Thrommel IV

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Greyhawk Character
Thrommel
Thrommel (from Dungeon #221)
Names and titles
Title(s):Prince Thrommel IV, Grand Marshall of Furyondy, Provost of Veluna, Knight of the Hart
General info
Occupation:Prince
Home:Furyondy
Alignment:Lawful Good (while alive); Chaotic Evil (as vampire)
Gender:Male
Species:Human, later Vampire
Class:573 CY: Paladin 9+
591 CY: Pal12, then Pal3/Blackguard 9[1]
Patron deity:Rao
Languages:Common
Dates
Death:Disappeared in 573 CY; declared dead 592 CY.
Turned:Became vampire sometime between 579 and 585 CY

Prince Thrommel IV was a notable and valorous paladin, a former Prince of Furyondy in the late 6th Century, who was transformed into a vampire.

Description

Prince Thrommel was a handsome, mail-clad human man with golden hair.[2] He normally had a stoic facade.[3]

Personality

Thrommel represented all that was good and noble in humanity. He was a true and faithful paladin of his god, Rao.[4]

Abilities

By the time of being abducted in 573 CY (and his subsequent discovery in the Temple of Elemental Evil), he had the title "Paladin Lord".[5]. In that edition, being Lawful Good was required to be a paladin.

In 591 CY he was a fallen paladin 3/blackguard 9, having been a 12th level paladin who had exchanged 9 paladin levels for blackguard levels after becoming a vampire (in Return to the Temple of Elemental Evil).[1][6]

Possessions

Thrommel typically wielded a shield and a broadsword. The broadsword was a magical and intelligent weapon, Fragarach.[7][8]

In 573 CY when abducted he wore a white surcoat, quartered by the arms of Furyondy and Veluna and the antlers of the Knights of the Hart, in red. He wore a gold belt at his waist, with a dagger (dagger (+2/+3 vs. large opponents). About his neck he had a gold chain with an emblem of a crown and crescent moon; on his left hand was a gold ring with a similar device.[7]

In 591 CY as a vampire he carried a +1 unholy greatsword (“Dirge”), and wore a +1 breastplate, boots of striding and springing, a ring of counter-spells (loaded with fireball), a ring of protection +1, and an obex holy symbol.[6]

Relationships

Thrommel was the son and sole heir of King Belvor IV of Furyondy.

Thrommel was pledged to, or intended to pledge himself to marry, her Noble Ladyship Jolene of Veluna.[1]{csb|{T1-4|86}}

Beyond Thrommel's role in defeating the Horde of Elemental Evil at the Battle of Emridy Meadows in 569 CY, the strengthening of the alliance between Furyondy and Veluna that this marriage would have given rise to was presumably[citation needed] part of the reason for abducting Thrommel in 573 CY. As well as removing the sole heir to the throne of Furyondy.

History

He was King Belvor IV's only son and heir. Prince Thrommel's lineage could be traced directly to the mythical King Roland of Ferrond and Feruin.

In 569 CY the raise of the Temple of Elemental Evil drew the attention of Furyondy and Veluna. Thrommel as the Marshall of Furyondy assembled an army which became known as the Righteous Host, and marched southeast from Verbobonc to confront the Temple. Along the way, Thrommel made alliances with dwarves and gnomes who added forces to the Host. When arriving a day from the Temple, the Host found out it was outnumbered 3 to 1. However, Thrommel believed he could exploit the enemy’s fractious nature and lack of discipline to win.[9]

Thrommel was the Hero of Emridy Meadows in the battle against the Horde of Elemental Evil. He pledged to wipe out the Temple of Elemental Evil in 569 CY He was head of the war council and leader of the forces that make up the Righteous Host. Through sheer force of will, Thrommel pulled together a worthy army and marched south to confront the darkness. He believed his Righteous Host could defeat the forces of the Temple, but he tempered his convictions with the dire reality of the situation. He knew his army lacked numbers and experience, and he had a challenging time keeping the egos of his commanders in check. He believed that a few victories —no matter how small— would unite the Righteous Host, strengthening the resolve of his troops in time to meet the greater threat. This has led him to seek unconventional methods for weakening the temple’s forces. It was his assertion a few key strikes where the enemy was most vulnerable would bolster morale.[4]

