Name: Nalgort "the Black Hand of Beshaba" (hm, 5th level doommaster [specialty priest of Beshaba], CE.
Submitted by: Oli Kari Olason (oko@hi.is)
Stats: Str 13, Dex 11, Con 14, Int 12, Wis 15, Chr 11; AC 2 (plate mail and shield), 37 hp. He uses a footman's mace +1.
Nalgort is a member of the Black Fingers, which is a secret society of assassins who worship Beshaba. He is a short, robust man in his late twenties. His long, midnight-black hair is unkempt and hides the tattoo of Beshaba's antlers on his left cheek. Born on a small farm near Waterdeep, Nalgort's entire family was massacred before his eyes by a group of barbarians. Only he was left alive to tell the tale. From under the bed, young Nalgort watched the men who had just killed his parents. When his mother's blood touched his face, he could not stand it and crawled out from under the bed and ran. He managed to get to the door before a black bearded barbarian caught him. Nalgort was held into the air and presented to the chieftain. "He's young," noted one. "Old enough to remember," added the chieftain, "Take him outside and kill him." The black bearded man dragged Nalgort outside and raised his mighty axe, then he hesitated. Maybe Nalgort reminded him of his own sons; maybe he'd had enough killing for one day; maybe Beshaba showed her favor; or perhaps all of the above. For whatever reason, the barbarian lowered his axe and said, "Run boy, run!"
Nalgort was adopted by a doommaster named Satorphia who was posing as a simple tradeswoman. She was traveling through the area when the attack occurred. At first, Satorphia only wanted to further Nalgort's bad luck by selling him to slavers, however, she decided keeping him as her personal servant would be even worse. Since Satorphia was very twisted and evil, Nalgort now fears and hates all strong women. He was raised by the cruel Satorphia from the age of 10. He managed to survive the doommaster's abuse, or at least hide his dementia well enough, so that at age 15, Satorphia decided he was talented enough to become a doommaster. He began to emulate the doommaster, becoming abusive, cold, and ruthless. He changed from a normal boy into a man who could kill anything that was in his way, and he even began to worship the goddess he had originally blamed for all his misfortune. Satorphia saw in Nalgort an agent who would both obey and fear her, thus, she sent him to a citadel where males are trained for the Black Fingers.
Nalgort was sent to a cell, operating near Waterdeep in the North, that was involved in slaying priests of Tymora. It was, however, against Beshaba's other main enemy, that he became famous. His cell surprised four rangers and a mage in the service of Shaundakul near a wild magic zone. In the battle that followed, the Shaundakul mage accidentally blasted himself and most of his companions with a fireball spell. Only Nalgort and one other cell member survived this battle. Nalgort returned a hero, bringing with him much loot and the five holy symbols of Shaundakul. After this triumph, his superiors decided to give him a chance to lead a cell of his own.
Tattooed at age 16, he was transferred at age 25 to lead a cell of the Black Fingers in Baldur's Gate, where he began a short lived career as a blackmailer. When Nalgort tried to extort money by kidnapping the wife of a Baldur's Gate merchant, the merchant hired some adventurers to rescue his wife. The adventurers managed to capture Nalgort but killed all the other members of his cell. He escaped his captors, but had to flee Baldur's Gate, ending up in Arylon, where he is beginning to form a new cell of the Black Fingers.
Recently, Nalgort met a female thief named Saen and has converted her to Beshaba. She, in turn, became the first new member of his cell. Nalgort wears a torn, mauve-colored tunic around town, but he has a suit of plate mail to wear in combat. His only magical item is a +1 footman's mace which was the only thing he received in his victory over the Shaundakulians. It has a simple decoration of black roses carved into the handle.