Behlen Lathalas

Behlen Lathalas is the newest member of the group that became known as the New Redbrands.

## Backstory

Born into a life of slavery in the Underdark city of Chaulssin Behlen's earliest years were that of slavery. Suffering in service to the Drow he was never happy with his lot in life. He was eventually recruited into a unit called a velve, tasked with spying on Chaulssin's enemies. During a mission into the Underdark his group was slaughtered by a group of Kuo-Toa. He knew that he would be assumed dead so he took the chance to escape. Knowing that the lowest levels of the Underdark were not safe he fled to the surface. However he was never able to move past the things that he'd seen and done while in Chaulssin's service.

Behlen found a new lease on life when he encountered a missionary of Ilmater. This monk named Cassius was a strange and accepting man. Cassius made it clear to Behlen that he was going to help him whether he liked it or not but he was also not going to coddle him. The shadar-kai spent months with the man learning from and fighting alongside him. Their path ended up at a monastery of the Broken Ones and this would be his home for decades afterwards.

As a monk of the Broken One order, Behlen has sworn off the owning of purely material goods. The only property that he keeps for himself is either of practical use or to help him in his adventures. As part of his monastic duties he travels Faerun and seeks to defend temples and shrines of Ilmater from those who would deface them. He also steps in to help those who are in need. When he decided it was time to leave the nest his superior offered him a unique chance. He could he use his knowledge of the Underdark to bring supplies and missives to those who served in the School of the Penitents. These servants of Ilmater put themselves in harms way to bring hope to those who need it. While doing this they put themselves in immense danger, some even braving the Underdark. While he sees these peoples are foolish to go down there he respects their devotion and has sworn himself to aid them when possible.

During one such trip he received word from a Penitent that his old master Cassius had been seen going north to the Ten Towns. Curious as to what could be of interest to Cassius up in that frozen hellscape he set off to investigate. Part way through the trek he came across a group of duergar heading in the same direction. While aware that not all duergar are evil he knew well of their willingness to bully those weaker than them. He moved to avoid the duergar party but was noticed by one of their scouts. The ensuing chase ended when Behlen found himself cornered and was subsequently rendered unconscious.

Behlen came to in a jail cell inside of Sunblight Fortress. While confused and angry he tried to center himself and wait for an opportunity to escape. His chance came when his jailors bumped into the New Redbrands while moving him to be what he assumed to be an interrogation or sacrifice. Seizing his chance he broke free and joined up with the strangers who he knew only as enemies of the duergar. He had no idea that this event would drag him into a fight to save the lives and souls of the Ten Towns.

## Personality

Behlen is a serious and dour elf. While he isn't exactly humorless, he is definitely not one to joke around nor outwardly show his amusement. He has shown both an affinity for Skitter's goofy antics as much as he has Gorin's serious driven nature. However due to his stubborn nature, he is unwilling to express himself to the point of potentially injuring himself while under magical compulsion.

His experiences have left their mark on his personality as much as they have his body. He is haunted by the actions he took while serving under the drow and he fights furiously to purge these perceived sins. This has bled into his service to Ilmater, leaving him very aggressive about protecting the weak. In any situation his interest in fighting wanes as soon as he sees that his foes are defeated. While he is always ready to stand up in defense of the weak and defenseless, he has no concern for the dead. His interest in suffering ends upon ones demise, it being a more spiritual matter after that, and he shows little interest in this. That said, he is always willing to avenge those who have died unjustly.

All of that said, he can show a very soft side on specific topics. When poetry is mentioned he seems to loosen up and is quite eager to discuss poems and authors. In addition, when he is shown someone who he feels is misguided rather than malicious he has shown himself to be very willing to engage in discourse instead of immediately punching people. Lastly when it comes to those protecting children or the enslaved his wrath is tempered by a need to protect these vulnerable peoples.

## Appearance

A fairly short and slight Elf with grey skin, no hair and deep black eyes with no whites to be seen. He has several piercings on his face; a pair of piercings through the bridge of his nose and one in his septum. The only exposed skin is his scar-covered face and hands. Should he remove his robes, even more scars would be seen to cross his entire body. Wears white robes with red bindings around the wrists, ankles and waist. A grey sash is worn over that with a symbol of Ilmater on his chest. Has a rounded wood mask on his hip that he rarely wears. It is painted a bright white color with red markings across it similar to bloody thorns.

After their adventures in the dwarven mines Behlen has gained a new companion. A small sack cloth creature filled with stones sits on his shoulders while adventuring. When a fight breaks out it very quickly hides in his backpack but it otherwise seems eager to see the world.

## Powers and Abilities

Shadar-Kai Ancestry - All Shadar-Kai possess a resistance to necrotic damage, immunity to sleep effects and resistance to charm effects. They also have enhanced perception, including 60 ft. darkvision. Like all elves they also enter a four hour trance instead of fully sleeping.

Blessing of the Raven Queen - Like all Shadar-Kai, Behlen can become like a shadow momentarily. This enables him to step through shadows to another position while making him resistant to damage.

Monk - As a monk Behlen possesses vast martial arts skills. These allow him to inflict great wounds with his hands and feet, even going so far as to paralyze his foes. He can move fast enough to dodge attacks in a way that allows him to both fight on the front lines alongside heavily armored warriors while also able to avoid some group attacks. Perhaps most important to Behlen is the great maneuverability he has access to. Beyond his ability to simply move faster than others, he has shown great aptitude in moving around the battlefield while dodging enemy attacks.

Way of the Kensei - Like all Kensei, Behlen sees his weapon as an extension of his body. He uses longswords, scimitars and longbows in a near meditative state. This allows him to pierce magical resistances and inflict great wounds with these weapons. He is also quite a deft hand with a calligraphy brush.

## Magic Items

* Behlen's Claw, a +2 Longsword that allows Behlen to attack from range. While attuned to it jagged clawlike marks appear on Behlen's arm.
* Thermal Cube, a magical cube that emanates heat.
* Decanter of Endless Water, a small jug that produces nigh infinite amounts of water.
* Rope of Mending, a rope that can be split and reattached at will.

## Notable Events

**Sunblight Fortress:** During the battles in Sunblight Fortress Behlen showed his usefulness to the party. Sneaking into the forge chamber, Behlen realized that they were vastly outnumbered. Knowing that the his impact on direct combat would be minimal Behlen decided that he would be bait. Using the natural speed and evasiveness inherent to a monk, Behlen darted inside and drew the attention of several of the dark dwarves. This surprise attack caused many of the duergar to begin chasing him around the room. They were kept busy while the New Redbrands dealt with the first wave. Once the party was gathered in the room he aided Gorin and Claymont in a direct assault, backed up by Skitters magic.

**The Dark Shardalyn:** In an attempt to stop the Dark Shardalyn Dragon the New Redbrands set up in Termalaine. When it swooped in to begin its assault Behlen inflicted great damage with his bow. Paired up with Skitter's Eldritch Blast this chased the dragon from the town. This caused the team to move to Bryn Shander where the beast was finally slain. The constant pelting of arrows and spells allowed the dragon to be slain without causing too much harm to the cities.