Tarian

Name

Tarian Lunarblade

Tarian in Elwynn

Physical Traits

He seems unremarkable. A strong, pleasant smell of cooking seems to follow him, but also a waft of Goldshire's cheapest brew. A pair of goggles fail to retain the golden glow of his eyes, causing the light to shine intensely in certain directions. He stands restlessly, shifting from one foot to the other at regular intervals.

Druid will notice that he does not appear to have a connection to the forces of nature as most Night Elves do.

Race and Class

Night Elven Hunter.

Occupation

Mercenary, mainly for the various militia and military groups in the kingdom of Stormwind, such as the People's Militia in Westfall and the Night Watch in Darkshire.

Family

• Lanai Lunarblade - Wife, deceased.
• Ninx Lunarblade - Long-lost twin, unknown (presumed dead).
• Aradrim Lunarblade - Daughter, unknown (presumed alive).

History

Before the Third War in Ashenvale

Tarian grew up as the only son to humble parents in Ashenvale around the time that the Humans first encountered the Orcs. His parents hoped for him to mature into a powerful Druid, encouraging him to commune with the spirits of nature whenever possible, but Tarian was not interested. Reading through the chronicles of the War of the Ancients, it seemed to him that Illidan was a much more powerful man than Malfurion. Although he still respected the will of nature, the young boy discarded his fledgling Druidic powers and dreamt of becoming a Demon Hunter.

Over the years, he built himself some renown as a skilled tracker and marksman, despite his young age. To his pleasant surprise, it led to him receiving a fair amount of attention from the young women of Ashenvale. When he discovered that a local girl was carrying his child, they quickly married and settled down together. At first, Tarian pined for the life of a bachelor, but all regrets were dashed from his mind when he first set eyes on his wife cradling his new-born daughter for the first time. They lived happily, and Tarian hoped that nothing would ever change.

Then the Orcs came. And on their heels, the Burning Legion and the undead Scourge. When Tarian, now a mature and respected ranger of Ashenvale, heard the news of invasion, he immediately joined the military forces of the Night Elves, under the command of Malfurion Stormrage. Tarian quickly rose through the ranks of the coalition, eventually being placed in command of a small force of Night Elves, Humans and Orcs who were tasked with defending the town of Astranaar in Ashenvale. Fighting for days, they were able to keep the town safe from destruction by the encroaching enemy. Eventually, the war came to a peak as Archimonde started on the journey to Hyjal. Malfurion ordered all of the forces at Kalimdor's defence to the summit of the mountain to make a last stand. As Tarian and his men prepared to travel north, they heard word that Tarian's home town was under attack from the Scourge. When they arrived to defend the village, they found it burnt to the ground, all the inhabitants slaughtered, with some already raised as undead. While his forces cleared up the enemy presence in the region, Tarian tore through the ruins of his home in search of his wife and child. When he found his wife, her spirit had already been ripped from her and enslaved to the Scourge as a hate-filled banshee, whom he was forced to slay to keep his life. Wrought with grief, all he could do was weep over his wife's corpse. His parents had also been killed, but he was able to cremate their bodies and mourn peacefully before they could be raised. He never found his child's body, presuming it reduced to ashes in the fires that raged throughout his home.

Tarian swore revenge on the Scourge that had ravaged his home. He and what remained of his men followed the tracks that the Undead had left, and came upon their camp and the Necromancer that led them. The resulting battle lasted hours, but victory was claimed by Tarian, who dealt the Necromancer the finishing blow - an arrow through the skull. He was the only one to walk away alive that night.

Malfurion was furious that Tarian had disobeyed his direct order to defend Hyjal, and lost so many men in what was, relatively, a trivial battle. Although the Legion had been defeated, the Druid decided to make an example of Tarian, to show that all who did not follow the will of the Druids were not welcome in the Night Elven lands. Tarian was stripped of his rank and banished. As he was thrown over the border of Ashenvale, Malfurion himself broke the link between Tarian and the spirits of nature, severely reducing his natural strength.

The humans, not understanding Malfurion's annoyance with the hunter, took pity upon him and invited him aboard a ship bound home for the Eastern Kingdoms. With nothing left for him in Kalimdor, Tarian swiftly agreed.

It has now been five years since Tarian came to the Kingdoms of Men and Dwarves, and is now living in the human settlement of Goldshire.

