I, Stephan the Swordsman, have reached my 17th year. At my coming of age ceremony I was presented with my first real sword, not one of the training weapons I have practiced with for the last ten years but the true blade of a warrior.
I have been taught the ways of the plains and forest, the manner of beasts and the many types of plants, their dangers and uses. But I am no unsophisticated woodsman. My journeys have taken me from city to city, dining in the presence of nobility, trading in the marketplaces, and .
However, my family has fallen on hard times. My father is dead. They say he was killed by the Ocher Marauder. The omens say that the decline of our family is a judgment from the gods for leaving his murder unavenged. I have been charged with taking up my sword, finding his killer, and righting this wrong. Then, I will take my place as head of the family and return us to our former noble glory. This I swear I shall do, else my breath shall depart my lungs for its last.