Naqu

## Appearance

Naqu is tall and skinny, his once tanned skin has paled and his body is emaciated. His brown hair has greyed well past what most middle aged halfings have, though he is still young. His blue eyes are bright like chalcedony. He has two masks, one he made from the skull of his former dinosaur, Targur, and his normal halfling mask, which looks like it was left out in the plains for a decade. When not in the plains, he tends to wear a cloak since he's seen his new appearance frightens the softer folks.

## History

Naqu of the tribe Urzam (translates to long route) was a normal plains halfling until the Mourning. He was skilled in the boomerang and sharrash and often won competitions within his tribe, but rarely in larger settings. His tribe avoided the war when possible and continued their nomadic lifestyle. By the time he was born his tribe had worked out their papers with Cyre to come and go through their tribes historical route. There were some issues with corrupt guards but the tribe saw it as normal for their life.

On the Day of Mourning his tribe was making their way out of Cyre when the fog overtook them. He doesn't remember anything from that day, or a few days before or after. He woke up thirsty and hungry in the fog. He felt weak and dizzy when he got up. He looked around to see most of his tribe dead, or worse. Some had terrible things happened to them and looked like misshapen monstrosities. Some were just gone. He found his mount, Targur, also dead. She seemed to have tried to flee whatever terror had beset them, looking around he could see she had fallen while he was on her and he flew several feet, then slid several more before coming to the spot he woke up. When he touched her, he knew two things. The first was how to raise his beloved companion, and the second was he has to go The Boneyard. He searched around for clues, but found none, and grabbed what supplies he could and set off towards the pull of The Boneyard.

That night, or what he thought was night, when he stopped he took out some berries and they transformed in his hands. They seemed to wilt and go bad. Along with that he felt a strange sensation on the inside of his thigh. After checking his leg, he saw a mark of hospitality over his femoral vein. This new mark worried him, no one in his tribe had manifested it before and it felt wrong to him. Later when finding out about the symbiotes the dwarves got he thought that was an apt comparison, though he keeps the mark and his thoughts on it hidden.

He made his way The Boneyard, hunting, forging, and trading along the way. He kept following the pulling in his head, occasionally fighting some monster hiding in the forbidden place. He found his way to a sealed chamber. In the chamber he found a book in a language he did not know, but could never the less read. After finishing the last part of the book it felt like his whole body was on fire. He crawled his way out of the chamber and passed out before getting to the surface. He woke up in a near by village in a healer's tent. He was found and brought there by Lanudo, who was later given the mark of Defiler and outcast. Naqu still feels he owes a debt to him.

Naqu knew things he didn't before, after recovering fully, he left under the cover of darkness with his new knowledge. He went back to the crypt, but there was no book nor signs anyone else had been there.

Naqu then spent a few years making treks into the Mournlands, mostly by himself by occasionally with others if he thought them useful and causes at least semi-just. During these times he had run ins with several of the warforged that moved into the Mournlands. The first group was a small squad of the Godforged. With his undead mount and his rather unique look, they attacked on sight. Not sensing any evil and being curious why they were there. He knocked one of the group out while taking several wounds himself. Between his now flowing blood and his attempts at parleying, they came to an uneasy truce. They gave each other a brief overview of why they were there and eventually parted ways, weapons still drawn. He had other encounters with different groups of warforged, sometimes having to flee and other times coming to a kind of truce, and eventually learned who to avoid. He ran into the first group several times and eventually started sharing their knowledge of the Mournlands. One time they asked for his help. There was a factory they thought might have parts for them still, but knew there was a big undead roaming the area and thought an extra set of hands and claws might help. After the fight, the warforged found some parts to help them and Naqu explored the journals and logs. It would seem that even though Cannith was the biggest maker of magic, they borrowed techniques and methodologies from everywhere. One journal he read said there were rumors of something similar to a creation forge in a place called Xendrik. This makes him think that the answers, or at least the first part of his puzzle might not start in the Mournlands as he thought.

The small towns he would stop in for supplies either forbid him from bringing Targur or eventually got used to her and her strange rider. When he got to Sharn, a guard told him that it might be best to leave Targur outside fearing it may cause strife. Naqu thanked the man for his warning, but didn't want to part with his friend. That night, while exploring the city a drunked Aundarian attacked Naqu and Targur, screaming things about undead abominations and losing good men to such monsters. Naqu was able to subdue the man, but decided to dismiss Targur to avoid any future issues from these sensitive city dwellers. He still carries her skull with him and if he ever has to go hunting in the city, wears it like a mask so she'll be with him as it should be.

