Presenting: Riswynn Grabthar - A Dwarf Paladin For An RPG Campaign
A few days ago I presented Realgar Grabthar a dwarf wizard obsessed with finding the secret of forging magical weapons.
Today I'll share the details and history of his twin sister, Riswynn, a Paladin.
based on this image from pinterest with a slightly different head
Riswynn Grabthar was born in 1425, 70 years ago. She was born to Clan Grabthar residing in Citadel Adbar, in the north east of the sword coast.
Although the Shield Dwarves used to rule vast kingdoms, they have been in decline for centuries. Their birth rate has always been much slower than that of their mortal enemies, the goblinoid races (kobolds, orcs, goblins, hobgoblins etc’). In this past century however, something happened to bring about a spike in births. It used to be rare to get more than a single child at birth but now twins were far more common. With the blessing of Moradin, Riswynn has a twin brother, Realgar.
Riswynn and Realgar’s father is Thoradin Grabthar, a master smith for the clan and their mother is Ilda, a priestess of Dumathoin. Since Thoradin and Ilda were very devout, their children grew up venerating all the old gods. Riswynn’s favorites were Moradin, the All-Father and Dumathoin, the Keeper of Secrets under the Mountain.
Riswynn had a pretty standard dwarvish upbringing. She loved to listen to stories about the old dwarf heroes and kingdoms. Of the desperate stands and successful battles that were fought to expand and preserve the old dwarven kingdoms. While Realgar preferred to watch their father at the forge, Riswynn spent time with her mother at the temple of Dumathoin, learning the rituals and ways of the clergy. Her temperament wasn’t right for the clergy however, so she chose a different path and joined the clan’s standing army.
Riswynn’s dedication and discipline were noticed and rewarded. In due time, after about 20 years, she was promoted to an officer and given command of her own squad. Just about that time there was a growing trickle of monsters from the deep tunnels under the citadel.
There were only a few goblinoids at first but then the numbers grew, forcing the building of permanent fortifications and the abandonment of some of the older tunnels. Even as the dwarves were hard at work, the number of incursions increased and their composition evolved. They were no longer just goblinoids. Now there were monsters in the mix and undead as well. The invading parties grew stronger and stronger until the clan council had to concede that it looked like a deliberate attempt at seizing the citadel.
Rather than staying on the defensive the council decided to equip and send a sizable force down into the underdark to try and track the source of these incursions. Riswynn was one of the officers sent out, as part of a force numbering some 1,500 dwarves, clerics included.
They trekked for weeks in the dangerous underdark, following in the tracks of the invaders until they came to what appeared as the seat of power for this evil force deep underground. A partially ruined temple dedicated to Shar. Some evil force still lingered there and a large infestation of various undead was pouring forth. Not just the usual skeletons and zombies, they were also facing mummies, wraiths, ghouls, wraiths and ghosts.
The dwarven army was well prepared for undead but not at these numbers. They found themselves slowly retreating as the undead hoard advanced on them. Unit after unit was lost, holding passages to allow their brethren to retreat. Their moral suffered further when their fallen comrades were later encountered as newly risen undead, seeking their former companion’s life and blood.
The clerics needed a place to make a stand, possibly call on their deities to consecrate a good position and try and hold it. it was clear that if this army couldn’t hold, then the undead hoard will eventually take Citadel Adbar and after that spread across the sword coast.
A natural cavern with quartz veins in the walls was chosen as the holding ground, and the clerics began their work. It was a lengthy ceremony – 24 hours of concentration. Should they succeed, the cavern will prevent any undead from crossing it. The rest of the army was tasked with keeping the undead away from the clerics and collapsing any side tunnel that might allow the hoard a way to bypass the chokepoint.
Riswynn was leading one of the units collapsing tunnels when a runner came to find her. A large force of undead was spotted in a side tunnel. The force laying in wait wasn’t strong enough to hold it. Should Riswynn’s unit join forces with them they might hold, but the tunnel she was originally sent to still needed to collapse.
Riswynn decided to leave a small detachment behind to finish tearing down the tunnel and rushed to the aid of the threatened unit. They were almost overwhelmed but eventually held their ground. The force she left behind to collapse the tunnel was lost. There were no survivors. They managed to tear down most of the tunnel but apparently the force that came down that partially collapsed tunnel was more than they could handle.
Riswynn was devastated. She made the right decision for the right reason, but still ended up loosing most of her forces to the undead. The good of the many, the army, the people left behind in the citadel, outweigh the good of the few or the one. But it didn’t make it any easier.
Upon their return to the consecrated cavern Riswynn had an epiphany. She sensed a powerful divine presence warming her, shielding her. There was a promise in that presence. A present she could choose to take if she would swear herself to its service.
For the first time since her childhood Riswynn felt the presence of Dumathoin. The God offered her power. She had to choose how to channel it. still angry at the evil seething under her home she swore an oath of vengeance. She would fight evil wherever she found it, but the greater evil had to come first. Had the dwarves realized that the orcs they first encountered were fleeing the undead an alliance might have come to pass. With greater forces the threat might have been averted before it became so dire. Riswynn swore she would do her best to be more vigilant, to keep her eyes and mind open and not make assumptions based on race or hearsay. Orcs might win her mercy but undead were vile creatures, incapable of reason. None of them would ever be speared if she had anything to say about it.
As she kneeled on that cavern floor murmuring her prayers and vows to Dumathoin, the quartz veins in the walls began to glow with a golden light. The cavern was lit by natural sunlight, magically transported deep into the underdark.
The healing warmth of the sun stayed throughout the day as what was left of the army rested and tended their wounded. At night the light became white and the cavern was lit as if by a full moon. The next morning the sunlight came back. The clerics swore they have never heard of such a result and were gratified that the gods looked kindly on this endeavor.
The Sun Cavern, as it was now known, was only three days march from the lower gates of Adbar. The dwarves later turned the cavern into a temple and installed fortifications all around it, to be prepared if another hoard ever decided to make its way to their home.
Riswynn left the army when she came back and spent some time training with the power bestowed upon her by Dumathoin. She constantly felt the call to action, the urge to go hunting, so as soon as she judged herself ready she left home in search of undead to smite. In her heart, she felt that any more death coming from these vile monsters is only due to her tardiness in granting their souls eternal peace.
Appearance – like her brother, Riswynn has red hair and Blue-gray eyes. In Riswynn her ancestors’ inclination for strength has been fully realized. She is very strong, and she has become even more so after her revelation in the Sun Cavern. While before she used a shield and sword, she has now switched her weapon to a giant maul, a weapon built to commemorate the clan’s ancestor Grabthar. Despite her years with the army Riswynn has no scars on her. In fact, she is quite striking and the quiet intensity of her gaze as well as the confidence with which she holds herself seems to draw people.
Again, like her brother, Riswynn is methodical, logical and a perfectionist. She likes to think things through if possible, looking at all the angles. She tries not to strike in anger, unless some undead are involved. Then she is filled with holy wrathful fire and she’ll fight to the end to rid the world of their filth.
Riswynn is equipped with a full suite of plate armor made by her father. Aside from her maul she carries several javelins for use in case the enemy isn’t as close as she’d like, but she prefers to work up close and personal.
I hope you've enjoyed learning about Riswynn. Feel free to drop her into your game at any time – I think she’ll make an interesting NPC.
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