Aramil Roselion

Aramil Roselion

 

Aramil Roselion

Basic Information

Nicknames                                         Silverhand

Birthplace                                           Myth Drannor, Cormanthyr

Gender                                               Male

Race                                                  Elf

Sub-race                                             Moon elf

Height                                                 5”11

Weight                                                147lbs

Skin Colour                                         Pale white

Hair Colour                                         Silver

Eye Colour                                          Blue with golden speckles

Patron deity                                        Angharradh

Dates

Born                                                    22 Tarsakh 902 DR (age 557)

Rules Information

Alignment                                             Neutral good

 

Aramil Roselion (pronounced Ara-MEEL Roz-EL-eon) is a High Elf Wizard that has roamed Toril in pursuit of knowledge and magical enhancement, known for his dedication to and involvement with the academic magic institute Arfaerneska.

 

Early Life

Given the elven child name Ara, Roselion was born in Myth Drannor to Arannis and Leshanna Roselion on the twenty-second day of Tarsakh in the year 902 DR. Born under the Sign of the Trident, his parents knew he would grow up to be quick-witted, intelligent and gregarious with a lively curiosity and inquisitiveness. Also born with a Crescent Selûne under the Sign of the Dragon, they also knew he would grow up to be progressive with strong principles. They raised him with these in mind.

 

The young Ara was raised by adventurous parents. His father, Arannis, was devoted to the pursuit of knowledge and, due to this, would never allow his family to stay in one place for more than a season or two. Through Arannis’s birth to a noble family of High Elves, Ara was brought up with a wealth and privilege that many his age envied and his father bestowed as many heirlooms and gifts as he could on his son, with a particular importance on books and antiquated tomes. However, as with many of his High elven brethren, Arannis instead looked at things from a much longer perspective, mostly unconcerned with anything that has consequences that stretch over anything less than decades. While he clearly loved his son, he preferred his wife to be the primary caregiver, waiting in excitement for when his son would reach adolescence so he could have a prized pupil to at last join him in his pursuit of knowledge.

 

Ara’s mother, Leshanna, was conceivably different from her husband. She was often described as a ‘true Moon elf in every sense’, and was given the nickname of Leshanna the Fair, such was her beauty. Disliking isolation as most Moon elves do, she was forever in the company of her young son, playing with him and constantly trying to make him smile. Although she loved her family’s nomadic lifestyle, her son’s safety and comfort overtook any other matter. Despite her extroversion and open personality, she remained wary over anyone who she deemed too suspicious to come near her son, guarding him as a lion guards its cub. As the young Ara grew, she taught him how to value tolerance and to frown on cruelty, and moulding in him an eternal love for adventure, art and magic, always saying that they should be delighted if they ever mastered the art of magic.

 

As Ara grew up to adolescence, his mother and father had by then welcomed along two new additions to their forever-travelling family: Lia, the daughter and middle child, and Adran, the youngest son. Those that met with the family and were lucky to know them long enough would often say that Lia was much like her father – inquisitive, clever and always carrying a sense of stateliness but at times arrogant – and Adran was like his mother – spontaneous, friendly and the life of any revelry – but it was Aramil who was the balanced composition of both.

 

Adulthood and Education

Being the oldest sibling of three and incredibly intelligent and mature beyond his years thanks to his father’s teachings, the adolescent Ara grew into adulthood when he was just over a hundred years old. On his birthday, he chose the adult name Aramil, as an homage to the name his parents gave him. Sharing his mother’s wanderlust and love of magic and his father’s love of the pursuit of knowledge, he decided that it was time to enrol at the revered Arfaerneska (‘fortress of the great wizard’ translated in the Common tongue). This, however, meant that he would need to be separated from his family in the pursuit of his training, a thought his mother found almost unbearable. Eventually, after passing the initiation set by the Aeristers (‘teachers’), Aramil was accepted to study at Arfaerneska. After bidding good-bye to his proud father, envious siblings and upset mother, he began his studies.