The Prince disappeared near the northern border of his realm 573 CY.[10][11] The kidnapping was done by the Scarlet Brotherhood[12], and according to Gygax, it was at the behest of Nyrond.[13]

By 585 CY magical divination "suggested to Belvor" that Thrommel was dead.[12]

Return to the Temple of Elemental Evil

For many years after the "disappearance" of Prince Thrommel was originally published, fans had great curiosity about what the fate of Thrommel had been. In 2001, in Return to the Temple of Elemental Evil, the history of Thrommel was expanded. The adventure made a somewhat ironic or poetic truth of the fact Thrommel was in the original Temple disguised by illusion to appear as a vampire. Thrommel was abducted and through slavers and smugglers came into the possession of the cultists at the Temple of All Consumption, where he was "infected with vampirism".[1]

However, the original date given in the WoG folio for his disappearance was 573 CY. But, in this version, his capture was described as occurring at the Battle of Emridy Meadows in 569 CY.[1]

In Living Greyhawk

Thrommel was a major antagonist in the Furyondy (FUR) region for the Living Greyhawk campaign.

In late 591 CY or early 592 CY Thrommel’s body was supposedly found, and laid to rest in a closed casket funeral in Chendl.[14] However, Belvor and his closest advisers had become aware Thrommel was a vampire. The laws of Furyondy provide that, once dead, a noble loses all their lands, titles, and rights (including inheritance rights)—they are reduced to commoners. For this reason, they declared Thrommel dead to bar any claim to the throne.[15]

Thrommel’s funeral so soon after the events of Return to the Temple of Elemental Evil in 591 CY suggests the adventurers who invaded the Temple presumably found Thrommel, or evidence of his undead status, and sent back news to Belvor.

Thrommel was not to resurface for years. It eventually proved to be that he had traveled to Furyondy to gather support for a claim to the throne, despite his death, including of disaffected nobles. He appeared at various times as “The Black Knight”[16] [17] [18], unrecognized. Thrommel’s role in the sabotage of the magical shield created over Chendl, and support for that scheme from Iuz,[note 1] suggest Iuz may have played a role in this plotting by Thrommel.

By 594 CY it was clear Thrommel had returned to Furyondy and was working to claim the throne, including creating a vampire nest to terrorise Chendl exploiting the darkness of the sabotaged magical shield.[19] It remained in place for a number of years.

In 595 CY adventurers dealt with a group of Thrommel’s supporters in the Barony of Willip (including vampires), who had been “authorised” to collect taxes for the “true heir”.[20]

Thrommel continued to gather disaffected nobles and supporters to his claim as the “true heir”, and by 597 CY was looking to find ways to repeal or avoid the law.[21]

In 598 CY Thrommel discovered through sources two illegitimate descendants to Belvor, resulting in trying to kill these potential challengers to his claim. It was revealed that when Thrommel “disappeared” in 573 CY he was headed to Verbobonc and the Temple. During his travel south in The Reach he met and spent time with a commoner, Brixsta, who later bore him a son, Throniir. who was 24 years old in 598. In 581 CY, Valana, a druid of Merikka and close friend to Belvor, gave birth to their daughter, Bethserai. Initially she kept this secret from Belvor, but he learned of the child. In 591 CY, Brixsta and Throniir coincidentally settled in a town near Bethserai. In 598 CY adventurers were tasked with rescuing them from Thrommel’s minion for Belvor, but their existence was not public.[22]

In late 598 CY Belvor remarried to produce an heir, in part to deal with the threat from Thrommel. Nobles were attacked by demons on the way to the wedding. At the wedding itself, Thrommel, newly resurrected (requiring a powerful priest, apparently implicating Iuz[23]) attempted to assassinate the king and new queen. Queen Jelleneth Kalinstren was slain, disintegrated by an adventurer who was later exonerated when they were shown to have been possessed by a demon at the time. A week later, another wedding was held to wed Lady Elena Mori of Veluna.

The involvement of demons at the wedding[24] again suggested the involvement of Iuz. Iuz’s role in creating the original Temple, which captured and infected Thrommel with vampirism, also pointed to this.

