Ser Alduric Veren

A legendary warrior who was well revered within the Terisian military. He is famous, or more likely infamous, as the rebellious upstart who fractured the West. Butcher of 10,000 Men and the Death Devout, Alduric Veren is a name few dare speak--even after his death.

Physical Description

General Physical Condition

Ser Veren aged considerably between his prime and his defeat, but he was no less deadly despite his senoirity.
Even though Veren was well into his silver years, he remained in peak physical condition, or what could be considered peak for someone his age. He maintained a majority of his muscle mass in spite of his deteriorating body, and some would argue his mind.

Facial Features

From The Festival Feast until his death, Ser Veren shrouded his face under the prayer clothes marked with the insignias of Kelemvor, a lesser-known deity of death and judgment.
In the past, Kelemvor was an obscure deity rarely encountered in organized religion. Because of this authorities would often ascertain Ser Veren's location through methods of identifying his prayer clothes instead of a face that they likely would not have recognized.
Indeed, much of Veren's apperance has been lost to time.

Identifying Characteristics

Marked prayer clothes with a skeletal hand and scale that hide the head of a tall and impressive man.
He could also be identified by his armor, though it is marked from years of combat and the decals have mostly been scratched out--purposefully--an observant eye can spot the logos of The Last Chance Lancers, a tall white lance piercing a shield.

Mental characteristics

Personal history

Alduric began his life in Bunkertown and spent much of his childhood in weapons training with his mother. When he turned 13, enlisting age, he joined the Bunkertown Volunteer Militia, and helped to hold the line of South End Station.
Legend has it that on a dark and dreary winter night, when frozen rain thrummed against the metal armor of Alduric and his allies, a horde of unprecedented size approached the wall. The battalion commander was quick to mobilize a force to defend, but he lost his life after engaging the mob. Alduric took charge of the siege, ordering his men from the west section of the wall, the section under the most attack. He then ordered them to begin pulling the foundation and supporting ballast from the wall to fell it--and so the wall fell atop the many creatures who hurriedly attempted to pass it. Alduric and his men then charged through the debris and smoke to destroy the horde, breaking through their weakened formation and claiming the night. For his quick thinking and success, he was named Ser Veren the very next day, the youngest to ever receive a knighthood at 15.
After a long military career, Ser Veren retired from service at 42 after reaching the rank of Lieutenant Colonel. He stated his reason for retiring was because he could seldom break from his responsibilities to see combat. After leaving Bunkertown to come to mainland Terisirae, Ser Veren joined a company of adventurers known far and wide for their combat prowess, The Last Chance Lancers. Little is known of Ser Veren after he joined this outfit, but what is known it a story called The Festival Feast. One day in the spring of 1078, after assisting the nobles of Aquarin to quell what could have become an all-out civil war, The Last Chance Lancers were invited to celebrate their victory in the grand dining halls of one Count Berracht. That night, Veren slaughtered nearly 300 people, including his own outfit and the noble men who invited them.
Ever since, Ser Veren has lived in infamy, with an enormous 24,500 gp bounty on his head. He has defended that bounty ever since, traveling in secret and evading the vengeful eyes of Anbhor's elite.

Employment

Terisian Military, 29 years, retired with honors and accolades

Mental Trauma

Whispers circulate about Ser Veren since The Festival Feast, many pondering and speculating on his motivations.
Many think he had a mental episode, years of combat finally weighing on his mind to the point that he went insane, devoting himself thereafter to a god of death nonetheless.
Others think he was overtaken with a great sense of guilt, seeing the growing unrest in Anbhor following his actions, stoking further civil disobedience from the masses--perhaps he thought he wasted his life?

Intellectual Characteristics

Veren's mind is obsessive, lethally so. He has a tendency to focus on even the most minor of details in his strategies and tactics to ensure victory no matter the cost--sometimes to the detriment of those who serve under him.
Nevertheless, his single-minded concerns of victory and triumph make him a capable and dangerous foe.

Morality & Philosophy

Ser Veren has lived his entire life in service to "the people", a term he uses to encompass those who were born as he was, without titles or land.
His life's mission since retiring from the military was to undo the strictures and institutions that profited the few at the expense of the many, dedicating his life to uninstalling despots and authoritarians in order to liberate oppressed peoples. His understanding of complex societal contexts is utterly utilitarian, believing that slow and incremental change is only a tool used by the wealthy to give the appearance of progress, only to be eroded away a generation later.
To truly liberate those who need it, swift and decisive action must be enacted.

