-Last Name- Blackthorne
-Race- Tethyrian
-Age- 38
-Height- Somewhat taller than average for his heritage
-Weight- Athletic build, he cuts a trim figure
-Eyes- Emerald Green
-Hair- A visibly greying salt and pepper
-Facial Hair Style- Well-kept light stubble
-Background-
The history of the Blackthorne name dates back to the early days of the city of Myratma. The Blackthornes were a line of merchants, making most of their wealth by exporting the fine textiles produced at the Tethyr Mills to Calimshan. Evendur Blackthorne was the first in generations to stray from the family business. He made a name for himself as a part of the White Rose, a fairly successful adventuring group which plyed its trade in both Tethyr and Calimshan. After years of adventuring, the party finally met its end when most of the members died during what seemed as a simple artifact retrieval job. The only survivors were Evendur and Seipora who were saved by three Tyrrans. The pair married soon after and made an oath at The Measure House in Calimport, promising to present their firstborn child to the church of Tyr as an act of oblation. Their lust for adventure extinguished by the scenes of their comrades deaths, the pair travelled north, to Myratma. Evendur's brothers welcomed them and offered him a piece of the ever expanding family business. He took charge of the Blackthorne business ventures in the Caravan Capital of Amn, Crimmor.On the 11th day of Flamerule in The Year of the Shattered Oak, Evendur and Seipora were blessed with a child. Maximillian displayed stubbornness and a good heart from an early age, traits which earned him both bloody knuckles and a bloody nose on more than one occasion. Evendur and Seipora held up their oath, sending Maximillian to The Fortress Faithful when the youth turned twelve. His service to the Even Handed, in whichever way the priests saw fit, was to be their show of gratitude for the events of that fateful day.
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Maximillian returned to Amn fifteen years later, not a youth anymore but a man, a fully ordained paladin of the God of Justice. Accompanied by his squire, Aesir Dumein, his divine charge led him to the City of Coin. Between 1340. and 1345., through their efforts, Maximillian and Aesir became a welcome sight to the cities law keepers. Maximillian was not blind to the corruption that devoured the city including the City Guard itself, and while doubts gnawed at him from time to time, his composure was impeccable in front of young Aesir.In 1345. after an alarmingly increasing number of suspicious disappearances, excluding most other possibilities, it became evident to Maximillian that there is an illegal slave traders ring active within the city. The City Guard turned a blind eye to any evidence he managed to present to them, waving the possibility off as ludicrous. A lengthy investigation led Maximillian to the ringleader. The man was a city guardsman himself, using his position and connections to solicit a trade between several parties, with him pocketing most of the profits. Maximillian confronted the man alone, managing to overcome him. As he dragged the slaver to the city dungeons It became quite clear to Maximillian that the man will never be sententenced, no matter what evidence he presented. Too many of those in the judicial system of the city had his slave coin in their pockets, and the man had an impeccable reputation as a keeper of the law. They stopped near a backalley and after a long, silent deliberation Maximillian finally turned to the man. He invoked the power granted by his god and gazed upon the slaver one more time before making a final decision. The visage of the slaver had him almost reeling. A moment later, Maximillian drew his blade and cut the sneering slaver down with a backhand slash. The paladin carried the body off to the dungeons and turned himself in for the crime he had committed.
The dungeons were far less welcoming than Maximillian expected. All of his deeds vanished with that one swing of the blade, he not only murdered one of them, he removed a steady source of income. The first six months were a gruesome experience, his only moments of respite came as he conversed with the peculiar inhabitant of the cell next to his. Malark Amblecrown was (unknowingly to Maximillian at the time) a priest of Bane. Their discussions on religious matters and differing views of the world kept Maximillian's mind engaged, and in turn kept his last vestiges of sanity. The Shadow Thieves, with whom the priest associated from time to time, managed to deliver his prayerbook along with some weaponry to his cell. One night, after some commotion, the doors of Maximillian's cell opened and a familiar voice greeted him. At the entrance stood a man brimming with vitality, shrouded in dark robes offering the near-broken man a chance at freedom. Maximillian accepted against his better judgment, the dark blessings of the priests patron closing Maximillian's wounds and giving him his strength back. During their daunting escape, Maximillian encountered three of his torturers. As he cut down the first one, a strange, vaguely familiar feeling began creeping up on him. He hesitated less with the second one, and the strange feeling became more intense. As the third torturer's screams were silenced by Maximillian's blade, the strange feeling he had not felt since he was a youth washed over him. Fear. At that moment he was aware with every sense of his being that Tyr had abandoned him.
