Name: Karel Truesilver, Commander of the Order of the Griffin (HM, 11th lvl Paladin-Divinate-kit)
Submission by: Scott Paffenroth History:
Karel Truesilver is the fourth son of a minor noble from Waterdeep. The name
Truesilver is more an honorarium than an actual landed title. As a young man,
Karel learned he would receive little wealth from his father. He is the
youngest of four sons, his brothers will head the family and receive their due
whilst he would be given the smallest of stipends. Instead of becoming
bitter, Karel turned to prayer. It was during a visit to the temple of Mystra
that his prayers were answered. Karel had been searching for inspiration when the Mistress of the Weave
responded to his plea. A sapphire blue nimbus of light sprang from Karel when
a man in shining plate armor approached. The man introduced himself as Sir
Darren Bedron of the Order of Mystic Fire. He explained, to be called as a
holy warrior in the service of Lady Magic is an honor. He further discussed
the Order and its basis. Some of which are to strive each day to uphold the
tenets of the faith, and protect the Church from those who spread evil and
chaos across the land. Those who practice the art are brothers and sisters of
the Order and must be protected as they wield the divine gift of Lady Mystra.
Any who abuse the gift, and use it against innocents feel the wrath of the
Order. Karel found contentment with the church and order as they fit his ideals.
After training diligently with the Divinate's for three years, learning the
Mystran faith and his position within the hierarchy, Karel enlisted in the
Waterdhavian guard. Karel's superior's knew serving in the guard would
provide Karel the opportunity to develop discipline and the skills necessary
to serve the Order in the future. With his connection to the Order of Mystic Fire and his noble blood, Karel
was granted a commission in the Waterdhavian guard. He began his career as
Junior Officer and was given the opportunity to command troops. Over the next
10 years, Karel took every available opportunity to increase his skills and
education and eventually rose to the rank of Captain. In his tenth year as a guardsman, Karel's enlistment was up for review. At
this time he received the Order's next assignment. He was to join an
adventuring group known as the Wardens. The Order of Mystic Fire was
interested in one of the members, an Arcanist of the church of Mystra, named
Sharelle Brightstar. At the age of 24, he was excited by the prospect of
seeing more than just people from different parts of the world, this would be
his chance to see the world. Until this point Karel's whole life revolved
around the guard and the Order. Karel traveled with the Wardens for about 10 years before retiring from
adventuring. In that time he became acquainted with many powerful friends and
foes. One of Karel's greatest moments was administering the slaying blow to a
mature red dragon. Karel took just one item from the hoard, a suit of Armor
of Command. It was this same armor that later served him in his life as a
field commander. It had always been his way to take little more than he
needed and give the rest to the church. During the 10 years he was with the Wardens, Karel participated in titanic
struggles with numerous foes. He gained his defender in a massive battle
against an archmage and his henchmen near the city of Everlund. He was gifted
with an Elven Helm of Valor by the baelnorn, Carylynth Korianthil in the City
of Song, Myth Drannor. Karel prevented a pit fiend from destroying the
histories of House Korianthil by holding it at bay while Sharelle, the Wardens
and Carylynth destroyed it. During the Time of Troubles Karel witnessed the damage the Gods' presence
caused. He was present, in Waterdeep, during Myrkul's summoning of the
denizens of the Underworld. Karel defended as many people as possible during
the crisis. He was surprised Midnight rose to Godhood, but thankful to have
her stand against Cyric. Karel's decision to retire from adventuring was simple, he originally started
adventuring to see the world and find his place in it. Witnessing the
ascension of two gods and seeing the Overgod was enough. No memory of his
will ever shine as bright or as dark as that day. It was his intent to use the funds he had acquired adventuring to begin a
training ground for other soldiers of Mystra in Silverymoon. He believed the
time to rebuild the world was at hand. His calling as a Knight of Mystra grew
stronger and he felt it was time to train new Knights based on the same
principles he represented. Karel Truesilver knew one day he would be called
on to expand the worship of Mystra, and to protect the knowledge and priests
of the faith; when that day came he would be ready. Following the year the Gods walked Toril, Sharelle's followers grew in
numbers and among them were trainable soldiers. Karel organized a new order
in Silverymoon in 1363 DR. The order began as a military unit composed of
highly disciplined heavy cavalry (fighters, rangers, cavaliers, and paladins).
Karel banded them together under his leadership and Sharelle's colors to
become the knightly Order of the Griffin, Mystran knights. Karel knew he
would need to train his troops in all situations. Therefore, he volunteered
his men to guard caravans for the Towers of Balance and bring raiders to
justice. He created a force of elite soldiers who are highly trained in
magical and martial combat. The Towers of Balance helped Karel financially and faithfully. In years past
when members of the Wardens had taken their share of treasure, Karel had given
his earnings to the Mystran church and they now gave back to him. During his
first three years, the Towers sponsored his troops, giving them room and board
and instructing each in etiquette and reading/writing. It was during these early years that Karel met Draylin. Draylin was a young
lad who lacked the patience to become a priest but had the strength of
character to keep trying. Karel took him under his wing and taught him to
harness his rage and use his skills to better himself and those around him.
