Sahl Endeberg

Sahl Endeberg is the most beloved and celebrated character in Kupopolis history.

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Sahl Endeberg

Biological
Full name:	Sahl Abraham Scenograf Endeberg
Born:	April 1, 6 WB (otherwise known across the Web as Sahl Endeberg Day)
Birthplace:	Baron, Crystal Dimension
Sex:	Male
Race:	Human
Hair:	Blond, graying
Eyes:	Green
Height:	6'5"
Weight:	215
Personal
Marital Status:	Beloved by so many of the ladies
Family/Relationships:	{{{family}}}
Religion:	Tahranism
Title:	Lt. Colonel in the Grand Army (honorably discharged), Chief of the Kupopolis City Police Department (retired)
Nicknames:	The Beloved Sahl Endeberg, The Chief
Hobbies:	Entertaining small doe-eyed children, Escorting old ladies across busy streets, Going on fantastic adventures, Saving the Web of Worlds from dire peril, Being so beloved by everyone, Military history and chess (obligatory)
Known skills:	Dragoon Jumping, Spear-fighting, Being Beloved, White Magic
Favorite color:	Red -- the color of belovement
Inspiration:	Let's be honest: no one inspires Sahl Endeberg like Sahl Endeberg.
Motto:	Learning to belove yourself is the greatest belove of all!

History

(note: much of this lore was established into Kupopolis canon during the official side-story "The Beloved Legend of Sahl Endeberg")

The Youngest Dragoon Ever

Sahl Endeberg began his beloved career sometime during the thick of the Great War. At the age of 5 and three-quarters, he became the youngest ever squired to the Order of Dragoons in the history of the Kingdom of Baron. Subsequently, he completed all of the requisite Dragoon training in but a single year, thus becoming (at the tender age of 6 and three-quarters) the youngest full Dragoon ever in the history of the Web of Worlds. As the years passed, the forces of Darkness slowly spread, and Sahl Endeberg knew that his nation would need him fighting. To that end, Sahl Endeberg embarked on many epic quests to prepare to one day face the armies of the Dark Gods.

How Sahl Endeberg Slew Pazuzu

On one of his quests, Sahl Endeberg hunted, fought and defeated the wicked Wind Lord Pazuzu. From Pazuzu's corpse, Sahl Endeberg removed the beak, which he took to a weaponsmith, and from it was forged the blade of Sahl Endeberg's enchanted wind-elemental spear, Furacao.

The tale of his victory over Pazuzu is so celebrated and beloved that it is commonly one of the first stories told to young children; in fact, Sahl Endeberg's classic autobiographical children's book, "How Sahl Endeberg Slew Pazuzu," has consistently been on every best seller list since it was published.

How Sahl Endeberg Slew Fiz'Gan'Ra And Became a Holy Dragoon

Sahl Endeberg also sought to climb Mount Ordeals, and be blessed by the Light of Tahran with the powers of a Holy Dragoon, but on his way he was abducted by the Eldrakyn sorcerer Fiz'Gan'Ra aboard his lunar ship Devourer. Fiz'Gan'Ra was gathering sacrifices to power a ritual that would resurrect the Dark Lunarian God Zeromus, but Sahl Endeberg was able to foil that plot. In his escape from captivity, Sahl Endeberg caused the Devourer to crash in the Silveran islands.

On surviving the crash, Sahl Endeberg was able to complete his pilgrimmage to Mount Ordeals, make his way back to Silvera, kill Fiz'Gan'Ra and his minions (who were attempting to power their ritual with the Silverans themselves), and steal an Eldrakyn escape pod, which he used to fly to Mysidia in time for an early supper -- never suspecting that, for him, the adventure was not quite over yet...

How Sahl Endeberg Rescued Sage Dean, Destroyed the Cult of Milon, And Escaped Capture by the Enemy at the Fall of Mysidia

When Sahl Endeberg arrived in Mysidia, he expected he would be able to travel home to Baron by way of the Serpent Road. Instead what Sahl Endeberg found was that the Elder of Mysidia, Sage Korinne, had recently died (under suspicious circumstances...). Her elected replacement was a young sage named Dean, who had yet to return from his pilgrimmage to Mount Ordeals to learn the magic of Meteo (which was the traditional rite of passage for a new Elder). This was relevant to Sahl Endeberg because one of Sage Korinne's final acts was to seal the Serpent Road to keep the forces of Darkness from accessing a backdoor into Baron. With Korinne dead, only Sage Dean could re-open it.

