Maialen

Maialen was a bard, onetime priest of the Public Universal Friends, Harper, and sometime adventurer living in the late 15th century DR. They were one of several illegitimate half-human children of the wealthy elven adventurer and politician Coran.

**Description**

Maialen was a young half-elf about 35 years of age with chin-length dark red hair, fair skin and bright green eyes who presented as androgynous. Even after leaving the Public Universal Friends they continued to use they/them pronouns. Humans tended to think they were female, whereas elves more often took them for male. They were assigned male at birth but disliked masculine clothing.

They stood 5’6’’ (1.67 meters) tall with a slender build, and resembled their father Coran in his youth. Many considered them attractive, although they usually showed little concern for their appearance.

**Personality**

Maialen was a friendly, compassionate person who preferred to solve conflicts with compromise and diplomacy rather than violence. Others found them easy to talk to and often turned to them when they were dealing with difficult emotions. They were highly curious and could not resist looking into any suspicious situation, which led to their investigating a strange murder in Baldur’s Gate with Valiant yz Jhassan. While they appeared mild-mannered, they also possessed a bold and adventurous streak and were often fearless in the face of danger.

Maialen’s flaws included being overly trusting, withholding information from loved ones out of fear, and allowing their curiosity to lead them into dangerous situations.

**Abilities**

Trained at the Bardic College of Fochluchan in the Conclave of Silverymoon, Maialen was a skilled bard with a haunting countertenor voice. They were particularly skilled with the lyre and the viol and composed many of their own ballads and hymns.

As a priest and acolyte of the Public Universal Friends, Maialen was able to perform blessings and funeral rites in a variety of traditions. They were widely read in religious texts.

Maialen was trained as a spy by Harpers Kinnereth Falk and Jocasta Brassmantle, and was adept at gathering and transmitting information as well as undercover operations. By the year 1495 they had attained the rank of Brightcandle within the Harpers. They possessed a keen insight about the inner thoughts and motivations of others and could be manipulative when they deemed it necessary. They were also a good liar.

Although they possessed rudimentary skill with a shortsword, they rarely wielded it, preferring instead to use magic in combat. Being half-elven, they were naturally resistant to being charmed and were able to see in darkness.

**Relationships**

**Valiant yz Jhassan**

Maialen first encountered the tiefling bard and Lords’ Alliance operative Valiant yz Jhassan in Baldur’s Gate, while he was undercover and seducing the Zhentarim leader Saeanos Caristanial Ingaevon. The two became friends and Maialen fell in love with him, unsure if he felt the same; as they would later learn, Valiant loved Maialen as well, but did not disclose his feelings due to the danger to them both if his lover Ingaevon found out. They investigated a string of bizarre murders in Baldur’s Gate together, which led to a fateful encounter with the magician Urija Morell, who had been killing his own previous manifestations in order to gain understanding and reach the Sphere of Earth. After Valiant was implanted with a cursed mind-spike by Brother Symeon and transported to the Feywild, Maialen protected him, rescued him from Endelyn Moonshade’s dungeons, and obtained a wish stone from the brigganocks that eventually enabled the curse to be removed. Before Valiant returned to Toril, he and Maialen confessed their love for each other. Valiant expressed that he had once felt guilty for being in love with Maialen due to their apparent naïveté, but came to find out that they were far less naive and helpless than they seemed.

After Maialen and their companions freed the archfey Zybilna, they began a romantic relationship with Valiant and stayed with him in both Baldur’s Gate and Waterdeep, traveling between the two cities by means of the Church of Bane’s portals. Maialen also became business partners with Valiant, establishing the Ubaldo Consortium on behalf of Lord Ingaevon, whom the two had released from prison and blackmailed into cooperating.

One of their fondest hopes for the future was adopting children with Valiant.

**Gion**

Maialen and Gion grew up together in the Public Universal Friends and were inseparable until adolescence. Maialen was one of few who was not put off by Gion’s demeanor and aura of death and considered Gion their closest friend. Although many assumed that they were romantically involved, their relationship remained platonic. When Gion was accused of the murders of Elders Diligence and Perspicacity, Maialen and Dervorguilla Abernethy investigated under the aegis of the Harpers and discovered that Gion had indeed committed the murders at Elder Clarity’s instigation. Maialen and Gilly exposed Elder Clarity, but Gion was sentenced to wear the magical Crown of the Apostate which severed her connection to her God, Lathander. Maialen later asked the Archfey Zybilna to help Gion, which she did by way of making Gion a warlock.

**Kinnereth Falk**

Kinnereth was a close friend of Maialen’s and the person who recruited them to join the Harpers despite the Public Universal Friends’ prohibition on joining other organizations. They met while studying at the Conclave of Silverymoon.

**Saeanos Ingaevon**

While undercover in Baldur’s Gate attempting to infiltrate the Zhentarim, Maialen caught the attention of the Baneite cleric and Zhent leader Lord Saeanos Ingaevon, who took them as a protege. Lord Ingaevon came to suspect Maialen of being an agent of the Harpers or the Lords’ Alliance and presented a carefully tailored image of himself to them in order to convince his enemies he represented a more respectable face of the Zhentarim and the Church of Bane. While he played the role of a generous mentor, his interactions with Maialen also had undercurrents of sadism, and he appeared to take pleasure in reminding Maialen of their low social status, mixed heritage, and seemingly unrequited feelings for Valiant.

Ingaevon made use of Maialen in rooting out the remnants of the Cult of the Dead Three and attempted to win their genuine loyalty by offering to adopt them and make them his official heir, which would also have been a victory over his rival Coran. Maialen, longing for a family, was tempted, and struggled for a time with conflicted loyalties, even withholding certain damning information about Ingaevon’s activities from their handlers. After Ingaevon was falsely arrested for the murder of Nasira Alnair, Maialen and Valiant freed him from prison in exchange for him using his wealth to set up a charitable organization and helping them find Brother Symeon.

Ingaevon developed a more personal animosity towards Maialen during this time, resenting them for their control over him and also for their relationship with Valiant.

**Krydle**

Maialen sought out Krydle after learning of the death of their father Coran. Despite Krydle’s initial suspicions, Maialen began to form a bond with their half-brother, with whom they shared a talent for writing poetry. Krydle also got along well with Maialen’s partner Valiant despite Krydle seeing the latter as, in his words, an “establishment stooge”.

**Pigasus**

Pigasus, a small construct of Celestial origin, appeared to help Maialen free Zybilna in the Feywild and served as their animal companion for sometime afterward. Pigasus helped Maialen and Gilly expose Elder Clarity’s manipulation of Gion to murder Elders Diligence and Perspicacity.  One day Pigasus vanished mysteriously; unbeknownst to Maialen, it had teleported to Wildspace to serve as a familiar to the wizard Yvon Kamazu-Havenshade when he cast a Find Familiar spell.

Trivia

* The name Maialen is of Basque origin and is the Basque version of Magdalene, a Hebrew name meaning “tower” which is associated with Saint Mary Magdalene. Like popular depictions of Saint Mary Magdalene, Maialen has red hair.