The Master (? AC – 425 AC) was a male Human who was the leader of the Faceless Brethren, the followers of the long-dead archmage, Maladar an-Desh. Originally hailing from the Rainward Isles, the sorcerer learned of Maladar and the Hooded One and made plans to resurrect Maladar, believing Taladas to be ruined ever since the fall of the Aurim Empire. Discarding his identity and becoming known only as the Master, the sorcerer found like-minded souls on the island of Suluk, forming the Faceless Brethren. Like his fellow disciples of Maladar, he bore numerous self-inflicted wounds, and had carved away large amounts of flesh from his face, showing the bone underneath. His face was little more than a leering skull, with blazing eyes, a black tongue and long teeth.
In 424 AC, the Master and the rest of the Brethren had setup their headquarters at the Temple of Akh-tazi in Neron. They plotted a means to recover the Hooded One to enable the return of Maladar, and managed to eventually recover the magical statue. The Master also found a perfect vessel, being the unborn child of Essana Forlo, whom he organised to be abducted and brought back to the temple. The sorcerer then magically birthed Essana's child and aged him into a young man, so he would be a proper vessel for Maladar's spirit. The sorcerer also learnt of the duplicity of The Keeper, whom he discovered trying to escape with Essana, and had his follower tortured and eventually executed.
When Barreth Forlo and his companions reached the temple to rescue Essana, the Master deployed his remaining Brethren to stop them. However when all of his Brethren were killed, the Master then incapacitated Barreth and Shedara. The sorcerer then fired a spell to knock down the charging Merkitsa Elf Eldako, however the elf managed to stay on his feet and tackled the sorcerer off the roof of the temple. Both Eldako and the Master plummeted to their deaths and the Faceless Brethren was no more.
References[]
- Trail of the Black Wyrm, p.8, 66-70, 325-329, 373, 376-380