 

Aramil’s years at Arfaerneska were both stimulating and enjoyable. His yearning for his family was only soothed in that he was not the only Moon elf at the institution who missed their travelling family. He did not need to be saddened for a great length of time, though, as his mother had insisted that the family visit him at least once every five to ten years – a number that should be insignificant to elves but was eternity between mother and son.

 

Aramil excelled at his studies. The Aeristers soon discovered that Aramil was not particularly adept at any particular school of magic, but rather, was adept at all, and decided to be a generalist wizard, a term the studious elf found rather unpleasant to the ear. He particularly excelled in Conjuration, Evocation and Enchantment and the well-regarded Aerister Ianris Sylleth took on Aramil as a protégé, schooling him in the ways of wizardry and aiding him in gaining knowledge of as many aspects of the world as possible.

 

During his time as a student, Aramil’s sister also attended Arfaerneska and excelled primarily in Conjuration. The two enjoyed bonding over their shared studies of Conjuration and, upon their family’s visitation, would be regaled of the adventures their parents and brother were going on and where they had visited, wishing them to join their caravan again one day. 

 

Whereas most students choose their moment of Attainment to be in around a hundred years of study, Aramil chose to study for nearly three centuries, long after his sister had her Conjuration Attainment. He became a permanent fixture of Arfaerneska and was given his own private chambers in the North-east tower of the institute, where he was usually surrounded by books and maps. He passed on his knowledge to younger students who also wished to learn about as many areas of the world as they could.

 

Leaving Arfaerneska

Having been a stable and long-lasting figure of Arfaerneska, Aramil was once again visited by his family, but with noticeable changes and exceptions.

 

His sister no longer had time to travel and roam the lands her family wanted to, and was persuaded by the Arfaerneska Aeristers to become one of them. She willingly accepted, and was welcomed to the institute as a Conjuration Aerister. The family were incredibly proud of Liathana, as she had chosen to call herself, and warmly expressed their congratulations to her.

 

Upon their arrival at Arfaerneska, for once, Arannis did not accompany them, and Aramil quickly grew suspicious and fearful. His mother, by now incredibly old but still as beautiful, asked to speak to him alone in his chambers, where she revealed that his father had been killed by the demonic gargoyle-like nycaloths, the elite cavalry of the yugoloth armies. Leshanna told her son that, while the battle was eventually won in the town of Valwynne, three nycaloths charged at Arannis from different directions and eventually overpowered him. As Leshanna wept, Aramil – who had always thought of himself as intelligent and understanding – could not comprehend the loss as he held his mother tightly.

 

Leshanna and her second son, now called Adrecan, remained at Arfaerneska with Aramil and Liathana for a month. Aramil became more worrisome as the days went by following the revelation of his father’s death, and he pleaded with his mother to remain with Liathana at Arfaerneska for her own safety and for his peace of mind. Accepting that her wandering days were never going to be as they were without her husband, Leshanna agreed and, after Aramil talked with the Aeristers, Leshanna was allowed to stay, and took up the position of Loremistress. She would have Aramil’s chambers after Aramil had decided that, along with his brother, it was time for them to leave Arfaerneska and fulfil their continuing wanderlust. Aramil had made the decision to live the larger world he had only studied and read about, and once he had bid his mother and sister a tearful goodbye, he bid farewell to the halls of Arfaerneska and began his travels.

 

Aerister Sylleth, now fast approaching the end of his long life, travelled with Aramil and Adrecan to Cirrane, the nearest settlement to Arfaerneska, passing on any wisdom and advice about the wider world he deemed useful to his protégé. Aerister Sylleth, himself well-travelled in the days of his youth, gave Aramil his old travelling satchel which was small enough to not become a nuisance but large enough on the inside to carry a number of items. In his satchel, he gifted Aramil with his own travelling diaries which were penned with great detail, his copy of Faernos – regarded as one of the best map-books in the land – and The Guide of the Faerahrn, a generalist wizard’s handbook that Sylleth himself had completed. Before they parted ways, Aerister Sylleth had told Aramil that before he was invited to become an Aerister, he had not completed some of his own self-set tasks, as noted in his diaries, and would be honoured if Aramil was the one to complete them. Aramil dutifully noted this and intended to do so. He bid his mentor a somewhat cold farewell, but Sylleth did not take it to heart. Aramil had changed ever so slightly since the death of his father, and in the face of his mentor’s own inevitable fate, he began to realise that regardless of longevity, all elves – and even non-elves – would eventually pass to the West and death would come for all in the end.

