Dorias Hillsmasher

Dorias "The Red Anvil" Hillsmasher is a character played by Ryan Neenan. Experienced, gruff, and set in his ways, he is a Dwarven fighter who tends to use his brawn in most situations, including during The Kiss of Janus.

Themesong: "All Secrets Known" by Alice in Chains

''Hope, a new beginning, Time, time to start living ''Just like just before we died ''There's no going back to the place we started from ''Hurt, falling through fingers, Trust, trust in the feeling ''There's something left inside ''Calm, old wounds are healing, Strong, truth is worth saving ''I want to feel alive ''There's no going back to the place we started from ''All secrets known

Description
Dorias is an aging Dwarf, stout and compact like all of his kind. His head is balding, and his brilliant red hair has streaks of gray, showing his advancing years. His beard is meticulously groomed and braided in the tradition his mother taught him, and his eyes are a dark green. His face shows the lines of age and experience, and the scars of too many close calls.

Personality
Dorias in Dwarven means "Red Anvil," and his name typifies his personality and outlook on life. His usual simple and blunt approach to problems and way with words often turns off those who first meet him; but eventually people see the honesty and good in Dorias' words, and much of the population of Asbravn has come to respect the Dwarf.

Dorias is far from a scholar, but has seen much in his life and travels. He knows he does not know many things, but is confident in his hammer and forge, and his ability to see the good in people. He distrusts those who wear an air of superiority, knowing that a pompous man is usually a fool. He has pride in his town, himself, and his work, and is fiercely defensive of its reputation. Since the Plague hit, he has had an innate distrust of magic users, but has learned to tolerate the resurgence of the craft and its wares.

Raised in an urban and culturally diverse environment, Dorias is at home in Asbravn and its mix of humans and elves. While he definitely identifies with his kind and embraces their culture, he lacks much of the cultural experience a typical dwarf has. Dorias is still a devout worshiper of Moradin, and sees his blacksmithing work as a divine tribute to the great Soul Forger. He shows his worship by adding a brand of Moradin to all his final products, and taking in much of his "holy water" at the local taverns.

Family & Relationships
Dorias grew up in a single parent household. His mother, a rather successful Dwarven merchant named Oira Hillsmasher, was famously tight lipped about who Dorias' father was, even to her son. Dorias managed to get a name out of his mother on her deathbed in 1449 - Jorlo Treethrower. Dorias did some investigating and what he discovered was rather less than exciting. Dorias has no siblings, and as far as he knows no relatives on his mother's side. He has not investigated his father's side, nor does he think it matters anymore.

Dorias' biggest relationships were with his first adventuring party. Though most perished in 1385, a human Paladin of Ilmater named Taos Sotia survived, and the two had a lasting friendship until Sotia died of natural causes in 1424. Throughout his travels Dorias has had many romantic encounters with women, but none have lasted long, mostly due to Dorias himself. Now advancing in years, that part of his life is pretty much over. He has no known children.

Currently, Dorias' time in Asbravn has brought many informal relationships, but none have evolved into a close friendship. HIs closest friend is his boss, Bo Kraken.

Early Years
Dorias was born in 1342 in the city of Teziir, a newer, yet busy port on the Dragon Coast. He was born into a single parent family - his mother, Oira, raised him in the traditional Dwarven way, although her work as a merchant and associate of the budding thieves group the Astorians also influenced what Dorias learned about the world. Oira, however, was a good person at heart, and raised her son to know what city life and adventure was like, and to value the gods and family. At a young age, Dorias was interested in swords and armor, and Oira helped his interest along by apprenticing Dorias to a local blacksmith.

Life in Teziir was exciting and interesting to Dorias, who despite his relative minority status, blended in well with the humans, elves, and halflings of the city. It was in 1372, at the age of thirty, that Dorias, now trained in basic combat and blacksmithing, decided to venture out of the city and find his own way in life. He bid goodbye to his mother, and set off to the largest and closest city - Suzail.



The First Adventure
Suzail proved to be a large and exciting city, and it was not long before Dorias found himself in a tavern, heeding the call to act for a worthy cause. During the small jobs that he took to support himself, he met a Paladin of Ilmater named Taos Sotia, and the two became instant friends. By the end of 1372, they together had formed a loose party of adventurers, consisting of themselves and three other humans: an eccentric Wizard named Athon, a Cleric of Tymora named Onola, and a Rogue named Voldak. They began by working as mercenaries for the nobility in Suzail, but by the end of 1373, amid tales of the great deeds of heroes such as the Wandering Guardians, they decided to head out and adventure throughout Faerun. The group of heroes known as The Circle of Light was born.

Adventuring turned out to be more grueling than expected. They traveled through many places - through the Dalelands, Silver Marches, the Sword Coast, and Western Heartlands. Along the way they had several encounters and played the role of heroes in many places. But tasks that they could perform were few and far between. In total, Dorias led his team through western Faerun for the next 12 years. Many times they stopped in large cities (such as Silverymoon, Neverwinter, Waterdeep, Baldur's Gate, Berdusk, and Scornubel) and took extended breaks from adventuring, going back to the churches, blacksmithing, alchemy, or (unknown to Dorias at the time) thievery. Throughout the years, however, they remained close and loyal to each other and their goals.

The Year of Blue Fire
It was in the Wood of Sharp Teeth (now known as the Werewoods), just south of Baldur's Gate, that the Spellplague reared its ugly head into Dorias' world. During a battle with a particularly nasty Hydra, Athon screamed in agony and fell to the ground. When the hydra was dispatched, Dorias and the others attended to their fallen friend, only to see Athon unconscious. It was not long before the sky turned black, the ground began to rumble, and the sounds of beasts filled the air. The woods seemed to come alive as the group attempted to find a safe haven. When Athon regained consciousness a few moments later, they thought their luck was improving: they were very wrong.

