Ifor ap Culhwch, Crest of Pearl - Master of Flight
Played by:Koen
Name: Ifor ap Culhwch
Age: 19
Height: 5'8"
Weight: 150 lbs
Background: He was the 4th son of Culhwch and Gwendolen, who were minor nobles tending a small domain near Evandler. From a young age he was attracted by he forest, just as Yesting, the 3rd of the children. Together they wandered
through the forests often, and when Ifor was 6 and his brother 7, they met
Carey, the forrestkeeper of the baron of Evandler. Sensing that they liked the
forest, he started to teach the two boys the ways of the forest.
After a year, Yesting was called by the druids, and left home. Ifor now spent
more time with Carey then he did with his parents, and he learned how to
survive in the forrest. He quickly became very adept with the longbow, and he
was a very good tracker. After his elder brothers were old enough, his father
also started to teach him the principles of knighthood, as well as how to
manage a domain, even though he would probably never do the latter. He also
learned how to read and write.
He was 13, when disaster struck. He was in the forest, with Carey, when a red glow became visible at the horizon. Seeing it was close to his father’s estate, he and Carey ran that way, but they were too late. The estate was burned down to the ground, and he found his father and his two eldest brothers lying on the ground, swords in their hands, but clearly dead. Of his mother no trace. A group of bandits, who had pillaged more in this region and who had eluded the baron’s efforts to capture or kill them, had hit again. Ifor swore vengeance, and nothing Carey tried could turn him away from it.
His elder brother was a druid now, and that meant that he was the heir of the estate. He sold the land to his neighbours, bought a horse and some good weapons, and headed into the hills to attempt what that baron’s soldiers hadn’t managed to do, namely to track and kill the bandits. Although the baron had good trackers, Carey being one of them, Ifor managed to slip between the bandit’s patrols, something one man could, but a group of soldiers couldn’t do. That night, two months after the fatal day, he killed the first two bandits. When they left their camp to move on, he went in to see what he could learn about them and there he found his mother’s body. He burried her conform the traditions, and went after the bandits again. The first druid he encountered he asked to tell his brother where their mother was burried, so he could perform a proper ceremony.
Over the next year, he followed the bandits, and managed to kill all but two of them. These two, the leader and his lieutenant, managed to elude him, but Ifor didn’t give up. It took him three months, but he got them when they threatened a druid. The druid thanked him for the rescue, and while traveling together, he thought Ifor the basics of healing, building on what Carey had thought him.
Now his vengeance was complete, he could let that part of his past rest.
Because he wanted to do something else for a while, to bring his mind at ease,
he enlisted on a ship. For the next three years, he sailed on the Myfanwy, one
time going as far as Amwythig. While on the journey back from that trip, he
started longing to the forests, so when he got back in Gwynriod, the home port
of the Myfanwy, he decided to go back to the forests. He started wandering
again, and ended up near Alban, where he entered the service of the king.
He was appointed as bodyguard for princess Rowena, the youngest sister of the king. He worked in this capacity until a war broke out with Aberystwyth. He tried to infiltrate the enemy army, but he was discovered and had to run. He joined the main army just before their victory. After the war he went back to his bodyguard activities which lasted until a victory tournament was held.
Ifor won the archery contest by shooting three arrows at exactly the same location in the middle of the target. After this victory he was asked to train the archers, which Ifor did. But he wanted to do more and he selected a group of 50 soldiers which he trained as rangers and scouts.
The first time these rangers were needed was when princess Rowenna and princess Bronwen's daughter were kidnapped. Ifor and some of his men joined the king and part of the royal guard. They got the baby out and while the king brought her back, Ifor, Alterian and Ifor's men went after Rowena. They found her together with Morgan and both were brought back to Alban.
Having proven the concept, Ifor continued training until a civil war broke out in Llandaf. Lord Denath revolted against king Jolnar. Having saved crown princess Talia from bandits before, he asked the king if he could go there to help Talia. Posing as a mercenary company they went to Llandaf. Ifor's group attacked supply lines and even a large group of new recruits. This attracted the attention of a similar group, the Akryan rangers. While Ifor and his men managed to kill over 100 rangers, he only had eight men left, so he decided to go back to the main army.
Tallia had brought her army into the field to meet Denath's, even though the latter was much bigger. Ifor was put in charge of the archers and with some tricks he managed to draw out the large group of Picts that Denath had with him. Because of this the enemy army came forward in waves and was defeated. Talia killed Denath and this ended the battle.
As a reward, Ifor was given Cealion, Denath's old lands. He was also asked to raise a full regiment of rangers. Ifor accepted and after visiting his new castle and Denath's widow and daughters, he decided to marry Gwenith, Denath's youngest daughter. There was a small issue with king Hawk of Abertawe but that was also smoothed over. After his marriage, Ifor could start building his regiment.
Personality Profile: After what happened with his family, he has some trouble trusting people. Although it is better now he has served on a ship for a couple of years, where you have to trust your shipmates, he still tends to be a loner. While he is friendly and easy going, he will seldom seek contact himself, and will not discuss his past with others. The only exception to this are druids, who’s orders he will follow to the best of his abilities. When he wants to be alone, he simply vanishes into the forests.
Skills and Abilities: Tracking, archery, survival in the wild, horseback riding, swordmanship, read/write, seamanship and navigation, basics of healing and herbalism, good endurance and eye-hand coordination.
Physical Profile: He is very fit, but he looks more like a long distance runner then a sprinter, like most knights tend to do. As he normally doesn’t wear much armour, and certainly not full plate, he doesn’t need the extra muscle to lift the heavy armour. But he can (and has done on occasions) run a couple of days with only minimal rest. Because he doesn’t look muscular, it doesn’t mean he has no strenght, as many people have found out, but he relies more on endurance and agility to get the job done, then on pure strength.
He is well tanned, from his life in the forests and on a ship, and has a scar above his left eye where he was hit by a rope that snapped in a storm.
Special Notes: On his longbow and swords are runes, which are said to bring good luck when using the weapons. He is a follower of Abnoba, the goddess of the hunt.