User:VaalithSolivade

'NOTE: If you find anything at all wrong with this character, lore-wise or otherwise, please leave a comment in the Discussion section explaining the error that you have sighted and an ideal way to correct the error. Please be respectful when posting, and offer constructive criticism.'

Known simply as "Vaal" or occasionally called "Ponytail" by his peers, High Templar Vaalith Solivade is a Quel'dorei Paladin and ex-High Templar of the Scarlet Crusade. He grew up in Quel'thalas being taught at an early age to learn the basics of Holy magic. His family later moved to Lordaeron to train under the Clerics of Northshire before joining the Knights of the Silver Hand as a Paladin. At the conclusion of the Third War, he then traveled to Hearthglen to join the Scarlet Crusade after Lordaeron fell. He trained in the Scarlet ranks as a Templar, and eventually his service earned him the prestigious position of High Templar of the Scarlet Crusade. Once he saw the corruption in the order, he escaped from Hearthglen around the time of the Shattering and traveled southward to the Kingdom of Stormwind. He settled in Stormwind City for a time, serving the Cathedral of Light as a guard and the Grand Alliance abroad, until the mists surrounding Pandaria parted. He went to Shattrath on a spiritual journey and later trained in the Tian Monastery before returning to Stormwind a while after. He now mainly resides in the city, assisting anyone like him who seeks to reform and purify the Scarlet Crusade.

=Biography=

Early Life
Vaalith was born in Quel'thalas to a priestess and a magister in control of a small village that was nestled in what is now known as the Ghostlands. Since his youth, his mother prepared him to be able to use Holy magic to help and protect others. This training allowed him to become a member of the Clerics of Northshire after his family had moved south to Lordaeron. During this time, his family lived in service of Lordaeron's aristocracy to pay for his teachings. As a cleric, he became very intimate with the Holy Light, using it best to heal the wounded and strike at the enemy with holy magic spells. His family also contributed to his magical knowledge by teaching him about the arcane-based magics of Auramancy, the ability to detect or manipulate the auras of oneself or of others. This proved to assist in his training as an extra assortment of abilities, especially useful in empowering the feeble, detecting evil, and weakening the enemy. He was more than happy to go into combat and use the powers of the Light to protect his fellow man, no matter the cost.

Vaalith had become well into his training as a cleric when he heard of the founding of the Order of the Silver Hand, and chose to change his profession accordingly, finding the paladin lifestyle very appealing to him. He swore to maintain an air of devotion and purity within the order, and he did. He served in the ranks with passion and righteousness, but other paladins often commented on how he was quick to draw the blade. He continued his path until the order and Lordaeron fell at the hands of the newly-crowned Lich King, Arthas Menethil, and his undead Scourge armies. He and his family were forced to leave, lest they be turned into undead, so they joined a group of refugees heading out from Lordaeron that ventured eastward to settle down in Hearthglen, a town that was recently put under the control of the newly-organized Scarlet Crusade.

Crusader Years
Once the refugees reached Hearthglen, they settled down in the remote but fortified town and joined the Crusade's ranks. Vaalith joined a sub-group of holy warriors in the Crusade's army, known as the Cardinal Templars, and he began his new training as a Templar for the Crusade. As part of his training, he was often sent to the Scarlet Monastery to be taught how to best use the Light so he might protect and heal his allies. He became one of Herod's many faceless and nameless trainees, he studied the ways of the Crusade as one of the scholars under Arcanist Doan, and he participated as a minor 'Champion' in the Cathedral under Whitemane's supervision. The training was rigorous and taxing, but he managed to graduate and become a full-fledged member of the Cardinal Templars.

For a good several years Vaalith had served as a Templar in the Scarlet Army. He saw a few significant conflicts and several minor ones in Tirisfal Glades and the Plaguelands, many of which ended in victory for him and his fellow men. He claimed a credible amount of killing blows on the undead during his service, and eventually he was able to rise through the ranks to become an officer of the Cardinal Templars. Eventually, the previous holder of the title 'High Templar' had passed away, and no one was left to lead in his place. A council was gathered to vote on a new leader, and Vaalith won the votes by a narrow margin. He was promoted and commended as High Templar of the Cardinal Templars, and from then on, he enjoyed a relatively comfortable life as an officer of the Crusade.

Escaping Southward
As Vaalith's service in the Crusade dragged on, he became more and more aware of the corruption that had been seeping into the Crusade's ranks. He drew a blind eye to this, believing that he would not fall into the same corruption as his brethren and that whatever damage was being done could be easily reversed in time. However, he later noticed the inquisitions had been becoming more and more ruthless. He began to suspect he had begun being persecuted for his race more than anything else. He believed that the heckling would end with time, but this was not the case. Eventually, as a test by the Scarlet Inquisition, he was forced to watch his parents die at the hands of Scarlet Torturers to prove his loyalty to the Crusade above all else, even family members, but this only helped to wane his faith and loyalty in the Crusade even further. He knew at this point the order was beyond redemption, and he could no longer willingly serve it.

