OUT OF CHARACTER INFORMATION
Intent: To flesh out the ranks of the Shadow Knights.
Image Credit: Here. Image is not quite true to life since one of Morwen's hands is a cybernetic, but it fits beyond that.
Role: Terrorist leader, irregular warfare expert, officer, 'acquisitions specialist'.
Permissions: Permission for all ArmaTech gear and all other subs made by Laira Darkhold's writer here. Can use Firemane stuff because I own the company.
Links: Kar'zun, Eldorai Exodus, Twin Exiles, Xioquo, Siobhan, Firemane, Kaeshana, Blades of Reason, Emissaries of Illyria, Vashyada, Sciiac Guardians, To Hell and Back, Shadow Knights (lore submission), Kaida Taldir, Naamah Aesham.
PHYSICAL INFORMATION
Age: 61
Force Sensitivity: Knight
Species: Eldorai
Appearance: A deep scar runs across her right cheek and neither repeated medical treatment nor the Force have erased it. It was inflicted by an Eldorai interrogator during her time in prison. One of her pointed ears was cut off, which is seen as a mark of shame among her people. Medical technology has evolved far enough for her ear to be restored, but it still appears slightly different. Her eyes are piercing, alert and more than a little judgemental. She is a tall woman with pale skin and short raven hair, which she commonly wears in a ponytail.
She lost her right hand as punishment for stabbing an Ashiran Priestess during confession at the Angelii's prison. It was later replaced by a mechanical hand. While this comes with some benefits such as significantly increased strength and durability, it makes her vulnerable to ion/EMP attacks and alienates her further from the mainstream of her people, since many Eldorai see cybernetics as unnatural.
Morwen has decided to embrace it, partly to spite the conservatives she hates so much. However, the credentials of the machinist who attached the arm were a bit dubious, leading to a somewhat botched operation. As a result, she experiences aches and phantom limb like sensations. She has since upgraded it with a repulse-hand, which gives her extra power in a fight. In combat she wears a practical light combat suit or armour that grants her a degree of mobility. Morwen is always armed, usually carrying a concealed vibroknife and a sidearm.
SOCIAL INFORMATION
Name: Tarith Vintoli. Nicknamed Morwen, which is Eldarai for Maiden. The name is a bit ironic, but has stuck.
Loyalties: Court of the Shadows, Naesala Faethyra, Eldorai, Shadow Knights, Court of the Four Elements, Caerith Tyari, Hellbreakers.
Wealth: Low. Morwen is not wealthy at all. She receives remuneration from the Shadow Knights, but the rebels are not rich and she is not high-ranking. She supplements her income with loot obtained from raids.
Notable Possessions:
- She's authored 'The Illyrian Manual' for young radical Eldorai. Essentially it is an elf version of the Anarchist's Cookbook. Subtitled 'Bring them to the judgement of Illyria...in 350 exciting ways'.
- XS Stock Freighter
- AE-AS1 Ghostsuit
- CZ-H5 Shatterbeam Pistol
- U20 Field Wrist Link
- Repulse-Hand.
- Cusaeris Mk3.
- Lightsabre. Has crossguards, a dual phase mode, bifurcating cyclical ignition pulse and other standard systems.
- Survival kit, containing all manners of items useful to survive in the wilderness or in a disaster area, such as first aid equipment, water purifiers, booby traps, canned food, Stimpills, Glowrods, camouflage net, water containers, thermal blanket, high tension wire, grappling hooks, fish hooks, compass etc.
- Sarix.
This was quite pertinent since Kaeshana is very stormy. She also picked up skills with a hydrospanner and a wrench after Kaeshana's desolation. She is good at stripping down, repairing and modifying vessels and equipment. However, her lack of formal education can produce mixed results sometimes. She is a decent slicer, good with a knife and can pilot small starships such as shuttles and standard freighters. She is not an ace pilot, but good at evading patrols, getting in and out of hot spots. Her background as an insurgent has made her good at making and using bombs, improvised explosive devices and the like. She is a talented survivalist who has learned to forage, build shelters and survive in disaster zones.
