Rurik Balderk

"'Oh, there's no need for that. But I would be happy to travel together' - Rurik to Garras"Rurik is a worshiper of Pelor, an exile of RiftHold and a member of Elements Chosen.

Appearance
Rurik is a stocky dwarf, with Brown eyes, grey hair and a light tan skin tone. Rurik has the symbol of Pelor engraved onto his armour, which he made himself.

Early Life
As Rurik was a child, he was fascinated with the lore of the humans. One thing he was particularly interested in was the gods they chose to worship. Unlike Moradin, who was a god specific to the dwarves, the humans worshiped multiple different gods which weren't tied to a specific race. One of those gods was Pelor.

The teachings of Pelor struck a chord with Rurik, so much that he actively started preaching his words and actively worshiping him in public. This caused a great deal of strife with his parents, who assured everyone it was just a phase. As Rurik got older, and his father taught him the art of smithing, his chosen religion did not change. He created a suit of armour and engraved Pelors holy symbol onto the chest of it. This caused people to actively antagonize him. When things started getting dangerous, one of his old friends and a founding member of the Aegis Legion Bhardus Silverstout gathered provisions for him and helped him escape the persecution of his peers.

As he was travelling the country side, he came across a small minotaur who had been badly injured and left for dead. Rurik used what knowledge he gathered from his notes to heal the minotaur, who introduced himself as Garras. Garras said that he was indebted to Rurik, but he was a very humble dwarf and simply suggested the two keep each other company on their travels. Not long after, while resting one night, the two received the same prophetic dream leading them to the Forgotten Lands, an area that had been devastated from an ancient war. The two decided to travel there and see what destiny had in store for them.

Orb of Water
The two friends traveled into the forgotten planes. When they arrived at their destination, they met with and introduced themselves to Volgna Gath, Rand, Danlan Barret and Rhowan. The group was later greeted by an elven man in fancy garbs, who told the group that they were chosen to gather 7 elemental orbs and save the continent from certain destruction. Though a majority of the group seemed dysfunctional, they seemed up to the task. The first orb the group was charged with seeking was the orb of water, hidden somewhere in Otristan.

The group came to a city known as Bartaran, who's people seemed less than enthusiastic about visitors, save for their mayor Magnus Zane who greeted them with open arms. A few members of the group split off heading towards the library, while others stayed behind and argued. After debate settled down, the group went towards the library as well. The group couldn't see the other members in the library, so they decided to look around for them. While looking, Rurik found a book on sorcerers which caught his eye, so he grabbed it to look at after they found the others. After a few minutes of looking, they seemed to be paralyzed, and somehow knew that they would only be able to move once they were behind a locked cell door. After a few minutes, three men came and carried away the rest of the group.

They found themselves in front of a mirror for a few moments. Rurik was able to detect an evil presence in the vicinity of the mirror, but they were soon moved along an underground tunnel. They came across the other party members, as well as a demon, who quickly dealt with the slavers and freed the two from their compulsion.

They were able to ascertain from the guards that there was a much more dangerous slave who killed many of the slavers when they captured him. They freed the man, behind a heavily locked iron door, and healed him before leaving. On the way out, they ran into more slavers, but quickly dispatched them. The two slaves that they freed took their leave.

Not long after, the group met back up and camped for the night. When they set out, they came across some sort of giant spider crawling around a hill. Volgna used her familiar to ascertain the spider is actually a dryder, which is a form of centaur spider. The group quickly learned that her name was Emrys. Garras and Rurik didn't pay much attention to the conversation, but eventually Emrys left and the group continued on their way.

As they traveled, they came to a seemingly deserted town. As they entered the town, they were attacked by people with face paint and crude weapons, praising Azazel, the demon who the group set free. The group quickly dispatched them, and continued to their goal, keeping a watchful eye for Azazel.

On their way, they came across a man who appeared exhausted with third degree burns. The man collapsed not long after but Rurik quickly rushed over to heal him. The man explained that a giant shadow appeared over his city up north, and then everything was on fire. Rurik mentioned that it sounded like a dragon, but they hadn't been seen in over a thousand years. Rand then picked the man up and brought him into the town nearby.