Now, Sahl Endeberg had actually met Sage Dean during his own climb up Mount Ordeals. Dean had assisted Sahl Endeberg in thwarting the perils that lay along the path to Mount Ordeals' summit. And, like all who meet Sahl Endeberg, Sage Dean came to belove him (and the feeling was mostly mutual). Sahl Endeberg found it curious that, in the time it took him to leave Mount Ordeals, return to Silvera, slay Fiz'Gan'Ra and be celebrated by the grateful Silverans, Dean had not yet returned home.

After some investigation, Sahl Endeberg would learn that something was rotten in the magocracy of Mysidia. The city-state, an important center for magical study in the Crystal Dimension, had been infiltrated by Thanatos-worshipping Gingrim, who had helped to establish a cult of wizards practicing black necromancy, most foul of all magics. This cult, the Cult of Milon, was supposedly headed by a former rising star within Mysidia, a wizard named Scerazar, who might have been considered a candidtate for Elder if Sage Dean hadn't exposed his connections to the necromancers.

Since necromancers are evil, Sahl Endeberg reasoned they probably abducted Sage Dean. With help from prominent residents of Mysidia (like Tassadar Zakarum), Sahl Endeberg tracked the cult to their cavernous lair, where he slew many, many necromancers. It was very violent. Almost needlessly so. I mean Jesus, Sahl.

Unfortunately, Sahl Endeberg was not able to capture (or brutally murder) Scerazar, for in the time it took Sahl Endeberg to learn of the Milonite conspiracy and find their hidden lair, the cult leader had acquired two powerful artifacts: the Hand and the Eye of Milon. With the aid of these artifacts, Scerazar escaped his confrontation with Sahl Endeberg. Worse: Sage Dean was not actually being held in the Cult's hideout.

Though the Cult was broken, Mysidia remained in danger, and Sage Dean remained missing. You see, the Cult had provided cover and intelligence for a force of Ticonderan soldiers, lead by the Viperese noble, Lady Katharine Jackobi. Jackobi's force had secretly made camp right on the Mysidian peninsula. Documents that Sahl Endeberg found while killing the cultists revealed that Scerazar had given Sage Dean to the Ticonderans -- likely in preparation for an invasion, after which they would attempt to force Dean to open the Serpent Road.

Heroically, Sahl Endeberg infiltrated the Ticonderan camp in the dead of night, rescued Dean, and brought him back to Mysidia. As a reward, Dean agreed to open the Serpent Road so that Sahl Endeberg could at long last return to his beloved homeland. BUT IT WAS A TRICK!!! Scerazar and Lady Jackobi knew that Sahl Endeberg would wish to return to his beloved Baron. They allowed Sage Dean to be rescued, secretly followed Dean and Sahl Endeberg back to Mysidia, and once Sage Dean had opened the portal, the Ticonderans attacked.

Sealing and unsealing the Serpent Road is not a simple affair, it turns out. One unsealed, there's a fairly unforgiving cooldown. It was within this window that the Ticonderans (with a handful of Milonite survivors) attacked, in overwhelming numbers that even great heroes like Sahl Endeberg and Tassadar Zakarum could not turn away. But Sahl Endeberg had an heroic plan: delay the Ticonderans, hold them at bay long enough for the populace of Mysidia to escape into the Serpent Road, while Sage Dean (from the Baronian side) began the ritual to re-seal the portal. The Mysidians did not immediately belove this plan, but they had little choice. So they decided to do it. And they did it.

Though Sahl Endeberg, for the first time in his life, found himself retreating from the enemy, he was able to save Sage Dean, and the noble Mysidians -- and in the process, he thwarted the Ticonderan efforts to sneak into the Kingdom of Baron by way of Mysidia's magical portal. Thus, this is one of the most beloved tales of Sahl Endeberg's adventures.

How Sahl Endeberg Escaped The Fall of Baron, and Became Beloved by the Light Gods

Mysidia would not be the last time Sahl Endeberg strategically (and heroically) escaped from the enemy during the Great War. He was there when the Ticonderan legions finally overcame the Kingdom of Baron's defenses. Bravely, Sahl Endeberg chose not to fight and die that day; instead, he opted to flee as part of the entourage of Doman diplomat, Lady Aurora Garamonde, ensuring that she safely escaped the siege.

