Arcalturn
Andrew Cutter
"The smell, that is how we noticed him, standing in the shadows. Sickly, like death itself. He had skin of deathly gray, framed in his robes of black. No life in his eyes. It took just a glance and three bolts struck my companions. They crumpled into dust. I just stared. Another bolt, another three gone. Then I ran. I just ran. I heard the screams behind me slowly dying out. Another was beside me as I ran, a burst of fire and he was gone, leaving an acrid smell. Never have I been so scared. The screams, the screams stay with me even now. I can hear them echoing in my head, echoing, echoing."Testimony of a patient in the care of Algor, the Healer, in the Amiro Empire
Personal History
Andrew grew up as the son of a lumberjack in the town of Cloudbrook in the Amiro Empire. Originally his name was Andrew Cutter.
When he was ten a disease spread through the expanse of the Amiro Empire, the Black Death. Those who contracted the disease slowly withered and died. The disease slowly infected every member of his family. One by one they passed away. Finally he too was infected. As he lay, sickened, a vision came to him. Either he could be released into death itself, and end, or he could continue, a living example of the disease.
In Andrew's despair, he opted for life but from that moment, he only half lived. He could move, think, act, but no breath passed his lips and death could not take him. Time slowly passed and his ghastly form drove him from society. He adopted a name that fit his new state better, Arcalturn. It was then that he began to hear whispers from the voice who had originally saved him. Chaos, destruction, death...
When he was ten a disease spread through the expanse of the Amiro Empire, the Black Death. Those who contracted the disease slowly withered and died. The disease slowly infected every member of his family. One by one they passed away. Finally he too was infected. As he lay, sickened, a vision came to him. Either he could be released into death itself, and end, or he could continue, a living example of the disease.
In Andrew's despair, he opted for life but from that moment, he only half lived. He could move, think, act, but no breath passed his lips and death could not take him. Time slowly passed and his ghastly form drove him from society. He adopted a name that fit his new state better, Arcalturn. It was then that he began to hear whispers from the voice who had originally saved him. Chaos, destruction, death...
Public Life
Arcalturn is an elusive figure in the history of Tangearin. Even after scouring the remains of the The Original Library of Technological Advances few records hold traces of him. The same is true of nearly every major archive I have found. It seems he has taken great care to remove his presence from the record. It was only after perusing several of the smaller of Mantar's temples that I fully grasped the extent of Arcalturn's reach on the continent. There are...
A record of the events leading to the fall of Tvintiir
Prof. Tellian Waywocket
Little is known on the public persona of Arcalturn. His only connection seems to be to the Cult of the Black Bones, a loose organization that is in itself little understood in Tangearin. Scatterings of information have hinted at how the lich has influence across the entirety of Tangearin and has been operating for centuries.
In 1532 AC a brief description of him is in an account of an assassination attempt on the then Emperor Andor II of the Amiro Empire. In 1623 it is said that a wizard of immense power was in the employ of the Stonebrook Dynasty as it defeated the Tvintiir Kingdom. The wizard was killed in the battle but, in doing so, revealed him to be a lich. In 1647 a small temple devoted to Mantar in the Storm Dam Mountains records an attempt to use an ancient relic of elder power to open a gate to another dimension. This piece of knowledge was recorded only days before the author went missing but the artists rendition matches later accounts. Finally, it is clear that Arcalturn was the primary manipulator of events surrounding the fall of the Tvintiir State and Stonebrook Dynasty, orchestrating events to reopen the Hall of Names and bring back the ancient races.
This lich has proven time and again to be a deadly threat to the safety of Tangearin. Should his plans ever succeed the continent could come to rest like our neighbor, Conlisle, becoming a haven for the dead. Whether Arcalturn had a hand in Conlisle's fate or not is unknown but let it be a warning.
Relationships
Divine Classification
Elgron
Alignment
Chaotic Evil
Date of Death
1431
Year of Birth
1421 AC
924 Years old
Circumstances of Death
Plague
Spouses
Siblings
Children
Gender
Dead male
Eyes
Coal black without blinking
Hair
Ragged black
Skin Tone/Pigmentation
Dark grey
Height
5' 10''
Aligned Organization
Ruled Locations
Comments