Today, let’s make Brughor Axe-Biter more than just an orc with extra hit points. Let’s transform him into a mini-boss as memorable as his name!

What’s in a name: Once a rank and file warrior of the Kingdom of Many-Arrows, Brughor Axe-Biter is named for a horrific, disfiguring wound taken during the War of the Silver Marches, in which a Dwarven axe cleaved the orc’s face from cheek to cheek, but failed to kill him. As renown for his ferocity grew among the members of his clan, Brughor came to be known simply as “The Axe-Biter.”

The orcs of Wyvern Tor: The Axe-Biter and his charges are remnants of the Many-Arrows hoarde destroyed at the battle for Dark Arrow Keep in 1485 DR; a battle in which the orc warlord Hartusk was slain by Bruenor Battlehammer in single combat, scattering the orc host, and putting an end to the War of the Silver Marches. Embittered by defeat, the Axe-Biter chose to leave his homeland and keep to the “old ways” of his people, rather than returning to a Kingdom of Many Arrows led by the moderate Prince Lorgru.

Adherent of the “old ways”: The Axe-Biter continues to venerate the slain warlord Hartusk for adhering to the “old ways” of perpetual warfare and reaving against neighboring nations. He displays an open contempt for those among his tribe who favors peace with humans and a desire to build an orc civilization that rivals other Faerûn races; concepts he views with iron certainty as an affront to the orc gods.

Battle-Hardened: A veteran of the Battle of the Cold Vale, the siege of Nesmé, the Battle of the Redrun Ford, and the Battle of Dark Arrow Keep, The Axe-Biter is a fearless and ferocious warrior who fights to the death. He has bore witness to the victories and defeats of those he followed into battle and, based on those experiences, has developed a strategic mind in the years since.

Playing The Axe-Biter: Described in the adventure as “a savage brute who is more interested in murdering and looting than scouting,” Brughor’s brutality should precede him. Characters traveling to Conyberry, Shrine of Savras, Old Owl Well, and Wyvern Tor might come upon heads posted on wooden stakes, humanoid bones scattered among the remnants of campfires with the victim’s half-butchered carcass hanging from a nearby tree, corpses with their limbs torn clear off (the handy work of Gog the ogre), homesteads burned to the ground with all of their residents and livestock slaughtered, and the remains of those unfortunate enough to give the Axe-Biter and his comrades sport until they were put to some cruel end out in the lonely wilderness.

The characters aren’t the only witnesses to these atrocities. Homesteaders, miners, travelers, and itinerant clergy are all on edge, sharing cautionary tales of what they have witnessed firsthand. By the time the characters get to Wyvern Tor, they should want to put an end to this merciless and murderous villain. And when they do, their victory is worthy of a song for those living along the Triboar Trail.

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