Scion of ShadowFell
Backstory
Birthplace: Ashenford. Ashenford was no place for joy—it was a settlement swallowed by sorrow, nestled in the bleak mist of the Shadowfell. Its buildings wept with moisture, the stones always cold, and the people quieter still. Scion was born during the eclipse of a false moon, a rare phenomenon believed to signal fate-touched souls. His mother died in childbirth, and his father, a fading warrior, named him not out of hope, but as a warning: Scion—one who carries legacies that can either redeem or ruin.
Early Years: From a young age, Scion felt the weight of inevitability. He saw death not as an end, but as a presence—watching, patient, beautiful. He was drawn to the Shadar-kai rituals performed deep in the gloom-wrought woods. He witnessed funerary dances, silent vigils to the Raven Queen, and began visiting Letherna’s fringes in secret.
The Trauma: At sixteen, Ashenford was razed by a cult worshipping Orcus, seeking dominion over death itself. Scion tried to fight, but was powerless. In the ruins, amid the slain, he cried out—not in rage, but reverence. “Take what is yours,” he whispered into the shadows. And something answered.
The Pact: The Raven Queen offered Scion purpose—not salvation, but transformation. His grief became armor. His fury, a blade. He pledged his soul to her in exchange for the right to reclaim death from those who defiled it.
Becoming the Blackguard: Through rituals, trials, and a descent into the darkest part of his own psyche, Scion forged a pact with the Raven Queen as her Blackguard. His blade wept shadow with every strike. He describes himself not just as a vengeful knight, but a purifier—hunting undead, disrupting necromantic rituals, and ensuring that the cycle of life and death remained inviolate.
Motives
The Raven Queen rarely speaks, but when she does, it chills the marrow and stirs destinies. Her command came not in voice, but as a vision—obsidian feathers spiraling around a shattered forge, and a name whispered like a curse: Umbraforge. Scion knew then that his oath demanded more than battles—it required truth hunted down in places even shadows fear to tread.
Directive from Letherna
• Objective 1: Investigate Umbraforge
Umbraforge, rumored to be a nexus for crafting weapons fueled by life essence and demonic residue, has stirred in dark ways. Scion must infiltrate this operation without disturbing the balance prematurely. He’s to observe, track key figures, and uncover if the forge’s power threatens the natural flow of death.
• Objective 2: The Spirit that Escaped from Dis
A powerful, unnamed spirit has broken free from the infernal prison of Dis. Neither devil nor demon, its essence is ancient—potentially older than mortal memory. The Raven Queen senses the spirit’s pain and fragmentation, which makes it vulnerable to corruption or conscription. Scion must trace its path through material and immaterial realms, identify its nature, and determine whether to return it to the cycle… or bind it in the Queen’s sanctuary.
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