 

Travels

Adrecan joined Aramil on part of his journeys, travelling far and wide with the help of the diaries and map Aramil had been given. They first spent time in Faerûn’s Sunrise Mountains with a caravan of travelling Drachenblut, or Dragonborn in the Common tongue – an incredibly rare sight in Faerûn. The Roselion brothers helped the grateful company find the legendary greatsword Drachenschwert, which the Dragonborn long believed to be a weapon forged by their patron deity, Gond, himself, and in return, they were taught the ancient Draconic language and customs of the Drachenblut.

 

After leaving the Sunrise Mountains and parting from the Dragonborn caravan, the brothers themselves parted ways. By this time, Adrecan was longing for a family of his own that he could travel with. He decided that he would travel to Candlekeep, where they had stopped for two seasons just before Arannis was slain, and reacquaint himself with friends he had made, and court the daughter of an apothecary he had met there. Understanding as ever, Aramil wished his younger brother luck and bid him farewell. For the first time, Aramil had recognised that he was now alone in his travels, and perhaps even his life. He had not given it much thought before that moment, but since he had been entirely accompanied through his early life by his family and then fellow wizards while at Arfaerneska, he thought that perhaps he had spent too long in the chambers and libraries of Arfaerneska, and had never been truly alone, until now. He found himself being somewhat envious of Adrecan, who had so badly wanted a family and a companion in travelling and life, and found a renewed appreciation of his parents’ marriage. With a solemn and contemplative heart, Aramil set off for the land of Zakhara.

 

It would be a long journey but the safest and swiftest way of travelling to Zakhara was largely by ship and boat. Aramil travelled to the Moonshae Isles and the great port of Caer Corwell where he boarded the ship known as The Exodus, forever note-taking and studying his surroundings and the people. It was the only ship that dared to travel to North Zakhara, such was the danger of marauding pirates. They stopped at two ports on the way to the free city of Qadib: Calimport and Samargol. At Calimport, Aramil already felt an age away from Arfaerneska and everything he knew so well. Calimport, a dry and windy city, often drew in the hot sands from the nearby Calim Desert, but Aramil ventured through the port, observing life in a coastal city that he had never experienced, gathering materials and items he found to be of interest or future use. After three days, Aramil and all others travelling to Zakhara boarded The Exodus again and set sail for Samargol, on the outskirts of the Jungles of Chult, surrounded by the intimidating Sanrach Mountains. The captain announced that the stop would only be for a day, and with that, Aramil set about discovering Samargol.

 

After the day had passed, Aramil noticed two more passengers who had come aboard the ship. There were only a dozen passengers on The Exodus that were bound for Zakhara. Most were humans of merchant and supplier background, two halflings and three dwarves. Aramil had tried to introduce to most of them, but most did not wish to converse with the only elf on board. The two new passengers were certainly human. The finely-dressed man of noble mien was accompanied by a guard of athletic build. Most passengers and even the captain noticed that they were clearly of some importance. Aramil introduced himself to the pair, and, upon noticing the fine silver robes that Aramil wore, was warmly embraced by the older man. He introduced himself as Walkul, a merchant from Samargol, and his guard was known as Rickas Trannyth. What interested Aramil most about the pair was nothing to do with Walkul, but his companion, who had not taken his eyes off Aramil since they met, but the polite elf said nothing. The three sat together and The Exodus set sail for Zakhara.

 

Aramil came to understand that the boastful Walkul was one of the greatest merchants in Toril, or so Walkul had said, and talked mostly of how important and well-regarded he was. For the vast majority of the rest of the journey, however, the merchant slept, which Aramil was rather thankful for. It was there on The Exodus while Walkul slept that Aramil slowly became friends with Rickas. The more they talked about their lives, the more the reserved guard opened up. Rickas told Aramil of his childhood in Candlekeep – where Aramil revealed his brother had gone to – and how he had always dreamed of growing up to be a captain of the guard, but how he hated being reduced to private guardsman work. Aramil listened to every word intently and in turn, Rickas was fascinated by elvish culture and Aramil’s life and studies as a wizard of Arfaerneska. Even though he was miles away from the comforting halls of Arfaerneska and the camaraderie of his family, Aramil started to feel as though he was no longer alone.

