Mathias Gabriel's page

About Mathias Gabriel

Mathias Gabriel
Male Oni-Spawn Tiefling Paladin (Oath Vengeance) 7 / Magus (Bladebound hexcrafter) 7
LG Medium Outsider (native)
Init +; Senses Perception +, darkvision

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Defense
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AC 23, touch 13, flat-footed 20 (+ armor, + shield, + nat armor, + Dex); DR
hp (7d10+)
Fort +, Ref +, Will +; Resist cold, electric, fire 5

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Offense
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Speed 30 ft.
Melee
Melee
Melee cestus +8 (1d4+5, B/P, 19-20/x2, cold iron)
Ranged comp longbow +6 (1d8+5, 110', P, x3)
Special Attacks smite, divine bond; arcane pool, spellstrike, spell combat; favored enemy (undead), power attack, deadly aim

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Statistics
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Str Dex Con Int Wis Cha
Base Atk +7 CMB + CMD
Feats
Traits
Skills ((2+4)*7)
Languages common, abyssal, varisian, elven
SQ
FCB +1.75 arcane pool hp

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Abilities
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TRAITS

FEATS

RACE ABILITIES/QUALITIES

CLASS ABILITIES/QUALITIES
Favored Enemy (Ex) +2 Bluff, Knowledge, Perception, Sense Motive, and Survival checks; +2 weapon attack and damage rolls (undead).

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Profile
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Appearance
Mathias is tall, lean, broad shouldered, and imposing, an impressive specimen to behold. His face is well defined and his smile would be charming, if not for the unsettling, macabre feeling that seems to come from within his dark, crimson irises. He wears his brown hair long and loosely pulled back, though the rigors of battle often unleash it, as a lion's mane moving with his blade. His skin is pale, with an ashen tinge to it, and anyone brushing against it notices its rough, almost stonelike texture. Mathias' garb only lends to his distinct appearance, typically clad in a crimson and black leather surcoat atop his armor, and black leather boots. His armaments hang from his hip and back, ready to used against the horrors of the dark.

Personality
Once a naively charismatic and charming individual, product of loss and betrayal on the deepest level, Mathias is understandably brooding. Though passionately committed to both destroying the forces of evil and helping those in need, none would consider him a shining beacon of hope. Mathias fatalistically acknowledges that there are dark things in the world, that they likely outnumber the good, and that he is already damned to an eternity of torment at the hands of a demon lord. As such, he has little time for the petty musings of nobles, dilletantes, and their ilk. He enjoys solid drink (whiskeys tend to be the best at easing his tormented mind), a good laugh with decent company, the smile of a saved innocent, and tearing the life from the servants of evil. All that said, he does have a soft spot for the weak, downtrodden, and betrayed, and will go to enormous ends to see them protected.

Background
Stare long enough into the horrors of the abyss, and you will become the beast you hunt. Such was the truth of Ricard Gabriel, renowned monster slayer and warrior of the Church of Iomedae. His sword had graced countless battlefields, and his name danced off the tongues of minstrels across Golarion. But none knew the pacts he'd made, none knew the things he had sold to gain his strength. None, including his wife. Returning home to Absalom after several months away, Ricard discovered his wife was with child. The timing lined up with his last departure and he was overjoyed. The seer foretold of a son, one to carry on his holy crusade against evil.

Yet tragedy struck with his birth, for just as the newborn took it's first breath, his mother took her last. The midwives of Iomedae called upon their Mistress's blessings but were unable to revive Ricard's wife. But a son had indeed been born. The child was healthy and large, with piercing dark hair and eyes. Ricard was overjoyed, yet that joy soon faded. He found himself frequently awakened at night by the terrified wailing of he newborn. After only a few weeks, he accepted "an assignment", and left the baby Mathias in the hands of several aging midwives to raise. They tended to the child as best they could, but the terrors of the night continued to plague the baby.

