Wulfgar

Wulfgar son of Beornegar is the barbarian hero of Icewind Dale, and one of the Companions of the Hall along with Drizzt Do'Urden, Catti-brie, Regis, and Bruenor Battlehammer. He worships Tempus, god of battle.

Appearance


The physical build of Wulfgar is astounding, giving him incredible strength. He has even been known to crush a man's head with his bare hands, though it was not an easy task for him. Wulfgar is nearly seven feet (2.1m) tall, with a broad and muscular chest. He has blond hair and a neatly trimmed beard.

Equipment
Wulfgar carries Aegis-fang, a huge warhammer crafted for him by Bruenor.

Upbringing
Wulfgar was the flag bearer for Heafstaag, King of the Elk tribe when he was just a boy. In the barbarian Ten Towns battle Bruenor Battlehammer the dwarf knocked out Wulfgar with a blow to the head. After the battle, when the people of Ten Towns were slitting throats of the surviving barbarians, Bruenor spared Wulfgar. Instead of death, he sentenced him to five years and a day of service to Bruenor. Wulfgar took to the forge and changed his opinion of Bruenor from slaver to father. Bruenor crafted Aegis-fang with Wulfgar in mind. When Wulfgar's sentence was almost up, Bruenor bade Drizzt Do'Urden the drow to teach Wulfgar how to fight. When Akar Kessel came to conquer Ten-Towns, Wulfgar defeated the white dragon Ingeloakastimizilian to claim leadership of the tribes, which he then turned from an alliance with Akar Kessel to an alliance with Ten-towns.

Enslavement
More recently, Wulfgar was captured by a yochlol when he and his companions were trying to save Drizzt from capture by the drow. Wulfgar caused a ceiling to cave in on himself and the handmaiden in order to keep it from killing Catti-brie. However, the yochlol dragged Wulfgar with it to the Abyss and its mistress Lolth, who later gave Wulfgar as a gift to the tanar'ri Errtu, so the demon would in turn watch over the drow city Menzoberranzan during the Time of Troubles.

Mental strife
When Errtu was summoned by a powerful sorcerer, he used the anti magic gem given him by Lolth to escape and brought Wulfgar with him. Drizzt and company managed to defeat Errtu and send the demon back to the Abyss, but during his six years as Errtu's prisoner, Wulfgar's mind was almost broken. He later wound up attacking Cattie-brie during a hallucination, an occurrence which caused him much mental anguish. In an effort to stop the harm he was doing, Wulfgar broke off from the Companions of the Hall, as Drizzt and his companions were called, and wandered the North for a time, eventually finding himself at a Luskan tavern called the Cutlass, owned by Arumn Gardpec. Wulfgar eventually became the bouncer of Arumn's bar, but was descending into the world of the bottle. Arumn's cowardly friend, Josi Puddles, stole Aegis-fang when Arumn decided to fire the huge barbarian, and Wulfgar was forced to find his hammer with his thief friend, Morik the Rogue.

Recovery
Wulfgar eventually recovered his hammer with the help of his old friends, banished his demons without the help of alcohol, and settled down with his new wife, Delly Curtie, and their adopted daughter, Colson. He sometimes travelled with the Companions of the Hall. Wulfgar was torn between a life on the road, participating in adventures with his companions, and a settled life looking after his family, but Delly maintained that he must pursue his adventuring career.

Catti-brie
Wulfgar admits to having fallen for Catti-brie in the past, but now regards her as a close companion. At one point the couple were engaged. He asks her a few pointed questions during the story and later learns that the two, Drizzt and Catti-Brie, haven't consumated their stronger feelings for one another, which comes suprising to him.

Delly's death
In The Two Swords, Delly Curtie was under considerable strain being quartered in Mithral Hall while the ongoing war against the Orc King Obould Many-Arrows left her unable to walk the free air. She, even though married to Wulfgar, was mostly left feeling isolated whilst caring for Colson, their adopted daughter. Under these circumstances, she went to visit Wulfgar when she could, but after Cattie-Brie's fall to the giant, with her crushed leg, Wulfgar kept close to her and unfortunately, Delly, partly from jealousy and part from fear, wanted to get away from there with Wulfgar.

Wulfgar however was fighting beside the dwarves and Catti-Brie and spent more time fighting than with her, she appears to feel somewhat rejected and when she went to see Catti-Brie, carrying Colson beside her, she came under the influence of Khazid'hea. In desperation, Delly was about to leave the baby with a sleeping Catti-Brie, but then realised that Catti-Brie would be wanting to fight again and so reconsidered leaving Colson with her. Once the thoughts of Khazid'hea were calling to her though, too weak willed to resist, she fell under the powerful will of the sentient sword. Not being as strong willed as either Catti-Brie or Drizzt, she was overwhelmed by the swords' desire for killing, becoming an extension of the sword, as opposed to the wielder who controlled it. Colson was taken by Cottie Cooperson after Delly quite remarkably refused the will of the sword to kill it and handed the baby over to her, who quickly fled with refugees across the Surbrin to safer lands before the onset of winter, without telling Wulfgar.

With the will of the sword still driving Delly, she rushed North, bypassing the sentries who called out to her. Pikel and Ivan Bouldershoulder charged after her through the harsh weather. Later though, they came upon her slain body, all attributed to the orcs as the sword sought a better wielder day by day. The two were about to bring her body back when they caught sight of Drizzt on the flying Pegasus and left the body of Delly behind.

In The Orc King Wulfgar, after recovering Delly's corpse, having a proper burial, and grieving over the loss, set out with Cattie-brie to recover Colson. Wulfgar and Cattie-brie first traveled to Silverymoon to speak with Alustriel, who directed them to the town of Nesmé, where they would likely find Cottie, and more importantly, Colson. Without resorting to bloodshed, Wulfgar and Cattie-brie recovered Colson from Cottie in Nesme.

Return to Ice-Wind Dale
At this point Wulfgar decided the best thing for Colson was to be returned to her birth mother, Meralda. Immediately, Wulfgar set out on the road for Auckney where he convinced Meralda and her husband to retake Colson. From there Wulfgar seriously contemplated traveling North to Icewind Dale, the home of his birth, to lead his people, the Tribe of the Elk, and find a good woman to wed. But the time just wasn't right yet. He decided to travel back to Mithril Hall for one last visit with the Companions of the Hall. Finally, on the 1st of Flamerule, 1372 DR, Wulfgar returned to Icewind Dale.

Four years after the Treaty of Garumn's Gorge had been signed, Bruenor charged Drizzt and Regis to visit Icewind Dale and find out how his adopted son was faring. The pair found the Elk tribe but Wulfgar wasn't with them. Berkthgar the Bold told them that Wulfgar was dead, that he had forgotten the ways of his people and had died because of it. But neither of the companions were willing to believe that their erstwhile friend had been killed. After a week of searching the Frozenfar, Drizzt and Regis discovered Wulfgar living in Biggrin's Cave. He had forced himself into a year-long exile to re-learn the ways of his people and had only to survive the winter before he would return to the Elk Tribe and rejoin their fold. Although he welcomed his friends, Wulfgar wanted to complete his exile alone and, now knowing that their friend was alive and well Drizzt and Regis left him to his fate.