Personality: Driven, aggressive, stubborn, zealous. Morwen is a child of her times and though she has left Kaeshana behind, it has left its mark upon her. It is evident that she has some deep-seated anger issues and a lot of rage inside her. The Dashdae Eldorai has a formidable temper when provoked and is not tolerant of weakness. Having grown up in a tough setting, she is a good woman to have in your corner when things get rough, but not easy to get along with. Morwen is not the type of person you bring to fancy balls and galas. She has strong opinions and is not shy about voicing them. The Dashdae Eldorai does not pull her verbal punches or suffer fools lightly. Morwen has low class origins and is used to hard work. She is contemptuous of highborn Eldorai who believe getting their hands dirty is beneath them.
She has a sadistic streak that manifests when she is able to exert over the highborn. She likes humiliating them and forcing them to do things they would consider beneath them, such as heavy manual labour. Morwen enjoys forcing them to perform the duties of servants or common labourers. If they fail to perform their duties, they are punished in the same way a conservative noble would have punished an 'uppity' servant. This often involves lashing. She has a strong sense of poetic justice. Nonetheless, Morwen does have a moral code of sorts. She made a point of sparing the lives of common royalist soldiers who surrendered, though she was cruel towards officers and nobles. She shows no mercy to slavers and traitors.
She became alienated from the Angelii and the Eldorai Matriarchy at a young age, rebelling against the stultifying culture of Kaeshana and becoming associated with radical reformist groups before she went on to become a terrorist. She lost faith in the Great Goddess Ashira at an early age. Instead she venerates Illyria, the Eldorai Goddess of Death who was cast into the Underworld after rebelling against Ashira. She does not get on well with the hierarchy of the Emissaries of Illyria though. Morwen espouses radical republican views, seeing monarchies as inherently corrupt and only beneficial to the upper class. To her, noblesse oblige is patronising at best and a self-serving lie to deceive the masses with baubles at worst. She encourages her fellow Eldorai to stand up for themselves and become mistresses of their own destiny. There is a goddess, but she only helps those who help themselves.
In some ways, she is more radical than the Shadow Knight mainstream. Her beliefs and ideological fervour win her favour among the radicals, but less so among moderates or authoritarian militarists. She has a tendency towards anarchism and what could be considered a form of libertarian socialist beliefs. She is sceptical of any government that has enough power to trample on the righs of its people. Combined with her maverick attitude, this has kept her from rising high in the ranks. It is pertinent to note that Morwen does not seek political power for herself. She wants to fight for what she considers to be a better future for her people, help shape it and protect it against tyrants, but not rule.
One thing that is interesting to note is that she is quite tolerant on the religious question. She is an Illyrian and radically opposed to the orthodox Church of Ashira, but seems to have less of an issue with reformist Ashirans who have forsaken the Crown, unless they try to impose an Ashiran theocracy or convert her. She is quite firm in her devotion, but ultimately religion takes a backseat to the political agenda she espouses. However, she despises the orthodox Church.
Perhaps surprisingly, she has some sympathy for the social model of the Vashyada. Though nominally ruled by a High King and High Queen, in practice the Vash are a loose confederation consisting of various tribes that are very protective of their autonomy. Some have called their government a form of 'benign anarchism'. Though Morwen does not share their religious beliefs or commitment to the Light, she views their by elf standards very libertarian, decentralised system with sympathy. To her it is a better way of safeguarding liberty than the highly centralised, authoritarian political traditions of the Eldorai.
Hardened by years underground, she she has become cynical, even cruel. She has a rather black, even malicious sense of humour. The defining moment in her life was the Exodus, when she was among the Forsaken, the Eldorai left behind on the desolate planet. To her, it was a betrayal, for many of those left behind were commoners deemed 'non-essential'. She is extremely disdainful of the Eldorai upper class and resents those elves who, from her point of view, got away and only remembered Kaeshana at the last moment. What followed was a struggle for survival as Kaeshana was assailed by natural disasters, internecine strife between the natives and attacks from slavers and Archangel, until the surviving population had thinned considerably. She was among those trying to wrest some order from the chaos. It was during this period that she joined the Shadow Knights.
