Courtenay Nightglade

Overview

Courtenay Nightglade is a wizard with a specialization in evocation — the school of magic concerned with raw elemental energy — and a graduate of the Uskkalu School for Magic Arts. She is the only child of a wealthy noble family who was thrown out of the family home for refusing the life they had planned for her. Flirty, morally footloose, and quick-witted, she joined the expedition to Lawcrane on Hargus’s behalf, determined to be someone her family never expected her to become.

Background

Courtenay grew up in the Nobles District of Orsholon City, the only child of the wealthy and respected Nightglade family. Her father, Lord Aldric Nightglade, made the family fortune in textile trade — fine silks and rare dyes imported from Chadigartu. Her mother, Lady Mirabelle Nightglade, is a noted patron of the arts whose salons are attended by Orsholon’s elite.

Courtenay was spoiled from birth, but her relationship with her parents grew strained as she entered adolescence. She showed no interest in the marriage arrangements, business management, or social responsibilities expected of a noble daughter. Instead, she was drawn to the arcane — spending her allowance on firework displays from traveling mages and sneaking into the lower city to watch street conjurers.

When she announced her intention to study magic formally, her parents refused outright. After months of escalating arguments, Courtenay was turned out of the family home. By her own telling, she moved out to attend magic school to redeem herself. In truth, she was kicked out and had nowhere to go until she befriended a man who worked at Uskkalu School for Magic Arts.

She applied herself to her lessons but also learned to use her friendly, flirty nature to cajole teachers and students into helping her through tough spots in the curriculum. She graduated 23rd out of a class of 50 — which could have been much higher had she spent more time studying and less time in the pub.

Recruited by Elindine Raelle at the Enchanted Jackal, on Hargus’s behalf, she joined the expedition to Lawcrane. Hargus himself does not meet Courtenay until later.

Magic and Studies

Courtenay is a wizard whose spellbook is filled with spells of fire, force, and light, reflecting both her flashy personality and her Uskkalu education.

• Fire Bolt — her signature cantrip; she conjures a flame in her palm and hurls it with surprising accuracy
• Mage Hand — useful for mischief, pilfering, and reaching things she should not
• Magic Missile — her go-to combat spell; she calls the homing bolts “elegant and reliable”
• Shield — an invisible barrier learned after one too many close calls
• Charm Person — used liberally, and not always ethically, to navigate social obstacles

Her light stone focus — a small glowing amber gem — is not standard Uskkalu issue. She claims it was a gift from a “very appreciative instructor.” It allows her to channel magic without the cumbersome staff or wand most wizards employ.

The Guard Adventure

During her Uskkalu years, Courtenay was at the Enchanted Jackal Pub for her usual night of flirting and drinking when a young soldier of the Graham Averille Royal Guard caught her eye. She corralled his attention — and his free drinks — and when the soldier suggested they continue the evening, she could not bring him to the dormitory, so he suggested his own quarters: the Graham Averille Royal Guard compound.

Anyone with sense would have realized this was a risky and foolish proposition. Not Courtenay. The excitement of sneaking past guards into forbidden ground was intoxicating. The two snuck back into the compound, and he led her to a dark, comfortable corner of one of the stables.

They fell asleep, and were woken by the sound of horses being moved out for morning inspection. Caught together, the soldier would be severely reprimanded — perhaps even stockaded — for violating the compound’s security. Without warning he took off for the barracks, leaving Courtenay alone in the stable with no idea which way to go. “Bastard hung me out to dry,” she thought. Seen by a stable maid who tried to stop her, with guards rushing to investigate, she knew she would never make it out through the gate. She made a break for the catwalk along the wall — and the lower hem of her skirt caught on a spike at the top, leaving her hanging about six feet from the ground. She wriggled and squirmed free of her dress, dropped to the street in her corset and braies, and in the early morning light ran back to the school.

Later that day, the Royal Guard rode through town showing a particular dress that had been found hanging on their wall. Courtenay made sure she did not leave the school that day.