Personality Characteristics

Motivation

Historians in The Commonwealth of Anbhor theorized and debated greatly among themselves as to the possible justifications behind the infamous Festival Feast. In Y.E. 1102, Ashley Moztel sought to rehabilitate Veren's image in the international community. She led the new power in the region, The Democratic People's Republic of Kelemvor and sought to provide justification for their admiration of someone who was widely considered to be an insane criminal, a cultish figure following a god of death to their natural end.
The Neo Dogma published its holy text, The Dead Scales, outside of the Kelic region for the entire world to interact with, to spread the reach of Kelemvor beyond the Southwestern corner of Terisirae. Its first hundred pages are dedicated to the life story of Veren, portraying him as a tragically misunderstood hero, a lifelong freedom fighter stifled by oppressive military systems, and a culture of apathy toward the common citizen. He is honored in The Dead Scales as the first Chosen of Kelemvor, and a recognized Saint within His new religion.
Within these hundred pages are the details of The Festival Feast, recounted from Veren's perspective. In 1075, The LCL was contacted by Count Berracht of Aquarin. Tensions had been mounting over unfair working conditions and a significant number of citizens were staging walkouts and demonstrations against the city's wealthiest royalty. Berracht reached out to adventuring guilds to help keep peace and order in the streets while tensions mounted; however, the Lancer presence was anything but peaceful. The guild was instructed to destroy meeting locations that were popular or held special historic significance among the protestors, causing violent clashes that soon became feedback loops of increasingly brutal countermeasures from the Lancers, stirring common sentiment to the brink of all-out war. Count Berracht used this to convince The Assembly to deploy even more soldiers and adventurers guilds to Aquarin to rout the rioters. 
Eventually, with royal funding and superior weapons, the Lancers were able to quell the would-be-rebellion and were honored in the spring of 1078 at the Berracht estate. They were given an entire day to lounge in the lap of luxury in anticipation of a royal feast that same night. At the dinner, when all were fed and full, Berracht brought out dessert. Each of the 205 LCL members and the 58 royals invited was given a plate of pudding and the severed head of one of the citizens apprehended during the riots. Veren was horrified, even more so when he discovered that it was the LCL who had decapitated each of the detainees. He left the table, and armored himself, determined to leave Aquarin and the Lancers forever. Berracht became concerned that Veren's shock could inspire more waves of civil disobedience, or worse, he could lead a new revolt. He ordered LCL members to kill their sworn brother in arms.
Veren flew into a rage, holding his weapon tightly he promised that he would be no easy trophy. That night, that horrible, long night, Veren fought off wave after wave of his own allies--taking blows but never falling to the ground. He fought his way back into the dining hall where Berracht hid, fought through his last lines of defense, and killed the count in his anger. Resting there, alone in the emptied estate, covered in wounds, and blood, and slashes, he screamed what remained of his fury into the air, screamed for whatever god could hear him and could make sense of the horrid scene. Only one responded. That night, Veren felt the touch of Kelemvor, who praised him for bringing justice to the worthy but demanded penance for bringing early death to men who still had a role to play in the grand tapestry. Veren cut cloth from a curtain and inscribed on it the image Kelemvor had entered into his mind, the skeletal arm holding scales, and then cut his eyes from his head. From that day on, he forever wore the symbol of Kelemvor. He had no need for sight, for the god of death would guide His loyal servant.
Berracht's fears eventually came to fruition. Veren traveled to Bearingpool and, seeing its people in the same need that the protestors of Aquarin were, organized a true to form rebellion.

Age

68

Date of Birth

18th of Uktar, 1027 Y.E.

Life

1027 Y.E. 1095 Y.E. 68 years old

Circumstances of Birth

Born to a family of military service, his father Ser Ter-ad Veren and his mother Narish Veren

Circumstances of Death

Unexpectedly betryaed by his allies in The Taking of Bearingpool

Gender

Male

Eyes

Unknown, missing

Hair

Shaved head

Skin Tone/Pigmentation

White and somewhat sallow

Height

6'2"

Weight

197 lbs

Related Plots

• Chapter 1: The First Light