Bio

Background

1199-1208 AY

On February 2nd, 1199 AY, Duerak Gildas was born in Hammarlund to Dynoh Ironhelm and Cerdwinna Gildas. His father was a dwarf, but had a considerable amount of Fire Giant blood due to his ancestry. His lineage came from a distant land, in a small kingdom where a group of dwarves and a group of fire giants coexisted and intermingled. Cerdwinna was a human, coming from the neighboring kingdom of Sachion, which was on good terms with the dwarves of Hammarlund. As a sign of good faith, Dynoh and Cerdwinna were married, bringing the two kingdoms closer together. Cerdwinna had a small amount of golden dragon blood owing to a long-dead ancestor who lived as a human among the Sachiar. Because of this mixed lineage, his exact race is difficult to determine.

On September 9th, 1208 AY, a group of elven assassins, assumingly from the neighboring kingdom of Azatharia, broke into the home of Dynoh and Cerdwinna and killed Duerak’s father where he lay. Cerdwinna happened to be visiting relatives at the time, and so escaped the massacre, but was never seen from again. Duerak managed to hide, but one of the elves saw him and attempted to kill him. The young boy escaped, but the incident left him with a scar on his left cheek.

Duerak ran away from Hammarlund, and ended up in the frontier wilderness of Sachion, alone and hungry. A kind ranger named Tarathial guided him to a small Sachiar frontier town and introduced him to the Gwynnan family. The generous humans adopted the lost half-dwarf as their own child.

1208-1227 AY

Duerak grew up in the small town, spending his childhood with his adopted brother, Gerath, who was a year younger than him. The two did everything together and often spent hours in the forest near the town playing war games and exploring the wilderness. As the grew older, however, Gerath matured much faster, since he was a human. Duerak began to be pushed farther apart from his brother, often spending most of his time in the solitude of nature, besting his fighting skills against the various wild beasts in the area, while Gerath spent his time with more practical matters.

Cennedig, the boys’ father, was a blacksmith by trade, and as such, his sons learned the family business as well. The two youngsters became very accomplished blacksmiths, but Duerak seemed to just innately know how to do it, causing Gerath to become quite jealous. Because of this, Duerak spent more of his time in the outdoors because he needed no practice, and Gerath spent more of his time in the smithy, trying (unsuccessfully) to be better than Duerak.

When the boys were old enough, they started to help their father with jobs at the smithy, and eventually the two took over full time. Duerak was a warrior at heart, however, and the dull work of a blacksmith never appealed to him, so he planned to one day go off and become an adventurer. He saved up enough money and then left for the south, equipped with weapons and armor crafted by his own hands, looking for his fortune. Gerath was left to carry on his father’s trade.

1227-1232 AY

Duerak wandered the land, slowly edging south and doing mercenary work to pay the bills. He constantly honed his fighting ability, helping out where he could and saving not just a few villages from marauding monsters and other menaces.

1232-1234 AY

In 1232 AY, Duerak finally arrived in Sasserine, deep in the Amedio Jungle. He immediately fell in the love with the city, and planned to stay there permanently, as there was many dangers in the surrounding area to satisfy his wanderlust. He joined the Iron Brigade, a group of hunters and warriors that managed the Sasserine Arena, and helped out however he could with the various expeditions that were sent out by the Brigade.

One such expedition (in 1234 AY), heading to Beroarak’s Maw, a ruined temple dedicated to the Olman god of beats, Axuzitocl, proved disastrous. A giant five-headed reptile slaughtered all of his party members and Duerak was forced to flee, barely making it out alive. He reached Sasserine, severely shaken, and tried to get someone to help him get revenge for his comrades, since no one in the Iron Brigade was willing to send anymore men to be slaughtered. A group of adventurers agreed to help him, but they weren’t leaving for a couple of days…

Personality

Duerak might seen very isolated and shy at first, but once he makes a bond with someone, he can be very fun to be around. He might be described by some as a leader; not because he is charismatic or has a bold personality, but because he knows what he is doing and he genuinely cares for others and their welfare. He is always on the lookout for someone in need, and doesn’t waste a second helping them.

Duerak is very ambitious, and wants to better himself in every way he can. He wants to be the best warrior the world has ever seen. He constantly trains and pushes himself to his limits, and tries to be the best he can be. He is very bold (some might say reckless) and puts friends needs over his own, gladly putting his life on the line for others.