Athander

Athander: Lawful Good Human, 1st level Squire of the Knights of the Crown

Various Surnames: "Long Ridge", "Duveran"

Ability Scores

STR	DEX	CON	INT	WIS	CHA
17 (19)	15 (17)	14 (16)	14	15	17

Stats

LVL	HP	ALN	AGE	HT	WT
1st	19	LG	20	5'11	190

Background

Childhood at Duveran Keep: Athander was born in the northernmost coastal region of Abanasinia in an area called Long Ridge. A Solamnic-speaking area under the Solamnic city of Caergoth's cultural, economic and even partial political control, it was a largely idyllic childhood. He lived at his family's small castle and estate in Long Ridge called Duveran Keep, growing strong and free there in the family clan's sprawling farms and rural properties. At the castle he heard bards sing and his martial grandfather and uncle speak of Old Solamnia, and of the tales of knights and heroes, especially from before the Great Cataclysm centuries prior.

Early Teenage Years at Crossing: However, upon his teenage years, his long absent father returned and took he, mis mother and his younger sister to the nearby port town called Crossing. There his father, Norton, had become a successful merchant and dealer in precious gems and jewelry. Norton was his father's second son, and not standing to directly inherit, had left the family's more martial tradition to enter into mercantilism. Norton had come to think little of his own father's chivalric roots and career, and explained to Athander that in that way lay the past, and that people in the world loathed the Knights of Solamnia. Norton set Athander to work with his nimble little hands, having him taught how to set gems in jewelry, cast gold and silver, and cut jewels out of unshaped stones. As the years passed however, Athander chafed under his father's attitude towards life. He saw the unhappiness of his mother Athandra and the increasing haughtiness and urbanization of his sister Nolia, and longed to return to Long Ridge.

When Athander was 16, his father Norton suffered a major financial set-back due to a series of bad investments and loss of merchandise at sea. Near ruin, he turned to drink and beat Athander for his growing resistance to Norton's vision for his future, and for his continued bearing as a cavalier of the old family tradition. At last Athander ran away to his uncle and grandfather. For several happy months he stayed there, but at length his father appealed to the law and sent agents to bring Athander back to Crossing. Athander thought to resist his father's summons, but he had learned that in his absence his mother had died from disease. Crestfallen, he was taken back to the city.

Crossing to Haltigoth: Marrying his sister to a rich merchant in the city, Norton received new employment opportunities as that merchant's agent in the far-off Estwilde city of Haltigoth. A miserable voyage across the New Sea brought father and son to a large and decaying port city. Already under the influence of the forces of evil from nearby Neraka, Athander was appalled by the poverty, misery, callousness and cruelty the had poisoned much of the city. Norton grew fatter, angrier, drunker and richer in the city, benefitting from the traffic of illicit goods. Hearing rumors of freedom fighters and heroes in the Estwilde hinterlands, Athander sought to run away a second time, but he was once again captured by his father and then badly beaten. Threatening to run away again to his grandfather, Norton gleefully informed Athander that his beloved uncle Enthon and Enthon's son had been killed by bandits, and that at last Athander's grandfather Norwin had died of heartbreak. Being now the rightful owner, Norton declared his intent to expel the remaining female members of the family and to sell the Duveran estate so that he might use the proceeds to live in luxury in Haltigoth and grow his mercantile business. At last Athander could endure no more and struck his father until he fell, unconscious but not dead.

Flight, Capture, Escape: Knowing his father's agents and friends would find him if he tried to take ship, Athander fled by foot on the old coasting road. After several terrible nights he arrived at ruins of an old and abandoned city which he knew to be called Gwan. Having heard that a band of heroes made their outpost there among the ruins, he entered the dead city, looking both for what he might find there, and so as to escape the agents of his father who were already looking for him. However, instead of riches or heroes, Athander found a trap, the foul gulley dwarves who had made the trap, and a sinister black robed figure who threatened to use him for some terrible experiment. Hanging upon the wall in the gulley dwarve's dungeon, just as the malevolent figure threatened Athander, two armored figures appeared and fought off the dwarves, their monsters and their cowled master. Before more dwarves came, they freed Athander and led him to escape on their horses well outside the city.

