Accepted characters

BACKGROUND
Marcus Crowley was the only son of Farmer Dwayne Crowley and Martha Crowley. He was human same as his mother father and sister Heather Crowley. But he was touched by the same dark heritage that coursed through the Crowley bloodline and killed his grand father Samuel Crowley, 10 years ago. His grand father was a Sorcerer who made a dark pact with a demon to gain access to infernal powers and Eldritch powers, and was told that the price would be a son of a different kind that would pay the price for his mistakes. The grand father who was 20 at the time was young and foolish, only thinking of the power he could wield in hope of becoming a King’s Magus one day. But he died while out adventuring 10 years after giving birth to his son. His son did not possess any magical power and never talked about his dad. Dwayne grew up as a poor pig farmer in the small village of Hopes Spring within the New Tarnia Empire. He met Martha Crowley who was a cattle farmer from the neighboring village of Kurgans Keep. They met and fell in love and she moved to Hopes Spring and they started a farm of there own were they raised two children.

Their first kid, a daughter named Heather was a dream come true and everything they could hope for. She was saving herself from marriage and always did the right thing. She helped out around the farm and raised enough money herself to go away to an Academic college for 4 years and learn how to read and right as well as business skills. She then came back and met a half elf laborer who built houses named Solomon King, and although she was only 15 and he was 19 it was love at first sight. Heather married him two years later and they built a small home 150 feet from the farm and she continued to work full time at the Farm. They had their troubles as every couple does but they remained happy. Heather, whom always thought her younger brother of 5 years was weird and spent way too much time alone, still loved him very much. She always looked out for him and was very happy when Solomon offered him his first job as a carpenter’s assistant when Marcus was 10.

Marcus who was their second born turned out to be a different shade of problems all together. He was a kid who never cried and seemed to have bright inquisitive eyes that took in their surroundings. The local village shaman said that their child had very bright but dark omens in store for his future. When Marcus was 5 years old the trouble really begun to fester and problems started to occur. He lost interest in things farming and never seemed to want to do what he was told. It was as if he had a chaotic spirit and he was often caught talking to himself alone in the barn or in the kitchen. He was even found one time in the kitchen coup with a bloodied kitchen knife and 13 dead chickens. When his parents asked him what happened he simply told them in calm but creepy voice with eyes that looked scared, that a man named Drakon told him he needed to practice spilling blood for what was in store in the future. His parents did not know it at the time and neither did Marcus but Drakon was actually a demon from the fifth plane and the same one who gave the powers to his grand father. Marcus was indeed a Warlock and Drakon had planned on teaching Marcus everything he needed to know about demons and murder.

However things don’t always go as planned. For the next five years Dwayne and Martha tried every specialist, shaman, healer and sage they could pay for and find but no one could ever figure out what was wrong with Marcus and Marcus was very quite and aside from the occasional dead animal, small fire, or strange cuts and bruises he seemed to have he was very nice and polite as well as smart. He could read and write by simply reading the books that Heather brought back, and he learned tasks by simply watching them being performed. When Marcus was 10 years old he finally understood that his imaginary friend Drakon was not only real but not of this world. It didn’t help that for the last two months he had been practicing his eldritch blast in the woods and on an occasional pig.

When Solomon gave him his first job as a Carpenter’s assistant, Drakon showed up again and told him to burn down a house they just finished and kill the widowed mother and two teenage daughters inside. When the 12 year old Marcus refused, Drakon torched the building and slashed at Marcus’s face with his clawed hand searing the flesh and clipping the ear in a rage. Then the mysterious demon disappeared into the darkness as if that was what he was created out of. His parents came just in time to see Marcus using his Eldritch blast to blast out a window and part of a wall, while carrying the family out. When Martha, Dwayne, Heather and Solomon got to the scene, only one daughter had survived and the house was up in flame. Marcus was staring at the ground with red glowing hands and he was crying. When they asked him what was wrong he told them about what had been going on the past couple years.

