Magdalene was born in Foliage, a small isolated settlement towards the southeastern region of Deadwood; While the beginning of her life was relatively peaceful, she was only ten when the Kaimerian Uprising broke out, and her home was one of hundreds destroyed by the Kaimerian invaders. While she was spared by the honorable wrath of the Kaimerians, her parents died in the initial attack, leaving her an estranged refugee along with the other few survivors of her village. As if their village being torched and their people being slaughtered wasn't awful enough, the survivors were forced to flee past Darington, where dozens more of the few refugees were captured by opportunistic kidnappers and dragged into the city to lives of unforgiving slavery.

The very few remaining survivors of her village took up the lives of woodsmen and nomadic hunters, living off of what little the savage wilderness of Deadwood had to offer. When ends needed to be met, they took the role of raiders and even slavers, attacking refugees just as vulnerable as themselves and trading with Darington, the same city that exploited them as they fled for their lives. Magdalene herself saw her uncle turn from a kindly neighbor to a cold and jaded outlaw, once even stabbing a traveler through the ribs when they were a few coins short of his demand. She herself was no stranger to what her people had become, learning to notch crossbows, skin prey, and loot bodies. Her people soon became feared among settlements and travelers in the region, becoming known as the Band of Wolves.

During the war between Orthos and the Kaimerians, the Band of Wolves were opportunistic scavengers, swooping in to raid battlefields, pulling the shirts off the backs of barely living men and leaving them to die in the bloodied soil. They struck a few soft blows of revenge against the Kaimerians, too, killing a few scouts, as payback for their home's destruction. Over the course of the war, however, the Band of Wolves was eventually destroyed, finally disbanding after being lured into a trap and massacred by the Knights of Orthos after one too many battlefield raids on their ravaged units. Though Magdalene and a few others managed to flee with their lives, the remnant was too small to reform, the survivors each going their separate ways after that.

Magdalene traveled northward, roaming around all on her own. She managed to find work on occasion as a fur-trader and huntress, but mostly lived as a lone traveler and petty robber. Eventually, during a trip into Orthos, she heard the news that Exusia was seeking warriors and explorers, for an expedition into the Desolation, and were willing to pay mountains of gold. Tired of constantly surviving and living out in the wilderness, Magdalene was in enough desperation to accept, and set off on her journey to Exusia.

Anything else?

Sjalvolki Gorassos has always known the life of a nomad. The Lyrossi Tribe, his birth-tribe, was always on the move in search of new lands and resources within the Deadwood. Sjalvolki’s life revolved around the migration pattern of the tribe. From an early age, Sjalvolki was taught the basics of survival and horse-riding. Without such knowledge then you may as well not be with the tribe. While some may never be able to travel the vastness of Deadwood, Sjalvolki has. From Sorrow Fields to the Bone Sea, Sjalvolki has traveled to many parts of the Deadwood. The search for new resources was the driving force for the Lyrossi Tribe. Trade was highly important as the Lyrossi Tribe became known for their exploits in gathering various parts of artifacts and other things. For Sjalvolki, he was not chosen to search the dead cities and ruined sites but was assigned to cooking. A boring job at first, but a blessing since Sjalvolki never had to risk his life in search of new resources and items. This was early-life for Sjalvolki. He traveled the parts of Deadwood and cooked for his tribe. In time, Sjalvolki’s life would get more exciting, but not in the way you think. Instead, Sjalvolki gained a job of helping the tribe blacksmiths. Over time, Sjalvolki slowly gained an interest in the ways of forging iron and steel. One day, he asked if he could learn how to smith. The smiths gladly accepted the request but that meant more work for Sjalvolki as he had to both cook and smith. How stressful.

Life went on as normal for a good while. Sjalvolki did his duties as a smith and cook, but things would take a turn for the worse for Sjalvolki. The religion of the Sun Elfs, the Sun Cult, had a massive schism. Two different cults soon formed in the aftermath - the New Sun Cult and the Old Sun Cult. The New believed that anyone could be a follower of the Sun God, not just the Sun Elfs. The Old believed that only the Sun Elfs could be the ONLY true followers of the Sun God, chosen by the Sun God itself to be as such. Many tribes fought over this belief and the Lyrossi Tribe was among the followers of the Old. For Sjalvolki, he was among the few that believed in the New Sun Cult. For this, he was banished from his birth-tribe. Taking whatever he could, Sjalvolki had to leave his family behind. While Sjalvolki could have joined a new tribe, the Sun Elf never did. At the age of 60, the time that he was banished, Sjalvolki chose to live on his lonesome. For the latter part of his life, Sjalvolki followed the same migration pattern as his tribe did, while offering his services in cities to pay for food, water, and other costs as he went about his migration. It also during this time that Sjalvolki became more self-aware of himself, and what he wanted from life. This is when he decided that the Deadwood was a sin against the Sun God, neverminding the fact that he also believed that Deadwood was also a hellish place that needed to go away. After finding out about the reward by the Queen, Sjalvolki jumped at the job. He could use the wealth to fund research to restore the land, and he can also figure out what caused Deadwood to be made in the first place.