Morwen follows Naesala since the Archon has proven her capabilities as a leader, though she is not an uncritical acolyte. Her relationship with Kaida Taldir is very poor. Morwen used to serve under Kaida as an Angelii. But while Morwen deserted them and joined the rebels, Kaida continued serving the Crown until recently. Thus Morwen distrusts and dislikes her strongly, viewing her as an insincere opportunist. It does not help that both women are very stubborn and utterly convinced they are in the right. Or that they might have shot at each other during battles between Angelii and Dashdae Eldorai. For her part, Kaida regards Morwen as an undisciplined anarchist...which is not far from the truth.
COMBAT INFORMATION
Weapon of Choice: Mk1 Bolter with all types of ammunition. Favours shatterpistols, Stealth Carbine and vibroknives for silent take-downs. Carries a concealed vibroknife hidden inside a wrist sheath. Also proficient with blasters, blade and explosives. Capable pyromancer.
Combat Function: Morwen is a powerful pyromancer, skilled with firearms, explosives and has a thing for knives. Her primary combat Sciiac (Force) skills are centred on pyromancer. She is skilled at summoning flames to roast her enemies, or heating metal to boil them. She can summon a thermic lance, heat objects by thought or touch and create bright light to temporarily blind opponents. It also allows her to cook without an oven. She can also use the Force for concealment, allowing her to mask her Force aura or turn invisible. Morwen has received basic lightsabre training, but her skill with the weapon is limited. She is a passable Shii-Cho duellist and knows enough to hold her own, but has not progressed far. She can deflect blaster bolts fairly well, but would be at a disadvantage against a dedicated duellist. She is very dexterous and has an impressive hand-eye coordination.
Morwen is talented in standard infantry operations, infiltration, and leading small teams in tactical situations. She has a lot of experience as an insurgent and in irregular warfare. She is good at sabotage and an 'acquisition specialist'. Morwen has anger issues, which is something a canny opponent could exploit. This especially applies to a mentalist. Her right hand is a well-crafted cybernetic. While durable and hardened against ionic attacks, it is still susceptible to the traditional weaknesses of a mechanical limb. However, it is also a repulse-hand, which gives her a brutal tool in melee combat.
She is not a strategic leader, stubborn and sometimes hard to get along with. She is very independent-minded, which is why it is best to give her an objective, a time frame and resources, and leave the details of how to accomplish it to her. Especially since she will do whatever she considers right anyway.
Strengths:
- Capable soldier and Force-user. Talented in standard infantry operations, infiltration, sabotage and small unit leadership.
- Strong pyromancer and skilled in stealth and concealment powers.
- Cybernetic hand is well-crafted and sturdy, but vulnerable to standard machine weaknesses.
- Sensitive hearing makes her more vulnerable to high-pitch frequencies such as those emitted by sonic weapons.
- Limited skill with a lightsabre.
The Eldorai are a proud people. A resilient people. What they are not is a tolerant people. Or a forgiving one. From the point of view of Morwen, they have been leashed by self-aggrandising tyrants for centuries. Now they are divided. The days of a united Eldorai Matriarchy are but a distant memory. Kaeshana, their homeworld, is a desolate wasteland that has been abandoned by its people. The Matriarchy still exists and has found a new home, but has become a vassal of Firemane Industries & Technology, a human-led corporation. Other Eldorai have taken to the stars, seeking a new life on colony ships or on other worlds. Morwen grew up in a remote province of Kaeshana, far away from the metropolis of Santaissa. Her family were simple farmers and while her Sciia manifested early, she kept my abilities secret, not wanting to leave her home.
