Author's Note: Dungeons and Dragons is an adventure game that allows you to build your own creations and conduct your campaign however you wish based on the character you build. Malark os Mys Shari is a character of my own invention. As are some of the others that you will see in this story. Others are created within the campaign itself and Meira is a creation of one of my dear friends who has given me explicit permission to use her in these writings. Because the story progresses and changes the character who is a part of it, there will be two segments for Malark, one before the campaign indicating his backstory, and the second a summary of the most impactful parts of an ongoing campaign.
Before Campaign- Malark Os Mys Shari (Malark Stormborn)
Malark os Mys Shari was born from a High Elf Mage and Calishite Servant Woman on a remote island kingdom off of the Storm Coast during a heavy thunderstorm. His father was highly ranked in the king's court, but his elvish wife had born him no children, so Malark was raised among the wards of the castle and treated with some privilege. When his tutors discovered his magical aptitude, Malark's training became focused on utilizing his abilities and his upbringing to be of the most use to his father and the kingdom. Thus, he learned how to represent his nation as an ambassador. As he reached maturity he apprenticed under a formal ambassador and travelled the seas at his side. During this time, he befriended many of the sailors he travelled with, and as a curious young man he ended up being taught the basics of navigation alongside his formal tutoring.
Two decades passed in this manner, with his knowledge and skills growing tremendously, until he was named a full ambassador by the Elvish King. Malark was tasked with negotiating with various human settlements along the Storm Coast. Due to his mixed birth, he was considered more approachable than the high elves and did not come across as an outsider, and the fact that he remained friendly with crews of many races allowed him to eschew the high-mindedness of his father. He was known as a harsh negotiator but never a cheat and his nation prospered with some credit due to his hard work.
Malark had used the funds paid to him to help his mother live more comfortably during his travels but she passed from natural causes three years after his tenure as ambassador began. He was not on the island at the time and did not hear of her passing for weeks. Malark buried his mother at sea and from then on only kept a small room in his keep, living minimally and spending money only on his magical studies. He kept a small savings tucked away in his room which he intended to use to purchase a ship of his own upon retirement.
After his fifth year as ambassador, Malark had gained enough experience and travelled with enough sailors that he put together his own personal crew and together they sailed the Sword Coast. This proved to be possibly the happiest time of Malark's life as the crew grew extremely close and came to be closer than many of their blood relatives. This was also the most adventurous part in his Malark's life as well, his daring crew was experienced enough to travel outside normal sailing patterns to maximize their travels. Malark's magical prowess grew and he became known as a Storm Mage, with his weather proficiencies the focus of many of his studies. He also developed somewhat of a distaste for fire magic as he had seen it used to set many beautiful sailing vessels ablaze. In those five years of sailing he had yet to lose a single crew member to bad weather, despite travelling during tumultuous seasons.
Storms were not the only danger though as Malark and his crew's new routes put them closer to some of the pirate infested waters many avoided. The vagabonds would set upon his crew expecting meek merchants and a spineless bureaucrat; instead they found hearty daredevils laughing at their scurvy ridden bodies and found themselves dodging thunder ice and lightning.
The most notable of these encounters came when Malark and his crew faced off against the notorious pirate captain Hookhand who had been stoking fear throughout the waters of the Storm Coast. The pitched battled ended with Malark casting a spike of ice through Hookhand's midriff and pinning him to the main-mast, the battle had damaged the pirate vessel enough to cause it to sink into the ocean. While there were some pirate survivors from the battle, the death of the notorious captain did lead to a decrease in piracy in the area.
Disaster struck after a decade of sailing together when Malark and his crew faced down the worst storm they had ever seen. It had come up on them without warning and Malark's magics only seemed to worsen the storm, there was no escape from the buffeting wind and lightning seemed to spark up at every corner of the ship. Malark's prowess did allow about half the crew to escape the ship safely but it was not enough to save the ship nor the rest of its beloved sailors. Malark wouldn't even know about the survivors for some time as he washed up on shore alone on driftwood; he was woken by two plain robed acolytes who brought Malark into their portside temple to feed and revive him.
