The Eclipse Collective exists in spite of the personality and moral conflicts between its members. Rather than separating along the lines of morality or identity, or disregarding their differences entirely, the members of the Collective combine its individual aspects into one whole, in which all members are at once very distinct from each other and still completely unified, much like an eclipse.
This is not why the name was picked; more of an afterthought. The name was chosen after several dozen other suggestions were turned down for not sounding proper, and so initially, the name had no meaning at all. Maybe it still doesn't.
The members, past and present, of the Eclipse Collective are as follows:
Zil'dejin Firebane
Stahlstrauss
Garmeth Shitorai
Zan-kyri
Marlamin Tarmikos
Derli d'Kundarak
Xulgos Adinimys
Tam'elanath Edroin (inactive)
Cecil Morris Duran (inactive)
Mikhal Thanesman (deceased)
Typhus Phendragon (deceased)
Morgue (deceased)
Lucan Vrinsk (deceased)
Eshunu (deceased)
Elyas (deceased)
Lythanis Zyk (deceased)
Played by: Ian
Dragonborn Warlord
Captain of Fortune
Level 11
Zil'dejin was born to a warmongering clan of Dragonborn in the heart of Q'Barra that ritually eats its firstborn. His mother, a sympathetic and unusually kind soul, took him instead to the wilds of the jungle, and left him there, believing that even this slim chance of survival is better than certain death at the hands of his own parents. Here, he was picked up by the slaver group by the name of Cabor's Chains, who forced him to perform grueling labour under the crack of their whips for eight long years. He still bears marks and scars from their lashes, constant reminders of the brutality of his early youth.
At the end of this eight years, he escaped their clutches, leading a large uprising of slaves against their captors. They existed as an independent group for some time, led by Zil'dejin, but eventually they disbanded, and Zil'dejin enlisted in a modestly-sized band of mercenaries called the Dawntreaders, led by the dwarven warlord Balin Bronzesmith. Here, the formerly atheistic and nihilistic Zil'dejin was given great structure and acceptance, taught to follow Dol Dorn of the Sovereign Host and raised in the ways of battle.
As they worked to assist small military companies and outposts in the Last War, the Dawntreaders grew in number in strength. Eventually, the nation of Cyre took notice of their power, and paid handsomely for their exclusive loyalty, which they then received. From here on, Balin's company moved from existing solely on the edges of the Last War to being deeply and irrevocably involved in the middle of it.
Zil'dejin worked and fought hard for the Dawntreaders, climbing atop the corpses of his fallen brothers to become a high-ranking mercenary in the company, second only to Balin himself. In 994 YK, the Day of Mourning struck, and Cyre was reduced to ashes while the majority of the Dawntreaders fought on the foreign soil of Karrnath. With their employers all but gone, the company's purpose was diminished, and the Dawntreaders left the war.
Shortly after this, Balin was killed. Zil'dejin still seeks the magic sword used to slay the fierce dwarven warlord, a blade known as Black Blood. In the wake of Balin's death and the end of the Last War, the Dawntreaders dissolved and earned the stigmatic title of "Cyran refugees", leaving Zil'dejin completely alone in the world without any sort of direction. Sticking to the only things he knew, he took to two hobbies: fighting, and heavy drinking.
It was the latter of these that led him to meet Tam'elanath (and by extension, the rest of the party). Spending an evening of hard drinking at the Lucky Gnome Taphouse in Lakeside led him to stumble out across the way to Tam'elanath's materials shed, where he slept away the alcohol. In the morning, he obtained work for the first time since the Last War with Tam'elanath's bowyer shop, and would continue to sleep in the shed for four months before they set out from Lakeside.
Zil'dejin has grand aspirations - to ascend to the highest possible position of power he can, and take the world by storm. He still spends much of his time drinking, and hopes to one day see for himself the Plains of Hal'deth: a kind of paradise pseudo-afterlife reserved for warriors and devout followers of Dol Dorn.
In the year-long hiatus Zil'dejin spent some time improving his life, ditching alcohol and taking up a cause (as well as painting). He stopped the riots in Thaliost (originally started by the Eclipse Collective) and settled the city with a group of his own mercenaries, which he named Titan's Aegis. After this, he spent some time in New Cyre in an effort to help Cyran refugees get back on their feet, and establish a second Cyran settlement. He has also become more involved in the political landscape, and has become involved to some extent with the various mages' guilds in Karrnath through Nimozaran the Green of Lakeside. He also tried making peace with the Coalstriker clan, and did to some degree - many even came back with him to the Eclipse Keep, where they work forging and repairing equipment of the people there.
Played by: Alex
Warforged Fighter
Level 10
Stahlstrauss was created by House Cannith in 899 YK, nearly one hundred years ago. He was crafted in an unusual and mostly-independent division of the Dragonmarked House headquartered in the Lhazaar Principalities, which had little direct interest in the Last War except in its potential for profit. This caused them to be considered separate by most of Cannith, and granted them little access to House resources. As a result, the creations they produced, including warforged, were mostly damaged or incomplete. Stahlstrauss, along with two other warforged, would be the splinter group's first true success.
At this time, he went by the name the artificers assigned him: Steel. He was placed into a unit with the other two forged at the same time as he, named Glass and Storm. The three were trained as soldiers, and sold to the highest bidder, which happened to be the Karrnath military. The three served with an otherwise entirely human unit and were treated as far from equals; little more than machines.
Early into their assignment, Steel, Glass and Storm were instructed to destroy the White Arch Bridge in order to prevent incoming attacks from Aundair. This task was revealed to be a trap, composed by the traitorous head of their unit, Captain Schneider. In spite of this, they were able to carry out their task to some degree, and while they did not destroy the bridge entirely on their own, they damaged it substantially. All humans who had joined them in the mission fell in combat. The three warforged fought against the onslaught of enemies from Aundair, and managed to survive until reinforcements arrived, only to be reprimanded by a military superior for not absolutely completing their mission. They finished their task, only to be eliminated from the Karrnathi military by one Sergeant Renner, who believed them to be dangerous.
