Vichthart
Father Vichthart Fezzilbahn, affectionately called Priestman by Grokko, is a member of clergy within Verein Kirche von Arkhelle and a priest of the goddess of redemption, Sarenrae. He is a relatively quiet and reserved man, tending to let actions occur around him, but years of travel, as well as recent events, have kept him a stalwart defender when travelling alone or with others. Although he isn't a confident conversationalist, he is a fastidious keeper of notes that he keeps to present to his highers up within the church, and given time he can prepare a competent speech and deliver it with enthusiasm.
Normally Vichthart, or just Vicht, lives at home with his wife—Anastel—and their three children in a quaint village where he is the local priest, delivering sermons and supporting the spiritual and personal lives of his parishioners. However, he annually travels around the western end of the Roughspun Coast in order to audit the records of tithes collected by churches in that area. He has grown familiar with the priests along his route, including Father Traulam Eugen in Senneborn, and he enjoys meeting other individuals on his annual trip. Years of solo travel have accustomed him to tackling the occasional thug, goblin or wild animal on the road.
On his most recent trip to Scharn, Vichthart was travelling on The Crested Eagle when it sank off the coast near Meeresdorf. A word from Sarenrare though helped him to survive and swim to shore along with Grokko, Kenneth and the unconscious Lania Falst. Learning from the harbourmaster Solomon Dugraf that all ships off this coast have mysteriously sunk in inexplicable storms, Vicht and his companions are thrust into the responsibility of defending Western Scharn from an incursion of demon-worshipping gnolls led by Srir Silthallow and Rrekkeh Stormcrawler. After closing their portal on a small, forgotten island, instead of being able to continue his regular duties or return home, Vichthart was summoned to Kaarst to provide outside assistance in the investigation of a string of murders and disappearances. Taking Grokko and Anrel with him, and teaming up with newcomer to the empire Mira, they uncovered and disrupted a conspiracy of mages plotting with devils and vampires to detonate heavy explosives underneath the city.
Vichthart is originally from Heldruh, just north of the imperial capital Hellenhelm, but studied to become a priest in Baumeln, a town on the border of Arkhelle, Scharn and Denkrei. He stays overnight in Kaarst every year at the start of his rounds, staying at The Copper Roost, although he doesn't enjoy the noise and bustle of cities, nor the idiosyncratic laws and clergy of Kaarst. Nevertheless, while he waits for his friends to find him in the city, he manages to drink enough to become slightly merry. He has only occasionally reached the limits of his patience, being incensed at the theft of the platinum gauntlet holy relic from the Church of St Anorad, and throwing one gnoll off a bridge in a rage after first encountering the demons they'd summoned.
Vichthart is loyal to Verein Kirche von Arkhelle, reporting to Father Eivald Glissan at HQ regularly, keeping extensive notes to hand in to Hellenhelm, and being excited to meet Cardinal Maurul Silkendawn. Although he has listened patiently to Reiner Hoss outline his hatred of Kade Sirrine Kathedrale for its treatment of those who worship Mystra, he remains steadfast in his resolve to protect the church, placing his trust in Sable Warden Meriele Berevan and her hatred of the undead to confide their findings to her, despite their suspicion that there might be insiders within the clergy. He tells Anrel that there are no grounds for him to assassinate Cardinal Silkendawn, no matter what cooperation it gets them from Leagallow Tiaathque in the short term.
Vichthart is also devoted to his goddess, Sarenrae, praying to her every morning. He has very occasionally received words of advice from her via his holy pendant, being told to swim when first falling in the cold waters off Meeresdorf, and recently being guided to put the Feywild Shard in the hands of Grokko. He was pleased to see Lania Falst wearing a pendant similar to his own after she recovered in Meeresdorf, and has been keenly watching Grokko's growing interest in the church, disappointed by how readily he's changed his attitude after speaking to members of the Knives of Mystra. Early on in his adventures in Scharn, he experienced a dream of his father, Father Decheimül Fezzilbahn, in the form of an early lesson he received about the duality of Sarenrae, and the very real fight against evil being just as important as the protection and redemption of good people.
Vichthart's eagerness to serve the church, to purge the world of fiendish invaders, and protect his friends, can sometimes cause him to fight with reckless regard for his own well being. His use of his shield and mace, and tendency to try to grapple and pin his opponents, result in his ending up close to danger multiple times. When first attacking a goblin hideout near Meeresdorf, Vichthart neared death at the hands of the bugbear Tark, receiving a permanent, sun-shaped scar on his chest. His acquisition of platinum rings from faerie dragons has encouraged him to take even more damage by regularly casting Warding Bond on Grokko. Fortunately, his discovery and wearing of the Periapt of Wound Closure has saved his life on every occasion, but falling unconscious so often has frequently left him unable to fight, to flee dangerous situations, or heal his friends when needed. While facing the Knives of Mystra underneath Kaarst, he needed to be administered a Potion of Healing twice by the Raven Guard nicknamed Black.
Vichthart has twice been infected by disease, firstly taking a swipe from a gnoll that gave him an uncanny cackle, and later breathing in fungal spores from a false beholder beneath Squall's Beacon. In both cases, Vichthart brushed aside concerns for his wellbeing, and although his cackling subsided on its own, it was only when Anrel used his Lay On Hands that Vichthart coughed up the horrible clump that had been growing inside him that they realized how perilous his infection had been.