipline of being a knight was not something he cared for and so made arrangements through a bribe or two to be a free agent. Unfortunately he was not able to weasel out of the basic training and spent the better part of 5 years serving as Zond Ebonblade's squire. It was during this time that he met Lena Ebonblade.
Until he is called on the carpet about it, Glade roams the realm looking for adventure and fun. He knows the day will come when he will have the don the garb of a Purple Dragon of Cormyr and he carries the tabard with his family crest and that of Cormyr in preparation for that day.
Outside of his trysts Glade is actually a very trustworthy person and Lena knows it. She also knows that one day he will return to her, and Glade knows this as well though he pretends not to. His relationships outside of Lena's company tend to be flirtations only and not composed of any deep or lasting commitments.
His relationship with Lena over the years has been one that both their families approve of given their intimate knowledge of Glade's personality and it has become quite a game to see who the first person will be to convince him to take Lena down the isle. Force him that is, for while he does love her he cannot bring himself to make the final commitment, thus forcing someone else to make the commitment for him. Zond and Lena have conspired between themselves to help Glade as much as possible in that endeavor.
Zond Ebonblade
Zond's Father
Zond was born the son of Malthog Netherwell,
a Wizard of Thay. Zond's father, in an attempt to build a base of power, searched the realms for women likely to give him sons with magical ability. These women were kidnapped, seduced, or raped by Malthog who would then "harvest" these children at birth and return with them to Thay.
Malthog was a cruel father and would beat any of his sons that failed to perform as needed. (Zond was beaten more than most.) By the age of 8 all of Zond's brothers could cast the most basic of spells. Each proficient in a different area.
Zond's Brothers
Lothas was specializing in Necromancy, Phorin in Illusion, and Thaxas in Conjuration. Zond however, never managed to grasp the basics and was forced into servitude by his siblings.
Escape from Thay (Backstory)
Zond awoke on the eve of his eighth birthday knowing that if he failed the test on
2the morn his father would put him to death or use him in some awful experiment. Zond was terrified, he knew that if he were to escape this night to find his mother he would have to steal his father's books. This would prevent Malthog from casting a spell of location. Looking around at his sleeping brothers, Zond quietly donned his clothing and strapped a small dagger to his boot
They were of differing ages the oldest, Lothas, being thirteen and almost a full mage. Zond knew that if Lothas were to wake he would never be able to get away safely. Moving slowly, trying not to make much noise, he paused to look out the window to see if the guards were posted in their normal places. "Good," he thought, all of them were in the proper position for his plan to work.
Trembling, Zond walked across the room to the door and gently unlatched it as he had done many times in the past on his midnight walks. This time however, if he were to be caught it would mean his death. He pushed on the door and it swung open making a soft creaking noise. Zond froze and closed his eyes hoping the noise would not alarm anyone.
Moments passed and he slowly looked behind him to see his brothers sleeping peacefully. Breathing a sigh of relief he closed the door and walked down the hall to his father's study. Entering the study required that he push several buttons in a predetermined pattern to open the lock. Zond overheard Lothas telling Phorin the combination several days ago and he hoped that it had not changed since that time. Zond walked up to the door looked up at the buttons displayed on the wall beside the door.
Each button was supposed to represent one of the 6 elements, Earth, Fire, Air, Water, Light, and Dark or so he had been told. Steeling himself Zond began to push the buttons. First he pressed Red, the color of Fire. There was a loud clicking noise that almost made him run back to his room. No one came rushing down the hall and no alarms sounded so he finally continued. Zond could feel the sweat run down his spine as he pushed the next button, Brown-Earth. Nothing... good. Only two more to go and he could get the books. The next button, Blue for Water was the largest of the buttons and appeared to be stuck, but he pushed harder and finally it gave way. Once again the noises in the wall beside the door made Zond want to run away. He stood his ground and kept an eye on the door of his father's room at the end of the hall. One more button, the black one, and the door would open, he hoped.
Once again he looked to his father's room hoping that he would appear and tell him everything was OK and the test tomorrow would be unnecessary. Zond knew that this would not be the case and without pausing pressed the last button, Black for Darkness.
The door opened onto Zond's father's library. Zond could see his father's books on the shelf and the satchel they were carried in. Now that he was committed he moved swiftly across the room and grabbed the large tomes one at a time placing them carefully into the satchel. As they neared the mouth of the satchel each shrunk and slid in easily.