After this, they adopted names of their own choosing, and Steel became Stahlstrauss. The three formed a group called the "Resolved," a unit of independent warforged vigilantes who helped defend others of their kind throughout the Last War.
The party found him in the lower levels of the Shadowfell Keep in the Icetop Mountains, weakened and bound alongside his longtime companion Eshunu. The party was very unwilling to trust him, but due to the forthcoming hobgoblin ambush in the room they agreed to free him and Eshunu in exchange for their help.
Stahlstrauss was created by House Cannith in 899 YK, nearly one hundred years ago. He was crafted in an unusual and mostly-independent division of the Dragonmarked House headquartered in the Lhazaar Principalities, which had little direct interest in the Last War except in its potential for profit. This caused them to be considered separate by most of Cannith, and granted them little access to House resources. As a result, the creations they produced, including warforged, were mostly damaged or incomplete. Stahlstrauss, along with two other warforged, would be the splinter group's first true success.
At this time, he went by the name the artificers assigned him: Steel. He was placed into a unit with the other two forged at the same time as he, named Glass and Storm. The three were trained as soldiers, and sold to the highest bidder, which happened to be the Karrnath military. The three served with an otherwise entirely human unit and were treated as far from equals; little more than machines.
Early into their assignment, Steel, Glass and Storm were instructed to destroy the White Arch Bridge in order to prevent incoming attacks from Aundair. This task was revealed to be a trap, composed by the traitorous head of their unit, Captain Schneider. In spite of this, they were able to carry out their task to some degree, and while they did not destroy the bridge entirely on their own, they damaged it substantially. All humans who had joined them in the mission fell in combat. The three warforged fought against the onslaught of enemies from Aundair, and managed to survive until reinforcements arrived, only to be reprimanded by a military superior for not absolutely completing their mission. They finished their task, only to be eliminated from the Karrnathi military by one Sergeant Renner, who believed them to be dangerous.
After this, they adopted names of their own choosing, and Steel became Stahlstrauss. The three formed a group called the "Resolved," a unit of independent warforged vigilantes who helped defend others of their kind throughout the Last War.
The party found him in the lower levels of the Shadowfell Keep in the Icetop Mountains, weakened and bound alongside his longtime companion Eshunu. The party was very unwilling to trust him, but due to the forthcoming hobgoblin ambush in the room they agreed to free him and Eshunu in exchange for their help.
Played by: Theron
Githzerai Monk
Tiger Claw Master
Tiger Claw Master
Level 12
Garmeth is a Githzerai Monk of the Order of Labyrinths; an ancient and secretive order that has existed ever since the mysterious collapse of the Dhakaani Empire. Garmeth was trained at the Shitorai Labyrinth Monastery since infancy to purge this world of the menace that many centuries imprisoned his Githzerai brethren. While all monstrosities from the Realm of Madness are the enemy of the Order of Labyrinths, Mind Flayers fall under a category of special concern and great animosity for Garmeth. Years of instruction by the Labyrinth Monks taught Garmeth ways to resist the mind manipulations of Mind Flayers. Utilizing these teachings Garmeth has crafted a mind that is impervious to manipulation due to the virtual unnavigable way he was structured his thought patterns. While meant to be an asset this method has had adverse affects on Garmeth’s memory, logical reasoning, and perceptions of reality. This coupled with his deadly fighting skills makes Garmeth a combatant to be feared by foes and perhaps even friends.
Garmeth’s origin begins during the last war in an unoccupied region of Khorvaire. Garmeth’s parents were war refugees that gave him to a travelling band of Labyrinth Monks so that they could better protect and raise him. Githzerai have always trusted the Order due to their mutual hatred of Mind Flayers.
The reasons behind the Monks journey would later shape the life Garmeth now leads as possibly the last Labyrinth Monk. During the Last War the Order had become divided; members of the order feared that their war against the aberrations was blinding them to the suffering from the war. Even worse is that all five warring Nations now saw the order as a threat. In the past Labyrinth Monks were used by governments as advisors in routing out Mind Flayer thralls in their ranks. The security risk presented was to great and Three Monasteries came under attack.
Grand-Master Raveth blamed the destruction of the monasteries on the War and all that were involved in it. Raveth would not let this war destroy his order, so he decreed that the new monasteries would be built in secret locations, close to the aberrations, and far from the war. It was while searching for a new location that the Monks encountered Garmeth’s parents.
It was at the new Shitorai Monastery that Garmeth was raised with the rest of his Monk brothers. It was Master Ornal that showed Garmeth how to fight the aberrations and became the father figure that he came to revere. When the war ended Raveth arrived at Shitorai to announce the rebuilding of the original Three Monasteries. When Raveth arrived he was disgusted to find the sons of war refugees infecting his Monastery. Raveth gave the Monks a choice and whatever it was it spared their students from death and ensured their own. Garmeth and his brothers were helpless to stop Raveth’s massacre. Raveth could have easily done the same to them but for some reason chose not to (a reason that, possibly, still haunts Garmeth to this very day).
After burying his masters Garmeth watched as one by one his brothers left. The very last to leave Garmeth has only one goal now, and that is to rebuild the Order of Labyrinths. It was in a ruin near the town of Winterhaven that Garmeth was captured and came to meet Lucan and the rest of the party. Garmeth chose to stay with the ragtag group so he may earn the funds to rebuild his lost order, and continue his work as a Labyrinth Monk.