However, an accident brought them to the attention of the authorities and she was conscripted by the Angelii when she was an adult. As a result, she was rather resentful and angry about being separated from her family. Morwen was unhappy about being separated from her people and was a rather rebellious recruit. She was skilled on the technical level, but often had to be disciplined due to her attitude. This prevented her from rising in the ranks. From her perspective, her trainers tried to indoctrinate her into thinking that the Angelii were the righteous defenders of the Star Queen, and that she was Ashira's divinely appointed viceroy. To be fair, many of the enemies they fought were wicked, such as slavers, terrorists and pirates who preyed on the Eldorai. At the same time, all too often they fought each other, becoming tools in the nobles' game of thrones.
Kaeshana was opened up to the rest of the Galaxy when it joined the Omega Protectorate. Later, Firemane set up its HQ on the planet and forged a close relationship with Queen Tirathana VII, who sought to modernise the realm and usher in an age of liberal despotism. Under her reign theocratic repression was abolished, the Kar'zun were emancipated and the Queen apologised for the atrocities that had taken place on the Island of Fallen Angels, the regime's ghost camp. Nonetheless, from the perspective of Morwen, little of substance changed. Initially she had hoped that the foreigners would encourage political and social reform, but this hopeful attitude soon turned to resentment. In her opinion, all they cared about was lining their own pockets and using her people for their own personal gain. The nobility remained in power, and its conservative elements did their best to stifle reforms.
While she showed courage in the field, her disciplinary problems kept her from rising in the ranks. Morwen served in the prestigious Valora's Chosen Great Company. It was under the command of the dour Kaida Taldir. Ironically, Morwen had once looked up to her. During the reign of Tirathana VI, Kaida and her sister Lavina had fled into exile after unearthing truths about the Eldorai's past that the Crown wanted to remain secret. Morwen did not know the details, but heard rumours. She and her comrades were taught to regard the Taldir sisters as oathbreakers, but given her own rebellious views Morwen took the opposite view.
However, the two women did not get along. Morwen was disappointed when she first met Kaida, whom she considered to be a dull martinet obsessed with discipline, instead of the brave rebel she had imagined her to be. She fought alongside Firemane troops on hellish Gehenna. There she faced Bando Gora sorcerers and hordes of savage Reavers. Morwen distinguished herself in the field, taking down a True Reaver in single combat. She was commended for her bravery, but the operation left her cynical.
From Morwen's perspective, the Eldorai were fighting in foreign wars that did not concern them, while the resources of Kaeshana had fallen under the control of foreign potentates. It was true that Kaeshana's defences had been significantly improved and it had experienced economic growth by opening up to the Galaxy. But what some Eldorai perceived as modernisation and catching up with the rest of the Galaxy, she saw as them becoming a vassal.
From her perspective, the common folk had gained little, while the nobles and foreign capitalists such as Firemane Industries reaped the benefits. She radicalised even further during the Netherworld Event, when the Omega Protectorate crumbled. In these dark days, Eldorai forces were deployed off-world to help sustain the crumbling nation, but this could not avert its dissolution. Desillusioned with the system, Morwen deserted. She joined the ranks of the so-called Dashdae - or Dark - Eldorai. This was a very broad term that was applied to various rebel groups, regardless of their ideology.
To the authorities, she became a terrorist. When it came to her methods, this was definitely true. As far as she was concerned, the system was beyond reform and needed to be torn down. The only option was violence, for power could only come out of the barrel of a gun. Her actions included abductions or assassinations of Eldorai and Firemane officials, bombings, raids and so on. She made use of roadside bombs, and used shoulder-launched missiles to shoot down Firemane craft.
She also abducted foreigners to hold them for ransom. Aside from that, she found the time to write an Eldorai version of the anarchist's cookbook. She lost her right hand in a duel with an Angelii. However, her terrorist cell also clashed with other rebel groups, for the Dark Eldorai were not united. Conservative Ashirans who believed the Eldorai had lost their way by forsaking the true word of the Goddess were among her enemies.
When nemesis came to Kaeshana, she was understandably among those who would not be evacuated. Unsurprisingly, she joined the rebels who rose up against the system, fighting Firemane and Angelii troops commanded by Tempest and Kaida. From her perspective, the upper class was abandoning the common people. She survived the cataclysm when the huge asteroid impacted upon Kaeshana.
