Amleth of Birchwood

**Amleth of Birchwood** was a warden of the griffin discipline that lived in the early eighth age, around the time that the Order of Wardens began to collapse. Hailing from the relatively unknown griffin school, Amleth achieved renown for his talent as a ghost hunter and exorcist.

## Overview

### Personality

Amleth was a well-known warden hailing from a lesser-known warden discipline that achieved renown and respect for his professionalism, uncharacteristic (for a warden) care and empathy towards his clients, and quiet, reserved disposition. In more ways than one Amleth reflected the archaic image of the Order of Wardens as noble knights sworn to defend the innocent, rather than the surly, emotionless, ignoble mercenaries and assassins that they were reduced to by the end of the eighth age. He expressed genuine sorrow for the vengeful and violent wraiths that he fought, lamenting that justice had not been done so as to put their souls to rest.

## Powers, Equipment & Abilities

### Powers

* **Enchanced Physiology:** As he was grown in a cloning device, treated with magic, and subjected to intensive training for years, Amleth has been artificially enhanced to the peak of human physical condition.
	+ **Enhanced strength:** Amleth is significantly stronger than the average human.
	+ **Enhanced endurance:** Amleth is able to sustain and recover from wounds that would easily disable or even kill an ordinary man. He can drink a variety of toxic potions with little effort.
	+ **Enhanced athleticism:** Amleth is able to fight and give chase far longer than the average human, allowing him to keep pace with the most agile of people and creatures.
	+ **Enhanced coordination:** Years of training on Castle Strzyga's treacherous obstacle course have given Amleth exceptional hand-eye and body coordination and thus balance. During combat, he fights with a mix of elegance and dirt and is capable of feats of great agility.
	+ **Enhanced senses:** Amleth's senses of hearing, smell and sight are all dramatically enhanced. His sight is so exceptional that he can catch or slice incoming arrows mid-flight, and he can easily see in the dark; he can smell blood, poisons and strong scents from a considerable distance; and his hearing is so sensitive that he can hear heartbeats. His senses are so sensitive they can sometimes overwhelm him.
	+ **Slowed aging:** While the magical enhancements to his body do not make him immortal, Amleth, like all wardens and other magic-treated individuals, ages at a much slower rate than regular humans.
	+ **Accelerated healing:** Though by no means invulnerable nor in possession of a natural or unnatural healing factor, Amleth's enhanced body is able to heal from cuts and wounds relatively quickly.
* **Mark of Ymiir:** Like all members of the Old Order, Amleth bears the Mark of Ymiir on his right hand. Burned onto his palm, the Mark allows Amleth to cast simple spells that give him an edge in combat.
	+ **Fire casting:** Amleth can cast either balls or streams of fire-like plasma that weaken enemy armour or burn them to a crisp entirely.
	+ **Shockwave:** When surrounded by opponents, Amleth can generate a large kinetic force that knocks back any objects or people caught in its path.
	+ **Barrier:** Amleth is able to generate a small barrier that repels both physical and magical attacks. Amleth is unable to cast a large barrier to protect others, and it only stays active as long as he concentrates on the spell.
	+ **Manipulate:** Amleth can induce a mental "cloud" in weak-minded opponents to force them to do as he says, usually for the purpose of calming them or infiltrating hideouts.
	+ **Dark magic sensitivity:** The Mark of Ymiir is very sensitive to dark magic and burns Amleth whenever he is in the presence of such magic.
* **Griffin glyphs:** The wardens of the griffin discipline had access to greater magical knowledge than their fellows; as a result, wardens such as Amleth were branded with a series of glyphs that allowed them to cast more complex - but still relatively primitive - spells.
	+ **Trap:** The glyphs allowed Amleth to cast a magical trap that made non-corporeal begins corporeal. This allowed him to directly attack the wraiths and demons that he specialised in hunting.
* **Beach Perception:** As a result of extensive experiments and magical treatment, Amleth, like all wardens, is able to perceive the Beach when he enters it in his sleep. His magical blood also allows him to access monoliths.

### Abilities

* **Master combatant:** Famed for hailing from a warden school that was relatively unknown, Amleth achieved renown for his combat prowess and professionalism. Using a combination of spells and swordsmanship, he was an exceptional fighter that specialised in combating hostile spirits and putting them to rest.