Edwin Odesseiron

"When asked about his past, Edwin sneers that he has no intention of revealing such information and that it is none of your business. He further states that you are lucky enough to simply share his company, and then mutters something about leaving whenever he wishes. He obviously cares little for the camaraderie of others, and seems to take more pleasure in speaking to himself than in interacting with the party. His attire brazenly displays the colors of the Red Wizards of Thay, though why a member of that organization would come so far west is puzzling. Edwin does not seem forthcoming with any information. "

- Character description from the Baldur's Gate computer game

Edwin Odesseiron (possibly related to Tharchion Homen Odesseiron of Surthay) is a member of the Red Wizards of Thay specialised in conjuration magic who as a novice was sent to the Sword Coast near Baldur's Gate on an unknown mission. He got into conflict with Dynaheir of Rashemen but failed to have her killed. Later, he moved to Amn and at some point lost his favour with the Red Wizards, ending up working at Mae'Var's Shadow Thief guild.

Edwin is a party NPC in the computer games Baldur's Gate and Baldur's Gate II: Shadows of Amn and their expansions. In the first game, he is encountered near the bridge at Nashkel and wants to hire the player's party to kill the witch Dynaheir, who is in fact as good as dead without rescuing anyway. He offers his services as a wizard as a reward. If the player instead chooses to save Dynaheir - perhaps at the behest of Minsc, who is also found in Nashkel - Edwin if talked to again will attack, which hardly fits his supposed genius-level intellect as he is on a very low level and lacks the spells even to harm anyone with. The second game assumes that Dynaheir survived and was part of the player's party. As a party member, Edwin will be recognised by some other Red Wizards in the Wood of Sharp Teeth, who will thereby not attack the party.

In the second game, Edwin is more difficult to find. The player must first accept the quest to infiltrate Mae'Var's branch of the Shadow Thieves' guild, posing as new recruits but spying on the guildmaster to find proof of his suspected planned treachery towards his superior. Only there will they even find Edwin, and only after completing the quest can they recruit Edwin to the party. Later, if Edwin is taken to a certain part of the tomb where the Book of Kaza sought by Korgan is also found, he will make it possible to discover from there a Nether Scroll, a powerful ancient artifact he believes will grant him immense power and which he will keep to himself. After studying it for a time, he will declare that he is ready to use it, and promptly demonstrate the folly of meddling with magic that is beyond one by turning himself into a woman, complete with a different voice set. After some time, during which Edwina is likely to be the object of an incredible amount of mockery from other party members, a member of the Red Wizards will turn up looking for him, but finding only her leaves temporarily. Later, he returns, reverses the spell and attacks. If this encounter is missed, Edwin will return to his old self in the Pocket Plane at the latest.

In Throne of Bhaal, Edwin is still available as a party member, goading the player character to accept their potential role as a deity.

Edwin has a high intelligence score and is especially talented as a wizard, gaining not only the extra spells from school specialisation (as per 2nd edition rules) but also an extra one on top of that for every level; this makes him easily the most powerful wizard in the series, better even than any wizard PC. He is also himself under the impression that he is an exceptional genius, and his behaviour often seems less than smart, or at least less than wise. He is extremely sarcastic and constantly refers to other people as "monkeys" or by some near-synonym, often when speaking to himself in brackets. Oddly, he seems unaware that others can hear him when he talks to himself.

Edwin's character ending in Throne of Bhaal reveals that, after the game and a series of exploits befitting his great power and lack of common sense, he will end up in a hostile confrontation with Elminster, and will as a result be left permanently as a woman.

Appearances

 * Baldur's Gate
 * Baldur's Gate II: Shadows of Amn
 * Baldur's Gate II: Throne of Bhaal