Neill Family/Ender

Ender; son of Erik

Current Age: 46
Class: Hero
Weapon of Choice: Executioner's Axe and a long sword.
Current Title: Duke of Makar, Sponsor of the Makarian Horde, Ring Giver of The Warriors of Valhalla, Hofseggia of the Hörgr of Makar
Titles Held: Executioner, Duke of Makar, Duke of Icegate, Marshal of Icegate's Armies, Founder of The Warriors of Valhalla, Hofseggia of the Hörgr of Makar, Marshal of the Makarian Horde, Ring Giver and Founder of the Makarian Horde
Religion: Norse Pantheon, primarily Odin and Tyr

Ender, eldest son to Erik and Finna O'Neil, was the first of the O'Neils to emerge from the forest after generations of isolation. Carrying his own long sword (which he made with his younger brother Weland) and bow, he emerged from the forest in animal skins, his long beard hiding the grin that was spreading across his face. He made his way to the center of the City of Makar where he declared his allegiance to the leader of the Makarians and was instantly hurled into service. Taking a group of archers he deemed worthy of his command he made his way to the great city of Icegate (Which was at the time its own Barony) and participated in the final battle and take over.

For a time he served under the viking dictator Hid Coi and traveled on countless raids, finding that he enjoyed the raiding and pillaging much more than the hunting he had been told would be his future when he lived in the forest. He saw many lands and carried the gold of several empires in his bag as the years passed. Southasland, Norland, Cagilan Empire, Minas Ithil, Tara, Ash Sea Islands.... he burned and drank his way through the whole of Atamara following his viking comrades wherever they would go. It was during this time that he grew to admire the ruthless viking executioner Herr Krankspeiler, who would play a small role in shaping his future. He also met his scribe and best friend, Leif, during this time. During a final raid in Norland the viking leader Hid Coi, co-founder of Horseless jousting, (Vikings loathe horses other than as a food source), retired to the mountains and Edda, then the general, came into power.

After many raids he found himself ready to advance and his chance came. Herr Krankspeiler resigned from his post and disappeared into the forest leaving the position open. Eager to take up the mantle of Executioner Ender immediately sent a message to Edda and was soon appointed to the post. In time he grew to be ruthless and cruel to any enemy he found in his dungeons. Torture of any sort was commonplace and as he learned newer, more terrible methods his reputation grew and the people of Icegate began to ignore the screams that were often heard coming from the dungeons. It is said that tales of his executions are still standard drinking tales in the taverns around the Barony.

Raiding was still commonplace in this time and many criminals were executed in Icegate under his command. Many o' tale say that no matter how many he killed, no matter how many faced execution beneath his axe (A self-constructed, extremely over sized blade that he also used in battle), he never cleaned the blood from the blade as a reminder to all those who would dare face him of the countless lives he'd taken. He was later appointed Duke of Makar and held the title until a multi-realm invasion took it over for Norland (then a despised enemy).

Time passed, a new ruler named Sordnaz was elected, and a war with Eston found Ender in an Estonian prison. Upon escaping he found that he had been temporarily replaced by the viking Harod. He saw Harod's enthusiasm, which was all too familiar to him, and decided it was time he resigned and let a younger Viking take take the mantle. He did, however, decide to clean out his office and hold onto his most prized tools including a rare book of tortures written by Herr Krankspieler himself.

It was then that he was appointed the Duke of Icegate and made it his permanant home since Makar had been taken from the Barony. He also married a women from the southern regions of Atamara named Valencia (though it is rumored that she is but one of many of Ender's women). Eventually he joined the Guild of the Templars and ordered a guildhouse to be built in Icegate. Though at first he was comfortable and pleased with his position he began to undergo a radical change in attitude over time. Eventually, he spent most of his days tending to his beloved city, Icegate, and trying his best to get into any battle, fight, brawl, or beating he could. Those close to him began to fear he may be growing even more reckless than he was as a youth. They believed that as he grew old, Ender detested the idea of passing onto to Valhalla peacefully.

In hopes of pursuing his dream of dying a warrior's death Ender founded a viking guild in Icegate called 'The Warriors of Valhalla'. He declared that he would no longer lord over Icegate, but instead pursue a life devoted to battle. His wife was crushed upon hearing the news and tried desperatly to persuade him away from his thoughts. Ender was a viking, however, and war was in his blood.

Months later when Makar was finally reunited with the Barony as a reward for the Barony's efforts in the war with Eston (then at an end), Ender made his way to Makar for the first time in years and visited his family home. He was shocked to see that the gold he and Weland had been sending home over the years had been used to rebuild a brand new, larger mansion for the O'Neils. As he told of his exploits to his family he found out that his grandfather, Patriarch of the O'Neils, was on his deathbed and he was in line to take his place when the time came.