In the town, Rurik very quickly determined where the local church was, the soldiers of the cross. They dropped off the man and while the rest of the group left to attend to other matters, Rurik and Garras stuck around to explain the situation about the man. The high priest of the church Stuart agreed that it sounded like a dragon attacked the city, but noted that it was also impossible. Rurik stuck around to oversee the mans recovery, while also learning about St. Cuthbert, the main deity that the humans worshiped.

After witnessing the mans recovery, the duo left to meet up with the group again, and heard rumors about the burned man. They found the group at a local inn called Matthew's Inn, where a man named Draegan had offered to upgrade their equipment free of charge. Not long after, another man arrived, stating that he was Matthew and the owner of the establishment. While discussing the attack on Marina, Draegan abruptly left with two minerals that Matthew had been saving. By the time they were able to spot him, he was already leaving the city by horse, though Rand fruitlessly tried to chase him down.

Matthew offered the group a free night at his inn for the group's trouble, though Rhowan refused as he had somewhere else to stay. In the morning, the group made their way. Moments later, a group of people showed up. There were three humans, a dryad and a sylph. Though one of the humans left not long after, the other attacked, while one of the other humans demonstrated an ability similar to Rands. Though they nearly defeated Danlan, the group abruptly left for some reason after dropping some sort of glass bottle. The bottle erupted in a fog, which either teleported them or masked their teleportation.

Volgna quickly determined that a title wave was imminent, and so everyone made for high group as soon as possible. Moments later, the city they were near was completely submerged under water. This was quite odd, given the fact that the title wave came from the lake near by, but the group quickly determined that it was due to the orb of water.

Volgna mentioned that the orb was somewhere in Omichili, which was where they were heading next. They followed along with the people of Stonero, the city that was submerged underwater, and made way for the city. When they arrived, they noticed that there were also people coming from up north with charred clothing.

As the group entered the city, a large bulky creature came forth. The only guard at the front gate tried to ask why it was there, but it simply uttered a strange noise and back handed the man across the front gate. The group moved in to attack the creature, and Rhowan managed to destroy it's head. Both Danlan and Rurik rushed to the body of the man attacked, determined that he was alive, and resuscitated him. The man then stated that he couldn't move at all, and so Rand came by to bring him to the local church, another branch of the soldiers of the cross.

After ensuring the guards well being, the group split up, with Rand and Volgna heading to the library, Danlan and Rhowan going to meet with the king and queen, and Rurik and Garras gathering info about the king and queen. The two learned that the two were beloved by a large majority of the population. There were a few men and women who claimed that they preferred the previous royal family, but Rurik could tell that there was something strange with the way some of them reacted.

Eventually, Volgnas raven Lenore showed up and told the two to keep quiet about the orb, which they had done as it was. She also urged them to be cautious around any of the lieutenants in the city guard. After a while of speaking with the city folk, they made way for the royal palace to meet up with the others. When they arrived, Danlan expressed concern about the royal advisor Merlin and his two rather sketchy assistants.

The group rested in the palace until night fall, when Danlan noticed that Merlins door was left slightly ajar. After bringing this to attention, Rand promptly opened the door and walked in. After doing some digging, Volgna discovered a recipe for a powerful poison among Merlins alchemy station. The group went to check on the king and queen, and discovered that the poison had been used on the king. Danlan explained where he found the poison, leading to a scuffle between Merlin and his two assistants. The queen caused Merlins head to cave in using psychic powers, while the group dealt with his assistants.

After killing them, the assistants bodies began glowing for a moment. This lead Volgna to suggest inspecting Merlins quarters again. While searching, Rurik found two glowing orbs, which they quickly destroyed. Volgna then created an anti venom to counter the poison given to the king, which Danlan administered.

After having saved the king, the group left for a tunnel system behind the castle, leaving Lenore to scout for members of the royal guard. While inspecting the tunnels, the group took note that the walls changed colour as they entered a deeper corridor, and there was also strange writing on the walls. Moments later, a goblin came from up ahead screaming, and then it transformed into water.

