Gelzik Pad-Foot – Black Dragonkin Ranger

Raised amid the foetid swamps and wetlands of the Isle. Gelzik is the youngest member of a small hunting tribe who act as trappers, hunters and guides for the other Darkscale tribes on the isle. Though his young age sees him often judged as inexperienced and wet beneath the scales, those who doubt him often find they have grossly underestimated the prowess of the young hunter. For he has stalked the wilds since he was old enough the hold a spear, taught by his father and older brothers, elder hunters, in the ways of moving through the marsh. Before he came of age he already wielded skills far above his kin for tracking and hunting in the swamps of the Isle. Yet it was not until years later that he would finally use these skills as a weapon against their Silverscale oppressors. When an expedition of Silverscales entered the swamp, they sought a nearby tribe of shamans for guidance and supplies. Though the Darkscale shamans met them with hostility, they did not enact violence. Yet the Silverscales, angered by the refusal for cooperation, responded with bloodshed, slaughtering the tribe, making an example of them to the other Darkscales of the region. For Gelzik’s family, this slaughtered tribe were close relatives, thus his father and brothers plotted a swift vengeance against the interlopers, and Gelzik followed in tow. In the dead of night, they unleashed a flurry of poisoned arrows against their foes, leaving them to a fate of slow, agonizing deaths. Few died from the initial attack, but by dawn none survived. Monkshood grew on the verges of the mountain meadows, where the swamp began to dissipate, few ventured there among the Darkscales, save for Gelzik’s family who often harvested the deadly plants for use in such scenarios. After this incident, Gelzik ensured to always have a steady supply on himself, seeing first hand how quickly they took hold of their foes, and what agonising pain it left them in until their demise. The Silverscales didn’t take the incident lying down, however. More came, with swift retribution. Many tribes suffered that day, with the eldest sons of each family taken from their homes and slaughtered, an army of Silverscale Knights proving insurmountable to the scattered Darkscales. Gelzik lost his brother, his father, and many friends that day. Yet for them, it gave a chance of unification, and the tribes that were scattered and amiss came together in mourning, and now work side by side in their plot for vengeance. Gelzik has ensured no Silverscales who step foot in their territory leave, for fear of reporting what they might see, and in blind hatred. War is coming, soon, and Gelzik will be sure to take as many Silverscales with him when that time comes.