An Epic

Thuldin the Fallen, the Lord of Pride

Lord of Pride by Tim Vargason
Thuldin the Fallen, Level 15 Solo Soldier
the Lord of Pride (Leader)
Medium natural humanoid XP 6000
Initiative +11       Senses Perception +10; low-light vision
HP 596; Bloodied 298
AC 31; Fortitude 27, Reflex 25, Will 27
Saving Throws +5, +10 against poison effects
Speed 6
Action points 2
Melee BasicBattleaxe (standard; at-will)   ◊   Weapon
+21 vs AC; 3d6 + 13 damage and the target is marked.
MeleeArrogant Might (standard; at-will)   ◊   Weapon
Thuldin attacks twice with his battleaxe.
MeleeShield Bash (minor; at-will)
+20 vs Fortitude; 1d10 + 6 and the target is pushed one square.
MeleeWon't Be Intimidated (immediate reaction; at-will)
When Thuldin is adjacent to an enemy, if another enemy moves into a square adjacent to him, he makes a battleaxe attack against that enemy.
+22 vs AC; 3d6 + 13 and the target is knocked prone.
MeleeEarthshaker (standard action; recharge 5, 6)
Thuldin slams the ground with his battleaxe, cracking and breaking it.
Close blast 4; +20 vs Reflex; 2d8 + 8 and the target is pushed 2 squares. The blast area becomes difficult terrain for the remainder of the encounter. Miss: Half damage.
MeleeDwarven Battlecry (Minor; encounter)
Thuldin lets forth a stentorian cry of pride and anger.
Close burst 5; +20 vs Will; Enemies in the burst are weakened (save ends). Allies in the burst gain a +1 bonus to attack until the end of Thuldin's next turn.
Shield of Pride
Thuldin gains a +2 to all defenses against ranged and area attacks made from 5 or more squares away.
Exultant Error
When bloodied, if Thuldin misses twice when using Arrogant Might, he gains an action point.
Stand Your Ground
When an effect forces a dwarf to move--through a push, a pull, or a slide--the dwarf moves 1 square less than the effect specifies. When an attack would knock the dwarf prone, the dwarf gains an immediate saving throw to avoid falling prone.
Alignment Evil       Languages Kalish, Blackspeech, Dwarven
Skills Dungeoneering +17, Diplomacy +18
Str 22 (+13)         Dex 15 (+9)       Wis 16 (+10)
Con 21 (+12)       Int 16 (+10)           Cha 23 (+13)
Equipment Plate Armor, Heavy Shield, Battleaxe, Handaxe x3

Lord of Pride's Tactics

Once opponents have fought their way through the hordes of orcs that guard the Lord of Pride, he will face them himself. He opens combat with his Earthshaker attack and with a Dwarven Battlecry. Each round after that, he wades into combat, using Arrogant Might. When multiple enemies engage, he will use Shield Bash each round to push an enemy away so that he can make full use of Won't Be Intimdated, his key ability.

Lord of Pride Lore

This ancient dwarf appears grizzled beyond recognition. He was once the son of Thundin Greathammer, king of the Dwarfhold Khallin in the Northern Teeth. He had the utmost pride in the Dwarven race and believed they were superior to other races. Because of this, he convinced his father to pursue a xenophobic policy towards the neighboring human barbarian tribes, ceasing trade with them and even attacking them and forcing them to pay tribute. When an ancient green dragon harassed Khallin, Thuldin pursued the dragon with a small force of 300 dwarves, against his father's wishes. He wished to impress his father and the rest of his people. The dwarves managed to wound the dragon, angering it, but the force was decimated. Only Thuldin escaped, and he was vastly angry at his race for not having shown their "true might" and slain the dragon. Thuldin staggered home, wounded, but when he beheld the gate of the dwarfhold his prideful anger and disappointment surged and he turned away, vowing in anger to leave them to their fate. He could not face his father, knowing that alll his proud boasts had proven false and that his father was right. When the dragon flew to Khallin for revenge, the hold was undefended and her gates were wide open. Khallin fell and Thuldin subsequently shaved his beard to show contempt for the race that had proved him wrong in the eyes of his father. His pride in the Dwarven race was overreaching, and caused his fall. Thuldin then began wandering for many years, eventually making his way to the pass of Doom, where he was captured and sent to the Nameless City. He would emerge years later as the Lord of Pride.

The psychology of the Lord of Pride is complex; even though he hates dwarves, he cannot get over his pride in the accomplishments of his race, particularly in metalworking. He ruled Kale, the weakest of the Seven Kingdoms during his time. Kale was primarily weak because of the economic policies pursued by the other Lords. Saithith, the Lord of Gluttony, had no real economic policy to speak of. Brathelathor the Lord of Lust was derogatory and cruel to the Lord of Pride and purposely would not trade with him, although he heavily taxed all trade that came through his Kingdom from the East and headed towards Kale. Thuldin was slain by Valanduil the Elf and Bartarius the Barbarian in the year 8161 F.R.

Special power: Each Lord of Sin has been instilled by the Book of Seven with a power that has come to be known as the Dark Will, the ability to send general orders to all evil creatures in his respective domain. The Will cannot give specific orders, such as to recover a certain item, but it can direct groups of dark folk to head in a certain direction or gather in a certain spot, to go to war, to harry travelers, or to loot and burn. When dark folk (except Oluks and Hobgoblins) under the dark will are directed to go to war, they begin to breed at an increased rate, producing massive amounts of soldiers for the evil armies; their gestation period is reduced by one to three months depending on the race.