Xydryk Jhaelian

(Randy: feel free to reformat this post into your usual "character"-style.)

Xydryk Jhaelian is a tall, pale Aereni necromancer. Xydryk is of the line of Jhaelian, which is deeply spiritual, producing many of the most powerful adepts and clerics of Aerenal. His mother Shaedrin is a member of the noble house of Jhaelian, and though their relationship is close, communication between them has been infrequent since Xydryk began his quest. At age 146, he is still a young man, though he has already lived longer than the average human will. He may live for thousands of years -- he is patient, and calm.

Xydryk is searching for a way to achieve his full potential, in the hopes of being raised to the nobility and eventually to the Undying Court. His chosen path is as one of the undead hunters of the Deathguard. He does not yet have the Right of Counsel, though one of his goals is to achieve that singular recognition from the Undying Court. Accordingly, he traveled to Xen'drik on behalf of a patron in the Court, who, seeking more information about the Aereni's ancient homeland, has asked him to be his eyes in the world beyond Shae Mordai.

As an elf of Aerenal, Xydryk knows that physical appearance is ultimately irrelevant. In fact, in keeping with his Jhaelian upbringing, he has already begun the process of discarding physical beauty in preparation for Transition. Xydryk doesn't judge people by their appearance; while others may be seduced by beauty (or horrified by disfigurements), to him these are simply transitory aspects of life. His face is covered by a skull tattoo, and he has grafted undead bone to the flesh on his torso and shoulders. His long, straight black hair falls to his waist, and his raven familiar Akthryx broods upon his right shoulder.

While many consider necromancy to be the magic of death, for the Aereni it is far more. In studying death, the Aereni wizard learns about life. In studying fear, he learns about hope. To the elves of Aerenal, the study of necromancy is as much a philosophical voyage as a quest for power; the wizard's ability to strike down his enemy with a ray of enfeeblement is a side benefit of his work, not the point of it. The one path that the Aereni avoid is the creation of negatively charged undead: vampires, liches, wraiths, and the like. The Aereni believe that these creatures are anathema to life. According to Aereni lore, the deathless are sustained by the energy of Irian and the devotion of their descendents -- energy that is freely given. Negative undead take the energy they need to survive -- siphoning away the life energy of Eberron itself. Karrnathi necromancers scoff at this belief, but the Aereni take it very seriously.

To an outsider, Aereni often seem cold and repressed. This is not actually the case; the elves feel emotions as strongly as any other race. They simply don't display their feelings as blatantly as members of the younger races, and they rarely reveal their thoughts to strangers. Xydryk does possess a sense of humor, but it is quite sophisticated; his jokes may take an hour or day to come to fruition. Humans generally find Aereni humor to be dull or confusing, while the elves consider the culture of the Five Nations to be simplistic and crass -- though it can be excused on account of youth.

Full stats at rpg.benkimball.com