Faraway

Level 21 Copper Dragon Bard

*"Ah, yes. I know that story quite well."*

*-Faraway*

A traveling storyteller, Faraway is a bard long renowned for his storytelling abilities and his bardic knowledge. He earned himself the admiration of Ichor Eteocles when he first helped teach the young bard some extra tricks... though no matter how much time he spent with the old bard, he could never quite tell what secrets the man was truly hiding.

## Description

In his true form, Faraway is not a human being as he so often pretends, but an ancient Copper wyrm. In this form, he stands at 25 feet tall with impressive curling horns, spiny ridges and metallic copper scales. However, the majority of the time while on the material plane, Faraway presents himself as a human man of Chelish origin. He wears a fluffy white beard and wispy white hair, and often wears scarves and other traveling clothes. His most notable features are his kind eyes which seem to tell their own stories when you gaze into them.

## Personality

Faraway is a kind soul before all else with a great love for stories. He frequents bars and taverns, where he'll tell tales (which invariably end up being true) to any who'll listen. As such, he's also a curious man, eager to learn more about stories he hasn't already heard of. Faraway also enjoys the sharing of knowledge in general, be it spells, advice or lore. That being said, Faraway also hides a sadder side, one wracked with the guilt of what his creation, The Book Of Kingmaker, has wrought on the world and those he considers its victims- the Kingmakers, their foes and their allies alike. This guilt manifests itself in avoidance; he actively refuses a position in the Council of Kilcela despite his obvious qualifications as a Diplomat, and when The Grim White Stag was slain by one of Nyrissa's minions, he went into hiding altogether.

## Abilities

As an Ancient Copper Dragon, Faraway has many powerful inherent abilities. He is devastatingly strong, with high AC and attack bonuses that would make him all but impossible to quell in combat to anyone but the most powerful foes. Faraway possesses a Slow Aura, forcing enemies around him to struggle to even get close to him as he slows their movement down to an almost halt. He can easily climb stone surfaces with his powerful claws, and has a powerful breath weapon which can either manifest as Laughing Gas or Acid. Finally, one of his most powerful abilities, Mass Laughter, allows him to force crowds around him into fits of laughing hysteria. Of course, Faraway is an accomplished bard in his own right; he has spells as strong as 8th level, such as Maze or Primsatic Spray, and he knows many tricks early bards would be alien to. He is an experienced chronologist, studying time and the metaphysics which surround it thanks to his patron, Shyka. It was through this that he was able to create his Magnum Opus: *Kingmaker, a Tale of Tales Yet To Be Told*. This book was a masterpiece in divination, able to accurately tell the entire life story of Nyrissa, for whom the book was written for, though the consequences of giving someone an accurate description of the rest of their entire life did not dawn upon him until it was too late. Faraway is also an accomplished storyteller; many of the tales he tells are from experience, whether they be figures he observed through his chronological studies or those he met during his millennia of life.

## History

Faraway is a truly ancient being, having been born at least several thousand years ago. Born as Frandyrth, much of his early life is unknown, but at some point he became close to the Nymph Queen Nyrissa. He acted as her companion for some time, and he moved to live in the First World. While here, he became interested in chronology and the worship of Shyka, the Many. When Nyrissa became engaged to Count Ranalc, he made her a book which would tell her her Happily Ever After. He created The Book Of Kingmaker, which perfectly predicted her future. The revelations of what would happen to her drove her to panic, leafing through it and seeing glimpses of a wicked future. Upon reading that the Eldest would attack her in a few days, she immediately roused an army and attacked first, prompting them to carry out the very same attack she'd foreseen. The punishment and torment undergone by Nyrissa, and her slow but sure corruption and cruelty caused severe feelings of guilt in Frandyrth, who fled to the Material Plane to avoid Nyrissa and her growing wickedness. He took on the name Faraway spent time traveling the world, having been spotted in Caliphas in 4606 AR after the death of Aroden.

 Faraway met the Kingmakers in 4710 AR at Oleg's Trading Post. He instantly knew who they were- the fabled protagonists of the book he transcribed- but he masked his reaction and told them the tale of The Stag Lord in its entirety. Later, when Ichor Eteocles asked him for help in learning new Occult spells, Faraway agreed, sparking a close friendship in the two.

As the Barony of Kilcela grew, Faraway stayed, aiding when the Kingmakers needed him but refusing a role in the political side of the government, not trusting himself in a similar role again. When the Horned Hunter killed the Grim White Stag during Ichor's coronation in 4714 AR, Faraway realized he'd overstayed his welcome, and left only a note explaining to Ichor he would not be returning.

A year later, the Kingmakers encountered Faraway again when he was kidnapped by The Kingkiller's Spawn during the Season of Bloom. The children of Ilthuliak, the dragon Nyrissa replaced Faraway with, captured Faraway and returned him to his dragon form to torture him. When the Kingmakers fought, Zyrrephu The Cunning, the Blue Dragon, was killed by Faraway as he escaped his prison. Faraway apologized for everything, but was immediately forgiven by Ichor, who had simply missed him. Faraway aided where he could with the rest of the Season, warning them about the incoming Jabberwocky attack on Levet's Crossing.

During Ichor's coronation in Pitax, Faraway and he shared some tender words, and Ichor revealed to Faraway that he'd dedicated his book to him, and the two shared a hug.

## Relationships

### Ichor Eteocles

Ichor and Faraway share a very close bond, with Ichor viewing Faraway as a father figure. Faraway helped teach him his magic, and tutored him in the arts of the occult and storytelling. Faraway was always worried Ichor would not forgive him when he found out the truth about his past, but was surprised to find Ichor did not care at all about the truth.

### Nyrissa

Faraway long served Nyrissa as an advisor and as a friend. His gift to her was meant to inspire confidence, but it ultimately lead to her slowly slipping into wickedness. Faraway has long blamed himself for what happened to her, and has held this guilt on his shoulders for the past few centuries.

## Trivia

* Faraway was the first original NPC Derry added to Kingmaker. Originally, he had been intended to be an NPC who would tell the backstories of major villains to the PCs when requested, but this only ever happened with the Stag Lord.
* Derry had originally wanted Faraway to be a Satyr, not a Dragon. The reason behind this was to get Ritz attached to an NPC only to surprise them with "Whoops! It was a Fey all along!" in order to piss Ritz off, due to their disdain for the Fey. This was changed in order to help draw parallels with Ilthuliak.