The family was very supportive but decided to keep it a secret and told him to tell no one else. Hopes Spring was a small hamlet built around 30 different farms in a 15 mile radius. Hopes Spring was a small wooden village with 60 some odd residents residing within the wooden walls. Out of the 60 residents, only 12 served as the town guard and city militia. Marcus lived in a farm 2 miles from the city and in small grassland plain. Marcus was ridden with guilt and decided to stop practicing magic and calling himself a Warlock and instead went back to working on the farm and as a Carpenter. Solomon was also a Sgt. In the town militia and taught him about combat, weapons and armor. By the time Marcus was 16 he figured he would never get off the farm and adventure, but at least he was safe and Drakon seemed to want nothing more to do with him.

He could not have been more wrong. Drakon appeared one night in his room at exactly two minutes to midnight and told him that if he didn’t come with him right now to the land of demons he would make sure Marcus was punished in the flame of man. Drakon not only refused but he surprised the demon by launching an Eldritch blast at the demon and while Drakon was distracted he stabbed him through the chest with his short sword. The demon Drakon laughed and vanished once again into the darkness. Later that night his mother’s body was found in the woods apparently mauled to death on the main path from the farm to the city by a pack of wolves. The only problem with that was wolfs never attacked on the main path because of the two guards that patrolled the area regularly and were not common to the region. But then Marcus found out what happened when Solomon came to the house grim faced and put Marcus in manacles saying he had 12 witnesses that put Marcus outside the village were the body of two guards were found with burnt holes riddled through their body. So Marcus was dragged to jail were the town folks threw rocks at him and labeled him a “witch”.

Heather was determined to prove his innocence but was cut short from trying when her father’s house burnt down. Marcus had spent two nights in jail when another inmate in there suddenly surprised the guards by throwing a lightning bolt at them and fried the two jailers killing them instantly. He then turned to Marcus and grinned telling him to either come with him or stay or die. Marcus thought briefly about fighting him but knew that he was no match for this man and that he was more scared then he ought to be. So Marcus followed the man out of the jail house. The man then turned into Drakon and grinned telling Marcus that he was capable of more powers then he realized. Marcus once again refused him and Drakon slashed him across the right arm digging in with another claw before laughing and disappearing into the night. Drakon went to his house and slashed up his father ripping him limb from limb then burnt down the farm.

Marcus awoke outside the farm covered in blood with a pitchfork next to him and a bloodied knife in his hand. Villagers were pointing clubs, spears and crossbows at him and his sister was on her knees screaming and crying. It was only after Solomon kicked him in the ribs and manacled him roughly that he realized his father was dead and he was being blamed for it. This time when he was put in jail they kept him there manacled to the jail house wall and sentenced to public hanging. However during the next week he was kept in jail 20 farms were burnt down outside of town the same way with bodies arranged outside and messages written in blood on the lawn. The messages were all the same, “you may have me in jail buy my powers are not of mortal man and my carnage knows no bounds-Marcus”. Marcus had given up and was waiting for the cold escape of death.

That never came though. 20 angry villagers stormed the jail house and killed the jailer inside in order to bust him out of jail. This only left 7 town militia men, including Solomon. Solomon however and two others were in the mob and Solomon had become a much different man. He told Marcus that he would make sure his dark arts would never spawn forth and the Crowley line would end tonight. Then Solomon removed his cloak and cowl showing a suit of gold and blue plate mail. Solomon was apparently a Church Inquisitor, and Paladin of the Order of St. Cuthbert. He told Marcus how last night he killed Heather and their two children Stacy and Jen to make sure the bloodline died. Tonight it was Marcus’s turn. Marcus could see how crazed Solomon was and how dangerous he was. However everything Marcus said fell on deaf ears, as he was stripped naked and nailed to a cross. His arms were hung over his head and driven into the palms were 4 inch carpenter’s nails. His ankles were bound by barbed wire and hooked nails were driven into the barbed wire that held him to the giant wooden cross. A pile of oil soaked wood lay at his feet and the town intended to burn him to death.