Around the time just before the Shattering, Vaalith was able to sneak out of Hearthglen, claiming to be going on a "spiritual journey", and escape the Plaguelands. After finding out that his elven brethren in Quel'thalas had been indulging in Fel magic, he decided instead to move south to Stormwind, the only remaining human bastion in Azeroth. He was forced to ride horseback through the Arathi Highlands and cross the Thandol Span to enter Khaz Modan. He stopped at outposts within Loch Modan to rest, but not too long, and he continued to venture farther south, unaware of the Deeprun Tram that ran from Ironforge to Stormwind. Using disguise techniques taught to him during his tutelage under Arcanist Doan aside other Scarlet Scholars, he was able to rest in the Badlands for about a month while he rode out the Shattering. During his time there, he gathered knowledge from Uldaman that would change his life significantly. He left soon after and continued down through the Searing Gorge and Burning Steppes until he entered the Redridge Mountains, now within friendly territory once again.

Journey Completed
Vaalith walked into the town of Lakeshire, battered, bruised, and scarred from all his travels southward. He was quickly given medical attention and a small room in the Lakeshire Inn while he recovered. Eventually, he was healed and fit to move on, at which point he took a gryphon to Stormwind. The first thing he did when he reached the city was that he ran to the Cathedral of Light and knelt before the altar to pray and confess his sins to the priests, the overall process lasting a couple hours. During his prayers, he praised and thanked the Light for guiding him to a safe haven where he could once again serve as a righteous follower of holiness, and he later confessed his sins of misjudging the Scarlet Crusade and pleaded for forgiveness for serving them for so long. He quickly signed up as a paladin of the Cathedral of Light, serving as a guard for the clergy and Cathedral itself when he was not summoned by the Alliance military to fight abroad in foreign lands against Deathwing's minions. A lot of this time was also spent conspiring with fellow Ex-Scarlets and Scarlet Renegades to reform the Scarlet Crusade as it was intended to be: Pure and righteous, free of the demonic corruptions of its predecessor.

Spiritual Journey
Sometime just before the Mists of Pandaria had parted, Vaalith embarked on a spiritual pilgrimage to Outland, specifically to Shattrath City to learn under the sacred teachings of the Naaru and the Draenei that dwelt there. It was there that he communed with the Holy Light and grew much closer to it over the span of many months. At the conclusion of these months in Outland, word reached him about the continent of Pandaria, home to the peaceful and disciplined Pandaren. He proceeded to this new land and trained in the prestigious Tian Monastery to hone his body and spirit.

After about a month of isolation and heavy training, he was informed of the situation at the Scarlet Monastery: The Scarlet Renegades had succeeded in taking the monastery, but their conduct was no better than the previous owners. Vaalith was badly shaken by this news, his faith in the Scarlet Crusade shattered in one fell swoop. He had concluded his training and returned to Stormwind upon hearing the news, and sought to resume his duties of guarding the Cathedral of Light and serving the Alliance. Over time, his faith has begun to return, and once again he volunteered to help any Ex-Scarlets and Scarlet Renegades who asked for it.

Current Life
Vaalith is currently serving as a protector of the Cathedral of Light and a soldier of the Alliance. His ties to the Scarlet Crusade have remained strong over the years, save the hiccup in his faith during and after his spiritual pilgrimage, when he suspected that the Scarlet Crusade was fully beyond redemption no matter what would be done for it. He also occasionally lends a helping hand to any Ex-Scarlets and Scarlet Renegades when needed, so long as he believes they are acting in the best interests of the Holy Light.

Appearance
He is thin, almost appearing underweight, as well as tall. He possesses small but toned muscles and his skin is quite pale with little tanning. His hair is light brown, braided into a ponytail in the back of his head, with a thin mustache and a triangular beard forming a goatee. He has blue eyes that have a light glow of silver around them.

Armor and Weapons
He can usually be seen wearing what appears to be Judgement Armor, but with a Lightbringer's Faceguard and Shoulderguards instead of the original helm and shoulders. His weapon of choice is the Truncheon of Five Hells and his shield is the Drillborer Disk. He may also be rarely seen in his Star-Caller armor, which is the Immolation platemail coupled with his own personally-crafted holy-enchanted scythe, which he calls 'Solais'. It is rare to see him wearing an actual Scarlet tabard in public, and it is even rarer for him to wear a full Scarlet gear set, but he does have access to both of these. He keeps these as mementos and only wears them during ceremonies within his order, but NEVER would he wear any of this outside the Cathedral.

How to Find Him
Vaalith can usually be found in Stormwind, serving in the Cathedral of Light, or abroad in the northern parts of the Eastern Kingdoms, helping to thin out the numbers of the undead.