SOELMA NILAENISH
them accurate information, and offers useful advice. Though never friendly, she is also never rude. Soelma is wealthy and uses money instead of diplomacy when she can. The PCs should occasionally receive hints about the depths of Soelma’s depression, and this should become a more frequent occurrence as the campaign progresses. Soelma Nilaenish is an old elf wizard and loremaster. She is quiet and polite. Her colleagues would describe her as When she decides the time is right to voyage to the Hulks in person, her demeanor shy and lonely—some would call her boring. changes from passivity Though she is respected to one of taut excitement in the scholarly fields of and hope. PCs might be history and magic, only led to believe that the prostrue aficionados of both pect of saving the world subjects know of her. from evil, which she states Several years ago, she as her goal on the jourfounded a society for ney, has fi lled her with scholars, which became a newfound purpose in popular with historians life. Since Soelma by this from all over the world. point is insane enough to She never traveled far genuinely believe that from home, and she her actions will make the has become increasingworld a better place, her ly reclusive. behavior involves little Her colleagues say deception. that Soelma has changed Once Nilaenish has used recently. They are not certhe PCs to help her defeat tain what sparked the Janwulf, her chief rival for change, but she has been control of the Hulks’ cultmore confident and more ists, she betrays them in a hopeful recently. manner that she has been preparing since she first GOALS met the characters, and Soelma Nilaenish has then she leaves them to always been a remarkdie. When the PCs meet able woman, but few her again, all traces of shyoutside the scholarly ness and sanity are gone. community know her. She behaves like a religious She was never beautiful fanatic, still genuinely or charming and never believing that she is dehad good friends. The stroying the world for its maiden aunt who raised own good. Soelma Nilaenish her died when Soelma was 196 years old, and she has been alone in the world DESCRIPTION since then. Mousy and plump for an elf, Soelma Nilaenish could best be Over the years, Soelma became depressive in her outlook described as plain. She is short for her race but not remarkon life and finally arrived at the point where she hates ably so, and her dishwater hair and small brown eyes hint everything, herself most of all. Recently the shy, everof human blood at some point in her ancestry, despite her unnoticed Soelma decided she would like the world to otherwise elflike features. Intelligent and bookish, Soelma pay attention to her before she leaves it. To that end, she never had much interest in anything outside her scholarly painstakingly researched the perfect way to end it all. She pursuits. She dresses in plain clothing without adornments looks forward to the cessation of all life in the world with and even designs her own magic items to be plain. She keeps relief and hope, and devotes every moment toward achieving her hair cut short for easy care. her dream. Soelma’s shyness makes her very difficult to read. She puts great effort into seeming emotionless and polite, but the USING SOELMA NILAENISH hate inside her has been building for so long that nothing Soelma begins the campaign as an occasional employer can heal her wounds. She seems sane and logical, but she is of the PCs. She pays them well and on time, always gives quite mad underneath. “The world disgusts me. People are treacherous, crude, and cruel, and the natural world is no better. When you’re as old as I am, there really is nothing left to feel but loathing.” —Soelma Nilaenish, loremaster
CHAPTER 4
THE HULKS OF ZORETHA Illus. by E. Widermann
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