Anything else?

Artur was born halfway into nobility, one of the greater lineages of the remaining world, though his father was a weak man. Events conspired against him and, still a boy, he was forced into exile by the murderous daggers of court intrigue where he learned things that a sheltered life amongst nobility would've precluded. Forced to make his own way or starve, Artur lived among pirates and the free companies of the Shattered Isles, steadily carving out a life for himself - but he never forgot his roots, nor did he relinquish any hope of reclaiming what he believed was his by birthright.

Travelling across both the archipelago and the mainland, Artur established a name for himself among the mercenary companies, steadily rising to become a captain in his own right with experience both in the field of battle and administrating an army as the Kaimerian Uprising raged on and the various city-states sought protection from the encroaching threat. He fathered a bastard of his own, though unlike his own forebears he did not abandon the boy - instead bringing him along for seasoning, to see the world and to one day take the place his father intended, for he was a man of ambition and would not be contented with life as a captain forever.

Artur pooled coin, spoke with other captains and, eventually, struck out to form a free company of his own, dubbing them the Bastardborn - a nod to the status which he openly wore as a title. For a time, they prospered and his true goal seemed more achievable than it had ever been before, year by year. Yet again, however, events conspired against him; a contract gone poorly and several greedy opportunists among the ranks led to a betrayal from the men among the ranks. Wounded and left for dead on the shores of New Kaimeria, he was left in the hands of a passing raiding boat who thought to take him as a captive as it moved westwards.

Luckily for Artur, he knew the Isles well enough to recognise an opportunity to escape - diving overboard and swimming for the shore. A few hard months saw him travel downriver towards Exusia, a journey in which he was able to strip whatever he could from the bodies of unfortunate travellers, enough to make his own way - for his ambitious habits stirred. First, he would reclaim the Bastardborn - with interest. To do this, he would need coin and support from the right powers. He would have his swords and spears. Then, a crown.

Artur has sired a child of his own, a boy of almost thirteen years - derided as a bastard's bastard by some. As far as he's aware, the boy is still with the Bastardborn, unaware that the old man is still alive. Artur is fond of him, though to say he's been a loving or doting parent would be embellishment at best.

Nikaiel was born in Krist (town on the west coast near the Shattered Isles), Dakora to one of the finest con artist, turned pirate, of the Shattered Isles. He made his money conning people in Krist during his youth, before he turned to piracy. His ship, the Forgotten Goddess, was where they learned all the tools in the conman trade. They started off conning people out of their money by pretending to be homeless and starving, but they had to sell the act. No one would feed a child that looked healthy, so whenever father thought it was a good time for them to go out on a con he would starve them for two weeks, then set them to work as a beggar child. They never got much, but it was a lesson learned in how to be someone else for the long game. When Nikaiel was eight their father had pillaged from the wrong ship. A noble woman from Dakora by the name of Lady Deveau, lord of the Deveau estate, and one of the most dangerous lords in Dakora, had a ship transporting money to Darington in exchange for slaves. Their father stole from her ship and it didn't take long for him to get found out. When Lady Deveau caught up to him, she made him pay with the freedom of his crew and his child. She didn't care where she got her slaves, as long as she got them. Nikaiel never saw their father again.

As the child of Deveau's thief, Kai was not treated kindly. They became Deveau's plaything; barely clothed, starved, and beaten for the smallest mistakes. Deveau used to have Nikaiel whipped during social gathering just to see how strong their threshold for pain was, and to put on a show for her guest where she waged bets on how long it was take them to pass out. On the rare days she decided to be kind, she had Nikaiel dress in noble clothing like a doll and praised them for their regal features. It's the only reason their face was spared scars and abuse no stronger than a slap. Nikaiel knew not to fight back no matter how much they wanted to, so they kept their head down, did as they were told, and became "loyal" to Lady Deveau, waiting for the opportunity to slit her throat. The moment never came. Deveau a political falling out with a neighboring lord, and the ensuing disagreement lead to her assassination when Nikaiel was twelve. They didn't stick around to be taken as a spoil of war and stowed away on a merchant ship going literally anywhere else.