In his year apart from the Eclipse Collective, Garmeth turned part of the Eclipse Keep into a haven for travelling monks, particularly his brothers from the Order of Labyrinths. He established a "chapel", like a small monastery, in one corner that takes the form of a maze-like room. After doing this, and employing his fellow monks as a kind of intelligence network, he set out for another monastery to learn from them the way of the Tiger Claw, in accordance with Ornal's belief that a monk should be versatile in numerous monastic traditions. He learned to be quick and very aggressive in combat. Throughout this time, he has also been working on solving the problem of Marlamin's Touch of Corruption artifact, which Garmeth believes should not be allowed to exist on Eberron. Shortly before returning to Eclipse Keep, Garmeth went to retrieve the diary of Master Ornal. He tracked it (possibly through his information network) to the Lhazaar Principalities, in the hands of a wealthy "merchant" in the city of Tantamar. He stole it from this man, and attracted the attention of some less-than-reputable people - he fled soon after.
Garmeth is a Githzerai Monk of the Order of Labyrinths; an ancient and secretive order that has existed ever since the mysterious collapse of the Dhakaani Empire. Garmeth was trained at the Shitorai Labyrinth Monastery since infancy to purge this world of the menace that many centuries imprisoned his Githzerai brethren. While all monstrosities from the Realm of Madness are the enemy of the Order of Labyrinths, Mind Flayers fall under a category of special concern and great animosity for Garmeth. Years of instruction by the Labyrinth Monks taught Garmeth ways to resist the mind manipulations of Mind Flayers. Utilizing these teachings Garmeth has crafted a mind that is impervious to manipulation due to the virtual unnavigable way he was structured his thought patterns. While meant to be an asset this method has had adverse affects on Garmeth’s memory, logical reasoning, and perceptions of reality. This coupled with his deadly fighting skills makes Garmeth a combatant to be feared by foes and perhaps even friends.
Garmeth’s origin begins during the last war in an unoccupied region of Khorvaire. Garmeth’s parents were war refugees that gave him to a travelling band of Labyrinth Monks so that they could better protect and raise him. Githzerai have always trusted the Order due to their mutual hatred of Mind Flayers.
The reasons behind the Monks journey would later shape the life Garmeth now leads as possibly the last Labyrinth Monk. During the Last War the Order had become divided; members of the order feared that their war against the aberrations was blinding them to the suffering from the war. Even worse is that all five warring Nations now saw the order as a threat. In the past Labyrinth Monks were used by governments as advisors in routing out Mind Flayer thralls in their ranks. The security risk presented was to great and Three Monasteries came under attack.
Grand-Master Raveth blamed the destruction of the monasteries on the War and all that were involved in it. Raveth would not let this war destroy his order, so he decreed that the new monasteries would be built in secret locations, close to the aberrations, and far from the war. It was while searching for a new location that the Monks encountered Garmeth’s parents.
It was at the new Shitorai Monastery that Garmeth was raised with the rest of his Monk brothers. It was Master Ornal that showed Garmeth how to fight the aberrations and became the father figure that he came to revere. When the war ended Raveth arrived at Shitorai to announce the rebuilding of the original Three Monasteries. When Raveth arrived he was disgusted to find the sons of war refugees infecting his Monastery. Raveth gave the Monks a choice and whatever it was it spared their students from death and ensured their own. Garmeth and his brothers were helpless to stop Raveth’s massacre. Raveth could have easily done the same to them but for some reason chose not to (a reason that, possibly, still haunts Garmeth to this very day).
After burying his masters Garmeth watched as one by one his brothers left. The very last to leave Garmeth has only one goal now, and that is to rebuild the Order of Labyrinths. It was in a ruin near the town of Winterhaven that Garmeth was captured and came to meet Lucan and the rest of the party. Garmeth chose to stay with the ragtag group so he may earn the funds to rebuild his lost order, and continue his work as a Labyrinth Monk.
In his year apart from the Eclipse Collective, Garmeth turned part of the Eclipse Keep into a haven for travelling monks, particularly his brothers from the Order of Labyrinths. He established a "chapel", like a small monastery, in one corner that takes the form of a maze-like room. After doing this, and employing his fellow monks as a kind of intelligence network, he set out for another monastery to learn from them the way of the Tiger Claw, in accordance with Ornal's belief that a monk should be versatile in numerous monastic traditions. He learned to be quick and very aggressive in combat. Throughout this time, he has also been working on solving the problem of Marlamin's Touch of Corruption artifact, which Garmeth believes should not be allowed to exist on Eberron. Shortly before returning to Eclipse Keep, Garmeth went to retrieve the diary of Master Ornal. He tracked it (possibly through his information network) to the Lhazaar Principalities, in the hands of a wealthy "merchant" in the city of Tantamar. He stole it from this man, and attracted the attention of some less-than-reputable people - he fled soon after.
Zan-kyri
Played by: Marc
Watersoul Genasi Artificer
Self-forged
Level 12
Zan-kyri is a Genasi, a race very rarely seen in Eberron. By his own explanation, he descends from a larger clan of his kind in the Elemental Chaos, though some of the Genasi in the Dragon Between are created in outlawed magic and alchemic experiments. He is physically imbued with the element of water, and takes on an appearance of being coated with a sheet of ice. Thin, slightly luminous blue lines run throughout his flesh.
As an artificer, Zan-kyri has an interest in magical items and devices. He had been studying in the Cannith West enclave (one of the three branches of House Cannith post-Mourning) when he happened across the party in Fairhaven. He had heard of their exploits, which had been mentioned with some passing interest among the Dragonmarked Houses. Cannith, in particular, is interested in the illegally manufactured and modified Stahlstrauss, and upon seeing the warforged for himself, Zan-kyri requested to follow the party and study him and their accumulated magical equipment.
He accompanied the Eclipse Collective for only a short time, and parted ways with them at Greenheart, likely for his own spontaneous curiosity. It was unknown if he would return until the Siege of Wroat, when he tracked Artauche to Glyphstone Keep and met the party as they teleported in to attack his fortress.