The raging behavior which set Draylin apart from the priests worked in his
favor as he learned to channel it into becoming a Knight. Karel helped mold
Draylin's bitterness into the cool thoughtfulness of maturity. During the last few years the order was in Silverymoon, it received its first
Holy Warrior. During a patrol, Karel met Stefan at the Darganz farm while stopping for water and feed. When Karel returned to Silverymoon, he
approached Sharelle concerning a candidate for the Holy Order of Mystran
Knights. Within three months, Karel returned to the Darganz farm with an
invitation for Stefan to come to Silverymoon for testing as a Paladin in the
service of Mystra. Excitement invigorated the Order as a major step in
creating Karel's vision had begun. Karel's decision to bring the Order to Arylon was simple. The Order of
Mystic Fire needed him to accompany Sharelle and protect members of the
church. He was also told to build a permanent garrison and increase the size
of his Order. He was given church sanctions and funding for the development
of his Order. This was in combination with the sanctions Sharelle received
from the Church of Mystra to expand the current shrine in Arylon. In 1366 DR, Karel and Sharelle went before the Arylon City Council with Edain
Bradley, a retired Silver Crescent, to request a charter for the Order of the
Griffin. Karel was informed, by Edain, about the magical deviations of the
Fields of the Dead and about a more immediate concern, the appearance of
planars and gates in and around Arylon. Karel and Sharelle agreed to take on
the responsibility of watching the city's ever increasing number of gate
travelers, as well as eliminate the wild and dead magic areas in the Fields. Karel is 6'5", weighing upwards of 250 pounds of muscled sinew, close cropped
black hair, just starting to gray at the temples, and steel gray eyes. He is
45 years old and his clean shaven appearance and rigid posture makes an
imposing impression. He prefers to dress casually when around his troops,
wearing browns and grays. However, he knows he is the representative of the
Order of the Griffin when in public, and wears a crisp uniform of nightshade
purple with blue trim, and impeccably shined black boots. On the
battlefield, he inspires awe in his gleaming suit of full plate armor tinted
cerulean blue, elven helm and shield of the Griffin. Karel is a large man but leads not with a gauntleted fist but by example.
Every day he can be found on the drill field practicing his weapon's work, and
each day he chooses a sparring partner. Many of the soldiers feel honored to
be his chosen partner for the day. Karel would never ask another man to do
anything he himself would not do. Unlike many commanders in battle, he leads
his soldiers from the front lines. He is their shining example and
inspiration. A standard formation for his troops is a flying wedge, soldiers
in formation two to three deep, flaring to each side of him. All wheels and
counters are completed to each side of him, and he is the cotter pin holding
them together. Karel has been a father figure to many of his soldiers, taking the time to be
thoughtful and compassionate. He has taken in some unusual men, with
personality quirks or pasts. He tries to look beyond their past and expects
them to use their present situation to improve their future. He knows he must
keep discipline and has had to make an example of Sergeant Worock from time to
time. Karel spends so much time helping his troops that he rarely has any time for
himself. When he does, he works on his favorite hobby, painting. Karel has
painted murals in the barracks. He loses himself in creation of an image in
his mind's eye. He has practiced painting for about 15 years. His next major
project is to create a likeness of Sharelle, Gallene, Faellien and himself as
the elders of the Church and Order. Taking on the responsibility of watching the city's ever increasing number of
planar travelers has given the Order a very important purpose. Knightly
Orders are generally open amongst their own. However, Karel is a pragmatic
leader and hired a man (?) known only as the Ebony Knight. The Ebony Knight
is used to gather information about the gates and their travelers. Karel
knows in the best interest of the city and the order, little should be known
of their watcher except for the detailed reports he presents to Karel,
Sharelle and Edain. Karel has attained a majority of his dream of creating the Order of the
Griffin and will continue to lead as long as he is physically able. He knows
one day he will hand over command to Draylin and when that day arrives he will retire knowing the order will be in good hands. On that day, Karel will give
up the position as the Defender of the Order and the Shield of the Griffin
will be passed to Draylin.
Magic Item, Shield of the Griffin: The Shield is a +4 Kite shield with the additional powers of summoning and
communicating with Frithnath and his family of griffins. Once per day, the
shield has the power to cast Charm Monster, only versus griffins, save at -4.
The Shield is the symbol of the Commander of the Order of the Griffin.