Sahl Endeberg claims that the Light had given him a vision that Aurora's safety was vital to the defeat of the Dark Gods, and so together with Aurora's paramour, the paladin Jon Winterborne, they fought their way out of Baron and to safety.

Both Aurora and Jon came to belove Sahl Endeberg after this, which would be useful later.

How Sahl Endeberg joined the Grand Army

When the Grand Army was formed, Celiose Cole asked Sahl Endeberg if he wanted to join.

Sahl Endeberg said yes.

Sahl Endeberg's many campaigns with the Grand Army

Sahl Endeberg's initial assignment was with the force defending Camilison's Ticondera. In fact, Sahl Endeberg was one of the last GA personnel to leave Ticondera after the newly-installed Empress asked them to leave. So Sahl Endeberg did leave -- heroically.

He was then relocated to Trianable, attached to Torstensson's 2nd Army during the Dark Wrath siege, where he fought alongside such heroes as Alexander Sylinas and Zelda Goldmoon. Many of his exploits during this battle caused him to earn the belovement of the Hylia.

Once Trianable was secured, Sahl Endeberg demanded to be sent into another active theater, and so he was again reassigned to GA 3rd Army. He would remain with this force for the duration of the war, under the command of the specially-commissioned GA General Glenn of Guardia. (yes, that Glenn... just ask Celiose) 3rd Army participated in the campaigns which liberated much of the Dark Wrath-occupied Esper Dimension, including an assault on the mountain-encircled Cultists' Tower, where Sahl Endeberg personally fought both Kefka and his longtime nemesis, the necromancer Scerazar.

As a personal favor to Chrystalis (whose mortal avatar was Aurora Garamonde), Sahl Endeberg used his influence with Glenn to redirect the 3rd Army to participate in the liberation of Doma. It is largely agreed that without Sahl Endeberg's presence, the Dark Wrath forces entrenched in Doma might not have been dislodged without considerably more lives lost to the Grand Army and the Doman people. As a reward for his service, legend has it that Chrystalis offered Sahl Endeberg one wish. None are certain what he used this wish for...

Sahl Endeberg and the Transbaron Campaign

As part of GA 3rd Army, Sahl Endeberg took part in the Transbaron Campaign. Moving as part of the Eastern Front of the operation (comprised of GA and Winlanese troops), the 3rd Army pushed down through Damcyan and Mist, finally arriving in the Baronian Heartland. Sahl Endeberg confronted his nemesis, Scerazar, one final time, as Scerazar himself was part of Dorian's vanguard protecting this final Dark Wrath stronghold.

How Sahl Endeberg Became Beloved in the City of Kupopolis

After the war, Sahl Endeberg was honorably discharged from the Grand Army, as were many characters who were dragoons and fought during the Great War. Not one to sit idly by, as a war veteran, he applied to work for the Kupopolis City Police Department. Having heard of his heroism and great beloved adventures, the KCPD immediately hired him and made him their police Chief. He served as police chief for fifteen years, during which time he was beloved by the populace.

As Police Chief, Endeberg was one of the City's three most powerful political figures. His tenure as Chief marks the first time in his life that he's run afoul of some controversy, as critics (yes! Hard to believe, but the beloved Sahl Endeberg does have some critics!) have pointed out that his methods for securing order in Kupopolis were marked by brutality and shockingly authoritarian methods. His results, however, are the bedrock upon which his popularity is based: nearly all violent crime in Kupopolis during his time as Chief was restricted to the Demon and Dead Quarters -- the latter of which Endeberg attempted several times (unsuccessfully) to bring fully under Police control. As for the Demon Quarter, Endeberg was content to see it slip into a squallid, gang-ridden slum. So, Demon Quarter residents don't belove him as much as everyone else does.

Often, as Police Chief, Sahl Endeberg came to blows with Kubanez, the High Justice of Kupopolis' courts. Following Scerazar's death during the Great War, Kubanez became Sahl Endeberg's new nemesis, although their conflicts were limited to city politics and only rarely came to physical confrontation (they did have one epic boss fight in Kubanez's court room).

Sahl Endeberg Once Slew 12 Banelings and a Zevyn With a Broken Toothpick

As recounted in Sahl Endeberg's autobiography: The Beloved Autobiography of Sahl Endeberg. He did this during a hiatus from the KCPD, where he took a tour and decided to "find himself" in Aryth. All the great Web heroes were doing this at the time.