Ironically, she owed her survival to the fact that Firemane had used a powerful warship to severely reduce the asteroid in size. However, the many Eldorai had perished and Santaissa lay in ruins. As one of the surviving Dashdae Eldorai, she was left to pick up the pieces. Morwen vowed to help protect the survivors of the cataclysm. Thus she returned to her home village. Its remote location turned out to be an advantage because it lay far away from ground zero.
However, her family was plagued by gangs, who stole what little they had and demanded tribute. Much to Morwen's anger, some of the the raiders were rebels she had once fought alongside of. She put her skill as a guerrilla fighter to good use by taking the fight to them. To this end she trained surviving villagers as a militia. She had success, but she and the few villagers could not protect themselves against better-equipped gangs indefinitely.
She joined the Shadow Knights, a group that sought to wrest some order from the chaos and provide security to the remaining Eldorai communities. It was a harsh life full of tribulations. The survivors fought amongst themselves, slavers and genocidal Archangel HRDs descended upon the desolate wasteland like vultures. Still she fought on, perhaps becoming the wrathful protector she always wanted to be. Her bravery and tactical command skills earned her a position in the Shadow Knights' equivalent of the Angelii, the Caerith Tyari or Shadow Warriors. But her stubbornness and maverick tendencies also got her into trouble. Morwen held true to her rule that she would do what she considered to be right, regardless of what her superiors thought.
She made the acquaintance of an enigmatic shapeshifter called Naamah Aesham during the fight to defend an Eldorai settlement from Archangel's droids. The Clawdite earned her respect when she risked her life to protect the elves and sent a distress signal, which was unexpectedly answered by Dart Skygge and her apprentice. After Naamah was wounded during the fighting, Morwen protected the shapeshifter with her elemental fire abilities, burning droids along the way. She helped her reach the Sith Lord's ship. Skygge's intervention left Morwen more than a little confused as it put her very negative opinion of non-Eldorai into question, but with the stranger's aid, they were able to save some of the Eldorai. For a while, Morwen left Kaeshana and teamed up with Naamah, after arranging safe passage for her surviving family.
She left partly to get revenge on Archangel for abducting so many of her people and turning them into mechanical abominations, partly to rally support for Kaeshana from among the Eldorai Exiles who had not thrown in their lot with the Tygaran-based Matriarchy. Moreover, her people needed supplies and had little to trade, so they had to acquire the resources they needed through other means. The two formed an efficient team, carrying out a few raids. Naamah taught her how to pilot a starship and Morwen learned a bit about salvage. The latter gave her a legitimate way to earn credits. However, once they learned of the Kaeshana Rebellion, both returned to the Eldorai homeworld, rejoining the Shadow Knights.
Morwen had no love for the Galactic Alliance. She also despised both Firemane and the Matriarchy. But to her, the First Order was a foreign, imperialist invader that was trying to subjugate her homeworld. So reluctantly she made common cause with her estranged brethren. She was among the Eldorai guerrillas that fought First Order troops in Santaissa's ruins, leading a team of insurgents. However, ultimately the Galactic Alliance was forced to withdraw. She viewed it as a betrayal when her people's former rulers left Kaeshana once more. She was among those Eldorai who escaped before the First Order assumed control over the planet. She vowed to return one day, free her people and get revenge.
The Shadow Knights' decision to focus on building a new home for the Eldorai was met with consternation her part. For a while, she rejoined Naamah, supporting her in her crusade against Archangel. Her goal was to raise funds for the free Eldorai rebels through plunder and to free more of her people who had been enslaved. Harsh justice against slavers ensued along the way, leading to the liberation of many Eldorai who'd been captured and held in bondage. Along the way, she encountered the eccentric Amara Zarides, one of Archangel's escaped clones. The three of them struck a blow against Archangel by hijacking their Maladi-Class frigate, which ironically Archangel had stolen earlier during the Rogue Sith attack on Kuat. Disagreements with Naamah, and a desire to aid her people again, caused Morwen to rejoin the Shadow Knights, bringing booty with her.
