Born in the ash-choked alleys of Ashclaw District, Kaelen was raised among whispers and blood. Orphaned young—his parents disappeared in one of the Steel Warden purges—he was taken in by the Hollow Masks, not out of mercy, but utility. Trained as a killer, his psychic blades made him invaluable for “clean work” where magic couldn’t leave traces.

But something went wrong. A botched hit on a mid-level Iron Pact officer turned out to be a setup. Half his cell was slaughtered. Kaelen barely escaped. Now, he stalks the streets again—sometimes for coin, sometimes for vengeance, always hunted.

Race: Shadar-kai (Elf)
Class: Rogue (Soulknife)
Background: Criminal (Assassin)
Level: 3
Alignment: Neutral Evil
Languages: Common, Elvish, Thieves' Cant
Height: 6'6”
Eyes: White
Hair: Long black hair
Armor: Studded leather armor, typically concealed beneath a leather trench coat
Preferred Weapons: Longbow (for distance), Scimitar (for close kills)
Weapon Proficiencies:

• Simple weapons


• Hand Crossbow


• Rapier


• Scimitar


• Shortsword


• Whip


• Longbow


• Musket

Personality & Presence

Virex Kaelen is a phantom among shadows—silent, efficient, and utterly unrepentant. Though driven by his own survival and ambition, his acts often leave ripples in Drakharis’ criminal and political underworld. He rarely speaks unless necessary, and his calm, clinical demeanor unnerves even seasoned killers.

Racial Traits – Shadar-kai

• Darkvision (60 ft): Sees in dim light as bright light, and darkness as dim light (in shades of gray).


• Necrotic Resistance: Resistant to necrotic damage.


• Fey Ancestry: Advantage on saving throws against being charmed.


• Keen Senses: Proficiency in Perception.


• Trance: Needs only 4 hours of meditation for a long rest. Gains 2 temporary proficiencies (weapons or tools) per rest via ancestral memory.


• Creature Type: Humanoid (Elf)

Blessing of the Raven Queen (Shadar-kai Feature)

• Bonus Action: Magically teleport up to 30 ft to an unoccupied space you can see.


• Frequency: Proficiency bonus per long rest.


• Shadow Form (starting at level 3): When you teleport, gain resistance to all damage until the start of your next turn. During this time, you appear ghostly and translucent.

Soulknife Features (Rogue Subclass)

• Psionic Energy Dice (d6): Used to fuel psychic blade abilities and enhance stealth or deception.


• Psychic Blades:
  
  


• As part of the Attack action, summon a blade of psychic energy.


• Can make a second attack as a bonus action with another blade.


• Damage: 1d6 psychic + Dexterity mod (finesse, thrown 60 ft).


• No sound, no visible weapon unless active. Perfect for silent kills.
  
  

Background: Criminal (Assassin Specialty)

• Skills: Stealth, Deception


• Tool Proficiencies: Disguise kit, Poisoner’s kit


• Feature – Criminal Contact: Has a reliable and secret contact in the underworld who can relay messages and smuggle information.

Rumors & Reputation (Drakharis)

• “The Raven’s Breath”: It’s said he vanishes into death itself, reappearing where the Raven Queen wills.


• “You don’t see Virex… You feel him.” Mirrors fog, candles flicker, and then the target’s just… gone.


• “He can’t be killed.” Some swear his ghostly form can’t be touched when he teleports.


• “White eyes, black soul.” Street whispers say, “Keep lying and Virex will come take your shadow.”


• “He’s got a deal with Death.” Some believe he serves the Raven Queen directly, tallying souls for her cause.

Known Safehouses

Known Associates & Rivals

Known Associates:

• Vela Thornmark
  Fixer for the Hollow Masks.
  A pale elf with ink-black tattoos running down her arms, she handles jobs, payment, and information. Calm, dry, and pragmatic. She's the one who pulls Kaelen back into the resistance—even when he doesn't want to go.


• “Doc” Brannick
  Underworld medic / mortician in Ashclaw.
  Grizzled and half-blind, he patches up those who don’t want questions asked. Kaelen saved his daughter from the Red Daggers, so Doc owes him and keeps a bolt-hole open when needed.


• Sibra Valrune
  Estranged daughter of Raxa “The Blade,” secretly feeding info to the Hollow Masks.
  Kaelen doesn’t trust her—but they've worked together before, and he suspects she has her own agenda against her father.

Known Contacts

• Mira Veilstrung – Fence and Information Broker
  A sharply dressed half-elf who operates out of a perfume shop in the Grand Markets. She trades in secrets and scented poisons, and has a taste for dangerous liaisons. She’s got a soft spot for Virex—or maybe it’s just profit.


• Krev Dorn – Ex-Steel Warden Turned Smuggler
  Grizzled and bitter, Krev runs arms from the Black Sigil to anyone who pays. He owes Virex his life from a botched regime op. Now he trades weapons, info, and occasionally, corpses.


• Brother Lorne – Priest of the Hollow Temple
  A mad, blind preacher who speaks in riddles and shadows. He claims to be a servant of the Raven Queen—but it’s unclear if he truly hears her… or just something else. Still, his visions have saved Virex more than once.

Rivals / Enemies:

• Sergeant Halvrek Dreiss
  Steel Warden enforcer with a personal vendetta.
  Dreiss was the only survivor of the botched hit Kaelen was involved in. He wears a mask to hide his burn-scarred face, and he wants Kaelen alive—barely. Thinks torture will reveal more resistance names.


• Raxa “The Blade” Valrune
  Leader of the Red Daggers.
   Virex’s most dangerous rival—once a comrade, now a hunter. She believes Virex betrayed their old crew, and she’s vowed to cut out his heart with the very dagger he left behind. She has the Red Daggers at her beck and call.


• The Unseen Voice
  A rival Hollow Mask agent who believes Kaelen is a liability.
  Uses illusion magic and manipulates others into eliminating threats quietly. They’re subtly turning the organization against him.

• “Whisperjack” (Operative of the Hollow Masks)
  A rogue within a rogue movement. Whisperjack was meant to be Virex’s ally in the rebellion, but something snapped. Now he sends cryptic messages carved into corpses: “Only one ghost walks the alleys.”

• The Surgeon (Iron Pact’s Black Operative)
  A cold-blooded killer licensed by the regime. He wears a physician’s mask and extracts secrets through agony. He’s been assigned to erase Virex, though unofficially—no records, no witnesses.