Pipo of Alfuna

Early Years
Pipo was born in a settlement near Ustokol before it was purchased by kid ruler AC0N for the nation of Skjoldrbrodir. Pipo was very religious, and would study the Nostikur gods regularly. His parents were minor nobles; his dad was a brewer and shaman who was the son of a dwarf and a human, and although Pipo did not know much about his mother (left at a young age) she was rumored to be a descendant of an old Valkyrie-Elven bloodline, but his father was quick to dismiss those claims. he had 2 brothers, although he is currently unsure about their whereabouts. Pipo always hung out at his uncle's house with his cousin, Breadstic, and they would discuss all the cool new military trends like gunpowder, siege engines, and plate armor. Pipo married at the age of 25, although it didn't last very long and they separated 2 years later and she moved to a far off world, beyond the borders of Rathnir. When Pipo turned 28, his father sent him to study in Ustokol, which is where he started his new life serving the great nation of Skjoldrbrodir.

Family
Growing up, Pipo of Alfuna did not know much about his family. He had a Dwarven-Valdic dad, but his mother left him when he was 5. Pipo's dad always seemed very secretive about his mother. He would always ignore Pipo's questions and inquiries about her. The only thing Pipo knew about his mother was that she was a very good story teller, and often told Pipo about great conquests and expeditions. Pipo's 2 brothers, Radzaik and Hanush, set out on some adventure of sorts when Pipo left to Ustokol.

Life in Rathnir
When Pipo arrived at Ustokol, it was a dark and rainy day. He was greeted by Eazy8, Grassel (Grassioso), and AC0N. They were in gear and told Pipo they would show him around in the morning. At dawn, AC0N toured Pipo around Ustokol. He could hear the waves crashing, the sound of the animals, and clinks of beer and mead in the tavern. Pipo chose one of the houses by the docks. It was an old forge which wasn't being used anymore. After some cleanup, Pipo made a small but cozy living space for himself. He enlisted in the army as a Himthiki soldier and trained hard for the upcoming war with Nova Roma. One day, when Pipo was walking around Ustokol, he came across a small doorway leading to a big brewing facility underground. It was filled with huge wooden barrels which had drinks inside them. Pipo remembered the time when he used to visit his dad in the brewery. Inside the brewery, he met the main brewer in Skjoldrbrodir, Anon (AnontheMoose). Anon told him all about brewing, and taught him how to brew different drinks like wine, mead, and beer. Pipo was very intrigued by brewing, so he continued to brew drinks as Anon's apprentice. With the war with Nova Roma over, Pipo was able to shift his focus to more civilian matters. He started figuring out recipes and selling drinks to supply the locally famous Ikea Pub, run by Gustavus Villhorn (BalloonDwarf715). He even opened a restaurant chain called "On the Rocks", which served Nova Roman and Valdic food and drinks. As life in Rathnir went on, it started to get repetitive. Little did Pipo know, opportunity, land, and fame was right around the corner.

Life in Eldham
Pipo was talking with his friend Zanogre about comically large spiders, when he was summoned to the court of High Jarl AC0N. Pipo had asked questions about the new land, and he got a gut feeling that this meeting held relatively high importance. AC0N told Pipo that he needed him to find suitable land on Eldham (New Enfys at the time) for a Skjoldrbrodir colony. He would make Pipo a Jarl of Skjoldrbrodir, with a Jarldom in the new Skjoldrbrodir Eldham land. Pipo joyously accepted this proposition, and set off on a long journey with Grassel (Grassioso), AC0N, and his thane, Sir Breadstic of the Pot (tasty_breadstic), to scout the lands of Eldham for Skjoldrbrodir to grow and prosper on this new virgin land. Meanwhile at the royal table, many names were offered up. Balgard, Halendishald, Gudelandet, Flodhestbjerg. Even "Switzerland" made it into the choices. But non of these names really hit the nail on the head for Pipo. One day, deep in thought at his chambers in a Skjolder Eldham Expeditionary Camp, he was writing away at night, in search of different names for his city. He kept looking through the sketches AC0N and Grassel had given him full of different spots to build, trying to reference their landscape to the name. But Pipo just couldn't place it. It was here he saw a grey rock on the ground. A relatively big one, covered in dirt and grass. It reminded him of a story his mother told him, of a big huge stone golem who rested in eternal slumber, providing Valdic settlers with a foundation to build their city. "Steinborg" Pipo thought. It kept ringing in his ears. He wrote it down with the other final contestants. A vote was cast the next day, then it came back as an almost unanimous vote for "Steinborg". With the money to maintain the city and the resources to build, the plan was in full swing. Grassel built a small tower with some well organized farms around it. We started carving out mountains, building houses, and taking in new citizens. It was a dream come true for Pipo. As the other Skjoldrbrodir Jarls started building cities of their own on Edlham, we knew this was the start of a prosperous reign we could never have fully achieved on Rathnir.