Kharthen and Amdor: Leaving him with supplies and direction, Athander appealed to the mercy of his saviors, not having anywhere else to return to. Stoic and grim, the two men warned Athander he would be far safer somewhere else, saying that their road was harder than Athander's, and that he best make his peace with his father and live his life. Athander expressed his despair at reconciling with his evil father and his desire to be like them, heroes. They declined this description, saying that they were both marked men, and that the ways of knighthood and heroism were in the past, save for those who were willing to die for a principle and a dream. The leader said that even if Athander believed in such things, he obviously did not have the heart for it, or otherwise he would not have been so easily taken and defeated by petty forces of evil. They ordered him to go home once more, then rode off. In tearfelt defiance Athander ran after them through the plains for a time. When all his strength was gone he collapsed in the wilderness. Then, when his hope was lost, the two horsemen returned in the moonlit night. In harsh words, the leader asked if Athander believed in the old gods. He said he did. The leader responded, saying that if Athander wished a life of hardship, danger and likely death, and that if he was willing to obey implicitly all that his companion Amdor commanded, he might come with them. So Athander did, riding up the junior man's horse. When Athander asked his riding companion what was the name of the leader, he did not answer, saying only that his own name was Amdor, and that the other man's name was not for him.

The House of Amdor: Athander rode with his two new companions for several days until they reached a chain of low mountains, and there passed the township of what Athander would later learn was called Bleakstorm. After another day, hidden well and deep within the mountains, they came upon a forlorn and isolated stone-walled ranch with two houses upon it. Athander was settled with Amdor in the larger of the two stout houses, and introduced to Amdor's large and industrious family. Amdor quickly set Athander to task with ranching and farming duties, and he was treated harshly although justly. Every meal he sat at the end of the table with the martial looking Amdor saying nothing to him. Although seemingly a commoner, Athander noticed that Amdor's home demonstrated signs of nobility, with splendid ancient armor upon the dining hall wall, and swords held often and well by Amdor's three older sons. But the nameless leader stayed to himself mostly, living in a smaller house alone. Often he would see to his well-weathered equipment and to his horses, and spar with the elder boys of Amdor. He would also often disappear with Amdorian, the eldest of Amdor's boys, riding off alone out of the mountain valley, being gone for weeks and even months at a time. Amdor would occasionally test Athander with harsh tasks. But he was also fairly religious, and would speak of these things to Athander, and question him as to the nature of his faith, presenting him with various ethical dilemmas. At last, when Athander was emotionally exhausted after months of servitude to Amdor, he asked when he might ride with the mysterious and grim leader who Amdor still refused to name. Amdor said it was very bold and presumptuous of Athander to ask such a question, and asked him if it was not honorable enough for Athander to serve a man like Amdor's master, for in his laborious service to the ranch he made what he did possible. After this however Amdor took Athander to the nearby town of Bleakstorm to buy and to sell goods, and to hear news of the darkening tides coming from the east.

