Pelham Trelligann
The once great hero of men, whose shining voice drove back the encroaching oblivion but was in turn consumed
Master Pelham Marwood Trelligann (a.k.a. The Shining Goldheart)
♪...betrayal and broken bonds, encroaching mists and shattered thrones; A song rang out so black and vile, a thrice damned chorus of blood and bone; Yet he stood, and Trelligann fought - a chorus of light and roaring wind; Of valor unbowed and courage unswayed, of redemption at hand and darkness worn thin...♪
Physical Description
General Physical Condition
Pelham is described as a healthy, fit man by his brother Elijah - a life of adventuring did wonders to maintain his physical and bodily health even well into middle age, and he kept a lithe but fit body through a combination of physical exercise, frequent skirmishes and combats, and a similar lifestyle of excitement and high-octane action. He battled with disease during his childhood and teenage years, but was mostly healthy as an adult barring a battle with Mummy Rot during the latter years of his life.
After his death at the top of the Black-Iron towers of Bhorsis-Razghûl, his body -
[The rest of this record has been eradicated on order from the Goldsoul Academy].
Body Features
He was lithe but cut and trim in his own way - not overly or excessively bulky, he a thin man with a build that belied his deftness of body and strength of muscle.
Facial Features
Despite being a human, Pelham was often written about as having an almost Elflike face - elegant, angular, and beautiful in its transient grace.
Identifying Characteristics
Unlike many heroes across Zheng-Kitaran history, he did not seem to have any - a relatively normal and unassuming man was he, even unto his last and final battle against The Witch Kings of Bhorsis-Razghûl.
Physical quirks
None notable.
Special abilities
Pelham's one and only special ability was his unsurpassed mastery of the Blackspeech, and of Blacksong itself - wielding such a complete and total understanding of the language of Bardic Magic once created by The Witch Kings of Bhorsis-Razghûl that he, alone, could sing valorous and mighty songs of power to not only match the sonorous, blasphemous chanting all six Witch-Kings in unholy harmony, but to lay them low and drive them screaming back into the abyss of oblivion itself.
Apparel & Accessories
Pelham dressed very practically, in the elven style - layers of gentle leathers overlapped over thin chainmail to offer protection against weapons.
Specialized Equipment
Pelham had no legendary weapons or holy artifacts to his name - merely his trusty longsword and thin chain armor.
Mental characteristics
Personal history
Pelham's life is well-documented, mostly due to the efforts of his own younger brother Elijah who followed him throughout his adventures as his scribe - born to a pair of humble Human lumberjacks in the now-defunct village of Reedmarsh in the lands of the modern-day Kingdom of Seoghar. From what is written by his brother, he was by all accounts an ordinary child who, unlike many heroes who have come and gone across Zheng-Kitar, did not stand out nor possess many special qualities - he grew up normally alongside his family in the village of Reedmarsh, until he left the village when he became an adult to explore the world and adventure.
After leaving his home village of Reedmarsh, Pelham traveled the world exploring and spent a great deal of time mastering the use of Bardic Magic - which had ever since its inception nearly 2,000 years prior been the stuff of legend, heresy, and superstition that had seen it fall out of use almost entirely centuries ago as none had proven willing to undertake the task of learning its secrets for fear of being hunted and killed by the masses who yet thought it evil and heretical. During this time, it was said Pelham spent a great deal of time traversing the old ruins of Bhorsis-Razghûl and beyond, plumbing the forgotten depths of the world to uncover the secrets of the heretical language of the Blackspeech: ancient language of power created by The Witch Kings of Bhorsis-Razghûl to wield Bardic Magic.
This part of his life lasted many years, and saw him into adulthood - fighting the evils of the world to hone his skills, uncovering injustices and fighting tyrants alongside his brother to grow in power and accomplish his lifelong dream of exploring the depths of Bardic Magic to one day show the world its potential as a weapon of good. However, poor Pelham's life was interrupted with the second coming of The Witch Kings of Bhorsis-Razghûl, whose arrival rocked the world of Ea to its very foundations. Faced with a time in the history of Zheng-Kitar where the world and every single one of its inhabitants was forced to band together or risk total obliteration, Pelham valiantly joined the forces of The War of the Last Alliance, quickly earning his way into the elite team chosen to lead the spearhead of the united armies of the world deep into the swamps of Bhorsis-Razghûl to face The Witch-Kings themselves in their Black-Iron Towers.
Chosen for this elite team despite a chorus of voices in the Last Alliance solely because of his power borne from his mastery over the blackspeech which was reported to give him a level of mastery over the forces they were facing, Pelham, in the end, fought with the forces of the Last Alliance tooth and nail until at last he alone survived to stand against The Witch Kings of Bhorsis-Razghûl.
