Senyig

Senyig is the second son of Redond and Maureen, serving as the boatswain aboard the Sister Mercy, the infamous pirate ship operating along the Velverdyva River and Imeryds Run. Known for his subtle wit and quiet confidence, Senyig is a man of lethal precision and emotional turmoil. While his exterior conveys calm self-assurance, his inner world is a storm of self-doubt and loneliness. A master of stealth and cunning, Senyig is indispensable to the ship's operations, but his fractured psyche leaves him torn between his familial loyalty and his desire to escape his shadowy existence.  

Physical Description

Senyig is tall and lean, with the wiry build of someone who has spent his life mastering agility and stealth. His jet-black hair is perpetually disheveled, falling across his sharp, pale face. His dark eyes are piercing, conveying a mixture of menace and melancholy. His movements are deliberate and smooth, giving him the air of a predator stalking its prey.

• Build: Lean, agile, with sinewy strength.
• Hair: Jet-black and perpetually unkempt.
• Eyes: Dark, with an intensity that unsettles most.
• Clothing: Dark leather armor adorned with the subtle emblem of the Redond family, designed for silence and mobility.
• Weapons: Dual daggers and a light crossbow, well-maintained and personalized for efficiency.

Personality

Senyig speaks with a slow, deliberate drawl, enjoying the psychological edge of controlling conversations. His wit is sharp, but he rarely uses it for cruelty. Though he thrives in the shadows, Senyig secretly yearns for belonging and purpose. His bond with his older brother, Mallandamus, is the only anchor in his life, keeping him from abandoning his family.

• Confidence: Exhibits quiet self-assurance in most situations.
• Wit: Sharp and subtle in conversation, often using it to unnerve others.
• Inner Turmoil: Feels unworthy of happiness and struggles with self-doubt.
• Loyalty: Devoted to his family, especially Mallandamus.

"We sail through blood, lies, and despair. But it’s family, and family’s all I’ve got."

Background

Senyig grew up under the oppressive shadow of his father, Captain Redond, and the cold machinations of his mother, Maureen. While Mallandamus was groomed to be the family’s champion, Senyig was often overlooked, his talents underestimated. This led him to develop skills in stealth, subterfuge, and assassination, making him the family’s most dangerous covert operative.

"Happiness isn’t for people like me. We survive; we endure. That’s all we deserve."

Senyig’s relationship with his family is complex. He admires Mallandamus but harbors resentment toward his father for his harsh expectations and toward his mother for her manipulation. Despite this, he remains aboard the Sister Mercy, unable to sever his ties to the only people who have ever truly known him.

Key Elements of Background

• Role in the Family: The covert operative and assassin, handling delicate and lethal tasks.
• Relationship with Mallandamus: Deeply bonded, viewing his brother as his only true connection.
• Struggles: Feels overshadowed by his brother and trapped by his family’s expectations.

"My brother is my anchor. Without him, I’d drift away... or drown."

Motivations

Senyig’s primary motivation is his loyalty to Mallandamus, which outweighs his growing desire to leave the Sister Mercy and forge his own path. He fantasizes about starting a guild of assassins or mercenaries, but his devotion to his brother and his fear of abandonment keep him tethered to the ship.

• Family Loyalty: Especially to Mallandamus, whom he cannot bear to leave.
• Personal Growth: Dreams of independence and purpose beyond the shadow of his family.
• Reputation: Desires respect and recognition for his talents, which he feels are often overlooked.

Role on the Sister Mercy

As the boatswain, Senyig is responsible for maintaining the ship’s rigging and equipment, as well as overseeing the crew’s discipline. However, his true role lies in his skills as an assassin and infiltrator. He carries out Redond’s most dangerous missions, eliminating threats and gathering intelligence with surgical precision.

• Boatswain Duties: Manages rigging, equipment, and crew discipline.
• Assassin: Executes covert missions, often acting as the ship’s enforcer.
• Infiltrator: Skilled at gathering intelligence and sabotaging enemy plans.

Relationships

• Captain Redond: Respects his father’s leadership but resents his coldness and unyielding demands.
• Maureen: Views his mother as calculating and manipulative but respects her intelligence.
• Mallandamus: His closest and most trusted ally, with an unbreakable bond of brotherhood.
• Barbary: Distrusts his sister, believing her devotion to Orcus compromises her loyalty to the family.
• Prelos: Maintains a professional relationship with the Devil’s Song captain, admiring his discipline but wary of his ambitions.