The group continued past, and eventually came to a lit opening with a temple and a water elemental guarding it. The elemental gave the group two riddles to answer, but both were quite easy and had the same answer. The elemental then let the group into the temple. Inside the temple were for pillars, holes in the back wall of the temple, and a pedestal with a light blue orb floating above it, surrounded by a moat of constantly moving water. Rand walked up to the orb and covered it with the portable hole given to them by Eladithas at the beginning of their journey. Immediately after, the most froze and rushing water could be heard from behind the temple. The group rushed out in time to witness the temple sink beneath the water.

The group made their way out of the tunnel system, and at the top they were met with a group of men and women in armour demanding the orb. As they approached, a beam of cold energy shot forth and killed a number of them. A dragonborn stepped forth, and told the group too flee as he would handle them. The dragonborn later met up with them while they were at camp, and told them he was a friend of king James. He also warned the party about various organizations, one of whom they had already met. The dragonborn then took his leave.

While traveling back to Eladithas, the group feel into a minor sink hole, which exposed an underground temple of pelor. Rurik suggested looking around, as there may be artifacts worth looking into. The group eventually found a secret door with a demon inside, though Rand quickly dispatched the demon. Inside the room, there was also a sword in a sarcophagus, which turned out to be the legacy weapon Exordius. There was another secret room, which housed many small skeletons, some notes and an old spell that Volgna quickly pocketed. The group left, and continued on their way.

While traveling around the slavers city, they saw Azazel at a campfire. Though the past encounter lead logic to believe the worst in him, Rurik had a gut feeling that he wasn't evil or responsible for the savages in the town. Volgna came up to him and had a very civil conversation with him, while Rhowan and Danlan hid in the trees nearby. While talking, another demon that looked like Azazel showed up. He then transformed into an orange skinned demon, who proceeded to summon other demons. The group quickly dispatched them, with Danlan using Exordius to kill a majority of them as part of the rite for the weapons legacy. During the fight, Rurik began pondering the usefulness of sorcery as displayed by Volgna. Azazel then took the body of his fallen comrade, and left.

Orb of Earth
When the group entered the forgotten lands, they were washed in a strange aura. The aura left each of them ten years old, each with strange fears. When they reached Eladithas, he explained that the damage done to the forgotten land affected it a great deal, leaving lingering magical effects. He continued to explain that the effects would wear off after they left the forgotten lands. He then told the group that the next orb was the orb of earth, which was located somewhere in RiftHold. The mention of this caused some disdain with Rurik, but it was part of the greater good, so he put his personal issues aside.

As they left the forgotten lands, they returned to their original form. They made way for the Obsidian Peaks, stopping by Danlans home of Bexley along the way. When they got there, however, they found it in shambles. There were many bodies on the ground, and lots of destruction to the buildings. As they reached the center of the town, many of the bodies rose up as zombies. Rurik was able to turn some of them, while the rest of the group was able to take out the rest. Danlan then rushed to the church where he found a number of his comrades dead, and the leader of the church Felix pinned to the wall at deaths door. Danlan and Rurik worked together to heal him, and brought him inside. He explained that a small group of mages caused all the damage, using crossbow bolts that nullified the paladins magic. Felix continued to explain that they had circular tattoos on their arm, and that Danlans family was safe. The group made sure everyone was alright, and made their way.

When they reached the obsidian peaks, the Aegis Legion was waiting at the front entrance of the country, refusing to allow entry. Doladin was stating that there were reported earthquakes and that it was too dangerous. Danlan tried to use a diplomatic approach to convince him, but Doladin still refused. However, one of the members stepped up and convinced the members of the Aegis Legion to let the group in and speak with the king.

The dwarf lead the group to the royal quarters, and struck up a conversation with Rurik, seeming to know him personally. Moments later, he realized that it was Bhardus. He spoke about how Ruriks family missed him, and his old flame had also been asking about him. Eventually, Bhardus brought the group to his brother, king Bramous. Bramous understood the issue at hand, however since moral had fallen with the miners, he asked for the group's help building it back up by working in the mine for a bit. The group split up for a bit, and so Rurik decided to bring Garras to see his family.