Faced with the bottomless evil of The Witch Kings of Bhorsis-Razghûl alone with his treasured comrades slain to give him the opportunity, trusting the fate of the free and living world onto his meager shoulders, Pelham faced off against his foes and their unholy litanies of damnation with the songs borne of his own mastery of the Blackspeech; songs of beautiful gold, of valor and heroism as he sang harder than he had ever sung before. Fighting a magical battle of song and wizardry and combating the crushing songs of esoteric concepts and blasphemous chanting with his own chords, Pelham did the impossible and accomplished what no man has before or since - beating The Witch Kings of Bhorsis-Razghûl in their own horrible songs of power, even as his victory cost him his own immortal soul and living body.
His history after his death atop the Black-Iron towers of Bhorsis-Razghûl is unknown - if it even exists in the first place.
Sexuality
Straight
Education
Pelham recieved no formal education - as there were no options for prospective bards during the time in which he was alive, he was forced to study wholly independently to further his own studies with his own power.
Employment
Pelham lived most of his life as a wandering adventurer, traveling alone or with his younger brother Elijah most of his adult life until he was at last employed by the armies of The War of the Last Alliance, where he fought aside the comrades he would come to view as family.
Later on in his life, he would found The Goldsoul Academy - which endures even into the modern day as the one and only place of learning for Bards to come and study to hone their craft, located still upon the spot it was founded in the Kingdom of Seoghar.
Accomplishments & Achievements
Single-handedly mastered the Blackspeech through his own efforts and studies enough to not only match but exceed the power wielded by the language's creators, The Witch Kings of Bhorsis-Razghûl.
Founded The Goldsoul Academy, and gave all aspiring bards a place to belong.
Showed the power and righteousness of Bardic knowledge to the world, proving that it could be used for good and was not entirely evil.
Failures & Embarrassments
Though not much of a failure, his victory against The Witch Kings of Bhorsis-Razghûl came at tremendous cost - taking his life as his soul was split it twain and his body corrupted beyond all measure.
Mental Trauma
He is written of as a very lonely and isolated man - his lifelong study of The Blackspeech naturally isolated him from the rest of the world and its denizens, and his already lonely and introverted personality meant that he likely had quite a greal deal of mental trauma.
Intellectual Characteristics
From what remains of his little brother Elijah's writings of his elder brother's intellect, he is described as a quiet, curious intellectual with a heart of gold - a man who saw the potential in things and could not help but work to bring it out. A man who constantly sought to better the world and leave it a better place than it was when he was born, Pelham was an honest, caring soul who fought a lifelong struggle to champion the cause of bardic magic - and proved his point with his own life.
Morality & Philosophy
Pelham's morals were simple and honest - he believed in doing good where he saw it, and hated the idea of the fear and mistrust of the populace letting such an excellent tool as Bardic Magic go to waste, which he knew had the potential for great good, purely because of the evil beings which created it. His moral values, in many ways, are defined by his simple upbringing - a simple son of lumberjacks who carried his small-village values with him all throughout his life.
Personality Characteristics
Motivation
Pelham's sole motivation throughout most of his life was the preservation of the Blackspeech and its understanding and study, which he desperately yearned to uncover the secrets of and use it as a tool for good as he knew it could be. This, from the very moment he found Blackspeech and read the histories of The Witch Kings of Bhorsis-Razghûl, captured his imagination and made him sad, somehow - that such a great tool was being ignored, its potential wasted, purely because of the villainy of its creators.
As such, he spent most of his life championing its cause - which was immortalized in the founding of The Goldsoul Academy, which stands to this day as an institution for bards of all races, ages, and origins.
Savvies & Ineptitudes
Excellent at bardic magic, cartography, singing, ruin-delving, artistry, swordfighting, not taking things personally, reading the emotions of others, sculpting, hiking, engraving
Inept at Lumberjacking, Committing to obligations, living up to expectations, weaving, smithing, reading maps, combing his hair, tying his ties, dressing fancy, dealing with oozes
Likes & Dislikes
Likes: Adventuring, Seeing the world, his brother Elijah, Delving into Ruins, Studying forgotten tomes, Uncovering ancient lore, Blackspeech, Writing Songs, Listening to music, Creativity, Laying on grass on a sunny day, Learning and Studying, Uncovering Secrets, Reading about Romance
Dislikes: Being Romantic, Sexual Relations, Small-town life, Living in one place for too long, The Witch Kings of Bhorsis-Razghûl, Those who fear what they don't understand, Denying something or someone a chance at goodness for their origins, Closed-mindedness, People who think black and white are colors, those who sleep during musicals or plays
Virtues & Personality perks
At the core of his being, Pelham was a beautiful, creative soul who enjoyed exploring and seeing all the wondrous sights of the world for himself - he loved painting and artistry as well as singing and making songs, and was always willing to give others a chance even when the entire world had turned against him. He saw the good in others by default, even going so far as to see the good in the unholiest of languages: the Blacksong, vile language of power crafted by The Witch Kings of Bhorsis-Razghûl to murder The Spirit Kings, such that he would diligently dedicate his life to unlocking its mysteries and using it for the cause of good, and virtuous valor.
