Kereg

### Appearance

Kereg is a young half-orc man who normally stands just under 7 feet tall. He commonly wears simple but sturdy pants and boots, as well as several leather belts and bandoleers to hold various weapons and pieces of equipment. Bare-chested more often than not, his strength is obvious to any onlooker as the muscles in his bulging arms and toned torso twist and flex with every move.

His pale green and blue complexion easily betrays his Orcish heritage, matched by a pronounced set of tusks jutting from his lower jaw, But aside from a skull mask he himself made from a defeated foe long ago Kereg maintains a pleasant, mirthful disposition.

### Backstory

Kereg was born in the Sword Mountains, north of the city of Waterdeep. His parents lived amongst an odd collection of outcasts from various human, verbeeg, orc, and firbolg tribes who swore allegiance to no throne or clan chief.

His parents often told the half-orc child that the blood of the Frost Giants who once inhabited Icespire Peak flowed through his veins and those of his ancestors. From an early age he showed incredible physical prowess, and stood well over 6 feet tall by his 13th birthday. Unfortunately, the spark of the All-Father did not shine brightly in Kereg's mind and he was regarded as a relatively simple child. The tribe had a relaxed view of formal education, and so Kereg mostly learned practical skills from his people related to survival, hunting, and fighting.

It was during a hunting trip into the Kryptgarden forest that the goddess Hiatea first whispered to the young barbarian. The steady beat of the hunting party's war drums set the blood coursing through his veins, and he found himself lost to a vision of a tanned, giant goddess wielding a flaming spear as she led her own hunt into the Beastlands. He felt an odd spiritual tranquility clashing with primordial energies that were flooding his body, and his physical form changed and grew as his muscles strained and flexed. When he opened his eyes he found himself looking down at Omaris, a firbolg hunter who had up until that moment been the tallest member of their band at nearly 11 feet tall.

Kereg laughed out loud partly in surprise and partly in righteous triumph as the rumours proved themselves true. The booming roar of his mirth was matched only by the tremors caused by his heavy footsteps, and moments later by the exultations and jubilation of his fellow hunters cheering him on.

Over the next few years Kereg refined his abilities as a hunter and barbarian, and spent more and more time by himself as he felt a longing he couldn't quite explain. He learned to live off of the land, and for a time he was happy to just be.

As fate would have it, his voluntary reclusion was not meant to be, and one morning he came upon a young half-elf in the middle of the wilds. Seemingly distraught, the woman kept muttering to herself about wanting, no, having to go back, that there had to be a way. When he stepped out from concealment the woman whipped around with her arms outstretched and ready to attack, but Kereg's calm and curious disposition must have struck a chord with her, and the two shared a fire and chatted for a long while.

Having met Mirabellis on her quest to return to the Feywild, Kereg found himself enjoying her company. She had enough drive and ambition for them both, while Kereg proved himself more than capable as muscle. Together, they joined the Vanguard of Waterdeep in search of knowledge, secret power, and glory.