Played by Mark
Description
- Age — 23 at the beginning of the campaign; celebrated birthdate is the first day of spring, 8770 SE
- Gender — Male
- Description — Copper-toned scales
- Faith — Devotee of the Scalefather
- Class — Paladin
- Height — 6’ 4”
- Weight — 270 lb.
- Ancestry — Dragonborn
Notes
Xanthos comes from the mountain clan settlement of Phalygos in Auslura. He traveled abroad specifically to join the Aegis Regnum after the death of his clutch-brother Pheres showed him that threats associated with the Nascent Expanse could reach even his isolated home. In Arkrist he became the student of Marshal Jareer while Jareer was establishing the order’s new local chapter.
Xanthos formally swore his Aegis oath after the defeat of The Voiceless and became a knight of the order. His duties continued to overlap with the work of the Drakefire Phalanx, particularly when the group encountered extraplanar contamination, the meteorite near Tarentum, and the ancient psionic ruins beneath the Gulf of Keravnos.
When the Aegis detained Korth because of his connection to the King in Yellow, Xanthos argued for his release and accepted responsibility for reporting evidence that Korth’s condition had become more dangerous. That promise places Xanthos between his loyalty to the Phalanx and his obligations to the Aegis.
Backstory
Phalygos is a small clan settlement in the northern mountain ranges of Auslura. It is community of Dragonborn of all colors. Children in Phalygos, and in other Dragonborn clans are raised in clutches. Around the spring equinox each year a new clutch hatches and is raised by the clan as a whole. None are to know which children are theirs specifically, and the peculiar nature of Dragonborn means they can’t tell just from the coloration of their scales. It is said that the Scalefather and the Wyrmmother fight over the soul of Dragonborn in the egg, and, when hatched, the color of their scales is a result of that divine contest. No Dragonborn is bound to the same behavior tendencies as their ancient cousins though and each is free to choose their own path in the world.
In the spring, twenty-three years ago, a copper scaled Dragonborn called Xanthos was hatched. Xanthos grew up with his clutch mates learning the ways of their clan. He learned to travel the dangerous mountain trails, to hunt in the crags, and to tell the stories of his clan. Scylla was the lore keeper of their people and shared many tales from the history of their ancestors. The story Xanthos loved most was of the bravery and courage of his clan in the face of The Harrowing some years ago. Phalygos does not bury it’s dead in the rough mountain terrain, so they were spared the worst of the fighting and death that overtook the rest of the world. At the base of the mountain Phalygos calls home, there is a small human village, and they were not as fortunate as Phalygos. The clan sent their most powerful warriors to travel to Eichenburg to support their neighbors. Without the help of Phalygos, Eichenburg may not have survived The Harrowing.
Like others in his clan, Xanthos grew up playing with his clutch mates. There were seventeen in his clutch. He was especially close to Therapon though. Therapon was a black scaled Dragonborn and both Xanthos and Therapon loved to practice swordplay and act out stories of the heroes of their clan. Once when they were young, Therapon challenged Xanthos to a race climbing a cliff in the mountains. When they reached the top, Xanthos was almost knocked off by a juvenile roc that was in the nest. Therapon saved him from falling and the two were fortunate enough be well clear of the nest by the time the mother returned. Xanthos has a scar on his snout to remind him not to be so heedless of danger in the future.
As they grew older, they grew apart Therapon dreamed of joining the clan’s defenders and protecting their family, but Xanthos wanted to travel further afield. He had heard of an order of knights founded after The Harrowing called the Aegis Regnum, and he wanted to join them. He wanted to defend others as those in Phalygos had done for Eichenburg. Therapon considered this a betrayal of their clan in a way and tried to convince Xanthos of this, but Xanthos was determined to join the Aegis and become one of those warriors from the stories that he idolized. It wasn’t until one of their other clutch brothers, a brass Dragonborn named Pheres, was found dead in a cavern in their mountain home that Xanthos made up his mind to leave. Pheres was found with severe trauma to his skull and brain, injuries Scylla recognized from old accounts of Nharvek feeding. Those beings do not merely consume flesh; they sustain their own continuity by taking memory, learned experience, personality, and other parts of a victim’s accumulated identity. Xanthos resolved himself to leave the familiarity of the village and clan that he had known all his life and set out to face the threats that these otherworldly being presented.
Xanthos left the village to look for passage across the seas to join the Aegis Regnum. He knew that many in the clan would feel as Therapon did, but he hoped that some would understand his reasoning. He found work in a port town of Auslura as a deckhand and spent some time sailing with the crew. He had been unable to find passage directly to Elgaard, but after a couple other voyages he had enough experience to join a different ship in a different port that was bound there. He asked around in town and eventually found his way to the Aegis watch post in the city. After inquiring there, he was told to seek his apprenticeship in Arkrist, where a knight of the order was setting up a new outpost. He was given a letter of introduction to Jareer, who would become his master and teacher. Xanthos found a vessel bound for Arkrist and sought out Jareer. Who accepted him as a student and an aid in setting up a post in the city.
Jareer explained the duties of a member of the order. Xanthos is first and foremost to watch for signs of the influence of the Nascent Expanse. He was to report anything he found to Jareer. He was to aid anyone in need that he found, and was able to accept alms for the order in return for his services. Jareer taught Xanthos further in the use of sword, shield, and armor. Xanthos was also sworn to follow the instructions of his master. In return for this oath, Jareer could extend a portion of the divine power he was imbued with.
It has only been three months since Xanthos joined Jareer, but he is showing promise in his mastery of weapons and armor. Jareer send Xanthos out on his own regularly to observe the city and support anyone in need of aid. Xanthos also does small jobs for merchants in the city, guarding or making deliveries, standing watch, and the like. These jobs help to earn alms to support the fledgling Aegis watch post in Arkrist. He has found that while he still believes the people in the world are mostly good, he has become more distrustful since coming to Arkrist. He has encountered far more liars, cheats, thieves, and murders in Arkrist than he ever met in Auslura.
Xanthos’ most recent job was for an armor smith named Thetis. It was a delivery of an ornate custom plate mail for a noble in the city. Xanthos was escorting the delivery. On the way, the ground was jumped by a small gang of thieves. Xanthos fought one of them off, but there other managed to stab Thetis in her arm and get away with her coin purse. Xanthos ran to Thetis and used a bit of the energy Jareer granted him through their bond to stop her bleeding, then he chased the thief. He caught the thief briefly, but he couldn’t stop them. He managed to recover the coins though, and made his way back the Thetis who was grateful for the help and for her life. She gifted Xanthos a fine shield as a reward with a stylized sun representing the god Kua.