Cedric Heart | The Red Gauntlets Kirago's superior officer during his last days in the Red Gauntlets. A big, stern, human man. Had an aura about him that was comforting and emboldening. Cedric gave your orders for that final mission, but wasn't present during the mission itself. Clearly a veteran of the War of Shields and True Believer in the Empire, though he never said it explicitly.
Terys the Foot | The Red Gauntlets The only member of The Red Gauntlets Kirago knew took part in Objective Tango, who he didn't see get decimated first hand. Lost track of her after the mission failure. [Session 0 task: any further description you want]
Friendly Joe | The New Moon Underground (Luna) Joe is the shadiest gnome you've ever met. Sometime fixer, sometime information broker, sometime job manager. He prides himself on knowing everyone and extracting the maximum amount of money from someone in a given situation without betraying them altogether. He's so greedy, nobody likes him. But he's so transparently greedy, he's easy to understand and trust.
Pillbug | New Moon Bandit Halfling bandit who knows what he's doing, primarily based in Cynthia. He's the guy that sets up the plan and makes sure it's going to go right. He takes orders from unknown parties, and talks a good game about only stealing from the rich. You've seen a cruel streak in him, but he's not lied to you yet. Once you've done a job with him, as Kirago has, he's happy to just give you equipment and lodging if you need it.
Sheriff Gillie Bando | Sheriff of Luna Kirago has been working in Luna for about five weeks, learning the city and picking up assignments from an Underground connection named Friendly Joe, a shady gnome. So far, this work has been stealing specific carriages and a shakedown of a debtor. In this five weeks, his work incidentally also involved monitoring the Sheriff and deputies, to check for security holes. In a surprise turn, Kirago thinks he recognized Sheriff Gillie Bando from Operation Tango. The figure he remembered at the factory was wearing a full helmet at the time, and was the one who was ordering soldiers to find and kill his team after they were discovered and fleeing. But there were too many similarities in build, demeanor and voice to ignore. At one point he followed Bando to a bar when Bando went drinking with deputies, and what he could catch of their conversation made him even more certain that they were there at the factory. He bided his time for an opportunity to confront the Sheriff.
Kirago was on another little job for Joe, snatching up some documents in a small scroll case - belongings of an assistant to the Mayor on a certain day, deeds, legal documents and such. Joe didn’t care what method - mugging, burglary, whatever. In the late afternoon Kirago found an opportunity to get to the scroll case, but unexpectedly he discovered Bando nearby and another deputy casually chatting with the assistant, as if they had been assigned to accompany him. Taking the scroll case, Kirago almost left, mission completed, but hesitated. Kirago was able to catch the sheriff alone and held him at swordpoint. Kirago tried to get information about the Operation, how Bando was involved, and what and where exactly the factory was. He didn’t learn anything important and eventually tons of other officers flooded in and Kirago had a running battle with them across Luna, barely escaping with his life, on horseback. Bando now knows Kirago’s face, and that he was one of the soldiers of Tango. And almost certainly, his men are only minutes behind. Kirago’s simple plan is to ride as fast and as far as he can, without stopping, hoping his wounds are not fatal.
Howie and July Kirago | older brother and younger sister Location unknown. Originally from Hareville, in the province of Three-Wreaths in eastern Senegal.
Places Kirago knows
Luna | port of New Moon Port and Smugglers' Den. Has a strong Underground presence. Mostly halfling and human residents. Kirago has seen Goliaths and Beast-men working on the docks. Kirago may be a wanted man by the Sheriff's office there. Best to avoid or lay low.
Selene | farming village A simple farming village in the center of New Moon that was the first town Kirago felt comfortable approaching after his weeks-long woodlands seclusion hiding from the aftermath of Operation Tango. The town has a farming store that is simultaneously a Temple to Jerrith, the many-limbed god of work and metal where Kirago found shelter.
Cynthia | Industry center of New Moon There are more cultured, more wealthy, and larger cities in New Moon, but if you want to get work making things, this is the city. Cynthia imports raw resources and exports basic trade goods throughout the nation. A working-class haven. Due to the invisible arm of the New Moon Underground, the wealthy and elite that enter the city and try to take advantage of its citizens, slowly get swindled, robbed, and chipped away. In fact, that happens to the wealthy people in town who don't try to take advantage, too.