Post-War in the Eastern Kingdoms

The Brothers Lunarblade

A number of months ago, Tarian had a chance encounter with a Night Elven woman called Arilien. Having lost her memory, Tarian found her childlike fascination with the world endearing and set about helping her regain her memory, and reconcile with a man named Ninx.

Ninx was the first person she had seen after losing her memory, and he, having been seeking her favour for some time, persuaded her that they were in a relationship. When Arilien tried to kiss him, however, he was plagued by guilt and stormed off, leaving her thinking she had done something wrong. Upset, she found her way to the Goldshire tavern, in which she encountered Tarian. To show him what she had done to upset Ninx, she kissed him, and from that moment romantic feelings started to develop between them. After retracing Arilien's steps around Elwynn Forest, the two returned to the inn to find Ninx drinking there. Leaving Arilien and Ninx to make up, Tarian slipped away quietly into the night.

Weeks later, he had already started a relationship with another woman. During his absence, Arilien's feelings for him had grown while his had waned. Confronting him, she confessed her feelings but Tarian was forced to reject her. Distraught, she sought out Ninx, who blamed Tarian for upsetting Arilien and causing their relationship to break down. For the first time, they stood face to face.

Ninx, with blades drawn, was ready to confiscate most of Tarian's vital organs, but the latter was able to use his quick wit and sense of humour to turn the fight into a fishing contest, which he promptly won. In a show of good sportsmanship, the two shook hands and Ninx removed his face mask to congratulate the winner. To the shock of Tarian and the assembled crowd, the face revealed was almost identical to Tarian's.

Using a spell from the strange black book Tarian owns (see possessions section) he and a pair of druids were able to trace Ninx's link to nature back to his birth, revealing that he and Tarian were in fact twins, separated and given to adoptive parents, both for unknown reasons.

Ninx subsequently took the 'Lunarblade' name in honour of the discovery.

Death

Tarian did not enjoy a noble end. Driven to depression by a mix of self-hatred and loneliness, he decided to do what he had dreamed of doing for a long time - making an assault on Moonglade. Disguising himself as a Druid, he intended three things:

• To rescue his daughter Aradrim, who he was convinced had been taken back by the state of Moonglade.
• To investigate the possiblity of a curse or plot, originating from Moonglade, that had driven his ex-lover Aldaran into insanity; and to murder those responsible.
• And failing either of these, to kill as many Druids as possible before he himself was discovered and killed.

Tarian did indeed find his daughter in the Druid city, but it is currently unknown if he found anything relating to Aldaran. Moonglade issued a report to the Alliance council as follows:

"Over a period of three days the streets of Moonglade were terrorized by a criminal disguised as a new apprentice. He remained undetected for a regretably long time, managing to slay at least ten of our resident students and masters while avoiding detection. Our noble Archdruid, Fangral Staghelm, graciously left his pressing matters in the governing of Darnassus to assist in the aprehension of the murderer. He clearly learnt of the Archdruid's arrival in the city, as shortly afterward he took an apprentice, young Aradrim Lunarblade, as a hostage and attempted an escape. He was confronted by the Archdruid outside of the city, but refused to surrender himself. The valiant Archdruid was forced to lower himself to violence, felling the miscreant after a brief clash. In his final moments, he revealed himself as Tarian Lunarblade, exile and traitor to the Night Elven people. His death was celebrated in Moonglade by cheers and feasts, and the Night Elven people are pleased he has been brought to justice after five long years. His remains will be retained in Moonglade and disposed of in the traditional way we deal with slain enemies of the state."

His final defiant words to the Archdruid were reportedly thus:

"You kept me away from you for so long... and all the Druids that came to finish me off and get in your good books, you know what they had in common? Fear. Their eyes were filled with fear. You're all afraid of the world outside this valley... you're afraid of me, a Night Elf but something more. I've walked among the young races of this world, and they were filled with courage, pride, no cowardice, no self-righteous bullshit. And I became one of them. Learnt from them. That's what you're afraid of! Afraid that you'll become like them, when it's the only way you'll ever learn how to LIVE! For five years I LIVED, like I never had before! In that time what have you done? Read book after book about bloody spells, rules, commandments, restrictions! The world out there is boundless, and you're afraid of it! You're afraid of me, because you know I'm what you will become! I'm Tarian Lunarblade, and I am your future!"

Before entering the city, he sent his journal back to fellow Alliance special operations officer Labrax, who distributed several pages to Tarian's friends and family before burning the remains of the journal, as it contained classified Alliance information. Custody of Lurky also passed onto Labrax.

