Sir Talmid
Human Guild Leader and Caravan Captain
Sir Talmid was a human guild leader and transport captain who appeared in Azimuth Campaign Two. He was an NPC played by M.B.
He had recently been appointed as leader of the Commandment of Sky Guildhall after the loss of Nabat. He ran the guildhall for the Prophets of Regression until his death in battle against the Lightbringers.
Description
Appearance
Talmid was a human man in his mid-thirties. He was of average height and a bit lithe. His face was stoic and a bit firm. He had dark, short hair, a trimmed beard and moustache, and dark eyes. When he was a transport captain, he wore clothing suited for travel. When in charge of the Commandment of Sky Guildhall, Talmid wore finely crafted and decorative leathers, with a trim and fitted green doublet, high white collar, and thick fabric breeches. He wore a Tarterian Traders lapel pin. His decorative clothing appeared much newer, and though he appeared uneasy in it, he was very comfortable with the breastplate he wore as armor. He wore a Topaz Ring of Resistance and his greatsword had a simple enhancement enchantment.Personality
Talmid appeared violent and abrasive, and he often swore when speaking. He seemed to have no concerns about his role as a hired sword. He was fine with causing damage, even to allies when he felt it was necessary. He stated that he hated gnomes, and he was seen to be cruel to them. This was seen by the brutal way he killed Borli Gwathagoldrin, and again when he taunted and insulted Mortimr Gwathagoldrin. Though he showed strong contempt, he was also seen to be wily and clever, even in life-threatening situations. This was seen when the Lightbringers were interrogating him, as he attempted to steer the conversation towards a desired outcome. Talmid appeared somewhat uncomfortable with city politics and showed a lack of competency with running a guildhall. Though Talmid's purpose was not actually to run the guildhall, he showed little care with the role, which caused concerns for the merchants and government officials of New Keeleon. Talmid was very dismissive of the Dragons and did not seem faithful. As part of this, he seemed confident that the Prophets of Regression would accomplish their goals. He did not seem easily frightened and did not seem afraid to die. However, Talmid did show fear related to Beburos and to the Entity related to Mortimr. He showed a familiarity with that pink energy.Biography
Background
At some point, Talmid was approached by Azariel and joined the Prophets of Regression. He worked as a caravan escort captain, transporting goods between the guildhalls of the Tarterian Traders. Secretly, this was a cover to allow Talmid to work as an assassin on behalf of Azariel. Around 14 Madaet 5A 352, Talmid met Azariel in Kievs and delivered a black box. This was witnessed by Borli Gwathagoldrin. Shortly after this, Talmid killed Borli and sent his severed head to Mortimr Gwathagoldrin's apartment with a note reading "Toe the Line". Around 4 Adroth 5A 352, Talmid was quickly appointed as the head of the Commandment of Sky Guildhall in New Keeleon and granted the title of Sir. As guild leader, Talmid had many interactions with the merchants and city officials of New Keeleon. Talmid continued the guildhall's recent trend of reneging on agreements, calling in debts, and putting stronger pressure on the merchant class. In early Adroth 5A 352, Talmid recieved a written letter from Azariel, which read, "Maalik’s replica will arrive soon, and then we can try again. And if it’s not powerful enough, Nabat was working on finding one of the other three. See if you can continue that work. We don’t have all the pieces to repair the Leviathan’s Key, not unless we get the crown to crush the rebellion and take Her new pet down first. Beburos went to find some extra insurance for the next attempt. He’s expecting us to be ready when he returns. – Azariel" At some point, Talmid received paperwork seemingly signed by Guild Marshal Hagar Krugg which placed the Commandment of Sky Guildhall in charge of distribution for the Santeem Republic aid caravan. Argilla, son of Kla, said when he was measuring the wall space for his commission in the Commandment of Sky Guildhall , he had seen people in blue cloaks in Sir Talmid ’s office. On 10 Adroth 5A 352, Coinguard Holarust was captured by Sir Talmid as she investigated the guildhall and held within the cages in the Chamber of Titles.Campaign Two: Lightbringers
Session 26 - Names, New and Old
12 Adroth 5A 352, Talmid went to the Breakwater Keep and provided the paperwork putting the guildhall in charge of the caravan distribution. This meeting was spied on by Arwin.Session 27 - River and Sky
13 Adroth, Arwin attempt to set a meeting with Talmid at the guildhall, however Talmid was not present at that time. It was later learned that Talmid had also captured Watchguard Stuzrog as he investigated the guildhall around this time. At this time, Talmid was writting a letter addressed to Azariel, which read, "Azariel, this cult built by Nabat’s follower is out of control and risking everything. Totally devoted to completing Nabat’s mission, but at any cost. I’ll eliminate him, then Gorod, and clean— WATCHGUARD IS HERE"Session 32 - To Paint a Phoenix
On 14 Adroth 5A 352, Mortimr and Captain Ruslan attempted ot track Talmid’s movements in the city, but they couldn’t locate him. Lord Lortuk later said Talmid hadn’t been seen around town for a few days.Session 35 - On the Scent