Nikaiel ended up in Darington hiding and keeping to the shadows, so they wouldn't be taken by a slaver. They weren't on the street long, before they were found by Khym. The augury was an ex-slave that got spoiled by having at least one meal a day, which was more then he got when he traveled with his tribe through the Bone Sea, before he got caught by slavers in Darington decades ago. Khym didn't spend too much time with his master, having been cunning enough to steal coin and gems from the master's own safe, and pretended that the goods were stolen from someone else so he could buy his freedom. When Nikaiel and Khym met, Khym was getting on in years, and wasn't as agile as he used to be. In the time of his freedom, he spent most of it stealing gold and gems from merchants and the rich in Darington, so he never went without another meal again. He was able to get in and out without getting caught. He keeps a low profile, virtually a nobody, no one knowing he's the richest creature in Darington with his basement full of riches.

Khym took Nikaiel in when they caught him sneaking off with stolen goods. They'd been hiding in an alley next to a jewelry shop for the night and just happened to see Khym's escape. Nikaiel was desperate for money, so they could buy food, and thought they could take Khym in a fight, since he was tinier than them. Nikaiel had the element of surprise and was able to take the bag Khym carried. They would've made off with the loot had they not been malnourished and passed out from running. Khym was surprised the kid was able to get the drop on him, since he's usually aware of his surroundings. He took his bag back and would have left Nikaiel on the street, but decided to wake them up and welcome them into his home. Once Nikaiel got their strength back, they told Khym everything, minus details of their life with Lady Deveau. Learning they were an amateur con artist, Khym saw this as an opportunity to mold Nikaiel into his new money maker. Combined with the skills Nikaiel learned from their father and Khym, they became the best con artist in Darington. They did away with their birth name and took up the name Kai. Kai wasn't a slave with a master, but a master of disguise.

Khym set Kai to work, unfortunately spending gold and jewels on temporary crews to help Kai get the job done. Kai never worked with the same people twice, and whatever cut Khym gave them had to be spilt with their partners. Kai learned quick to vet potential crewmates, never tell the crew the entire plan, and keep it to four to five people. Any more than that and shit gets messy. Khym also inducted them into his religion worshiping Khiar-koff. Kai is a devout follower, and often prays to Khiar-koff first thing in the morning praying for their death to be delayed another day. Through the ritual sacrifices, Khym taught them Kisha making. Kai's first few attempts at making kisha failed, but when they finally got the hang of it they made El, a bird-cat homunculus.

After working for Khym for over a decade, Kai wants to branch out on their own, and find riches that'll be all for them and not mostly for Khym.

Kai has plenty of names they use for different cons. And when they introduce themself to people, it's always a name on the long list of aliases. If their enemies ever found out their true identity they'd be in trouble.

GOAL
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"Endure. And in enduring, grow strong."

Quite simply put, Croix hopes to spread and preach the word of The One Being wherever he travels. Croix is incredibly strong but he is still one man, by journeying the Deadwoods alongside others he is eager to deepen the reach of The One Truth. It is hard to imagine he can do worse anyway, considering he touts a religion no one in the land has heard of and its followers amounts to just himself.

PERSONALITY
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"Our fires never stop burning, friend. All we can do is temper them. Through hope... And through faith."

Croix is a conflicting and strange presence to get an accurate reading. Most of the time he is quiet yet polite and even friendly. As though he is existing in an alternate world unseen by the rest of the Deadwoods. He is willing to listen, patient even to the most belligerent of people he finds himself in the company of and of course more than eager to discuss the various faiths of the land as well as espouse on his own.

Yet he is also unsettling, Croix has a strange manner about him, a serenity that often makes him come off as detached and indifferent to the horrors that surround him. His hopefulness, while seemingly genuine, can easily be seen by others as denial or rejection of the current state of things. In his mind, The One Being represents change and the current state of the world is merely its endurance as it forms into something new and is not to be frightened, but this is little comfort to those who consider themselves more in touch with reality. This is all to say nothing about him in combat, where he seems to regress into a monster of man, laughing and hollering with joy at the carnage he unleashes. While he can tell apart friend from foe and even strategize and coordinate his attacks when in enough control of himself, he seems to revel in the suffering inflicted upon his enemies.

While he is a friendly and outright optimistic sort regularly, there is undeniably a darkness to him that lurks underneath his warmth, hope and faith.

Croix's birth was unremarkable, a meeting between two members of a Bone Clan no doubt long since claimed by the harsh world. Unwanted by both parents he was birthed and left in the city of Alphos. This, truthfully, should be the were the story ends as life for children in general is not comfortable for most of the Deadwood's denizens yet Croix survived. Adopted, so to speak, by an orphan house in the city. Life was almost idyllic growing up for Croix, his fellow orphans being a motley crew that looked out for one another, something out of a story book really.

