General Ketheric Thorm was a Chosen of Myrkul and a leader of the Cult of the Absolute who led an army of undead and monstrous creatures from Moonrise Towers in the Western Heartlands during the late 15th century DR. He played a significant role in the Absolute Crisis that plagued the Sword Coast during that time.[1]
Description
Like most half-elves, Ketheric still showed signs of aging in his latter years. He had long gray hair that he wore over a circlet bearing the symbol of the Absolute.[1]
Personality
Ketheric was a devoted family man in his mortal life. After losing them, he became utterly distraught and lost all semblance of his former self. His despair drove him to desperation, and in turn obsession. In his final years he became wholly devoted to getting back his family, keeping them safe, even if it was against their will.[1]
Activities
Before his conversion to the Church of Myrkul, Ketheric was former Selûnite and later a worshipper of the goddess Shar.[1]
Relationships
Ketheric had a wife named Melodia and a daughter named Isobel, whom he loved more than anything else in life. Isobel challenged her father, but brought him such joy he could never despair despite the loss he suffered. In time, Isobel fell in love with Aylin, a divine daughter of the Moonmaiden Selûne. Unfortunately, both Ketheric's wife and Isobel died, the latter death especially bringing Ketheric tremendous grief that drove him to pledge himself to Shar for erasing his sorrow first, then Myrkul in exchange for her resurrection.[1]
Three other individuals with the surname Thorm were encountered by adventurers within the shadow-cursed lands surrounding Reithwin: Malus Thorm, Ketheric's physician uncle; Gerringothe Thorm, the toll collector; and Thisobald Thorm, the brewer who states that he is Ketheric Thorm's son. As a product of the shadow curse, each of them had become horrifically twisted in some way and driven to madness.[1]
The necromancer Balthazar served as the general's trusted advisor and ally in all matters in service to Myrkul.[1]
Abilities
In his time in service to the Absolute, Ketheric was granted invulnerability by profane magic that involved binding a celestial being within a 'soulcage' in the Shadowfell, accessible from a portal within the Gauntlet of Shar. The power of the celestial being was siphoned away by necromantic magic, and bestowed Ketheric everlasting life and immortal strength. Ketheric was able to survive injuries that would instantly kill a mortal, such as an arrow through the eye or an axe through the chest, and heal his wounds nearly instantly. However, the trapped celestial was in fact the aasimar Dame Aylin, Isobel Thorm's one true love. Isobel hated her father for imprisoning Aylin, and for manipulating her in such a twisted manner.[1]
Possessions
Ketheric Thorm wore a suit of plate armor known as the Reaper's Embrace, and wielded a unique warhammer and shield.[1]
He was also in possession of one of the three netherstones, powerful Netherese artifacts associated with the once-god Karsus.
History
A bust depicting a younger Ketheric, in the possession of his daughter Isobel within Last Light Inn.