Ruriks parents were happy to see him, though they were slightly off put by Garras. He made sure that Garras would keep pleasant as not to cause any major issues. Rurik was upset to discover that his parents ignorance about his beliefs hadn't changed over the years, but they were still able to remain civil. After sitting with them for a while, the two took their leave to meet back with the group.

When the two made it back to see the king, they ran into Volgna along the way, who seemed quite proud of herself. In the royal quarters, Danlan informed them that he and Rand had found enchanted weapons and armour for them. When he handed Rurik a mace, it began to glow briefly in his hand. He noticed that the same thing happened to Garras with his maul. Volgna was able to determine the abilities of each item, learning that his new mace had the power to disrupt undead, and deal extra damage to evil creatures.

The group continued to the mine to help with the efforts. The group moved slightly further down into the mine and got to work, which spurred the other miners into work. The others of the group found some interesting gems, as well as random tools and equipment. Moments later, the ground collapsed beneath them, leaving them in a tunnel system under the mine. Though some of the others wanted to dig their way up, but Rurik expressed that that would be a bad idea as it may cause the cave in to become worse.

Volgna took the time to rest, as the group ventured through the tunnels. They eventually came to a fork in the road, and waited for Volgna to wake up. Once she woke up, they continued down the path. They came across a group of subterranean creatures, including a duergar and a mindflayer. The group managed to quickly dispatch them, and ventured further into the cave. Eventually, the caves gained a brown hue, and there was strange writing on the walls much like there was in Omichili.

The group came out to a temple, with an earth elemental. The situation ran the same was as the water temple; two questions, and they were let into the temple. Inside the temple was the same setup as the last, a pedestal with a brown orb floating above it, and several small stones floating above it. When Rand went to grab the orb the same way as last time, the stones exploded, and the group escaped before the temple crumbled to dust. The group continued out the cave through a different entrance, which lead to the throne room. Bramous gave his thanks, and sent the group on their way.

While leaving RiftHold, Doladin was his normal crusty self, but Bhardus offered to walk the group for a while as he wanted a word with Rurik. He proaded about Ruriks old girlfriend, but he had nothing to tell. Moments later, a shadow overcame them, and a red dragon appeared behind in their path, creating a wall of fire around them. The group took action and attacked the dragon. Thankfully, with Bhardus' help, they were able to defeat the dragon. Though after it was defeated, it's flesh dissolved leaving just bone behind. The group said their goodbyes to the Aegis Legion, and made their way back to the forgotten lands. On their way, Rurik spoke with Volgna about his plans on enhancing his divine magic with arcane magic as well. The two discussed morality and their feelings about it, as well as what it meant to use arcane magic and how it was viewed in most churches. At the end of their conversation, Volgna mentioned the ability to become a symbol and influence a wider variety of people than a mere mortal would be able to. The thought intrigued Rurik, and gave him something to think about during their travels.

As the group continued on their way, a group of dragonborn blocked their path, seeming to want Volgna for some reason. Sensing a struggle, Rand charged the leader, but she was protected by a magical armor. Moments later, most of their opponents were trapped in a field of black tentacles, making them much easier to handle. The group was able to take most of them down, but left two alive for questioning. They knew that they were after Volgna, but had no context as to why. The two dropped their weapons and took their leave.

The group made a quick pit stop at Bexley to pick up holy water for Exordius. While leaving, one of Danlans old comrades showed her affection for him, but Danlan seemed oblivious to this. As they continued on their way, the group ran into three abominations. They were easily handled thanks to Volgnas magic, but the group soon realized that she was in possession of the substance that turned them into abominations in the first place. This put a great strain on Ruriks trust of her.

Orb of Light
While the group entered the forgotten lands, it appeared that there was a spiritual battle raging on around them between elves and humans. Most of the illusions seemed real without close inspection. Eladithas took the orb, and sent the group to Alromania to find the orb of Light.