 

The Exodus finally docked at Qadib, and Walkul invited Aramil to join him on his journey to the settlement of Mazat in the Furrowed Mountains. Aramil obliged, more so to satisfy both his and Rickas’s contentment. Mazat, Aramil was told, was the location of a largely unknown secret mine from which precious metals and gems could be harvested, and Walkul indulged himself by telling Aramil all the spoils he has reaped from the mine. The journey went faster travelling with Rickas, whose conversation was thankfully more interesting and personal.

 

After passing through the sacred valley of Mahara’s Vale, the group travelled the road through the Furrowed Mountains on the way to Mazat. However, Aramil and Rickas soon discovered that they were no longer travelling alone. An arrow had shot from behind a nearby rock formation, piercing Walkul’s chest and throwing him from his horse. Descending his horse swiftly, Rickas brandished his sword and ran towards the rocks where the assailant could now be seen. Before he could approach further, three missiles of bright, white light flew from behind him and descended upon the archer, killing him. Rickas turned to see a determined Aramil, whose hand was held in the direction of the archer. Rickas could not, however, admire the elf for long. They were being approached by what seemed like one of the desert tribes of Zakhara that Aramil had read about, with scimitars and spears waving above their heads. Rickas ran to Walkul’s motionless body and grabbed the longsword he said he had purchased from an elven merchant in Everlund, a sword which Aramil himself could tell it was of elvish make. Throwing the sword to Aramil, Rickas told him to mount a horse and ride away, but Aramil typically refused in a polite manner. Surrounded by what seemed to be fourteen members of a desert tribe, there was no way of escape for the pair. Two spears were thrown in their direction, but Rickas was astonished at how they were immediately frozen in mid-air in the desert land of Zakhara by a ray of frost coming from Aramil’s hand. With the spears now on the ground, a handful of the tribe ran to attack, but Rickas’s swordsmanship was far too impressive and well-trained for their skills with scimitars. With Rickas’s brilliance with a blade and Aramil’s wizardry, the tribe were eventually cut down. Having learned about the desert tribes, Aramil knew that such a small number would never travel far from their larger group, and it was agreed that they make for the nearest free city, Umara. With two horses felled, they had no choice but to leave Walkul, and Rickas rode them out of the Furrowed Mountains safely to Umara. It was after these events that Rickas gave Aramil the nickname of ‘Silverhand’ on account of his powers.

 

Without a master, Rickas happily decided to join Aramil in discovering Toril in his quest for knowledge. The two travelled throughout North Zakhara, only occasionally facing trouble from the desert tribes, but the two proved to be a worthy and formidable pair. Their rapport and bond grew only stronger and tighter as they travelled south towards Gana, to explore the Monastery of Zann.

 

Having taken a boat from the small port settlement of Adhal in North Zakhara, Aramil and Rickas ventured down the Sea of Caravans and Suq Bay which would eventually lead to the Golden Gulf and Gana. However, upon leaving the South Quarter of the Suq Bay, a large number of desert tribes aligned the shore and attacked the boat. Aramil’s bursts of light eventually either killed or frightened the tribes off with the help of arrow-fire from the boat, but it was nonetheless a treacherous journey into the Golden Gulf. As one of Rickas’s finely-aimed arrows took out one of the last remnants of tribe members on the shore, a black arrow had made its way into his neck, making him collapse to the ground. Aramil had not noticed the arrow coming for Rickas, and ran to him. As he held Rickas, Aramil wailed for help but both he and Rickas knew it would be fruitless to receive anything. As the boat arrived safely in the gulf, Aramil spoke to Rickas telepathically, although it was never noted, witnessed or spoken by anyone as to what the pair had said to one another in their minds. By the time the boat had arrived at Gana, Rickas had passed in the comfort of Aramil’s arms. Aramil then thought that this must have been something close to what his mother felt upon the loss of his father.

