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EstylwenSkotinódasos
'The Stonebreaker' and 'The Mad Priest'
Species/Race: Human Inburian-Morktree native
Sex: Male
Age: 40
Court Alignment: Red Wyvern
Role: Colonel / Warrior-Priest
Appearance:
Strengths and Weaknesses
Skills:
Firebrand Leader - Skotinódasos is a leader of zealous religious movement and draws to himself a collection of people from different walks of life, skills and abilities in a more or less organized religious network of close fanatics, less extreme followers, casual supporters and loose associates clustered throughout the Morktree interior and Inburian lands.
Partisan Knowledge - Skotinódasos has spent years eluding Imperial patrols and agents throughout the Morktree-Inburian borderlands and knows not only the terrain well, and knows the smuggling routes routes through the border areas very well.
Healing Magic - Skotinódasos manifested healing magic as a young man, and sought training amongst the tribal shamanic traditions of his maternal family within the Morktree interior
Organizer - Despite a lack of formal education, Skotinódasos has proven to possess a combination of energy, charisma and attention to detail that have made him a surprisingly effective organizer.
Weaknesses:
Not A Soldier - Despite having undeniable presence and a distressing lack of fear, even on the battlefield, Skotinódasos isn't a soldier. He's not actually all that effective with either a firearm, pike, or any weapon at all for that matter. Nor is he, himself, a skilled or inspired tactician or strategist.
Enemy of the Church - Skotinódasos has been outspoken about the cozy relationship between the church and the Haltian occupation frequently highlighting the many ways the traditional faith-keepers of Inburia have thrown in with the Haltians and the total dearth of clergy amongst the rebels and agitators. His hostility has been amply returned.
Extremist - Skotinódasos active manipulation of pent up anger, rage and violence is alienating to those who've been insulated from the causes of these issues. Others worry about the growing influence former quarry slave has amassed for himself. He's bound to clash with enemies and allies alike.
Firebrand Leader - Skotinódasos is a leader of zealous religious movement and draws to himself a collection of people from different walks of life, skills and abilities in a more or less organized religious network of close fanatics, less extreme followers, casual supporters and loose associates clustered throughout the Morktree interior and Inburian lands.
Partisan Knowledge - Skotinódasos has spent years eluding Imperial patrols and agents throughout the Morktree-Inburian borderlands and knows not only the terrain well, and knows the smuggling routes routes through the border areas very well.
Healing Magic - Skotinódasos manifested healing magic as a young man, and sought training amongst the tribal shamanic traditions of his maternal family within the Morktree interior
Organizer - Despite a lack of formal education, Skotinódasos has proven to possess a combination of energy, charisma and attention to detail that have made him a surprisingly effective organizer.
Weaknesses:
Not A Soldier - Despite having undeniable presence and a distressing lack of fear, even on the battlefield, Skotinódasos isn't a soldier. He's not actually all that effective with either a firearm, pike, or any weapon at all for that matter. Nor is he, himself, a skilled or inspired tactician or strategist.
Enemy of the Church - Skotinódasos has been outspoken about the cozy relationship between the church and the Haltian occupation frequently highlighting the many ways the traditional faith-keepers of Inburia have thrown in with the Haltians and the total dearth of clergy amongst the rebels and agitators. His hostility has been amply returned.
Extremist - Skotinódasos active manipulation of pent up anger, rage and violence is alienating to those who've been insulated from the causes of these issues. Others worry about the growing influence former quarry slave has amassed for himself. He's bound to clash with enemies and allies alike.
Background:
Backstory: No one really knows Skotinódasos real name. He claims to have been born a slave and worked a quarry, thus he is often called 'Stone Breaker' as well. He also claims he descends from a mongrel family line of Inburians on his father's side and Morktree natives on his mother's - with some elgan and skultan ancestry. It is the Morktree line of his family that he attributes his magical abilities, but all of this is his own retelling.
What is known for sure is that a man matching Skotinódasos' description is referenced with Watcher reports connected to groups of escaped slaves engaged in agitation and banditry along the Morktree borderlines.
Initially considered a benign presence among the free-slaves compared to the more problematic forest and hill bandits he circulated with, many local and regional Haltian figures initially turned a blind eye to the shamanic priest and his followers. It was felt the secret slave meetings in the woods and quasi-religious services and healing helped settle the workers and that religious instruction would produce better, more docile slaves.