Those acolytes helped Malark recover from the brink of death, with the help of one of the high priests and then they introduced him to their sect known as the Lords of the Tempest. The high priest himself was charismatic and charming, and while Malark intended to leave upon recovery, he was convinced to stay and learn of the ways of the order. It seemed too good to be true as the Lords did specialize in his favorite weather magic. Malark learned how to increase the intensity of his spells and found new ways to disperse, divert and even create the storms that had dogged his path on the ocean. Most of all Malark learned that the Lords of the Tempest followed the way of Talos, an oft forgotten God of Thunder. He was told that Talos was the protector of all sailors and that it was his will that Malark be saved.
After being persuaded by the high priest and haunted by dreams for weeks, Malark agreed to join three others in becoming an initiate into the Lords of the Tempest. The preparation of the study lasted a year and they had to wait even more time before the Lords found the proper storm under which to initiate them. The storm was only two days away when Malark overheard the same initiates that rescued him speaking about the initiates derisively and using the word "sacrifice". Not wanting to be unsure, Malark broke into the chamber of one of the high-priest and dug through his notes for the ritual of initiation. Inside he found that not only was he planned to be sacrificed but the initiation was simply a ritual to increase the high priest's connection with Talos. The Lords' eventual goal was to awaken the banished god in this realm and use his power to assert dominance over the seas.
However, stealth was never truly Malark's forte so he was surrounded and captured while trying to get back to his fellow initiates. As he was bound, the high priest informed Malark that he had personally summoned the power of Talos to brew the storm that sank Malark's vessel and killed half his crew. Apparently Malark was a direct cause of theirs. The portents of his birth were translated as making him Stormborn, with lightning in his veins and heartbeats of thunder. As they made ready for the ritual, the other initiates had escaped custody of the priests as well and helped Malark free of his bindings. Spells were cast in such quick succession that there was mass confusion as the entire temple fell into disarray and started crumbling at the foundation. Malark saw two of his companions fall but lost track of the third; in a move that he hated but felt necessary, he fled into the night to draw their fire. As the wizard ran, he looked back to see the temple collapse behind him as he escaped not towards the sea but into the forest.
Malark eventually made his way back to the sea, begging for food from passersby until he stumbled upon a port village where he knew some of the local sailors. They agreed to help him and ferry him to his homeland, and Malark promised that they would be rewarded for their kindness. However, upon arrival back at court Malark found himself cast out, and all his belongings had been confiscated including his savings. His own father had presumed him either dead or a failure for letting his ship and crew perish and he was stripped of his title as ambassador.
Malark wandered back to the docks in a deep depression only to find that the captain of his crewmates had survived the storm and had brought back most of the other survivors to port to await the return of their wizard. With the captain's help, Malark was able to pay back the fishermen that had shown him kindness and outfit himself as a traveler. While the captain could not join him out of concern for his newly expanding family, he did provide Malark with passage back to the shore and supplies for a long journey.
As Malark touched upon land, he headed straight for the nearest road and left the shores for the first time in his life, setting out on foot towards the nearest major city to look for any work a Storm Mage could find. When he reached a suitable tavern, he heard an offer to join with a group of companions and that… led to his next great adventure.
Malark os Mys Shari: Character Details
Class: Wizard
Race: Half Elf (High Elf/Calishite Human)
Age: 62, Weight: 190 ib, Height: 6 ft
Eyes: Brown, Skin: Tawny, Hair: Dusty Blonde
Background: Sailor (Traveler), Alignment: Neutral Good
Ideals- Freedom, Hatred of Dark Magic
Bonds: Will return to the sea
Flaw: Able to be manipulated when his courage is questioned
Personality Traits- Friends can rely on him; Always looking for a new crew.
Clothing: Simple travelers wear with some padded armor and brown robes to indicate his status