Solomon raised the torch and said a loud prayer to St. Cuthbert, which ended with an arrow sticking out the front of his head. As Solomon fell to the ground 100 Orc Berserkers stormed the gates and entered the town killing everything they saw, led by Drakon. Drakon walked up to Marcus and grinned forcing him to watch the slaughter of the village as well as the village being burnt to the ground. When every one was killed the orcs all formed a large circle around Marcus and grinned wielding their axes and swords in the air dripping blood. Drakon grinned and offered him one last time to join him as his servant and forever be his apprentice. Marcus having cried all he could and haven given up completely simply spit in his face. Drakon was about to raise his dagger and pierce the heart of Marcus, when a powerful horn sounded.

The orcs and Drakon turned as one as a war wagon came charging into town with 60 armored horseman with banners of St. Cuthbert on them and glowing swords. Marcus cried out in relief and fired and Eldritch blast that knocked Drakon to the ground. The orcs charged forward to meet the paladins and were slaughtered within minutes. Markus was shooting Eldritch blasts at Drakon that only served to keep him off balanced and confused as 13 paladins rode up and attacked the demon. Once Drakon realized he was out numbered he vanished. Out of the 60 armored horsemen 46 survived. A tall man with a golden mustache and long wavy golden hair stepped off his horse and hollered for one of the Paladins to stop. One of the younger paladins was about to chop of the head of Marcus when the elder Paladin stopped him. The mustached paladin introduced himself as Brom Ironhide and said he was the General of the small legion of St. Cuthbert. Also said he was sorry for the way that Solomon reacted to Marcus.

Marcus was cut down and healed of his injuries as well as being given a traveler’s outfit to wear. The paladins were still wary of him and kept there distance as they went to burying the dead and burning the corpses of the orcs. Marcus was sick of crying and sick of feeling sorry for himself so he just sat on the back of the wagon and watched the paladins go to work. He touched the clawed scar on his face and knew what he was going to do with his life now. He was offered to be taken back to the nearest temple with the war wagon and told them no thanks, but he would take them up on the offer off a horse and sword. He explained that he was going to learn about demons and how to take them down. The paladins seemed genuinely concerned about this but impressed. They gave him a scimitar made out of cold iron and a suit of leather armor, as well as a heavy warhorse and told him good luck.

Marcus spent the next 4 years of his life traveling and learning about demons and other supernatural creatures. He became a bounty hunter and spent his time hunting and tracking criminals. All the while looking for traces of demonic activity and traces of dark mages and sages. Marcus specialized in hunting rogue spell casters and evil warlocks Marcus wanted to make Drakon pay and make sure nothing ever happened to anyone else that happened to him. Marcus worked with adventuring parties and did a lot of solo work and his reputation as a small time bounty hunter grew while he did this. He however grew no closer to finding Drakon or stopping demons. The closet he got was capturing a Tiefling Wizard who was trying to start a cult dedicated to the slaughter of female virgins.

Marcus however is dedicating the rest of his life to hunting down anyone who breaks the law or does something they’re not supposed to do. He will work with others when the time comes for it, but prefers to work alone. He is always worried about others getting killed on behalf of what he does and the way he does it. Out of all the adventuring parties he has been with he has had this uncanny ability to survive when others died. This has made him rather hesitant to join any group but he knows that sometimes for the greater good a force of many is stronger then the force of one. He is still rather hesitant about using his magic in public and refrains from letting on that he is a warlock unless it is absolutely necessary. He has a hard time trusting people and is afraid he will be labeled as a witch and someone will try to burn him at the stake again.

Marcus hardly ever talks but when it does he usually has something important to say. His voice is blunt and very direct, skipping past subtle nuisances and diplomatic decorum. He seems to constantly be on the look out for danger, and never seems to be completely at rest. Marcus is very careful and has trained himself to react to just about any sort of dangerous situation. He trusts just about no one and accepts everyone to be a possible threat or traitor. He never miss judges an opponent and never completely trusts a comrade. He is intelligent but never completely forthright with information. He is constantly testing everyone, including himself and hardly ever smiles unless he is impressed with something. He is not a completely dark and quiet loner though; he does engage in occasional small talk and is friendly with certain women at taverns as well. He is not a social butterfly but he does fit in as an out of town mercenary for hire. He is polite, well mannered, well read and knowledgeable on many different subjects. But he keeps too himself and is not very open about his past or his emotions. Not to mention, he has a slight fear of the dark. Preferring to keep a candle or Eldritch blast handy to light up any dark area.

