Gormund Blackbriar
Roguish bugbear charmer · Tavern host
“Friend, sit, drink—a sharp blade loosens fewer purses than a warm smile.”
Gender
Male
Age
41 years
Species
Bugbear
Alignment
Chaotic Good
Appearance
Standing nearly seven feet tall, Gormund is a barrel-chested bugbear with russet-brown fur grown long and groomed unusually neat. His amber eyes glint with mischief beneath heavy brows, and a crescent scar splits one cheek. He wears a fine maroon waistcoat tailored for his bulk, brass buttons polished, and rings on three clawed fingers. His tusked grin is, against all expectation, disarmingly warm.
Occupation
Proprietor of a frontier tavern and occasional sellsword
Personality
Traits
Motivations
To prove that a bugbear can earn respect through wit and hospitality rather than fear, and to keep his hard-won tavern thriving against bandits and prejudiced lords.
Goals
Expand the Crooked Lantern into the most beloved waystation on the Salt Road, and one day buy a title of legitimacy that no human magistrate can revoke.
Secrets
In his youth he led a raiding warband and burned three villages; the scar on his cheek was given by a girl whose family he slaughtered. He funds her orphanage anonymously to atone, and dreads the day she recognizes him.
Way of speaking
Smooth, rumbling, and theatrical; he laughs easily, peppers speech with flattery and folksy proverbs, and lowers his voice to a confiding purr when bargaining.
Equipment
Special abilities
- Disarming charm that calms hostile crowds
- Surprising stealth for his size
- Brutal close-quarters strength when cornered
Possessions & property
- The Crooked Lantern tavern deed
- A jeweled signet ring won in a wager
- A faded child's hair ribbon kept hidden
- Strongbox of coin beneath the cellar floor