Rhysling

Rhysling
Created	January 27, 2011
Status	Active
Race	Human
Hometown	Harper's Landing
Classes	Bard

Current Description:

The first thing everyone notices about Rhysling is the strip of plain grey cloth covering his eyes, pockmark scars surrounding it. Then they notice the ornate cane held lazily in one burn-scarred hand, a gift from Nevyn after Rhysling recovered from the explosion of a burning cargo barge that very nearly left Harper’s Landing a pile of rubble. Once they draw their eyes from the cane’s carvings that seem to move and tell the stories of heroes, villains, and the viewer, people tend to notice how very tall Rhysling is. As he brings his story to a close, he uncoils the length of rope wrapped around one wrist and, with the effortless speed of long practice, ties another ornate knot in it. Even blinded, he manages to navigate the crowded room without incident, stepping over knocked over chairs and dogs, avoiding the sheathed swords of the warriors, even going around the spilled fluids on the floor, all in the rolling, weaving gait of a sailor. After finding a relatively clear and clean spot, he shakes his shaggy mane of dark brown hair out of his face, takes a swig of whatever happens to be in his flask and grimaces before shaking his head violently.

WHO Lists:

Hum [ Bard:   1   1   1 ] Rhysling the Boy                                              01-27-2011 
Hum [ Bard:   6   4   1 ] Rhysling the Boy                                              02-05-2011 
Hum [ Bard:   9   6   2 ] Rhysling thinks scores are written in Moveable C Clef         02-13-2011 
Hum [ Bard:  10   7   4 ] Rhysling is slowly becoming the Suicide Bard                  02-26-2011 
Hum [ Bard:  11   8   5 ] Rhysling is looking to do his Bard Review                     03-21-2011 
Hum [ Bard:  11   8   5 ] Rhysling knows too many sea shanties.                         03-23-2011 
Hum [ Bard:  13   8   8 ] Rhysling is putting together a bag of useful things           05-03-2011 
Hum [ Bard:  14   9   9 ] Rhysling is back from getting married.                        06-12-2011
Hum [ Bard:  14   9   9 ] Rhysling the Shanty-ing Bard                                  06-19-2011
Hum [ Bard:  15  10   9 ] Rhysling the Shanty-ing Bard                                  07-27-2011
Hum [ Bard:  15  10   9 ] Rhysling wonders if confusion time got increased              08-10-2011

Character History:

Born to a dockhand of Harper’s Landing, Rhysling grew up on the waterfront, watching cargoes from distant lands being unloaded. As soon as he was old enough, he joined his father in the family business. Eventually, Rhysling joined on with a merchant ship as cargo-master apprentice for a few years. Even today, blinded and scarred, he can identify cloth by its feel, spices by their scent, and the tonnage (and weight distribution) of a ship by the sound of water slapping its sides. After learning the trade, he took over the family business and prospered, until a cargo barge full of fertilizers bound for Safehaven caught fire and exploded, injuring Rhysling and nearly destroying Harper’s Landing. After months of recovery, Rhysling wandered from town to town without purpose, telling stories for food. And then Nevyn found him and gave him purpose and a gift: the long, ornate cane whose carvings seem to twist and change in Rhysling’s hands, an endless series of stories of what has been, is, and may become. As to what his new purpose is, only Rhysling and Nevyn know, making it a story that remains to be told.

Trivia:

Rhysling's first Bard Council Review was "The Common Sailor", a traditional sailing song.