While Thrommel’s attack on the wedding was “staved off”[25], his fate was not clear. At the Furyondy Living Greyhawk Interactive for the wedding Thrommel was killed.[23] Thrommel’s fate was thus left open.

References

Notes

  1. ↑ Those events made up the Defense of Chendl series which culminated in Eclipse (2003)

Citations

  1. ↑ a b c d e Return to the Temple of Elemental Evil (2001), p.120.
  2. ↑ Temple of Elemental Evil, p.86
  3. ↑ "The Battle of Emridy Meadows". Dungeon #221 (Dec 2013), p.64 , by Jon Leitheusser & Christopher Perkins
  4. ↑ a b "The Battle of Emridy Meadows". Dungeon #221 (Dec 2013) , by Jon Leitheusser & Christopher Perkins
  5. ↑ T1-4 The Temple of Elemental Evil (1985), p.86.
  6. ↑ a b Return to the Temple of Elemental Evil (2001), p.183.
  7. ↑ a b T1-4 The Temple of Elemental Evil (1985), p.86.
  8. ↑ T1-4 The Temple of Elemental Evil (1985), p.127.
  9. ↑ "The Battle of Emridy Meadows". Dungeon #221 (Dec 2013), p.45 , by Jon Leitheusser & Christopher Perkins
  10. ↑ The World of Greyhawk Fantasy World Setting (1980), p.5.
  11. ↑ World of Greyhawk Fantasy Game Setting (1983), p.9.
  12. ↑ a b WGR4 The Marklands (1993), p.9.
  13. ↑ Gary Gygax. "Thus Spake Gary Gygax: Ye Secrets of Oerth Revealed". interviewed by Paul Stormberg. Oerth Journal #12 (2001), p8.
  14. ↑ A Common Defense (RPGA, 2002), p.4
  15. ↑ Shadow of the Sun (RPGA 2004), p.12
  16. ↑ A Common Defense (RPGA 2002);
  17. ↑ Eclipse (RPGA 2003);
  18. ↑ Death of a Knight (RPGA 2004)
  19. ↑ Shadow of the Sun (2004)
  20. ↑ Ties of Loyalty (2005)
  21. ↑ Keep Your Friends Close (2007)
  22. ↑ Blood on the Trail (RPGA 2008), p.2
  23. ↑ a b Interview with John du Bois (former Furyondy LG Triad member) in Legends & Lore 38: Living Greyhawk, Another Look presented by Jay “Lord Gosumba” Scott originally on Twitch.TV, 12 February 2020. (Archived on YouTube)
  24. ↑ An Uncommon Defense (RPGA 2008), pp.18-19
  25. ↑ An Uncommon Defense (RPGA 2008)

Bibliography

Encyclopedia Greyhawkania Index

The Encyclopedia Greyhawkania Index (EGI) is based on previous work of Jason Zavoda through '08, continued by numerous other fans. The EGI article has a list of sources, product names, abbreviations, and a link to the full, downloadable index.

Topic Type Description Product Page/Card/Image

Thrommel (Prince) Non-player character Male, Human, [3e Pal3/Blk9], Living Greyhawk Gazetteer 15, 96
Thrommel (Prince) Non-player character Male, Human, [3e Pal3/Blk9], Living Greyhawk Journal #0 5
Thrommel (Prince) Non-player character Male, Human, [3e Pal3/Blk9], Living Greyhawk Journal #4 31
Thrommel (Prince) Non-player character Male, Human, [3e Pal3/Blk9], Return of the Eight 43
Thrommel (Prince) Non-player character Male, Human, [3e Pal3/Blk9], Return to the Temple of Elemental Evil, D&D 3.0e 4, 116, 120, 182, 183
Thrommel (Prince) Non-player character Male, Human, [3e Pal3/Blk9], T1-4 The Temple of Elemental Evil 86
Thrommel (Prince) Non-player character Male, Human, [3e Pal3/Blk9], The Scarlet Brotherhood 5
Thrommel IV (Prince) Non-player character Living Greyhawk Gazetteer 130, 131
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