Physical Features
- Height:
- 6' 3"
Though he can vastly increase his size unintentionally.
- Weight:
- His is broad chested and powerfully muscled from a lifetime of training in heavy armor and wielding equally heavy weapons and shields. His face is somewhat square but the fullness of his beard hides it well.
- Complexion:
- In life, Malcolm was a ruddy looking man with pocked skin and many scars.
In death, he appears to be a roiling mass of pale green mists beneath his solid form.
- Hair:
- Malcolm's head of hair is cropped short and seems to drift away from his scalp.
His beard is full and dense, firmly rooted beneath his bulbous nose.
- Eyes:
- His eyes are almond shaped and rest sunken beneath a prominent brow. They shine a faint green blue.
Other Features
He appears in a suit of heavy plate, wielding a greatsword whose pommel reaches his chest. Atop his armor he wears a hooded tabard bearing the Galewatch family crest. His right hand is unarmored and bears a tattoo of an eagle in glory.
Social Interactions
Relationships and Companions
Malcolm seeks to find the remaining members of the Galewatcher family. There whereabouts are currently unknown to Malcolm. Following a call of debts and the loss of the father, mother, oldest son, and uncle in an attack all that remains are Niles (Male, age 46) and Finnea (Female, age 48).
Personality
In life, Malcolm was a stalwart devotee of Esyrax. This, combined with his rigorous training as a knight protector, instilled in him a strong belief in personal strength of both mind and body.
He is slow to warm but undyingly loyal to those who earn his trust. He is at heart a protector, trained from a very young age to defend the Galewatcher family. This leads him to willingly endanger his own afterlife to protect those he cares for.
His transition to ghosthood has left him easily distracted by memory and tale, but when it comes down to what matters he is a former man that can always be relied upon.
Background
- Age:
- 78 (Died at age 42 in AoN 210)
- Origin:
- The lands of House Galewatcher, Eastern Tviyr
- Residence:
- Errant
History
Malcolm Rhodes was a knight protector of the minor noble house Galewatcher. In his duties he often travelled with the family on long journeys across the nation of Tviyr and even into the jungles of Ninraih to visit Ajteire. It was on one such journey that disaster struck. A team of bandits waylaid the family’s wagon. Before the knights travelling with them could even dismount a bandit mage exploded the battlefield with violent magics.
The family members, the knight protectors, and most of the bandits were killed instantly. Due to the strangeness of Khy’eras, several of each party returned as ghosts in solid form. The undead and living bandits sought revenge on their mage. The knights sought revenge for the death of their charges. Malcolm tried to kill the mage as well but found himself unable to control his new form properly. Afterwards, he sought to recover the family’s battle standard and return it to the estate with news of the tragedy.
In the end, the living bandits escaped in the confusion. Carrying off the battle standard and whatever else they could get their hands on from the flaming wreckage of the carriage. When the battle finished many of the ghosts laid to rest. Malcolm found as the rush of combat faded he lost the ability to become solid but could not pass on.
It took years before he was able to again take a form again, and even longer before he could hold if for more than several minutes. Eventually his mind slowly returned, and he found he could drift as a spectre in between becoming solid. He also discovered his battle charger had remained behind as a ghost as well and he was able to mount the loyal animal in either form.
A total of 36 years passed in frustration and struggle before he felt strong enough to begin traveling again. Now he roams the land in a semi-solid form atop his ever-loyal charger Typhoon.
He has to get the standard back to the family, let them know what happened. Unbeknownst to Malcolm, it took him so long to be able to solidify again that the standard was destroyed by the bandits he could not pursue. He now roams the world, seeking to recover the standard and inform what remains of House Galewatcher of the tragedy that befell the travelling family.