Biography: Gorvath was the budding young son of Lord Emeralt, a renowned advisor to the Imperial Court. From the moment of his birth, it was clear to all - especially his power craving father - that he had a special, yet forbidden gift.
He was merely six months old when a nursing maid noticed an odd phenomenon; dead flies in the child's room would seemingly reanimate, and buzz around clumsily as if intoxicated. To a trained eye, this was a sure sign that the boy had necromantic powers, which were by their very nature outlawed by the Empire. Anyone who had such powers was to be sent to special schools, where they would be "disarmed" by Holy men, and returned to their lives without their powers.
Lord Emeralt however, had other designs. In secret, he arranged for Gorvath's tutorage in necromancy by Gazmand the Black - a notorious necromancer who had for many years been believed dead, but was found and employed thanks to Emeralt's far reaching influences within the Imperial institution. By the time he was fourteen, Gorvath's powers surpassed that of Gazmand's, and he was ready to fulfil his father's desires.
Emeralt planned to cause an unholy undead plague through the Imperial Capital, and would use his son to command an army of corpses to assault the Palace - where they would slay the Emperor. In the chaos, Emeralt would emerge as the Empire's saviour, and would be crowned as the next Emperor; his ambitions of ultimate power would finally be realised.
However, Emeralt's plan was uncovered by the Emperor's servants, and he was summarily executed as he made his way through the council chambers. A group of soldiers were sent to find Gorvath, and to put him and his family to the sword - a regrettable act, but by now it was believed that the boy was too dangerous to let live. Sure enough, they arrived at Emeralt Manor, and slew every man, woman and child within the residence.
But Gorvath was not there. Instead, he had gone for a morning stroll to clear his mind; his conscience battled itself over the fulfilment of his father's wishes. Just as he had come to the conclusion that his father's plans were wicked, and therefore he could not obey them, he spotted a column of smoke rising from the direction of his home.
The soldiers were gone by the time he arrived, leaving him to look on with terror, despair and dismay as his home burned - with his mother, sisters and brothers inside. He fled shortly after, vanishing from the face of the earth.
Ten years later...It started as a few riots on the Empire's outskirts, usually in remote villages or market towns. No one of importance took much notice, and the troubles were left to be dealt with by local sheriffs and garrisons.
However, by the time the Emperor and his advisers grasped what was happening, it was too late. Entire cities had been contaminated by a plague. This illness not only carried a high mortality rate, but it also turned its victims into undead carriers. Quarantines were enacted across wide swathes of the Empire; some towns were outright burned to the ground, and thousands of people who were thought to be sick with the disease, were killed out right by the Emperor's soldiers.
In the Province of Ameriel, a large host of plague victims have gathered into a formidable force, and are threatening the Provincial Capital of Ameriel City. At their head, is Gorvath Emeralt, or as some folk have come to call him: Gorvath the Wronged. He promises vengence on all those who had a stake in the slaughter of his family, and will not stop until the Empire has been torn down by the hungry hands of his zombie horde.
Personal equipment and skills: In life, Gorvath was a sickly looking youth, with pale skin, thick greasy black hair and pale blue eyes. It was often joked that he could barely support the weight of his robes, let alone that of a sword.
In death - for Gorvath is not one of the living - he is a towering, muscled monster of dark plate and hatred. He has imbued his soul with his sword,
Vengeance, and it is the key to destroying his powers and the hold he has over the undead. However, the weapon cannot be broken by mortal means, and requires the works of a Holy man to dismantle.
Gorvath can not be killed by normal weapons; indeed, it would take some very powerful magic to threaten him. However, he can be hurt and slowed. Only by destroying Vengeance, can an adversary hope to slay him.
His shield, aptly named
Blind, has the ability to suck life from a living creature, replacing it with unholy necromancy. It is the means by which he commands his undead henchmen - destroying it will interfere with his control over them. However, a feral zombie with no leadership is still a fearsome foe.