During the Collective's hiatus, he spent most of the year in his workshop in Eclipse Keep. Before Cannith had totally stripped the place, he uncovered among Remelius Artauche's possessions a small fragment of some very old blueprints for some kind of eldritch machine. He spent some time working with this between time spent with the three branches of House Cannith, learning to improve the techniques of his chosen trade. During this time, he began to see the flaw in his mortal form, and believing he needed to be more in order to master the intricacies of artifice, he created a mechanical arm based on those of warforged, and replaced one of his own arms with it. He has become fairly well-known among Cannith South artificers in Breland for this act, and some even tried to learn under him. Zan-kyri refused to teach them, however.
Played by: Michael C.
Human Blackguard
Level 10
Marlamin Tarmikos is a man with a dark history. He was born among the lower classes in Riedra, on the far-off continent of Sarlona. He spent his childhood here under the oppressive and nearly-omnipresent Inspired government before fleeing to Khorvaire. Unfortunately, life was not much better here.
Impoverished and isolated, the Tarmikos family struck hardship almost immediately. Even after moving from the Lhazaar Principalities to Karrnath, and as Marlamin became more familiar with the Common language, things scarcely improved. The anger that brewed in him grew stronger by the day, and for a time, he could barely control his own rage. He was on a path towards self-destruction.
Before he hit the point of no return with his anger, he was discovered by a priest of the Blood of Vol, which at the time was Khorvaire's state religion. The priesthood saw potential in him, and brought him to the Crimson Monastery, the faith's largest center of worship, in the Karrn city of Atur. Here, Marlamin was trained to become a champion of the faith. He learned mantras to channel his anger, which the Blood of Vol believed to be a reflection of the "Divine Within," and became able to use the anger as a tool and a weapon. Over time, he became acquainted with unusual shadow magics as well, and when the time came, he was deployed to fight alongside Karrnath's undead legions in the Last War.
His time spent serving was not easy, and he is marked with scars from the conflicts, but he survived. Today, he continues to follow the Blood of Vol, but is more of a free agent than a servant, following the mandates of his faith independently. It is this lifestyle that had brought him to the Eldeen Reaches, where he was seeking a remote Blood of Vol monastery that was rumored to be subject to "strange activity." He joined up with the Eclipse Collective after witnessing their battle against the Dreaming Dark on the Lyrandar ferry through Lake Galifar, believing their goals to coincide with his own.
Played by: Sean
Dwarf Paladin
Champion of Order
Level 12
Derli was born in Korunda Gate, primary enclave of House Kundarak and center of their activities. Derli is a dragonmarked Kundarak pure-blood, a direct descendant of the earliest branches of the House before the Mark of Warding first manifested.
House Kundarak is a house responsible for banking. Its primary concern is, as it has always been, good business, and for many dwarves under its influence, this means, exclusively, high profit, regardless of where the profit originates. Derli's branch of the family is an excellent example of this sort of ideology. Derli's father, Lord Raldar d'Kundarak, was a wildly unscrupulous banker, who took small amounts of money very frequently from transactions in Korunda Gate.
Derli was long outraged by this behaviour, but it led to little more than a few clashes with his father, initially. One day, however, he witnessed Raldar stealing something very valuable, and further, very illegal. Derli tried to speak out against his father, first at home, and then publicly, but his father was a well-respected noble in House Kundarak, and Derli had no proof. He was disowned by his father, and in a last desperate effort, Derli stole the item from his father and left Korunda Gate. He still carries this item, which is some sort of stone wrapped in thick linen, though he has never unwrapped it.
It was almost immediately after his exodus that he was exposed to divinity: he received a potent vision, which he believes was a direct manifestation of Dol Dorrn, the god of combat. The god told him, in no uncertain terms, that he was to become a tool of his divine will, and follow his commands without fail. Derli took this to heart, and became an independent paladin of Dol Dorrn, training with various guilds and groups of fighters across Khorvaire until finally joining the Earthsmiters, a mainly dwarven mercenary company aligned with Cyre during the Last War.
While with the Earthsmiters, he witnessed a terrible atrocity not long before the Day of Mourning. The mercenaries were deployed to a small town in Cyre, believed to sympathize with Karrnath. Their goal was to simply watch for insurrection, and suppress it should it occur, but one of Derli's superiors instead led a mass slaughter of the town's nearly-defenseless citizens. Many of the other mercenaries resented Derli's unwillingness to follow orders, and turned upon him, causing even more deaths that day. When he left that incident, alone and bloody, he was no longer part of the Earthsmiters, though he still makes a yearly pilgrimage to the site of the massacre to honor the dead.
In 999 YK, during this pilgrimage, he was captured by the Godforged, and he remained in their possession until Zil'dejin, Garmeth, Elyas and Zan-kyri were likewise captured. Even after being freed, he decided to continue adventuring with them, and has been with the Collective since, having obtained new charges to guard in the name of Dol Dorrn.
Played by: Greg
Drow Hunter
Ocular Adept
Level 12
Played by: Cam
Elf Ranger
Level 9
*inactive*
*inactive*
Tam'elanath was born to the Edroin family of the Zultena, an independent elven warclan located in the southeastern peninsula of Valenar, within Ravar Orioth (the Jungle of Scimitars). The clan does not acknowledge any outside authority and only marginally recognizes the existence of Valenar itself: they heed only the edicts of the Undying Court. He is the younger of two sons to his older brother, Davendithas, who was Tam'elanath's greatest companion and mentor when he was growing up.
The Zultena are traditionalists, and place great value in the importance of the hunt. As such, Tam'elanath was trained and taught extensively in the ways of the wilderness of Eberron and, to a lesser extent, of Khyber beneath, which has proved a threat to the Zultena in the past. He took to his hunting training quickly due to a natural knack for using his hands and his fortune in having a keen eye by birth.