Amdorian: Amdorian and the yet still grimmer and thinner leader returned. Soon afterwards, Amdor announced he himself was leaving, and that he would be giving his son Amdorian command over the homestead. Athander was to obey what Amdorian said without question if he ever even hoped to be of service greater than his current position. Although Amdor's family had until then been kind if curt, when the two older men rode off, Amdorian became truly authoritarian over Athander. His way with the horses was never good enough, and his tasks with maintenance of the ranch were never proper. Amdorian, who was only some five or more years older than Athander, would rap him on the knuckles with a stick, and although kindly in a certain sense, his seeming discipline was so harsh so as to drive Athander to the end of his endurance. Several times Amdorian would say at the head of the dinner table that perhaps it would be best that Athander return to the city, and cross the sea to go south again to safer lands. He would explain to his mother and younger children that Athander was not the best with the horses and beasts, and that perhaps it would be best if he be set to other work. But Athander remained steadfast in his determination, saying he wished to ride with his father Amdor, and that his father would find him worthy one day. Amdorian would simply nod. Amdorian set up lancing games for his two younger brothers, which Athander would arrange but was not allowed to participate in. After months of this, with Amdorian pressing him ever further, at last Athander could endure no more, declaring he would no longer endure Amdorian's harsh tasks and criticisms, even if he were to strike him. Amdorian then threw to Athander a wooden sword, telling him at least he would give him a chance before he beat him out of his father's ranch. Twice Amdorian beat Athander to the ground, Athander refusing to yield. But although Amdorian fought all the harder the third time, as if he were going to kill Athander with the wooden sword, Athander fought with all his might. Athander fell to the earth again, but Amdorian smiled and let him rise. "By the gods, you have a stout heart Athander. Stout enough for my father."

House of uth Thalden - The Story of Amdor uth Thalden: Amdorian revealed to Athander that his father Amdor was by right Lord Amdor uth Thalden of Hartford, in Old Solamnia. He revealed that they had been in exile for many years now. His noble family, House Thalden, had a long tradition of knightly service in the Order of the Crown, but with the expulsion of the Knighthood from the nearby city of Solanthus, the peasantry of Amdor's lands had grown so suspicious of the Knights of Solamnia that although he had served as a squire and was worthy of his spurs, Amdor declined the knighthood in an attempt to preserve his ancestral holding. Thinking his estates safe for the time being, Lord Amdor answered the call of loyal members of the Knighthood who had retreated to more distant lands outside of Solamnia to work against the growing tide of evil. Out in the frontier of the growing tyranny in the broken lands of Taman Busuk, Lord Amdor fought with some of the most valiant Solamnic Knights, operating in remote Estwilde with little direct support from the weakening central leadership of the Knights. After some victories and being named a Defender of the Crown, Amdor returned home for a time only to find his family accosted by insolent peasants insistent on their rights to own his land. In a rage, Lord Amdor threw aside the peasants who were attempting to rule his lands in his stead, which caused a mob army to surround his castle. Amdor thus took his family and what retainers remained to him and abandoning his castle them to far away Gaarlus, near the eastern Solamnic frontier. A stalwart lord-in-exile, Amdor was approached by his future master and other veteran knights, requesting his remaining monies and retainers. While Amdor's family stayed in Gaarlus, Amdor and his new company fought in remote wars, often deep into the increasingly evil lands of Taman Busuk, striving to garner enough victories to rally the rest of the Knighthood against the growing power of Neraka and the monsters of the mountains of that region. Although they fought in many campaigns, they rallied principally around Marshal-General Laca Dragonsbane, Lord of Swords, a remote descendant of Huma himself, until he was slain by the fires of a dragon, and his great army scattered. From time to time he returned to Gaarlus, but with each visit Lord Amdor grew more suspicious of his family's defenders there. As the years passed and the Solamnic frontier collapsed into bickering, betrayal and defeat, Amdor joined the Company of the Defiant Crown, which was a small alliance of knights and their men-at-arms who were Solamnic extremists, refusing to retreat despite the threat of near certain strategic defeat. Basing their secret operations at Kwinter Ranch, they eschewed all other orders and counsel from the great circles of knighthood resting in relative safety in the Solamnic core lands. Their deeds were many and great, but at length the forces of Neraka discovered their secret outpost and defeated them. Amdor had been back with his family at the time of the defeat, but hearing from Solamnic scouts of what had happened, Amdor rode with all haste back to Kwinter Ranch, where he discovered that all the knights and heroes of the company had been slain, and the forces of evil masters of the ranch. However, Amdor decided to come in stealth at night to see what villains had done this so he could think on his revenge, and in the night in the shadows he discovered hidden behind rubble a critically wounded knight, burned and stabbed, who yet still wished to slay the dragon-master who had burned him and his companions. Amdor carried the knight away.

