Aribeth de Tylmarande

Lady Aribeth de Tylmarande was a half-elf paladin of Tyr, the Blind God of Justice, and a member of the Tylmarande family.

Early Life
Aribeth was born in Thundertree, a town in the Neverwinter Woods, of uncertain parentage; some say a union between half-elves, others a moon elf and a human. The village's population was wiped out in an orc raid, leaving her the sole survivor of the massacre. Vowing vengeance, she hunted down the perpetrators and slew them all. Unsatisfied, she continued to hunt and kill orcs in an obsessive quest until she was trapped in a sudden blizzard and rescued by a one-armed man she believed to be an avatar of the god Tyr, who took her to a monastery of Ilmater. Recovering her health there, she learned to be a paladin, gaining such fame that when she moved to Neverwinter, she was named to the elite bodyguard of Lord Nasher Alagondar, being the first woman and first non-human to be so honored. There she met and became engaged to Fenthick Moss, a cleric of Tyr in the Hall of Justice.

The Wailing Death
Lady Aribeth was chosen by Nasher Alagondar to be in charge of the investigations surrounding the Wailing Death that afflicted Neverwinter in the. She began training adventurers at an academy to combat the forces behind the plague. However, after the Waterdhavian creatures needed for a magical cure became scattered throughout the city, Aribeth placed a student at the academy (who later became the Hero of Neverwinter) in charge of tracking them down.

After her lover, Fenthick Moss, was found guilty by association and was hanged for trusting Desther Indelayne, a false Helmite and agent of Maugrim Korothir, Morag appeared to Aribeth in her dreams and tempted her to join Maugrim's cult with promises of revenge against the city that unjustly murdered Fenthick. Aribeth initially continued to lead Neverwinter's effort to find the cult in and around Port Llast, but eventually disappeared. When agents reached Luskan's Host Tower of the Arcane, they learned that Aribeth had become a blackguard in the service of Morag and had agreed to lead Maugrim's Luskar army in their impending assault on Neverwinter. At the climax of this assault, the Hero of Neverwinter confronted Aribeth and defeated her in combat. Not long after the forces of Morag were repelled, Aribeth was persuaded to surrender and return to Lord Nasher to face judgment, and she was soon executed for her crimes.

Afterlives
Later that year, upon encountering her spirit in Cania, an adventurer known as Drogan Droganson's pupil found Aribeth distraught. She'd realized she had never truly loved Fenthick and her betrayal of Neverwinter therefore was not motivated by love as she had thought and was consequently much less justified. The hero could either persuade her to return to the service of Tyr, or accept the evil path that she had chosen; either way, she could join the hero in their quest. Aribeth herself said that she'd died violently, though her memories were somewhat hazy. The hero of Neverwinter may have attempted to defend Aribeth while she was tried for her crimes but been heavily outvoted, since the majority of Neverwinter called for Aribeth's execution, and Lord Nasher complied with the city's request. As a result, the hero of Neverwinter's friendship with Lord Nasher ended, and they left Neverwinter, never to be heard from again. Because of this, Nasher had revisionists play down his role in saving Faerûn from destruction.

If Aribeth was at the pupil's side in their confrontation with Mephistopheles, the archdevil would try use his considerable charisma to play on her uncertainties and turn her to his side unless her companion could sway her.

After beating Mephistopheles and if she had been redeemed as a paladin, she returned as a spirit to Neverwinter, aiding the sick and wounded and ended up finding redemption and going to Lunia. She may even have fallen in love with the hero of Neverwinter, with Aribeth stayed with him until his death, when he promised to "meet her on the other side", After he died, Aribeth's spirit faded from the mortal realm and she went on to spend the rest of her existence with him.

Legacy
The Tylmarande family remained in Neverwinter after Aribeth's death and were some of those who refused to leave when Mount Hotenow erupted. Aribeth's great-great niece Seldra Tylmarande spent much of her life trying to restore the name of her family to a respectable status.

Possessions
Aribeth wore a magic ring that granted her resistance to spells. Although a family heirloom, after Aribeth's death the ring was lost and was known as Aribeth's ring.

Appearances

 * Video Games
 * Neverwinter Nights • Neverwinter Nights: Hordes of the Underdark
 * Organized Play & Licensed Adventures
 * Lost Crown of Neverwinter
 * Lost Crown of Neverwinter