As a rite of passage into adulthood, boys of the Zultena clan are required to hunt and kill a quarry specified by the clan. On the day of his Hunt, in the year 994 YK, a full-fledged hunter of the clan took notice of a large creature emerging from Khyber further within the jungle. The clan chose to make this the quarry of his Hunt, and Tam'elanath left to pursue this unknown enemy. He reached it late in the evening, and discovered it to be more horrifying than he had pictured; a great red beast, armed with horns and wings and brandishing impossible weapons. Tam'elanath was not a match for it in the slightest, and only narrowly escaped the encounter with his life.
Ashamed that he had failed his Hunt, he did not return to the Zultena. Instead, he left Ravar Orioth, bound for the battlefields of Cyre to the north. When he arrived, however, he found the entire nation already decimated by the Mourning. So he circumvented the Mournland and continued north, eventually reaching the town of Lakeside. Here he settled, sick of wandering, and used his experience gained from the Zultena to craft bows and make a modest living in this town. Though his intelligence (due, in part, to a natural slow wit and in part to a lack of education) was hardly placed in high regard by the citizens of Lakeside, he was received by them warmly and earned the repeat business of many local hunters, enthusiasts, and shops.
After four years here, he met Zil'dejin, passed out in his materials shed, and the day after, the wandering Morgue, and in the coming months this would leave to his long-delayed departure from Lakeside and back into the rest of Khorvaire and Eberron at large.
He has a strong sense of justice, and is kind, but not very clever. He is, however, an excellent marksman and has outstanding dexterity. He has a passion for food, enjoys crafting things with wood and is a fan of musicians. He is most at home in the wilds, hoping to one day return to his clan, and aspires to be a member of the Undying Court the Zultena so closely followed.
Tam'elanath took a temporary leave of absence from the Eclipse Collective following the incident at Winterhaven, to stay in his home at Lakeside and make bows. At some point, he was captured by slavers and brought to the Thunderspire Labyrinth, where the party found him and freed him. He then put his skill as an archer to use again by travelling with them once more.
It was during this period that he achieved a longtime dream: he joined a Dragonmarked House. After hiring him as a freelancer in Fairhaven, House Phiarlan accepted Tam'elanath into their ranks. He continued to travel with them up until the party reached Greenheart on their search for the Chaos Gear, when he was called away for formal training and education in the ways of their House. He left with his assurance that the party could count on his support if they ever truly needed it.
Tam'elanath took a temporary leave of absence from the Eclipse Collective following the incident at Winterhaven, to stay in his home at Lakeside and make bows. At some point, he was captured by slavers and brought to the Thunderspire Labyrinth, where the party found him and freed him. He then put his skill as an archer to use again by travelling with them once more.
It was during this period that he achieved a longtime dream: he joined a Dragonmarked House. After hiring him as a freelancer in Fairhaven, House Phiarlan accepted Tam'elanath into their ranks. He continued to travel with them up until the party reached Greenheart on their search for the Chaos Gear, when he was called away for formal training and education in the ways of their House. He left with his assurance that the party could count on his support if they ever truly needed it.
Played by: Kevin
Human Warlock
Level 7
*inactive*
*inactive*
Cecil was born in the port-city of Skairn, in the Lhazaar Principalities. The Lhazaar Principalities have always been known as a long-standing haven for merchants and pirates of all kind, and wealth is passed around more quickly than the common cold. Though not the capital of the Principalities, Skairn is more than representative of this idea, and a large merchant coalition essentially runs the entire city's economy. His father was a merchant aligned strongly with this coalition, and of some repute in that faction, and his mother was a sort of freelancer, though he never learned precisely what her job was. Cecil's early life was essentially good - as good as it could have been, at least - and relatively unremarkable for an upper-middle-class youth in the moderately-sized port city.
In his late teens and early twenties, Cecil took towards training in arcane arts. This began as simple wizard training, but over time he became fascinated with the possible power to be had with forbidden arts, and began dabbling in them. Eventually, this dabbling became a full-blown transformation to the path of the warlock when he successfully summoned his first demon. The demon, named Lagrish - a spawn of hellfire - agreed to provide Cecil with the power he craved in exchange for possession of Cecil's body as a sort of "passenger."
However, Cecil was not aware that over time, the demon would slowly gain more control over him. At first, Lagrish was virtually unknown to him, but soon became apparent in short outbursts where it would take over Cecil's body briefly. This occurs in periods of extreme emotion, after extensive use of Lagrish's dark powers, and to a lesser extent, when he sleeps (Lagrish strongly influences Cecil's dreams).
In his mid-twenties, a short few years ago, he left Skairn to see the world and earn his place in Eberron. He has been travelling since, and until recently had signed on with a group of adventurers called the "Reclaimer Company." The other members were Bradcliffe, a trained but unaligned knight, Marcel, a generous cleric, and Fusoah, an experienced wizard. They were all killed in a rough encounter in the Thunderspire Labyrinth while under contract with the Aurum Concordian Mr. Artauche to find the Rod of Order.
It was shortly after this that he met with the Eclipse Collective, who Mr. Artauche assigned as "back ups" or replacements for the Reclaimer Company, believing them more competent in finding the Rod of Order. Talbot facilitated a contract allowing Cecil to be considered a temporary member of the Eclipse Collective, at least until the quest was complete.
After reporting back to Mr. Artauche, Cecil left for the Lhazaar Principalities once again, feeling his obligations to the Collective fulfilled - at least, for the time being.
Mikhal Thanesman
Played by: Michael C
Human Paladin
Level 3
*deceased*
Mikhal Thanesman was born and raised among the Thanesman clan, a longstanding noble family in Thrane. His father Gohl was a retainer of his clan and was rarely around; when present, he was belligerent and ill-tempered, but only verbally - not physically - abusive. His mother was a quiet, mousy woman, and devoted to the doctrines of the Silver Flame. He was raised in accordance with the proper rules of the aristocracy and strictly adhered to his mother's beliefs, while his father raised him to be aggressive, powerful, and ruthless. The combat training he gave Mikhal would serve him well later in life.
