Suvok-Khall / Tybalt Stone
Appearance
A man of two worlds the Paladin Tybalt the Grey favors his father’s Orcish Heritage. Considered tall even among Orcs, the bastard child of Bodah-Khall the War Chief of the Valley Tribes, Tybalt possesses considerable defined musculature pox marked with scars from conflict and battle. His skin is a mottled grey color like many of the Orcs of the Valley, but his complexion is surprisingly darker than one may expect. His tusks are small asymmetrical lower canines with the left having a slightly more length and a curve. Along with hair black as jet and long down his back other species would not be able to easily tell him apart from the rest of the tribes.
However this is not to say his human parentage holds no influence, for an Orc will tell you that Tybalt appears too soft. His brow is not as arched or overhanging. This gives the Half-Orc a more pleasant range of expression for his brutish exterior. In fact many of the human qualities are in the face with the gentle round of his brilliant blue eyes, an odd quality to see on an Orc, and a rather obvious hint at his mix heritage.
Physically he is imposing with a rather remarkable physique that narrows around the thick trunk of his abdomen and then widens out about the pectorals and wide shoulders. A mountain of a man his Orcish frame withstands the weight of his mass without a slouch. Yet though large in appearance his posture and stride notes a quality of nimbleness and agility not commonly associated of other large beings. Given his size however when wearing the chain and plate of his armor Tybalt becomes something of a terrifying sentinel of a man. Oft seen wielding weapons requiring two hands with a single grip there are few in their right mind would approach this servant of Tychan without trepidation.
Skills and Abilities
The Khallblood: The Khall are less a given name than a share ancestry of Orcs who claim to have lived once, died, and born again through the passage of the “Mother Root”. Regardless of if these claims are true those of Khallblood uniformly are larger and stronger than their contemporaries. These Orcs are noted to possess giant’s strength and a predilection for spiritual visions (some would say delusions) and a natural spark of magic. For this gift they are also plagued with wild dreams and impulsive aspirations that lead many Khall to wrest leadership of their tribes push for conquest. Tybalt has inherited this quality from his father, and must combat his wild nature at many times.
Touch of the Divine: While a servant of the Celestialisms Pantheon, Tybalt the Grey, was blessed by Tychan whom ignited the spark of aether within him. Educated by the priesthood when the Half-Orc was but a young teen he was gifted with a laying of hands. From that time he has been taught to invoke his lords patronage and invoke his name for a variety of divine spells. Tychan being the swift messenger of the gods and father of language, many spells of invocation require spoken and / or written word as primary catalysts.
The aspects of the divine Tybalt has been gifted by his god are Blessings to heal and fortify, Curses to humble and restrain, Wards to protect, and Conjurations to commune. Under Tychan’s desire and the Paladin’s Oath, Tybalt, shall use these gifts to aid and protect the innocent, he shall not fatally strike a foe with intent to kill unless they endanger the innocent, and seek all evils and aberrations and banish them with impunity. His magic must meet the criteria of his lord’s tenets, and thus must always require dedicated purpose before being called upon.
Weapon Master: Trained by his adoptive father who once was an acclaimed Knight of House Vikar of Vel Anir, Tybalt is something of a natural when it comes to arm combat. While he would not pride himself by saying violence is second nature Orc blood mingles with his noble stances. Put a weapon in his hand, even those of an exotic make, he will fare better at adapting a style of combat to it than most. But where he is most proficient is with swords, shields, hammers, axes, and clubs: the traditional weapons of a knight.
Rites of the Priesthood: To be a Paladin of Tychan the Half-Orc had to undergo the rites of the Priesthood. Due to this status Tybalt is considered well-read and educated on both historic and religious matters. His training permits him to lead worship of his patron diety and the Celestialism Pantheon where he may travel. As a priest he can tend to services, offer assisted prayer, aid, and assemble a congregation. The other part of the Priesthood important (especially for a Paladin of Tychan) is the Rites of Rebuke and Exorcism. In the face of blight it is demanded of them to banish the aberrant and return the lands to their natural order.
Personality
Tybalt the Grey can be described as rough around the edges. Life had never been easy for the Half-Orc but where frustration and crude disregard for polite language may show he is a golden heart. Naturally passionate, the man holds a heart of compassion and lives his life in service to his better natures. Raised by a former Knight of Vel Anir and the Celestialism Priesthood he is a man of discipline. His faith in Tychan, the Lord of Messenger and Protector of Man, is the cornerstone of his being often being driven by the tenets of grace and good-will. While he is not infallible his Oath as a Paladin is the pillar to which he leans all of his decisions. It is his mission to live in service of protecting innocents and maintaining diplomacy in the face of conflict. In that he can seem an impassable and oft stubborn man, but for him as a champion of a heavenly will he is a Sentinel at the threshold of Order. He must be staunch and certain to hold that line and protect all others.
However being a man of order and mission this does not mean he will not feel contradictory at times. His emotions can be a swelling storm and may lead him to the edge of blasphemy as he may question his patron god’s design. Still he does not err from the path. He feels his pain and will indulge a moment in the face of tragedy, but when the clouds part he is man that seeks clarity. So while his thoughts and emotions may be guarded they are easily known to those who travel with him for a long time. Tybalt is benevolent and charitable and will never ask for reward. Even without his Oath as a Paladin there is a strong sense of his noble nature, and an understanding that he will show compassion.
