Chaagur

Chaagur’s spawn-mother has a great deal to answer for. Born into a brood in the sewers of the Free City of Arnoc, Chaagur grew up to be just one of the teeming thousands of Lizardmen that infest the settlement’s underbelly. Life there is cheap, and those who do not belong to one of the many gangs swiftly become outcasts. Chaagur might have turned into just another cutthroat sluice-runner, or hired muscle, were it not for the stories he was told as a spawnling, stories that went on to shape both his personality and fate. Chaagur’s mother enjoyed spinning tall tales to her offspring, perhaps trying to shield them from the brutality of life beneath Arnoc. She spoke of far-off lands and wondrous places, but most of all, she told them accounts of a time before so many of their kind had been reduced to a criminal underclass, an age gone by when they not only possessed freedom, wealth, and stability, but also strength and power. She told them of the days of the Dragonkin Empire, and none listened more intently than Chaagur. He listened so carefully because, when speaking to him alone, his mother told him of the dragons. Wise, powerful, winged creatures. Chaagur himself had wings, a rare trait among Lizardmen, prized in history but now regarded with suspicion, for his people had forgotten so much of their once glorious past. He could not help but feel special, important. Chaagur took the stories to heart and kept them close, making them a source of comfort and inspiration throughout the difficulties he endured. He believed desperately that they were more than mere fables, that his mother’s accounts were true retellings of the past of his people, a time when their empire had spanned the world and guaranteed peace and prosperity for all. The reason for the empire’s eventual defeat had been left nebulous, blamed on treachery and shortsightedness. Surely a time would come when the Lizardmen would realize how far they had fallen and seek to renew their old glories? As he came of age, Chaagur swiftly proved himself in Arnoc’s underworld, earning a reputation as a skilled blade for hire, deadly with his twin swords. He worked for a number of gangs, his abilities earning him respect, but always he longed for something more. As he played his part in the brutalities plaguing life in the Free City, he became disgusted with what he saw as the degeneration of his people. There had to be another way, a future beyond the greed, crime, and impoverishment. Chaagur began to cause trouble, claiming that the Lizardmen of Arnoc needed to change their ways. Even worse, he styled himself as the one who was going to bring about that change, who could unite his people and lead them into a new and enlightened future. Understandably, such an attitude did not sit well with Arnoc’s under-lords and crime-broods. It wasn’t long before Chaagur’s work dried up, and that was followed by a slew of assassination attempts that the Lizardman barely survived. Chaagur realized that Arnoc was not ready for change. Worse, he knew that his rabble-rousing was putting his own brood-kin, especially his mother, in danger. It was with a heavy heart that he chose to flee the city, fixing his hopes on a new beginning. Among her fables, Chaagur’s mother had often told him of the distant Sorrowlakes of Peltas, home to the largest Lizardmen population in Teleria. If Arnoc was not ready for a return of the Dragonkin Empire, perhaps the clans of the Sorrowlakes would be. The journey from Arnoc was long and arduous, but the aggression Chaagur suffered from Human villagers, roving Skinwalkers, and traveling priests merely hardened his resolve. Having never known anything other than the sewers of the Free City, he naively believed that the leaders of the Sorrowlakes would see him as a savior. Instead he discovered a Lizardmen society little different from the desperate backstabbing and scrounging of Arnoc. The clans were beset by disunity and infighting over the Sorrowlakes’ sparse resources. The realization filled Chaagur with sorrow, but he refused to give up on what he saw as his life’s purpose. Since arriving in the Sorrowlakes, Chaagur has worked tirelessly to unite the Lizardmen clans and remind them of their former strength and majesty. As in Arnoc, there is much resistance, but not all scorn his efforts. The former gang swordsman has skill and charisma, and some lesser tribes and leaderless bands have rallied to him. Each new follower only reinforces Chaagur’s determination. He is convinced that greatness is beckoning him on, and he will not stop until he is slain or his peoples are reunited and reigning once again.