Gaval'sar Gasvado was a secretive, high-ranking commander of the Shadow Guard that conducted assassinations, raids and subterfuge on behalf of the Khymal Set. During his life he was tasked with destroying the remnants of House Zelvass, reclaiming their artifacts and killing any descendants. Notably, he was tasked with destroying the village of Bylhivar after it was discovered a blood heir of Zelvass lived there; however, during the raid, pity stayed Gaval'sar's hand from killing a young Seamus McHammerface, the future king of Sanaris. This act would lead to his eventual demise at Seamus' hand in 951 IaC.
Description
Gaval'sar was a tall, physically intimidating elf with a powerful, muscular form uncharacteristic of his race. He had pale skin, jet black hair, and fierce, grey eyes. He dressed in dark leather armor and concealed his weapons behind wraps of black cloth. He almost always wore a hood, but would doff it during his jobs, as he wanted his victims to see his face.
Gaval'sar delighted in his work, and loved death and battle. He was headstrong, brave, and bloodthirsty. If a target of Gaval'sar ever managed to elude him or survive, he would become obsessed with them, tracking them down to the ends of the earth to finish his work. He would often laugh while he killed and could even enter a frenzied rage where he could scarcely tell friend from foe. However, he harbored a soft spot for children, and had a bad habit of letting them flee from his conquests.
Skills and Abilities
Despite his unstable personality, Gaval'sar was a highly effective agent of the Shadow Guard, accomplished as both an assassin and a warrior. He was skilled with a sword and throwing knives, and was a master poisoner that had undergone harsh training to build immunity to a number of toxins. Gaval'sar was also a skilled tracker.
History
Gaval'sar was born into poverty in eastern Sanaris in a small hamlet in the hills of Unknown. His parents were killed by raiders of the Shadow Guard when he was young, leaving him an orphan; however, the pity of one of the Guard spared him and later took him in as a trainee. Gaval'sar apprenticed under the murderer of his parents for 49 years, after which he brutally murdered him in his sleep. Gaval'sar would continue climbing the ranks of the Shadow Guard until he eventually attained the rank of commander, tasked with destroying any remnants of the Zelvass bloodline. Eventually, he chose Derriden Copswhet as his lieutenant, as his skills in magic and cool head balanced out his own eccentricities.
In Iron 929, Gaval'sar conducted a raid on Bylhivar at the behest of the Khymal Set using information attained by Eilon Terix that a bloodline of House Zelvass had ended up in the village, targeting it for destruction. Gaval'sar disguised his men as bandits and set fire to the houses, pillaging any valuables and killing everyone in sight. Notably, Gaval'sar set fire to the house of Seamus McHammerface and his family, later entering it when he heard the screams of Seamus' mother. Gaval'sar killed Seamus' parents, and noticed the young child hiding underneath a bed. In an act of pity, Gaval'sar spared Seamus and allowed him to flee from the ruins of his home.
Gaval'sar would continue his work for the Shadow Guard for a time, accomplishing the dirty work of the Khymal Set until 951 when he was informed by Eilon of the Peas, a group of adventurers that apparently contained an elf that had the blood of Zelvass. Eilon had sent the group to open the Tomb of Zelvass, so Gaval'sar took his company and planned an ambush for when the group would exit the crypt. However, he had not anticipated the presence of the Divine Branch, who had arrive to investigate the disturbance of the tomb as well as a contingent of devils in service of Etarus that were tracking the Divine branch. To make matters worse, once the Peas exited the tomb, the commotion from the fight between the adventurers, the Divine Branch, and the devils attracted attention from the spirits of the forest, who coalesced to form a giant beast that attacked everyone indiscriminately. Regardless, after spotting Seamus, Gaval'sar attempted to kill the blood heir in single combat, but was knocked out by him instead. Gaval'sar was rescued by Derriden and fled the scene, leaving some of his troops behind to delay any that might follow.
Bitter about his loss, Gaval'sar became singularly focused on killing Seamus. The Khymal Set soon painted the Peas as criminals, setting the Emerald Guard against them; fearful that someone else might steal his prey before him, Gaval'sar contacted Eilon Terix again. With new information from Eilon, Gaval'sar learned that a close contact of the Peas, Yoxxel, lived in Hymathel alongside the wizard Deowyn Centhos, who had cloned her multiple times with the Sallow Stone. With a target on the Peas' backs, it was likely they would come for their allies, so Gaval'sar organized to have Yoxxel confined to Deowyn's office in hopes that the Peas would attempt to rescue her. Sure enough, the Peas came to Hymathel in search of Yoxxel, and the Shadow Guard sprang their ambush when they entered Deowyn's tower. However, Gaval'sar was quickly waylaid by the Peas, and was forced to retreat again, increasing his humiliation.
Gaval'sar confronted the Peas a final time in the mountains of Taerin Ucarin, leading a sloppily executed ambush plan upon the group while they rested. Though he had been advised by Derriden to rest and call for backup, Gaval'sar was too obsessed to let Seamus get away, and attempted his attack with only a few men. The Peas quickly mopped his his forces as Gaval'sar singled out Seamus again, fighting him one on one. Seamus made short work of the assassin, and finally got revenge for the death of his parents after incapacitating Gaval'sar and cutting his head off with a golf swing. Seamus would then use Gaval'sar's head to knock out the escaping Derriden by throwing it at him.
Gaval'sar's corpse was thoroughly mutilated after his death, with Seamus chopping the body up into tiny pieces, eventually stuffing the slurry into a bag. His body was carried around by Seamus for a time until it began to rot, at which point he asked Razodon Goswin to package the rotted remains and send it to the Sanarian Tax Agency, despite the organization having nothing to do with the Shadow Guard.