Doctor Curtin

*“Greatness is a transitory experience. It is never consistent. It depends in part upon the myth-making imagination of humankind. The person who experiences greatness must have a feeling for the myth he is in. He must reflect what is projected upon him. And he must have a strong sense of the sardonic. This is what uncouples him from belief in his own pretensions. The sardonic is all that permits him to move within himself. Without this quality, even occasional greatness will destroy a man."*

-Doctor Curtin

## History

Curtin was created by Lord Alpha in a terrible experiment in which the orcs of Terra were slaughtered in a single night, and their gestalt consciousness placed within the body of their race's sole survivor. Brilliant yet wildly unstable, Curtin was taught by the imperial scientist, Branard Sumoki, who instructed him in the arts of alchemy. He was responsible for the creation of innumerable chimera, and for countless other arcane creations that blurred the distinction between life and something exalted or degenerate. Eventually, Curtin fled to a small mining town that would become Arendur, bringing his laboratory with him. It was there that he took responsibility for the care and safety of Emperor Monopoly's fleeing nieces, Sharra and Jang. He was the second man, following Captain Zonan of the town guard, to join Tolumvire's Illuminated and proclaim the town's freedom from the empire. In Tolumvire's absence, Curtin became the de-facto ruler of Arendur, guiding its rise from a small mining town to a wealthy melting pot of rebels, outcasts, merchants, and industrialists. He led his people against many enemies, internal and external, and nurtured the growth of the Illuminated. When Tolumvire returned to take the reigns of power in Arendur, Curtin became his right-hand man, often working in the shadows to head off threats before they came. He took on a central role in Arendur's Great Crusade, taking the title Warmaster of Arendur, giving him control over the nation's civilian institutions. He was nearly killed by King Bolgar during the Arendur-Ragnarok War, and found himself trapped in Hermod's realm for the rest of the war, healing from grevious wounds. He continued to work for the betterment of Arendur during Tolumvire's exile, and was the first to lend his aid to Tolumvire upon his return. It was he who witnessed Tolumvire's marriage to Jang, and his subsequent coronation. After Xiloxi Drutreu's Demon Army attacked Arendur, Curtin tried to fight O'Rangus directly, but was imprisoned in the elder evil's mind. When Bolgar slew O'Rangus, Curtin was freed, and returned to his laboratory in the ruins of old Arendur to continue his arcane research.

Yet Tolumvire was not finished with him. The demon lord would contact him, and work alongside his old friend to push the ruins of Arendur into the material plane, wreaking chaos in the local settlements. Curtin would emerge from the rubble of the city, declaring the foundation of a new nation. He would rally an army would him, uniting the colonies and wood elf communities under his banner. Many Arendurian expatriates would return to their home, fully expecting to pledge their service to the familiar figure of the doctor. As always, Curtin demurred, and invited the Illuminated to return. Jotunheim reluctantly agreed, and was persuaded to lead a republic closer to his original revolutionary principles. He would be installed as the first Pontifex Maximus of the Republic of New Arendur, a reluctant ruler in turbulent times. Curtin would remain in the background, serving as Master of the Sword and attending to his laboratory.

## Personality

Wild yet subtle, brilliant yet mad, and filled with deep rage, Curtin was the amalgamation of the Orcish psyche - the crude sum of countless discordant parts. He was dramatic, and relished in his outsized and often intimidating personality. He was capable of deep loyalty, but often acted in the interests of his allies without their permission - often against their wishes. He had seen too many idealists come and go, and was all too aware of the flaws of the men and women around him. He had transcended morality, being at once committed to lofty ideals and the betterment of mankind, while at the same time performing acts of cruelty both petty and grand. Something about his nature and his quixotic ideals engendered a close friendship with his close associate, Tolumvire of Arendur. They were both grotesquely flawed men who sought to build the city in speech, and working in concert, they wrought great works and even greater catastrophes. Though he will be remembered for the atrocities he perpetuated in Arendur's name, Curtin remains committed to the ideals that gripped Monopoly and Tolumvire both, and stands ready to aid another monarch in their mad quest for an ideal world.

## War of the Philosopher-Kings

Curtin spent the majority of the war in the city of Arendur, tending to his laboratory. He remained in close communication with Tolumvire, and would be called upon for the defense of the Arendurian survivors, where he led a force of chimera. He was grievously wounded by Brennen, and retreated for the rest of the war. He would serve as the guardian of the Yellow Sign, Pallid Mask, and King in Yellow, recovered from Xiclotl.

## After the War

*“Fanaticism was so popular. There had to be a reason for that, didn’t there? Some vast reward to the end of thinking, some great bliss to the blessing of idiocy.”*

-Doctor Curtin

As his health deteriorated from his wounds, Curtin was unable to help the New Arendurians fight off the Reich. At Tan Blackhand's command, he would be instructed to flee. He had been with the Illuminated since its founding, and remembered a repository of lore from before Arendur was founded. In the dead of night, he would slip out of New Arendur and make his way to the Northern Dome in one of his biplanes, to await the next monarch. In the Dome, Curtin met and befriended the Hyperborean Maiden, who hid him in the city's depths while the Second Northern Expedition searched the premises. The guide for the expedition, the mad huntsman Aldia, would elect to stay behind. Curtin, recalling Aldia from his participation in the heist of the Pallid Mask, would keep the mad huntsman as his patient and eventually, his assistant. With time and patience, Curtin would begin to work on Aldia’s ravaged mind. The ranger from Ragnarok would never truly the same again, or restored to sanity, but he would live out the rest of his life in the north, hunting beasts in an incomprehensible land. Curtin himself, already badly poisoned by Brennen's fires, lost what little remained of his strength over the journey north. With Aldia's help, he would build himself a wheelchair, and over the years, attach more and more life support devices to keep his ailing body alive. He has instructed Aldia to take dictation from him, to write down everything he knows. Curtin is aware that as soon as one of them dies - he from his injuries, or Aldia from his age - the other will be unable to survive on their own. Once that happens, he hopes that the next person to come upon the northern throne will find his writings, and claim the throne for themselves.