Aramil waited at Gana for a boat to take him, with Rickas’s body, to Qadib, where he would personally carry the lifeless body himself – no matter how long it took, how tired he became or how much he had to spend for transport or help – aboard The Exodus, returning to Faerûn.

Return to Faerûn

The return journey aboard The Exodus was silent for Aramil. He did not venture far from Rickas’s body and kept a near-constant watch over it until they eventually arrived back at Caer Corwell. Aramil’s return to Faerûn saw him once more changed. He had become more world-weary and had experienced the joys and heartaches of what living in the world entailed. He travelled to Candlekeep and was spotted in the street by his brother, who ran to him and who, after being told only to help, aided Aramil in delivering Rickas’s body to the Hall of the Dead in the town. Upon telling Adrecan to leave, Aramil sat with Rickas for one more day and night, visited by Adrecan to give him food and water. As a somewhat selfish parting gift to Rickas, Aramil spent hours placing an ice barrier around the body, keeping him permanently as Aramil remembered him.

 

Aramil then spent a month with Adrecan at his house in Candlekeep, where he had married the apothecary’s daughter, and where Aramil was introduced to a niece and a nephew. Adrecan had changed in many ways too. His love of adventuring had been put on hold, at least temporarily, while he and his wife raised their children in a stable and solid environment, instead of roaming far and wide. The only time he would travel would be to take his children to visit their grandmother and aunt.

 

After the month was over, Aramil bid another farewell to his brother and his burgeoning family, and made one last visit to Rickas, before travelling north to The High Forest where he spent two seasons in isolated contemplation.

 

After another visit to Leshanna and Liathana at Arfaerneska, Aramil visited the tomb of his former mentor Aerister Ianris Sylleth, who had passed to the West not long after Aramil had left the institute. Aramil had now come to realise that he had the great urge to pass on what Sylleth had taught him, but at this point in his long life, he would probably never come to pass on what he had learned over the centuries. Deciding to honour those he had lost with more adventure after a brief consultation with his mother, Aramil once more went off to finish Aerister Sylleth’s unfinished tasks. He decided to begin searching for the fabled Ruar’Ehalaer – the staff of stars – and, according to Sylleth’s diaries, would find answers to the west. It was with this knowledge that Aramil journeyed once again to Caer Corwell upon a boat that would eventually land at the settlement of Covetown.

 

Appearance and Personality

First impressions of Aramil generally include observations that he is a tall, slender and pale elf. Most immediately notice his long, flowing silver hair and sparkling blue eyes with speckles of gold. It is undoubtable that, at whatever age he may be, he is an incredibly beautiful being, like most of his kin. He wears long, flowing silver robes – attire he has stated that came from the Aeristers of Arfaerneska after his first century of studies – and carries a leather satchel in which he keeps items he deems to be of interest or use. He also carries the elvish longsword he had been given in Zakhara. Through observation, it can be seen that Aramil’s movements are graceful and fluid, much like his movements in battle.

 

Aramil, like most high elves, is a graceful and highly intelligent being, possessing intelligence and ability far beyond that of mortal men, and requires no sleep. Some humanoids are slightly perturbed by the trances of the elves, but are grateful, as elves remain fully aware of their surroundings.

 

Aramil’s mixture of Moon and High Elf traits means that he has a particular and complex personality. He is not as impulsive or as relaxed in his world view as his Moon Elf kin; instead he is pensive, organised and realises that there are many things that have a certain gravity to them. He has a deep fascination with any form of knowledge that he finds interesting, particularly when it concerns magic. Aramil is generally open, approachable and willing to embark on any adventure. Aramil does not share the majority of his kin’s open hostility towards drow and, while he may be wary of some drow, he nevertheless has a willingness to accept a being as an individual. His only exceptions to this include races that are inherently cruel, such as orcs. He is generally quick to make friends, but due to certain events that have occurred in his long life, he now takes more time to create strong bonds with others.