After Zond collected the books he reached into the bag looking for something he had seen his father use once years ago. He pulled his hand back and there it was, the ring that Zond was told belonged to his mother. He placed it on his finger and darted for the door to look down the hall.
Everything was fine. All were still sleeping and did not know he was awake. He stepped back into the room and tried to remember the words. "Llyllarin," Zond spoke aloud as he began to disappear from sight. It worked, he was invisible!
Zond walked out of the library closing the door behind him and walked out the back door of the house. The grounds around the house were solid rock and it was easy to walk without making too much noise. As Zond turned the corner and approached the gate he saw that the guards were still asleep.
He walked to the gate and opened it slowly, his heart pounding in his throat. He opened it enough to slip put and shot into the night running as hard as he could until he dropped from exhaustion several hours later.
The next night Zond walked up the coast until he found a small fishing village. He stole a small boat and pushed off into the night. Several days later Zond was picked up by a Sembian Merchant vessel captained by a man named Harthal Ogrefist.
Harthal was an honest man who accepted Zond's money for passage to Sembia. During the journey Zond showed Harthal his mother's ring and the symbol engraved upon it. Harthal informed Zond that the symbol was a family crest probably of Cormyr. Zond arrived in Sembia and petitioned the Clerics at the Tower of Mysteries for assistance. He offered them his father's books in return for training as a warrior and to be hidden from his father until the day he was a full warrior capable of defending himself. The priests of Mystra agreed.
Low Level History
Zond spent the next 5 years training as a warrior from the Paladin Corris of Silverthorn. He learned how to use the Bastardsword, longbow, as well as how to ride and use a lance. With the help of Corris Zond hired on with a merchant caravan and traveled to Suzail to locate his mother and become a purple dragon in the service of King Azoun.
On reaching Suzail he approached a court official and showed him the ring and the symbol engraved on it. The magistrate recognized the ring and Zond was given an audience with King Azoun. The King confirmed his heritage with the help of his court wizard. With the letters of reference given Zond by Corris and the priests of Mystra, Zond was made a knight of the realm, charged with keeping the country safe and administering the king's justice.
Zond also discovered during his audience that his home was in Arabel. He traveled at once to Arabel to be reunited with his family only to find on reaching it that the estate was in disrepair and his cousin had depleted the family wealth. His mother had died shortly after childbirth, a broken heart most thought.
Zond vowed to reestablish his families name and pay all debts incurred during the past 20 years. In return Zond would be made the legal head of the Ebonblade family and he would be given The Ebonblade.
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Zond's absence from the family estates for long periods of time has prompted him to hire a
castellan to handle the monetary duties at home and to keep his cousin Rathnell from spending it on a trollop or gambling it away. All family members get a stipend as well as servants and a place to live. Zond encourages family members to invest their money and generate more income for the family. Zond has put Tallos in charge of the reconstruction of the Ebonblade Lands. The deal is when the Ebonblade estates reach thier previous status Tallos will be given his own land and possibly a title if Zond can arrange it. Zond's Family is:
Rathnell Cousin
Thylan Strongheart Uncle (deceased)
Priscilla Cousin
Vanessa Sister
Josyn Grandmother
Maklin Nephew
Zond's family has a vast vineyard that specializes in Arabellan Dry wine. This business is what is keeping the family afloat in the face of the families spending as well as Zond's miscellaneous adventures. Zond travels to Waterdeep annually to make delivery arrangements with the Thann family.
Zond set to restoring his family by donating most of the money he found to his
family. (Side note to DM: The Kit hindrance states that Zond must spend 10%/level extra for the fine equipment and material he requires. However Zond intentionally impoverishes himself by giving that percentage of his treasure to the family coffers while purchasing only normal goods. He feels that until his family has paid their debts he should not live in luxury. Zond always pays the additional % for services he purchases. This applies to Zond if he is less than 7th level. At seventh Level Zond's has repaid these debts.)
The Ebonblade +2 Bastard Sword
The Ebonblade is a legendary bastardsword given to Zond's great-grandfather Tern as a gift for killing the black dragon Void. The sword was forged by elves from Blacksilver, a Mythril alloy. If one looks closely a silver
mist swirling in the metal can be seen.