He enjoyed laughing and, while he wasn't a very romantic or sexual man, enjoyed the company of his close friends such as his brother Elijah while reading a good book. He enjoyed sleeping under the hot sun on sunny days, and spent much of his life dedicated to understanding the "mortal condition" - what it means to laugh, love, and revel in this world he loved so much. He would do anything for his family even if he didn't personally like or want to pursue their family craft, and even though he was ostracized by the world for his study into the Blackspeech, he valiantly stood at the War of the Last Alliance and fought alongside the warriors of those sacred armies against The Witch Kings of Bhorsis-Razghûl, of whom he alone survived into the final battle to drive them howling back into the dark from whence they came.
Vices & Personality flaws
Thanks to an exceedingly accurate depiction of him in his younger brother Elijah's records, his flaws are well-known: for all of his virtue, Pelham was a man who felt constrained by simplicity. He held a strong dislike for "small-town life", seeing himself as destined for something greater than felling trees in his home village with his family's lumberjacking business. He was notoriously aromantic and asexual, though he constantly tried to understand the "mortal condition", and was well known for his wandering habits - rarely staying in one place for too long, preferring dungeon corridors and underground ruins to farming and rural life.
He disliked the closed-mindedness of his fellow scholars that spurned the Blackspeech purely because of its vile origins, and closed himself off from the world which he saw as barely worthy of salvation when The Witch Kings of Bhorsis-Razghûl arrived to destroy it.
Hygiene
Pelham was a clean enough man, despite his life of adventuring - always making a point to keep a clean appearance despite his lifestyle.
Social
Contacts & Relations
As his home village was destroyed during the War of the Last Alliance, Pelham's only real contacts and relationships were with his younger brother Elijah, who served as his scribe through most of his adventures, and his comrades in the armies of the Last Alliance in which he fought against The Witch Kings of Bhorsis-Razghûl...a lonely man without many connections to the world.
"Ephemeral and transient", as described by his brother - a description which seemed to fit him to a T.
Family Ties
Pelham never had much family - only his younger brother Elijah survived the War of the Last Alliance, so with Pelham's own death atop the black-iron towers of Bhorsis-Razghûl his family ties were severed.
Religious Views
Pelham, by all accounts, was an avid follower of Jericho the Enlightened throughout much of his life.
Social Aptitude
Pelham was described by many as a normal man of little outward charisma, preferring solitude and study to people and conversation. While not incapable of acting in social scenarios, he simply preferred adventuring and being with a few people than leading or talking to large groups.
Wealth & Financial state
As a lifelong adventurer, Pelham had a moderate degree of personal wealth - but nothing exceptional, as it was all expended funding his final battles in the War of the Last Alliance.
...It had taken the deaths of millions, but there he stood: Before the Six Thrones, his soul a drop of sunlight in an ocean of oblivion; Yet he did not break - countering the unholy songs of The Ghâznugu that sang of infinite damnation With songs of his own, born of the Blackspeech his own foes had made, long ago A chorus of love, of warmth, of courage and valor upon which all the evils of the world would break. A hero, as never there would be again - a man we shall remember forevermore for his heroic deeds which brought his death. And never for that which he became after his death.
Alignment
Current Status
Officially, Dead. Unofficially - Unknown.
Species
Honorary & Occupational Titles
The Shining Goldheart, The Unborn Sun, Master Suntongue, Lord Goldsoul
Life
2156 ASK
2202 ASK
46 years old
Circumstances of Birth
Born to normal human parents who were lumberjacks by trade.
Circumstances of Death
Died after his duel against The Ghâznugu rent his soul in twain and corrupted his body.
Birthplace
Born in a small hamlet in the lands of the modern-day Kingdom of Seoghar
Place of Death
Died atop the Black Tower of Bhorsis-Razghûl after his duel against The Ghâznugu
Children
Current Residence
His corpse is formally and officially entombed in the Golden Sacrament, tomb-complex beneath the Goldsoul Academy he founded.
Pronouns
He/Him
Gender
Male
Eyes
Beautiful, Radiant Orange
Hair
Long, straight, and brown
Skin Tone/Pigmentation
Lightly Tanned and dotted with dimples
Height
5'10ft (1.77m)
Weight
Unknown
Belief/Deity
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