As age began to creep up on Ender, however, he grew more concerned that he would not die in battle. Eager to find his death heroically he has stopped sending messages home (Though his wife still does) and refused to acknowledge that his grandfather may be dieing saying that he was "as strong as any yeti and with enough energy to fight a hundred young vikings."

His current position as Duke of Makar came to surprise one morning when Ender awoke from a drunken stupor. Why would he ever accept such a position? It was death in battle he wanted not to sit behind a desk once again. He accepted it however and now had to stick to it. Aside from holding brutal court hearings when in Makar he lets the cities staff tend to most of the cities duties while he seeks out conflict.

One of his more prominent actions as Duke of Makar was the founding of the Makarian Horde, a division of the Barony of Makar's army that would serve alongside Icegate's Viking Horde.

Later in his life, during a looting campaign in Minas Ithil, Ender took the wrong road when moving his unit of Mystic Monks out of a region due to heavy drinking that had been occurring throughout the day. He found himself in the region of Dunstroke, alone, and with plenty of gold carrying peasants. He immediately set out to steal all he could and the looting went well into the night when he fell asleep surrounded by women and empty bottles of southern wine and mead. He awoke the next morning to find a small division of the Minas Ithil army waiting for him. Immediately grabbing his axe, he and his men charged into battle and were subsequently slaughtered, all for one man who would die from terrible wounds later and Ender himself. Disappointed that they couldn't even kill him when he was that outnumbered he began to insult their nobles. One foolish man threw weapons at him and called him a coward, but it was a young woman who challenged him to a duel to the death.

Shocked at this girl's bravery he accepted and prepared for the fight by drinking heavily. They met the next morning and the duel began. They traded blows one after another and despite Ender's experience his age slowed him and the girl, Sukira, stabbed him in what should have been a fatal blow. The healers carried him off to the tents where he spent days unconscious and dying. When finally they thought he wouldn't last the night they returned the next morning to find him sitting up in his bed complaining loudly for a flagon of mead and "the head of the idiot who put me in this bed." Healed enough by his own judgement he began packing his gear to head to the Barony, now instilled with a newfound respect for this southern girl and her sharp blade. She would be one of the few non-vikings in Ender's life that he would ever respect greatly and even consider to be an equal.

Don't bother mentioning honor or nobility to me. If you carry crazy ideas like that onto the battlefield then you'd better be expecting defeat and death. War is no place for either. -Ender
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Death Beserkers

Towards the end of his life Ender decided that he tired of waiting for death to catch up with him. If death couldn't find him, he would find it. One cold day in Icegate Ender entered the nearest recruitment center and held a series of tests. The test included tests of courage, strength, drinking, and eating. None of the men could best him in these contests but ten of those men held on until the end, refusing to give up. He then recruited the ten men into his unit under the circumstances that they be ready to seek out death at all costs.

Ender decided that he and his Beserkers would always be the first to confront the enemy on the battlefield and would fight until every last one of the enemy were dead or they were dead. Occasionally men from towns that the Beserkers pass through will plead to join the unit they have heard so much about in heroic tales. Ender puts them through the same tests and if they succeed they can join, but not as full beserkers. They will always charge behind the true Ten and are usually made to do to more mundane tasks that a unit requires done. After all, only a Viking can be a true Beserker.

As time passed the number of peasants who wished to fight alongside Ender and the Beserkers grew until Ender found himself being followed onto the battlefield by what can only be described as a horde of peasants barely holding onto the edge of their sanity and screaming praise to the gods.

---

The Drunken Viking Song

While imprisoned in an Estonian prison and drunk off of the strange prison ale (An ale that can sometimes be found if an enterprising viking is in a cell nearby you), Ender started singing what he eventually named 'The Drunken Viking Song'. One should understand that Ender is not exactly the best songwriter or singer, he was drunk to the point of hallucinating (He usually sees large rats that try to play cards with him), and there is a large variety of tunes that have been used for these words. It goes like this:

Oh the day has come
You'd better run
The Vikings are comin' to town

We drink lots of mead
So shove all that tea
And prepare to be looted into the ground

We burn
We rape
We steal anythin' golden

We destroy
We murder
We steal anythin' golden

The Vikings are comin' to town!

Oh the end is nigh
You'd better hide
The Vikings are coming to town!

We;ll eat all your food
So dont put us in a bad mood
Or we'll burn your house into the ground

We burn
We rape
We steal anythin' golden

We destroy
We murder
We steal anythin' GOOOLLLDDEENN!!

THE VIKINGS ARE COMIN TO TOWN!
OH! THE VIKINGS ARE COMIN TO TOWN!