After a few years however, increased tensions and rising numbers of angry slaves and peasants fleeing the lands led to crack-downs on Skotinódasos healing cult. Unlike many previous bandit chiefs, Skotinódasos proved an elusive figure to track down even within imperial provinces. The peasant and slave populations greatly valued his religious teachings, and especially his healing magic, with many stories of him healing sick children and family members. Watcher reports bitterly complain that it was nearly impossible to move on him without locals, and even otherwise reliable informants became unreliable where Skotinódasos was concerned.
The crack-downs coincided with Skotinódasos turn towards more radical sermons and teachings. Increasing incidence of violence on both sides seemed to coincide, just ahead of the revolt, with Skotinódasos beginning to preach for a hard breach between humans and elgans in Inburia, and for the first time calling for a violent war of righteous retribution.
Skotinódasos was an attendee to the founding meeting of the Red Wyvern conspiracy. The only one present from a working slave or peasant background, his attendance only happened because he was already a well-known figure, and one of the organizers who'd attended on of his secret sermons invited him. His calls for a wider revolt among peasants and slaves led to him being largely side-lined during the affair. Skotinódasos was not invited to future meetings, and was rarely informed of the conspiracies wider plans.
Nonetheless he continued to be an invaluable contact for many. Though lacking in formal education, the self-taught priest proved to be a remarkably capable organizer that many of the Red Wyvern leaders found indispensable; his contacts and ability to navigate and arrange clandestine passage for both men and materiel being extraordinary. Despite this, he had no formal role in the organization and his contributions were anecdotal while he continued his own movement.
Skotinódasos was caught off guard when the Red Wyvern banner was raised, as he assumed he would be informed ahead of time.
He and what followers arrived at the Red Wyvern camp, finding it in a state of general disarray. As he and his followers possessed no military training or experience to speak of, he was largely relegated to a camp follower role, tending the wounded. Despite lacking any command authority to do so, he devoted much of his spare time to trying to help shore up badly mismanaged logistics while providing intelligence from his contacts. He was frequently reprimanded by army leadership, both for the break in discipline and concerns his followers comings and goings would compromise the camp to the Haltians.
Tensions continued between the priest and prominent Red Wyvern leadership figures. His supporters argued he provided badly needed moral and direction to the army, and his contacts and partisans were not being properly utilized. His detractors argued the man's promotion of unfettered violence among the slave and peasant populations did more harm to the cause than his merits could support.
Ahead of the Battle of Rodelkog, Skotinódasos held his largest sermon yet in which Elga prisoners taken by his partisans and smuggled into the camp were sacrificed. Though many were put off by this, many peasants and slaves availed themselves of the grand ritual he offered - promising to use his magics and the favour of heretical gods and spirits to weave protective magics that would protect men variously from spirits of fear that weakened men's hearts, and that would protect those of the faith even from Imperial bullets.
In spite of his obvious popularity - or perhaps because of it - Skotinódasos was assigned to the rear of the battle, healing the wounded and away from the fighting.
He did not stay there.
Amidst mounting, catastrophic losses the story goes that while treating the wounded, the makeshift station they'd setup was beset by men routing from the imperial forces.
Enraged, Skotinódasos and some of his supporters abandoned their posts to harangue, harass and - allegedly - beat these men back into and impromptu battle line. Many of the particulars of what occurred are pure fabrications by Skotinódasos or his followers, but many of the broad details remain based in fact.
One of the most often and vividly encountered memories of the battle shared by rebel and imperial survivors alike involve the so-called 'Mad Priest'. Most everyone recalls some story of this man, face beat-red, yelling like a lunatic while leading unarmoured and barely armed slaves and peasants through roiling clouds of smoke, tripping over bodies of their dead comrades in wave after awave after wave against armoured and disciplined imperial troops while the chanting of "Elefthería í Thánatos" - Liberty or Death - was said to be so loud that it drowned out the sounds of volleyed gunfire.
Skotinódasos himself was wounded three times. Men say the third time he was shot, he collapsed as though dead, and while he was carried from the battlefield, a young field slave named Georgios rushed from the lines to take up his place and led three more pushes against the line before he too was shot.
