ormerly a respected member of the Gillenview city guard, Blain Magnare carries with him a past rife with honor and clouded with remorse. His hardened heart leaves little room for any visible emotions, making him the type of man who is always seen as calm, collected and stoic. The truth lies deep beneath his armored exterior, squared jaw, and piercing gaze.

Blain began his life as the son of a common Gillenview guardsman named Carter Magnare. His younger years were filled with patrolling soldiers, weapons, armor, and the discipline that came with each. Though only a boy, he had very little time for carefree childhood games. And while he could not serve in the Gateway Guard, Blain aided them by carrying supplies, repairing swords, and tacking up their horses. His father hoped that his son would one day be more than a patrolman or soldier, but he also knew that Blain would need a solid foundation of discipline and honor which could only come from exposure to the military. With his wife dead from a tragic case of lung-rot, Carter had no opposition in how he should raise his son. Blain matured early as a result.

Throughout his young life, Blain seldom left the secure walls of Gillenview. In his few journeys away from the Gateway City, Blain traveled far with the Csagradan Legions and saw the prefectures of Csegre and lands beyond the Strait of Scales. When not traveling abroad, his father and fellow guardsmen instructed him until he could officially join their ranks, a landmark which also sadly coincided with his father’s death. Slain by thieving brigands from the Silent Step, Carter Magnare died two nights after his son’s entry into adulthood.

Steely, Blain did not mourn, but instead pleaded with the watch commander – a longtime friend and now his superior officer – to wage a vengeance war against the Tarslani thieves’ guild which killed his father. Their influence had been growing for years as they operated above the law, and now their attacks against the guard were bolder than ever. Knowing full well of the growing threat, Commander Nachard agreed, and the Silent Step was smashed within a month’s time by a sweeping police action involving the Gateway Guard and Csagrada’s Royal Army.

His father’s death avenged, Blain saw little reason to remain in a place full of painful memories. The more he planned to break away, however, the more he was reminded of his father’s tireless service to the city. The Silent Step was gone, but many more dangers persisted for the citizens of Gillenview and his concern for their safety could not be overlooked. A worried Commander Nachard spoke with Blain and offered the following: If in a month’s time Blain still felt the need to leave Gillenview, he would be released from his duties and allowed to go. If Blain’s continued service influenced him differently, he could remain on the guard and would receive a promotion based on his accomplishments to that point. It was a bribe, but only a small one. Of course, Nachard hoped Blain would choose the latter.

Blain owed it to himself and his father to continue his service in the watch. He stayed on for a number of following years, slowly rising in rank and using every opportunity to stress the necessity of discipline and honor amongst his subordinates. In the past, there had been displays of corruption in the Gateway Guard rivaling that seen in the garrisons of Tarslani cities to the north, and Blain took it upon himself to make sure this would never happen in Gillenview. His supervisors noted his determination and were even occasionally surprised at Blain’s unflinching dedication to the Corlysian Code. He was now truly his father’s son, but often emotionally cold as the steel of the sword kept at his hip.

After a while, thieves and raiders posed no challenge to him. A comfortable lieutenant, Blain’s steadfast resolve could only be tested by the likes of Gra’dulm, a Duri-aden necromancer with a lust for Gillenview’s riches. Using raw power tapped from the Great Scar, Gra’dulm extended the reach of the Blighted Plains to the north and south of the canyon, sandstorms and famine swallowing up smaller towns, grasslands, forests, and finally the Gateway City itself. Gillenview became covered in dust as burning winds assaulted the walls and the Gate of Thunder. Ancient creatures which had lived beneath the city in disused catacombs and sewers were spurred to new activity, horrors climbing up to the streets above to terrorize the populace. Many fled Gillenview that day, including Blain, though his protest was great.

The city was lost. Though Blain made several attempts to wrest control of the Gillenview from the monsters inhabiting it, he could never overcome their might. His only choice was to move on and continue the fight against Gra’dulm elsewhere.

In the weeks following, Blain traveled south and became a militia commander in Tasselville, birthplace and final resting place of Evan Corlysian. A true hero, Evan Corlysian had ruled Tarislan for a few short years before his death, earning great respect and the admiration of the people there as a true, just king for the ages. Though he occasionally yearned to join the Royal Army, Blain knew his place was guarding those who could not fight themselves – not on the warfront. His time in Gillenview had made him more of a protector than a crusader.

All this changed when Gra’dulm directly assaulted Evan’s Tomb in an attempt to demoralize Csagrada and their new Tarslani allies. In defense of the tomb, Blain lost two of his most capable men to Gra’dulm’s band of tireless Awoken. Victorious, the elven necromancer then collapsed the tomb’s entrance before his undead horde was driven off by reinforcements from the nearby army barracks at Tillarton. Having failed to defend the Tomb, Blain’s pride was dealt a second blow and he retreated further into himself.

Gra’dulm’s plan did not have its intended effect as Csagrada’s armies remained strong. The attack on Evan’s Tomb would only be topped by Gra’dulm’s second most famous failure – an assault on the Triadic cathedral at Andora. Neither attempt successfully demoralized Csagrada or the mercenary armies from Tarislan; instead, it only enraged their soldiers more so than ever before.

Though disheartened, Blain led the people of Tasselville and Andora in an important rebuilding effort before he was finally drafted into the army. Csagrada only had to ask for his service; Blain was ready. Although fighting strong, Csagrada’s armed forces were experiencing severe casualties at the hands of the Awoken. They needed every man they could get. Blain’s service during the final years of the war was unfaltering and, come the death of Gra’dulm and victory over the Awoken, Blain remained in service to the crown until the assassination of Christian Brennos II nearly five years later and the subsequent fall of Csagradeus Citadel.

With the king dead and Gra’dulm rumored to be resurrected, Csagrada rapidly descended into chaos. The regular army was scattered. The elite Legions were operating independently to maintain some sort of peace, but Csagrada soon divided into its individual prefectures and lost all but a mere semblance of unity. Blain’s company was routed by a rampaging Iva’ator, forcing him to flee north to the familiar lands of Tasselville and the Foreclaw Islands. He settled there, once again bolstering the local militias. Their strength would be needed in the approaching dark times.

Years later, Blain was called to serve as a guard commander in Csagrada’s capital as the kingdom prepared to make a triumphant return. Foreigners, including a lohranar named Caerdwyn, came to Csegre to reunite its people, revitalize its government, and bring the prefects out of hiding. Rose Brennos, daughter of Christian Brennos II, was crowned queen with Blain Magnare helping to supervise her coronation. With luck, he will see that she remains on the throne for many years to come.