The Lore of Archmagus Merlon of the Wood

Whatever the original cause for concern, Merlon has long forgotten. No, he is not a collector of children's eyeballs, nor does he carry a pouch of white sand at his waist to dash upon the sleepless or unsuspecting. Were these rumours ever true, he carries no record with him.

He long ago learned to foster the wood-ear and the morels of the Wood, and is said to be a fierce and pitiless defender of his foraging grounds. Of his vulpine companion little is known, but the red rustle in the brush constitutes a warning: for the trespasser to hurry on their way. To ignore is to forfeit safe passage through the forest, though you will not come to know the nature of your demise, nor your inscrutable assailant.

Predictably, the Hedge Wizards will offer an alternate account: of a mischievous, diminutive figure who transforms the unfortunate traveler into a badger or raccoon for his own great merriment, to have them awake days later hidden in a rotten log, smeared in dung.

Of the title "Archmagus," Merlon would have little to offer in explanation. He clearly possesses formidable powers of enchantment and illusion, but their origin is – as with so many things of this realm – forgotten.

Entered by: 0x6519…f34a and preserved on chain (see transaction)