Khelgar Ironfist

Khelgar Ironfist is a dwarven fighter of Clan Ironfist who teamed up with the Kalach-Cha during the Shadow War and who, afterwards, took up temporary stewardship of Crossroad Keep.

Appearance
Standing just under five feet tall, Khelgar Ironfist is immediately identifiable by his manners or, quite often, lack thereof. In spite of his size, Khelgar acts with next to little subtlety and is easily provoked by insults and threats, though perhaps less out of a concern for dignity or safety than because he actually takes delight in such attacks, seeing it as another chance to prove his skills in combat, either armed or unarmed. Khelgar is, of course, more than willing to return the favor and is often foul-mouthed and ill-tempered.

This behavior is not without its cost, however, and though Khelgar is in many ways handsome by dwarven standards, due in large part to his impressive musculature, the constant battles have waged a physical cost on the dwarf. Covering Khelgar from foot to head are a collection of cuts and bruises, which, along with his missing teeth, recount the shield dwarf's countless encounters with a wayward foot or fist. These injuries do not seem to discourage Khelgar, however.

Personality
Khelgar is, at heart, a fighter. Most at home in a tavern brawl, the shield dwarf prefers a straight, fair fight to either negotiation or a fixed one. However, Khelgar is neither cruel nor unconcerned with the sanctity of life and has, buried deep beneath his thirst for thrills and adventure, a sstrong sense of justice. While Khelgar is more than eager to jump into a fight, he wants to be sure that the fight doesn't dirty his name and is often thrilled at the opportunity to act on others' behalf and distrusts selfish tendencies by others to fight only for the sake of profit or self advancement. With enough pushing, it might even be possible to transform this altruistic side of Khelgar into a crusader's heart, filled with the desire to do good whenever possible rather than simply whenever it is convenient.

However, Khelgar is not without his dark side. Khelgar is often blind, for instance, to the way his actions impact others and his ambitious drive can manifest itself as selfishness when he ignores the harm his pursuits for glory bring on others. Likewise, Khelgar harbors deep prejudices of other races, such as elves or, more particularly, tieflings, who he views as backstabbing thieves.

Biography
It is unclear where Khelgar Ironfist was born, though his clan's ancestral home long ago was the Ironfist Stronghold deep within the Sword Mountains. A skilled fighter from an early age, Khelgar sought adventure and glory, much like the other dwarves of the Thunder Blessing generation, which Khelgar is likely a member of. However, Khelgar's pursuit of glory put him at odds with the rest of the Ironfist clan and the dwarf eventually left his clan, somewhat in disgrace though he did not view it as such. The departure was a bitter one and an affront that the rest of the Ironfists would not quickly forget, though Khelgar would soon put it out of his mind.

Early Adventuring Career
Khelgar then became an adventurer, touring the roads of the Sword Coast. Eager to further his skills and earn honor in battle, Khelgar often deliberately provoked fights between himself and other patrons in taverns or when insulted was quick to strike back with his fists. These fights were rarely dangerous, but earned Khelgar more than his share of scars and bruises.

Khelgar eventually found his purpose in life in one such bar fight. Severely drunk and "insulted" at a group of robed humans' water drinking, Khelgar insulted the patrons, hoping to stir up a fight. When they refused his challenge, Khelgar was enraged and attacked them himself, smashing a chair over one's head, whereupon he was severely beaten and defeated by the "skinny robed humans" who, Khelgar later discovered, were a band of monks devoted to Tyr. Awed by their battle prowess, Khelgar decided to leave his clan and travel to Neverwinter in hopes of training at the city's temple of Tyr in order to become a monk himself.

It was shortly after Khelgar set out upon this quest that he met the Kalach-Cha while in the midst of yet another tavern brawl, though this one, outside the Weeping Willow inn deep within the Mere of Dead Men, more deadly than most due to his attackers' use of weapons rather than fists. When the young adventurer came to Khelgar's aid, the two decided to form a partnership, since both were headed towards Neverwinter.

The Shadow War
Once at the temple, Khelgar was told that he had to overcome three trials before Tyr's monks would train him. The "Trial of the Even-handed" taught Khelgar to overcome his prejudices, the "Trial of the Maimed" helped heal the rift created between him and his Clan when Khelgar left to become a monk after he found the Gauntlets of Ironfist and reclaimed the lost clanhold from bugbears. The "Trial of Justice" made Khelgar realise that there is more to fighting than just doing it for fighting's sake when his Harbourman friend is falsely accused of slaughtering the inhabitants of Ember. Upon passing these trials, Khelgar was accepted for training and became a successful monk.

He went on to recover the Belt of Ironfist which enabled him to wield the Hammer of Ironfist, symbol of the ruler of Clan Ironfist which in turn, persuaded his clan-mates to join in the defense of the siege of Crossroad Keep.

Khelgar survived the collapsing of the Vale of Shadows and pursued the gargoyles that had captured his Harbourman friend but could not follow them into the Plane of Shadow.

Stewardship of Crossroad Keep
He returned from the Mere emotionally shaken, and demanded that Lord Nasher send out search parties to find his missing friend, but so many of Neverwinter's men had been lost in the Shadow War that no one could be spared. Instead, Nasher asked Khelgar to take his friend's place as the Knight Captain of Crossroad Keep. Khelgar refused the title, stating that there was only one Knight Captain, but grudgingly accepted the post of steward and a temporary position as one of the Neverwinter Nine until his friend returned. Unfortunately, the Sword Coast had become a lawless place in the wake of the war. Monsters and bandits roamed the countryside, the military forces of the area were severely depleted and the economy was in a sad state of affairs. Crossroad Keep was experiencing an exodus of people due to the lack of money-making opportunities and the traders who had generously offered to help the Keep had mysteriously disappeared. Luckily, more traders suddenly appeared from Samarach and took over the trading post, quickly turning the economy of the area around. The troubles were not over for Khelgar though. Not only were remnants of the King of Shadows' army still harrying the Sword Coast, but a quartet of bards who sang and danced for people in the courtyard managed to steal the Gauntlets of Ironfist from the Keep.

After the events of Mask of the Betrayer though, the pair were reunited, though Khelgar lamented missing out on adventuring in Rashemen.

Appearances

 * Neverwinter Nights 2
 * Neverwinter Nights 2: Mask of the Betrayer (mentioned only)
 * Neverwinter Nights 2: Storm of Zehir