When it comes to it he is a man of Loyalty and Honor. Combined with his good nature it grants him a genuine character to be Righteous. Never taking zeal in his mission Tybalt the Grey is a true emissary of his faith, and though strange as his origins may be never doubt his noble nature. For him life is a mission to love and love fully. This includes those who have wronged him and others horribly, for mercy is the act of forgiveness. Tybalt will always strive to rise above his selfish temptations for the sake of another.
Biography & Lore
The history of the Half-Orc orphan of Vel Anir may never be told truthfully, but where fate is determined the union of Tybalt the Grey’s parentage will eternally be known. His story reaches before his birth with that of his father. An Orcish War Chief, Bodah-Khall, was responsible for at one time uniting the Valley Tribes that lived sparsely in the Dales of Vel Anir. His legacy would speak of a man who was unexpectedly civil for his kind and at one time forged a neutral alliance with the Houses of the mighty human kingdom. For a time there was peace, and for a time the Valley Tribes were allowed to flourish as hired hands primarily under House Virak [1].
Ten years of prosperity was born out of Vel Anir’s tolerance for the Orcish Tribes. In that time a young Lady of House Virak became a frequent guest of the War Chief. Lady Arlyn had become infatuated with the “Noble” Khall. From a young age to womanhood she was entranced by their customs and tales, she bridged a gap between the world of men and orc. And in time the Lady’s father an influential member of House Virak came to regret his leniency. A romance bloomed between the War Chief and his daughter.
Many Valley Orc would claim that it was Bodah-Khall’s infatuation with a human woman that led to the downfall of the unified horde. Others would claim that the human woman had bewitched their leader. But what would be the truth? Fear and shame saw that any truth be obscured to time.
House Virak set upon a campaign to dispatch the Valley Tribes claiming that Bodah-Khall had taken Lady Arlyn and held her hostage. To what gain? The question was seldom ask as the tribes were cast in the shadows of discrimination and old hatred. Orcs were beasts to be slain and it was thought little when the Lady Arlyn’s father rallied against the horde.
Sir Martin Stonewall was a childhood friend of the Lady and a Knight of House Virak. Fiercely loyal and devoted to the lady he led the siege upon the Khall’s encampment. A mighty warrior he fought valiantly carving his way through to the War Chief’s tent where he would be surprised to find the Lady with a grey skinned child latched to her breast. Sir Martin would know a truth that history would not tell, and that truth would be his burden to keep. Too weak to flee the encampment Lady Arlyn called upon her friend to break his bond to House Virak, and take the child consummated by her union with Bodah-Khall. Take the child to safety away from Vel Anir knowing that babe would be put to death by her father.
In the smoke and haze Martin Stonewall despite his protests would take the boy and head far west nearer to the Falwood. It would be told that the War Chief was put to death by House Virak for treason and the death of Lady Arlyn. This was a story that would confuse the Knight who discarded his crests and banners in order to hide the Half-Orc child, and changed his last name to Stone.
Martin taking on Lady Arlyn’s final wishes took the boy on as his own naming him Tybalt Stone. Settling in a farm town the former Knight would raise the grey child. But in the largely human settlements Tybalt was not welcomed due to his Orcish blood, tormented by his peers and mocked by the adults all the boy knew of affection was his adoptive father’s lessons. He was led to believe that he was the byproduct of Martin’s tryst with an Orcish woman.
But it was to be so that Tybalt was a kind child with a wild heart. Having spent twelve years in the village Meadowbrook he was a known figure, and eventually earned the respect of the elders as his size and strength allowed him to perform tasks of labor many others could not. A wildfire however would catch in the summer and take the village in a swath of heat and terror. Martin and Tybalt would do their best to help the villagers escape the wild flames, and in the aftermath Tybalt prayed over an Elvish Messenger from the Falwood. It was revealed in that moment as through prayer and touch Tybalt stole back the bite of flames that marred the Elf’s lungs with the Blessing of the Cosmic God Tychan.
Villagers having witnessed clamored towards the boy for healing, but Tybalt untrained and startled by this revelation himself was unable to aid further. But Martin knew this sign to be something more and for the first time was honest with his son, and on the journey to the City of Elbion told Tybalt who he truly was. Arriving in Elbion the Half-Orc was brought to the Temple of Tychan where he was taken as an Acolyte of the Holy Order. At the age of seventeen the Half-Orc took his Oaths and started down the path of a Paladin.
As a member of the Holy Order, Tybalt, could not claim his birthright much to Martin’s relief believing it protected the boy. The former Knight would do his best to aid his son on his journey, but would eventually pass away from a debilitating sickness that robbed him of his mobility. The death of his father was Tybalt’s first test of conviction, and though pained and questioning why Tychan would allow Martin to die, questioning why he would deny him the power to heal? Ultimately the Half-Orc Paladin did not turn from his faith. At the age of Twenty-One, Tybalt the Grey, left the city of Elbion to begin his Mission in service to Tychan. Traveling the face of Arethil as a messenger of faith and a healer.