Name: Vadigar

Titles: The Conqueror in the West, Djaam-Bane

Type: Exarch

Appearance: In progress

Personality and Drive: In progress

History:

Vadigar is perhaps the newest of Izalith's servants. Born to Vescar, a tribal lord of the Borian hinterlands, Vadigar had nearly reached manhood when two legions of the Night Mother crossed the River Khad with the intention of claiming Boria for Izalith's already-massive dominion. Vescar committed his tribe into an alliance with the other Borian tribes in order to repel the incursion. Vescar, aware that this was going to be a savage and protracted conflict from the beginning, brought his son Vadigar and his daughter Helkha to ride out with him and his tribesmen so that they might be educated in the ways of leadership and warfare.

The Narzad, the ruthlessly-effective light cavalry of the Borian tribes, proved successful at harassing and weakening the lumbering legions of infantry hailing from the Motherlands. In these early skirmishes with the Night Mother's forces, Vadigar was permitted by his father to ride out and accompany the Narzad javelin-throwers. This proved to be a very formulative time for the young tactician; Vadigar was able to see firsthand how small numbers could, with appropriate application of force and superior strategems, could disperse even large numbers of enemies.

The initial forays against Izalith's legions were effective in delaying a major incursion into the Borian tribelands, but in the second spring of the war with the Night Mother, eight legions under the command of Archon [insert name here] arrived to put paid to Boria's resistance and make loyal subjects of the restless hillfolk of the North. The Night Mother's invasion had begun in earnest.

The Night Mother's armies at last began to gain ground, conquering the more hospitable southern reaches of Boria and forcing the tribes to retreat into the windswept foothills of the Crown of the North. The Borian tribes continued to ride out to harangue the Night Mother's legions. But with a strong contingent of archers and the powers of the Archon, the Borian riders were now taking substantial casualties with each raid. It was during one such raid that Vescar took an arrow to the clavicle that ended his life. Vadigar took command of the tribe and took it upon himself to resume his father's war against the Archon and the Night Mother.

Emboldened by the death of Vescar, Archon [insert name here] sought to capitalize on the demoralizing effect of the dead chieftain and led 5,000 of his men from his fort in the south of Boria against the tribes. The Archon attempted to cross the River Khad at a shallow stretch deep in forest, hoping to catch the tribes off guard during their funerary rites. Instead, it was the Archon that was caught off guard; Vadigar had intercepted the legions and met them across the banks of the river. Among the trees, the Archon's archers could not fire effective volleys, but the Borian javelinmen were perfectly capable of skewering the Night Mother's infantry as they waded across the Khad. Were it not for the Archon's terrifying powers, the Borians would have killed the Night Mother's forces to the last man. Humiliated, the Archon and his survivors were forced to fall back and retreat south. Having avenged his father in some small measure, Vadigar returned to his camp to mourn Vescar's death in earnest.

During the funerary rites on the following day, Vescar was laid out upon a funeral pyre. As the pyre burned, a bolt of lightning struck the burning wood, completely scattering the pyre. Vadigar and Helkha were astounded, for the lightning bolt had come from a clear, sunny sky. Where the roaring pyre had burned only minutes ago, only a circular heap of coals and ashes remained. The wooden logs of the pyre - still burning, had been cast out such that they pointed toward the burning cinders. Vadigar and Helkha, upon inspecting the scene, found the remains of the pyre much resembled a symbol of the sun - a circle with rays radiating outward. A black, fire-scorched sun.

For the rest of the day, Vadigar and Helkha consulted with the priests, attempting to determine what this portentous occasion signified. Satisfied by none of the answers given, Vadigar and Helkha discussed the day's happenings all through the night themselves amongst themselves. They could only come to one conclusion that made any sense to them: the destruction of Vescar's funeral pyre was the work of the Night Mother, her black sun symbol created from the ruined funeral pyre was meant as a sign that Boria owed fealty to to Izalith.

The other tribal leaders were naturally dismayed by Vadigar's conclusion. Vadigar and Helkha were able to persuade a modest few that the destruction of the pyre was a miracle meted out by the Night Mother. Most, however, had assumed that Vadigar and Helkha had lost their minds. The disagreement broke out into a civil war among the tribes between those who supported Vadigar and Helkha, and those who would not suffer the perceived turncoat in their midst.

After the stinging defeat at the Battle at the River Khad, Archon [insert name here] was delighted to hear of the infighting among the Borians. He sent emissaries to Vadigar's camp, congratulating his turn toward the Night Mother and offering assistance in making the rest of the Borians submit. Vadigar thanked the Archon for his offer, but denied his help. For he knew that if the Borians were to ever accept the way of the Night Mother, it would have to be brought to them by one of their own - not a foreign invader.

After a series of defeats against Vadigar, the hostile Borians at last came before him and announced their wish for peace in the Boria. They knew that even if they could destroy Vadigar and his forces, they would not be able to oust the Night Mother's legions stationed in the south of the realm. They knew Vadigar to be wise and gracious, and knew that peace struck with him would be far more agreeable than surrendering to the Archon. With that, Boria was pacified, and Vadigar went before Archon [insert name here] to officially swear fealty to the Night Mother.

Archon [insert name here], pleased with Vadigar's conversion, named him an Exarch and Master of Boria. Recognizing his battlefield prowess, the Archon selected Exarch Vadigar as his general, and sent him to lead his campaigns in the various wars throughout Ethica. Vadigar's skill as a tactician was made clear after several great victories on foreign battlefields. After three years of ceaseless campaigning, Archon [insert name here] offered his celebrated Exarch some time to rest and tend to matters within his wards in Boria. Exarch Vadigar thanked his Archon for his reassignment back home, but petitioned his lord for an alternate assignment. Vadigar wanted to expand Izalith's sprawling empire. He offered instead to traverse the Erg Sea, the trackless expanse of desert in western Ethica, and conquer the fabled lands on the other side in the name of the Night Mother. Archon [insert name here] was pleased with this request; he named Helkha as Regent Master in Boria and gave Vadigar his blessing to carry out his conquests in the far west.

Nearly ten years later, Exarch Vadigar finds himself in the extreme northwest of Ethica, beyond the Erg Sea at the foot of a great mountain range. Here he has encountered a depauperate, sparsely-populated land inhabited by a people who have only heard legends of Izalith. They speak of the Djaam: an empire beyond the mountains ruled by powerful sorcerers who draw their power from a moon god they call Rabal. Determined to put paid to this heresy and bright the Night Mother's rule to this exotic land, Exarch Vadigar forms an army to vanquish the Djaam. But a  thousand leagues separate Vadigar from Izalith and her empire, and it has yet to be determined if she has any power over this strange land.

Armaments: In progress

Abilities: In progress