Alec, the Bleak Pilgrim

Alec

Male Human - Prime Material

Player: Smart Alec

General Information
Full Name:	unknown
Nicknames:	The Bleak Pilgrim, The Man with the Hat
Age:	estimated late 40s
Deity:	unknown
Alignment:	LG LN LE NG TN NE CG CN CE
Occupation:	unknown
Faction/Rank:	The Bleak Cabal
Place of Birth:	unknown
Physical Attributes
Height:	6' 3"
Weight:	140 lbs
Eyes:	Pale Green
Hair:	Dark Brown, Lank
Complexion:	Pale
Physical Build:	Thin, Spare
Physical Features:	Large nose; scar across right eye and cheek
Skills
Arcanery, Research, Planar Politics, Amateur Detective Work
Equipment and Items
A wooden staff, a satchel, a thin sword, a Hat

All we have is who we are. All we have is each other.

Few remember when this spellslinger first found his way onto the Planes, and it's a sure bet he didn't make too much of an impression then. Now, though? The man's almost an urban legend, an erratic do-gooder wandering the Planes without rhyme or reason, as likely to buy a meal for a starving berk as he is to face down a dragon to save a thief. An accomplished mage, it's said - he may not look like much, but few'd be prepared to cross him just to find out how powerful he might be. To have walked the Planes and lived to tell the tale, a blood's got to have something to his name.

That Which Is Seen

I'm crying on the inside. Saves water.

A tall man with a long, sharp face, seemingly permanently unshaven and dominated by an impressive nose and alert green eyes. It's a face more suited to frowns and scowls than smiles, and comes complete with a large brow, slightly irregular cheekbones and a pale scar crossing the right cheek. This is all crowned with a mop of lank dark hair, hovering somewhere close to brown in colour. He bows his head as he walks, and his shoulders seem to slump almost habitually.

Clothes-wise, the man favours a thick black tabard and a patched green cloak for travelling and moving around town. Both tabard and cloak have seen a fair amount of damage, and just as many repairs, but Alec seems to persevere with making both articles last as long as possible, rather than look for new clothes. A leather satchel, a series of belts and pouches and a pair of thick walking-boots complete the ensemble. More formal occasions see a white shirt and black waistcoat, but that cloak seems a constant. Recently, he's taken to wearing a hat.

Unusually for most spellslingers, Alec wears and uses a sword. The exact type of sword has varied, but there it is. Most folk that've seen it can say that he's not very good at it.

That Which Is Heard

I have earned favours from some strange people, and escaped the vengeance of others. Most treat me accordingly.

Some things are known for sure. Alec wears the badge of the Bleak Cabal, though stories tell of him being cast out of the Bleakers for some unknown crime - and it would have to be bad, for the Madmen to take exception to it. He's travelled in the company of some notable Planeswalkers, and had his name attached to some strange stories. But from there, the rumours get addled. From outwitting ancient immortals to fighting in the Blood War, from battling with the spawn of Powers, to somehow winning a Cage-wide beauty contest - and from defeating Hive gang-lords and their thug armies, to duelling illithid spelljammers in the Outlands sky. To hear some tell it, Alec even fought the King of the Nine Hells himself to decide the fate of a world. All screed, but there's no denying this mage has just made as many powerful enemies as he has friends.

Looking a little deeper, there's some things that don't quite add up. Almost all spellslingers treasure or covet spells, but Alec grabs every scrap of lore he can get like a drowning man clutching at a rope. He rarely gives details about where he's from or what he did there, and often makes it clear that 'Alec' is his given name. What that means is... unclear. There's a Bleaker tradition in the Cage that members try to forget their histories and give up their names except for one, though, so maybe that's all that's behind this particular habit.

That said, he always seems fairly pleasant to talk to, barring the occasional sarcasm, dark witticism or gloomy mood. At times, he seems almost cheerful, for a Bleaker. And he always seems ready to help with almost anything that anyone puts in front of him, be it translating a page of some old book or marching across the Outlands. Could be he's one of those upbeat types - or putting a brave face on things.

That Which Is Worn

The Hat says hello. I suppose I ought to do the same.

Alec's Hat has been attached to his head for as long as anyone can remember, and when not wearing it, the man seems somehow diminished. The powers it contains are unknown, but the stories of how he came by it are numerous - a gift by some forgotten Power of Magic, crafted out of the remains of a broken demi-plane, a relic of an ancient civilisation given new, strange form...

Regardless, the wizard is always protective of the hat, unwilling to let it be worn or even left in the hands of others, especially other arcanists. If anyone knows what powers it contains, then they aren't talking - but given its continued survival despite being on the head of a man in such a risky and explosive vocation, there must be something to it, mustn't there?