Mikhal eventually moved from his family's home to the capital city of Flamekeep, where he joined the ranks of the Silver Flame. With his devotion and his skill, it was not long before Mikhal was allowed to become a paladin and Knight Militant in their ranks, and he served them zealously. He became somewhat fanatical; his only goals were to serve the Flame, and he became almost blind to anything else.
His superior and mentor, Theoban Flamerule, filled in the gaps for Mikhal not covered by his upbringing at home, and he became an almost father-like figure to the aspiring paladin. Eventually, Mikhal, along with all of Theoban's other students and Theoban himself, were sent to Karrnath, originally Theoban's homeland. Mikhal trained under Theoban here for some time before an issue of some importance came up.
The Voice of the Silver Flame had sent word to their outpost that the Crimson Monastery was involved in some sort of occult ritual in Winterhaven. According to their information, this activity would result in a plague of the undead and demons. Theoban, placing more trust in Mikhal than any of his other trainees, dispatched him to investigate.
At the start of his investigation, he met with Zil'dejin, Tam'elanath, Morgue and Typhus in Thair Coalstriker's smithy. The party, noticing his unusual appearance in contrast with the rest of the individuals in Winterhaven, questioned him, and he informed them of his purposes. The five decided their interests were most likely mutual, and they traveled together for a time.
Their collective goals brought the party members - now numbered at six with Lythanis - to the Shadowfell Keep. In the second level of the underground floors, on Lharvion 24, 998 YK, Mikhal was killed attempting to defend the physically fragile Lythanis and Typhus from an onslaught of ambushing hobgoblins. His sacrifice was only partially successful; Lythanis escaped with his life, but Typhus was ultimately killed in the skirmish as well.
Played by: Alex
Tiefling Wizard
Level 3
*deceased*
Typhus came from a fairly large town of Tieflings at the base of the Icehorn Mountains in the Demon Wastes, named the Harjkan. His father was an influential noble, akin to a ruler in this town, and taught Typhus the ways of battle and the sword. The Tieflings of the Harjkan were cruel, fond of slaying lesser creatures for sport, and their brutal hunting style became a way of life to Typhus, who was in line to succeed his father as acting ruler. This succession would involve a ceremony of initiation, which itself involved the combat Typhus was brought up in so dogmatically. Upon the day of the initiation ceremony, a chilling cloud came down upon the Harjkan from the mountains above. Typhus, in light of his coming role as leader, went to investigate the source.
Shortly after he left to scale the Icehorn Mountains, the source actually appeared in the Harjkan: a powerful sorcerer named Gâk-Ahmön. The always battle-ready Tieflings of the Harjkan took up arms and went to defend the settlement, but Gâk-Ahmön's power was overwhelming; the Harjkan became a desolate ghost city.
Typhus returned home after his failure to find the source, and found the city frozen and piled with the dead. Stricken with rage and immense anger, he took to fighting the elementals who had breached the city under Gâk-Ahmön's command. After some time of this, Gâk-Ahmön found Typhus, and gloated at his work in destroying Typhus' home. Typhus took his sword in blind rage and attacked the sorcerer, who fended off Typhus' attacks without any difficulty or the smallest scratch. He froze Typhus completely, and returned to his self-established palace of ice back on the Icehorn Mountains.
But Typhus was more resilient than Gâk-Ahmön had expected. The Hellfire of his lineage burned in his soul, and he was able to survive and crawled out into the Demon Wastes. He was found by a sect of fire-worshiping monks, who brought him into their temple disfigured and scarred, and nursed him back to health. He was then introduced to their leader, a human wizard specializing in fire magic named Cain. He taught Typhus to lay down his sword, battered and fragile as Gâk-Ahmön's assault had made him, and instead taught him the ways of magic, particularly fire magic. But Cain died well before he could pass Typhus everything he knew, and Typhus took his grimoire, written in an unfamiliar tongue, and left the temple, searching for a translator and other similar tomes.
His travels took him to Irontown under the premise of a translation for Cain's Grimoire, but it was a trick. He was rendered immobile by a succubus and taken to the lair of the young white dragon Szartharrax and bound in chains, where he was eventually freed by the party. He accompanied them until they arrived at the Shadowfell Keep, where he left with the goblin Splug for unknown reasons. He returned two days later, evasive about his reasons for leaving, and rejoined them in their descent back into the keep.
It was here that Typhus died, on Lharvion 23, 998 YK, assailed on all sides by hobgoblin soldiers while his companions were otherwise occupied. On the edge of death, Typhus was borne away by a fleeing hobgoblin, and seeing no hope in his situation, gave up on his wretched existence entirely and passed away without resistance. He will be missed by few.
Played by: Theron
Tiefling Rogue
Level 3
*deceased*
*deceased*
Ostensibly orphaned or else completely abandoned by his parents, Morgue was left without a family or a name in a small village in rural Aundair. The village was a primarily-Tiefling settlement, and though the villagers were mostly of his kind, not one of them could identify his original parents. Instead, he was taken in by a kind and merciful family, who had lost their only child in the midst of the Last War. They gave him the name Morgue to signify that he had replaced (and so had come from) what they lost to death.
The village mostly stayed out of combat during the Last War (save for the few who voluntarily enlisted, like Morgue's adopted brother). One day, an unidentified drifter arrived in the village, nursing a near-fatal wound. His mind a haze on the precipice of death, the drifter began madly attacking the villagers. Though Morgue was raised a pacifist by his war-mourning parents, some indescribable instinct within compelled him to act. He killed the drifter with his bare hands. Though he was shocked and horrified by what he had done, his family and fellow villagers revered him as a hero for saving them.
