The earliest memories of Cael Rames were of flying a great kite in the fields

surrounding the village of Hampton in Icewind Dale. This could only be done a few
months out of the year, when the ground had thawed and the rest of the village was busy
hunting, trading, and preparing for another long winter. At such a young age Cael’s hand
was guided by Arturus, Cael’s adoptive father and renowned wizard. Cael’s family was
killed by a group of brigands when he was but a year old. Staying with his grandmother
at the time he was safe, but it wasn’t long before his she was dead as well and Cael was
orphaned. Within a month he was adopted by Arturus, a man who regretted never having
children and also one whose trained eye could detect magic potential in a child, even at
such a young age. Arturus brought Cael to his home in Hampton and raised him as he
would his own son.
By Cael’s twelfth birthday, he had already begun to show his connection to the
Weave. Arturus did his best to share with Cael his own magical training; however things
were a little different as Cael had begun to show the markings of a Sorcerer. Although
unorthodox, Cael was still able to learn a great deal from Arturus’ teachings and quickly
became adept at casting cantrips and even some more powerful spells. Arturus had come
to the North long ago to learn the intricacies of magic in the deep cold, as well as to
distance himself from civilization for quieter study, and so Cael’s teachings were
understandably biased to this class of magic.
Arturus had traveled the world many times over before deciding to take residence
in Hampton, and through his travels he learned a great deal. One thing in particular stood
out in his teachings. Nearly fifteen-hundred years ago in what is now Rashemen there
was a warrior-mage of great power by the name of Kenewrec. Having grown up in the
north and ever interested in the power of the elements, Kenewrec was a pioneer in the
magical control of cold. In fact, some of the cold-based spells in common use today are
based on or use Kenewrec’s formulas and workings. Kenewrec possessed martial
prowess in addition to his magical skills. When rising tensions between the kingdoms of
Raumathar, Kenewrec’s home, and Narfell, Raumathar’s neighbor to the north, escalated
to a full out war, Kenewrec was on the front lines leading an army against Narfell’s
mages and their fiendish warriors. This came to be known as the War of the Summoned
or the Rage of Fire. The war culminated to a great spell-battle and both nations found
themselves unable to control the powers they had unleashed. The mages of both nations
lost control of the mighty beings they had summoned, and when the war was over both
Narfell and Raumathar were no more. Kenewrec was one of the few wizards to survive.
While the refugees of the war traveled east and eventually founded Impiltur, Kenewrec
spurred due north, through the ruins of Narfell and into the Great Glacier. There he
started work on a trio of items of great power, items that would aid him in any future
conflicts, and perhaps once day allow him to take back and rebuild his ruined nation. His
whereabouts and doings thereafter are a mystery, and little is known of his demise…
Arturus had spent his life studying the life and times of Kenewrec and had
amassed a remarkable library of information on the man. He had done a great deal of
adventuring of his own in his younger days, most of it spent searching out the three items
and the tomb of Kenewrec, but at each possible end of his searching he came up empty-
handed. In the times that followed he had abandoned his quests, deciding that the items
were long lost in some depth of Hell or at the bottom of some sea and instead decided to
focus on his magic research.
 Cael grew up in awe of the legends of Kenewrec and the stories of the ancient
lands he once walked. While Arturus was privately elated by Cael’s interest, he
outwardly discouraged Cael from adventuring, especially those adventures that labored
toward lost causes. Not one to back down from a dream, Cael spent the next few years, in
between his chores, studies, and spending time with friends, studying Arturus’ notes from
his adventuring years. One evening Cael found a clue that Arturus must have overlooked.
He brought the book to Arturus and explained to him that this clue could be a key to the
location of Calimus Brumalis, Kenewrec’s greatsword! The look in Arturus’ eyes was
that of a young man full of hope and promise...
For the next two months Arturus and Cael poured over the notes and narrowed the
location of the sword to the lands southeast of the High Forest. Too old for adventure,
Arturus equipped Cael and gave him some training with the sword, and then sent him out
on his own adventure. The path to the Silver Marches is a short but arduous one and Cael
quickly learned how to wield the blade against the marauding bands of Orcs and other
vile beings that frequent the area. His first stop was Silverymoon, Cael’s birthtown,
where he joined a young man by the name of Leuric. Leuric was a human ranger and was
looking for adventure himself. After a few weeks of additional research in Silverymoon,
the two set out to find the sword. A few more months were spent in the field exploring
forgotten ruins and tombs, where the two found themselves in the Forgotten Forest, hot
on the trail. The trail suddenly turned cold and the two decided to head back to nearby
Evereska for more research. While leaving the Forgotten Forest they were attacked by a
Wight and Leuric was killed. Cael escaped the encounter alive and buried Leuric in the
cemetery of an old Temple they had come across in the forest. Downtrodden and ready to
give up, Cael heard news of strange happenings in the Forgotten Forest. People were
rising from their graves and walking again as they did while living. Cael rushed back to
the cemetery in order to move Leuric’s body to a safe place, before the necromancy could
affect him. During this process he met the current group of adventurers. Seeing a strong
party with high hopes, he decided to join them, hoping they could help him find the first
of the three relics… which as it turns out was right under his nose the whole time.