Morwen was on the tropical planet of Arkas during the Serenade Incident. There she had been active as a recruiter and agitator. Serenade was one of the world's many islands, and the location of a mixed race settlement inhabited by humans, aliens and Eldorai exiles. Officially she was there as a trainer for the militia, unofficially she also acted as a recruiter for the Shadow Knights. Alas, she ended up being caught in a zombie outbreak. A zombie pathogen spread out, quickly infecting most of the inhabitants.
Forced to fight for her life, Morwen teamed up with a small group of beleaguered survivors, using her training to help protect them against the undead. Unfortunately, the major installations, including the dome that housed the communications gear, had been taken over by the strangely cunning undead. She put her life on the line to save some civilians. But when one of her comrades was bitten by a zombie, Morwen reacted swiftly and put him down. As Arkas was under Firemane protection, the corporation dispatched soldiers to investigate after losing contact with the island settlement.
They were accompanied by a small unit of Angelii, headed by Morwen's former superior Kaida Taldir. However, the outnumbered soldiers were soon being swarmed by zombies as well, for the undead creatures were intelligent and guided by a hive mind. In an ironic twist of fate, the zombies utilised the settlement's own defence guns. Ultimately, the troopers retreated after knocking out Serenade's AA guns, enabling bombers to contain the outbreak by levelling the town. Morwen managed to escape with a small group of locals, just before the bombs fell and laid waste to the city, destroying both the zombies and any of the living unlucky enough to be caught in the inferno. Morwen suffered burns and ran into Firemane troops securing the island in the aftermath of the bombardment. Morwen regrouped with other Shadow Knight agents. She recovered in New Solstace, an autonomous Eldorai settlement set up by Forsaken with the blessing of Firemane, but found the town not to her liking.
The local government was reasonably democratic and elections were quite fair, which pleased her, but the powers that be were aligned with Firemane and did not like foreign radicals. A failed takeover attempt on the part of a rogue Shadow Knight cell triggered a crackdown. Morwen disliked the cell leader and had disagreed with the ill-advised coup. Not so long ago, she would have been all for it, but experience had cooled her fire a bit and forced her to be more prudent. When it went south, she made a quick getaway. She responded poorly when an associate of the local cell leader tried to frame her for the debacle. The whole affair was politically inconvenient and her accuser had friends in high places.
However, the Justicars, the police arm of the Shadow Knights, exonerated her. While she brooded over her future, she made the decision to return to Kaeshana and aid her people. She was accompanied by some like-minded exiles. Linking up with a rebel cell on the planet, she participated in terrorist attacks against the First Order régime.
Morwen was ruthless against the occupation regime and collaborators, but tried to limit casualties among civilians, as she saw herself as fighting for her people not against them. They received support from the Shadow Knights, but this was obviously limited in scope since Kaeshana was occupied territory and the exiles were poor. This obviously limited what the rebels could achieve, but they were still zealous. Then one day the occupiers were gone, and Kaeshana was pulled into the warp. Even years after Akala's defeat, the aftershocks of the Netherworld Crisis could still be felt in places and they manifested in strange ways.
In the case of the Eldorai homeworld, it found itself in hell. Many of her comrades were driven mad. Morwen managed to endure, but being trapped in the hellscape took its toll on her. She was able to link up with some survivors. The warp confronted her with her worst fears and hypocrisies, forcing her to face things she had long buried. Moreover, it took a toll on her connection to the Force. Finally the planet emerged from the warp and she was able to link up with a rescue party led by Kaida Taldir.
The two former Angelii were forced to work together in order to overcome a disruption field that prevented ships from landing or taking off safely. In the process they had to face the many horrors spawned by Kaeshana's time in the warp. Morwen has since then rejoined the Shadow Knights. She is more committed to the group, but has retained her questioning attitude. She has been able to rebuild her Force connection with the help of a Vashyada healer, but is still haunted by what she saw in the Netherworld.
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