Diero Milner

Diero Milner, Master of drinking way too much beer and kicking way too much ass. It's honestly a miracle that this little guy hasn't died of alcohol poisoning. Diero loves long walks on the beach and hitting things really hard. Diero is prone to stretching the truth and getting very angry very quickly.

## Backstory

Diero Milner grew up in a small port town with his mother and father. His father was a raging alcoholic and his mother made shoes. As a boy, he would sit in his mother’s shoe shop and help her or play outside with his friends. He would generally stay out late because he feared what lay in wait for him at home. You see, sometimes his father would come home so drunk it was a wonder that he could stand up straight. He would look around the room, bleary eyed, then he would just explode. Diero’s father would rage around the house and tower over his wife and son, beating them. Seeing the damage he had done, he would apologize profusely and promise to never do it again, only to come home the next day, drunk and angry. Diero’s mother would always console him, reassuring him that his father was a good man, and he didn’t know what he was doing.

One fateful night , his father came home, drunk like usual. His father loomed over Diero, cornering him. Diero was scared and tired. Throughout his life, he had taken abuse from his father almost weekly. Something snapped. His vision turned red as he shouted and charged at his father, slamming him into a wall. A stone came loose from the wall and fell on his father's head, knocking him to the floor. And that terrifying burst of anger had passed as quickly as it came. He wasn't moving. Blood was pooling under his head. Realization struck Diero as he began to comprehend the gravity of this situation. He just killed his father. Diero did the only thing that made sense at the moment. He ran. He frantically packed a bag of food and money and fled his home. You see, one of the perks of living at a port town was the fact that ships were always coming in and more importantly, leaving. Diero paid the captain of a trade vessel to take him in and allow him to join his crew. For the next few years, Diero sailed with that crew, trying to come to terms with what he did. He killed his father and abandoned his mother. He eventually said goodbye to his fellow crew members that he had come to enjoy being around and his captain that he had come to respect. In his recent years, Diero has been dealing with alcoholism. He makes money by employing his services as a hired sword. That way Diero can do the two things he loves to do: hitting the bottle and hitting other people.

## Relationships

### Lady Adelaide

 "*Lady A? She's a strong, badass paladin who is probably one of the most resilient people I know. She's been through some really fucking awful stuff and still comes out of it with her head high. She's also one of the only people helping me through my...problem. It gets tough. Sometimes I just want to crack open a flask of beer but then I think, 'what would Adelaide do?' and I'm able to stay sober a little bit longer."*

### Masa Fraz

"*Masa? I won't pretend to understand the mystical hocus-pocus spirit stuff, but she's a good friend, and an even better person. Also, have I mentioned how strong she is? She's got little noodle arms, but her sister fuckin' stabbed her eyes out and she didn't murder her the first chance she got? That's a different kind of strength. You'd expect someone who sees dead people and got their eyes scooped out to be edgy and not fun to hang around, but she's actually really fucking cool."*

### Hawthorn

"*Ahh, Hawthorn. When I first pulled up on the estate, it was very clear that Hawthorn hated my guts. I guess I interrupted the dynamic the three had before I showed up. I can't blame him too, I'm not the most...'cordial person'. I guess I grew on him. Also, I'm pretty sure I'd be dead without him. Hawthorn uses magic to heal my liver so I can keep drinking. Did I mention that he's a great drinking buddy? We hang out and drink and talk about life. He's been through a lot—all of my friends have. They keep on fighting though. It's really fuckin' inspiring."*