Malark Amblecrown used Maximillian as a way to pay his debt to Atala Rein, a guildmaster in charge of a Shadow Thief subguild of enforcers, operating in the Slums of Athkatla. At this time Maximillian was torn apart inside, he still held delusions of retaining his former self, while at the same time he felt betrayed by his god. During Maximillian's servitude, his view of the world became warped as he performed the usual work one would expect from thugs and enforcers. He began questioning his sanity when he started hearing an otherworldly voice whisper words which engulfed Maximillians feeling of betrayal in flames. Night after night, the voice kept returning to Maximillian. Finally he came face to face with the terrifying creature behind the voice, a Dogai devil in the service of the Black Hand named Nednuoraz. The Dogai offered dark gifts with promises of returning Maximillian to his former glory, and Maximillian, in his despair, accepted. In the three years he served Atala, Nednuoraz became Maximillian's shadow and put the man back together brick by brick. As his servitude came to an end, Nednuroaz instructed Maximillian to seek out Malark, who resided within the Mountain of Skulls, a reclusive temple of Bane in the Cloudpeak mountains. Malark Amblecrown accepted Maximillian's service, and for the next two years the Blackguard was Amblecrown's personal agent and protector. During the five years since his escape from the dungeons of Athkatla, Maximillian saw Aesir twice, though he never dared face the man. In the late 1351. Malark Amblecrown and Maximillian boarded a caravan heading towards Zhentil Keep, through Darkhold. As the caravan made a stop in Darkhold, Malark released Maximillian from his service and urged him to take a position within the Black Network which occupies the fortress.
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-Base Class & Proposed Development- Fighter (ex-paladin)/Ro/WM/Dervish
-Initial Alignment- Lawful Evil - Lawful Neutral
-Deity- Tyr
-General Health- Healthy in general, boosted by magical trinkets
-Weapon of Choice- Scimitar
-Habits/Hobbies- Maximillian is a skilled rider and enjoys the supremacy a mount offers on the field of battle.
-Goals-
- Shed the skin of a thug that he has grown into during his service to the Shadow Thieves of Athkatla and take on the mantle of knighthood again
- Bind a creature of equal of greater power than his former paladin horse to serve as his mount (a Nightmare or some such)
- Defend Selengil Harkonis from outside assailants and pretenders to his throne
- Regain his lost eye by furthering his service to Bane
- Work his way into the inner circle of the Zhentarim and obtain the mysterious gift of prolonged life which is rumored to be granted to those within the circle
-Possible Plot-Hook Ideas and Misc Facts-
- Malark Amblecrown is a servant of Fzoul Chembryl, his return to Zhentil Keep marked an end of his activities in Amn. Whether his allegiances have changed is unknown. The priest may remain in contact with Maximillian and demand information among other things.
- The Dogai Nednuoraz still lingers around Maximillian, keeping in contact with the Blackguard.
- Maximillian lost plenty as he fell, but losing his trusted steed Azor hit him the most. He has attempted summoning the warhorse from the celestial plane several times during the first year since his escape, no answer came. Maximillian seeks to replace the animal with another, more fitting.
- Maximillian's right eye was taken from him during his time in the dungeons. While Malark healed most of Maximillian's wounds, he refused to give him back his eye. In Malark's words: "The empty hole in your head will remain, to serve as a reminder of your former life. A reminder that those who bend their backs to support parasites eventually become one themselves."
- Between 1349. and 1351. the remaining two torturers were found dead in their homes. Both victims died of a heart failure, and each had a ghastly expression on their face, indicating horrific last moments.