As happy stories typically go in the Deadwoods, it ended up taking a dark turn. Around the time Croix became a teenager, his home and friends began to act stranger around him, introducing new phrases and worldviews little by little as he grew older. He learned not to question the wisdom of the people who had so generously took him in yet he could feel himself slipping away piece by piece as information was filled into his head. About the power and superiority of demons and magic over the common man, the inevitability of demonic rule over these ruined lands. By the time Croix was becoming an adult, he was all but indoctrinated into the cult that his caretakers truly were, along with the rest of his brothers and sisters.

The cult consolidated their people and resources into a single purpose, their goal to summon and bind a demon to their will. In spite of being a small ramshackle orphanage in Alphos, the cult had grand ambitions of a crusade, led by demons and their own magical prowress, to slaughter or enslave the denizens of the Deadwoods and Exusia to their rule. The idea was that by binding and forcing a demon to submit to a mortal host, not only would that person's physical and mental capabilities shoot up considerably, it would give the mortal access to the demons unknown and strange magic, perhaps even eliminating the need for rituals all together. Each iteration of this ritual resulted in the chosen host simply twisting and contorting to disgusting angles before perishing, in one case outright exploding. But Croix was so conditioned by this point he did not question the horrors subjected to him and his once loving family, until the night where his name was called.

The Cult had failed repeatedly and was growing more and more desperate as their once small company of loyal followers began to dwindle. Croix, by that point being their physically strongest follower left, was ostensibly their perceived best chance at successfully binding the demon to a subject who could withstand it. The ritual began and the incantations murmured in the dead of night, Croix's eyes shut, awaiting either successfully serving his masters yet again or the embrace of oblivion. But something unexpected occurred. As Croix shut his eyes a light engulfed him, a disembodied voice spoke, one that opened his eyes to the lies upon lies fed to him almost since his birth. In what felt like an instant, with information it could not possibly know, the voice unravelled Croix's mental conditioning and awoke him to the truth. That voice was 'The One Being' and it needed a follower to begin prepping the world for what would soon follow. When Croix awoke, it was in the blood of his former family, those that had only ever saw him as either a tool or a fellow disciple. Yet, he couldn't feel any sadness, instead for possibly the first time in his life, he felt hope.

Though his body seemed change from the experience, that he was still alive seemed to indicate The One Being had intervened before it could destroy him completely. Armed with faith, his mind and something rarest of all in Deadwood, optimism. Croix left Alphos and travelled the land, stories began to emerge about a strange mountain of a man in a wide brimmed hat, preaching change and forgiveness as he went.

It was not until word reached him of the expedition organised by the Queen in Exusia that Croix felt purpose beyond merely spreading The One Truth. With this quest he could perhaps understand the Cataclycsm, find out what the world would change into under The One Being, use the gold and status offered by The Queen to even begin a full church if possible. These thoughts invigorated Croix's already unshakeable belief, with a smile he set off. Eager to spread The One Truth in earnest.

The One Truth - In spite of its far reaching consequence of implication, Croix's religion is actually quite straightforward. Croix believes in a deity known as The One Being, one who exists in every form of religion as their god (or gods) as well, merely in a different face and manner. The idea is that The One Being seeks to unite the people of Deadwood in preparation for the world's change into something new after its destruction. Croix believes that, while not strictly benevolent, The One Being exists to facilitate change in the world and all things. Growing them into a better version of their original self or something outright new, and that this process is merely happening to the greater land as it morphs to something better, or at least different. There are other specifics to it but this, above all else, is the 'One Truth' Croix is so passionate in spreading to the world.

I am utter shit at backstories and honestly feel like I've hit the broad strokes well so far so I'm going to be brief. First, by mishap or murder, all of Old Mother's children have passed on. She holds a somewhat unique position in her society as a result of this - one of great respect, but also a bit of pity. She occupies something of a communal grandmother role. She serves as dula, nurse, doctor, matchmaker, fortune-teller, medicine-maker, sage, prophet, and seer. Yet not mother. Not anymore. It saddens her, and has left her with something of a hollow. For Kaimerians, there is nothing truly greater than being a successful mother - especially to have a daughter of your own, given their rarity. She had hoped to pass on her knowledge, to see her daughter surpass her in every way, to raise her strong, and wise, and sure. But that did not happen. So much did not happen. In seeing wars won and lost, tribal leaders rise and fall, she has learned much, but arguably gained little. That is what has prompted her to embark on this quest. Her people will survive without her, should she fall along the way.

Anything else?