Lord Mathias Cornelius Mane (a.k.a. Ungruld)
Mathias Mane was a sinister noble and necromancer from the city of Fenestein, the City of the Four Swords. In the year 5699, he plotted with the dragon Gorgek to take over the Kingdom of Icenglav.
History
In the year 5608, Mathias Mane was born the oldest out of a family of four into the noble House of Mane in the Kingdom of Goth. Growing up, his younger brother, Georges, was more respected in the household. Georges was a knight and loved war, while Mathias was frail and thin and was known to be anti-social. Yet Mathias saw no need to gain honor, as he would be the heir out of birth order. So Mathias studied the ways of magic to earn his own prestige.
However, when his brother Georges became the age 22, their father deemed Georges the heir to the throne. Mathias grew resentful, but knew he could not change it. For years, he plotted against the life of his brother, ignoring marriage and parties, in order to get his position. Then, things turned for the worst: Georges had a son in 5649, named Charles, who would be the next in line to the throne.
Mathias, growing older, realized two things: he should seek further power than just the headship of House Mane, and he should find a way to extend his life. Mathias studied necromancy in secret, until learning about the Lichking Koschei. He tried and failed to contact the Lichking. That is, until one day he uncovered the Plane of Never-Ending Ice.
Visiting there, he met the entrapped Lichking, Koschei. Koschei was desperate to escape his prison created by the Ice Kings of Icenglav. He offered Mathias power, even a chance to become king, and everlasting life if he freed him. Thus, Mathias became the disciple of Koschei, learning the art of necromancy in secret. He also undertook the alias “Ungruld” to hide traces of his study.
Eventually, in 5689, Georges Mane decided to go out in his final campaign toward the Kingdom of Lysandus with the Danen. If the Danen captured Keller’s Coast, it would be a grand victory for Gothai. Thus, Georges did side with the Danen. However, Georges started to second guess things when he learned they were working for the Knights of Black Dragon. Georges then tried to lead a troop of Danen men against the Knights of Black Dragon. However, Lady Qenlynn assured most of them died. Yet Georges escaped, trying to ride back to Icenglav to warn others.
That is when Mathias struck. A band of orcs overcame the old knight, and he fought with all of his might. However, he was eventually killed, and his body was taken back to Mathias. Mathias then delivered the body back to Fenestein, declaring to House Mane that Georges was killed by orcs, and his final request was making him the head of House Mane. Charles tried to object, but Mathias got support from the family. Mathias then tried his best to disgrace Charles, letting the man get fat and lazy.
Meanwhile, Mathias continued his scheming, now using more money to fund the orcs he was controlling. He foresaw the Danen losing, and they indeed did to the Sentinel of the North. There was, however, one good thing Mathias took from the Lysandan war: he befriended the dragon Gorgek, who was angered by the loss of his brother Gorgoth. As such, Mathias, now using his guise as Ungruld, trained a bard named Amadeus to start stealing money from towns. Meanwhile, Mathias started to control legions of Orcs and Goblins with his funds to do his bidding. One group of orcs uncovered a winterstone in Strynovo, another started at Bytea, and he sent the last group of goblins to uncover the stone at Elkin.
A Curse over Gothai
Mathias' scheme began to unfold in the year 5699, a decade after Lysandus' Second Dragon Crisis. He had the bard Amadeus try and take over the town of Bardinca while he attacked the city of Fenebach. Him and Gorgek captured Princess Durkavna-Natalia. However, his schemes began to get foiled when his nephew, Charles Mane, got involved in the Bardinca crisis and eventually began to chase him. Eventually, at an Orc Camp in Bytea, the two met each other again, where Mathias threatened Charles' life.
In Strynovo, Mathias oversaw an Orc regiment via astral projection to find Charles and his cohorts, as they had slain Gorgek. Mathias had revealed himself as Ungruld to the party, but did not mind much, as he tried to trap them in Strynovo. The adventurers killed the orcs, and Mathias' projection disappeared. He then began his journey back to Fenebach, in hopes of using the remaining Winterstone to gain power. He would arrive at the Museum of Fenebach to have some thieves deliver the Crown of the Ice King to him, but unfortunately for him, he would be slain by Charles, Saphira, and Aldric.
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