Generations ago the Sarazi clan was blessed with twin daughters. One daughter, Sahar, brought the family great honor by becoming a skilled herbalist. She married a promising barrister and gave birth to Hilidgrim’s Great-Great Grandmother Marebal. The other daughter, whose name has been deliberately forgotten, married a ne'er-do-well who stole a herbal concoction of Sahar’s in order to incapacitate another Halfling to rob. The concoction was dosed for a Human and ended up killing the mark. His dutiful wife robbed the grave of the murdered man to steal the evidence of the crime. The murder and subsequent desecration brought a powerful curse upon the Sarazi clan.
Marebal left the Ubikokeli Highlands in an attempt to defy the curse that befell much of her clan. She hired on as a replacement sailor on an Ashoshani merchant vessel sailing out of Bet Urala. Although she was good with the ropes and nimble amongst the rigging, the family curse affected her as surely as it did her family. During a great storm in Elos Bay, she fell from the riggings and was presumed lost at sea. Luckily she washed up on the shores of Pekal just outside of Baneta. There she changed her name to Marebal Sajardi. She met a local Halfling and married him in the town cemetery, as was the local custom, and changed her name again to Marebal Sapran.
The couple moved to the Kamarela Mounds, which were very similar to the home of her youth. The Gnomes and Halflings of the mounds intermingled more than they do in other parts of the world and because of this it is common for surnames to be matriarchal. This is done because a child’s mother is always known, but the father could be in question. So Marabel changed her name back to Sajardi.
The Sajardi clan prospered in their new home. Marebal’s oldeset son Romlin, is still going strong at 163 years of age. Of course at those advanced years, “going strong” means that he manages not to drool on himself. Hilidgrim has a great number of aunts, uncles, and cousins. The men in the family tend to do quite well, while the women still seem to suffer a string of bad luck, as if the curse is weakening throughout the generations. One of Hilidgrim’s aunts suffers from terrible nightmares and another aunt disappeared last year without a trace. Hilidgrim’s Great Uncle Sil is the luckiest person he has ever met. Sil lives a rather rich retired life supported by a constant flow of income from gambling on games of pure chance.
Hilidgrim’s immediate family consists only of his mother Catrakkan (Cat) and his father Nolan. Hilidgrim had a younger brother who died in infancy. He fully expects to have another brother or sister someday. Nolan is a cartographer who can read and write many different languages and Cat is a goat herder who has never strayed more than 15 miles from home.
Hilidgrim essentially grew up as an only child. He was fascinated by ponies, learning to ride at an early age, and loved to sit with his Grandfather and listen to tales of his Great-Grandmother’s adventures far beyond the Kamarela Mounds. Spending time with his father he learned a lot about the outside world, including several languages and the ability to draw detailed maps. Spending time with his mother and all of her insecurities about the world outside the mounds led him to believe that he would be abducted from monsters should he ever leave. Hilidgrim was a late bloomer that was often picked upon by the local bullies. They gave him some unsavory nicknames they occasionally still use.
Although happy with his home life, Hilidgrim loved to wander and explore. He’d walk for miles or borrow a pony and take weekend excursions by himself. On one such excursion Hilidgrim managed to get bitten by a poisonous snake, resulting in a nasty facial scar and a near death experience. Luckily he was aided by a local healer who recognized the boy’s wanderlust and nudged him in the direction (no pun intended) of the Temple of the Stars. Hilidgrim took to worship of the Traveller like it was meant to be. In his early days of his apprenticeship, he had a vision where Taktan himself appeared, telling Hilidgrim that he’d have a mission some day when the time was right.
Hilidgrim kept this vision to himself and although he realizes that he cannot interpret the will of Bright Eyes precisely, he feels that his mission started the day he was confirmed as a Questor and sent out into the world. Upon confirmation, Hilidgrim took the earned surname Thorngage after the leader of his Temple. It was largely symbolic as he was leaving his old family and entering a new one.
Hilidgrim is a Traveller in just about every sense of the word. He truly enjoys being out on the road and learning about other people and places. When meeting new people he likes to “chat them up” a bit or just participate in whatever it is they are doing. He doesn’t care to have a mission in life other than to get out and try new things. It’s not to say he’s flighty, but he tries to live in the moment and enjoy in the participation of a thing and not so much its outcome.
Hilidgrim freely goes by “Hildi” and sometimes gets confused when referred to by his surname. His travelling attire is his daily wear and consists of well-worn leather clothing with dull yellow accents. The most important bit of gear he carries is his Holy Symbol, followed by his boots (A pound on your feet is worth five on your back!) He tends to carry a lot of food as he has a voracious appetite and he prefers to spending his time moving forward rather than foraging for food.
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