User:Joshmaul/Varsil Eagleshot

"'The life we lead is rewarding, but it is also dangerous - and in a pinch, you can only truly trust three things, what I like to call the three Bs: Your beer, your bear, and your Blunderbuss. Always keep all three handy whenever possible.'"
 * - Varsil Eagleshot, personal journal

Varsil Eagleshot is a dwarven mountaineer, sharpshooter and game hunter, and the son of General Korogh Madeyes. After his father disappeared in Northrend, Varsil believed that Korogh had been murdered by his nemesis, Artimus Devaneaux. Under the dictates of gwyarbrawden, the ritual dwarf warriors' blood pact made between himself and his father before Korogh departed for Northrend, Varsil sought vengeance for his father's death, even if he cannot prove decease with one hundred percent certainty. Artimus' eventual death - sacrificing himself to destroy an enemy - satisfied the debt, in the hunter's eyes - and left him wondering about his future...

Biography
Varsil was born in Ironforge a hundred and eighty-five years prior to the Cataclysm, the son of then-Lieutenant Korogh Snowmane and his wife Tirana. His grandfather was Senator Aidan Snowmane, assassinated by members of the Dark Iron clan on the eve of the War of the Three Hammers. Upon reaching adulthood, he joined the Mountaineer Corps of the Royal Army of Ironforge, serving in the hills of Dun Morogh and Loch Modan. Varsil often laments that he had little service during the Second War, while Ironforge was under siege by the Bleeding Hollow clan; he and his contingent were in a secluded region of Loch Modan. As a result, much of his knowledge of the Horde and its races came second-hand through his father, who rose through the ranks during the Second War to become a general. As his duties permitted, Korogh trained his son and heir extensively, teaching him how to shoot, track down game (or people, if the situation called for it), how to tame a wild beast as a companion, and how to care for them properly. Varsil's first companion was a white bear from eastern Dun Morogh, which he called Mathuin. After the death of his mother, he also trained a golden eagle from Loch Modan, naming it Tirana in her memory.

During his training, Varsil also met his father's friend Vorian Tanis, a Stormwind general, several times in the period between the Second and Third Wars, and Korogh undertook the training of Vorian's young son Oren when he decided to follow in his father's footsteps.

Artimus and the Gwyarbrawden
"'Me dad and I swore a pact o' gwyarbrawden - affirming our kinship in blood, and swearing that one of us would avenge that blood if th' other's be spilled. I can't prove it with any certainty, Lord Saavedro, but me heart tells me that me dad is dead, and I know who did it - and who must ultimately pay, regardless of risk...or cost.'"
 * - Varsil Eagleshot, to Saavedro of Stratholme

After the Scourge decimated Lordaeron and killed many thousands of people, including General Tanis, Korogh took Oren and his mother Estelle under his protection, and both he and Varsil worked regularly with the boy, knowing a war was coming with the Scourge sooner or later. It was just before that war began, in the confusion caused by the departure of Naxxramas, that Korogh saw the handiwork of the man who would become his most bitter enemy: Baron Artimus Devaneaux.

Artimus, a former commander in the Scarlet Crusade, had descended into madness and embraced the Cult of the Damned when he was confronted with the truth of his masters. Fleeing his confinement at Northshire Abbey, Artimus attacked and nearly killed Oren, which drove Korogh into a fit of rage; he and Varsil had embraced the young man as surrogate family. Chased by Korogh and his ally, the paladin Saavedro of Stratholme, Artimus attempted to flee into Azjol-Nerub, only to be killed on the spot and resurrected into the Scourge's service. Nothing more was heard of him until he came to Stormwind with a writ of amnesty from Highlord Tirion Fordring, which explained about the formation of the Knights of the Ebon Blade. Korogh, who had been present during the death knights' formal allegiance-swearing ceremony before King Varian Wrynn at Stormwind Keep, demanded that Artimus be extradited to Ironforge or executed by Stormwind's government for his crimes. Saavedro reluctantly stepped forward and reminded Varian that the amnesty covered the entire Alliance, not just the jurisdiction of Stormwind. Varian, needing any able-bodied warrior that could be spared for the coming campaign in Northrend, agreed with Saavedro's reasoning, and rejected Korogh's demand for execution or extradition.

