Arataef Ashblade

Artaef Ashblade was a Vishkanya fighter played by Jeb in The Seven Seals Campaign. A simple adventurer at the start, the Ashblade name rose to fame as a great adventurer. Spending most of his time amongst bandits and scoundrels, it is odd for such a figure to have his name sung by adventurers and commoners alike, yet the work of his three daughters allowed for it.

Because of the events in City of Mutations Artaef gained a mutation:

He became liquid and his neck grows a delicate claw

## Backstory

Arataef was born into a poor family, working his way up the world. He eventually joined a bandit gang.

## Campaign

### The Seven Seals

#### In Brief

Arataef dabbled as an adventurer for a time, following the dark voice. He met with his wife, siring three children -- including Natsume Ashblade, though he never met her -- and contributing to the Desolation of Konoha. He eventually returned to being a powerful bandit leader after slaying a dragon.

#### In Detail

Near the start of the campaign, Arataef did a raid on a carriage. He bravely stood in the center of the road, staring it down. As the driver barreled towards him, he stared down the horses unflinchingly. At the last moment, he swiftly drew aside, leaving a metal rod in his wake. A magical metal rod, his most prized possession: the Unmoving Rod. Released from his grip, the rod defied gravity, instead staying exactly where he left it--even as the thousands of pounds of horse-and-carriage ploughed into it.

Later, they encountered the vestiges of Door in the form of a heavily trapped door. Behind it lay the first seal, which they had been tasked to destroy. Arataef demonstrated another use of his sole artifact, using it to hang out of the direct line of fire while the Cleric deactivated most of the traps. Oddly, he refused to acknowledge the door as a door, instead insisting one of the walls must have had a secret entrance.

After breaking the first seal, the party was rewarded, as promised. They went into town to spend their ill-gotten gains, and search for the second seal. After Alice put on a mysterious golden ring, acquired from a street vendor, Arataef made the split-second decision to slice off her arm with his sword--a mysterious rot had threatened to take over her body. Using the heat of a nearby brazier, and the blade of his sword, he skillfully applied battlefield medicine and cauterized the wound.

Continuing the search of the second seal, the party chanced upon a Kitsune village, Konoha. One thing led to another, and Arataef found himself the wife of the Kitsune, Esmerelda--though, after some particularly strong Kitsune wine, he found himself awaking with his wife on one arm, and his sister-in-law on the other.

They continued sailing, unaware that Arataef had sired two children.

Reaching the mountain in which the second seal was entombed, Arataef revealed his second magic item: a Bag of Tricks, from which he could pull wolves. Perhaps if the world understood magic a bit better a disaster could have been prevented, but, alas, that was not the case: From overuse, the magic powering the bag quickly destabilized. Upon reaching the seal, a torrent of wolves flew from the bag, no longer in Arataef's control. Thinking quickly to prevent the disaster from engulfing the world, Arataef threw a torch into the mix, and the party fled.

From a distance, they could see the disaster they had wrought on the landscape: the mass of the flaming wolves had caved in the earth above the seal, destroying it, and a ball of writhing fur, flesh, and fire could be seen. For better or worse, things seemed to have worked out.

After an extended visit to the Dwarven lands, the party went to the far North in search of the third seal.

Somehow, they found themselves in a higher dimension [1], possibly through their dark patron's timely assistance. A witch with whom they attempted to bargain with told them to bring her the head of a dragon, which they did--along with its neck, torso, and limbs. In fact, the dragon was still alive, with Arataef clinging desperately to its back.

They managed to drive the dragon into the ground, with sword and magic, destroying the witch's house and claiming her life. With both residents of the aether realm now defeated, it was a simple matter to loot the dragon's hoard, and dispose of the third seal.

In this dimension in the sky, he forged armour made of the hide of the dragon. With as much wealth as he could carry in his pockets, he pressed through the ground, and descended back to the land he called home using the Immovable Rod to control his descent.

Though it must have been a strange sight, a familiar face watched as Arataef alighted: one of those in his bandit gang. With many achievements, and much strength, it would have been a simple matter to continue searching for the remaining seals.

But for Arataef, this was the end of his adventuring days. From Alice, he had been separated at long last. From the dragon, he had a difficult fight. And, from the voice of his patron, he heard no more.

By fate or grace, the first to be called Ashblade retired. And, as all things must do, he eventually died the way he lived: In a glorious, unadulterated, no-holds-barred battle [2].

## OOC

### References

[1] The dimension was *literally* in the sky above Pthfnder, though I don't recall how the party got there

[2] See "the Ashblades' Legacy" for an account of how he passed away