Duke Torlin Silvershield

Leader of the city’s greatest patriar house, duke on the Council of Four, and head priest of its grandest temple, Torlin Silvershield is one of the most powerful people in Baldur’s Gate.

Gender: Male
Hair: His black hair has grayed at the temples, and he wears a well-trimmed salt-and-pepper beard.
Skin Tone/Pigmentation: White

Appearance

Physical Description

Silvershield sees himself as the embodiment of the best of Baldur’s Gate. As such, he takes great pains with his appearance to present a proud example for others to follow. The duke fasts for long stretches and exercises daily, giving him a gaunt but fit physique.

Mentality

Education

Thanks to a nobleman’s education and masterful control over his voice and demeanor from a lifetime of sermonizing, Silvershield is a natural diplomat and a consummate actor. The patriar is neither vain nor greedy, but he has an all-consuming drive to realize
his visions for the Gate’s future, no matter the cost. He is fearless and clear-headed in a crisis, and he is always thinking at least three steps ahead.

Morality & Philosophy

Torlin Silvershield believes that his nobility and birthright give him a divine obligation to rule with justice. Like many worshipers of Gond, the god of innovation and technology, the high artificer sees wealth as proof of the god’s favor and firmly believes in fair rewards for labor. So Silvershield never appears in public without displaying excellently crafted High House of Wonders items and jewelry. Additionally, the Silvershield estate is adorned in fine art and technological marvels. The best interests of Baldur’s Gate are foremost in Silvershield’s plans, even trumping the concerns of Gond’s temple. The duke didn’t seek power within the temple hierarchy for its own sake, his sake, or Gond’s sake. Rather, he viewed his religious service as the best way he could serve Baldur’s Gate. He sees no hypocrisy in this outlook. To Silvershield, the ends always justify the means.

Personality

Likes & Dislikes

The duke detests patriars who abdicate their duties as rulers and abet the Guild, and he truly despises Lower City denizens who subvert the gods’ divine intent and aspire to rise above their station to meddle in the city’s governance.

Vices & Personality flaws

In recent months, Silvershield has grown increasingly grim and unscrupulous in his scheming. He believes that the Outer City’s unchecked growth is dragging Baldur’s Gate down into violence and a lower standard of living. He sees all-out war against the Guild as inevitable and the Guild’s extermination as the city’s paramount task. He knows the Guild has wormed its way into every aspect of city life, arranging matters for its profit and daily convenience.

Silvershield appreciates the Watch but resists turning its full force against the Guild, because he believes that doing so would only drive the Guild to strike at innocent civilians in retaliation. Instead, he believes it is time to fight fire with fire. He is on the
lookout for suitable adventurers to hire to battle the Guild. Such a group, provided with covert aid from the dukes and an understanding that, if necessary, the courts would find in their favor, could accomplish far more than the Watch or the Flaming Fist.