Yagak Grimsaw

Yagak "the minstrel" Grimsaw is an orcish bard traveling the world with ever-changing purpose. One day one might stumble upon him in a rank tavern on the Gorlovoye borders, playing his lute until his fingers are bleeding to rid himself of drinking debt. The next week you could find him singing in the Grand Temples of the Archonate, chanting sacred rhymes for the masses. Then you just as well could stumble upon him in a few days growling his infamous "primordial blues" to a bewitched forest all whilst dancing in strange patterns to avoid the cursed beasts that are trying their hardest to make him stop. Yagak does what Yagak does, and though his motives are unknown, people are sure to be entertained by him.

The dashing orc describes himself first and foremost as a compulsive and convincing liar, secondly as brave, handsome, and rich. Others may describe him differently, and all have trouble describing him without many repeated instances of the word "allegedly."

Allegedly he is the brother of the late notorious pirate captain Krum Grimsaw, making him the uncle, allegedly, of Scab Grimsaw. Scab, conveniently, is suffering from major memory loss, and can neither confirm nor deny this. Claiming to have grown up as a tribal shaman, while his brother was more of a warrior and pillager, Yagak and Krum went their separate ways after successfully killing their father, as is supposed orcish tradition.

Legendary talent

You could ask the orc what instruments he plays, and he would immediately answer "all of them!" without missing a beat. Though a compulsive liar, there is truth to his braggish statement, as people often challenge him by presenting their own instruments for him to play.

by Illvilja

And Yagak plays masterfully, all while shouting made-up words of self praise, calling himself an omni-instrumentalist, musiciniscient, a sopranosexual, a pitchilitater, and a master of all octaves. And the people can only agree, for a master he is.

When not accepting any challenge to play a stranger's instrument, Yagak plays his trusty lute, or his strange three-string lyre, both of which he seemingly carries with him at all times. He also carries two other instruments with which he never parts: his voice and his magic. An extremely skilled illusionist, possessing magical capabilities far beyond the level of an average magister, he amplifies his voice, sings both lead and backing vocals simultaneously, and holds all the roles of a band at the same time. "One-man-band" does not cut it, he is a one-orc-choir-and-orchestra.

The Primordial Blues

"You must feel the fire within you, your voice must sound like the earth shattering beneath your feet, and like the storms that tears through the forests, and your performance must flow like a powerful stream. And then you pray to the gods that none of the other elementals show up, 'cause I know-fuck-all about them!"

Yagak, on performing the primordial blues

In his own eyes, Yagak's ultimate masterpiece is one that he allegedly composed during his shaman years: the primordial blues (which is neither sung in a primordial language, nor is it a blues). A symphony of deep, layered voices made possible with intricate, audible illusions. This piece makes the earth tremble and the leaves rustle. According to him, subtle changes when performing the primordial blues, such as adding additional rhythm or varying vocals, allows him to communicate with plants, rocks, animals, and the very spirits of nature, turning the hungriest wolf into the happiest puppy, quelling an earthquake into a small shake, calming any storm. Though obviously a tab bit exaggerated, the performance does grant him at least some of the supposed powers, as has been witnessed by many a peasant who would have perished in some natural disaster, had it not been for the bard's very convenient intervention.

A case to study

by Illvilja

Yagak's fame varies from place to place, being hailed as a returning superstar in some cities, while being just another traveling musician in others. One place has taken a particular interest, namely the Gardian Academy of Magicka, Enchantments and Rituals. Those who study the school of illusion has noticed that the bard's way of layering sounds through magic in order to create unique effects that affects his surrounding environment surpasses what is normally achievable through known practices of illusion magics. Some have even suggested this to be a whole new school of magic, one yet to be fully discovered by the academy.

Theories about this unknown "sonomancy" are the root cause of many of the academy's daily, heated debates. Scholars are desperate to hear Yagak perform, some rich individuals even employ a continent-spanning network of "witnesses" to make sure every little concert is documented. Often there are people returning from Yagak's gigs, saying that the orc confided in them, and told them how it is done. Then someone else comes along and say that he also confided in them. And without fail, their stories don't line up. Yagak's alleged methods are as different and numerous as the people he confides in.

Lost Memories of Scab Grimsaw

In the spring of 2120 PGE, Yagak hungered for adventure, and traveled to Port Wastrel on Lowe to find it; a place of crime, corruption, and people from all walks of life. His talents of the musical arts landed him a gig with one of the city's ruling families, the Prestons, and for his performance he was paid in information: The Prestons, who had long sought to have a chapel to the Queen of All Seas in their city, had come into contact with the leader of Our Church Below the Sea, Zalgaldar, who in turn had given them the challenge to come and find him on his island, Kraljica. Those who could find him would be rewarded the temporary ability to walk on the bottom of the ocean floor to seek treasure among the many wrecks that surrounded the island. Should they be willing to part with some of the treasure found, he would be willing to send a priestess to Port Wastrel.