In his first life, Ketheric Thorm was a worshiper of Selûne, his family having been faithful servants of the Moonmaiden for generations. His family lived in Moonrise Towers, the ancestral Thorm holding, as well as the surrounding town of Reithwin. Ketheric's wife Melodia died while still young, and although he grieved, he continued to care for his daughter Isobel. Unfortunately, Isobel also died young, leading Ketheric to grieve her death deeply. To take away his sorrow, Ketheric turned to Shar, the Lady of Loss. He eventually became Shar's chosen.[1]
Sometime before the 1373 DR,[note 1][2] Ketheric raised an army of Dark Justiciars beneath the Thorm family mausoleum. He and his followers started to conquer the lands surrounding Moonrise Towers in Shar's name. Eventually, Ketheric and his army were driven back by an allied force of Harpers commanded by Khelben "Blackstaff" Arunsun, and druids of the Emerald Grove. Notable among those who opposed him were the hero Jaheira and the Master Druid Halsin. A battle raged outside of the Moonrise, and the losses on both sides were massive. Unwilling to see further bloodshed, Khelben Arunsun, on behalf of the High Harper Council and its allies, sent a letter of surrender to the warlord. It was met with refusal and slaughter, yet the alliance defeated General Thorm and his Dark Justiciars. However, the warlord conjured a deadly Sharran curse before drawing the last breath of his first life. He was buried in the Thorm family mausoleum by Jaheira and Harper survivors. Soon after, the shadow curse spilled out of the mausoleum and consumed the land for over a century afterward.[1]
Some time during or before the Year of Three Ships Sailing, 1492 DR, the god Myrkul appeared before Ketheric and promised him that which he desired most: Isobel returned to life once again. Ketheric sacrificed his body and soul to Myrkul in exchange for that boon. Ketheric's advisor Balthazar also returned and used a soulcage ritual to bind Aylin's immortal soul to Ketheric, which made him immortal as well. Isobel hated what her father had become, and denounced everything he had done to bring her back.[1]
He joined Lord Enver Gortash and Orin the Red, in their plot to cultivate the cult of the Absolute and seize the Sword Coast for their own. Thorm would raise an army of undead at Moonrise Towers and march on Baldur's Gate, while the other chosen of the Dead Three would carry out their own roles.[1]
He would later be defeated within a mind flayer colony beneath Moonrise Towers by a group of adventurers who had been infected with the cult's altered mind flayer tadpoles, but who were granted resistance by a mysterious artifact. Mortally wounded, he called upon Myrkul to aid him, and allowed himself to fall into a pool of brine. He reemerged transformed into the Apostle of Myrkul, the Lord of Bones' avatar, and fought the adventurers again before being defeated a final time.[1]
Appendix
Notes
- ↑ In Baldur's Gate III, the timeline of Ketheric Thorm's story and Ketheric Thorm's war is unclear; however, it can be narrowed down through other canon sources. 986 DR is stated (Reithwin Necrology) as the year when a battle took place between Dark Justiciars and druids & Selûnites. The note only mentions Malus Thorm, not Ketheric. This suggests that the date could be an editorial oversight or simply mean that Reithwin had a cult of Shar active as early as 986 DR with Malus Thorm, an elf, as one of its members. The presence of the cult and a family member being a part of it would help explain Ketheric's quick fall from grace. Ketheric's family's deaths and his subsequent conversion to Shar would have taken place sometime around 1367 DR, as the Moonrise Towers was used by the High Heralds and Naernythra Thaloudyn as late as that year. With the High Heralds present, Ketheric's enforcement of Sharran religion and inquisition would not be possible, so this must happen after the Heralds leave; presumably, Ketheric ordered them out first. The destruction of Moonhaven is dated to 1371 DR (or possibly the following year)—this means Ketheric's fall and leading an army took place between these two dates. Lastly, Ketheric Thorm's war and its conclusion involved Khelben Arunsun, meaning the war took place before 1374 DR (the date of Khelben's death in Blackstaff (novel)). Notably, Khelben left the Harpers in 1370 DR, but his presence could be explained by the war's severity, forcing his involvement. All of these points indicate that Ketheric Thorm's war, his death, and the creation of the shadow-cursed lands took place circa 1372-1373 DR.
Appearances
Video Games
Gallery
External links
Disclaimer: The views expressed in the following links do not necessarily represent the views of the editors of this wiki, nor does any lore presented necessarily adhere to established canon.
Ketheric Thorm article at the Baldur's Gate 3 Community Wiki, a community wiki for Baldur's Gate 3.
References
- ↑ 1.00 1.01 1.02 1.03 1.04 1.05 1.06 1.07 1.08 1.09 1.10 1.11 1.12 1.13 1.14 1.15 1.16 1.17 1.18 Larian Studios (October 2020). Designed by Swen Vincke, et al. Baldur's Gate III. Larian Studios.
- ↑ Brian R. James, Ed Greenwood (September 2007). The Grand History of the Realms. Edited by Kim Mohan, Penny Williams. (Wizards of the Coast), p. 157. ISBN 978-0-7869-4731-7.