The Mayoral Elections, The Robotics Tournament, and Sahl Endeberg's Fatal Chromate Allergy

When the City decided it might try to elect a new mayor, Endeberg retired from the Kupopolis City Police Department and threw his hat into the ring as a candidate. He promised to extend his "Order by the Sword" policies into the Mayoral office and continue his own legacy of safe streets and an empowered police force.

In order to boost his electoral prospects, and capitalize even further on his Web-wide fame as a beloved hero, Sahl Endeberg decided to enter the second Robotics Tournament -- largely on the advice of his campaign advisor, PollBot 3000 (a robot that Sahl Endeberg built using supplies from one of the janitor's closets in KCPD Headquarters). Together with his staff, they built Sahl Endeberg's mecha for the tournament: PollBot 5000, a war machine that relied heavily on Sahl Endeberg's original design schematics for PollBot 3000.

Sadly, Sahl Endeberg would not make it to the finals of the Robotics Tournament. While engaged in robot-to-robot conflict with Rogue Squadron member Lia Bologantes, cockpit damage caused a Chromate leak, and Sahl Endeberg was exposed. "No!" he screamed, "Chromate! My one weakness!!! I am slain!" And, to the horror of the entire Web of Worlds, the beloved Sahl Endeberg was, in fact, slain.

The Beloved Afterlife of Sahl Endeberg

Sahl Endeberg arrived at the Faux Pearl Gates, a soul-sorting station where a surly immortal moogle named Saint Pooter gets the power to decide whether spirits move on to the Great Paradisical Beyond, or to the Other Place. After consulting with Saint Pooter's database, and a pair of angels who claimed to be servants of They That Write, it was determined that Sahl Endeberg's death was a mistake. Which, of course, Sahl Endeberg knew, because no one as beloved as him would die before fully realizing his destiny to be Mayor of Kupopolis.

But the angels, while apologetic, could not just restore Sahl Endeberg to life, for that would be admitting to the entire Web that the divine is not, in fact, infallible (even though, unbeknownst to these angels, the clerical error that resulted in Sahl Endeberg's second chance at life was secretly engineered by the Light Goddess Chrystalis before she departed from the Web of Worlds forever). So the angels sent Sahl Endeberg on the "Trials of the Improbable Divine Oopsies," whereby he would quest to earn his right to return to the land of the living.

Upon meeting the Master of the Trials, Sahl Endeberg learned that, to earn his way back to the mortal world, he would have to complete four of the Five Trials of Virtue, each trial representing a trait that the writers most value in their characters: the Trial of Bravery, the Trial of Wisdom, the Trial of Charity and the Trial of Ninjutsu. (as a male, Sahl Endeberg was excused from having to face the fifth trial -- the Trial of Hotchickness) During Sahl Endeberg's trials, he was accompanied by the spirital personifications of his virtues of Bravery, Wisdom, Charity and Ninjutsu, and also by the spirit of Jay Peterson (who had long since gotten stuck in the Trials, and was happy to tag along).

Upon completing the trials, Sahl Endeberg found himself stronger than ever, and as he was about to leave and rejoin the mortal world, the Master of the Trials appeared to stop him. Which triggered a boss battle, with Sahl Endeberg and Jay Peterson on one side, and the Master of Trials alongside the conjured spirits of Wind Lord Pazuzu, the Eldrakyn Fiz'Gan'Ra and the necromancer Scerazar on the other. Only after defeating them, was Sahl Endeberg able to return to the mortal world and be alive again.

Mayoral Election?

Was never held. Because people got busy with other things and forgot about it.

Personal Life

Sahl Endeberg never had time for a family of his own, and his parents left him an orphan right around the same time he was becoming the youngest Dragoon in history.

Special Skills/Abilities

As a Dragoon, Sahl Endeberg can jump really high and fight good with a spear. His weapon, Furacao, allows him to channel wind-elemental magic into his attacks, and his climb up Mount Ordeals gave him the ability to use White Magic. He is also beloved everywhere he goes.

OOC Trivia

Sahl Endeberg's being beloved by everyone was initially intended to be a short-lived joke, but both the joke and the character ran away from me. Now I sorta think he actually is kinda beloved. I know *I* belove him.

Figgy

Sahl Endeberg was nominated for a Figgy in 2007 in the Best Male category .

Figgy

Sahl Endeberg was nominated for a Figgy in 1994 in the Most Beloved Person of All time category , an honor never likely to be bestowed upon any other being in the history of creation...and won!