The years passed, and Morgue only grew to fear himself and his dark side even more. He finally chose to leave his village, and departed from home under the cover of night so nobody would be aware of his departure. As he was approaching the main road , however, he saw the torches and heard the voices of an advancing army on the warpath from the south, moving towards his home. He made his way back as quickly as he could, but he was too late; he returned only to find everything destroyed by the army under Thrane's banner, en route to reinforce troops besieging the Aundair city of Thaliost. The unit was led by the infamous Dragonborn general, Pangeon Wyrmeye, who Morgue never forgot. The ruins of the town, and Thaliost itself, remain under Thrane's control to this day.
Morgue had taken a role of an avenger of injustice, and sought to atone for the doings of his dark side and his abandonment of his home when they needed him most. To do this, he had to resort to the side of him he most feared: the primal hunter and killer that dwelt within.
Played by: Marc
Half-elf Ardent
Level 8
*deceased*
Lucan's full name is Lord Lucan Vrinsk d'Medani. Because he possesses the Mark of Detection and is a member of House Medani, he is technically able to refer to himself in this way; thankfully, he doesn't often. His behaviour is anything but lordly, and it is probably in the best interests of his Dragonmarked House that he does not frequently advertise his membership in their ranks.
His origins are humble and uninteresting, but it was not Lucan's background that makes him unique. Rather, it was his personality, which by all appearances put him in the category of "certifiably insane." From birth, Lucan had been besieged by an unyielding tide of rapidly-changing and extremely powerful emotions. By specialized training and personal application of will he had learned to control these somewhat, manifesting the emotions into physical form or passing them into others, making this unusual trait potent both in combat and out. Still, no amount of training could completely tame these feelings, and so Lucan had been known to go from hysterical laughter to enraged yelling to silent weeping in a span of minutes.
He was captured while on assignment for House Medani in Winterhaven, and was locked in a cell with Garmeth. The Eclipse Collective found them there, and Lucan has been with them since. When pressed, he would admit that he was still on House Medani business even while travelling with the Collective, but he would not say exactly what he was trying to achieve.
Lucan died on Rhaan 10, 998 YK in the Starpeaks Observatory, in an effort to protect the party from a powerful war devil that entered Eberron through a portal from Baator. He used his powers to fold space between himself and a trapped Zil'dejin, and the two switched places therein to give the warlord a chance to escape with the fallen Stahlstrauss. Without his efforts, there may have been more deaths in the Eclipse Collective that day.
Played by: Michael C
Shardmind Druid
Level 9
*deceased*
*deceased*
Eshunu was a Shardmind, an ancient and mysterious type of construct that has had its origins lost to the flow of history. It is relatively unclear where they come from, or if indeed they are still being produced somewhere, but it is believed by some scholars that they come from the distant continent of Sarlona, where it is thought that they are somehow connected to the Inspired, the heads of the Riedran nation there. It has also been rumored that they are dragonshards come to life, and indeed it has been discovered that at the heart of every Shardmind is a blackened Khyber dragonshard, protected by some sort of magic. Despite their status as a construct, they are noted to be wildly different in just about every respect from the Warforged to whom they are sometimes compared.
Eshunu himself could offer little insight on this mystery. Though he was certainly an ancient entity - likely predating even his century-old companion Stahlstrauss - Eshunu has little recollection of anything beyond about sixty years. And, even if he had much to say on the matter, he would have been unable to; without a mouth and lacking any sort of vocal chords or similar magical apparatus, Eshunu was completely mute. He typically expressed himself with slight but meaningful gestures, and when detail was necessary, he had been known to transmit short bursts of thought telepathically (sometimes accidentally, as his thoughts occasionally "spilled over").
What he could remember began around sixty years ago, in the forested Eldeen Reaches on the continent of Khorvaire, outside of the Five Kingdoms to the west of Aundair, from which the independent Reaches split during the Last War. This first set of memories involved his upbringing in the Towering Wood among the circle of druids called Oalian's Balance, a group with ideals that revolve the essential balance between civilization and nature. Here, he was taught to respect the teachings of the Great Druid Oalian and the principles of Oalian's Balance, and for many years lived and worked with them during this period in the Last War. He became proficient in their teachings and their magic, and developed a particular fondness for insects; this has greatly shaped his development, to the point were he has gained the ability to become an insect swarm himself (specifically, scarabs).
After his training, he was sent out by the druids to leave the confines of the circle, and see the world at large. The unrestrained natural environment of the Towering Wood, he was told, was insufficient to fully comprehend the teachings of their circle; Eshunu needed to see civilization, to compare and contrast it with the forests kept by the druids. It was during this period of travel, towards the end of the Last War, that Eshunu met with Stahlstrauss.
With mutual interests and little to be gained by working independently, the pair had been travelling together for a long time before being assaulted and captured in the mountains near Winterhaven, where they were chained in the dungeon of the old Shadowfell Keep. It was here that the Collective found them, and freed them in exchange for their help.
Eshunu traveled with the Eclipse Collective for months, until a fateful night during the trip across Lake Galifar from the city of Passage to the town of Delethorn in the Eldeen Reaches. While sleeping, the party's dreams were caught in a shared dream space and imprisoned there, while Eshunu and Stahlstrauss - who do not sleep - were left awake to deal with a man claiming to be an agent of something called the "Dreaming Dark." He wanted Eshunu, and when the shardmind refused, he and his mercenary (as well as some others who were deceived by this odd dream-related power) attack and killed Eshunu. The agent escaped on another boat with Eshunu's remains. He is presumed deceased without hope of resurrection.
Played by: Greg
Deva Invoker
Angelic Aspect
Level 11
It is said that, when the world was young, Eberron - the Dragon Between - was in conflict. Couatls, the winged serpents of Siberys, the Dragon Above, waged war against demons born of Khyber, the Dragon Below. The demons had allies in this war, the rakshasa, spirits of darkness, while the Couatls aligned themselves with the devas, spirits of light.