Cementing his legend, Skotinódasos allegedly came to and recovered enough to dramatically reappear in the final stages of the battle; having rallied yet another band of men to join the final push.
Though publicly affirming the result to be a vindication of the gods' and spirits' support of their righteous cause - privately Skotinódasos viewed the battle as a total and complete debacle, having witnessed the lack of preparation, organization and incompetence of leadership among the Red Wyverns first hand. Thereafter he was by far the loudest, most irreverently outspoken critic of the lack of organization, training and discipline that had been allowed to fester unchecked among the slaves and peasants that made up the bulk of the army. To this end he began organizing his camp followers into a new model battalion, The Hierós Lóchos or 'Sacred Battalion', drawing the most fanatical and zealous peasants and slaves as well as many former Owned Men veterans who see Skotinódasos as a badly needed voice of reform; demanding of them a total devotion to their training, duties and discipline.
Many view Skotinódasos as - obviously - a madman. Heresy. Black magic. Human - or at least elgan - sacrifices. Even setting these aside there are other obvious signs of his insanity, like the fact he and his core of fanatics refuse to accept either coin or any other form of payment for their services. Or their openly espousing the view that peasant and slave rabble, led by men without prior military training or experience, can not only meet a professional army on the open battlefield on equal footing, but smash them. His rising prominence, and inciteful rhetoric seems to promise worse things to come: he promises a storm of violence and insists any attempt to rid the world of the orcish blight will fail unless the elgan blight is first beaten back. Only then, he claims, will the Dawnbringer bring about the salvation of mankind.
After the bloodbath at Rodelkog, Skotinódasos has been far more proactive, throwing himself into preparing for and organizing a properly coordinated uprising among his growing network of contacts, trying to raise as slaves and peasants as he can across Inburia into a wildfire campaign of violence; replacing and swelling Red Wyvern's losses from the battle, keeping the Inburians on the back foot, and giving the central army badly needed time to properly organize and train itself to meet the Haltians on equal terms.
What is known for sure is that a man matching Skotinódasos' description is referenced with Watcher reports connected to groups of escaped slaves engaged in agitation and banditry along the Morktree borderlines.
Initially considered a benign presence among the free-slaves compared to the more problematic forest and hill bandits he circulated with, many local and regional Haltian figures initially turned a blind eye to the shamanic priest and his followers. It was felt the secret slave meetings in the woods and quasi-religious services and healing helped settle the workers and that religious instruction would produce better, more docile slaves.
After a few years however, increased tensions and rising numbers of angry slaves and peasants fleeing the lands led to crack-downs on Skotinódasos healing cult. Unlike many previous bandit chiefs, Skotinódasos proved an elusive figure to track down even within imperial provinces. The peasant and slave populations greatly valued his religious teachings, and especially his healing magic, with many stories of him healing sick children and family members. Watcher reports bitterly complain that it was nearly impossible to move on him without locals, and even otherwise reliable informants became unreliable where Skotinódasos was concerned.
The crack-downs coincided with Skotinódasos turn towards more radical sermons and teachings. Increasing incidence of violence on both sides seemed to coincide, just ahead of the revolt, with Skotinódasos beginning to preach for a hard breach between humans and elgans in Inburia, and for the first time calling for a violent war of righteous retribution.
Skotinódasos was an attendee to the founding meeting of the Red Wyvern conspiracy. The only one present from a working slave or peasant background, his attendance only happened because he was already a well-known figure, and one of the organizers who'd attended on of his secret sermons invited him. His calls for a wider revolt among peasants and slaves led to him being largely side-lined during the affair. Skotinódasos was not invited to future meetings, and was rarely informed of the conspiracies wider plans.
Nonetheless he continued to be an invaluable contact for many. Though lacking in formal education, the self-taught priest proved to be a remarkably capable organizer that many of the Red Wyvern leaders found indispensable; his contacts and ability to navigate and arrange clandestine passage for both men and materiel being extraordinary. Despite this, he had no formal role in the organization and his contributions were anecdotal while he continued his own movement.
Skotinódasos was caught off guard when the Red Wyvern banner was raised, as he assumed he would be informed ahead of time.