The blade is etched with runes and sigils that describe the battle Tern fought against the dragon to save a
village of elves and in return they forged the blade for him and imbued it with several magical properties.
Anyone in Tern's line can weld the sword with no ill effects. However, in accepting the blade the welder has to accept an oath that is scribed on one side of the blade. In accepting the oath the sword binds the welder to that oath as a geas.
The practical effects of the oath are that the welder can never knowingly harm the interests of the elves except where it is a matter of self defense.
If someone welds the sword without taking the oath and is not in the line of Tern any magical bonuses associated with the weapon(+2) will instead be subtracted from hit rolls of the welder. They will also have to save vs. petrifaction or lose interest in the sword and set it aside. Furthermore, reaction adjustments are reduced by 3 when dealing with elves.
It is solid black and the hilt has a black dragon hide grip. At the base of the blade is the moon and harp symbol of the harpers.
Zond - Traits
Zond enjoys tourneys and participates whenever he can always giving the prize money to his family to rebuild the estate.
Zond is a high profile character and stands out in a crowd, as most nobles do. He has traveled secretly at times and is not above a little subterfuge to accomplish his goals. Zonds diplomatic skills are somewhat lacking but he continues to work at the finer points in order to better serve his King and family.
Combat
Zond prefers to battle face to face, or lance to face, whichever is more convenient. On the battle field he will use a Heavy war horse if one is available. His first attack will be with his lance unless the enemy is using ranged weapons.When he is on foot, he uses the Ebonblade first keeping in mind that certain creatures, such as rust monsters, should be kept away from the weapon
Hair:
Shoulder Length Blonde Hair worn in the style favored by the nobility of Cormyr. Usually pulled back into a pony tail with a purple or black ribbon when in town or the city. Worn loosely when
traveling. Zond also did not escape without acquiring some of the more
common head tattoos among the wizards of Thay. He wears his hair long to
conceal the images on his scalp.
Eyes:
Bright blue eyes that sparkle like a hidden joke is always behind them. Some speculate that elven blood runs through his veins, but if that is correct Zond’s only elven heritage is in his eyes.
Skin:
Zond gets his skin coloring from his father Malthog of Thay. The Thayan wizard was quite dark. The result is that Zond’s skin is quite tan. During the winter months however he approaches his mothers fair coloring.
Likes:
Zond enjoys a good joke as long as it not on him, these he deals with in a
marginally good natured way. He also likes working with his hands. As a result he is generally found around the manor pitching in with the work in the fields, or with the horses that he hopes to someday sell at market.
Dislikes:
Zond abhors rudeness such as speaking in another tongue while those present do not understand, looking down on someone because they were not born into their position,
not of the appropriate race, or making someone a slave just because you have power over them.
Enemies:
Zond's enemies are his family. Those left behind in Thay as well as Rathnell in Arabel, though the latter will do nothing to openly act against him as long as Zond is bringing money into the family for him to spend. Rathnell’s rivalry with Zond is less physical and more on the order of showing him up somehow. As a result Zond is very careful what he tells his cousin, and how much he is given as an allowance.
Quirks:
Zond has a tendency to run his hands through his hair when he is uncertain or nervous.
Identifying Marks
Scars: Zond’s arm has a scar on it left there by an alligator that his brothers tried to feed him to when he was younger. They pulled him back too slowly and the beast cut a deep furrow in his arm, though he escaped with all limbs intact.
Tattoos: All Thayan wizards must have tattoos and Zond is no different. He has an incomplete tattoo that denotes he is an apprentice wizard of Thay on his scalp. However it is currently covered by a full growth of hair.
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Waterdeep
(Present Day Zond)
The wagons rolled through the gates of Waterdeep pulled by weary horses and exhausted teamsters. The last leg of the journey had been especially difficult due to increased humanoid activity south of the city of splendors and everyone, including Zond had had to keep an eye open for danger. The net result was that only a few people had been able to sleep, the balance had been up for 30 hours straight and were looking forward to some food and a warm bed.
Zond however was not quite ready to find an inn, but he lead the caravan through the twisted streets of Waterdeep to an appropriate looking Inn, one that he had found on his many trips that seemed neither dangerous or overly expensive. As he paused at the entrance to the courtyard directing the two wagons that belonged to him through, a young man approached him from within.
