Albino priest on a quest for the Immortal Ilsundal
Neutral 19th-level Cleric of Ilsundal
Str 14, Int 18, Wis 18, Dex 10, Con 13, Cha 17
Appearance: Zoltan's appearance is very
much defined by his albinism. His skin, hair, and his eyes are all white; in addition, he wears white clerical robes, adding to his ghostly cast. His medallion, which also acts as his holy symbol, is in the shape of a white tree whose branches wrap around his neck, and contains a single living root that seems to float in a sea of whiteness above his navel. Zoltan is 5’11” tall and weighs 154 lbs.; he tends to travel light, and most of his gear is hidden beneath his robes or in concealed pockets. He is actually 32-years old, but there is an ageless quality to him, from his albinism, mannerism, and perhaps some tinkering from his patron Immortal, making him seem at times either young, old, or middle-aged, and most often of 8 C o n s i d e r S e c h e g u r K h a n a l a w f u l g h o s t i n
Rogues, Barons and Pretenders
indeterminable age, adding to his sense of etherealness and mystical wisdom.
Background: Born to a poor family of
Thyatis City, Zoltan Hytaxius became the leader of a band of teenage bullies as a way of not being rejected as a monster for his lack of skin coloration. When the girl he loved died of an overdose, he felt disgusted by the so-called civilization and left for the west. In order to avoid encounters he didn't follow roads, roaming aimlessly through fields and forests alike. One day he stumbled upon a group of elves from the Vyalia clan, inhabiting the lands between Thyatis and Karameikos. They treated him with respect, not giving any particular attention to his discoloration. The local treekeeper, saying his patron Ilsundal had forecast that his fate would be very important to the elves, taught Zoltan the Way of Ilsundal in only a few years - an amazingly very short time from the elves' perspective. He also gave him a medallion with a root he had cut from the living Tree of Life, telling him he would know what to do with it when the time came. Still unsure of his path, but now a young cleric who had abandoned his Thyatian past, he left the Vyalia in search of his destiny. In the following years, he adventured together with Celia, Arcadius, Siegfried Sixx, and Ney (see their own entries); then, they decided to head to Norwold and parted, so that each of them could claim one dominion from Ericall. A mischievous sprite, Maeva ap Lywell Van Gwernach (Neutral 9th-level Sprite),
colloquially nicknamed “Tac” after the way she punctuates her many practical jokes, accompanies Zoltan, generally invisibly.
Personality: Zoltan generally seems cold,
distant, alien, yet authoritative and
trustworthy, traits based largely on his appearance that he has fostered over the years. But for all the engineered emotional distance, his close friends can find clues that he cares deeply. Zoltan fears that if he follows his emotions, he might slip back to his old, best-forgotten ways, so he keeps his decisions rational - or rationalizes them - with an end-justifies-the-means approach. Yet at his core he is full of humanity; he always smiles at Tac's shenanigans, and cherishes Celia's attentions.
Goals: Ilsundal plans to return the Shiye
clans of Norwold to his fold.9 He knows the
task will be arduous, as they follow Eiryndul and have left the Kingdom of Shiye-Lawr to remain free folk. For that purpose he has groomed the strangest champion, one best 9 Z o l t a n c o m e s f r o m t h e M y s t a r a n A l m a n a c ’ s v e r s i o n o f N o r w o l d , i n w h i c h s o u r c e s l i k e D a w n o f t h e E m p e r o r s a n d W r a t h o f t h e I m m o r t a l s a r e a s s u m e d t o t a k e p r e c e d e n c e o v e r o l d e r m o d u l e s , l i k e C M 1 T e s t o f t h e W a r l o r d s ( w h e r e t h e F o r e s t h o m e s h a v e t h e i r , a n d t h u s w o r s h i p I l s u n d a l ) . T h e b a c k g r o u n d o f Z o l t a n , d i f f e r e n t l y f r o m t h e r e s t o f t h e a r t i c l e , a s s u m e s t h a t t h e F o r e s t h o m e e l v e s , b e l o n g i n g t o t h e S h i y e , d o n o t w o r s h i p I l s u n d a l , b u t h i s r i v a l E i r y n d u l . T h i s c h o i c e w a s m a d e t o r e s p e c t Z o l t a n ’ s a u t h o r e d o r i g i n a l b a c k g r o u n d . A n y w a y , i f y o u w a n t t o u s e Z o l t a n i n t h e v e r s i o n o f N o r w o l d u s e d i n t h e r e s t o f t h e a r t i c l e a n d a s p r e s e n t e d i n t h e “ A T r a v e l l e r ’ s G u i d e t o N o r w o l d ” a r t i c l e ( s e e “ T h r e s h o l d ” i s s u e n o . 7 ) , y o u c o u l d s i m p l y a s s u m e t h a t I l s u n d a l , f o r e s e e i n g s o m e v a g u e b u t g r e a t d a n g e r f o r t h e e l v e s o f t h e K n o w n W o r l d ( i . e . t h e e v e n t s t o l d i n W r a t h o f t h e I m m o r t a l s ) , h a s s e n t Z o l t a n t o s t r e n g t h e n h i s h o l d o v e r t h e F o r e s t h o m e s o f N o r w o l d , i n t r o d u c i n g a m o n g t h e m a n e w a n d m o r e p o w e r f u l s p e c i e s o f . O t h e r w i s e , y o u c o u l d a l s o a s s u m e t h a t o n l y a p a r t o f t h e F o r e s t h o m e s w o r s h i p I l s u n d a l , w h o h a s s e n t Z o l t a n t o c o n v e r t t h e o t h e r o n e s w h i c h s t i l l f o l l o w E i r y n d u l .
Rogues, Barons and Pretenders
suited to challenge the trickery of the northern elves. As Ericall called for heroes to gain dominion over the vast region he claims, which would include the Foresthomes, he judged the time right to reveal to Zoltan visions of his plans and knowledge of the growing of a daughter Tree of Life. Zoltan has no particular interest in Ericall's kingdom or any of the human lords, but will use them if they can help in his quest. Any elven lord or human ruler with an interest in elven matters will have his particular attention.
Dominion Choice: Zoltan's task is to walk
among the Shiye elves of Norwold, share with them the wisdom and bounties of Ilsundal, and guide them towards the divine guidance of his patron Immortal. He will choose the clan most amenable to his teachings and give them the gift of a Tree of Life, then expand and cultivate his spiritual influence along with offshoot trees throughout the Foresthomes. Although that initial Foresthome may represent Zoltan's dominion by Ericall's recognition, the priest will in no way feel bound by this official recognition: it is just a starting point for his quest.
Special Features: Zoltan is the main
protagonist in a plot initiated by Ilsundal to increase his sphere of influence over Norwold. Zoltan prays to his patron for guidance and spells as all priests do, but at critical junctures he may receive special advice, direction, and spell complement to better assist in his quest. Zoltan may also incant through a long, more taxing ritual using his medallion; in that case, he can tap the lingering power of the root to revoke any spell ever channelled through a Tree of Life
of that lineage. Zoltan has also learned to stage his ethereal appearance to maximum effect. Zoltan's most prized possession is a root cut from the Vyalian Tree of Life, part of his medallion of the living root; Ilsundal recently hinted in dreams that Zoltan would imbue the root with the Immortal’s divine essence, and grow a Tree of Life and an elven kingdom in the north.
Relevant Possessions:Bracers of armour AC 2, hardwood staff, medallion of the living root, scroll of creation.
Source: Mystaran Almanacs (Hervé Musseau).