He and what followers arrived at the Red Wyvern camp, finding it in a state of general disarray. As he and his followers possessed no military training or experience to speak of, he was largely relegated to a camp follower role, tending the wounded. Despite lacking any command authority to do so, he devoted much of his spare time to trying to help shore up badly mismanaged logistics while providing intelligence from his contacts. He was frequently reprimanded by army leadership, both for the break in discipline and concerns his followers comings and goings would compromise the camp to the Haltians.
Tensions continued between the priest and prominent Red Wyvern leadership figures. His supporters argued he provided badly needed moral and direction to the army, and his contacts and partisans were not being properly utilized. His detractors argued the man's promotion of unfettered violence among the slave and peasant populations did more harm to the cause than his merits could support.
Ahead of the Battle of Rodelkog, Skotinódasos held his largest sermon yet in which Elga prisoners taken by his partisans and smuggled into the camp were sacrificed. Though many were put off by this, many peasants and slaves availed themselves of the grand ritual he offered - promising to use his magics and the favour of heretical gods and spirits to weave protective magics that would protect men variously from spirits of fear that weakened men's hearts, and that would protect those of the faith even from Imperial bullets.
In spite of his obvious popularity - or perhaps because of it - Skotinódasos was assigned to the rear of the battle, healing the wounded and away from the fighting.
He did not stay there.
Amidst mounting, catastrophic losses the story goes that while treating the wounded, the makeshift station they'd setup was beset by men routing from the imperial forces.
Enraged, Skotinódasos and some of his supporters abandoned their posts to harangue, harass and - allegedly - beat these men back into and impromptu battle line. Many of the particulars of what occurred are pure fabrications by Skotinódasos or his followers, but many of the broad details remain based in fact.
One of the most often and vividly encountered memories of the battle shared by rebel and imperial survivors alike involve the so-called 'Mad Priest'. Most everyone recalls some story of this man, face beat-red, yelling like a lunatic while leading unarmoured and barely armed slaves and peasants through roiling clouds of smoke, tripping over bodies of their dead comrades in wave after awave after wave against armoured and disciplined imperial troops while the chanting of "Elefthería í Thánatos" - Liberty or Death - was said to be so loud that it drowned out the sounds of volleyed gunfire.
Skotinódasos himself was wounded three times. Men say the third time he was shot, he collapsed as though dead, and while he was carried from the battlefield, a young field slave named Georgios rushed from the lines to take up his place and led three more pushes against the line before he too was shot.
Cementing his legend, Skotinódasos allegedly came to and recovered enough to dramatically reappear in the final stages of the battle; having rallied yet another band of men to join the final push.
Though publicly affirming the result to be a vindication of the gods' and spirits' support of their righteous cause - privately Skotinódasos viewed the battle as a total and complete debacle, having witnessed the lack of preparation, organization and incompetence of leadership among the Red Wyverns first hand. Thereafter he was by far the loudest, most irreverently outspoken critic of the lack of organization, training and discipline that had been allowed to fester unchecked among the slaves and peasants that made up the bulk of the army. To this end he began organizing his camp followers into a new model battalion, The Hierós Lóchos or 'Sacred Battalion', drawing the most fanatical and zealous peasants and slaves as well as many former Owned Men veterans who see Skotinódasos as a badly needed voice of reform; demanding of them a total devotion to their training, duties and discipline.
Many view Skotinódasos as - obviously - a madman. Heresy. Black magic. Human - or at least elgan - sacrifices. Even setting these aside there are other obvious signs of his insanity, like the fact he and his core of fanatics refuse to accept either coin or any other form of payment for their services. Or their openly espousing the view that peasant and slave rabble, led by men without prior military training or experience, can not only meet a professional army on the open battlefield on equal footing, but smash them. His rising prominence, and inciteful rhetoric seems to promise worse things to come: he promises a storm of violence and insists any attempt to rid the world of the orcish blight will fail unless the elgan blight is first beaten back. Only then, he claims, will the Dawnbringer bring about the salvation of mankind.
After the bloodbath at Rodelkog, Skotinódasos has been far more proactive, throwing himself into preparing for and organizing a properly coordinated uprising among his growing network of contacts, trying to raise as slaves and peasants as he can across Inburia into a wildfire campaign of violence; replacing and swelling Red Wyvern's losses from the battle, keeping the Inburians on the back foot, and giving the central army badly needed time to properly organize and train itself to meet the Haltians on equal terms.