Blackmaw was “born” in the charred wreckage of a village whose name he never learned, in the stretch of territory known as the Savage Frontier, joining for a brief time a Gnoll Pack led by a particularly vicious Fang of Yeenoghu named Rotjaw. Blackmaw spent his earliest days of consciousness partaking in the violent tortures and rituals of his brethren, yet from his first day walking upright, a sliver of doubt lingered in the back of his head; he did not feel like he was the same as those around him. Thus, when a sortie led by the Shields of Yartar launched a counteroffensive against the Gnoll warband a few weeks later, Blackmaw broke free from the pack, running to save his own life instead of dying in the defense of his creator and his kin that he could not relate.
For the next two years, Blackmaw migrated from region to region, ostracized and hunted by wary villagers and travelers who could not grasp the idea of a non-evil Gnoll living among them. These years hardened him both physically and mentally, opening his eyes to the societal perception of his kind as well as the harsh prejudices that came out of it. He very nearly lost hope all together that he could find a place where he could make for himself a home. Then, he arrived in Neverwinter.
While Blackmaw still faced bigotry in this metropolis, Neverwinter had grown so used to the presence of all manner of races that the Gnoll was able to settle there after two long years as a transient. Blackmaw took up the profession of bounty hunting, finding that his colleagues cared little for how he looked and more on how capable he was with his blade and his senses. One particular bounty hunter, Katar, took a special interest in Blackmaw, bringing the Gnoll under his wing and mentored him; Blackmaw owed his knowledge of the Sword Coast, his prowess with greatswords, and his access to his inner mind to the man. For a year and a half, the two men were inseparable, until a mysterious summons pulled Katar away from the city for the indefinite future..
Blackmaw quickly realized after Katar’s departure that his mentor had been a buffer between him and some of the more devious figures in the bounty hunting world, and things began to become more difficult for him in the city afterwards. The gnoll finally accepted the writing on the wall after a botched assignment that led to the deaths of bystanders was blamed on him and him alone, despite the involvement of others; Blackmaw was offered a chance to leave the city, or face the charges of their wrongful demises, and he took it reluctantly, in order to survive. He has not been back since, though he hopes to one day, when he was stronger and more capable of dispatching the corrupt souls who had ousted him.
Thankfully, during his time as a bounty hunter, Blackmaw had heard of a Guild that had shown similar respect to Gnolls in the past; the Hawthorne Guild. After his exodus, Blackmaw made his way south, looking to seek employment amidst their ranks, to grow stronger and wealthier while he planned his next steps.