The Story of Amdor uth Thalden - Squire to the Grim Knight: Amdorian continued the story of his family to Athander. Amdor and the Grim Knight, as Amdorian called him, rested not far from Kwinter Ranch. Regaining himself enough, the knight matter-of-factly ordered Amdor to prepare for the counter-attack in the morning. Amdor, highly disturbed by this suicidal command, attempted to turn and otherwise argue against this order. The knight, being much superior to Amdor in rank and office within the order, would not bend, and stated that if Amdor would not obey then he would cut him down as a coward, a traitor, and a shirker of orders, and launch the counter-attack on his own come daybreak, despite his horrible wounds. Amdor pleaded, saying he would do so if not for the sake of his family in Gaarlus, and offered that he would obey any other honorable command if only the knight would countermand his current terrible order. Without hesitation the knight recognized that Amdor was not himself officially a knight, despite his great experience and lordship, and said that he would relent only if Amdor would serve him as a squire, dedicating all his remaining monies and energy to the knight's vengeance and crusade against evil. This Amdor swore. So the two traveled to the outskirts of Gaarlus, which had already become full of traitors and spies. There the knight recovered and Amdor collected his family. Amdor had already invested his money in a reserve ranch not far from Kwinter Ranch, and although the location was perilously close to the power of Taman Busuk, the knight commanded they take residence and base their operations there. So Amdor moved his family. It had been some four years there at Amdor's Ranch, hidden in the mountains. In that time, Amdor and his master had ridden many a times deep into the seats of evil, and done many a great quests. There was no end to the knight's vengeance, and to ensure no reprisals came he no longer wore badges of office or ensigns of heraldry. He hid his name, which the enemy still did not know, calling him only the Grim Knight if they were even sure it was he who did great hurt to them. The knight had by then become disgusted by the knightly order which so cowardly stayed back from the extreme front while evil grew, and although he still in his way loved the Knighthood, he thought all who remained were undeserving of their ranks, offices and very spurs. Only Amdor, his squire, who accompanied him on all but his most dangerous ventures, maintained his grudging respect. In those four years Amdorian had trained with the knight, and learned a great deal, and in the last two had even begun to ride out with him on his easier patrols, and for his missions in spying. Amdorian said the knight and his father still kept faith with the spirit of the slain Company of the Defiant Crown, and still hoped to grow it once more into a small band of iron knights who would fight on, although all others flee and submit.