When the group entered Alromania, they noticed a sizeable amount of poor people and beggars, as well as many half elves. Most people seemed to avoid them, almost as if they were scared. Rhowan wanted some time alone with his dad, so he asked everyone to give him some space.

After a few minutes, Lenore came to them saying that there was some trouble, but on their way to Rhowan's home things had settled down. He informed the group that evil versions of themselves kidnapping kids. This reminded Rurik of something he read, about a magical mirror that made evil clones of people, and that the group was brought to a mirror in the slavers city.

Rand was able to track their evil versions down, and the evil Rand suddenly attacked and killed the evil group's Volgna. The fight was over pretty quickly, but at the cost of Howard, Volgnas hireling. The evil Rand was easily manipulated by Volgna, but the rest of the group wanted to get rid of him since he was inherently evil. Once the evil Rand brought the group to his safe house, Volgna dispelled him, and he slowly vanished.

The following day, the group set out while Volgna stayed behind to work on some sort of creation. While traveling, Lenore transformed into an ice mephit called Itaka, and the group passed through the workers district into the market district. While there, they found a small shop where Rand purchased a cart, and the group proceeded to the magic shop next door. In the shop, Garras purchased new armor while Rurik purchased a new shield.

After leaving, Rand and Itaka left to get Volgna, while the rest of the group proceeded to the palace. On their way, the group stopped by a house that seemed to pose a challenge promising magical items as a reward. After meeting back up right Rand and Volgna, the group proceeded to deal with the challenges, earning some magical items as a reward.

Once the group made it into the noble district, the group passed by a library, which Volgna was entranced by and entered with Itaka, leaving the group to deal with the king of the elves. At the palace, before entering, one of the guards made a comment about Rhowan being a "half-breed" leading Rand to assault him. Thanks to Danlan and Rurik talking the guards down, they allowed the group into the palace while keeping a close watchful eye on them.

Not long after entering, king Elmon and his daughter Eretria entered the throne room. Danlan began conversing with them, and came to the agreement that the king would show them how to get to the orb if the group dealt with the slavers in the country afterward. Just before leaving, the princess came up to Rhowan and began talking with him. Before leaving, she slid very close to him in a very sensual way. Danlan didn't understand what she was doing, but Garras very vulgarly explained it to him as he didn't noticed Galina acting in a very similar way towards him.

After heading over to the teleporter, Volgna joined the group, noticeably thrilled that Rand knocked a guard unconscious. With that, they used the teleporter and dealt with a group of Wisps crowding the area of the old palace. After defeating them, the group noticed a light under some rubbel. After moving the rubble, they found stairs made of light and began walking down them. After coming to an open area, the group came to see another temple with an elemental in front of it. This time, the questions proved more difficult, and the elemental attacked people for answering incorrectly. After numerous tries, they succeeded and the elemental left early in a huff. After grabbing the orb, a few members were blinded for a moment, but everyone made it out of the temple safely.

When the group left the temple, they sought out the slavers. When they found them, they noticed that Magnus Zane was standing on a platform with other slavers ushering elves and half elves in front of a crowd. Suddenly, two daggers flew forth from the crowd, one piercing his chest, and the other piercing his head killing him. Moments later, a hooded figure in the crowd started running away, causing both Volgna and Rhowan to give chase while the others stayed back to deal with the enraged crowd and slavers.

Eventually, after all the slavers had been finished off, the crowd calmed down, and Volgna and Rhowan returned with the hooded figure and proceeded to the hideout where they dispelled the evil Rand. They discovered that the hooded figure was Eretria, and she was avenging the death of her mother and brother at the hands of Magnus' grandfather. Together, they finished off the remainder of the slavers, but also discovered that they had written permission from the king to take slaves from the Suria district, which had the royal seal on it....

Powers
Rurik is a Mystic Theurge, merging the powers of divine magic for support, and arcane magic for offence.

Equipment
Rurik wilds a mace called Light Bringer, enchanted with disrupting and sacred burst.

He also has a mithral light shield enchanted with agility and arrow deflecting.