Preparing to leave for Northrend himself, Korogh met with his children in Ironforge. Marrim would be detailed to Stormwind's dwarven district, while Varsil would remain in the heartland doing his duty as a mountaineer. Before leaving, however, Korogh privately informed Varsil that he intended to hunt down Artimus in Northrend, knowing that the Baron would participate in the campaign against the Lich King. He left a last request to his son and heir, stating that if he were to not return from Northrend when the war was over, Varsil was to assume that Artimus had killed him first. If Korogh could not finish the job himself, it would be left to Varsil, under the dictates of gwyarbrawden - no matter the difficulty and no matter the cost, the deed would be done. Realizing the serious import, Varsil agreed to the blood pact with his father, swearing that he would bring vengeance to the death knight if the general did not reach him first. Varsil's suspicions were first piqued when the victorious armies returned from Northrend after destroying the Lich King, and his father was not among them - but Artimus was...

Remaining in Dun Morogh for a time afterwards, continuing to hone his skills to near-mastery, Varsil decided to begin his hunt for Artimus. He knew he could not touch the Baron while under Alliance protection, but humans were prone to mistakes, and emotionally suicidal action. Sure enough, Artimus became a renegade not long after Varsil left Dun Morogh, but the Baron hid within the Ebon Hold, knowing no one would dare violate its neutrality. With the patience of the hunter, Varsil waited for his opportunity.

The Blood Debt is Paid
Catching up to Artimus in the Hillsbrad Foothills, Varsil prepared to take vengeance against his enemy. Artimus, for his part, admitted slaying Korogh in self-defense, trying to warn Varsil against feeding his desire for vengeance. His blind anger, the Baron warned, contributed to Korogh's death just as much as Artimus' blade. Varsil would hear none of it; it was only the arrival of a Forsaken Deathguard battalion under General Varan Metheius that forced the antagonists to become comrades in arms.

Wounded by Forsaken arrows, Varsil was taken from the field by members of the Shadowhowl pack at Artimus' insistence, declaring that he would be taken prisoner by the Forsaken and be taken to Sekhesmet, to seek his own vengeance...with just cause. As he recovered back at Aerie Peak, Varsil acknowledged that Artimus would likely not return, and indeed his death was announced several days later, having leapt from a tower at the entrance to Skywall, taking Metheius with him. With the Baron having met his fate, Korogh had been avenged and gwyarbrawden was satisfied...but Varsil was left with tremendous self-doubt, part of his mind wondering if Artimus had been right, and he had been blinded by his own hatred - just as his father had been.

Appearance and Personality
Varsil is a typical stoutly-built dwarf, with pale skin (the trademark of the Ironforge dwarf), thinning hair running to his shoulders and a twin-braided beard; his hair is reddish-gold, like his mother's (unlike his father and sister, who have white hair). His eyes are the color of ice chips, and do not close lightly. He wears a ring carved with runes on a cord around his neck - his mother's wedding ring, which she gave to him before dying of a fever shortly after the Third War.

Being a typical native of Dun Morogh, Varsil has an ice-lander's tolerance for cold, but is perfectly adaptable to warmer climes, such as the Loch or the Wetlands. Also typically, he has a great love for dwarven beer and tobacco, though he says that he prefers to be "buzzed, but not too buzzed", as it would be difficult to see what you're shooting while rip-roaring drunk. He also possesses a dwarven temper, and will not hesitate to reach for a weapon when angered sufficiently; the weapon of choice is typically a gun of some sort, as he earned his nom de guerre "Eagleshot" from his long-ranged skill with firearms. His skill with a bow is adequate, but not to the degree of mastery he has attained with a gun; his crossbow ability, he admits, is sorely lacking.

Companions
Varsil, a master of beast lore, has brought the following creatures to his aid:


 * Mathuin: Varsil's first companion, a white bear found in the snow-bound hills of Dun Morogh while under the tutelage of his father; this is the companion who will be most oft-seen at Varsil's side. The word is a name meaning "bear" in a dwarven dialect.
 * Tirana: An eagle native to Loch Modan, and named for his mother.
 * Lupercal: A ghost wolf found in the hills outside Darrowshire in the Eastern Plaguelands.
 * Dethbrush: A blueish-white fox native to Gilneas, found while Varsil was hunting for Artimus Devaneaux in Lordaeron.
 * Slaydo: A venomhide ravasaur, found while Varsil was hunting in Un'Goro Crater.
 * Demetrius: A warp stalker from Terokkar Forest in Outland.
 * Carniela: A white ram bred by the ranchers at Amberstill Ranch in Dun Morogh, which serves as his mount.
 * Aidania: A gryphon bred by the master breeders of the Wildhammer Clan at Aerie Peak which serves as his flying mount; named for his grandfather, Senator Aidan Snowmane.