"Mi’Lord" spoke the young man. "Can I be helpin ya?" The young man was really no more than a boy, he wore a tunic and trousers and was dressed warmly with a light overcoat for working outside. He looked up at Zond as the large man smiled and replied.
"Yes Timothy," Zond said in reply recognizing the boy from last year. "My men will need a place to stay for a few days as they are still under my charter until the delivery is complete. A warm bed and some food once they have the wagons and horses put away." Zond looked back towards the street as he prodded his horse to enter the courtyard behind the last wagon. "Also, send word to Lord Thann’s company that the shipment has arrived and I will be delivering in the morning."
"Yes, Mi’Lord Zond." The boy replied quickly as he set to prepare for the men.
Zond followed the men into the stables and started helping them unhitch the horses and brush them down. He had always felt the need to work along side his men, even though they were not his subjects, but hired teamsters from the Seven Suns trading costar. Even so, he stayed with them until everything was secured and volunteered to take the first watch while the men went inside to clean up and rest.
Once all the men had left Zond found a comfortable bale of hay and withdrawing his great black sword, the Ebonblade, he sat on the bale and reclined for the long wait until he was relieved.
Several hours later an exhausted Zond stood and thanked the guardsman as he turned the watch over to him. Carrying the Ebonblade by the blade he walked from the stable. Once outside he hefted the heavy blade and resheathed in the scabbard on his back. He lifted heavy legs up the steps and pounded ungainly across the wooden porch and up to the door.
When he entered the warmth from the fire welcomed him first followed by the young man from earlier. "You room is ready mi’lord food and a bath are waiting within."
"Thank you Timothy," Zond replied with a sigh as he followed the boy to his room.
The next morning Zond woke early and refreshed. When he came down the steps it was as if seeing him for the first time. He was a tall man with broad shoulders and a powerful build, and like most men his size was less than agile when moving that frame. He had shoulder length blonde hair hanging in curls down the back of his next that was drawn back in a bow of purple and black. His sternly chiseled face held a smile and a grin that softened his demeanor as he glanced around at the assembled men downstairs that were waiting for him. He had cleaned his boots and wore a silver shirt and
trousers with a purple tabard that bore the black dragon of Cormyr as well as his family crest, a dragon in flight with a sword bisecting it. As he came closer the silver shirt and trousers were revealed to be not clothing at all, but and exquisite suit of elven mail with the same crest that adorned the
tabard worked into it's design. He had two weapons, a great bastard sword in a scabbard he wore on his back. It's hilt was black with streaks of gray running through the metal and the strapping of the hilt was black and shiny. The scabbard itself was unremarkable. At his belt he wore two pouches and a second sword in a scabbard. This short sword looked to be standard issue for the purple dragons of
Cormyr, but was not of the usual quality offered by the military. Judging from the hilt of the weapon it was made by a master weaponer and the more observant person could see the mark of Ston of Suzail, a renowned smith in Cormyr, upon it. Zond wore no jewelry or other item to denote his standing within the government of Cormyr, but he carried himself as a nobleman and like the previous King of Cormyr, Azoun IV he was a noblemen of the people.
Aldus
Aldus is a resident of Waterdeep that makes his way in
life as a sculptor of great skill. However unlike other artisans of his
like, he is also an accomplished wizard. To Aldus being a wizard and an
artist is just part of being an educated person and he does not see any
reason to divulge that information to anyone other than a few friends. He
uses monies collected from works to pay the rent on his studio and
apartment, as well as employing a manservant to handle his affairs while
he is away. He is an individualist but also believes in helping others
that are in need. As such he aids the Harpers from time to time on a
consulting basis, not as a full blown member.
Some
people have accused Aldus of being a fop, dandy, or worse, but that is his
cover while in Waterdeep. When travelling outside of Waterdeep he
generally takes on a different persona and name. Some of the names he uses
frequently are Hume, Zervas, and Tilgren. Aldus as carefully developed
personalities he takes on for each of these names, as well as a disguise
of sorts which amounts to a change of hair color and a clothing change.
