Eldritch

**Eldritch** (born **Alexander Eldritch I)** is a shield-bearer, mage, author, and Sand Speaker in the Eldham nation of The Pale, in eastern Onthukhan. A Dwarvish mage seeking to learn about the developments of the human world, Eldritch arrived in Northern Eldham and made a journey across the Continent until falling at the door of the gates of Karthold, the capital of the Pale. Eldritch was given a home by freeman council member Jamesh and situated himself in the country.

Eldritch established a home in the eastern Pale land of Greywatch. He earned the title of shield-bearer for his service during the Zamotz-Merconis Sand War in November of 2021. Back in Karthold, he developed a stall at the Eldham Central Market to sell goods such as deepslate, leather, and cheese known as the Eldritch Emporium. Currently, he plans to create a publishing company in Greywatch.

## Backstory

### Auravine and Childhood

Eldritch hails from the ancient Dwarven city of Auravine. Little is known about this civilization except for the fact that it is very far away from Rathnir or Eldham and has a strong focus on Dwarven magic. Eldritch was a member of the ruling dynasty of Auravine. Alexander Eldritch was born to the brother of the second king of Auravine, Maximillian Eldritch II, making him the nephew of the king. His father, Wolfgang, was a proponent of the arts within the kingdom and eventually left the country due to disagreements with the rest of the royalty.

Alexander was raised as a ward of Maximillian and was taught Dwarven magic by the mages of the city. He was trained in writing and theology by the monks there for the purpose of one day serving his cousin Leonardo as an advisor.

### Adulthood and Exodus

After the death of his Uncle Maximillian when he was a young man, Alexander was wrought with grief. His cousin took the throne and Eldritch served in his court for a time. Eventually he developed a fascination with the realms of Men and heard tales of the faraway lands of Eldham and Rathnir. Eldritch took after his father, gathering his possessions and leaving Auravine in pursuance of greater purpose. He took with him his Eldritch Crown as a reminder of his lineage and the Blade of Auravine, his enchanted sword passed down through the generations.

Eldritch landed on the North of Eldham and began making his way across the continents. A strange sight, a Dwarf in Eldham, he travelled to the land most similar to his homeland: the icy taiga of The Pale.

## In The Pale

Eldritch quickly adjusted to life in The Pale and was offered a home in the capital of Karth by JameshBond, a council member. Eldritch's initial plan was to assimilate into the culture of The Pale and eventually continue his love of writing once on his feet. Early on in his time in The Pale, Eldritch was brought to the eastern colony of Greywatch, which would become his primary home until the exodus after the Sylvanian conflict. Initially, Eldritch got by through mining and selling the cheese he produced in his "Cheesemaking Dungeon" at the Eldham Central Market.

### Old Greywatch

In Greywatch, Eldritch built his house and befriended the Jarl, Kaidus Ariano, along with other residents including Senny, Leio "Numbers" Runespeaker, Viola "Wolf" Lightbringer, and Rhay Ariano. Eldritch joined Greywatch right around the time of the Sylvani-Pale Excavation Affair and was therefore present for the events that unfolded. On November 20th, the announcement was made that the people of Greywatch would relocate to the Pale's mainland and sell the hold of Greywatch.

With the exodus planned, Eldritch, along with his fellow citizens of Greywatch packed up their belongings and set out on the journey to Karth. Many took shelter in refugee camps, but Eldritch stayed in his Karth home which had been converted into his personal storage and cheesemaking facility at this point.

### Skjotunhra and The Ellrians

###### *Main Article: Skjotunhra*

It was around the time Eldritch and the others left Old Greywatch that Kaidus reached out to him about the possibility of joining the ranks of the Sand Speakers of the Skjotunhra faith. Kaidus had taken note of Eldritch's passion for writing as well as his innate abilities as a mage and tasked him with recording the myths of the faith through a process known as Sand Speaking. The visions Eldritch recieved through this process were recorded in the core texts of Skjotunhra.

Shortly after becoming a Sand Speaker, Eldritch was offered the position of Scribe of House Ariano, a title denoting the official historiographer of Greywatch Hold and the Ariano Family. The task given to him by the Duke was to record the history of the hold which is compiled in *A History of Greywatch*. Eldritch worked with the Ariano Family and the citizens of Greywatch to help establish the Ellrian culture, inspired by the Skjotunhra diety, Vag-Ellri, who serves as the region's patron.

### New Greywatch

###### *Main Article: Greywatch*

Following the migration from Leifmyrr, the Ellrians found themselves in mainland Pale. A deal was brokered among the Council members and land was ceded in center of the region to make room for a new Greywatch Hold. Eldritch moved into the new capital, the druidic city of Bastria, orignally founded by Aethelred the Builder. Upon moving to Bastria, Eldritch along with Kaidus and Rhay Ariano began working together to create plans for the city's expansion.

Eldritch began designing floorplans for his proposed *Library of Bastria*. Due to its complicated architecture, the migration from Old Greywatch, as well as a loss of blueprints, construction on the project was halted for a few months but officially broke ground on February 10th, 2022.