Amdorian and the Initial Mentorship of Athander: Amdorian had been tasked to test Athander, and Athander had stood up for himself, despite his oath, which was the Grim Knight's purpose. From then on Amdorian treated Athander with increasing respect. Much was revealed about their secret armory, and Athander was introduced to the family as closer to an equal instead of as an abject servant. Yet still Amdorian held authority over Athander, and the elder youth, as acting master of the ranch, trained and tested Athander in weaponry and horse. Amdorian even showed Athander their hidden smithy, and the pile of enemy weapons they were methodically reforging as best they might into quality weapons and armor for a larger force the hoped would one day manifest. After yet more months of this, when Amdorian began to fear his father and the Grim Knight would not be returning, they did at last return. Amdorian was pleased to boast of Athander's progress. The two had been dueling with practice blades, and all the boys of the family said Athander was already a very promising swordsman. Amdorian said he was hopeful his father and the knight would train Athander further. But something of Amdorian's tone set the knight to wroth. Without a word the thin man threw to Athander his own blade and rushed him with his horseman's mace. The knight seemed merciless, holding nothing back. Within but a few strikes of his long hammer, Athander fell to the earth disarmed, the sword flying into the air. The knight kicked him brutally and then slammed down the mace as if to kill him. Instead the steel mace crushed a rock beside Athander's head, and Athander nearly swooned. The knight glared at Athander for a moment and then stormed off and handed the horseman's mace to Amdor, who had been watching nearby. That night, once again at the head of his table for his large family but with his eldest son absent, Amdor told much to Athander. This was why the knight had warned him to return to his father. This was why he himself had warned Athander. The Grim Knight would brook no weakness from would-be knights. Too many youths with fanciful tales of heroism and glory were among the ranks of the Knighthood, Amdor explained, and their weakness and lack of iron dedication now threatened to undo the Order as a whole and the rest of all the lands where evil and chaos did not yet openly rule. Amdor had sent his eldest son on a lone patrol to contemplate his over-enthusiasm. Athander was not yet worthy of the secrets of their tiny cell, and much unproven. The knight was on the verge, Amdor explained, of sending Athander on his way, back to his father or wherever he would go at last, thinking him unsuitable as a prospect. But Athander spoke up for himself. He declared his intention to learn and to meet the hard standards of the Grim Knight. Amidst Athander's response, uncharacteristically the Grim Knight appeared and told Athander that his father had lied, and that although his uncle and cousin were dead his grandfather was very much alive and well, and would love to have his grandson back. There at Long Ridge Athander could be happy and safe, well away from the troubles of the extreme Solamnic frontier, and even become a knight there, for did not Athander know that his grandfather served as vassal to a Solamnic Knight? Surely the training and knighting could be arranged. Athander could stand to inherit a valuable estate and become a shining knight, as was his dream, and enjoy the benefits of servants, good food, peaceful lands, and perhaps the love of a noble lady. The knight opened the door, declaring he had learned only recently of this truth. He bid Athander go. Athander stood and stated he would stay. Three times he said this in defiance of the knight. Then at last the knight relented, and said that Athander then must keep to his oath he gave to he and Amdor many months ago, and obey. The knight then commanded Amdor to train him.

The Training of Athander: Amdor was set to great labor. The training of horses and trouble of ranching cattle took much of his days, and what time remained was set to work at the forge. In his labors he was accompanied with Amdor's younger sons, and he was closest to the boy closest to Athander in age, Amdor the Younger. Amdor and Amdorian showed Athander the ways of weapon play, and Amdorian sometimes the smithy, but it was the Grim Knight himself who set to teaching Athander the skills of a weaponsmith. The knight had no flare for finery in steel armor or weapons, but instead worked with great efficiency and intensity. He was however keen on great quality in his weapons, and had become skilled in melting down and improving on the steel of their enemies. Athander could tell that the knight envisioned a strong force one day, should the opportunity arise. Lances, swords, spears and other weapons besides were their make. Amdor also took Athander into Bleakstorm to sell horses for finished goods. From time-to-time Amdor and the knight would leave, and sometimes Amdorian would venture out with the knight instead of his father, but during his second year with them, they were rarely gone for very long, only for a few weeks at most. Whatever their adventures were it was kept from Athander, and although he saw the three of them speaking at times among themselves, he never knew what was being said. Later that second year, Athander was taken by Amdor and the knight all the way back to Haltigoth, ostensibly to sell horses, but Athander knew it was also for other matters. Even in the some two years Athander had been gone the morally degraded port city had somehow grown even worse. There Athander was given a sword for the first time and wore studded leather under humbler clothes, watching the door as the Grim Knight spoke to men Athander was certain were a local cell of Solamnic Knights living in secret. During that visit Amdor spoke to Athander, telling him that the Grim Knight and he had their own informants in the city and in the region, and knew of his father if not his sister. Norton had indeed increased his wealth, but had done so by falling into the slave trade. By all accounts he had given up his search for his son, thinking him dead, and now chiefly served himself and his desires. Amdor advised that Athander would gain no peace in meeting or speaking with his father, for he had been corrupted as were so many in the city. Upon the closing of his second year with Amdor and his family, Athander grew closer to the eldest daughter of Amdor, and although the lord squire's eye and aura forbade any advance from Athander without a word needing to be said about it, their wordless attraction grew.