DESCRIPTION
Marcus is lean and strong from his years of manual work. He stand at 5’10 and weighs in at 165 lbs. He has dark brown hair that is cut short to the scalp and low in the back. His eyes are as blue as the ocean and about as deep. His face is youthful but haggard as well. A scar runs from his right ear to his lower jaw that looks like it might be from a bear’s claw. His hands have stigmata wounds on them but are mostly covered with leather gloves. He dressed in dark clothing and favors many pockets and durable boots over anything fashionable. He wears an Explorer’s outfit with a circle stitched in the back with red stitching and an eyeball stitched in the middle made out blue, gold and brown thread. His voice is soft yet pleasant to listen to and has a very assertive yet cautionary tone to it. His skin his rough and weathered from many years out doors and he walks with a sense of purpose and determination. His Eldritch blasts are dark red with a small black inner core.

The following is present in the Character History. As well as also being used for inspiration for the character, and will be coming up through roleplay with the character.
IRON MAIDEN "Run To the Hills"
IRON MAIDEN "The Trooper"
IRON MAIDEN "Hallowed Be They Name"
IRON MAIDEN "The Number of the Beast"
IRON MAIDEN "Fear of the Dark"
IRON MAIDEN "2 minutes to Midnight"
IRON MAIDEN "The Prisoner"
IRON MAIDEN "Children Of The Damned"

Thanos stands 6'0" tall and weighing in at 180 pounds he looks like someone who can take care of himself. He keeps his hair cut short, which, despite his young age has turned a greyish white and makes him stand out, sometimes more than he wishes. He's not one for fancy clothes or fashion, preferring practical outfits in dark or earthy colors, but he does make it a point to take good care of what he has and his equipment is always well maintained.

To say Thanos has had a complicated life so far would be an understatement. It'd also be completely wrong. While he does have what most would consider a tragic past his choices has never been complicated, it's been what has been the easiest and best for him at any given time.

Thanos was born right after his brother and turned out to be the weaker of the two boys as far as health went. While he did eventually grow out of it his near constant illnesses as a child got both him and his brother into trouble with their drunken mother.
For the most part Orin, his brother did protect him from the often violent out-bursts their mother was prone to when she wasn't sober.

At the age of 12 they ran away to never return, and for a while they did do well on their own, or at least as well as could be expected from two young boys alone on the streets of a city. But it came to a brutally abrupt end just a few years later. The brothers had just turned 14 and Orin had managed to get them into a storage room of a store when something went horribly wrong. To this day Thanos don't know how the fire started or how it got out of control so quickly, but it did. Thanos managed to get out with moderate amounts of cuts, bruises and blisters. But his brother had gotten pinned under collapsing inventory and wasn't able to escape the flames.

Thanos changed after that. He found himself truly alone for the first time in his life. Never having had his brothers knack for picking pockets or sneaking into buildings he drifted into worse company simply to keep himself fed and breathing. He did find he had another talent though, tracking and hunting down people, and he's been able to make a fairly good living on it. Not an honest living by any means, and he's well aware Orin would be disappointed in him, but it's a living.

Despite everything Thanos is a friendly person. He may not go out of his way to make friends, but neither does he actively avoid people, nor is he a loner, but he is private, preferring to not talk about his past, or his job for that matter.
Those that have known him for a while will often call him a calm, collected person, at the most they've seen him somewhat annoyed at some point, but in general he seems slow to anger. Which is just as well since the few times it has happened it has ended in bloodshed. The thing is, he doesn't regret those times. While he values the people he knows and cares about a strangers life is simply not something he's likely to care much about one way or another and he doesn't take any moral responsibility for anything he does that he gets payed to do, at that point it's not on his consciousness anymore since he's just a tool, and if he didn't take a job someone else would, so it doesn't change the end result.
But just like everyone there's at least on exception to the rule. In Thanos case he does have a soft spot for children, especially the ones who got a bad lot in life, and he will go out of his way to help them.