Yagak thought this information would lead him to just the kind of adventure he was looking for, and set out to find Scab Grimsaw, a notorious, thrill-seeking pirate who would without a doubt drool at the thought of walking among the sunken ships. He found the pirate, no doubt due to help from the Prestons, and introduced himself as his uncle. And the orc was right, Scab could not pass up on the opportunity that could possibly lead him to find cannons for his ship, and let Yagak lead the way.

Also on board of Scab's ship, but not part of the crew, was a dwarven mercenary by the name of Cumbernauld MacBlutered, who had paid for passage to dwarven lands. The dwarf acted somewhat strangely, he obviously had some magical enchantments making his left arm produce steam, he had a bit of a strange speech pattern, and his eyes had a stare that seemingly had seen a thousand years unfold. He also had a strange fascination with eggs, for some reason. Yagak, seeing himself as a weirdo too, bonded with the dwarf. During the course of the journey to Kraljica, the two would tell each other outlandish tales from their past, each new story more dramatic and extravagant than the former. By the time the ship had reached dwarven lands, the mercenary had decided he would rather join Yagak's little expedition as a body guard, wanting one last adventure.

Arriving at the cliffed coast of Kraljica, the party found a quiet cove to anchor the ship, and started their climb towards flatter terrain. At the top of the steep walls there was thick vegetation, bushes, vines and branches covering every surface, and big trees blocking out the sun. Thinking their minds were playing tricks on them after a long time at sea, their pace through the the forest was drudgingly slow. Their feet getting stuck on roots with every other step, slipping whenever trying to take a longer step over the growths. Every vine they cut had more vines falling from the trees to take their place. The deeper they went, the harder their journey became. And when the vines grabbed Scab's neck, it became apparent that the forest was actively trying to stop them.

Scab's crew and Cumbernauld desperately tried to cut him loose, but were smacked back by branches waving wildly, while more vines appeared to pull the pirate upwards to hang him. Thorns sprouted from the vines, piercing Scab's skin as they wrapped themselves tighter and tighter around him. It was at this point Yagak started humming. A deep rumble emanating from him, followed by harmonizing tunes, and rough growls akin to the snarling of a wolf repeating itself in a rhythm. With this strange layering of sounds, the plants loosened their stranglehold, and Scab was left (mostly) unharmed. "Ladies and gentlemen, the primordial blues!" Yagak said and bowed before the stunned party, before continuing his humming, which opened a path through the terrain.

The party would eventually find Zalgaldar in his church at the center of the island. Impressed with how they handled this trial, he granted them the powers to withstand the mighty oceans, to seek treasure at the bottom of the sea. Here Scab found his cannons, and Yagak and Cumbernauld found their adventure. But that is a story for another time.

MacBlutered's demise

Yagak and Cumbernauld parted ways with Scab after their journey below the sea. The two continued to travel together in dwarven lands, and the orc, who came to realize that the dwarf's absurd stories were real, based many of his coming songs, poems, and stories on Cumbernauld's experiences.

On a particular rainy day, touring the dangerous northern Gorlovoye Wastelands to entertain the soldiers stationed on he border, the two-man-band was beset by a band of goblins. Outnumbered and overwhelmed, they fought with the vigor and strength of much younger men, and held their own until a group of reavers came to their rescue. The goblins were slain, but not before Cumbernauld had suffered a mortal wound.

With his dying breaths, the dwarf told Yagak one last, absurd story, claiming that he had died many times before, but had always been resurrected. After every death, he would end up somewhere new, in a different country, a different plane of existence, or even in a different universe. Saying that he hoped to see the orc sometime again, Cumbernauld closed his eyes, and his body disintegrated. Yagak vowed he would find his friend, and has ever since sought out ways to locate him.

He will always return, my friends!
Should he fail he will make amends!
Dead or alive, he will come for you
Glad to start all adventures anew!

Excerpt from Ballad MacBlutered, a song fit for feasts and funerals alike.

Alignment

Chaotic neutral

Current Status

Striving to find his lost friend, Cumbernauld MacBlutered

Age

67

Date of Birth

6th of Sunwake, 2060 PGE

Current Residence

City of Blackhills

Belief/Deity

Orcish Shamanism,
Our Church Below the Sea (allegedly)

Famous works
Primordial Blues - Sonomanic Song
Ballad MacBlutered - Song/Poem
A case to study - Poem
Lost Memories of Scab Grimsaw - Epic poem
MacBlutered's Demise - Instrumental/Lute
Patricide - Song