Basil Darlingdoe's page

About Basil Darlingdoe

Basil Darlingdoe

The only child of deceased parents, Basil is a member of a larger and well-established aristocratic family, the Darlingdoes. Unbeknownst to him, Basil’s father was a locally famous adventurer. Basil is a good natured bard who is, unfortunately, sometimes inept due to his lack of innate wisdom; while his close friends consider this charming, his straightlaced family and enemies deride him for it.

Formally trained in literature and the arts after the death of his parents, Basil never quite had the personality for hand-to-hand combat, but became well acquainted with archery on the rolling hills and woodlands of his family estates. As a child Basil was fascinated by the arcane, and spent his free evenings with his doddering old uncle Osbert in the estate’s rickety old mage tower — much to the disapproval of his Great Aunt Ursula, the matriarch of the family. Unfortunately, years ago Uncle Ossie accidentally polymorphed himself into a songbird and was eaten by Ursula's cat before a mage could be located to change him back. It's well-known that Ursula and Osbert disliked each other, and whispered among the locals that Ursula "accidentally" left the birdcage open while her kitty was in the room.

Basil has three cousins who live on the palatial estate with his Auntie: Hester, the youngest, a self-centered young woman; Percy, the middle child, a cruel and scheming middle aged man who believes he should have the place and power of eldest; and Wilbur, the eldest son who means well but is easily manipulated. After Basil’s parents died when he was eight years old, Basil’s larger family enveloped his parent’s satellite estate. During this time Percy in particular tormented Basil throughout his youth, and often got his brother and (especially) sister to join in the fun, ambushing him outdoors, tricking him, or locking him in the family crypts.

Like any young noble Basil loves a good horse, good food, and the leisurely indulgences one can find in respectable taverns throughout the Inner Sea. And like many young nobles, Basil has a tendency to overindulge and to act irresponsibly — in fact, he and his peers are nearing thirty and still refuse to become adults and take up the mantle of dignified aristocrats. While Basil loves gambling and carousing, he has spent the bulk of this time with others of his social class: he’s never been cheated, and he’s never been concerned about money enough to put the effort _into_ cheating — let along simply getting good at cards or dice in the first place. These hobbies are mere diversions and provide opportunities to pass the time, drink, tell stories, and gossip.

Basil has a long history of unwisely embarrassing his straight-laced family members — particularly his Auntie. Whether it’s being overheard doing ribald impressions of dignitaries at important local functions or pranks gone disastrously wrong at the worst possible moment, Basil is no stranger to the fury of an ancient matriarch and her cronies. Because of his occasional debts, and the animosity his family feels towards him (in particular when he breaks protocol or embarrasses his Auntie), Basil has often been sent away from the estates to serve as an envoy for the local government.

In fact, his aunt has secret ties to the Sovereign Court, and Basil has unwittingly served as an envoy over the years. While this was seen as punishment by his family — and even at first by Basil — he has slowly cultivated a love for travel and exploration. In fact, he has recently begun walking instead of taking a carriage everywhere, and wearing comfortable boots instead of foppish shoes — his family (and some of his friends) have been scandalized.

Five months ago disaster of unimaginable proportions struck the Darlingdoes: the family’s most sacred treasure — an artifact that is said to ensure the wealth and goodwill of the family in perpetuity — was stolen from the secret family crypts. While this tradition may seem silly to an outsider, the Darlingdoes have no real source of income — after all, they’re _nobles_, not mere merchants or tradespeople.

Of course, Basil was blamed for carelessly allowing this theft (Basil, however, suspects his cousin Percy whose pride and want for power makes him a good suspect). After months of desperate but discrete searching, Basil’s Aunt has gone completely apoplectic with rage: she cut off Basil’s allowance and sent him off to the pathfinder society in order to work with the network of the Sovereign Court (in secret) to either locate this missing artifact or, at worst, die in some godsforesaken place and rid the family of their burden.