Stolartz

Stolartz is an Avalonian orc who is the founder of the Grand Musical. He acts as a central figure in the artists' protests at Cristoban Theater.

## History

Born into a monastic order that was at one point a branch member of the New World Masons, Stolartz grew up in the Broken Lands as a devotee who worshiped the Void.

Although originally a fanatic absolutely faithful to his order, Stolartz became disillusioned with his god when he was possessed by its essence during a ritual and ended up cannibalizing his childhood friend and fellow devotee. Disgusted with his actions, he escaped the order and fled to Leandoros, where he would spend his teenage and early adult years as a wanderer.

With only the lute his childhood friend used to play as a keepsake, Stolartz eventually became a skilled musician, and earned a relatively decent living as a bard for hire. His travels would eventually lead him to Kepia, where he would settle down in Pandeli after being recognized for his skills at Cristoban Theater.

After the Kepian Civil War, Stolartz and many of his friends would be kicked out of the theater to make way for the incoming KUI refugees. In response Stolartz formed the Grand Musical and started to lead the artists' protests. Though his skills would make it relatively easy for him to simply make a living performing elsewhere, his past guilt binds him to Pandeli and he sees protecting his fellow artists as the start of his path to personal redemption.

## Personality

### Greedy

Though he may be disgusted with it now, Stolartz's early worship has permanently etched into his mental state a small aspect of the Void. Thankfully, his rejection of it has reduced the aspect to mere material greed rather than the more visually obscene aspects such as hunger or lust, but Stolartz nevertheless suffers from periodic, debilitating mental breaks where he will uncontrollably hunger for material gains.

To prevent himself from going around and taking everything he sees during such a break, Stolartz wears an layer of entirely gold coins underneath his coat. He has also managed to hone his self control to the point that as long as he doesn't see anything that is obviously worth a lot of money, he can keep himself relatively controlled. If he believes he is alone during a break, he will often give into it, as doing so makes it pass by more quickly.

Should Stolartz lose control during a break, he will focus solely on whatever item has grabbed his interest. Should there be nothing around, he will instead focus on his undercoat of gold coins. As long as he has the object, he will remain relatively docile, simply feeling the item and laughing maniacally. Should his item of fixation be taken away however, he will enter a barbaric rage, and his future breaks will also become worse. Go barbaric enough times, and his breaks may even begin to include the other more violent aspects of the Void.

### Forceful Leader

Though not charismatic in a traditional way, the forceful, confident nature that is natural to orcs gives Stolartz his own, unique type of personality that makes others gravitate to him. Never showing uncertainty or fear in front of his underlings, Stolartz is able to inspire a sort of unwavering confidence amongst those he leads.

### Stubborn, Challenging

Though he rarely runs into problems he can't handle, Stolartz has a large amount of trouble admitting his trouble on the few occasions where it does happen. He easily over commits upon deciding on a course of action, and may have difficulty changing his method even when an obviously better one is presented.

### Values Freedom

Stolartz's time as a brainwashed devotee in the Broken Lands has instilled upon him a heavy respect for freedom. He strives to carve out his own path in life, and hates it when decisions are taken out of his hands. He is especially suspicious of those who wish to assimilate or back the Grand Musical, as he suspects them of wanting to take control of the group.

## Combat

Stolartz is not a fighter, but if presented with no other choice, will tap into the aspect of the Void for power. He will not do this unless he absolutely has to, as doing so makes his sanity breaks much much worse in the future. In addition, the extra power he gains is not controlled, and he can easily destroy his own body from the sheer power of his attacks.

When tapping into the Void, Stolartz can manage up to three turns max while maintaining his sanity. Should three turns pass and he has still not finished the battle, he will lose himself completely, becoming a barbaric monster that fights to satisfy the greed, lust, and hunger of the Void.

When sane, Stolartz fights like a brawler monk, and has base stats similar to any other mini boss enemy type at that point in the campaign.

After three turns have passed, Stolartz will go insane. The most prominent effects are that his HP will become infinite and his damage/attack rolls will be doubled. However, he will lose the ability to do magic, and will not be able to make complex battle plans. In addition, he will lose the ability to distinguish allies from enemies, and will simply attack the person closest to him.

Though technically having infinite HP, any damage that is dealt to Stolartz will be double the normal value and must be kept track of. After 5 rounds, all the damage is dealt back to him, and he will die if the amount is more than twice his max HP.