Myrmeen Lhal

Myrmeen Lhal was the Lady Lord of the Cormyrean city of Arabel, a skilled ranger, and revered member of the Moonstars that lived during the 14 century DR.

Description
She was a tall and beautiful woman that had long, elegant brunette hair and deep blue eyes that were highlighted with gold. Her face also boasted full lips and very well-defined cheekbones. She maintained a youthful appearance and statuesque figure well into her forties. Her body was covered in old scars, most notably a large number of whip scars on her back.

Myrmeen lost her left arm in battle while fighting in the Goblin War, but later had a replacement made by magical means.

Personality
For many years, the young Myrmeen dedicated her life to the pursuit of love to make up for the lack of it that her life had held for her thus far.

Myrmeen was fair-minded as a ruler and forthright in all aspects of her life, though in both she had something of a short temper. Myrmeen expected nothing less than complete honesty from her subordinates and every other resident of Arabel.

In her mid-thirties, after she adopted her daughter, she started working on herself, studying philosophy, better managing her temper and becoming more merciful and less aggressive.

Abilities
Thanks to her years adventuring across the Realms, Myrmeen was a skilled combatant that fought with a ferocity found in most demons.

She was also ambidextrous, and was known on occasion to wield and fire a crossbow simultaneously in each hand.

Possessions
During her tenure as ruler of Arabel, Myrmeen carried with her a +5 longsword of sharpness, and wore both her Harper pin as well as a magical amulet that allowed another person to assume her appearance and voice.

At court, she was rarely seen without a silver headdress, made into the shape of a phoenix. She also typically wore a set of ceremonial armor made of a steel mesh, and studded with red gemstones.

An appreciator of fine art, Myrmeen acquired the sculpture entitled The Descent of the Shadow Army carved by the stone giant artist Aris.

Relationships
Myrmeen was married twice in her life, first to a man named Dak in Calimshan, and later to Haverstrom Lhal, cousin to King Azoun IV of Cormyr. She had three children: The daughter she had with Dak, who had no idea of her heritage; Krystin, her adopted Calishite daughter; and Ganrahast, a son she conceived with Vangerdahast, known at first as Ganrion to hide his father's identity. Krystin had her own daughter as well&mdash;Nalara&mdash;with whom Myrmeen was very close.

The Lady Lord was served by Evon Stralana, Arabel's minister of defense.

Her former traveling companion Elyn remained a good friend throughout her years as a ruler, often aiding her when she continued embarking on adventurers incognito.

History
Myrmeen was born in a poor section of Calimport. At the age of six her mother lost a child during a storm, claiming a group called the Night Parade had taken the baby's spirit to a better place. Despite her mother's words she was plagued by nightmares throughout her childhood.

She married a man named Dak at the age of twenty and they were to have a baby together. On the night of the birth there was another bad storm and Myrmeen lost consciousness. When she awoke, Dak said the baby was "gone", implying that it was stillborn. A year later, they divorced.

Myrmeen left Calimshan and became an adventuring Harper, traveling all over Faerûn, including the elven isle of Evermeet. Myrmeen eventually married Haverstrom Lhal and they a joyful life together, much happier than she ever was with Dak. Unfortunately Haverstrom died in an ambush not long after they wed.

King Azoun IV became impressed with her leadership qualities and made her commander of the garrison of Arabel and eventually ruler of the whole city, circa the. It was an anarchic place, having only recently been ruled by Gondegal, the Usurper King. She restored order to the city and made it a much more prosperous place by organizing the trade routes between Cormyr and the Moonsea and creating a safe haven for caravans. She created jobs and built houses for the poor, earning her the love of the people.

Knightsbridge Conspiracy
Some time before the Time of Troubles, Myrmeen Lhal hired on the pair of outsider mercenaries, Cyric and Kelemvor Lyonsbane, along with the Sunite cleric Adon, to root out a traitor to the Cormyrean crown in Arabel, one that threatened to destabilize the kingdom's economy. While the men were able to identify one Ronglath Knightsbridge of Zhentil Keep, their actions allowed him to leave the city, implicating them as traitors. This plot led to a wave of fear that washed over her city in what came to be known as the as the "Knightsbridge Conspiracy."

She later hired the adventuring group known as the Company of Dawn to hunt down the three mercenaries after they managed to pass through Arabel without detection.

The Night Parade
One day, Myrmeen's ex-husband Dak appeared in Arabel and was arrested for murder. When Myrmeen appeared as the one who would judge him for his crime, e revealed that their baby had not died; he had sold her to someone. He had hoped that she would grant him mercy in exchange for this news, but she killed him on the spot in anger and organized a group of Harpers to find her daughter. They discovered that the Night Parade were the cause of Myrmeen's nightmares. Around six thousand monsters lived with barely any secrecy in Calimport thanks to one member with incredible hypnotic powers. After coming close to death several times, she found a girl who she believed to be her daughter, and together with one of the monsters (who turned out to be her "stillborn" sister) they managed to kill the hypnotic member of the Parade. Once it was dead, the citizens of Calimport rioted, eliminating the majority of the creatures in the city.

Myrmeen managed to find her real daughter but upon discovering the wonderful life she led, she decided that she would not let her know her heritage and instead adopted the girl she had previously thought was her daughter, Krystin.

Returning to Cormyr
The Goblin War that broke out in the, changed Myrmeen's new, happy life with her daughter. It quickly became apparent that Arabel could not be held and the city's populace was magically transported to Suzail. Arabel became a goblin city for a time but Myrmeen vowed she would retake it.

Myrmeen formed an army of rangers, scouts and mercenaries and forced the monsters out of Arabel. Unfortunately the humanoids fled into the forests where they became much more difficult to dislodge.

In Mirtul of the, Myrmeen hosted an informal meeting at her palace in Arabel between Princess Alusair and Rivalen Tanthul of Thultanthar. The Steel Regent and representative of the Shadovar discussed the potential arrest and incarceration of the fugitives of Thultanthar, Galaeron Nihmedu and Aris of Thousand Faces. Myrmeen and her guardsmen joined Princess Alusair as they sprung a trap for Rivalen and the Shadovar, when the latter group attempted to abduct the two wanted "criminals".

She defected from the Harpers to become one of the leading members of Khelben Arunsun's Moonstars but otherwise ruled Arabel with the same benevolence that earned her her popularity in the first place.

Retirement
Around the, about seven years after she had her son, Myrmeen decided to move her household to Suzail to be closer to Krystin and her granddaughter. She did so at first without leave from the Crown, placing her herald Westar in charge of Arabel until a replacement lord could be found. While she would not take official action without permission, the Lady Lord wished to truly retire from the life of rule.

Appearances

 * Novels
 * Shadowdale • A Virtue by Reflection •The Night Parade • The Siege
 * Tymora's Luck
 * Tymora's Luck