Illmaren

Everyone who grew up in the Silent Lands knows about Illmaren. He is hobgoblin adventurer and explorer and tales about his exploits are told to children by parents before bedtime, sung by bards in taverns and chased by treasure hunters throughout the Verdant Reach.   Illmaren lived a few hundred years ago, no-one can agree when exactly. Where he came from is equally unclear, although many cities and villages claim to be the birthplace of Illmaren.   His adventures became famous through a series of notebooks that were uncovered in Azul and the Great Work. 13 notebooks were discovered in total, each describing harrowing tales of exploring ancient runes and recovering valuable treasures. Although the notebooks contained detailed maps and descriptions, they were undated. They were clearly all written by the same person, but they tell the tales of Illmaren in the 3rd person, as if the author were a companion of the hobgoblin hero. Some believe Illmaren to be nothing more than a liar and a fraud, a hobgoblin that attempted to exaggerated his life’s tale. Others believe there never was an Illmaren and that the notebooks are works of fiction altogether. Still, most people believe, or want to believe, the daring tales of Illmaren. He is seen as a folk hero by some, as an entertaining fool by others and as an example by a few.   Copies of Illmaren’s journals can be bought from unsavory merchants in most cities, each claiming their copy hold secret clues to treasures Illmaren never got to. What happened to Illmaren is also unknown. His last adventure, a search for an undescribed artifact known as the Eye of Azavox, was left unfinished. It is assumed the quest cost him his life and his author companion never bothered to finish the tale.