Exemplars of Evil

hopes to eventually claim the Eldeen Reaches for the
orcs. Zargath’s ultimate goal is to exterminate
Breland and destroy Sharn. However, he worries
about how the hags of Droaam will react to
his ambitions.
ZARGATH HUMAN-BANE
IN FAERÛN
Zargath Human-Bane served twenty years
of servitude in the city of Silverymoon
until his alliance with Gurn. After his
escape, he found his way to King Obould
Many-Arrows in the hope of helping him
build a new orc civilization. But with five
sons already vying for pieces of his kingdom,
Obould would brook no rival and tried to
have Zargath killed. Zargath escaped again,
this time to the wild orcs at the Spine of the
World, where he has begun constructing his
own empire to challenge Obould. Although his
hatred of humanoids and his desire to destroy
Silverymoon have not diminished, Zargath’s most
pressing concern is the inevitable confrontation
with Obould.
CHAPTER 2
ZARGATH
HUMAN-BANE
APPEARANCE AND BEHAVIOR
Zargath does not cut a physically imposing figure. At 5
feet tall and about 120 pounds, he is shorter and lighter
than the average orc. Likewise, his face is rounder,
flatter, and more intelligent than the norm for the
race, and his gray skin carries a pinkish cast that fuels
speculation of human blood in his ancestry. Needless to
say, the proud orc does not appreciate such comments
and has made gruesome examples of those who indulge
in loose talk.
Zargath favors simple, unadorned clothing—usually
black—with none of the barbaric flair, trophies, or decoration
common among his people. He keeps his hair and
beard trimmed short and neat. In combat, he wears a suit
of masterwork studded leather armor and a voluminous
cloak with a deeply inset hood. He has a hand crossbow
strapped to his back, and at his waist he carries several small
pouches full of thieves’ tools (flash powder, caltrops, and
the like). He is rarely seen without his masterwork short
sword (which he calls “Pride”) and masterwork dagger
(“Vengeance”). He loves apples for some reason and eats
them almost constantly.
Zargath leaves run-of-the-mill tribal administration to
Grikfell and focuses his attention on the big picture. He
holds frequent meetings with members of the Gray Knives
to haggle over information, slaves, and looted merchandise,
and he occasionally hosts leaders of other orc tribes to discuss
the terms of their surrender. Zargath spares no effort in
gathering intelligence before launching a strike, and is often
found in the library at Zar’fell (tactical encounter 2–2), which
he refers to as the “brain pen.” There, he grills kidnapped
experts to learn the intricacies of law, government, history,
engineering, and military tactics. He jots down notes and
thoughts on these matters in a large leatherbound book,
which he believes will one day be the founding document
for a new orc empire.
Zargath Human-Bane
Zargath has little patience for religion. He does not
forbid his followers from worshiping Gruumsh and other
orc deities, but he views the members of the pantheon as
shortsighted failures that have proven themselves powerless
to help the orcs achieve greatness. Consequently, there are
no clerics among his inner circle, a situation that is highly
unusual for an orc leader. This generates resentment among
orc priests, who do not feel welcome in Zar’Fell. However,
Zargath’s reverence for knowledge and study has spawned
something of a renaissance among orc sorcerers and other
arcane magic-users.
Although his plans seem to be coming together, Zargath
remains unsatisfied. Intellectually, he understands that he
will not live long enough to do more than start his people
down the path to civilization and dominance. But lately,
his insatiable hatred for humans and other humanoid
races has driven him to make some rash decisions. Grikfell
believes that Zargath’s penchant for torture and atrocity
is drawing more notice from humanoid authorities than
the Black Wolves can handle at this point. He also worries
that Zargath is not paying enough attention to the growing
resentment of those stubborn orcs that refuse to march under
his banner.
Illus. by J. Hodgson
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