### The Last War

Naqu spent all The Last War with his tribe wandering the full extent of the Talenta plains, from Cyre to Karrnath. Since Naqu's tribe's route had long ago been established, most of their dealings with the tall folks had been ironed out before Naqu was born. When they ended up going into Karrnath and Cyre, it was basically the same story. They offered the best fresh cuts of meat for the guards and bribes/taxes. Dealing with the Valenar elves was different however. Generally they let them raid and take whatever they wanted. When scouts saw a band coming they would pile all their weapons on the outside of their caravan the way the elves were coming so they would know they weren't armed and wouldn't fight. One time when Naqu was young though, there was a group of fiery young adults that tried to fight back. It didn't go well for them. Eventually though the elves started leaving them alone knowing they wouldn't be any sport.

When the scouts reported fighting ahead, they would either hold out for a day or so if it seemed like a skirmish or go wide around if it seemed like a longer battle. This of course made their life a bit more difficult as they'd have to make up any lost time one way or another.

### Invitation

Naqu was recommended to a Wayfiner Expedition trying to find cause the cause of the Mourning.  The first night they stayed in a house the belonged to a noble.  During their rest they were attacked by children's toys that the Mourning seemed to animate.  Later they encountered some warforged and Naqu was able to help defuse the situation since he was known and he reassured them they weren't there for anything regarding the warforged.  When they finally got to the wizard's tower Naqu attentively listened and occasionally provided insights to Ambrose Harrowyrd,  the archaeologist for the expedition, long after the others went to bed.  On their way out, they came upon a dead Carcass Crab, but the crab's cargo was dozens of undead that had been slowly tearing themselves off.

Ambrose recommended Naqu after seeing how he handled the Mourning, kept his calm throughout the expedition, and Naqu's desire to learn about the Mourning. Ambrose also suggested meeting the Wayfinder's leader saying they look very similiar.  Given Naqu's more unique appearance, and his company, he was stationed at the Sharn branch.

### Experience

He has made many expeditions into the Mourning to varying degrees of success. He has made some acquantenes with some of the Godforged in the Mourning. The one he has had the most dealings with is just called Ox, he's not the smarted forged in the box, but he's a good fighter. His most successful foray into Mourning was with a group of Wayfinders. They were searching for an artifact and had heard about Naqu's abilities to go in by himself. During this expedition is where he found a map he believed might lead to the heart of the mourning. Not trusting the Wayfinders he hid the map on his person while they weren't looking.

### Motivation

Figuring out the cause of the Mourning and stop it form happening again.

### Future Goals

* He wants to understand the cause of the Mourning and stop it from happening again
* He wants to understand his connection to the Mourning and why he has a mark
* He wants to understand what happened to the tribe members who were just gone

### Secrets

* His Dragon mark
* He doesn't know what lead him to the Boneyard, what he read, or why.

## Personality

**Personality Traits**

* I place no stock in wealthy or well-mannered folk. Money and manners won't save you from a hungry owlbear.

**Ideals**

* The natural world is more important than all the constructs of civilization.

**Bonds**

* I will bring terrible wrath down on the people who caused the Mourning.

**Strengths**

* Naqu is very stoic and unwavering. He rarely gets upset or scared and others can look to him to be a rock.

**Flaws**

* I am slow to trust members of other races and societies

## Tenets

Since I reskinned the Oath of the Bone Knight, I wanted to put the slightly modified Tenets

* Never Bow Down. You are the elite. Do not kneel to one who has not proven your superior.

* Hold Firm. Commanding legions of undead requires an iron will and confidence. Resist temptations and do not make excuses for poor behavior. Learn from your mistakes so that you do not repeat them.
* Bound By Memory. You are bound to make sure the atrocity of the mourning is never forgotten or repeated. You'll do whatever is needed to stop another mourning from happening and stop anyone from trying to forget it.

## Completed Missions

### Insert Mission Name Here

(Describe anything from the mission that particularly impacted your character, any achievements, allies or enemies acquired, etc.)

## Crunch

### XP & Gold Log

Total Gold Remaining: 817.5gp - Downtime Remaining: 40 dots

### Inventory

* Sharrash
* Tangat
* Boomerang
* Studded Leather
* Hunting trap
* Staff
* Trophy
* explorer's pack
* Saddle of the Cavalier

### Character Sheet

* https://ddb.ac/characters/29918298/sk0Nl6
* Mount is under Extras in character sheet