On 16 Adroth 5A 352, the Lightbringers recognized the voices of Talmid and Shur behind a door at the Chamber of Titles. Talmid was angry Shur had ran through the city openly, saying he was risking everything. Shur was defiant, saying they were continuing Nabat’s work “until the Regression begins.”Session 36 - The Chamber of Titles
Talmid and Shur exited the research room and saw the Lightbringers and the summoned elementals. Talmid said, “It’s the fucking caravan guards. You led them here! Fucking useless cultists!” Talmid pushed the acolyte forward and directed him to be useful and attack. Arwin looked directly towards Talmid and fired arrows at him. Talmid glared back. To Shur, he said, “At least you’re useful as a fucking shield,” and grabbed the acolyte and moved him into the path of the arrows. Mortimr and Chaka tried to incapacitate Talmid with magic, but he resisted both effects. Romsca cast flames onto Talmid’s armor, burning him. In response, he pulled his greatsword and rushed towards Romsca. Gertrude exploded a Fireball in the room, and Romulus sent a Tidal Wave, knocking Shur and Talmid down. With his armor steaming, he stood and said, “Gim Gorod mentioned something about a pesky fucking gnoll!” He called to the air elemental and both attacked Romsca repeatedly. She resisted the attacks and held her own against the assault. Arwin shot Talmid with an alchemist arrow and Mortimr ran up and cast a damage spell, but missed. Talmid seemed to notice something about Mortimr, even through his custom mask. Much of the group encircled Talmid. As Talmid fought back, he focused on Mortimr and called to the fire elemental to set them on fire. He said, “Fucking gnomes! I’ve always hated gnomes.” He slashed Mortimr repeatedly and sent him to the ground in flames. He stabbed down into Mortimr’s body, putting him next to death. He said, “Stop or he dies!” After Arwin removed Mortimr’s mask to heal him, Talmid looked at Mortimr’s revealed face with recognition. He said, “Those damn eyes… You’re the brother he wouldn’t shut up about!” From the ground, Mortimr said to both Talmid and the entity, “The debt is due.” He grabbed Talmid and funneled lashes of pink magic through him. His body seized from the tendrils. In that moment, Chaka cast a Hypnotic Pattern spell and subdued Talmid. Romsca bound him and Arwin took his weapon. Talmid didn’t hear as the group argued about what to do next with him while he was stunned. Romsca placed Talmid into a cage nearby.Session 37 - Petals, Paintings, Pasts
Talmid shook off the effects of Chaka’s spell. He realized he was bound and angrily spat blood towards Mortimr. Mortimr asked why he killed Borli. Talmid taunted Mortimr, saying, “It was a job. Simple transaction. Your brother got in the way, started asking questions. You started asking questions. I was told to stop it.” Mortimr said Talmid owed him a debt, and how he collected it was up to him. Mortimr wanted to know how and where his orders came from, and Talmid said Azariel would meet him in person. Talmid said, “I wasn’t hired to fucking run a goddamn guildhall. I was sent to run my sword through people like you.” Talmid was dodging Mortimr’s questions and snidely replying to his comments. He said, “If all you’ve got to offer me is death, I can wait right here and bleed out.” Mortimr said, “Oh, I wasn’t offering you death.” There was a flare of pink with his words. Talmid showed his first sign of fear. Talmid said he’d been sent to kill Gim Gorod but was called at the last minute to take over operations at the guildhall. He said, “The genasi are involved. You look around far enough, you’ll find those four fuckers. You look around deep enough, you’ll stop asking questions. Otherwise, you’ll end up as dead as your brother.” Demitri asked what their connection to Sokolov was. Talmid didn’t recognize the name. Demitri called Talmid useless. Talmid became dismissive and evasive. He seemed to be intentionally aggravating and annoying. The group could tell Talmid was trying to get killed, instead of giving any more information. Mortimr asked what Talmid was afraid of if he wasn’t afraid to die. Gertrude said Beburos’s name, and Talmid jumped. Mortimr asked, “What do you think they’re going to do to you that I’m not?” Talmid talked about the afterlife not mattering. He said if the genasi were successful, there wouldn’t be an afterlife to go to. Mortimr cast Phantasmal Force. Talmid saw pink energy behind Mortimr and saw a ghostly Borli enter the cage. In his head, Mortimr said, “Speak through him. Make him fear.” Ethereal pink rose petals manifested around Mortimr. Through the ghastly image of Borli, the entity clawed at Talmid’s form and mind as Mortimr was shunted from himself. From Talmid’s mind, he learned the genasi were running the Tarterian Traders from behind the scenes. Talmid was brutally killed. Mortimr sensed that Talmid’s soul did not go to the Place of Many Paths. It was sent to a place of pink wheat.Quotations
- "We know the crown is occupied elsewhere, of course, and we are happy to assist." - 2.26
- "Fucking gnomes! I’ve always hated gnomes." - 2.36
- "I wasn’t hired to fucking run a goddamn guildhall. I was sent to run my sword through people like you." - 2.37
- "The genasi are involved. You look around far enough, you’ll find those four fuckers. You look around deep enough, you’ll stop asking questions. Otherwise, you’ll end up as dead as your brother." - 2.37
Character Type
Non-Player Character Actor
M.B.
Non-Player Character Actor
M.B.
Current Status
Deceased
Species
Age
30's
Date of Birth
Around 5A 320
Date of Death
16 Adroth 5A 352
Circumstances of Death
Killed in battle against the Lightbringers
Place of Death
Children
Gender
Male
Aligned Organization
Other Affiliations