Other legends say that the devas are angels who chose to live among mortals, and adapted a form more suitable for that purpose. Still others claim they were humans who forged some kind of alliance with the gods, earning their infamous eternal life, perpetually dying and immediately passing into rebirth with only slight recollection of past lives.
Elyas had little to offer on this mystery. A scholar himself, and a devout worshiper of Aureon, he preferred facts to stories, knowledge to legends. Prior to his first meeting with the Eclipse Collective, Elyas' last reincarnation found him in Dar Ulatesh, a major port city in Sarlona, specifically, in Riedra. In this sizable metropolis, one of the largest in Riedra, Elyas witnessed first-hand the oppression of the people by the nation's "Inspired" rulers. For a time he worked diligently here to promote education of the masses (which was and still is largely outlawed), and the forbidden worship of the Sovereign Host, while pursuing his own scholarly interests when possible.
Eventually, though, it became more difficult for him to continue this life. The Inspired Lord Ulatorn, ruler of Dar Ulatesh, soon became aware of his activities. Still, Elyas persisted, until he learned of an artifact of great importance to him in Khorvaire: an ancient tome, originating at the dawn of the world, containing long-lost knowledge. He boarded a ship to the Lhazaar Principalities to pursue this rumor.
It wasn't long before he traveled into Karrnath, where, in the city of Vedykar, he was captured by the small branch of Cabor's Chains that was active in the city. When the Eclipse Collective eradicated this group of slavers, Elyas was freed alongside the other captives. He explained, in deliberately vague terms, his current goals, and the party believed they were in line with the Collective's.
Elyas traveled with the party from there on, even up to the battle with Artauche. He held Glyphstone Keep when the party pursued Remelius himself, destroying legions of the jury-rigged warforged. Though he avoided the spotlight in this battle, he was none the less integral to its success.
He died a year later, in the bowels of the Sixth Palace of the Vermishard in the ruins of Metrol, deep within the Mournlands. Though it was unknown to him, he was killed by Lythanis - a bitter twist, as the kalashtar was once, himself, a Sarlonan revolutionary.
Played by: Kevin
Kalashtar Psion
Level 5
*deceased*
Lythanis, like most kalashtar, hailed from Adar, on the continent of Sarlona - far removed from Khorvaire. As a child, he was noted by his elders to be remarkably gifted mentally, and he was raised in the temple-keep of Kasshta among some of the finest scholars the kalashtar had to offer. Here he was exposed to a great degree of magical learning and knowledge, and constantly thirsted for more. He was raised particularly in the psionic arts, taking advantage of his natural talent for it.
As he aged, Lythanis joined the ranks of the scholars who had helped to raise him, and became a teacher to another generation of gifted individuals, specializing in his own field of psionics. He taught primarily defensive and utility arts in order to help the students defend themselves against the threat of the Riedrans to the north, who fear and revile the kalashtar. But his temperament became shaky as he grew, and Lythanis began rallying his students with offensive abilities as well to lead a kind of insurgence against their oppressors.
They moved into the nearby Riedran city of Dar Mirn, and were successful in their attempts to reclaim it - for a time. The Inspired, the leaders of Riedra, were infuriated by this dissidence, and swept through Dar Mirn, killing almost all of Lythanis' small group of kalashtar followers. Lythanis himself narrowly escaped death at the hands of one of the Inspired, and though he escaped with his life, he was stricken with a strange malaise; he soon learned he was growing very slowly weaker, as though his mind was gradually losing connection with his body.
Realizing he had become a threat to his fellow kalashtar, and seeing the danger he now found himself in on Sarlona, Lythanis departed from the port temple-keep of Dvaarnava in 997 YK, bound for Khorvaire, where he remained for most of his life, constantly wary of possible retribution from the Inspired. He dearly missed his family and peers, but he knew that he could not return to Adar until he was no longer under such great pursuit. In Khorvaire, he had taken on the role of a wanderer, seeing little other option for his particular skill set and need to be constantly on the move. Lythanis was awestruck by the great hubs of civilization in Khorvaire which contrast so strongly to the small, condensed temple-keeps of his homeland, and hoped to one day visit Sharn, the greatest city of all... though this would never come to pass.
Once the constant threats and pressures that hound him subsided, Lythanis would seek to become a collector and curator of a small museum of arcane objects. He placed a high value on etiquette and proper form, and wished to purge the Inspired and their constant threat on his people. He spent most of his spare time meditating.
He met with the party on the King's Road, as they were heading towards the dragon burial site being excavated near Winterhaven. On this road, the group engaged assailing kobolds, and a passing Lythanis chose to take up arms to assist them; this choice was partially for his own protection, but also in part due to a (somewhat compassionate) whim to do this. After the battle had been resolved, Lythanis would not answer any questions about his purposes, but decided he would venture with the group until it suited him to depart.
The group was distrustful of him at first, particularly Zil'dejin, but they grew accustomed to his presence, and he proved himself several times, in battle and out. The mistrust, however, was perhaps valid; on Barrakas 13, 998 YK, he abandoned the party while they were in the Seven Pillared Hall on a quest for the Concordian Mr. Artauche. He had finally succumbed to the psychic illness wracking his mind, and became trapped in a permanent waking nightmare. No longer in control of his own body, Lythanis resurfaced in Metrol a year later. The entity possessing him was vague about its identity, but it was involved in an intricate plot to take over the city and the magebred ruling it using something called the "mind seed," which apparently was what consumed Lythanis initially.
It was in the top floor of the tower in the Fourth Palace of the Vermishard that the party fought and killed Lythanis, also fulfilling the prophetic dream of Lucan from a year before.
It was in the top floor of the tower in the Fourth Palace of the Vermishard that the party fought and killed Lythanis, also fulfilling the prophetic dream of Lucan from a year before.