The infant grew to a boy, and the boy quickly flourished. Though a bit shy, he was athletic, agile, smart, and insightful. He took well to his studies, learning the ways of Iomedae. He especially loved to hear the tales of his heroic father, questing for the glory of the Inheritor. And when his father would return to the City at the Center of the World, Mathias would rejoice and throw his arms around him. It is true that as the small child began to grow into a young man, Ricard developed more of a bond with his offspring. He was much like himself, and would make a fine squire to follow in his footsteps. But so too would be late at night wonder about the debt he owed, about the pact he'd made... but that memory would pass with the with the dawning sun, and off Ricard would go on another adventure.

In his 15th year, Ricard took Mathias north with him to Ustalav, where Mathias spent time studying with Ricard's friend, Professor Lorrimor. Mathias tried hard to focus on his studies, but as of late his passion had turned more martial. Still, whether it was Professor Lorrimor's tutelage, or the assistance lent by the Professor's daughter (who had several years on him and had more of a mind for the study), Mathias worked hard to learn about one of his father's most dreaded foes - the undead. He took to the hard, direct arts of hunting such foes - noting the signs, tracking their movements, understanding their weaknesses. Mathias would make his father proud, he was sure of that. Then the letter came. Ricard had been lost, falling to the mechanications of a lich, a mad follower of the Whispering Tyrant. In his father's loss, Mithias swore to take on his father's mantle, becoming a hunter, an agent of the church. And so he traveled south to Taldor, hoping to be formally inducted into the church... but that would never happen.

On a lonely evening on the road from Zimar to Oppara, chance happened to bring an aging man to Mathias' campfire. Though well past 60 winters, the elder traveled with no guard, no weapon. This perplexed Mathias and he quickly invited him to stay the night. They made small talk, speaking the the road, Mathias' work, and the cool weather of late. Then the man spoke, I knew your father Mathias, son of Ricard Gabriel. He owed someone powerful a great debt, a debt which you have now inherited. As he spoke, the old man's faced shifted into a horrific, monstrous visage. Mathias tried to draw his blade, but found his body spellbound. The man sneered as he approached then touched Mathias's head, sending seering pain racing through his body. Then, there was only darkness.

Mathias awoke the next morning to find himself still at the campsite, though there was no sign of the man. Struggling to a nearby stream, he tried to wash his face, only to find blood staining the cool, mountain water. Looking at his reflection he saw the twisted mockery of the man he had been the night before. His skin had faded to a pallid, ashen tone, his irises were stained with blood, and he noticed a feral angle developing on his facial features. Looking down at his skin, he noticed not only the gray color, but a new texture. It had thickened, becoming almost hide-like, and showed little response to flame. Returning to his campsite, he found an ivory scroll case. Within was a contract, a contract his father had signed. From it he had gained strength, wealth, and weapons to fight the evils of the realms. But in return he had pledged his soul, and the souls of all his bloodline, to an unknown demon. Thus was Mathias damned.

Returning to the temple, he was subject to question and doubt by the church. Suspected of diablerie or something of the like, Mathias was banished from the temple of Iomedae, left to seek out meaning for his now damned existence alone. The bottle and rage both took him for a time, before he remembered the tales of Ragathiel, former general of the Heavens and Lord of Vengeance. In Ragathiel, there was a lord who understood his cursed fate, yet would empower him to crusade against the darkness. And so he took up his arms, serving a new cause. He sought work as a hunter of monsters, seeking to eradicate evil, especially that which preyed on the weak, innocent, and downtrodden. That drew his north to Mendev and the border city of Kenabres, where he faced the horrors of the World Wound. Yet even there, his visage cast doubt on him, and so, in hearing the call for brave souls to confront the remnants of Ustalav, a land he had once visited as a teen, he took the opportunity and set out for adventure.

Plot Hooks
Father: is he dead, or did the lich perhaps turn him into some form of undead (if intelligent undead, would explain why his soul never passed on to start paying his unholy debt)
Old Man: who and what was the old man, and will he, or another minion, come back to claim Mathias's soul?
Demon: who was the unnamed demon (lord?) that Mathias's father sold their souls to?