### The Mountain Breaker

In February 2022, Eldritch met the travelling vagabond known as "4\_ra." 4\_ra was a travelling arcaelogist who came to the pale in search of making a fortune. Eldritch welcomed 4\_ra to Bastria and Little Greywatch and he was admitted as a freemen. At this time, Eldritch was getting very lonely, and, intrigued by the exploits of 4\_ra, agreed to his proposal of marriage. Eldritch was hesitant to get married but 4\_ra convinced him through explaining the tax benefits of such an action.

4\_ra and Eldritch were married by Seny on March 9th, 2022. The union was met with much outrage among some witnesses to the wedding. 4\_ra and Eldritch then became common companions on quests such as nether fishing and visiting foreign lands. It was during one of 4\_ra's excursions to the world of Rathnir that he discovered the most valuable artifact he had ever found: **The Mountain Breaker**.

On March 14th 2022, 4\_ra was engaging in bandit hunting raids with fellow freemen Baeked Perron and Mr. Good Asian, as he normally did. 4\_ra encountered the bandit known as Endshade and engaged him in combat. 4\_ra was ill-prepared for the encounter and was cut down by End's blade. Following the news of 4\_ra's death, Eldritch went into a moment of despair but knew this was likely coming, since his husband was known for his risky behavior.

Following 4\_ra's death, his Last Will and Testament bequeathed all of 4\_ra's possessions to Eldritch, including his home in Little Greywatch and The Mountain Breaker. However, upon further investigation into 4\_ra's home, it was discovered by the authorities that 4\_ra had stolen items belonging to councilors and other freemen. 4\_ra's home was levelled in search of the pickaxe before Eldritch arrived. Seny explained the situation and Eldritch agreed to use 4\_ra's wealth as compensation for the stolen goods. Eldritch communed with 4\_ra through Sand-Speaking and was able to recover the secret location of The Mountain Breaker in Harthreach.

## Military Career

### The Sand War

###### *Main Article: Sand War*

Eldritch joined The Pale during the height of the Sand War. In fact, the battle had been rescheduled to only a few days after he originally arrived in Eldham. The training missions conducted by Oathmarshall Jib was the first time Eldritch interacted with members of the Pale and was intro uced to the High King himself.

The First Battle of Oblitus Oris was delayed further to the following week, which is where Eldritch debuted on the battlefield. His expierences during the battle were recorded in the journal *The Battle of Oblitus Oris*. Eldritch was placed into a division led by Jib and was tasked with defending the lower level of Fort Merconis. Eldritch ended up surviving the battle and used the experience to prepare for future conflicts and apply for the Wardens of The Pale. For his service, he was awarded the Medal for the Battle of Oblitus Oris as well as the rank of Shield-Bearer.

After the Sand War, the government of The Pale established the Wardens, the elite fighters/civil servants of the Pale. After investing a significant amount of his savings into procuring his own set of war gear from Senny, Eldritch applied and was later accepted.

### Onthukhan War

###### *Main Article: Onthukhan War*

After being unable to join the Pale in its conflict with the squatters in the sea to the east, Eldritch was eager to fight for his country in its second ever major war. This time, a main belligerent, The Pale faced the forces of their former ally, the People's Republic of Merconis. Eldritch was sadly unable to attend the Battle of Perria, but was tasked with running supplies to the frontlines during the Battle of Nuekromore.

Eldritch was present during the latter stages of the Second Battle of Oblitus-Oris, or as his fellow soldiers referred to it: "The Phantom Battle." Upon arriving at the gates of the Merconian capital, Eldritch and his countrymen found the streets to be deserted, abandoned by the Merconian citizens, leaving only the Phantoms to defend its walls. The city was easily captured and brought about an end to the conflict, ending in the annexation of Merconis by the Pale.

For his services in supply running during the Onthukhan War, Eldritch was given the millitary rank of Korporal, along with Viola Lightbringer, Leio Runespeaker and Orinis Elliris.

## Written Works

### *The Battle of Oblitus Oris*

*The Battle of Oblitus Oris* was the first written work of Eldritch. Written from the perspective of a Freeman foot soldier, the book tells the story of the Sand War and the subsequent Battle of Oblitus Oris and Siege of Fort Merconis. Eldritch served under High King Ironback and Oathmarshall Barrett during the siege. The Pale and their USSE allies were ultimately defeated by the Zamotz Union but Eldritch survived the fight due to server instablisity and crashed.

### *Terry Geraldson*

An ongoing fantasy novel written by Eldritch. It tells the tale of a novice mage with extremely little arcane knowledge who is invited to join the most prestigious wizardry schools on the continent. There are currently three chapters to the novel, the first of which was submitted to the USSE's literature competition in December of 2021.

### *History of Greywatch*

In December of 2021, Eldritch was commissioned by Jarl Kaidus Ariano of Greywatch to document the history of The Pale's largest hold. The source is still in very early stages of development.

### *Myths of Skjotunhra*

As Speaker of Mythics for the religion of Skjotunhra, Eldritch writes many of the religion's myths in conjunction with the other Sand Speakers. The following is a list of completed/in progress myths published by Eldritch:

* *Hafnát's Taken*
* *Pengy the Adored* (writing credit: kulovicz)
* *Skjotun's Blessings of the Forge & The First Ellrians*