Rundorl Moonsklan

Rundorl Moonsklan, the would-be Harper King, was an agent of the Harpers whose profound ambitions and mediocre abilities somehow allowed him to nearly bring down the secret society of do-gooders, some years before the Era of Upheaval. "...whisper something, and all the lords of the North would hear and obey."

- Rundorl's dream

Personality
Rundorl dreamed of leading some shadowy cabal that would influence and shape the destinies of the cities of the North, making him the power behind every throne. He was hardly up to that task, however, repeatedly allowing himself to be manipulated and dominated by powers far beyond his ken.

History
Following the initial conflicts of the Harpstar Wars of the late 12 century DR, Rundorl came to believe that the Harpers' leaders—namely Elminster and Khelben Arunsun, along with other senior agents―were slain or otherwise retired from the Harper business. After all, he'd never met them, nor heard tell of someone who had communicated directly with them, in his brief career with his Harpers. He thus decided that a new leader for the organization was needed and, fittingly enough, he could fill that role.

In order to gain some influence and wield power within the organization, Rundorl needed an edge. By chance, he happened one day to meet the Thayan necromancer Szass Tam, who himself had similar goals. The two struck a deal to serve each of their interests— Szass Tam would funnel Rundorl information on his rivals in Thay and Rundorl would gain prestige by sending Harpers to win victories over them. To justify this focus on Thay, a land previously neglected by the Harpers, Rundorl spread the story of "the spell of Undeath", horrifying magic developed by Thay's Red Wizards that could transform the populations of entire cities into the undead. Armed with this knowledge, and having fabricated a story of how Thay planned to "conquer the world" with their magic, Rundorl rose in influence among the Harpers' leaders. They began a campaign against the spellcasting order, striking into the lands of Thay itself.

The Harpers' meddling into Red Wizards' affairs drew the group into a prolonged conflict with the Thayan spellcasters, leading to many deaths on either side. Although they did not affect any great change in Thay itself, the Harpers managed to slay many Red Wizards and even zulkirs. But despite their perceived victories, more Harpers were dying than Thayans and Rundorl led a reluctant retreat out of Thay. Worse, Red Wizards pursued Rundorl and his exhausted Harpers into the Dragonreach region and meticulously killed them one-by-one, before raising them as undead servitors. Only then did Rundorl realize the treachery of Szass Tam and the trap he had fallen into.

To make matters worse, these undead Harpers knew all the secrets and strongholds of the Harpers and targeted their still-living fellows. Even more desperate now and fearing for his own safety, Rundorl turned to the lich Thavverdasz, an ally of the Cult of the Dragon who dwelled in the Vast Swamp, so that he might deal with the undead for him. Thavverdasz agreed—then rapidly dominated Rundorl Moonsklan's mind, took control of the undead Harpers, and assumed the title of 'Harper King' for itself. Rundorl, meanwhile, joined the fate of his fellow Harpers, ending up as just another undead creature in Thavverdasz's legion.