This week we’ve got a super chunky entry to bring us back out of the holidays. Morgan Ramshorn is a still-living character with ties to recent history and current crises in Ipieros, making them a useful touchstone GMC. While I think most folks will use Morgan as a campaign frame and have the PCs work with and for them, Morgan’s crusade can just as easily position them as an antagonist interfering with the PC’s plans.
MORGAN RAMSHORN OF TALLUS
A modern-day hero of no small renown, Morgan Ramshorn was a central figure in the Ogrewar and continues to pursue the last vestiges of the curse of ogrification. They coordinate a network of ogre hunters from their hometown of Tallus. Ramshorn’s dedication is profoundly personal, having been intimately connected to the creation of the curse of ogrification, and has dedicated their life to its eradication.
Born and raised in Tallus, the satyr worked as a city guard in their youth. There they met and assisted the Arcane Mysterium delegate Valormaw, who elected to stay in Tallus when the Dread Tyrant conquered the city. Ramshorn and Valormaw became key organizers of the resistence to the occupation, which dragged on for years; during this time they fell in love, married, and produced two children. When Valormaw created his army of ogres to march on Tour Toriel, Ramshorn stayed behind to defend the city and parent their children.
When the ogre army collapsed under the curse that created it, Ramshorn rallied the city to defend itself from the resulting Rampage. Once the city was secure, the spellsword gathered a small band of outriders to strike out into the chaos beyond the city walls. While their stated public motives were to find out what had happened, the satyr was also intent on finding and rescuing Valormaw. The outriders got close to Valormaw a number of times, but were never able to penetrate the mass of ogres surrounding him.
They were, however, able to track the eastward movement of Valormaw’s group. Ramshorn concluded that whatever remained of their lover’s mind was attempting to return home to Besar, which would take the mass of ogres through Caer Larionad. The outriders brought that city enough forewarning for it to rally its allies and mount the defense that would crush the Rampage and end the Ogrewar. Ramshorn fought in that battle, attempting and failing to isolate Valormaw in the hopes that something could be done for him. In the end, Ramshorn struck the final blow that brought their husband down.
While the Ogrewar ended, Ramshorn’s campaign to eradicate the curse of ogrification had only begun. Scattered groups of ogres remained at large across the continent, and the spellsword dedicated their life to hunting them down. Working out of Tallus, the spellsword maintains a network of informants including guards of many cities, former outriders, and travelling bards. Ramshorn responds to reports of ogre activity with a rapid-response strike team that rides out to put the ogres down. In recent years, they have expanded their operations to include clearing out nymph infestations (an ogrified nymph swarm can quickly turn into a wider outbreak) and purging quickfinch nesting grounds of ogrified birds.
While Ramshorn long refused to name their organization, claiming that they are just responsible citizens doing what is required of them, grateful citizens in Outland and beyond know them as Morgan’s Outriders. Stories of Ramshorn and their heroic companions are shared with enthusiasm. Even Ramshorn’s horse, a long-suffering rotaller by the name of Peaches, has become part of their burgeoning legend. The Bardic College ensures that those exploits are only slightly embellished, thus preserving the essential cautionary information about the dangers of ogres.
The former spellsword never meant for their efforts to be more than a personal crusade, and is frequently bewildered at their current role leading a continent-spanning paramilitary organization. For years, Ramshorn balanced their extermination campaign with other paying work which financed Outrider expeditions. They would spend summers travelling as far north as the Uroth Passage, clearing out quickfinch nests and putting down ogre lairs, and the winters guarding caravans travelling through Tallus. As their legend has grown, however, cities and crowns, both grateful and desperate, have begun sending them unsolicited funds. Ramshorn is profoundly ambivalent about receiving such largesse, but reasons that financing future expeditions is worth the embarassment at accepting the donations.
The Outriders’ network now extends far beyond Tallus. Informants report in from across the continent, often from further than an expedition from Tallus can respond in a timely fashion. Ramshorn has begrudgingly authorized a handful of additional teams who operate out of other cities, especially in the rugged Wildermarch. The city elders of Caer Larionad have sent a formal petition for Ramshorn to open a ‘chapterhouse’ of the Outriders in their city, promising to finance it with an annual stipend. A king in the Kelompok has requested a team of Outriders to help reclaim an island fallen to ogres, promising Ramshorn a noble title for their trouble.
Ramshorn is eager to pursue any opportunity to bring the world closer to eradicating ogres, but worries that as these requests grow larger and more elaborate, they also come with strings attached. They aren’t sure if they are capable of navigating the politics, let alone interested in doing so. Their small group of ogre-hunters are constantly stretched thin, and Ramshorn is increasingly worried that runaway success may be the greatest threat to getting the job done.
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With such a big entry, there’s lots of options to pick from for next week’s poll. I think I’ve picked out the four juiciest and intriguing, and I’m looking forward to seeing which one you guys pick!
As always, thanks so much for your support and your feedback!
—Josh