As
Aldus he generally wears a set of long purple robes
Marvel
Legacy
Hi-Tech Hero
Origin
John Taylor was a nuclear engineer working for the Starrus Power Group
when he discovered a suitcase in the basement of his home. The lock on the
luggage confounded him for many years until he ran across his father's
diary. In it John discovered that his father had been working on a secret
project for the government and in his spare time at home was using the
technological know how to create a high powered military suit he dubbed
LONECOMS X-32 which stood for Light One man Nuclear External Combat
Skeleton. The combination to the luggage was also there for those familiar
with the man and John was able to unlock the bag and gain access to the
battle armor. When he removed the suit he saw that a large "L"
had been emblazoned on the breastplate of the suit and in a moment of
inspiration he renamed the suit the Legacy Armor in honor of his father's
accomplishment.
Legacy
Hero Sheet
Hero
Shade
Description: Kevin tends to dress all in
black, or black shirt and jeans. His hair was naturally blonde until his
powers started to manifest themselves when he became jet black. He
suspects that it has started to absorb light as it appears somewhat
lighter in darker settings. He also wears sunglasses all the time out of
necessity since his eyes have become sensitive to light. His excuse for
wearing them if pressed is that they are medically necessary, otherwise
he's just making a statement. If his look had to be labeled it would be
the art crowd. To further this he has taken to hanging out with the acting
crowd, though he does not perform on stage himself unless his role
includes the use of sunglasses. He is also fair skinned, though there is
an absence of freckles common on fair skinned people. He tends to shun
sunlight and wear dark colored clothing.
In Heroic ID Shade typically wears a black
trenchcoat over the natural armor that manifests itself when he applies
his powers. The effect is that he appears to be a black clad man wearing a
black coat. If his coat is not available he appears as a shiny solid black
humaniod with no discerning features other than a general human form.
Story about...
Kevin left the grounds of Red Wood and mounted an old motor cycle he had
purchased on the way out to the school. It was a 6 year old ninja that had
seen better days before Kevin found it. He had decided that a new bike
would draw too much attention so by purchasing an old bike and repairing
it he hoped to blend in a bit better than he would showing up with shiny
new bike.
He mounted the blue and white contrivance
and sat on the black duct tape seat. The repair was something he had done
as an after thought but proved to be a nice touch. He inserted the key in
the ignition turned it and touched the button that would fire it up. With
a low rumble the bike raced to life as no expense had been spared on the
actual workings of the bike. Kevin had intended for it to run like new
when he paid for the repairs, and it did.
A few minutes later he had his helmet on
and was cruising down the highway towards the high school. As he weaved in
and out of traffic effortlessly he thought about his plan for the day.
Today would be a thorough walk of all the public areas in and around the
school grounds, concentrating as much inside the building as he could, it
was open house after all. He grinned as he leaned into a turn and applied
the gas to shoot through a gap in traffic.
The school itself seemed typical to him as
he walked around the grounds of the campus and the areas just outside of
campus noting the areas that would be secluded from view of the school as
well as areas that would be out of direct sunlight. As he walked around he
recalled his first shift. He was with his girlfriend and his heart was
racing as they embraced each other. He was just about to kiss her when her
father opened the door to the darkened room. Before the father could flip
on the light he and his girl friend found themselves laying in the middle
of the road two miles away. He flattened both himself and the girl against
the ground as an eighteen wheeled truck raced over top of them with its
horn blaring. As soon as they were clear they ran off the road and the
girl ran away.
He tried to duplicate the event several
times but was never successful until he was sitting in the park one day
and as a cloud passed overhead he tried once again with no success and a
second time shortly after the sun went behind a cloud. He felt his mind
reach out to all of the other places around him seeking out a destination
and he picked one at random. He appeared next to a building in an alley
hidden from the sun. He soon after wards made the connection that his
powers only allowed him to shift from one shadow to another. Somehow the
effect was disrupted by direct sunlight. It was shortly afterward that he
discovered he had trouble seeing during the day as well and took to
wearing sunglasses. The sunglasses strangely enough did not dim his
vision, they just allowed him to function in sunlight and other bright
areas without pain and blindness. Sometime during all of this he came to
depend heavily upon them and started refusing to remove them at any time,
except when he was sleeping.
That was four years ago and much had
changed. He was now much more comfortable with his abilities, yet he still
suffered from debilitating side effects at times. Hopefully this new
school for the gifted would help him learn to overcome those effects. In
the meantime he had to scout out the school grounds and find likely places
to run or slip out if he needed to.
Shade
Hero Sheet
