Torwen Foxheart
A largely nomadic people, the Strongheart Halflings are roaming clans of culture and vitality, dotting the southern landscapes of Faerun with their memorably militant ways. One of the sacred places, the Wild Rock Oracle upon the Arnrock within the Lake of Steam, serves as neutral ground and a focal meeting point for all the Strongheart clans, friend and foe alike. Every three turnings of the seasons, a new clan is selected to serve as the oracle’s keepers and protectors.
The Hearthblade clan, renowned for their facility with crafting and employing a wide assortment of Halfling sized pole arms, was serving as keepers of Wild Rock during their first summer season when the Crimson Pox came upon the land. With little warning, a red speckled fever erupted, the living began to die, and the dead began to rise and wreak havoc upon their kin.
This blight, which nearly consumed the entirety of the Arnrock’s population, left the Hearthblade clan decimated and the Wild Rock Oracle eerily silent. The shattered remnants of the war council turned to the head shaman of the clan for guidance, and upon hearing the pontification of the oracle’s wisdom, a decision was made.
Most of the Hearthblade clan would be needed to remain upon the Arnrock to prevent the other clans from encountering the Crimson Pox and to protect the weakened oracle. Several able clansmen would be sent to the mainland to uncover the truth of what happened. With luck, the pox could be cured, and the oracle restored before any dishonor could descend upon the Hearthblade clan at the end of their three year protectorate.
The shaman elder pulled aside one of the departing Halflings and entrusted him with two items of importance, as was predetermined by one of the very items itself. The Prophecy of Wild Rock Oracle is an enchanted litany of the events unfolding and would serve as guide to the journey ahead. The second item, Ghoulbane, is an ancient amulet that wards against the minions of the dead and promises to serve as an integral key in unlocking the Crimson Pox mystery.
Torwen Foxheart is the Halfling to whom these items are entrusted. With the parting words of the shaman still ringing in his mind, “Seek ye allies in the adventurer’s city of Splondar, but ‘ware the name Toth-Za’zil,” the Strongheart Halfling set out to seek his fate.