Personality

Flirty, morally footloose, and not above having fun even when it gets her into trouble. She is street smart but not necessarily loaded with common sense — quick to act and react without thinking. She has a strong, almost insatiable desire for carnal pleasures that often leads to compromising situations, but her quick wit and unstoppable charm serve her well.

She lives by “carpe diem.” Though she breaks rules, she truly does believe in respecting authority. She doesn’t want anyone to know about her noble lineage, but expects respect from those who do. She is incredibly skilled in social matters, though her glib nature can sometimes offend humorless types.

Motivation

Courtenay Nightglade does not want to be looked after. She wants to be someone. She grew up the only child of a noble house that could not see her — a world of silks and salons with no place for a girl who would rather run the Royal Forest than run a household. They told her she would never amount to anything, and she has spent her life since proving them wrong: “My folks never thought I’d amount to much… I might do something and show my folks they were wrong.”

She was not sent out into the world; she was thrown out of it. She tells the story as a choice — she moved out to attend magic school to redeem herself — but the truth is that she was kicked out and had nowhere to go until she befriended a man who worked at Uskkalu. That is the engine of everything she does: the cajoling, the flirting, the risk. She schmoozed her way into a school and discovered she was good at magic, and being good at it mattered because it was the first thing she had ever done that no one handed her. “I kinda schmoozed my way into one of the schools and found out that I really have a knack for it.”

She wants adventure and meaning beyond her family — Hargus names it the first time they meet — and she wants to make a name for herself in the world, not to entertain people with parlor tricks. Lawcrane was a start, but it was never a destination. Beneath the carpe-diem laughter is a nerve she will not admit to: the same nerve that got her thrown out of the family home is the nerve that blocks a kobold’s claws with her ribs, and the charm she used to talk her way into magic school is the charm she turns on anyone in her way. She lives for today because she is still running from the yesterday when she was told she was nothing — and toward the tomorrow when she will be undeniable.

Relationships

Courtenay’s relationships with her fellow party members blend genuine fondness and calculated self-interest:

• Agnese Oatspell: She finds his rigid lawfulness amusing and tries to goad him into relaxing. There is grudging respect between them — he admires her courage, and she respects his moral clarity even as she mocks it.
• Ninette: Intensely curious about the cloaked figure, she has made several failed attempts to uncover their identity. The mystery frustrates and fascinates her in equal measure.
• Beivalur: She has genuine warmth for the Goliath healer, whose gentle nature reminds her of a kindly uncle from her childhood. She has sought his advice on personal matters more than once.
• Hargus: She flirts with him constantly — partly for fun, partly because she recognizes his leadership. She respects his practicality but is not above teasing him about his seriousness.

Courtenay has not spoken to her family since leaving home. Whether she hopes to reconcile or has cut ties permanently is something she deflects with humor whenever the subject arises.

Timeline

Date	Event
1184 ATG	Born in Orsholon City (Nobles District), the only child of the Nightglade family.
—	Spoiled childhood; ruins dresses roughhousing and adventuring in the Royal Forest; drawn to magic — travelling mages, street conjurers.
	Parents refuse to let her study magic; months of arguments; kicked out of the family home — by her own telling, she “moved out to attend magic school to redeem herself.”
(~1199–1204)	Five years at Uskkalu School for Magic Arts; specialization in evocation; graduates 23rd of a class of 50.
During Uskkalu	The Guard Adventure: sneaks into the Graham Averille Royal Guard compound; escapes over the wall, leaving her dress on the spikes.
(~1207)	Recruited by Elindine Raelle at the Enchanted Jackal, on Hargus’s behalf.
~1207 ATG	Departs for Lawcrane with Agnese, Ninette, and Beivalur.

Equipment

Quarterstaff, spellbook, backpack, book, ink and pen, parchment, signet ring, small knife, staff. Carries a “light stone” — a small glowing gem used as a focus for magic.