[u][b]Name/Nickname:[/b][/u] Gabul the Wanderer

[u][b]Gender:[/b][/u] Male

[u][b]Race:[/b][/u] Qalini. (Human subtype)

[u][b]Quote:[/b][/u] Power in Wisdom.

[u][b]Appearance:[/b][/u] Tall, thin but not skinny. Usually wears a black, travel-worn over coat, dark leather jerkin, and and well-worn leather boots. He wears a black, wide brimmed hat in the Sadian style. Like all Qalini, Gabul is pale, with dark eyes and hair. He has intricate, traditional Qalini tatoos in curled lettering up and down the left side of his body.

[u][b]Personality:[/b][/u] Laconic, with a dry sense of humor that usually shows itself in the face of severe adversity, Gabul speaks little but listens carefully, and usually tries to stay out of the limelight. While terse and disdainful of emotionalism, Gabul often surprises others with his generosity and quiet kindness.

[u][b]History:[/b][/u] 

[excuse the rough shape of this history- I had it all nice and pretty and much longer but deleted that by accident. Just throwing this up quickly to give a sense of the character.]

Among those in the know, Gabul is mildly famous as a traveling beast hunter, wizard-for-hire and exorcist. He has been in the employ of the Iron Mountain Adventuring Company for many, many years, though thanks to the wizard's proclivity for keeping a low profile, no one except Gabul himself is quite sure when he signed on with Iron Mountain, or for that matter just how old the Qalini wizard is. 

In recent decades, Gabul has completed on several notable contracts for the Company: he uncovered the identity of the Freetown Skin-Man*, played a part in the exorcism of a cousin to the Vormaric Emperor who had become possessed after dabbling in necromancy**, and most notably slew the Archghoul of Travosk in a magic duel that- if rumors are to be trusted- lasted five hours and burned down the city's Great Temple.

Gabul is not a full time employee of Iron Mountain, however, and has been known to disappear into the wilds for stretches of months and even years, pursuing an agenda known only to him. His lucrative contract with Iron Mountain, which values his unique and hard to find magical expertise, ensures he always returns to work when in need of funds.

Qalini are still largely feared and mistrusted across the world, thanks to the exceptional brutality of the old Mageocracy in its dying decades, and this in part explains the Gabul's studious avoidance of fame...the enemies of wizards can have long memories, indeed. Gabul is known to have significant ties to the only remaining Qalini ethnic conclave of any significance left in Dorthargal, a small and highly secretive group of wizards known as the Outcast Lodge, living in exile in Yeric. The Qalini exiles are known to be close allies of former rivals, the Yericlyn ruling House of Cynder, but otherwise their motives and intentions are clouded in mystery.

*For the curious: It was the mayor's butler, and he was burned at the stake for his crimes.
**Gabul also helped in the subsequent Imperial cover up of the embarrassing affair.

[u][b]Martial Skills:[/b][/u] 

[u]Spellsword:[/u] Gabul is a capable swordsman, and his combat style integrates his arcane mastery. He uses magic to disable and disorient his foes and to keep the initiative in combat. His technique focuses more on finesse, speed and precision over sheer power.

[u][b]Passive Skills:[/b][/u] 

[u]Ranger:[/u] Gabul has wandered up and down the face of the world in pursuit of his own agendas, projects and researches for many years, living outside for months at a time. He is a skilled outdoorsman. 

[u]Rogue Scholar:[/u] While not an academic, Gabul is well versed in magical theory and lore, philosophy and history, including what are considered by many to be dark and forbidden topics. 

[u][b]Magic Skills:[/b][/u] Primordial and Arcane

[u]Shadow and Flame:[/u] Gabul is especially skilled at magic involving fire and darkness. 

[u]Necromancy:[/u] Gabul is well versed in necromantic lore, and can commune with some spirits of the dead, especially those of his magically adept Qalini forebears. Most necromantic magic or summoning involves complex rituals or prolonged meditation. In combat, necromancy of the kind Gabul is skilled in manifests itself in mostly indirect ways.

[u][b]Inventory:[/b][/u]

[i]Nox[/i] an enchanted Qalini shortsword

[i]The Dialogues of Alhazred[/i] An ancient Qalini necromantic text. Illegal in all countries except Yeric.

A wooden walking staff, frequently used by Gabul as a magical focus.

Verigold, his horse, a black mare.

[i]Ring of House Nagath[/i] A silver ring embossed with the design of a serpent and crescent moon. It is an heirloom of Great House Nagath, one of the ruling factions of the old Qalini Mageocracy.