Raiding and Pillaging
With the Jarl's life slowly becoming more boring over the years, Pipo wanted something more exciting and thrilling. After the death of one of his best friends, Grassel, he was a sad old man, grieving the death of his fallen comrade. Despite his Valdic roots, he had never gone on raids and conquests much. It was always the traditional wars and organized battles, and even those were very, very rare. When he was sitting in his great hall, sipping wine and listening to his courtier's and magnat's feedback and updates on their individual towns and the realm in general, when one of his envoys handed him a message coming all the way from the Madman's Crownlands region in the Jarldom of Holmguard (ruled by Eazy8). It was dusted with some snow. When Pipo opened it up, he saw it was from the Magnat of the town of Reykjarholl, governed by Bobito von Reykjarholl. It read:

"Dear friend and fellow Valdic,

''I am starting a company of Varangian guard and various mercenaries and raiders at Reykjarholl. That pesky drunk Fitzimamba told me you were looking for an adventure, and I was wondering if you would be willing to join me. When you have made your decision, send me a letter so I can inform you of our next expedition. I hope to meet you soon, and I am sure the men would be happy to welcome you into our ranks.''

-Bobitu von Reykjarholl, Magnat of Reykjarholl, Skjoldrbrodir"

After reading this letter, Pipo sailed to Madman's Crownlands where he would join the company of Varangians in Reykjarholl, and finally quench his thirst for glory, fame, wealth, and blood.

The Knights of the Round Barrel
The raging wind, the rushing droplets of rain, and the loud thumps of thunder and lightning, the drop of a bundle of wheat into the cauldron. It was a regular night for Pipo, and his dog, Tipsy. "I don't know why people do it, Tipsy, I mean what's in it for them? Money? Fame?" Pipo pondered. "Woof, woof?" Tipsy barked, curiously. "Oh you know what I'm talking about, recipe selling." A loud thunderous roar struck, and echoed throughout the city, the sound reaching the confines of its underground brewery.

"You know what causes thunder, Tipsy?" Pipo asked the dog. "Woof, bark, woof woof!" "No no, not lemur farts. That's just what Alaric told you. It's the fight between Eldashur the land razor, and Vlangolar mighty god of the wind." The boiling water started to change color, and Pipo rushed with a few empty bottles in hand. He bottled the liquid, and to his dismay, a plain and generic "Sugarwater" was the product. He lobbed the bottle across the room, and it shattered against the wall. "Jarl, sir!" A Steinborg guard entered the brewery. "There are some men outside the gates, knights!"

"Knights? Huh, well then come on Tipsy, let's hear what they have to say." Pipo was escorted to the gates, and Tipsy trotted along, soggy as ever in the rain. Pipo climbed the stairs up until the battlements on the front gates. The knights were clad in shining armor, the rain trickling down the steel plate and the moonlight reflecting off of it. They bore the crest of the Bartender's Guild, a symbol that Pipo knew all too well. The knight in the front raised his visor, and it was Darkleenex. Fellow guild member and chief brewer. "Where did you get a suit like that Dark? The only thing the guild gave me was a musty robe and 10 pounds in gold." Pipo joked. "Well ride with us, there's a lot to discuss." Pipo saddled his horse and sheathed his sword. He was about to take a journey with his fellow chiefs. A journey that would change the world of brewing and stop the illegal sale of recipes, taking down leakers one by one. Upon arrival, Pipo, Darkleenex, Fighter Bog, Ruready, Collusionest, Electross, MineRabbit, and Himo formed a circle around a barrel and let down the tip of their blades on its top. In one fluid motion, they raised them in the air and shouted an ancient bartender chant. The rain halted, the thunder stopped, and the sky cleared. Tipsy let out a mighty howl, and with that, the Order of the Knights of the Round Barrel was made, and no leaker would stand in its way.

A Journey to a far off world
Ever since first settling on Eldham on a Valdic longship from the small portuary town of Ustokol, the thrill of adventure and exploration was yet to come again until this day. Pipo was in the middle of diplomatic talks with Mosir officials yet again, rummaging through old documents and codexes and looking for something, anything, that would give him something else to do. Coming off of the back of 3 other consecutive defensive wars, any activity that didn't require any crappy diplomacy would do. He heard a knock on his door, and was a little surprised by it. "I told you, when you have to hand me a letter, artifact, or item, drop it off by my Thane!". He opened the door and took the letter from the rookie Himthiki guard. "But it's urgent sire."

"I don't care how urgent it is. If you don't follow the procedure you'll neve-" Pipo opened the letter and fumbled back a little, nearly knocking over a pitcher of spiced wine on an expensive antique carpet. "I see, sorry for the trouble. You may leave now." The guard walked away. Pipo stared at this letter for almost an hour. The letter read:

Brother,

''I know this letter is pretty random, and it has been a hell of a long time since we last talked, but I have made a rather amazing revelation. I've been on the move for the past 20 years, and I have seen many new things and have met many new people since, but this new continent I have come across is quite fascinating. When I docked at the ruins of a settlement called Iscallis, there seemed to be a deep ravine close to it. I heard strange echoes and sounds coming from underneath. Being the curious kid I am, I decided to take a few of my men with my to chart this cavern. When we came a little closer to the ground, however, we discovered a thriving civilization of what seemed to be rat men. I talked to their leader and well after a long conversation decided to settle here for a while. Come join me if you want, it's fun here.''

Pipo put down the letter and called on one of his Magnats to ready some ships at the port of Uracil. The following day Pipo would sail North to explore this other continent he later discovered was called “Cinder” when translated into Valdic, and reunite with his little brother to have a fulfilling adventure and sail away from his troubles in Eldham. It would be a long and mysterious journey, as who knows what this other world holds for him, but as curiosity got the better of him, he charted a journey to Cinder, to the Ratling Clan of Virn.