Current Status of the Lunarblades

There have been various sightings of a young female Elf, matching Aradrim's description, wearing goggles in the kingdom of Stormwind. Moonglade has commented that they no longer wish to train her in the Druidic arts, on the grounds that her time in Human lands with her father has made her a "lost cause", accusing the House of Nobles that their city corrupts young Night Elven travellers that pass through it. Stormwind authorities have dismissed the accusation as "ludicrous", adding that the spread of Elven prostitution in the city is "a vital part of the economy".

Moonglade has also reported that Tarian's remains disapeared shortly before they were due to be cremated. The Druids request that any information regarding the theft of his corpse be reported to a Cenarion Circle emmisary, who are present in most Alliance cities.

Ninx Lunarblade, too, has apparently disappeared.

Detachment from Nature

The loss of his connection to the forces of nature has had quite an adverse effect on him. He has begun to study engineering from the Gnomes in Stormwind and Ironforge, and is often seen with a Dwarven musket rather than the traditional Elven bow.

Companions

When confounded by problems which he cannot solve, Tarian is often able to find comfort in the presence of his pets. He has reffered to them a number of time as 'the only constants' and values their company dearly.

Lurky the Baby Murloc

Usually following Tarian around, either on his own or on the end of a leash, is Lurky; a small, bouncy and excruciatingly cute infant Murloc. Tarian discovered the Murloc's egg in the stomach of a large fish which he caught during a boring day of fishing at Crystal Lake, outside Goldshire. Before he could find the right pan in which to boil the egg for lunch, it hatched into a small white Murloc which Tarian affectionately named Lurky. His age is unknown, but he appears to have been at the 'toddler' stage of life for some time now.

Despite his young age, Lurky is in a perpetual mating season. He will often produce a small hat and cane and begin dancing to attract a partner. Upon failure, he will become desperate and instantly begin humping the leg of the nearest female. For this reason, Tarian has taken to keeping the Murloc on the end of a leash.

Possessions

Inventions

• Coffeenator 5000
• MeowDecoder v0.1 (A collar developed in collaboration with a Night Elf that had been cursed into being stuck in the form of a cat. The two designed a small device which allowed her to speak common while under the effects of the spell.)

The 'Black Book'

A small black book that Tarian constantly carries around in his back pocket. Given to him by his adoptive father, and his grandfather before him. It's known to include a number of lesser-known druid spells, including:

• A ritual that exploits a Night Elf's link to the forces of nature, to ascertain the circumstances of their conception, birth, and their notable physical history up to the point in time the spell is cast.
• A number of 'last resort' healing spells that draw on the physical strength of the caster, transferring it to the injured person.
• A technique which makes the caster immune to several Warlock spells. Most notably, Tarian has repeatedly stopped the placement of his mind and free will into a soulstone by unfriendly warlocks.

Tarian is able to perform modified versions of these spells despite his broken link with nature by exploiting the very nature of Druidic magic. As a rule, all Druidic magic draws on the strength of the natural world. The stronger a Druid's link to nature, the more energy they will be able to pour into their spell. Tarian, on the other hand, cannot call upon nature to power his spells, so he is forced to use his own strength to cast the spell. Thus, one healing spell can put him out of action for several hours. Tarian himself has commented that, in this respect, the only difference between him and a Warlock (who also use their own strength to power certain spells) is that he can't summon demons.

The book is believed to have a sacred druidic name, but Tarian has never revealed it. This is probably due to his contempt for the Darnassian sect of druids who blindly follow Stormrage.

The Goggles

Tarian is hardly ever seen without his trademark goggles. Over the years, he has given several different reasons for wearing them, including:

• Poor eyesight.
  • On a number of occasions he has shown that his vision is severely impaired when he is not wearing goggles for whatever reason (usually when a woman tells him they're not flattering). This may be another trick - when he removed them at the request of a female friend, he shortly afterwards 'accidentally' put his hand on her breast, claiming that he was merely trying to 'feel his way around'.
• Keeping water out of his eyes while swimming.
• The ability to eye women up and down without anyone realising.
  • He has recently developed a new version of the goggles using Moss Agate gems - giving the lenses a green tint. He claims that these alterations allow him to see through articles of clothing, although this is unconfirmed.
• Making himself seem 'cute'.
• Protecting his eyes when engineering (most of his inventions use dynamite).

Investigation by friends seems to point towards the third explanation being the most likely.