"Sometimes, I wonder what it’d be like to leave this all behind. But you’d never leave, and I’d never leave you."

DM-Only Section

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Secret Weakness

Senyig’s emotional dependence on Mallandamus is his greatest vulnerability. If a clever adversary manipulates this bond, Senyig could be coerced into betraying his family.

Potential Plot Hooks

• Escape Plan: Senyig secretly contacts the PCs, offering to help them undermine the Sister Mercy if they help him escape his family’s control.
• Sibling Rivalry: Senyig becomes jealous of Mallandamus’ growing fame and begins to sabotage him, creating cracks in the family’s unity.
• Redond’s Deal: Senyig discovers Redond’s pact with Orcus and must choose between loyalty to his family or joining forces with the PCs to stop his father.

Notable Possessions

• Twin Daggers: Serrated daggers, one with a blackened blade for stealth kills.
• Crossbow of Silence: A magical light crossbow that suppresses noise, ideal for assassinations.
• Ring of Shadows: A minor magical ring that grants advantage on Stealth checks in dim light or darkness.

"The shadows suit me better than the light. In the dark, no one expects anything from you."

Senyig

• Medium Humanoid (Human), Lawful Evil
• Armor Class: 16 (Leather Armor +2, Cloak of Displacement)
• Hit Points: 74 (13d8 + 26)
• Speed: 30 ft. (40 ft. with Boots of Striding and Springing)

STR | DEX | CON | INT | WIS | CHA 12 (+1) | 18 (+4) | 16 (+3) | 15 (+2) | 9 (-1) | 13 (+1)

• Saving Throws: Dex +8, Int +6
• Skills: Stealth +9, Deception +6, Insight +2, Sleight of Hand +7, Perception +3
• Damage Resistances: Psychic (from Ring of Mind Shielding)
• Senses: Passive Perception 13
• Languages: Common, Thieves' Cant

Abilities

• Assassinate. During the first round of combat, Senyig has advantage on attack rolls against any creature that hasn’t taken a turn. Any hit against a surprised creature is a critical hit.
• Evasion. If Senyig is subjected to an effect that allows him to make a Dexterity saving throw to take only half damage, he instead takes no damage on a successful save and only half damage on a failed save.
• Sneak Attack (5d6). Once per turn, when Senyig hits a creature with a weapon attack and has advantage on the attack roll, or when an ally is within 5 feet of the target, Senyig deals an additional 17 (5d6) damage.

Actions

Multiattack. Senyig makes two melee weapon attacks.
Bardiche of Life Stealing. Melee Weapon Attack: +7 to hit, reach 10 ft., one target. Hit: 12 (2d4 + 2) slashing damage. If the attack rolls a natural 20, it steals 10 temporary hit points from the target.
Dagger (Thrown). Ranged Weapon Attack: +7 to hit, range 20/60 ft., one target. Hit: 7 (1d6 + 4) piercing damage.
Poison Use (Optional). Senyig can coat his weapon with poison as a bonus action. A poisoned weapon deals an additional 3 (1d6) poison damage on a hit.

Reactions

Uncanny Dodge. When an attacker Senyig can see hits him with an attack, he can use his reaction to halve the attack’s damage against him.

Personal Items

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• Cloak of Displacement. Attack rolls against Senyig are made with disadvantage unless he is incapacitated or restrained.
• Ring of Mind Shielding. Senyig’s thoughts can’t be read, he is immune to divination magic, and attempts to detect his alignment fail.
• Boots of Striding and Springing. Senyig’s walking speed is 40 feet, and his jump distance is tripled.
• Bardiche of Life Stealing: A vicious polearm that grants life-stealing capabilities.
• Cloak of Displacement: Grants disadvantage on attack rolls against him.
• Boots of Striding and Springing: Increases speed and jump distance.
• Ring of Mind Shielding: Protects against mental intrusion and divination magic.
• Gold and Silver: 100 gp and 50 sp.

Senyig is a cunning assassin whose equipment enhances his agility and survivability, making him a formidable foe or a vital ally in covert operations. His deep emotional scars fuel his dangerous resolve.

Alignment

Lawful Evil

Species

Humans of Greyhawk

Ethnicity

Oeridian Oerid

Year of Birth

553 23 Years old

Sex

male

Eyes

Dark, with an intensity that unsettles most.

Hair

Jet-black and perpetually unkempt

Height

6'

Aligned Organization

Sister Mercy