Elijah Desain
Elijah Desain is an elven court bard from the Eastern Dales.
History[]
Elijah was born the fourth sibling of a noble family from the city of Tarynth. There was little hope that he would inherit a position of power or an estate, and Elijah felt he was unsuited to life as a knight. He attended Tarynth's College of the Ancient World for a few years but never completed his studies there, instead accepting a position as a student of the Seven Strings Academy. The two schools had become bitter rivals, competing for prestige and the favour of the Terevania's Council of Mages. Elijah flourished in this new setting, excelling at the arts of story and song even while rubbing shoulders with the learned and the influential. Jealous academics from the College of the Ancient World - including a disreputable upstart with the unfortunate name of Grumbleduff - even attempted to tarnish Elijah's reputation by claiming that he had traded their secrets for the support and favour of their Seven Strings rivals. When his studies were completed, he was chosen to serve the Council of Mages as a diplomat. One of his main tasks was pursuade the rulers of other kingdoms to support Terevania in their attempt to become independent of the Eastern Dales. The Council has yet to make that bid, but at least some of the foundations are now in place. Elijah is now retired, however, and drifts from place to place like a leaf in the breeze.
Description[]
Elijah is a breathtakingly beautiful elf with soft green eyes and long dark hair tied back in an elegant knot. He is a skilled archer and an exceptional dancer, but even these accomplishments seem trivial when compared to the intricacies of his compositions. When Elijah's fingers gently brush strings of his harp, even the most stonehearted of audiences become instantly captivated. During one performance in the far away sunset kingdom of Altea - so it is said - Elijah played a melody so sweet that it caused the great king Davram Despard to weep. Elijah prefers to remain behind more heavily armoured allies during combat, encouraging them with his dramatic narration and sniping with his arrows while remaining ready to flee should the fight go badly. He often remains hooded while travelling with the party - both to avoid the attention of admiring women and so that his diplomatic position is not always jeopardized by his graceless companion Azuk's crude intimidation tactics. Elijah also suffers from mild kleptomania, but he has taken steps to deal with this and is now confident that he can control his impulses.
In the Campaign[]
Elijah met Keldin, Azuk and Osfryd in the town of Watermeet and decided to join their adventuring group. During their travels Elijah killed the dreaded monster of Winterhome. Since then Elijah has began to vanish every now and then, returning a few days later with little or no explanation. His companions occasionally worry that Elijah no longer desires to travel with them, but the elf always assures them otherwise with a winning smile that never touches his eyes. As a leader of the Bloodsworn, Elijah prefers to handle strategy and administrative decisions rather than actual fighting - for example he has recently been investing time and resources in an attempt to develop a partnership between the Bloodsworn and the Brotherhood of Brenna. One plan he had to create demand for their mercenaries was to create conflict between the dwarves of Eriabourne and the men of Coldharbour, and between their two kings Geralt Whitecloak and Keldar Windbeard. Shrewd political observers have suggested that the bard may even be responsible composing the ballad "the One True King" which has become wildly popular in Eriabourne, noting the poetic beauty and the rousing harmonic progression.
Character Sheet[]
Elijah Desain, elf bard 7
HP27 Initiative+5 AC18(T15, FF13) Speed30(6)
SQ Darkvision, Sleepless, Bardic Knowledge+8, Resist Enchantment+2, Suggestion
Bardic Music 7/day - Fascinate, Countersong, Inspire Courage+1, Competence+2
Scimitar+6(d6/18-20) or longbow+10/+10(d8+1/x3)
Abilities10,20,10,14(12),8,21(19) Saves+2,+10,+4
Feats- Point Blank, Rapid Shot, Nymph's Kiss (dormant)
Diplomacy +15 (10 ranks, +5 charisma)
Pickpocket +14 (10 ranks, +5 dexterity, -1 armour)
History +15 (10 ranks, +2 intelligence, +2 racial)
Storytelling +15 (10 ranks, +5 charisma)
Strings +15 (10 ranks, +5 charisma)
Activate +15 (10 ranks, +5 charisma)
Equipment - Studded leather, masterwork longbow, harp, dryad seeds, scimitar, 4429 gold, Cloak of Missile Resistance 5, Headband of Self-Importance, Rapier of Madness +2 (wisdom damage 2), Deed to the villages of Stonehedge Twade and Appletree
Spells - 3 Mage Hand, Summon Instrument, Detect Magic, Light, Ghost Sound
4 Tasha's Hideous Laughter DC16, Disguise Self, Sleep DC16 , Inspirational Boost
3 Glitterdust, Silence, Enthrall, Hold Person
1 Glibness, Scrying