Athon was quite mad. Talking in languages no one could understand, arcane power rippled through him, exiting his body in all directions. Within seconds, there was a large flash, a giant explosion, and then silence. When Dorias came too, he saw no sign of Athon. Further, he saw that both Onola and Voldak were dead, a giant hole in their chests. Both Taos and Dorias found that their magical gear no longer functioned. Unsure what to do, they reluctantly left their friends bodies in the forest and fled west, to the town of Beregost.

When they were within a few miles of the town, they knew they were lost: only smoke stood where Beregost once was. The two rode their horses north, then, resting sparingly and eventually reaching Baldur's Gate. They were not alone in their trek - by the time they reached the large city, dozens of people had joined them from the area, all telling a tale similar to what Dorias and Taos had experienced. There was even rumor to a cause of these events: a very ill cleric of Mystra had not stopped ranting about the "loss" of his goddess.

Baldur's Gate: A Quiet Time
Eventually, the events that caused the Spellplague were learned by the duo. The next few months went by very slow; Baldur's Gate's population seemed to double every day, and the loss of magic brought chaos to much of the city. Not sure what to do, both Dorias and Taos joined the local guard and assisted the incoming refugees.

With no where to go, and little personal ties, the two remained in Baldur's Gate. Years passed, and the two saw the city swell to a population neither had ever dreamed. Both laid down roots in the city: Taos helped establish a small church to Lathander, who had gone under some kind of change himself, and Dorias worked as a blacksmith and assisted the city guard. Eventually, a contingent of dwarfs established a church to Moradin in the divine Twin Songs district. Dorias found himself often there, finding a part of himself that had been missing for some time.

Dorias' time in Baldur's Gate was generally favorable. He did, however, learn to distrust magic: his brush with Athon in the forest was a jarring experience. Despite this, he made a decent living with his blacksmithing and part time position as city guard, and had a decent time at it too. Though he found several female dwarfs of interest, nothing came from any of his romantic encounters. His drinking ability, however, was the stuff of legends in many of the local taverns.

Time passed, and the frailty of humankind was once again shown to Dorias when Taos died in the summer of 1424. With the loss of his longest friend and last member of his adventure group, Dorias decided a change was needed in his life, while he still had the energy to make a change. Two years later, with many long goodbyes to his friends, he left the city, setting out East. He had no plan, but he trusted Moradin to guide him to where he was needed.

Finding Himself
He traveled east out of the city, and eventually found his way to Elturgard, and the city of Eltural. It was here that he saw something he clearly interpreted as a sign: a second sun hung over the city, called the Companion. Clearly, Taos would have liked this place. He decided to settle down in the small city.

Dorias quickly learned that Eltural was a city where law was everything. Clerics and Paladins of Torm led the city, making sure that everyone knew how to behave and no one broke the law. This was a little too much for the free living Dorias, and he left a few years later in 1429.

He decided to backtrack a bit, and took the long road north, eventually ending up in Waterdeep. Though it reminded him of the cramped Baldur's Gate, Waterdeep was a new environment, and the dwarven population was large. Dorias quickly found the temple to Moradin, and through the next few years made a modest living as a blacksmith. Soon too, however, Waterdeep grew tiresome, and when Dorias left in 1449, he vowed never to live in a large city again.

After a trip east to see his dying mother, he traveled back southeast, steering clear of Najara, and eventually landed in Iriaebor. Though he thought he was just going to stay for a few days, Dorias decided he liked the City of a Thousand Spires. He particularly liked how it was resisting the Eltural influence on the rest of the area. It was also here that Dorias decided to get back into adventuring: Iriaebor was a hub for trade, and as such many caravans needed guards. Dorias immediately signed on with a local company. He found the work rewarding, and got to travel across the area. The next ten years of his life went rather quickly, as more than often he was defending his caravan against a bandit attack. Luckily for Dorias, however, he was never involved in any serious attack.

Asbravn and a New Home
By 1459, Dorias had begun to feel the wear of age in his bones. Though he liked the small city of Iriaebor, he decided that he needed to move on. Through his time traveling with the caravans, he heard of a small farming community north of the city, called Asbravn. He decided he would try that town to start.

The town lived true to the talk he heard about it. Though small, it had a large feel to it due to the trading caravans that often passed through. He immediately went through the process of settling down, taking a job as a blacksmith and helping out the town guard. He quickly decided that he would retire in this village, as long as it lasted as long as he did.

Twenty years passed in Asbravn. During this time he has never really left the town. His name is known through the town for a variety of things: his blacksmithing skills (he currently works for Bodak Kraken at the Dwarven Anvil), his involvement with the guard, and mostly his superior dwarven stomach and drinking ability. The last item has pretty much nullified any gold he made from the first two items.

The Kiss of Janus
Dorias had been living peacefully in Asbravn when the hub bub about a Dragon's Lair in the area brought an influx of adventurers and near chaos to the city in 1479. Dorias gruffly tried to resist any involvement in the "hunt" for Kisonraathiisar's hoard, but when he realized his very town and way of life were in jeopardy, he joined with 5 others in investigating the mysteries that seemed to surface in the town. In the end though, the party broke apart and went their separate ways. Dorias retired back to his blacksmithing.

Current Whereabouts / Activities
As far as Dorias is concerned, his adventuring days are pretty much over, and have been over since the day Athon died. He does, however, remember the dogma of Moradin: never flinch in the face of danger, and seek out the riches buried deep in the world. These beliefs he holds true, and would motivate him to action. He is also fiercely loyal to the town, and values its peaceful nature.

Still, he intends to live out the rest of his life peacefully in Asbravn.