Whetstone Bridge | Travelers' Hub A well-known small town with a famous marketplace in the middle of an untamed province, at the convergence of many roads in all directions. Others have advised you it's also a great place to get mercenary work, so long as you play it honest. You heard an vague tale of mercenaries who intended to take a job in Whetstone Bridge intending to eventually rob their employer, but that they'd (somehow) end up regretting it and "never went back to the Bridge again." Others have advised that hunting in the area can be lucrative.
Objective Tango| Somewhere in New Moon A hidden factory in a remote part of New Moon. Kirago and the Red Gauntlets were teleported to their mission with minimal knowledge as to the purpose of the factory, nor good information where exactly in the world the objective was. At objective Tango, Kirago briefly saw a female figure, glowing brightly in floating white and yellow robes, through a doorway in an adjacent room. His compatriots of the Red Gauntlets had just breached that room toward their objective, a piece of technology, and several in his team rushed in to take control of the space. Without entering the next room, Kirago flanked the door to cover their escape, but before he could even look inside to see the situation, the room practically exploded and seared remnants of one of his Red Gauntlet allies flew out of the room into the room Kirago was in. The next few moments were an intense bloodbath of whatever remained of Kirago’s team - the factory soldiers and the female entity seemed to be taking no survivors, so he ran. Kirago was swift enough to escape, running pursued into a pitch black forest at night and eventually diving into a river, going downstream for a long time. When he came to, his wrists were bound and he was being dragged on a sled by a civilian, but Kirago easily escaped, and survived in the woods until he felt comfortable he wasn’t in immediate danger.
Things & Factions Kirago knows
Orcs | worthy opponents Orcs are former threat. The heavy green, humanoid creatures with minimal military organization divide themselves into tribes of under a thousand that had little cooperation and communication between one another. A generation ago, in Suragal even a single nomadic tribe of two hundred orcs would pose a tremendous threat to villages of all sizes. They raided and pillaged with brutality and little concern for retaliation. However, during the Imperial "Orc Push", eventually retaliation came for the orcs. From the tales the old soldiers told, the Push was probably 40 years ago, before the War of Shields. You'd hear all sorts of tall tales about the monstrous size and might of the orcs, and how taking one down was easy with the coordination of four smart soldiers.
Elves | quick and professional Kirago has met a handful of elves, and knows they can be good on the battlefield. Nimble and smart, the ones that dedicate themselves to martial efforts are consistently reliable warriors. Kirago may have learned some of his ranged and hit-and-run tactics from his favorite Aurelian opponents during the War of Shields. Most elves Kirago knew during his service did not volunteer, but usually ended up serving in a leadership capacity due to their undeniable competency and tendency to be non-emotional. Kirago would know that elves also have an innate competency for magic, but hasn't experienced this much firsthand. He once met an elven healer behind the battle lines, and during one battle he saw an Aurelian elf using magic from a griffon in the distance.
Halflings | small and emotional Halflings are short humans. They didn't seem a significant threat on the battlefield, but he has heard good things about halfling spies and tacticians. The halflings who he fought with tended to be talkative to the point of annoyance. Since he's been on the run out of the military, halflings have been commonplace in his life, and practically litter the New Moon underground.
Dwarves | an extinct race In the 2870s there was a social, religious, and political movement that came into power called "Clarity" that was highly xenophobic against the isolationist race known as Dwarves. History says this somehow led to their extinction. The warriors Kirago knows sometimes wear Dwarven runes and sigils on their armor in a kind of remembrance, honor, and apology to the Dwarven race, and use Dwarven battlecries. There are a thousand thousand tales of why the Dwarves disappeared, and centuries later, the truth is still unclear.
Goliaths | almost giants [Session 0 task: ever met a goliath other than in Luna? In the war? Any names? What was your opinion?]
The New Moon Underground | a place to get lost After weeks of running, Kirago found a place of relative comfort with the denizens of the New Moon Underground, a community of individuals who were willing to bypass law for prosperity. Mainly based in the cities of Luna (a popular smuggling port) and Cynthia (where the major Guilds reside). The world of these New Moon cities was divided into those few involved in the Underground, and those who were not. Those in the Underground did not necessarily work together, but loosely supported each other by obfuscating lawkeeping efforts. If you were in, you were known, and could probably find a place to lay low or meet new friends for a job. In turn, it was assumed you'd do the same for another. There are families and factions within the Underground, and significant diplomatic efforts took place to prevent them from stepping on each others' feet, in particular by avoiding unnecessary bloodshed among both rogues and civilians.